Denis Shapovalov is playing his best tennis just in time for next week’s Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. The 20-year-old Canadian earned his third Top 10 win and second of 2019 on Thursday, fighting past Nitto ATP Finals qualifier Alexander Zverev 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 to reach the Rolex Paris Masters quarter-finals.

The match featured 30 break points, but Shapovalov came through the most, converting five of his 17 chances against Zverev, who secured his third consecutive trip to the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held 10-17 November at The O2 in London, on Wednesday.

On 20 October, Shapovalov won his first ATP Tour title at the Intrum Stockholm Open and now he’s into his fourth Masters 1000 quarter-final and second of the season (Miami). The left-hander will next face France’s Gael Monfils or Radu Albot of Moldova.

Shapovalov will be making his second appearance at the Next Gen ATP Finals, which starts Tuesday at the Allianz Cloud in Milan.

#NextGenATP Norwegian Casper Ruud’s career is young. But it’s clear that the 20-year-old’s best surface at the moment is clay. He has won more than 60 per cent of his matches on the dirt compared to just 36 per cent on hard courts, and he has not yet earned a victory on grass.

Although some may see that as a weakness for Ruud, the first-time Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier embraces it as a strength. He wants to be the next clay king.

“I’ve always looked up to Rafa a lot and players like him and Thiem, they play with great intensity and in some matches. When you look at them, they’ve kind of already won the match, it seems like, before they walk on the court because their opponent knows it’s going to be so tough to beat them on clay,” Ruud said. “That’s a point I would like to get to in my career. When I step on a clay court, [I want] the guy on the other side of the net to think, ‘Oh, this guy is a really, really good player and I’ll have to play my best tennis for three hours if I’ll have a chance to beat him.’”

The way Ruud sees it, he is more comfortable on clay than most #NextGenATP players.

“I feel like I’m one of the younger guys who maybe prefers to play on clay over hard court… I think it’s a good opportunity for me to be able to do well on clay courts the next, hopefully, 15 years because none of the new ones, except Thiem, who is a little older than us, has done unbelievably good on clay yet,” Ruud said. “I’m thinking that could be an open spot to be a new ‘clay-court guy’ among the Next Gen.”

Ruud, who made the 2017 Rio de Janeiro semi-finals just two months after his 18th birthday, got a chance to flex his clay muscles at Roland Garros this year, making the third round of a major for the first time. But across the net stood 2009 champion Roger Federer, who admitted before the match that he knew more about Ruud’s father — former World No. 39 Christian Ruud — than he did about the #NextGenATP star. Federer won in straight sets, with the third set going to a tie-break.

“I like a lot in his game. Today I saw the clay-courter. But I’m sure he’s also got the hard-court game in him, and I think he’s going to be obviously easily [reach the] Top 50, Top 20, hopefully soon,” Federer said. “From then on, anything is possible at some stage once you get in the Top 20.”

Ruud began training at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar last July, and he climbed to a career-high of No. 54 in the ATP Rankings just more than a year later. Nadal’s best friend, Tomeu Silva, who has travelled with Nadal himself and Jaume Munar, has also spent some time with Ruud.

The Norwegian has shown in 2019 that he is capable of good results on hard courts, not just clay, making the quarter-finals in St. Petersburg, where he fell in three sets against eventual finalist Borna Coric.

“I like to go around and play heavy on the forehand, which obviously bites more on clay and it’s harder to receive a heavy ball on clay than on hard court,” Ruud said. “It’s not like I feel uncomfortable on hard courts or anything like that, but I think we just figured out that clay is maybe the surface that fits my game the most for now.”

Christian Ruud, who has climbed higher in the ATP Rankings than any other player in Norway’s history, knows that his son must continue raising his level on other surfaces if he is to continue his ascent on the ATP Tour.

“I think that his goal is to become a top player, and I think he’s dreaming about No. 1 in the world and you have to play well on all the surfaces to do that,” Christian said. “This year the goal was to be Top 100 when we started the year and it was natural for him to pick mostly clay when he had the chance because maybe he has [a better] chance to do well there. But he is showing me that he could also play well on hard courts.”

One of the reasons for Ruud’s 2019 success — and Milan qualification — was his consistency. After making the Rio de Janeiro semi-finals in February 2017, he could not maintain the momentum for the rest of the year, failing to win an ATP Tour match after Barcelona in April. This year, he has earned 22 of his 39 career tour-level wins, including a trip to his maiden ATP Tour final in Houston.

“I think his lowest level has come up a lot. He’s been playing a lot better at ATP events and winning a lot more matches and also beating decent players when he’s not been playing his best, so I think his high level has increased as well as his low level,” Christian said. “I think it’s sometimes difficult when you’re very young and do good results. You have one week where everything is working, like in Rio in 2017… it came a little bit quick. There are still a lot of good players on the Challenger Tour.

“I think this year has been more consistent. He’s just been learning more and getting more experience and everything has improved.”

Ruud will hope that translates to Milan. And although the season-ending 21-and-under event is contested on an indoor hard court, the Norwegian is plenty excited to test himself against the world’s best #NextGenATP stars. He even feels that since it’s not on clay, he’ll be able to play with his “shoulders down”, and not feel as much pressure.

“I’m feeling like I’m close to achieving big results, even on hard courts,” Ruud said. “So I just have to keep on training hard and staying focussed and doing the right things and I think good things can happen.”

Stefanos Tsitsipas is combining his rapid rise up the ATP Rankings with an equally speedy portfolio of wins. The Greek reached 100 tour-level wins with his third-round victory on Thursday against Aussie Alex de Minaur at the Rolex Paris Masters.

The 21-year-old hit his latest milestone after 160 matches (100-60) on Tour, which is a faster rate than everyone in the Top 10 besides Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Fastest To 100 Among The Current Top 10

Tsitsipas picked up his first tour-level win two years ago at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Shanghai and immediately built on it with his maiden ATP Tour semi-final in Antwerp. Forty-six more wins followed in 2018, including his first ATP Tour title in Stockholm (d. Gulbis), first Masters 1000 final in Toronto (l. to Nadal) and the Next Gen ATP Finals title in Milan (d. De Minaur).

The Greek surpassed those numbers this year with his 50th tour-level win on Thursday. He joined Daniil Medvedev and Roger Federer as the only players to reach that mark this season. Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will play for their 50th win later Thursday.

Tsitsipas captured titles in Marseille (d. Kukushkin) and Estoril (Cuevas), in addition to reaching another Masters 1000 final in Madrid (l. to Djokovic). He also defeated Federer en route to his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at the Australian Open, after which he declared that “my idol today became my rival.”

His outstanding results helped him become the first Greek player to crack the Top 5 of the ATP Rankings this August. The Greek’s victory over Djokovic in Shanghai, his first against a World No. 1, secured his debut appearance at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November.

Tsitsipas will look to add more wins to his tally in Paris when he faces top seed Djokovic or Kyle Edmund in the quarter-finals.

Novak Djokovic put behind his opening struggles at the Rolex Paris Masters on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the season’s final ATP Masters 1000 event.

The Serbian, who struggled early on during his second-round match on Wednesday (d. Moutet), looked sharp and played resiliently against Brit Kyle Edmund to advance 7-6(7), 6-1. Djokovic let slip a 6/3 lead in the first-set tie-break but clinched the set on his seventh set point.

He needed no such dramatics in the second set as he broke three times and won 12 of the final 14 points to celebrate his 50^th match win of the season, the 12^th time Djokovic has reached that milestone in his career.

“I was feeling energy-wise better and felt more alert, just more strength, more energy, more speed. I didn’t play so well, I think, from baseline in the first set. I served well. That got me to the tie-break,” Djokovic said.

“Second set was the best set I’ve played so far in the tournament. Finished off with a winner, finished off with amazing return game. So of course the sensation is very positive. And I’m convinced that I’m headed in the right direction so that tomorrow will be even better.”

The 32-year-old is looking to finish year-end No. 1 for the sixth time. Djokovic needs to remain within 1,500 points of Rafael Nadal this week in order to have a chance at surpassing the Spaniard at the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held 10-17 November at The O2 in London. At the start of Thursday play, Djokovic was 1,280 points behind the Spaniard.

Djokovic will next meet Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in a rematch of their Rolex Shanghai Masters quarter-final earlier this month, which Tsitsipas won for his first win against a World No. 1.

“Obviously he’s one of the best players in the world. He’s already an established player. He’s all-around player, plays very well on all surfaces,” Djokovic said.

Tsitsipas, the World No. 7, beat #NextGenATP Aussie Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-4 to make his fourth ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final of the season and also earn his 50^th win of 2019, a career-best mark (46 last year). Tsitsipas also celebrated the 100^th tour-level win of his career.

The 20-year-old broke De Minaur three times, including during the second game of the opening set and the ninth game of the second set, to improve to 3-0 in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series with De Minaur. Tsitsipas also beat the Aussie during the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals title match.

De Minaur, No. 18 in the ATP Rankings, will return to the award-winning 21-and-under tournament next week as the top seed and will try to triumph in Milan for the first time.

Tsitsipas, who also made Masters 1000 quarter-finals in Rome, Madrid and Shanghai, will make his debut at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals, to be held 10-17 November at The O2 in London. In Paris, the Greek star will next meet four-time champion Novak Djokovic or Briton Kyle Edmund for a place in the semi-finals. Tsitsipas beat Djokovic earlier this month to reach the Rolex Shanghai Masters semi-finals.

Grigor Dimitrov barely put a foot wrong on Thursday in one of his best performances of the year for a place in the Rolex Paris Masters quarter-finals. The Bulgarian ended the six-match winning streak of fifth seed Dominic Thiem 6-3, 6-2 in 72 minutes.

Dimitrov competed with great urgency throughout, and combatted Thiem’s aggression in the Austrian’s bid to work his way back into the match. Dimitrov’s willingness to attack the net reaped dividends early on and he quickly took a 4-1 lead. The 32-minute first set ended when Thiem hit a forehand return wide.

Dimitrov, who had advanced to the Paris third round for the seventh straight year, broke Thiem in a 10-minute third game of the second set courtesy of a volley error. Thiem pressed, but Dimitrov hit big from behind the baseline and snatched another break for a 4-1 advantage. Serving for the match at 5-2, 40/0, Dimitrov hit his first double fault, but it was a momentary lapse in concentration for the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion.

According to Hawkeye, Dimitrov did his best to step into the court and dictate with his forehand. The Bulgarian was pinned deep in his backhand corner when Thiem engaged him in cross-court backhand rallies. But whenenver he was able to, the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion stepped in to play aggressively with his forehand, hitting his forehand five kilometres per hour quicker on average (127 vs. 122 kmh) than the big-hitting Thiem. 

Dimitrov took 41 per cent of his forehands inside the baseline, an area in which Thiem only found himself hitting forehands 29 per cent of the time.

Dimitrov & Thiem’s Forehand Hit Points

Dimitrov also controlled play with his serve, winning 88 per cent of his first-serve points, while Thiem won just 64 per cent of his. Dimitrov interestingly attacked Thiem’s forehand return in the deuce court, going there 58 per cent of the time. Thiem managed to put just 50 per cent of his first-serve returns in play throughout the match.

Dimitrov’s First-Serve Placement

Thiem, a winner of an ATP Tour-best five trophies in 2019 and a 46-17 match record, will now prepare to focus on competing at the season finale, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November. Last week, he captured the Erste Bank Open crown.

Dimitrov will next face Cristian Garin, who saved three match points in the first completed singles match of the day to book a place in his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.

The Chilean, who has lifted two ATP Tour trophies this year, battled back from a 3/6 deficit in the deciding set tie-break to earn a 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(6) victory over French qualifier Jeremy Chardy in two hours and 24 minutes. The pair had split their two previous meetings in 2019 at Houston and Bastad.

Garin saved the first match point at 6/3 with a forehand approach winner, then hit an ace at 4/6. Chardy was hesitant to attack the net when serving at 6/5 and mis-timed a forehand.

– Hawkeye data and visuals courtesy ATP Media

A treasured rivalry will get its latest chapter on Thursday at the Rolex Paris Masters when second seed Rafael Nadal meets No. 16 seed Stan Wawrinka as part of a stacked third-round lineup. Nadal looks to remain on course for his first title at the AccorHotels Arena, which would also clinch the year-end No. 1 ATP Ranking for him.

“I’m very happy to be able to compete again at a good level,” Nadal said. “Tomorrow is another day, another tough match against Stan. Every day in this tournament is so difficult, so let’s see if I’m able to play another good match.”

Nadal holds a convincing 18-3 lead over Wawrinka in their Fedex ATP Head2Head rivalry and has won their past five matches, all in straight sets. The Spaniard is on a 12-match winning streak and exuding confidence in his game, continually finding ways to step up in the crucial moments of a set.

But Nadal knows he can’t rely on his past success against Wawrinka for their latest clash. Wawrinka’s most recent victory over his rival came at this event four years ago. The Swiss has also been in top form lately, prevailing in 11 of his past 13 matches since the start of the US Open.

After competing against each other for more than a decade on the world’s biggest stages, there will be no secrets when they meet on Court Central. Their game plans will likely remain similar to their other 21 matches, but it will come down to who can execute them most effectively.

“I do not want him to play his game, which means I need to make sure I don’t let him be in a position where he can hit hard,” Nadal said before the 2017 Roland Garros final, their most recent meeting in Paris. “I will have to do everything I can to keep him from playing aggressively. If I can play long balls, if I can hit hard… I think I will be hopefully able to control him. Easy to say, but it may not be that easy to do.”

The match is also a must-win for Wawrinka if he wants to return to the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals, held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November. The Swiss needs to take the title in Paris in order to have a shot at grabbing the last remaining qualifying spot.

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Top seed Novak Djokovic continues his quest for a fifth Paris title against Brit Kyle Edmund. The Serbian leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 4-1. Djokovic needs a big week in Paris in order to keep his hopes alive for a sixth year-end No. 1 finish. He trails Nadal by 1,280 points in the ATP Race to London, which acts as a barometer for who will finish the year at No. 1, but can close the gap significantly with the 1,000 points on offer for the winner this week.

“I understand that I need to play better and feel better to have a chance to go far in this tournament and, as a result of that, to have a chance to still be in the battle for No. 1,” Djokovic said. “But, again, it doesn’t depend only on me. It depends on [Nadal]. But my focus is on me.”

Two other London hopefuls are also in action on Thursday. Frenchman Gael Monfils, the No. 13 seed, squares off with Moldovan Radu Albot. Monfils will return to The O2 if he can reach the final this week. Aussie Alex de Minaur takes on seventh-seeded Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas in an all-#NextGenATP battle. De Minaur must take the title in Paris in order to have a shot at qualifying.

Who will win the latest @FedEx ATP Head2Head match between these players?#RolexParisMasters

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 31, 2019

Other notable matches on Thursday include sixth-seeded German Alexander Zverev, who clinched the seventh qualifying spot for London, battling #NextGenATP Canadian Denis Shapovalov. Fifth-seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem looks to get ahead in his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, which is currently tied 2-2.

ORDER OF PLAY – THURSDAY 31 October 2019
COURT CENTRAL start 11:00 am
[Q] Jeremy Chardy vs Cristian Garin (CHI)
[5] Dominic Thiem vs Grigor Dimitrov
[1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs Kyle Edmund (GBR)

Not Before 5:00 pm
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) vs Jan-Lennard Struff (GER)

Not Before 7:30 pm
[2] Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs [16] Stan Wawrinka (SUI)
[13] Gael Monfils (FRA) vs Radu Albot (MDA)

Court 1 start 11:00 am
Karen Khachanov (RUS) / Andrey Rublev (RUS) vs Marcus Daniell (NZL) / Philipp Oswald (AUT)
[8] Ivan Dodig/Filip Polasek vs Jurgen Melzer (AUT) / Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA)
[7] Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Alex de Minaur (AUS)
[6] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs Denis Shapovalov (CAN)
Maximo Gonzalez (ARG) / Austin Krajicek (USA) vs Rohan Bopanna (IND) / Denis Shapovalov (CAN)

Click here to view the rest of Thursday’s schedule

Alexander Zverev has become the seventh singles player to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November. The 22-year-old German will make his third straight appearance alongside Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Daniil Medvedev, Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas in the 2019 field.

Last year, Zverev captured the biggest title of his career at the Nitto ATP Finals, becoming the first player to beat both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the 10 years that both men were in the field (2007-15, 2018). He was the first German titlist since Boris Becker in 1995 and the youngest year-end champion since Djokovic, aged 21, in 2008.

“I am really happy to qualify for the third consecutive year,” said Zverev. “Winning the title there last year has been the highlight of my career so far. I have such great memories of The O2.”

Buy Your London Tickets

Zverev, who secured his place in the eight-player field after a number of London contenders bowed out in second-round action Wednesday at the Rolex Paris Masters, has notched 40+ match wins for the fourth consecutive season.

The Monte-Carlo resident clinched his 11th ATP Tour trophy in May, winning three consecutive three-set matches at the Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open that culminated in saving two match points against Nicolas Jarry in the final. He also finished runner-up at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (l. to Kyrgios) in March and at the Rolex Shanghai Masters (l. to Medvedev) earlier this month. Additionally, he advanced to the Roland Garros quarter-finals for the second successive year.

Italy’s Matteo Berrettini, who is looking to clinch his first spot at the Nitto ATP Finals, sits in eighth position in the 2019 ATP Race To London. Frenchman Gael Monfils, Swiss Stan Wawrinka and Australia’s Alex de Minaur also remain in contention for the final singles berth with less than one week to go of the regular ATP Tour season.

Seven doubles teams — Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, this year’s Wimbledon and US Open champions, who will receive the year-end No. 1 doubles trophy at The O2 next month, Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo, Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus, Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau, Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, and Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut — have qualified for the doubles season finale.

The ATP’s crown jewel event is to be held at The O2 in London through to 2020, where it has been staged to wide acclaim since 2009. The event has successfully established itself as one of the major annual sporting events worldwide, broadcast in more than 180 territories with global viewership figures reaching an average of 95 million each year.