Two years ago, Stefanos Tsitsipas was an alternate in the Next Gen ATP Finals field. Last season, the Greek star triumphed in Milan. And after beating defending champion Alexander Zverev in straight sets on Wednesday, Tsitsipas has guaranteed his spot in the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals.

The 21-year-old loves challenges. And although he has already booked a trip to the last four at The O2 in London, Tsitsipas will get a chance to eliminate World No. 1 Rafael Nadal from the competition on Friday. If the Spaniard falls, he will not have a chance to move into the semi-finals.

“I’m going to give it my all. I’m going to try to give my soul, and I think it’s also a very good challenge for me in order to prepare for more difficult matches in the semi-finals and the finals, potentially,” Tsitsipas said. “So this match is going to give me a lot. It’s going to educate me, and I’m going to try to get and absorb as much as I can from that.”

Tsitsipas lost the first seven sets of his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Nadal, but the Greek earned his first win against the lefty earlier this year in Madrid, triumphing in three sets. Nadal leads their series 4-1.

But the World No. 6 will take plenty of confidence into their matchup. Tsitsipas, in his Nitto ATP Finals debut, is the only player yet to lose a set. He was in devastating for against Zverev, losing only five games and saving the lone break point he faced.

“I believe I had a good performance today, which is very satisfying to know, that [there were] no signs of any nerves [and that I was] feeling pretty good on the court,” Tsitsipas said. “It was a good performance. It’s really good to know that I’ll be playing in the semi-finals, but I’ve got to concentrate, keep going the way I have been doing things the past couple of days.”

Tsitsipas has not shied away from clashes with the best players in the world. With his victory against the German, Tsitsipas is now 7-8 this year against Top 10 opposition.

“I always find an extra motivation, an extra reason to play well against the top guys. I consider Sascha also being of this part of this elite group,” Tsitsipas said. “He has done very well over the years. He has, in a way, inspired me to step it up and be part of the Top 10. So in a way I actually owe him a lot. He plays good tennis. Also playing Rafa, Roger, Novak, Andy — I haven’t played Andy, but I think there is plenty to learn from them.

“You have been watching them on TV. You have always wanted to be part of that. So for you, when you step out on the court… it’s a visual. When you see something that you have been dreaming of, I think there is always a spark, kind of an extra reason to play.”

The Zverev win was not the only big one for Tsitsipas, though. The three-time ATP Tour champion arrived in London having not beaten Daniil Medvedev in five tries. But he defeated the Russian for the first time on Monday to get his week started on a high note.

“It’s very fulfilling and satisfying. It’s a big relief when you go through so much pressure and so much will and trying to put yourself into a nirvanic concentration mode. It’s not as easy as people think it is,” Tsitsipas said. “It’s something that fulfills you when you are able to beat players like this and give your best, give your all. These wins mean more than others, and it’s a good thing to have in your portfolio.”

Tsitsipas wouldn’t mind adding a win against Nadal to his Nitto ATP Finals resume either.

Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan announced today their decision to retire from professional tennis in 2020. The 41-year-old American twins will bid farewell following the US Open, scene of their major championship debut in 1995, marking the culmination of a legendary doubles partnership.

As the most accomplished team in doubles history, the Bryan brothers have captured an Open Era record 118 trophies in 25-season careers, including all four Grand Slams, all nine ATP Masters 1000s, Nitto ATP Finals (four titles) and Olympic gold medal. They also own the all-time team record for Grand Slam titles (16) and ATP Masters 1000 crowns (39). From 2005 to 2017, the Bryans were presented the ATP Tour Fans’ Favourite Team award each year.

“Mike and I chose to finish our 2019 season after the US Open, even knowing there was a strong chance we’d qualify for the [Nitto] ATP Finals,” said Bob Bryan. “After much discussion, we decided that it would be best to rest our minds and strengthen our bodies in preparation for 2020 which will be our final season on the ATP Tour.”

“For the last 21 years, we have been so grateful for the opportunity to live out our dreams of playing professional tennis. It has truly been a magical ride. However, we want to end this great ride while we’re healthy and we can still compete for titles.”

Mike Bryan said: “We are currently extremely motivated and excited going into our last season. We will enjoy and appreciate each moment we have while saying our goodbyes and giving thanks to the fans who have given us so much joy.”

The Bryans have been the standard bearers for doubles for more than 16 years, since they first ascended to No. 1 in the ATP Doubles Rankings on 8 September 2003. They spent 438 total weeks and ended 10 seasons as the No. 1 team [2003, 2005-07, 2009-2014]. Mike, who became the oldest doubles No. 1 at age 40 on 16 July 2018, has spent the most weeks at the summit of the team game (506).

Bringing their own energy and charisma to the court, they have endeared themselves to the public throughout the world, appearing in 177 tour-level finals and lifting tour-level trophies in 34 different cities. They also helped the United States win the Davis Cup in 2007 and at the 2012 London Olympics won the gold medal, adding to their 2008 Beijing Olympics bronze medal.

Bob underwent right hip surgery in August 2018, but the Bryan brothers reunited at the start of the 2019 season. This year they won two ATP Tour titles at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com (d. Skupski/Skupski) in February and their sixth Miami Open presented by Itau (d. Koolholf/Tsitsipas) in March. After a runner-up finish at the BB&T Atlanta Open, they also claimed their 1,100th team win at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal and currently own a 1,102-358 team record overall.

Additionally, the Bryan Brothers Foundation has raised over USD$1.2 million to support children’s charities. Bob and Mike host two annual fundraisers in their hometown of Camarillo, California and West Palm Beach, Florida, where they partner with golf legend Jack Nicklaus to raise funds to positively impact the lives of children around the country.

The field is set for the inaugural ATP Cup, to be held from 3-12 January 2020 in Brisbane, Perth and Sydney. The final six countries — Bulgaria, Chile, Poland, Uruguay, Moldova and Norway — have qualified in the ATP Cup Standings to complete the 24-team field.

Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria), Cristian Garin (Chile), Hubert Hurkacz (Poland), Pablo Cuevas (Uruguay), Radu Albot (Moldova) and Casper Ruud (Norway) will lead their countries in the spectacular event that launches the 2020 ATP Tour season. The ATP Cup will feature nine members of the Top 10 in the ATP Rankings — including Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and Spain’s Rafael Nadal — and 26 of the Top 30 committed to play.

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View Updated Standings, Qualified Teams & Committed Players

As the highest qualified country at the second entry deadline, Bulgaria replaced Switzerland and joined Belgium and Great Britain in Group C in Sydney. The remaining five countries were drawn into their groups/cities in a live ceremony on 14 November. (Watch a replay of the draw on the ATP Cup’s Facebook page.)

Chile (Group A, Brisbane), Uruguay (Group B, Perth), Moldova (Group C, Sydney),  Norway (Group D, Perth), Poland (Group E, Sydney).

The group stages of the AU $22 million/US $15 million ATP Cup will be hosted in Brisbane, Perth and Sydney over six days. Eight countries will then compete at the Final Eight in Sydney that will feature quarter-finals over two days, semi-finals and a final. Each tie will comprise of two singles and one doubles match.

COUNTRIES & TOP 2 PLAYERS COMMITTED TO 2020 ATP CUP

Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut clinched their place in the final four at the Nitto ATP Finals on Wednesday, beating Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies 7-5, 7-6(3).

The French pairing extended their winning streak to six matches after one hour and 33 minutes, winning 75 per cent of first-serve points (40/53) and saving three of five break points. Herbert and Mahut have not dropped a set since arriving at the Rolex Paris Masters.

Strong backhand returns from Mahut earned the 2018 finalists an early break on their way to a 5-2 lead in the first set. But Krawietz and Mies responded well, as Mies fired multiple returns at the laces of Herbert to save set point and level the score at 5-5. The Frenchmen managed to snap Krawietz and Mies’ momentum with a love service hold before lobbing their opponents to take the opener after 41 minutes.

With Krawietz and Mies both firing forehand winners in the opening game of the second set, Herbert committed two double faults to drop serve. Mahut and Herbert found their way back into the set with a break at 4-3, before claiming victory in the tie-break. Herbert captured three mini-breaks with aggressive returning in the tie-break to improve his record with Mahut this year to 16-5.

Krawietz and Mies drop to 1-1 in Group Max Mirnyi, where they will face Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah in their final round-robin match. Krawietz/Mies, Cabal/Farah and Jean-Julien Rojer/Horia Tecau can all still qualify for Saturday’s semi-finals.