Karen Khachanov moves when he’s chasing balls and trying to stay in rallies. But he really becomes alert when there’s a squirrel on court, as fans at the Citi Open saw on Tuesday evening.

A squirrel found its way onto the court before the eighth game of the second set of Khachanov’s second-round match against Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

During the 5-2 changeover, the squirrel briefly stopped in front of Tsonga, before darting over to Khachanov, then back to Tsonga, then back to Khachanov, who finally noticed the creature and nearly jumped in his chair.

The squirrel, however, meandered past the players and into the stands, where fans shrieked but it appeared none were hurt from the critter’s brief foray onto Stadium Court. Watch Now

Earlier in the day, a moth delayed play between Frances Tiafoe and Alexander Bublik before a ball boy came to the rescue. Watch Now

Frances Tiafoe made a winning start to his home tournament on Tuesday, moving past Alexander Bublik 6-1, 7-6(5) at the Citi Open.

The 16th seed advanced to the third round in Washington for the first time, saving four of six break points against the Newport runner-up en route to victory. Tiafoe entered the tournament on a four-match tour-level losing streak, but proved the more consistent player throughout the 79-minute encounter.

The Maryland native covered the court well and benefitted from 13 Bublik unforced errors to take the first set after 24 minutes. Bublik moved up the court and experimented with underarm serves in key moments to unsettle his opponent in the second set, but Tiafoe once again found his way through. The 21-year-old rallied from 3-5 down and clinched the tie-break as Bublik committed his 10th double fault of the match.

Tiafoe will face third seed Daniil Medvedev or Bjorn Fratangelo for a spot in the quarter-finals. The World No. 40 is yet to meet either player at tour-level.

Yoshihito Nishioka will meet seventh seed David Goffin for a spot in the third round. The 23-year-old earned his 10th tour-level win of the season with a 6-4, 6-1 victory against Daniel Evans.

Miomir Kecmanovic also advanced, saving all six break points he faced to beat Alexei Popyrin 7-6(6), 6-3. The Serbian, who reached his maiden ATP Tour final in Antalya in June, will face 15th seed Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the second round.

Growing up, Taylor Fritz’s journey towards his goal of making it onto the ATP Tour included hundreds of tournament appearances.

But one particular event, at home in San Diego, brings back particularly fond memories. At the age of 12, Fritz teamed up with his mother, former Top 10 star Kathy May Fritz, to compete in a prestigious mother-son event at his local club.

“One of the biggest mother-son tournaments in the country just happened to be in San Diego where I live. So, it was easy, we would just play it,” said Fritz. “My mom was a former Top 10 player and she still played a lot, so she was, for sure, the best mom in the competition.

“I was only 12 years old, so her and I were probably at a very similar level. She might have been better than me at the time. We were playing against a lot of college guys and older guys, so it was tough for me but we got to the quarter-finals.”

While leading their quarter-final match, Kathy May suffered an unfortunate calf injury. But Taylor, desperate to progress in the competition, forced his mother to continue playing in the hope of closing out the victory.

“In the middle of the quarter-final match, she popped her calf and couldn’t play any more,” said Fritz. “We were winning and I was a 12-year-old kid. I wanted to win so bad. I forced her to keep going and finish the match and we ended up winning.

“We got third place in the tournament, but it was just funny because I made her keep playing when she really couldn’t walk. Now, looking back at it, it is just a mother-son at the local club near my house so it was not that big of a deal. But, back then, it was all that mattered.”

Fritz’s passion for the sport has been on full display this year, as the 21-year-old has risen 21 positions to a career-high No. 28 in the ATP Rankings. The American claimed his first ATP Tour crown at the Nature Valley International in June (d. Querrey) and also advanced to the BB&T Atlanta Open championship match last week (l. to De Minaur).

But Fritz knows that he would not be where he is today without the support of his mother. Kathy May has travelled to events and helped her son work on the strategic side of his game.

“I spent a lot of time on the court with my mom and she taught me a lot of things,” said Fritz. “It has definitely helped me along the way. She definitely helped me make decisions and she came to tournaments and she coached me and gave me strategies.”

Now living closer to Los Angeles, can Fritz see himself one day travelling down the coast with his mother to claim the top prize?

“I am sure we could go back now, if we really wanted to. I wouldn’t be getting bullied by the college guys anymore. That could be fun.”

With today’s stars fighting for top prizes on the hard courts of North America, it’s an exciting time to be following the ATP Tour. This week, all eyes are on the Citi Open in Washington, as the ATP 500 event takes centre stage.

In 2018, Hyeon Chung was seeded eighth in the U.S. capital, as the newly-minted Top 20 star continued his ascent. Flash forward one year and Chung is competing once again on hard courts, but this time you won’t find the Korean in the cozy confines of Rock Creek Park. Travel nearly 8,000 miles west to Chengdu, China, and 23-year-old is celebrating a second-round victory on the ATP Challenger Tour.

After more than five months on the sidelines, Chung is back.

“I’m really happy to be back on the tour again,” Chung told ATPChallengerTour.com. “I had a back injury. I’ve missed the competition a lot and just being out there. It felt good to play today. It’s my first tournament since February, so I’m just happy to be on court.”

With little fanfare at the Sichuan International Tennis Center, Chung earned his first victory since January as he kicked off his comeback from a back injury. A 6-3, 6-2 win over Kento Takeuchi was a big step for the former World No. 19. The setting was irrelevant. He was just happy to be back.

“I missed a lot tournaments and few Grand Slams. I fell out of the Top 100 too. But my back feels great and that’s why I’ve come back now. I’m ready to go. I’ve been practising, doing rehab and treatment since February. I’m happy to be back in Chengdu. The city is nice and the fans are great.”

It was just last year that the man they call ‘The Professor’ was taking the ATP Tour by storm. Chung announced himself to the tennis world with a semi-final finish at the Australian Open, a mere months after lifting the trophy at the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals.

Behind an aggressive, attacking mentality and tactical prowess, Chung was putting the rest of the tour on notice. A straight-sets win over Novak Djokovic in Melbourne was followed by deep runs at the ATP Masters 1000 stops in Indian Wells and Miami. The Korean would become the first from his country to crack the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings.

But, despite his immediate wealth of success, Chung’s body was not cooperating. A persistent back injury plagued him throughout the second half of 2018 and he would eventually decide to take a break after the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam in February. He has not competed since.

“There’s some stress and it’s not what I wanted, because I was playing really good last year. But I’m just trying to stay positive all the time. I don’t know why I’ve been injured so much, but I’m trying to stay focused.”

Welcome back, @HyeonChung! ?

After more than five months on the sidelines with a back injury, the ?? made a triumphant return on Tuesday in Chengdu. pic.twitter.com/MkjWN2eFty

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) July 30, 2019

Despite the frustrating first half of the season, Chung can take solace in the fact that he’s come back from a similar situation. In 2016, he enjoyed a successful return from an abdominal injury, immediately reaching back-to-back finals on the ATP Challenger Tour, including a title in Kaohsiung. Two months later, he added a second trophy in Kobe, Japan, as he pushed towards a return to the Top 100.

Three years later, Chung is in similar territory, having slipped from his Top 20 perch to a current standing of No. 166 in the ATP Rankings. The Suwon native says he is taking it one step at a time and has already found inspiration from his countryman Soon-woo Kwon.

The 21-year-old Kwon has emerged as one of the brightest stars on the ATP Challenger Tour this year. The top-ranked Korean, at No. 112 in the ATP Rankings, he owns a staggering 31-12 record with titles in Yokohama and Seoul. And last week, Kwon earned his first ATP Tour match win in Atlanta.

“Soon-woo is playing really well so far this year,” Chung added. “We’re really good friends and we’ve practised a lot together. We train for Davis Cup together and just whenever we have the time. We’re close and I’m really happy to see him play well. I think he’s going to keep playing better.

“I’ve been injured, but I’m still happy to be part of that younger group, also with Tsitsipas, De Minaur, Fritz and the others. I’m hoping to continue following them.”

Two-time champion Philipp Kohlschreiber snapped a five-match tour-level losing streak on Tuesday, beating Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-2 at the Generali Open in Kitzbuhel.

The Kitzbuhel resident, who lifted the trophy in 2015 and 2017, claimed his first win since Roland Garros after 66 minutes, breaking the Frenchman’s serve on five occasions. Kohlschreiber now leads Gasquet for the first time in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-2.

Kohlschreiber will be aiming to secure his 20th win at the ATP 250 clay-court event (19-9) when he meets Pablo Andujar in the second round. The Spaniard continued his fine run of form to eliminate sixth seed Leonardo Mayer 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Last week, Andujar reached the semi-finals in Gstaad before falling to eventual champion Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

#NextGenATP Norwegian Casper Ruud defeated eighth seed and Hamburg European Open semi-finalist Pablo Carreno Busta 6-1, 3-6, 6-1. The 20-year-old saved four of five break points to earn his 15th tour-level win of the season (15-9). Ruud will meet Matthias Bachinger of Germany for a spot in the quarter-finals.

John Isner was among several players who sampled some of the best food Washington has to offer at the Citi Taste of Tennis on Monday at The Hamilton Live on Monday night, marking the event’s second year in the nation’s capital.

Isner joined fellow Top 10 Russian Daniil Medvedev and more than 25 other Citi Open players, including former doubles World No. 1 Marcelo Melo, who earlier in the day celebrated his 500^th career match win.

At the event, guests enjoyed an evening sampling fine food, sipping signature cocktails, mingling with their favourite players, live music and a cooking demonstration. A portion of proceeds raised at the Citi Taste of Tennis benefits the Washington Tennis & Education Foundation.

Citi Taste of Tennis ambassador Isner said, “These events are so much fun. You meet so many cool people and you eat a lot of great food. As a guy who likes to eat, this is a perfect venue for me tonight. There really aren’t any foods I don’t like.”

Medvedev said, “This is my first Citi Taste of Tennis. It’ a lot of fun. Many players told me I should come and try the great food prepared by so many leading chefs. I’m glad I’m here.

“As tennis players we travel to many countries and we try many foods. We burn a lot of calories on the court, so we like to eat.”

Executive chef Jerome Grant of Sweet Home Café said, “We have players from all over the world coming here to play and we’ve got folks from all these restaurants with different backgrounds, so it all goes hand in hand. Importantly, a lot of the proceeds from these nights go into building our tennis centres.”

Pro Tennis Players who attended: John Isner, Sloane Stephens, Chris Eubanks, Marcelo Melo, Jan-Lennard Struff, Matthew Ebden, Medvedev Daniil, Treat Huey, Shelby Rogers, Monica Puig, Kevin Krawietz, Rohan Bopanna, Denis Kudla, Francessca Di Lorenzo, Rosalie Vanderhoek, Alison Bal, Beatrice Gumulya, Jessy Rompies, Elixane Lechamie, Ingrid Neal, Quinn Gleason, Nikola Mektic, Mate Pavic, Franko Skugor, Denis Kudla, Brayden Schnur, and more.

The line-up of chef’s included: Jerome Grant (Sweet Home Café), Erik Bruner-Yang (Spoken English), John Mooney (Bidwell), Jaspratrap “Jassie” Bindra (Punjab Grill), Leo Harvey (Ocean Prime), Neil Cline & Brent Lettsome (British Virgin Islands), Paola Velez (Kith and Kin DC), Chris Kombou (Compass Rose), Gianluigi Dellaccio (Dolce Gelati), Dan Kennedy (Estuary), Michael Rafidi (Albi), Victor Albisu (Taco Bamba), Zach Smith (The Hamilton Live), and Adam Greenberg (Coconut Club).

The Citi Taste of Tennis series is produced by AYS Sports Marketing and was the brainchild of AYS’ founders Judi and Penny Lerner. Back in 2001 Judi and Penny, both longtime tennis fans, dreamed of creating an event that combined the international appeal of fine food and professional tennis. The Citi Taste of Tennis was born, and now 20 years later it has become one of the most anticipated “off the court” event at tennis tournaments nationwide.

ATP Tour stars, including Stefanos Tsitsipas and Nick Kyrgios, paid tribute to the late Peter McNamara on Monday evening at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C.

McNamara, a former Top 10 singles player who, along with fellow Aussie Paul McNamee, formed one of the best doubles teams in the early 1980s, died on 20 July aged 64 after a long fight with prostate cancer.

Aussie Rennae Stubbs, a former WTA player, emceed the on-court ceremony that followed the evening doubles match between Kyrgios/Tsitsipas and Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal/Robert Farah.

“He was one of my idols,” Stubbs told ATPTour.com in an interview before the ceremony. “Peter was always such a great athlete, great competitor, great looking guy. He personified what Australian sports are all about.

“Watching him coach, he was always so hard working and professional.

“He was the epitome of just an incredibly good man and kind, and he always had a good word to say about everybody. He was honest. He’s really going to be missed.”

For the past four years, until February 2019, McNamara worked with China’s Wang Qiang. When they started working together, in 2015, Qiang was ranked just inside the Top 100. She finished 2018 at No. 20, becoming the first Chinese woman to finish the year inside the Top 20 since Li Na retired in 2014.

Stubbs coached against McNamara and would see him around the WTA. But she had no idea he was battling prostate cancer. Aussie Matthew Ebden, who had McNamara as a coach about five years ago, remembered his countryman as never one to complain.

“He was very disciplined and hard working, two things I really got from him. He was honest and genuine,” Ebden said. “He was really respectful and had really sound manners and ethics.”