Kei is so very clutch. Kei Nishikori has found himself in a winner-take-all deciding set tie-break three times so far in 2019. Three times he has triumphed, including twice at the Australian Open in 10-point Match Tie-breaks. The tie-breaks, which are first to 10, win by two, were implemented for the first time this year to settle five-set matches that reach 6-6 in the fifth.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of the best performers in tie-breaks from the past 52 weeks identifies that the Japanese star leads the ATP Tour with tie-breaks won at 77.8 per cent.

Nishikori’s Deciding Set Tie-breaks Won In 2019

Nishikori’s tie-break record in 2018 from Roland Garros to the end of the season was a jaw-dropping 14-2. From Roland Garros to the Round of 16 at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, he was a perfect 12-0 in tie-breaks, including going five-for-five in his first four matches at Wimbledon.

Past 52 Weeks: Tie-Breaks Won / Win Percentage

Jumping up the list into a tie for fifth place after the Miami Open presented by Itau is 18-year-old Canadian sensation Felix Auger-Aliassime. He was 4-3 with tie-breaks won in 2019 coming into Miami, then won a tie-break in four matches leading to the semi-finals, where he lost to John Isner 7-6(3), 7-6(4).

Isner actually played nine tie-breaks in Miami, winning them all. Four of his matches were decided only with tie-breaks. Despite that streak, he owns the 29th best tie-break record in the past 52 weeks with a win percentage at 57.7 per cent.

Milos Raonic is second on the list, having played 11 tie-breaks to begin the year at the Brisbane International and the Australian Open, and winning nine, including five in a row.

Daniil Medvedev is third, and is currently enjoying a career-high ATP ranking at No. 14. He is 7-3 in 2018 with tie-breaks won, including defeating Reilly Opelka 7-6(5), 6-7(5), 7-6(0) in Miami. World No. 1 Novak Djokovic sits fourth on the list, winning both recent tie-breaks he played in Indian Wells and Miami.

Four players are tied for fifth with a win percentage of 66.7 per cent. They are Taylor Fritz, Auger-Aliassime, Juan Martin del Potro and Fabio Fognini.

World No. 3 Alexander Zverev is ninth on the list, winning 65 per cent of his tie-breaks in the past 52 weeks. Zverev won the Nitto ATP Finals in London in November, winning four tie-breaks against Marin Cilic, Isner and Roger Federer en route to the title.

Jumping into the 10th spot with 64.7 per cent is 29-year-old Moldovan Radu Albot. He has impressively won his last nine tie-breaks in a row, including defeating Daniel Evans 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(7) in the Delray Beach final in February.

Triumphing in tie-breaks seems like a 50-50 proposition after such a close set, but these players manage to find another gear and dominate their opponents right at the finish line.

On his debut at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, Lorenzo Sonego is through to the third round after upsetting eighth seed Karen Khachanov 7-6(4), 6-4 on Tuesday.

Sonego had only played one match against an opponent inside the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings (Isner, 2019 Miami) before taking the court against Khachanov. But the 23-year-old battled past the World No. 12 after one hour and 52 minutes.

The Italian qualifier, who defeated countryman Andreas Seppi in the first round, saved seven of eight break points en route to victory. Sonego owns an 8-6 tour-level record this season and reached his second ATP Tour quarter-final last week at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakech (l. to Tsonga).

The 23-year-old will face Brit Cameron Norrie or Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in the third round. Earlier in the day, Norrie booked his spot in the second round with a 6-4, 6-3 victory against Frenchman Adrian Mannarino.

“We had a lot of long rallies. I think I was just able to defend a little bit better than him,” said Norrie. “When I found my first serve, I hit my spots well and had a high percentage winning on first points as opposed to him. I returned a lot better off the first serve against him.”

Gilles Simon twice recovered from a break down in the first set before claiming a 7-5, 6-1 win against #NextGenATP Australian Alexei Popyrin. The Frenchman will meet 13th seed Fabio Fognini in the third round.

Did You Know?
Sonego defeated Gilles Muller at last year’s US Open. That was the final match of the Luxembourg star’s career.

Stan Wawrinka has reached some of the highest highs in tennis, ascending to No. 3 in the ATP Rankings, winning three Grand Slam titles, and an ATP Masters 1000 trophy at the 2014 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. But two left knee surgeries in August 2017 sent the Swiss star as low as 263rd in the world last year, and he’s been battling to find his best form ever since.

“When I had the surgery, we didn’t know if I was going to be able to play again because it was a tough surgery,” Wawrinka said. “But now it’s been a long time, I worked really hard to be back where I am. Right now, I’m really happy since the beginning of the year the way I’m playing. I’m happy to be back on the clay.”

Monte-Carlo has long been a special place for Wawrinka, and not just because it’s where he resides. Five years ago, he defeated three Top 10 opponents at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, finishing his run with a thrilling 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-2 against Roger Federer to lift the trophy.

“That was special, my only Masters 1000 Wawrinka: 'We Didn't Know If I Was Going To Be Able To Play Again',” Wawrinka said. “To play the final here, one of my favourite tournaments during the year, amazing atmosphere to play here, [it was] a special day against Roger. I remember we warmed up together before the final. It was something really, really special that year to win it here.”

Perhaps those happy memories will serve Wawrinka well this week. Clay is the 34-year-old’s most successful surface, having won more than 67 per cent (176-86) of his matches on the red dirt.

“I always feel good and comfortable to come back on this surface. I think the sliding helps my game to play my powerful game. I’ve been feeling great on the court physically, tennis-wise also,” Wawrinka said. “I’ve had some good results [during my comeback], also some tough losses that could have changed a lot in my [ATP] Ranking. But I’m really patient with that and I’m always looking in the present.”

The Swiss, World No. 36, is at his highest ATP Ranking since last May. And with only 65 points to defend through Roland Garros, he will be looking to take advantage. His win against Frenchman Lucas Pouille on Monday was worth 45 points.

But this is not about one match. Wawrinka feels that the number next to his name is not the key. The Swiss knows his level is back near where it once was, and that on any day, he can compete with the best players in the world.

“I feel good on the court. I feel that I can beat a lot of players here so we will see,” Wawrinka said. “We will see how it’s going to go the next few months but I’m convinced that if I keep pushing myself, keep doing the right things, keep playing at that level I’m going to have a chance to do some big results.”

In a rematch of their epic five-set Wimbledon encounter last year, Guido Pella defeated Marin Cilic 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 on Tuesday to advance to the third round of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The 28-year-old, who rallied from two sets down to beat Cilic at SW19 last year, broke Cilic’s serve on eight occasions in Monaco to improve to 13-3 on clay this year. Earlier this season, Pella enjoyed great success on this surface in South America. The Argentine did not drop a set en route to his first ATP Tour title at the Brasil Open (d. Garin) and also reached the championship match at the inaugural Cordoba Open (l. to Londero).

In his next match, Pella will try to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final. The World No. 35 will meet last year’s Roland Garros semi-finalist Marco Cecchinato, who beat 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka in three sets despite losing the first eight games of the match.

Did You Know?
Pella reached a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 32 on 18 March. The lefty had not won a match in two prior appearances in Monte-Carlo.

Melzer/Thiem Lead Doubles Winners
Austrians Jurgen Melzer and Dominic Thiem had lost their only two doubles matches as a team heading into the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. But the countrymen prevailed on Tuesday, defeating German Philipp Kohlschreiber and Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 7-5.

Melzer, who triumphed alongside Franko Skugor last week in Marrakech, and Thiem won 83 per cent of their first-serve points, while Kohlschreiber and Verdasco captured just 63 per cent of those points. Melzer and Thiem will next play second seeds Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo or Spaniards Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez.

Moldovan Radu Albot and Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili ousted eighth seeds Raven Klaasen and Joe Salisbury 6-3, 6-7(5), 10-7. Klaasen typically plays with Michael Venus and Salisbury competes alongside Rajeev Ram. Albot and Basilashvili will try to reach the quarter-finals when they face Hungarian Marton Fucsovics and Argentine Guido Pella, who defeated Italians Matteo Berrettini and Fabio Fognini 6-4, 6-3.

Nikola Mektic, who won the BNP Paribas Open with Horacio Zeballos, and Skugor moved past Dutchman Matwe Middelkoop and Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-5. The seventh seeds will play Russian Karen Khachanov and Spaniard Feliciano Lopez next.

The other teams that advanced on Tuesday are Argentine Diego Schwartzman/Portuguese Joao Sousa and Brazilian Marcelo Demoliner/Russian Daniil Medvedev.

Mark your calendars! #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime will face World No. 3 Alexander Zverev at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters after battling past Juan Ignacio Londero 7-5, 7-6(5) on Tuesday.

“It was a tough match. He already won a title this year. I played against him in South America, and he had victory after victory, so I knew it was going to be difficult. And it was,” Auger-Aliassime said. “But I’m very happy to win my first match after Miami, because I didn’t know what to expect after Miami. But I felt from the beginning I was having a good feeling.”

Auger-Aliassime recorded his 15th tour-level victory of 2019 (15-7) after one hour and 58 minutes, winning 88 per cent of first-serve points (38/43). Despite failing to convert three match points heading into the second-set tie-break, the Canadian claimed victory on his fourth opportunity as Londero fired a backhand return into the tramline.

“It wasn’t easy, because he was fighting until the end, and he raised his level of tennis at the end of the match,” Auger-Aliassime said. “But I just had to keep on working, keep on looking for any chance, and I managed to win. That was very important.”

The World No. 33 has already risen 75 spots in the ATP Rankings this year, following a semi-final run at the Miami Open presented by Itau (l. to Isner) and a runner-up finish at the Rio Open presented by Claro (l. to Djere).

Auger-Aliassime will be aiming to defeat a Top 10 player for the second time at an ATP Masters 1000 event this season. The 18-year-old stunned reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas at the BNP Paribas Open last month.

“I think this is a good opportunity [to play Zverev]. He’s the one who is more or less the leader of the new generation of tennis players,” said Auger-Aliassime. “It’s been a while since he’s been around, so he has got lots of experience already.”

“So for me, this is going to be a great opportunity to play against him and to see how I do against him. I believe in my tennis. I am going to try to do my best, and I’m very hopeful that I will adjust my play to his. I’m going to try to dictate the game.”

In the longest ATP Tour match this season, Borna Coric saved one match point to outlast Jaume Munar 6-7(3), 7-6(7), 6-4 after three hours and 29 minutes.

Shortly after saving three break points at 5-5 (0/40) in the second set, the ninth seed moved up the court and fired a backhand down the line to avoid defeat at 5/6 in the tie-break. Bidding to reach back-to-back Masters 1000 quarter-finals, following his run to the last eight in Miami (l. to Auger-Aliassime), Coric will meet last year’s finalist Kei Nishikori or Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the third round.

Herbert recorded his first victory in four FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings against Fernando Verdasco, defeating the 2010 finalist 6-4, 6-4.

“I’m very happy for the result today,” said Herbert. “This is my fifth match on this surface [at all levels] this season, and probably this match was the most accomplished one, the best I have played so far… I’m really happy because I have never won against [Verdasco].”

Alexander Zverev has already won many important titles in his young career, including the 2018 Nitto ATP Finals and three ATP Masters 1000 tournaments. The German has been so successful, that it’s easy to forget he is still only 21.

Zverev would not be eligible to compete at the Next Gen ATP Finals anymore if he chose to, but the German expects some of the top #NextGenATP players to join him near the top of the ATP Rankings sooner rather than later.

“It’s funny because I’m 21 years old and I’ve been on Tour for basically five years now. I don’t like to say I’m better or everything like this. I mean obviously my [ATP] Ranking says it and I’ve won bigger titles, but everybody has their own way,” Zverev said. “I’ve played more tournaments than them. I’ve been on Tour longer, but in a few years’ time, nobody will remember that I was there quicker. I think those guys are great and I wish them nothing but the best. I think the new generation of tennis will be in good hands.”

The World No. 3 has been particularly impressed by Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov, a pair of #NextGenATP Canadians. Both Auger-Aliassime, 18, and Shapovalov, who turned 20 on Monday, reached the semi-finals in Miami.

“Felix is obviously a little bit younger than us and he’s doing amazing. Canada has probably two Grand Slam champions growing up right now,” Zverev said. “Denis, even though he may be struggling a little bit more than everybody expected, trust me, he will be on top of the game soon and Felix as well. I think Canada, if everything goes well and no injuries occur or something like this, they will be on top of the game.”

Zverev could potentially face Felix in his opening match in Monte-Carlo. The 18-year-old needs to beat Cordoba champion Juan Ignacio Londero to set the blockbuster.

“He’s been one of the best young guys on Tour this year. He made the semis in Miami, made the final in Rio,” Zverev said. “I’m very happy for him because he’s one of the most humble and nicest guys that I know. He always walks around, even when he was younger, he’s still young but when he was just starting and the first few times that everybody saw him on the Tour he was always very polite and always very positive.

“For me, I’m not going to say I’m a fan of him, but I always kind of look after him because, first of all, he’s a great player, but also because he’s an unbelievably nice kid.”

For his part, Zverev is ready to turn over a new leaf on his 2019 season. After a strong start to the year, including a runner-up showing in Acapulco, the German got sick at Indian Wells, limiting his performance there and in Miami. Zverev has won multiple clay-court titles in each of the past two seasons.

“I enjoy playing on it. I’m one of those guys that looks forward to playing on it, not even because I win, but I enjoy the long rallies, I enjoy the running around, sliding around the court and stuff like this,” Zverev said. “Clay with indoor hard courts is probably my favourite surface right now.”

Zverev has won three of his trophies on indoor hard courts. So how does he translate his game to the slower clay surface?

“I try to be very aggressive always. But I’m also very tall, so I need space. I need space, I need time to have my big swings and be able to hit the ball and that’s what clay gives me,” Zverev said. “When I play heavy, it doesn’t matter what surface I play on. It’s more about where I have the timing, where I feel the most comfortable and so far it’s always been clay.”

The 2017 Rome and 2018 Madrid champion will hope that comfort pays off in Monte-Carlo, where he will try to complete his trio of clay-court Masters 1000 titles.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic can win the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, but it won’t be in doubles. Fourth seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, who qualified for the 2018 Nitto ATP Finals, defeated Djokovic and his brother, Marko Djokovic, 6-1, 6-3 to reach the second round in Monte-Carlo.

The top seed in the singles draw has shown his ability in doubles this year, advancing to the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open last month alongside Fabio Fognini. And while the Djokovic brothers reached the last four in Doha to start the season, they could not beat the Colombians on Monday, falling after 55 minutes.

That was not an upset given the ATP Doubles Team Ranking of the Colombian team, but reigning Australian Open champions Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut losing was. Dutchmen Robin Haase and Wesley Koolhof beat the top seeds 7-6(4), 7-6(2) in one hour and 38 minutes. Herbert and Mahut saved six of the seven break points they faced, but it was not enough to defeat the unseeded pair, which won 73 per cent of its first-serve points.

The Dutchmen will next play Acapulco champions Alexander Zverev and Mischa Zverev, who ousted Romain Arneodo and Hugo Nys, wild cards from Monaco, 4-6, 6-4, 10-7. The Zverev brothers lost only one service point in the Match Tie-break, moving on after one hour and 13 minutes.

In a star-packed match, two-time Nitto ATP Finals champions Henri Kontinen and John Peers dismissed Grigor Dimitrov and Stan Wawrinka 7-6(6), 6-3. The sixth seeds were clutch under pressure, saving eight of the 10 break points they faced.

In the only remaining doubles match of the day, Croatian Ivan Dodig and Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin beat Serbian Laslo Djere and Indian Divij Sharan 6-2, 6-1 in 58 minutes. Dodig and Roger-Vasselin triumphed in Montpellier earlier this year.

Did You Know?
Beginning this season, all ATP Masters 1000 doubles tournaments have 32 teams in the draw as compared to 24 in the past.

Dominic Thiem, the fourth seed at this week’s Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, captured his first ATP Masters 1000 title at the BNP Paribas Open, becoming just the second Austrian to triumph at that level (also Thomas Muster). The only surprise was that his first Masters 1000 triumph did not come on clay.

Thiem is on pace to become one of the most successful clay-court players of this generation, if not in the Open Era. While Rafael Nadal has overshadowed the 25-year-old with his dominance on the surface throughout his career, winning 23 of his record 33 Masters 1000 trophies on clay, Thiem has quickly moved up the clay-court record books.

Among active players, Thiem has the fourth-highest winning percentage on clay according to the FedEx ATP Performance Zone, winning more than 74 per cent of his matches on the surface.

The only three players who have won on clay at a greater pace are the ‘Big Three’ of Nadal (92%), World No. 1 Novak Djokovic (79%) and Roger Federer (76%). Thiem is the only player to defeat Nadal on the red dirt over the past two seasons. The Spaniard holds a 50-2 record on clay since 2017.

Active Clay-Court Winning Percentage Leaders

“It’s always my most important part of the season with my biggest highlight of the year, Roland Garros, coming up,” Thiem said of the European clay swing, beginning with Monte-Carlo. “There are so many points to play for and only great tournaments.”

Furthermore, only five active players own more clay-court titles than eight-time ATP Tour clay-court champion Thiem — Nadal (57), Djokovic (13), David Ferrer (13), Federer (11) and Tommy Robredo (11) — and they are all at least six years older than him. The Austrian is just three titles away from Federer, who won his first ATP Tour trophy on clay when Thiem was only eight years old.

Active Clay-Court Title Leaders

Thiem’s performance in Indian Wells serves as a clear example of his hard-court prowess. Yet entering Monte-Carlo, the World No. 5 has won 18 per cent more of his clay-court matches than he has on hard courts. Last year’s Roland Garros finalist currently sits 16th in the Open Era in clay-court winning percentage, ahead of former World No. 1s Juan Carlos Ferrero, Andre Agassi and John McEnroe.

The three-time Nitto ATP Finals qualifier has made the final at the Mutua Madrid Open — one of three clay-court Masters 1000 tournaments — in each of the past two years. He will try to advance that far in Monte-Carlo for the first time. The fourth seed will play Slovak Martin Klizan or Argentine qualifier Federico Delbonis in the first round.

*Spaniard Nicolas Almagro played his final match last week.