Julio Peralta and Horacio Zeballos captured their second tour-level title in as many weeks on Sunday, defeating Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 6-1, 4-6, 10-6 at the German Tennis Championships presented by Kampmann.

Peralta and Zeballos, who lifted their fifth tour-level team trophy at the SkiStar Swedish Open in Bastad last week, saved nine of 11 break points and won 70 per cent of first-serve points en route to victory after 83 minutes. Zeballos has now won 10 tour-level doubles crowns. Peralta has captured each of his six tour-level trophies alongside Zeballos.

Having become the first team to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals by reaching the championship match, top seeds Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic were bidding to win their fifth tour-level crown of the season. The ATP Doubles Race to London leaders, who drop to 41-10 this year, have both lifted the Hamburg trophy with previous partners. Marach won the title with countryman Alexander Peya in 2011, while Pavic emerged victorious alongside Ivan Dodig last year.

Peralta and Zeballos receive 500 ATP Doubles Ranking points and split €105,140 in prize money for lifting the trophy. Marach and Pavic gain 300 points and share €51,470.

Did You Know?
Five of Peralta and Zeballos’ six tour-level titles have been won on clay.

Prior to this week, Matteo Berrettini had never reached a tour-level quarter-final. But now, after beating three seeded opponents in five matches at the J. Safra Sarasin Swiss Open Gstaad, the Italian is an ATP World Tour champion.

Berrettini saved two set points in a tense first set before clinching the only break of the match to beat Roberto Bautista Agut in one hour and 45 minutes. The 22-year-old Gstaad debutant won each of his 49 service games en route to the title, navigating his way past No. 4 seed Andrey Rublev, eighth seed Feliciano Lopez and second-seeded Bautista Agut along the way.

“I am really happy, I have to stay focussed because of the doubles [final] and not think about this, but I am really happy,” said Berrettini.

The World No. 84, who will partner Daniele Bracciali in the doubles final, fired 17 aces and did not face a break point to improve to 12-12 at tour-level this season. In February, Berrettini won his second ATP Challenger Tour title at the Trofeo Perrel – FAIP, where, as was the case this week, he also defeated Jurgen Zopp in the semi-finals.

World No. 17 Bautista Agut was bidding to win three-tour level crowns in a single season for the first time. The Spaniard drops to 8-7 in tour-level championship matches.

“I want to congratulate Matteo. He played a great week and he has a great future in front of him. He deserved to win today,” said Bautista Agut. “I always like to play in Gstaad, it’s a beautiful event and I hope to come back next year.”

With neither man able to manufacture a break-point opportunity in a first set dominated by serve, Bautista Agut appeared to make the crucial breakthrough at 5/5 in the tie-break. After a misfired forehand from Berrettini, the Spaniard appeared to be in control at 6/5 before a badly-timed double fault rebalanced the scores.

A second set point for Bautista Agut was also dismissed with an ace, before Berrettini took control. After failing to convert two set points of his own with forehand errors, the Italian kept faith in his abilities with back-to-back forehand winners from 9/9 deciding the set.

Berrettini applied significant pressure early in the second set, manufacturing four break points for a 2-0 lead. But Bautista Agut, with conviction on his forehand side, averted danger to hold serve and halt the momentum of the Rome native.

Berrettini continued to serve comfortably, holding to love for the third time in the second set to move one game away from victory at 5-4. And, it was there that the Italian made the crucial move. Once more, Berrettini trusted his forehand in important moments, successfully attacking Bautista Agut’s forehand side on consecutive points to clinch the title.

“It was a really tough match. From the beginning until the end it was really tough to break him. I served really good most of the days and it was an unbelievable tie-break,” said Berrettini. “If I lost the tie-break, I think the match would have been really tough. I was lucky I did a really good job in the tie-break and I was focussed in the second set.”

Berrettini gains 250 ATP Ranking points and collects €89,435 in prize money for lifting the trophy. Bautista Agut receives 150 points and receives €47,105.

Did You Know?
Matteo Berrettini reached the third round at Roland Garros this year. The Italian fell in four sets to eventual finalist Dominic Thiem.

All eyes will be on Andy Murray at the Citi Open, where the former World No. 1 plays just his third tournament of the season as he continues his comeback from hip surgery in January.

“It’s feeling better all the time,” Murray said. “It takes time after you’ve been out for a long period to get the match sharpness back. I’ve only played three matches in the past year, so I’m just trying to get back on the match court as much as I can and see how I’m feeling after playing two, three, four, five matches in a week. That’s the big test. I’ve done a lot of training recently and I’ve come through that pretty well. So hopefully if I get into that situation, I’ll be alright.”

The Scot showed signs of his top level in his return at the Fever-Tree Championships in June, pushing in-form Nick Kyrgios deep into a third set in his first match since 2017 Wimbledon. He then beat Stan Wawrinka at the Nature Valley International before bowing out in the second round and withdrawing from The Championships to better recover.

“I’m feeling better than I did during the grass-court season, that’s for sure. But I also haven’t played a hard-court match since Indian Wells last year. That’s a long time,” Murray said. “I have to see how the body responds… [I’ve] felt pretty good in practice.”

However simple it might sound, the Scot simply wants to compete. He won at least 40 tour-level matches in 11 straight seasons from 2006 through 2016, but has only played three matches in more than 13 months.

“I’m looking forward to playing. Like I said, I’ve not played a hard-court match for a very long time,” Murray said. “Once I get out there after the first few games, I’m sure I’ll be fine. I just want to have a prolonged period on the match-court right now. I’m looking forward to that.”

One week ago, Murray dropped to No. 839 in the ATP Rankings, his lowest-ever placement in the standings. The Scot first broke into the rankings 15 years ago this week at No. 774 as a 16-year-old thanks to a quarter-final showing at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Manchester, England. But the former World No. 1 is not worried about the number next to his name.

“I want to stay healthy through the end of the year. I think if I do that, then I’ll start to win more matches, my ranking will move up. If I only play one or two tournaments and then take a break for a month, it’s just difficult to get into that routine,” Murray said. “If I stay fit and healthy, I’m not worried so much about ranking. I want to be winning matches and competing against the best players and that will build my fitness up quicker than anything I could do in the gym. So that’s my goal between now and the end of the year and hopefully it’ll mean I’ll be ready to start the 2019 season really well.”

In his second and most recent appearance at the ATP World Tour 500-level event, in 2015, Murray fell against Teymuraz Gabashvili. He’ll have to be on top of his game early on, as the 31-year-old faces stiff early tests.

Murray will play home favourite Mackenzie McDonald, who advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon, in the first round. The winner will face fourth seed Kyle Edmund, who defeated Murray in his last match at Eastbourne in June.

“I’ve enjoyed coming here. It’s a beautiful city. There’s a lot to do and see. The event itself has got great history,” said Murray, who reached the final on his Washington debut in 2006 as a teenager. “I like the conditions here. It sets you up well for the rest of the U.S. summer. Unfortunately, last time I was here I didn’t play so well. Lost a tough one in my first match. So really hoping this time I could get a few more matches in.”

It is often said that there’s no place like home, and that certainly has rung true for John Isner at the BB&T Atlanta Open — held in his native Georgia — over the years.

So it was no surprise that the top seed beat fourth seed Matthew Ebden 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-1 on Saturday to reach his eighth final at the ATP World Tour 250-level tournament. On Sunday, the American will try to lift his fifth trophy at the event against compatriot Ryan Harrison or Brit Cameron Norrie.

“It was tough,” Isner said on court after the win. “Just like yesterday, I was able to get out early in the third set and that definitely took some pressure off. I’m very happy to be back in the final here. I need to get in the air conditioning and just rest so I could be ready for tomorrow.”

Isner now leads Ebden 4-1 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series after avenging his lone loss against the Aussie, which came earlier this season at the Australian Open. The 33-year-old has won eight of his nine semi-finals in Atlanta, and will look to improve his record of 13-12 in tour-level finals.

For a moment, it looked like a relatively straightforward match might have turned into a disaster for the 6’10” American. Isner led by a set and a break, which appeared to cement a victory considering he arrived in Atlanta leading the ATP World Tour in service games won this season at 94.63 per cent according to Infosys ATP Scores & Stats. After breaking back, Ebden saved one match point in the ensuing tie-break when Isner missed a backhand return long.

“I didn’t like my energy once I got broken. That’s a big part, it’s intangibles out there,” Isner said. “It’s not based on strokes or anything like that. My energy wasn’t great, and I think that’s what cost me the second set.”

But instead of wilting in the Atlanta heat, Isner quickly recovered using the confidence from his victory at the Miami Open presented by Itau and run to the Wimbledon semi-finals to recover and break twice in the decider, coming out victorious after exactly two hours. This time, there was no slip from Isner, who hit two of his 26 aces to close out the win. If Harrison pulls through his semi-final against Norrie, he will set a rematch of last year’s final, in which Isner triumphed. 

“I’ve played both those guys before. Obviously I played Ryan here in the final last year,” Isner said. “It would be great to play him again in the final, two Americans. But we’ll see what happens.”

Did You Know?
Isner can join Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras as the only Americans to win five or more titles at a single tournament if he triumphs in Atlanta on Sunday.

First and foremost, Ryan Harrison was happy to advance to the semi-finals of the BB&T Atlanta Open after defeating reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Hyeon Chung on Friday evening. But he got more good news later in the evening, when a tweener he hit at 3-1 in the second set was named the No. 2 play of the day on ESPN’s SportsCenter.

“I mean tweener points are so much fun. You hit a shot like that, especially when it is unexpected. In that specific situation, I was kind of chasing the ball down and I just happened to be there,” Harrison said. “It helped me actually get a lot of momentum into that next game where I got the double break in the second set. Not only did I win the point, I also responded and broke again. Sometimes whenever you get an uplift like that from the crowd, it can help you psychologically and it can shake your opponent psychologically. I think I used it as good momentum.”

Harrison will hope to bring some of that magic and momentum into his semi-final on Saturday, as he faces Cameron Norrie for a spot in the championship match. 

On Monday, the 27th edition of the Generali Open kicks off in scenic Kitzbuhel, Austria. But first, the tournament’s stars stepped out for an activity at nearby Wildpark Aurach.

Two-time champion and local resident Philipp Kohlschreiber joined wild card Dennis Novak and third seed Fernando Verdasco at the animal habitat on Saturday. Located in the Austrian Alps, it is home to 200 different native and exotic animals, including monkeys, kangaroos and llamas.

View Draw

“It’s a very special location,” said Kohlscreiber. “Not many tournaments can offer such a great experience with the animals, beautiful view and the weather is great. Impressive to see so many animals close up.”

Defending champion Kohlschreiber, who also lifted the trophy in 2015, is seeded second at next week’s tournament. It is the last clay-court event of the year on the ATP World Tour.

Novak, meanwhile, enters on the heels of a run to the third round at Wimbledon as a qualifier, where he earned his first Top 20 win over Lucas Pouille. His first tour-level match win came in Kitzbuhel in 2015.

Verdasco opens against either Roberto Carballes Baena or Hamburg semi-finalist Nicolas Jarry. The Spanish veteran reached the Kitzbuhel final 13 years ago, falling to Gaston Gaudio in 2005.

It’s not often that you find two iconic athletes from different sports on the same court. But on Friday, British stars Andy Murray and Wayne Rooney met at the Citi Open for a short hit and game of football-tennis.

“He’s obviously had an incredible career, one of the best players ever in English football history,” said Murray, whose grandfather played for Scotland’s Hibernian F.C. “It’s nice to finally meet him. I’ve never met him before, so it’s very cool.”

Rooney, the leading goal-scorer in England National Team and Manchester United history, currently plays for local club D.C. United of Major League Soccer, so he couldn’t pass up an opportunity to meet Murray. The football legend was in the stands when the Scot captured his first Wimbledon title in 2013 to end Great Britain’s 77-year wait for a home champion.

“It was incredible, a real achievement, and [Novak] Djokovic at the time looked unbeatable, so it was a great victory and a great experience to be there,” Rooney said. “It was the first time I was at Wimbledon, and [it was] history for Britain, so it was a fantastic moment to be there.”

Murray, who was joined by brother Jamie Murray — the fourth seed in the doubles draw with Bruno Soares at the Citi Open — on Stadium Court, grew up playing football and follows the Premier League as he travels the world. Rooney hasn’t been able to pick up a tennis racquet much, but he says he loves watching the sport. His game was put to the test when the pair rallied, and Murray hit some serves to the football star.

“It was decent. Forehand was alright, he almost returned a couple serves. But yeah, not bad. Backhand needs a bit of work,” Murray joked. “He did alright for someone who doesn’t play much. It was good.”

Murray will now turn his attention to the ATP World Tour 500-level tournament in Washington D.C. The 31-year-old will face American Mackenzie McDonald in the first round, and could face compatriot and fourth seed Kyle Edmund in a second-round blockbuster.