Roberto Bautista Agut delivered a clean-hitting performance Friday to upset top seed Daniil Medvedev at the Terra Wortmann Open.

The Spaniard downed Medvedev 7-5, 7-6(3) to earn his fifth Lexus ATP Head2Head win against the World No. 3, who defeated Bautista Agut last year in Halle en route to a finalist finish.

“I think to beat Daniil on this court, you have to play really good,” Bautista Agut said in his on-court interview. “I did not feel good some months this year, but I kept working hard. I know tennis is sometimes very difficult, but today it showed up that I’ve been working hard. It showed up that a lot of things, I have been working on and I’m very happy because I played very good tennis.”

Bautista Agut, 35, held the advantage in extended rallies and countered Medvedev’s deep return position by showcasing drop shots and closing points at net. A semi-finalist in Halle five years ago, Bautista Agut stated that his flat groundstrokes are part of the reason why he plays well on grass. 

“I think I can move well on grass, I think I’m fast,” Bautista Agut said. “My shots are flat and the most important thing is that I enjoy playing on this surface.”

The World No. 23 will meet Andrey Rublev or ‘s-Hertogenbosch champion Tallon Griekspoor in the semi-finals.

Medvedev, who holds a 41-8 season record, will next be in action at Wimbledon. He leads the ATP Tour with the most wins in 2023.

Holger Rune overcame a stern test from Lorenzo Musetti on Friday to reach his sixth semi-final of the season at the Cinch Championships.

In their first tour-level meeting, the second seed defeated Musetti 6-4, 7-5 after one hour, 54 minutes. Rune won 54 per cent of points behind his second serve, compared to Musetti’s 29 per cent to advance to his first career grass-court semi-final.

“I enjoy it [on grass]. I think I’m starting to play better and better,” Rune said in his post-match interview. “[It’s] getting more challenging in every match and I think my mindset has been incredibly good these three matches. I’ve been able to come from a break behind and stay in the moment.

“Grass is also tough for the body. First few matches, every part of your body has to get used to it, the movement, the upper body, everything. So I was struggling a bit but I’m happy that I could finish and win a match.”

Rune, who received treatment on his right wrist during the opening set, won five consecutive games after trailing 1-4. In the second set, the Dane saved two set points on serve at 4-5.

“I had, since I woke up this morning, some pain in the wrist,” Rune said. “I think grass is so much faster than clay, so if you become a bit late on the ball, or on the serve [return], it’s a lot of pressure on your wrist. That was the case. I took some treatment. It was painful a couple of games after but I feel okay now.”

The 20-year-old Rune, who is yet to drop a set this week, will face Alex de Minaur on Saturday after the Australian defeated Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 to reach the last four. De Minaur, seeded seventh, is aiming for his second grass-court title (Eastbourne, 2021).

Should Rune triumph at the Queen’s Club, he would rise to a career-high World No. 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Karen Khachanov has withdrawn from Wimbledon due to a stress fracture he suffered at Roland Garros.

“Hello everyone, this is not an easy statement for me to write, but I have to inform you of my withdrawal from the upcoming Championships at Wimbledon,” Khachanov wrote on Instagram on Friday.

“Due to an unfortunate injury I picked up at the French Open (stress fracture and a partial fracture in sacrum S1 bone), I will not be able to participate at Wimbledon for the second year in a row. The decision to withdraw was not an easy one and I was hoping till the end during these few weeks that I would be able to recover however my medical team ensured me that in my case it wasn’t possible.”

 

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Khachanov has made four appearances at Wimbledon, with his best result a run to the quarter-finals in 2021.

Khachanov had enjoyed a string of deep runs at recent majors, reaching the Roland Garros quarter-finals and Australian Open semi-finals this year and the US Open semi-finals in 2022.

Andy Roddick continued in his role as an expert analyst on Netflix’s Break Point in the newest batch of five episodes to close out Season 1.

The former World No. 1 shared his thoughts on several stars of the show including Nick Kyrgios. ATPTour.com looks at some of Roddick’s most memorable moments from the newest release of the series.

Roddick On Kyrgios
In the first episode of Break Point, Kyrgios partnered close friend Thanasi Kokkinakis to the Australian Open doubles title. In Episode 6, he carried confidence into Wimbledon.

“I don’t know any other person who’s ever won a doubles tournament and went, ‘You know what, now I can win a singles Slam.’ That’s a leap for me,” Roddick said of Kyrgios. “The pressure set is not the same.”

As the series detailed, the Australian put together the best singles performance of his career at Wimbledon, where he advanced to the final of a major for the first time. He ultimately fell short to Novak Djokovic in the final.

“He grew a lot this year,” Roddick said. “I didn’t think he’d ever be able to put it together and make a deep run at a Slam and he almost won Wimbledon.”

Andy Explains Serena’s Aura
Episode 8 revolved around Serena Williams’ evolution away from tennis. Although not directly stated in the show, Roddick has known Williams since the juniors and watched as she became one of the greatest athletes in history.

“Serena puts on a show and has the crowd in the palm of her hand,” Roddick said. “She’s potentially the most intimidating player in history. I mean Venus won five Wimbledons and she is the second-best player in her family. It doesn’t make any sense.”

High Praise For Alcaraz
Break Point followed Frances Tiafoe’s journey to the semi-finals of the US Open, where he lost a thriller to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz. The show painted a daunting picture for the Spaniard’s opponents.

Roddick contributed to that with a short but impressive description of Alcaraz.

“He’s lightning fast,” Roddick said. “The athleticism is through the roof.”

Championship Day At Wimbledon
Roddick reached the Wimbledon final three times, in 2004, 2005 and 2009. The American fell short on each occasion.

But Roddick gained an understanding of the gravitas of Championship Sunday at SW19. As the story built towards Kyrgios’ appearance in the Wimbledon final, Roddick helped set the stage.

“It’s a strange feeling on finals day,” Roddick said. “It has a sense of gravity. You can kind of feel the weight of the history of the game.”

Could Nick Kyrgios go all the way at Wimbledon and win his first major title as a singles player?

That was the main theme of the seventh episode of Break Point, the second of the newly released batch. The episode picked up in the middle of the Australian’s showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas, which was full of tension. After winning, Kyrgios walked off court and told the Netflix camera crew, “I can’t wait for this press conference bro.”

The pair traded barbs in the media, but all that mattered was that Kyrgios advanced through the draw.

For a talented player who had not always fulfilled his potential, a breakthrough performance seemed within arm’s reach. But perhaps the most intriguing moment of the episode came when the crew filmed Kyrgios — safely through to the semi-finals after defeating Cristian Garin — watching the end of the quarter-final between Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz. Interestingly the Australian admitted to preferring a showdown with Nadal, whom he called the “greatest of all time”.

The Spaniard won the match, but withdrew before the semi-finals. Suddenly, Kyrgios stood on the precipice of history, one victory from becoming Wimbledon champion. 

Expert Patrick Mouratoglou said of Kyrgios’ opponent, Novak Djokovic: “Beating Novak at Wimbledon probably the highest mountain to climb for any tennis player.”

Could Kyrgios summit the final peak?

The episode diverted from that storyline to focus on Tunisian Ons Jabeur, who was quickly becoming a superstar. Behind-the-scenes footage showed the photoshoots and commercial opportunities adding up. Jabeur even played doubles with sporting icon Serena Williams in Eastbourne.

“Just a girl from Tunisia”, she quickly became an icon for girls throughout the world. Her husband Karim Kamoun encouraged her to keep dreaming and Jabeur revealed her biggest aspiration.

“I have one dream in my mind now,” she said: winning Wimbledon.

“[It would be] something big for the whole sport in the world,” her husband later said.

Jabeur ultimately fell short to Elena Rybakina, who also eliminated Break Point star Ajla Tomljanovic. But both Jabeur and Tomljanovic showed growth through defeat and despite their tough losses, gained plenty of fans along the way.

The end of the episode focused on Kyrgios’ shot at Djokovic and glory.

“I’m a kid from Canberra,” Kyrgios said. “I’m not supposed to be here. But I’m here.”

The Australian made a perfect start against Djokovic, but it did not prove enough. The Serbian showed his experience in calm and patience, which ultimately allowed him to turn the tide and halt Kyrgios’ title chase.

Nick fell short, but proved that he is more than just potential. Andy Roddick was complimentary of the Aussie.

“He grew a lot this year,” the former World No. 1 said. “I didn’t think he’d ever be able to put it together and make a deep run at a Slam. He almost won Wimbledon.”

Carlos Alcaraz is one of the more experienced 20-year-olds ever to compete on the ATP Tour, his precocious talent already earning him four ATP Masters 1000 titles, a US Open crown and several stints atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

But when it comes to grass, the Spaniard is still green.

Alcaraz entered the Cinch Championships with a 4-2 career record on the slick surface, but he’s now through to his first grass-court quarter-final at The Queen’s Club in London. As he builds his confidence on the lawns, he shared some insight into how he has developed his game.

In addition to watching videos to scout his opponents, Alcaraz has also been trying to emulate the likes of Roger Federer and Andy Murray in their grass-court movement. 

“I want to look up to the best players on grass and movers. On grass, Roger and Andy for me are the best players that are moving great on grass. So I want to be the same, like them,” he said of the pair, who have 10 Wimbledon titles between them (eight for Federer, two for Murray).

Happy to be in the quarters of a grass tournament for the first time! 🌱🤩 Learning and having fun on this surface! 🥸🥳 Let’s go for more! 💥 @QueensTennis

📸 Getty pic.twitter.com/EmMGutX8yO

— Carlos Alcaraz (@carlosalcaraz) June 22, 2023

While he also admires Djokovic’s grass-court prowess, the Spaniard thinks the four-time defending Wimbledon champion’s fancy footwork is a bridge too far, at least at this point in his career.

“I’m not talking about Djokovic because Djokovic slides like [on a] clay court,” added Alcaraz. “[That is] not my case, but I try to put similar stuff in my game that Roger and Andy does in grass.”

Asked to expand on what he’s learned about moving on grass, he explained how it differs from navigating clay and hard courts.

“Moving on grass, as I said a few times, for me is the key of everything on grass. It’s the key if you are playing good or not,” Alcaraz said, noting that he has grown in confidence after two strong matches at the London ATP 500 event.

“You have to be more focused on the footwork here,” he continued. “I can’t slide as I do on clay or on hard court, so you have to know that and, practising from that part, you have to adapt your moves or your hit on grass.”