Years from now, we could all be looking back at it as the start of a great FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry.

Twenty-year-old Andrey Rublev of Russia fought off 17-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-3 on Thursday at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag, denying the Canadian teenager his biggest win to date.

Rublev, the fourth seed and defending champion, was playing in his first match in three months because of a stress fracture in his lower back, and how much the return victory meant to him was evident after Auger-Aliassime’s final backhand landed wide. Rublev bent over and buried his face in his hands.

“I was super happy because it’s my first match since three months, and I was really happy to win it. It was a little bit emotional moment for me,” Rublev told ATPWorldTour.com.

He wasn’t sure what to expect in his return, but Rublev was pleased with his fight and the outcome. “In the end, everything was better than I expected,” he said.

Auger-Aliassime, who’s the youngest player (17) in the Top 150 of the ATP Rankings (No. 144), was aggressive and confident throughout the two-hour, 30-minute second-round match, pushing Rublev behind the baseline and frustrating the Russian, who finished runner-up at last year’s inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan.

Rublev, however, employed his experience and composed himself well in the third set after Auger-Aliassime led by a break 3-1. Rublev won the final five games, breaking twice before serving it out.

The No. 35 player in the ATP Rankings is looking to go back-to-back in Umag. Last year at the ATP World Tour 250-level event, Rublev was the first lucky loser in eight years to win an ATP World Tour title. He will next meet sixth seed Robin Haase, who beat Slovakian qualifier Martin Klizan 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.

Argentine qualifier Marco Trungelliti, who famously drove from Buenos Aires to Paris to play in Roland Garros as a lucky loser, beat Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to advance to his first tour-level quarter-final. Trungelliti will next play Russian Evgeny Donskoy, who beat second seed Damir Dzumhur 7-6(3), 3-6, 6-4.

Take a 50-50 battle, shift it ever so slightly to a 53.5 per cent advantage, and you are perfectly positioned to be competing in the Nitto ATP Finals at The O2 in London this November.

The eight best performers from the 2018 season will play in the prestigious season finale from 11-18 November, and the field has become more settled with around 60 per cent of the season now completed.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of the current eight players who lead the ATP Race To London after Wimbledon shows that their competitive advantage with points won so far in 2018 is a much smaller margin than you might think.

Top Eight In ATP Race To London: Percentage Points Won, Serving, Returning & Total

What’s interesting is when you compare each player in the serve and return categories to the top eight average, no player is above the average in both of them.

Average Percentage Points Won Serving = 68.7%

Players above the average:

Roger Federer = 74.4%

Kevin Anderson = 71.0%

Marin Cilic = 70.2%

Average Percentage Points Won Returning = 39.4%

Players above the average:

Rafael Nadal = 45.3%

Novak Djokovic = 42.8%

Alexander Zverev = 40.1%

Dominic Thiem = 39.6%

The combined total of percentage of points won from serving and retuning has three very familiar faces above the top eight average.

Average Total Percentage Points Won = 53.5%

Players above that average:

Rafael Nadal = 56.5%

Roger Federer = 55.3%

Novak Djokovic = 54.4%

The only player in the top eight in the ATP Race To London who does not feature above the average in any of the three categories is Juan Martin del Potro. But he is less than one percentage point away in all three.

The ATP Race To London is starting to take shape, but there is still time for other players to make a late season surge. The next four knocking on the door are John Isner, Kei Nishikori, Kyle Edmund and Borna Coric.

All they need do is win about three and a half points out of every hundred more than their opponents and London may well be within reach.

Third-seeded Italian Fabio Fognini booked his place in the SkiStar Swedish Open quarter-finals on Thursday after beating Swedish #NextGenATP wild card Mikael Ymer 1-6, 6-4, 6-2 in two hours and five minutes.

Ymer, having swept through the first set, recovered from 1-3 down in the second set and had a break point chance for a 5-4 lead, but Fognini held serve in a 20-point game. Fognini broke to love in the sixth game of the decider and went on to deny 19-year-old Ymer the biggest win of his fledgling career.

Fognini goes on to challenge Argentina’s Federico Delbonis, who broke serve four times to beat eighth-seeded Australian John Millman 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 33 minutes. Delbonis reached the Argentina Open semi-finals (l. to Bedene) in February.

Later today, fourth-seeded Frenchman Richard Gasquet makes his tournament debut against Gerald Melzer of Austria and seventh seed David Ferrer, the 2007, 2012 and 2017 champion from Spain, takes on #NextGenATP Norwegian wild card Casper Ruud.

On Wednesday, Canadian Vasek Pospisil advanced to just his second tour-level quarter-final since October 2015, defeating recent Nature Valley International champion Mischa Zverev to move into the last eight at the Dell Technologies Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Rhode Island.

In the newest edition of ATPWorldTour.com’s ‘On The Line’ series, Pospisil discusses his favourite music and the interesting career he wants to pursue when he stops playing tennis.

What’s your biggest passion outside of sport and why?
Music. Just because it soothes my soul. I love it.

What’s your favourite musical group?
The Beatles.

Favourite song?
In My Life by The Beatles.

What’s the last book you read?
The Sale of A Lifetime.

What’s your favourite book ever and why?
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It’s probably the one I’ve tried to apply to my life the most and it’s a really good read.

Person whom you admire the most?
My father for the sacrifices he’s made in his life and because he’s taught me everything that I know. He’s taught me how to handle myself as a man and he taught me how to play tennis.

My tennis career will be a success ________________.
If I could finish my career and say that I left everything out there and didn’t feel like I have any regrets in terms of trying to get better every day. I don’t know what the results are going to bring, but I want to hold ATP World Tour titles, which I haven’t done yet, and finish inside the Top 20 [of the ATP Rankings] at some stage in my career.

After my tennis career, I want to _____________.
Start a family and become a real estate investor.

What makes you want to go into real estate?
I don’t know, I just have a real passion for it. I like the idea of being in real estate and making passive income, being able to spend time with my family and trying to grow real estate wealth.

Have you done any of that yet while on the ATP World Tour?
I’ve just started. I’ve just kind of planted the seeds just to kind of get into it. I’m not going to focus on that until after my career. As soon as I finish my tennis career, then I’m really going to educate myself and dive into it and make that my priority No. 1 in my career. [But] not before I’m done with tennis, because there’s too much risk to go into something that I’m not fully educated in.

Entering this week, Jason Jung had never won a match on the ATP World Tour. But on Wednesday, when he turned to the crowd at the Dell Technologies Hall of Fame Open in Newport and put his hands in the air, the 29-year-old had broken new ground.

Jung defeated 2013 Newport champion Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 6-4 to reach his first tour-level quarter-final.

“It’s pretty unbelievable,” Jung told ATPWorldTour.com. “I’ve worked hard to get here. I think I’ve always believed I’ve had a game to be here, so it’s just cool to see the success playing out.”

It’s not a bad result for a player who did not start his professional career immediately after playing collegiate tennis, despite making the All-Big Ten Conference team twice at the University of Michigan. Instead, Jung began a job as a business analyst. But shortly thereafter, things changed when he was laid off.

“A lot of people said it was a good opportunity to go out and play,” Jung said. “I didn’t really know what to expect and at the beginning, it was really tough. I must have lost five first-round Futures [matches] and was traveling by myself. There were a couple of times when I wanted to quit. It was just so hard. It’s pretty amazing to me that I kept going and now I’m here.”

It’s been a difficult path for Jung. At first he gave himself two years to see how he’d fare on the ATP World Tour. Ever since, he has reevaluated the situation at the end of each season and decided to continue pushing forward, despite never finishing one of his eight pro seasons inside the Top 150 of the ATP Rankings. What has motivated him to do so?

“Just the family behind me. I have a lot of friends and my coach. They’ve always believed in me and told me to keep going,” said Jung.

He started his 2018 campaign battling illness in January before reaching the semi-finals of an ATP Challenger Tour event in Dallas and triumphing for the third time at that level the next week in San Francisco.

“Since then, there have been a couple of ups and downs, but I think for the most part it’s my coach and friends and family, they’re just telling me to keep going.”

At Wimbledon, Jung made his Grand Slam main draw debut, advancing through qualifying, before losing to Frenchman Benoit Paire. Then Jung, who represents Chinese Taipei, received a wild card into this week’s grass-court ATP World Tour 250-level event.

“When you get a wild card for an event like this, it’s like playing with house money and just trying to enjoy it, and I think I’ve done a good job of that so far,” said Jung, who will play American Tim Smyczek for a spot in his first tour-level semi-final. “It’s a great opportunity for both of us.”

Challenger Chronicles: Jason Jung, Part II

Regardless of the future outcome, Jung is pleased to have made it this far in Newport and to post one of the best weeks of his professional tennis career. And while on the surface, people will see that this is his maiden quarter-final, he knows that it is more than just a result.

“I guess you could say it’s an overnight success, but this is many years in the making. There was a lot of struggle through this process,” Jung said. “I’ve worked hard to be in this position.”

Adrian Mannarino’s best tennis has been played on grass, so there stands reason to believe the Frenchman’s first title will also be won on the turf. The top seed moved a step closer to his maiden ATP World Tour crown on Wednesday, beating Aussie Jordan Thompson 6-2, 7-6(4) to move into the quarter-finals at the Dell Technologies Hall of Fame Open in Newport.

Mannarino reached his third Newport quarter-final (2015, 2016) and improved to 6-6 at the ATP World Tour 250 event. The 30-year-old left-hander has won 59 per cent of his grass-court matches in his career (43-30), compared to 46 per cent of his overall matches (155-181), according to his FedEx ATP Win/Loss Record.

“I think the last four or five years I’ve had good results on grass. So it’s just [a surface] that I feel comfortable on. It’s always good to come here with some confidence,” Mannarino said.

The left-hander has reached the fourth round at Wimbledon the past two years, and he made his third and fifth ATP World Tour final, respectively, at the 2016 and 2017 Turkish Airlines Open Antalya.

He will next meet Spain’s Marcel Granollers, who reached his first ATP World Tour quarter-final on grass by beating 2016 finalist and sixth seed Gilles Muller 7-5, 7-6(4).

“I think it’s one of my biggest wins on grass. Gilles is a really good player here,” Granollers said. “I think I served very good for the match, and I went for my chances.”

Third seed Steve Johnson won 80 per cent of his service points (33/41) to beat compatriot Christian Harrison 6-3, 6-1. Johnson will next play Israel’s Dudi Sela.

“[Sela] is a fantastic tennis player, He’s played Newport a lot so he knows how to play here,” Johnson said.

Read More: Ask The Pro: Playing Experience Helps Martin As Newport Tournament Director

Sela, for the first time in his seven-match FedEx ATP Head2Head series with Ivo Karlovic, beat the 2016 champion 7-6(6), 6-7(4), 6-2. Karlovic hit 18 aces but also 15 double faults.

“I’m very happy,” said Sela, who’s making his fifth appearance at Newport. “I have a lot of friends coming from New York and from all over. It’s nice to play here.”

Fourth seed Matthew Ebden, last year’s finalist (l. to Isner), was upset by American Tim Smyczek 6-3, 6-3. Smyczek will next face Jason Jung of Chinese Taipei, who beat France’s Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 6-4.

Indian Ramkumar Ramanathan pulled away from eighth seed Denis Kudla of the U.S. 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Ramanathan will next play Canadian Vasek Pospisil, who upset second seed Mischa Zverev 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 for his fourth tour-level victory of the season.

It is long known for its revolutionary architecture, fascinating museums, thriving sports scene and of course deep dish pizza. And now, the bustling city of Chicago is an ATP Challenger Tour destination.

The third-largest city in the United States will host a Challenger tournament for the first time, as a new $150,000 event descends on the metropolis in September. The event will be held at the XS Tennis Village during the second week of the US Open, from 2-9 September. It will be the second Challenger in the greater Chicago area, with nearby Winnetka celebrating its 27th anniversary last week.

“We are thrilled to welcome the Oracle Challenger Series to Chicago this September,” said Kamau Murray, President and CEO of XS Tennis Village and Executive Director of XS Tennis and Education Foundation. “We’re proud to work with Oracle on this great event and support the incredible work that they do. Their commitment to the sport goes hand-in-hand with our mission at XS to provide a positive pathway to future success through tennis.”

The Oracle Challenger Series is coming to the Windy City.

Learn more about this FREE event and Oracle’s growing commitment to American tennis.

?: https://t.co/WdZlHWxCY7#RoadtoIndianWells pic.twitter.com/YRnsFn6tvF

— Oracle Challenger Series (@OracleChallngrs) July 18, 2018

Murray’s foundation was established in 2005 to offer tennis opportunities to at-risk youth in Chicago. His recently-opened $15 million 13-acre facility features 13 outdoor hard courts, 12 indoor hard courts, four clay courts, a track and turf field and a $10,000 square-foot gym.

Continuing its commitment to grow the game at the Challenger level and provide more opportunities for players in world-class settings, Oracle announced the addition of the tournament as part of the Oracle Challenger Series. 

Earlier this year, the series launched with a pair of successful events in Southern California. #NextGenATP star Taylor Fritz kicked off his charge in the ATP Race To Milan with a title run in Newport Beach, the fourth victory in his young career, while former World No. 24 Martin Klizan returned to the winners’ circle in Indian Wells.

The 2018-19 Oracle Challenger Series will begin in Chicago, with additional events to be added at a later date. It will culminate at the 2019 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, the first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event of the year, where the two Americans who accumulate the most points over the course of the series will receive wild cards into the singles main draw.

The Oracle Challenger Series builds on Oracle’s commitment to help support U.S. tennis at both the professional and collegiate level. Oracle sponsors the Oracle US Tennis Awards, two $100,000 grants awarded annually to assist young players as they transition from college into the professional ranks. In addition to sponsoring the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, Oracle also hosts the Oracle ITA Masters tournament in Malibu, California and the Oracle ITA National Fall Championships which will be held at the Surprise Tennis Center in Surprise, Arizona in 2018.

Marco Cecchinato continued his strong run of recent form on clay, beating Jiri Vesely 2-6, 7-5, 7-5 at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag on Wednesday.

The Gazprom Hungarian Open titlist recorded his 16th tour-level win in 28 matches this season, after converting his seventh match point, to overcome the 25-year-old after two hours and 19 minutes. Roland Garros semi-finalist Cecchinato, who became the first Italian man to reach a Grand Slam semi-final since Corrado Barazzutti in 1978, saved eight of 10 break points and fired nine aces en route to victory.

Vesely entered the tournament in fine form after winning six of eight matches during the grass-court season. The Czech reached the Round of 16 at Wimbledon (l. to Nadal) after falling to eventual champion Damir Dzumhur in the Turkish Airlines Open Antalya semi-finals.

Cecchinato will meet Laslo Djere for a spot in the semi-finals. Djere upset ninth-seeded Maximilian Marterer 7-6(4), 6-3.

After defeating 2014 champion Pablo Cuevas in the first round, Djere dropped just five first-serve points (29/34) to reach his second tour-level quarter-final this season. In May, the World No. 100 enjoyed a run to the TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open semi-finals.

Mutua Madrid Open quarter-finalist Dusan Lajovic also overcame seeded opposition, eliminating fifth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-3, 1-6, 6-0.

Lajovic levelled his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against the Spaniard at 2-2 after one hour and 39 minutes, converting four of 14 break-point opportunities to reach the quarter-finals. Lajovic will meet Aljaz Bedene or Guido Pella for a place in the final four.

Did You Know?
Andrey Rublev is bidding to become the third man to win back-to-back Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag titles. Thomas Muster (1992-1993) and Carlos Moya (2001- 2003) are the only men to ever successfully retain their title at the event.