With over 400,000 amateur tennis players in Chengdu, there are plenty of tennis fans showing support for this week’s $125,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in the bustling Chinese city.

The Sichuan International Tennis Center is the site for both the Challenger and an upcoming ATP World Tour 250 event in September, both of which are making their debut this year. With a Center Court that can seat 6,300 spectators, two show courts containing 2,000 seats and 15 field courts, tennis fans will be able to play on the same courts as their favorite players when the tournaments aren’t in session.

“Tennis is very popular in this city,” said Event Operation Director Jia Jiyue. “It became a required course in elementary and middle school starting in 2009. I believe Chengdu is the only city in China to have this requirement.”

This week has also been a showcase for several young Chinese players who could be the future stars of the game. Among them include teenager Fajing Sun, who came through qualifying to reach the quarter-finals, and 22-year-old Xin Gao, who reached the doubles final (w/Zhe Li).

Several of the players this week had already competed in Chengdu before and are already making plans to return again.

“I have been coming to Chengdu for so many years and I’m very happy for them to be hosting this Challenger for the first time,” said Chinese No. 1 Di Wu. “The hotel and facilities are great, and the staff are full of passion for both the players and the game. I believe they will do a good job for the ATP 250 next month.” 

Unseeded players Jason Jung and Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo will battle for the title in Sunday’s final.

Nick Kyrgios continued his push for a second ATP World Tour title, overcoming a stern test from fellow #NextGen star Yoshihito Nishioka on Saturday at the BB&T Atlanta Open.

Kyrgios needed one hour and 36 minutes to secure his spot in a third ATP World Tour final, downing Nishioka 6-3, 3-6, 6-3. With temperatures soaring on a humid late afternoon in Atlanta, he fired 16 aces and saved three of four break points faced.

“It was a hot and humid day,” Kyrgios said on court following the match. “Yoshi is a great player and makes you play a lot of balls and a lot of rallies. The crowd was great today too… I came out strong [in the third set] and that shows good fighting spirit.

“It feels good. I knew at the start of the week that I could get this far. It’s not really surprising, but it’s rewarding for sure.”

Kyrgios claimed first blood early in the opening set, breaking for 3-1 with a forehand winner down the line. The Aussie bullied the 20 year old behind the baseline with deep, penetrating forehands. Nishioka would save two set points in the eighth game, but Kyrgios closed out the opener with a hold to love at 6-3. He launched 15 winners and lost just one point on his first serve.

As quickly as Kyrgios streaked to a one-set lead, Nishioka answered in kind. The patient and consistent Japanese stayed the course, capitalising on unforced errors from the 21-year-old Aussie to break immediately in the second set and eventually force a decider. But Kyrgios would rediscover his rhythm in the third set, converting his fourth break point of the sixth game for the decisive lead. He would close out the win on his first match point with a service winner to Nishioka’s forehand.

The 13th clash between #NextGen players this year, it was Kyrgios and Nishioka’s first at the tour-level. They had previously met in the second round of the ATP Challenger Tour event in Savannah two years ago. The champion on the indoor hard courts of Marseille in February, Kyrgios moves on to face the winner of the second semi-final, which pits 6’10” John Isner against 6’11” Reilly Opelka. Isner is the three-time defending champion, while 18-year-old Opelka is appearing in his first ATP World Tour semi-final.

Nishioka exits Atlanta having registered his best result on the ATP World Tour. His semi-final finish will move him to a projected career-high Top 90 position in the Emirates ATP Rankings on Monday.

“I think I played very well, but he has a great serve,” said Nishioka. “He has a great second serve and I didn’t have many chances to break. I couldn’t put pressure on his first serves either.”

Taylor Fritz was all ready to practice last week at the BB&T Atlanta Open. The #NextGen player had his racquets and his racquet bag. He just couldn’t find the practice courts.

“I actually walked right by it when I was trying to find my court,” he said. “I didn’t think there were courts down there.”

By “down there” Fritz means, down there. Before this week’s tournament, the BB&T Atlanta Open built new four new practice courts in a parking garage in Atlantic Station, the shopping, dining and residential area in midtown Atlanta where the tournament is being held for a fifth year in a row.

The brand-new blue courts are three levels beneath the ground level, which lets fans watch from up top. The courts are also just the latest unique offering the ATP World Tour 250 event has produced.

For five years now, the tournament’s two show courts have been placed in the middle of a parking lot, with stands built around them. Everything, including restaurants, practice courts and the player hotel, is within a five-minute walk.

“Everything is unique here,” said Frenchman Julien Benneteau, who, along with 10 other players, made their Atlanta debut this week. “Centre court is in a parking lot but outside there are a lot of shops, dining stops. There’s a parking lot with four practice courts just 10 metres from the hotel. I think they managed to create a unique thing here… and it’s very, very well sold.”

The convenience was intentional, said Eddie Gonzalez, who’s in his third year as the BB&T Atlanta Open tournament director. Five years ago, he also was involved in the decision to bring the tournament from a suburban tennis club to midtown Atlanta.

“We were bringing the venue into the heart of a major international city,” Gonzalez said.

He and others frequently sell the tournament’s ease of access to players. “We want to be that easily accessible venue for you,” he tells ATP World Tour players.

Three-time defending champion John Isner especially appreciates the convenience factor. Maybe that, along with the fast conditions, is why the former University of Georgia Bulldog enjoys playing in Atlanta so much. This week marks his seventh time at the tournament.

“It’s very different but I think no one can say it’s not convenient,” Isner said. “You walk out of your hotel room and you walk across the street, [you’re at] the practice courts. You walk across the street and you’re at the main centre court. It’s a unique set-up… and it’s very, very easy.”

Aussie Nick Kyrgios, who’s also making his Atlanta debut, said he hasn’t seen anything like it, with the practice courts in the parking garage. But he’s with Isner. “I like the convenience of it,” Kyrgios said.

Because players can walk everywhere and don’t need to drive anywhere, they don’t have to worry about spending time in traffic and can structure their days much more easily, Kyrgios said.

Kevin Anderson, who returned to Atlanta this year for the sixth time, said the ATP World Tour 250 tournament is one of his “favourite events”.

“Where the location is… it’s a really easy stop on the tour,” he said.

The different set-up “surprised” 32-year-old Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, another player who made his Atlanta debut this week. But Verdasco, who’s been on tour for the past 15 years, appreciates visiting somewhere new.

“It’s always nice to play tournaments different than the other ones and this is for sure one of them,” he said. “I’m very comfortable, I’m very happy to be here.”

Gonzalez said the tournament, which will be played at Atlantic Station again next year, likely will have more surprises for returning players.

“We just continue to try to think outside the box,” he said.

Kei Nishikori opened proceedings on Day One at the Rio Olympics, cruising to a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

Nishikori fired 20 winners, including eight on his backhand wing, to book his spot in the second round after one hour and 19 minutes. The World No. 6, who has amassed 41 match wins at the tour-level this year, is competing in his third Olympics. The Japanese reached the quarter-finals in London four years ago.

Nishikori will face Australia’s John Millman next. Millman turned in a flawless performance in needing just 50 minutes to dispatch Ricardas Berankis 6-0, 6-0. It was the first double bagel in the history of men’s singles play at the Olympics.

Ninth seed Marin Cilic also moved into the second round, streaking past Grigor Dimitrov 6-1, 6-4. The Croat, who fired 21 total winners including 12 aces, took a 2-1 lead in their FedEx ATP Head2Head.

#NextGen star Kyle Edmund of Great Britain made the most of his Olympics debut, turning aside Jordan Thompson 6-4, 6-2. He will face World No. 118 Taro Daniel, who pulled the upset of the day in ousting 14th seed Jack Sock 6-4, 6-4. It was a strong start for the Japanese contingent, with Nishikori and Daniel advancing.

Meanwhile, 20-year-old Thanasi Kokkinakis would push Gastao Elias to a pair of tie-breaks in his season debut, but succumbed 7-6(4), 7-6(3). Kokkinakis underwent shoulder surgery at the end of 2015 and has been out of action ever since.

Malek Jaziri was on the brink of overturning an 0-6 record against Top 10 opponents, racing to a 6-4 lead against World No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, but the Frenchman would turn the tables. Tsonga avoided the upset 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 after two hours and 16 minutes, launching 15 aces and 38 total winners. He was a quarter-finalist in 2012, falling to Novak Djokovic on the lawns of the All England Club.

Frenchman Giles Simon saw off Croatian #NextGen star Borna Coric 6-4, 7-6(1), while Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber bested Argentine Guido Pella 4-6, 6-1, 6-2. In the evening’s final match, France’s Gael Monfils eased past Canadian Vasek Pospisil 6-1, 6-3.

Fifth Seeds Mergea/Tecau Advance In Doubles Action
Romanians Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau got off to a successful start in their Rio opener, downing Argentines Federico Delbonis and Guillermo Duran 6-3, 6-2 on Saturday. They join Lukasz Kubot and Marcin Matkowski in the Round of 16, after the Poles ended Leander Paes’ seventh Summer Games, defeating the 43 year old and partner Rohan Bopanna 6-4, 7-6(6).

Juan Martin del Potro teamed with Maximo Gonzalez to send Argentina into the second round, defeating Aussies John Peers and Chris Guccione 6-4, 7-5. Singles No. 1 Novak Djokovic partnered with fellow Serbian Nenad Zimonjic to down Croatians Marin Cilic and Marin Draganja 6-2, 6-2 in just under an hour.

Former World No. 1 and International Tennis Hall of Fame inductee Gustavo Kuerten carried the Olympic torch into Maracaña stadium at the Rio Summer Games. Other ATP World Tour players featured during the opening ceremony included Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal and Gilles Muller, who respectively carried the flags for Great Britain, Spain and Luxembourg.

Kuerten, a beloved figure in Brazil, held the top spot in the Emirates ATP Rankings for a total of 43 weeks between December 2000 and November 2001. He won Roland Garros three times (1997, 1999, 2001) and also prevailed at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in 2000, becoming the only player to defeat Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in the same event. Kuerten won 20 ATP World Tour singles titles and eight ATP World Tour doubles titles throughout her career.

Kuerten retired from the ATP World Tour at Roland Garros in 2008. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2012 and named its Global Ambassador this June. Kuerten has also been active in philanthropy with his Institute Guga Kuerten, which offers programming for children and disabled people.

Wild card Reilly Opelka reached his first ATP World Tour semi-final after downing Atlanta native Donald Young 6-4, 6-4 at the BB&T Atlanta Open on Friday. The 18 year old won his third consecutive tour-level singles match after going 0-2 to start his career and is the tallest player on the ATP World Tour at 6’11”, tied with Ivo Karlovic.

“In the first set, he had a couple of break points. I was able to step up with some big serves,” Opelka said. “Then I started serving even better, and he barely had any chances in the second set. I have a lot of belief in my game and in my level right now.

“I’ve been doing a really good job with my movement, winning points on my opponent’s serve. The way I am serving now, I know I can at least get to a tie-break. But being able to hit good returns and passing shots is huge.”

Watch Video From 2016 BB&T Atlanta Open

Opelka’s serve remains his most powerful weapon, accounting for 10 aces on the day. However, the Michigan native was also able to rely on his return of serve to put Young on the back foot. Opelka won 12 of 20 points against Young’s second delivery and broke his opponent twice in the 71-minute win.

In an all-American semi-final, Opelka will face top seed John Isner or #NextGen player Taylor Fritz.

#NextGen Frances Tiafoe has already reached two ATP Challenger Tour finals this summer and he’s now one match away from completing a three-peat.

The 18-year-old American is into the semi-finals of the $100,000 Challenger in Granby, Canada, where he is the fourth seed. On Friday, he weathered a late surge from Andrew Whittington of Australia to record a convincing quarter-final victory, 6-0, 7-6(4).

Tiafoe reached Challenger finals last month on American soil in Winnetka (l. Nishioka) and Lexington (l. Escobedo). But while he’s happy with his success this summer, he isn’t overwhelmed by it.

“I’d say this summer has met my expectations, but not exceeded them,” said Tiafoe. “I’ve been working hard and figuring out the way I need to play. I’m happy to start having consistent results. I’ve been in a lot of Challenger finals, but I’d make one and then it’d be a few months before the next one. To reach two of them in two weeks is great.”

Part of his most recent success can be chalked up to experience. Now that he’s in his second full year on tour, he has a clear idea of what he needs to do to reach the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings and continue climbing from there.

“It definitely feels easier. I know what to expect and how to manage myself now,” said Tiafoe. “I’m just trying to serve better, stay solid from the ground and compete point by point, without losing focus. Sometimes I go in and out mentally and that’s when life can get tricky.

Tiafoe has already reached five ATP Challenger Tour finals, including four in the past calendar year, but is well aware he’s still looking for his first Challenger title. The American is confident he’ll break through with his maiden Challenger win soon and thinks it could even happen as soon as Sunday.

“I’m really liking Granby,” said Tiafoe. “It’s a very nice stadium with big crowds and everything is pretty easy here. It feels like I’m playing at home.”

For top American juniors, 5 August 2016 marks the beginning of a great adventure. The USTA Boys’ 18s National Tournament, held in Kalamazoo, Michigan each August, is the Holy Grail of junior tennis in the United States. Each year, 192 aspiring collegiate and professional players descend from all corners of the country to do battle over a 10-day span, in an attempt to win a wild card into the main draw of the US Open. ATPWorldTour.com caught up with four outstanding Kalamazoo alumni, who recounted their favourite anecdotes from the annual classic.

Querrey: The More Things Change…

Sam Querrey, the 2005 Boys’ 18s singles finalist, only took part in the tournament once. After losing in three sets to top seed Donald Young, the lanky Californian took his power game to the pro ranks. The most outstanding ATP World Tour player of Kalamazoo’s Class of 2005, Querrey’s career highlights includes reaching No. 17 in the Emirates ATP Rankings in 2011, winning eight ATP World Tour titles and defeating World No. 1 Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon earlier this year.

“It was definitely the biggest tournament of my junior career. Winning gets you a wild card into the US Open, so there is so much on the line. It really feels like a Grand Slam for an American junior player,” said Querrey, who noted that Kalamazoo’s daunting 192-player draw is larger than that of any professional event.

Despite sweeping the 2004 Boys’ 16s singles and doubles titles and entering the 2005 Boys’ 18s tournament seeded second, the Thousand Oaks native had not considered going all-in on tennis until his late teens. Ironically, this easy-going attitude helped develop the explosive, free-swinging style which has allowed him to keep pace with the best in the world for a decade and counting.

“Sam kind of came out of nowhere. He was not really a top junior in the 14s and 16s, then all of a sudden, he was one of the best guys out there,” said Tim Smyczek. “Back then, he could really blast people off the court. He plays the exact same way now, except a lot better.”

“My attitude and demeanor have never changed. But I take it much more seriously now. It’s a career rather than something that I do for fun, which is how I saw it back then. At the same time, I enjoy it more now than when I was younger,” added Querrey. “If I had to give advice to a player competing at Kalamazoo this year, I’d tell him to enjoy the moment. It’s probably the coolest junior tournament out you’ll get to experience. You play in front of thousands of people and it might well be the biggest stage you’ll ever play on, so have fun.”

Young: Unlocking The Potential

A decade ago, Atlanta, Georgia’s Donald Young was hailed as The Next Great Thing in American tennis. The 2005 and 2006 Boys’ 18s singles champion has worked hard to translate his creative left-handed game to the ATP World Tour ranks, reaching No. 38 in the Emirates ATP Rankings in 2012 and earning more than $3 million in prize money.

“Only a handful of players in every birth year are able to make the Top 100 and enjoy a long pro career,” said Querrey, who noted that most sporting phenoms are held to unreasonably high standards when it comes to their professional futures. “Donald has had a very good career; you’d have to be crazy to say otherwise.”

“It’s a big change from going deep in almost every tournament as a junior to often being ‘one and done’ at the pro level,” said Young, who owns three victories over Top 10 players (Andy Murray, Gael Monfils and Tomas Berdych) since turning pro in 2004. “Since winning in Kalamazoo, the main difference in my game is that I’ve gotten stronger. Not just physically but mentally. I’ve become a lot better at handling the different dynamics in the game from 16 to 27 now, though I am still working on my mental game.

“Life was simple as a junior. I was still living at home, without a lot of responsibilities. Life changes a lot as you become an adult. You become a home owner, you develop relationships,” said Young of the off-court challenges associated with choosing tennis as a career. “You have to grow up and become more independent.”

Smyczek: Finding A Way

Milwaukee, Wisconsin is by no means a tennis hotbed. But for 2006 Boys’ 18s third-place finisher Tim Smyczek, the city provided the right environment for his sporting ambitions.

“I played a lot of sports growing up,” said Smyczek, the son of a basketball coach. “Tennis is such a one-sided sport that it promotes a lot of imbalances in the body, so I used different sports in order to develop as an athlete.”

While Querrey and Young had already developed pro-ready games at 17, it took some time for Smyczek to find the right tactical mix.

“It took me a long time to figure out what type of player I am. In juniors I really had no idea,” the 5’9” Smyczek said. “Back then, I didn’t play like a small guy, I went for winners a lot more and played more aggressively. That’s why it took me a bit longer to put it together. Some other guys had a better idea of how they want to play tennis early on.

“Now, I give myself the opportunity to use my legs and my speed. If I’m going for winners, I’m taking away from my own strength,” said Smyczek, who reached his career-best ranking of No. 68 last year at the age of 27.

Looking back on his Kalamazoo experience, Smyczek identified a specific turning point: “In 2004, my first year in the 18s, I lost in the fourth round but won the back draw. It was ridiculous, I played something like 10 or 12 matches in the same week. That was pretty cool.

“You see a lot of top juniors who lose and then pull out of the consolation draw. When I was in juniors, I really tried to think about development, so it was important for me to get those extra matches in. That’s what junior tennis should be about, playing a lot of matches and learning how to compete.

“Lots of kids get caught up in the wrong things in juniors. If you think about those things in the pros, it’s going to affect your livelihood. Things such as: ‘He beat me, therefore he is going to be recruited higher.’ Or: ‘Is that agent paying attention to me?’ Most pros have a better idea of what to focus on and don’t spend a lot of time thinking about unproductive things. They focus on developing as a player and doing the right things on the court. Then the results will take care of themselves.”

Levine: Life After Tennis

For Jesse Levine, real life is just beginning. The Canadian-born, Florida-raised left-hander played his last competitive match in 2014 and was forced into retirement due to an elbow injury. Since the end of his playing career, Levine has remained close to tennis, working as a talent scout for Nike, starting his broadcasting career with Sportsnet’s Rogers Cup coverage and coaching ATP and WTA Tour players.

“[Even in retirement], I’ll never lose the same competitive spirit I had back then. Whether it’s playing tennis or hockey recreationally now, I don’t like to lose in anything,” said Levine, who reached No. 69 in the Emirates ATP Rankings in 2012.

“I’ve realised how lucky and blessed I have been to have played in that environment,” said Levine, who cites his 6-7(2), 6-1, 6-4 Boys’ 18s semi-final win over Smyczek in 2006 as his best Kalamazoo memory. “Smyczek, Young, Querrey; we had a great group of guys around the same age who really pushed each other. I have a connection with all of them just from playing all the years of juniors and on the ATP World Tour together.”

Like the vast majority of players laying it all on the line in Kalamazoo this August, Levine will end his tennis journey without an ATP World Tour title to his name. However, he believes that success is relative. It is the battles, the friendships and the memories that matter.

“Success for me was just giving everything I got day in and day out, throughout my junior and pro career. Not many people get to say they played tennis as their job; I got to do that for nine years. That’s success to me.”