Tennis News

Mensik, Shelton reach Mallorca QFs

Czech teen Jakub Mensik advanced to his second tour-level quarter-final Wednesday when he defeated Fabio Fognini at the Mallorca Championships presented by Waterdrop.

One day after becoming the youngest match winner in tournament history by ousting defending champion Christopher Eubanks, the 18-year-old Mensik earned a second consecutive three-set victory, downing Fognini 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.

“Crazy match from the beginning,” said Mensik, World No. 85 in the PIF ATP Rankings. “The first 40 minutes, we played three games. I don’t know what happened, I didn’t experience this before. I’m really happy that I kept playing after the first set that I was 4-1 up and still lost. I’m really happy that I came back. Tough match. Fabio played really well. Difficult from the beginning.”

In blustery conditions, Mensik struck 11 aces and won 80 per cent of his first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats. He earned a decisive break at 5-5 in the decider and booked his quarter-final ticket after two hours, 40 minutes.

Mensik, who missed Roland Garros due to injury, strengthened his claim on second in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. He is aiming for his maiden trip to the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The teen’s previous quarter-final appearance came in Doha, where he became the youngest finalist in tournament history.

Mensik will next face fourth seed Alejandro Tabilo, who earlier ousted Alexander Shevchenko 6-3, 6-2. It will be their first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.

Fognini, 37, was playing his 800th tour-level match. The Italian holds a 420-380 career match record. 

Top seed Ben Shelton closed the day with a 6-4, 6-0 victory against Australian Rinky Hijikata, the American’s first grass win of the season and third overall on the surface.

The 21-year-old rushed Hijikata with his weight of shot and saved all six break points he faced. Shelton was aggressive on return, winning 67 per cent of his second-serve return points.

“It was a really fun match today. I’m happy to be back in Mallorca. I love playing here,” Shelton said. “I had a really tough first match here last year, losing 7-6 in the third [to eventual champion Christopher Eubanks], so I’m really happy to get my first win here. I’m really pleased with how I played today. I’m getting used to [grass] day by day.”

Shelton, who won the 2022 NCAA singles title while at the University of Florida, will next meet another former collegiate champion in British qualifier Paul Jubb.

Jubb, 2019 NCAA singles titlist, raced past Australian Adam Walton 6-0, 6-3 to reach his first tour-level quarter-final. The 24-year-old was 0-4 in ATP Tour matches entering this week and will next look for the biggest win of his career against the World No. 14.

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ATP announces record social & digital audience growth

The ATP today announced record social and digital audience growth across ATP athletes, tournaments and Tour, driven by the increasing global popularity of the sport, current generation of established and next-generation stars, and world-class tournaments.

Over the past 12 months, ATP athletes’ social media audiences have risen 10 per cent to 168 million globally, while ATP tournaments have increased their social media fan followings by 16 per cent, now totalling 8.8 million. During the same period, the ATP Tour’s social media reach across all official ATP Tour social media platforms has enjoyed record growth, increasing by 48 per cent to 2.9 billion, video views growing by 159 per cent, total social media audience growing seven per cent to 9.7 million followers, and website video views up 15 per cent.

“The incredible growth in popularity of ATP athletes and tournaments over the past year is reflected in the strong increases in social media audiences and engagement across our members and Tour,” said Andrew Walker, Senior Vice President, Brand & Marketing at the ATP Tour. “Our athletes in particular are increasingly a part of wider cultural conversations, bringing new fans to ATP tennis, and our marketing and social strategies are designed to foster and drive a more inclusive approach to fandom.”

Seventeen ATP athletes now boast more than one million followers on social media, and over the past 12 months ATP athletes have generated over 3.8 billion impressions on their social media channels. During that same period, ATP athletes have added more than 15 million new fans to their social media accounts. The increases follow the establishment of a dedicated ATP Athlete Marketing department in 2023, created to offer tailored digital content services to players, aiding in the growth of athlete brands and audiences.

ATP Masters 1000, ATP 500 and ATP 250 tournaments have collectively generated significant social media growth over the past 12 months, with social media views up 233 per cent to 787 million, social media impressions up 145 per cent to 1.5 billion and social media engagements up 133 per cent to 46 million. ATP Masters 1000 events alone have generated a 252 per cent increase in social media views, reaching 545 million. Impressions have grown by 175 per cent, totalling 1.1 billion, while engagements have risen by 163 per cent to 34 million.

The increases in ATP Tour official social media channel reach follow the implementation of a new digital and content strategy grounded in a wider distribution of content through collaborations and cross-posting, a focus on Instagram and TikTok expansion and greater cultural and trend based content, and broader collaboration with other athletes, events, sports leagues, and teams such as Real Madrid, the NBA and F1 to develop newsworthy content. Additionally, the ATP Tour social strategy has prioritised short vertical video, highlights and compelling off court personality driven content to drive interest in the sport’s biggest stars, working in close collaboration with ATP Media. Such content has increased the overall official ATP Tour average engagement rate by 23 per cent year on year and total social engagements by 87 per cent to 139 million.

Additionally, total minutes viewed for the past 12 months on ATPTour.com increased 20 per cent, pageviews increased 13 per cent, and users were up seven per cent.

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The unseeded men aiming to cause Wimbledon shocks

With Wimbledon starting on Monday and the draw on Friday, BBC Sport looks at five unseeded male players that could cause shocks.

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Federer hologram among Hall of Fame's multimillion renovation

The International Tennis Hall of Fame is launching a multimillion dollar museum transformation project on the historic property in Newport, Rhode Island.

The renovations, which were announced Tuesday, will provide fans with a more interactive and modern experience that preserves and promotes the sport’s history. The Hall of Fame will also introduce new features and physical spaces to celebrate legends and support the sport’s growth.

This will be the first museum renovation the Hall of Fame has undertaken since 2015; work includes:

• A new Hall of Famers’ Gallery: The Current USTA Wing will become the new Hall of Famers’ Gallery; each Hall of Famer will be represented by a new cast racquet, signifying their legendary place in tennis history.
• The Celebration Gallery, a space celebrating the sport of tennis through the stories of its legends, across generations. The area includes a new Augmented Reality Sculpture to engage fans of all ages.
• The Roger Federer Hologram will be a new immersive experience presented by Rolex.
• The creation of a Newport Tennis Traditions gallery, celebrating Newport’s tennis origins and a new display for the perpetual US Open trophies.
• The opening of a Hall of Famers’ Lounge, an event space designed for inductees and guests.
• The opening of a new Museum Retail footprint with bespoke, commemorative items.
• A reimagined Welcome Center and new visitor exit, allowing for better guest flow.
[ATP APP]

Beginning with the Class of 2025 Induction, all Hall of Famers past-and-future will receive a cast racquet as a symbol of receiving the ultimate honour in tennis. Racquets will be on display in the new Hall of Famers’ Gallery. Further, as the Hall of Fame works to preserve tennis history as it happens, these renovations will enable a wider variety of recent acquisitions from current stars and Hall of Famers to be on display simultaneously.

The ITHF announced in a press conference that Advent, a Nashville-based experiential design firm, was selected to lead the renovations, after a highly competitive nationwide RFP process.

“We are very honoured to accomplish this for the Hall of Fame,” said Dan Faber, CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame. “We want to preserve what’s already out there with the incredible history of tennis but to prepare for global eyes to be a part of this in Newport. It’s perfect timing with this era of who is going to be inducted over the next five years or so in tennis.”

The press conference was held in the USTA Wing of the ITHF Museum with Faber, Patrick McEnroe, ITHF President; and Julianna Barbieri, ITHF SVP of Content & Partnerships joined by project principals from Advent, Reese Stevens, Director of Conceptual Design and Mindy Ward, Director of Client Success.

“It’s a privilege to be entrusted with a story like this,” Stevens said. “It has been great for Advent to be included in this and we still have a ways to go but very much looking forward to the grand reopening in May 2025.”

Renovations will begin in November, with the museum closed to the public until planned reopening in May 2025. The renovation is being funded by a portion of the Tennis Forever Capital Campaign, which began in 2018.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

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Banks one of three Britons to progress in Wimbledon qualifying

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Raducanu plans to 'do things at my own pace' after Eastbourne win

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#NextGenATP star Mensik becomes youngest Mallorca match winner

Jakub Mensik made tournament history Tuesday at the Mallorca Championships, knocking off defending champion Christopher Eubanks to become the youngest match-winner at the ATP 250. The 18-year-old earned a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 result for his first grass-court win.

Mensik joins 19-year-old Alex Michelsen, who is into the quarter-finals, as the only teen winners in the event’s main draw.

“For me it’s a good result,” he said in his on-court interview. “Obviously after difficult weeks, suffering with the injury, I’m happy to compete again. Back on grass with a ‘W’, I’m happy and I will be pushing more for the next round.”

Mensik missed Roland Garros through injury but is now finding form on the grass behind his powerful serve. He hit 12 aces and won 84 per cent (38/45) of his first-serve points in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Eubanks, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Eubanks was bidding to become the first player to successfully defend the Mallorca title.

Former college stars Adam Walton and Paul Jubb also earned wins early in Tuesday’s action. Walton, the 2021 NCAA doubles champion with the Tennessee Volunteers, beat Yannick Hanfmann 7-5, 6-2. Jubb, the 2019 NCAA singles champion with South Carolina, scored a 6-1, 6-2 result against Maximilian Marterer. The qualifiers will square off for a place in the quarter-finals.

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Kenya's Okutoyi not giving up on Olympic tennis dream

Kenyan tennis player Angella Okutoyi has launched an appeal to organisers in a bid to feature at the Paris Olympic Games.

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