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Shapovalov Heading To Next Gen ATP Finals In Milan

  • Posted: Oct 23, 2017

Shapovalov Heading To Next Gen ATP Finals In Milan

Canadian becomes fourth #NextGenATP player to qualify

One of North America’s most promising tennis players will bring his fiery brand of tennis to the Next Gen ATP Finals next month. Canadian Denis Shapovalov on Monday became the fourth player to qualify for the inaugural event, to be held 7-11 November at the Fiera Milano (Rho), Italy.

Shapovalov joined Alexander Zverev of Germany and Russians Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov as qualifiers. The left-handed Canadian clinched his berth by beating Japan’s Yuichi Sugita 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(3) in the first round of the Swiss Indoors Basel.

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The 18-year-old Shapovalov is the youngest player so far to guarantee his spot at the 21-and-under tournament, which will also feature a number of rule changes and innovations. Shapovalov captured the tennis world’s attention in August when he sprinted through the Coupe Rogers draw in his home country.

The 6-foot left-hander started the week of 7 August at No. 143 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. He received a wild card into the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, and showed exactly how to take advantage of such an opportunity.

After surviving a first-round battle against veteran Rogerio Dutra Silva of Brazil, Shapovalov knocked out Grand Slam champion Juan Martin del Potro in straight sets.

Read More: Surging Shapovalov Has Sights Set On Milan

In the Round of 16, Shapovalov delivered the performance of his career, upsetting then-World No. 2 Rafael Nadal to become the youngest Masters 1000 quarter-finalist. He followed the stunning performance by beating Frenchman Adrian Mannarino to make the Montreal semi-finals. His dream run ended there with a tight two-set loss to fellow #NextGenATP Zverev.

Shapovalov proved he was no one-tournament wonder in the weeks ahead. Playing at his first US Open, he won three matches to qualify and proceeded to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time, beating then-World No. 12 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga along the way.

Only three qualification spots remain for the eight-player Next Gen ATP Finals. The top seven in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan, which ends on 30 October, will qualify. The eighth spot is reserved for the winner of an Italian 21-and-under tournament to finish on 5 November.

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Zverev Advances In Vienna Opener

  • Posted: Oct 23, 2017

Zverev Advances In Vienna Opener

Kohlschreiber upsets fifth seed Isner in straight sets

Alexander Zverev has come a long way since losing in the final round of qualifying in his last appearance at the Erste Bank Open 500 in 2014.

A five-time champion this season, Zverev began his pursuit of a sixth title this year in Vienna on Monday with a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 victory against Viktor Troicki.

The German, who is No. 3 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, is attempting to find his best form to close out his season on a high note.

Zverev took one hour, 47 minutes to get by the Serbian, extending his FedEx ATP Head2Head record over the veteran to 3-1. The 6’6” right-hander will next play the tricky Frenchman Gilles Simon, who defeated Ernests Gulbis, 6-3, 6-3. The 20-year-old holds a 3-0 FedEx ATP Head2Head advantage over Simon, with two of the three meetings going to a final-set tie-break.

Philipp Kohlschreiber earned his 30th tour-level victory of the season when he defeated fifth seed John Isner, 7-6(6), 6-4. The German overcame a break deficit in both the first and second sets, saving three set points in the opening tie-break.

“I played my best tennis with my back to the wall,” Kohlschreiber said. “Though it is rare that a player like him would give a match away once he is two breaks up.”

It is the 11th straight season that the German has reached the 30-win mark. The only players who own longer streaks of 30 wins per year are Rafael Nadal (14 years), Tomas Berdych (13 years) and Novak Djokovic (12 years).

The German evened his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with the American at 4-4, winning for the fourth time in their past five meetings.

Kohlschreiber will next face qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who sent Bernard Tomic’s record on the season to 10-19 with a 7-6(4), 7-5 win.

The Frenchman, who earned his berth in the Nitto ATP Finals in doubles with Nicolas Mahut, snapped a six-match losing streak in tour-level main draws. And while he trails Kohlschreiber in their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry, 2-1, he triumphed in their last meeting at The Championships last year.

Richard Gasquet got his tournament off to a strong start with a 6-2, 6-3 win over fellow veteran Feliciano Lopez. That sets up a second-round clash against the winner of a blockbuster opener between second seed Dominic Thiem and Andrey Rublev, who has qualified for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals. That first-round match will begin Tuesday’s evening session.

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WTA Finals: Simona Halep beats Caroline Garcia in Singapore

  • Posted: Oct 23, 2017

World number one Simona Halep overcame Caroline Garcia in their opening round-robin match on day two of the WTA Finals in Singapore.

France’s Garcia, number eight in the rankings, had beaten Halep to win the China Open title earlier this month.

But the Romanian put in a solid performance in her first match as number one to win 6-4 6-2.

Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki and Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina meet in the second Red Group match on Monday.

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Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza and Karolina Pliskova both earned straightforward victories in the White Group on day one.

Spain’s Muguruza beat French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko 6-3 6-4 while Czech world number three Pliskova brushed aside American veteran Venus Williams 6-2 6-2.

WTA Finals line-up
RED GROUP WHITE GROUP
1. Simona Halep (Rom) 1. Garbine Muguruza (Spa)
2. Elina Svitolina (Ukr) 2. Karolina Pliskova (Cze)
3. Caroline Wozniacki (Den) 3. Venus Williams (USA)
4. Caroline Garcia (Fra) 4. Jelena Ostapenko (Lat)

Halep’s meeting with Garcia appeared to be far more competitive in the opening stages, as the world number one was forced to fend off two break points in her first service game, which lasted 15 minutes.

Garcia, who is making her debut in the Finals, was broken in the fifth game and although she responded immediately with a break of her own, she was unable to find another opportunity, and Halep went on to take the first set.

The Romanian secured a double break in the second set and held to love for a 5-1 lead, before seeing out the match in one hour and 28 minutes.

Halep, who has yet to win a Grand Slam title, leads the WTA rankings ahead of Mugurzua, although seven of the eight finalists are able to finish the year as world number one.

“I’m really pleased,” said the 26-year-old. “It wasn’t an easy first match against a player that beat me two weeks ago. I felt really well out there.”

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