Milos Raonic wasted little time getting back to business on Monday at the Libema Open in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, where the former World No. 3 raced to victory against Miomir Kecmanovic in his first match for almost two years.

A series of injuries have kept the Canadian sidelined since July 2021 but his comeback in the Netherlands could hardly have gone more smoothly. Raonic notched a 6-3, 6-4 victory against the World No. 39 Kecmanovic during which he won 92 per cent (34/37) of points behind his first serve.

“It’s nice to be here after almost two years now and stepping away for a long time,” said Raonic after his emotional comeback triumph at the grass-court ATP 250. “It’s nice to be giving it one more try and hopefully going as far as I can. I’ve put in the best effort I could, and I want to see how far it takes me.

“It’s been a real pleasure to get to play in front of people. I didn’t get to hit a single tennis ball for a full year, now I get to play in front of a bunch of people. It was pretty nerve-wracking, I forgot that feeling. To be honest with you it might have been a little bit easier if I played in front of nobody today.”

What a comeback 🫶

After two years away from the tour @milosraonic claims victory 👏@LibemaOpen | #LibemaOpen pic.twitter.com/VJb0H4sSn9

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 12, 2023

The 85-minute victory was Raonic’s 50th tour-level win on grass. The eight-time ATP Tour champion, who reached the final at Wimbledon in 2016, acknowledged his strong start in ‘s-Hertogenbosch was another small step in a long journey back.

“[I’m taking it] day by day,” said Raonic. “It’s been a little heartbreaking a lot of the time when I couldn’t do anything and it’s nice for me to be here one more time. I get the chance to be on court, I get the chance to play, I get the chance to compete, to put in the work, and I get a chance to see how far it takes me, so I’m thankful.”

The 32-year-old will seek to extend his comeback when he takes on Jordan Thompson or qualifier Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard next in the Netherlands.

Ugo Humbert and Marc-Andrea Huesler also enjoyed straight-sets opening wins on Monday. The seventh-seeded Humbert, who won the biggest title of his career on grass in 2021 at the ATP 500 event in Halle, downed Jason Kubler 6-4, 6-2. The resurgent Frenchman, who has risen to No. 36 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after falling as low as No. 108 in January, will face Emil Ruusuvuori or Brandon Nakashima in the second round.

Huesler marked his ‘s-Hertogenbosch debut by upsetting eight seed Maxime Cressy 6-2, 7-6(2). It was a first tour-level win on grass at the third attempt for the 26-year-old Swiss, who will take on home wild card Gijs Brouwer or Rinky Hijikata next.

Lorenzo Sonego succeeded where nine of Matteo Berrettini’s previous BOSS OPEN opponents had failed on Monday in Stuttgart.

The World No. 41 Sonego ended Berrettini’s unbeaten record at the grass-court ATP 250 by racing to a 6-1, 6-2 victory against his fellow Italian. Sonego produced an authoritative performance to avenge his 2022 Stuttgart quarter-final defeat to Berrettini, who appeared to be struggling physically for much of the match.

Professional performance ‼️

Sonego takes out defending champion Berrettini 6-1 6-2!@boss__open | #BossOpen pic.twitter.com/aeuQzM8nJI

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 12, 2023

“It’s tough,” said Sonego in his on-court interview when asked about Berrettini, who lifted the trophy on his previous Stuttgart appearances in 2019 and 2022. “I’m not happy because he’s my best friend on Tour and it’s tough to see him like that. I hope the best for him in the next tournament.

“Today I played my best tennis. This is my first tournament on grass, my first match, and I played really well. I’m really happy about that.”

Sonego saved all six points he faced in the 71-minute encounter to notch his first Top 30 win on grass. The Italian is now 16-14 for the 2023 season and arrived in Germany off the back of a run to the fourth round at Roland Garros. His second-round opponent will be home favourite Daniel Altmaier or Christopher O’Connell.

Another Italian, Lorenzo Musetti, had no trouble booking his second-round spot in Stuttgart. The sixth seed downed qualifier Borna Gojo 7-6(4), 6-3 for his maiden tour-level victory on grass at the fifth attempt.

Musetti saved a set point in the 10th game en route to the first set against Gojo before claiming the only break of the match in the second to seal an 89-minute win. The Italian, who rose to a career-high No. 17 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday after his fourth-round run at Roland Garros, will play Oscar Otte or Gregoire Barrere in the second round.

Musetti’s fellow 21-year-old Jiri Lehecka also notched his first tour-level win on grass with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win against Marcos Giron. The No. 37 ranked Czech now prepares for his maiden ATP Head2Head meeting against third seed Frances Tiafoe in the second round.

Italian Matteo Arnaldi continued his 2023 breakthrough Sunday when he captured the ATP Challenger Tour 125 title in Heilbronn, Germany. The fast-rising 22-year-old, who is one of four Challenger champions this week, is at a career-high No. 72 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings following his triumph at the NECKARCUP.

Fifth seed Arnaldi ousted Facundo Diaz Acosta 7-6(4), 6-1 in the final after winning 30 of 35 first-serve points to end the Argentine’s 14-match winning streak at the Challenger level. En route to the title, Arnaldi twice rallied from a set down, including against second seed Jaume Munar in the quarter-finals.

“Winning the tournament means a lot to me,” Arnaldi said. “I didn’t start the tournament very well, but I improved from match to match and was able to celebrate my third Challenger success of the year. Victory here should now bring me towards 70th in the rankings.”

A four-time Challenger Tour champion, Arnaldi has enjoyed a strong clay-court swing. The Sanremo native first cracked the Top 100 last month after his run to the third round at the Mutua Madrid Open, where he upset third seed Casper Ruud as a qualifier.

In other Challenger Tour action, #NextGenATP star Dalibor Svrcina was crowned champion at the Unicredit Czech Open in Prostejov.

The 20-year-old Czech defeated countryman Tomas Machac 6-4, 6-2 in the Challenger 100 final to earn his second Challenger title. The Ostrava native Svrcina, who was a finalist last year in Prostejov, went one step further to win on home soil and rise to 10th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race.

Earlier this season, World No. 192 Svrcina qualified for his maiden Grand Slam at the Australian Open, where he made it to the second round.

At the Tyler Tennis Championships in Texas, American Nicolas Moreno De Alboran survived a three-hour, nine-minute marathon final, where he defeated Mikhail Kukushkin 6-7(8), 7-6(0), 6-4 to earn his second Challenger trophy.

^{Mikhail Kukushkin (left) and Nicolas Moreno De Alboran at the Tyler Challenger trophy ceremony. Credit: Tyler Tennis Championships}

“It’s very special, that’s why I came here,” Moreno de Alboran told commentator Mike Cation. “I’ve been wanting to come to the United States and play more. After [Roland Garros], I was like, ‘I’m going to head over there and play more on hard court and play at home.’ It worked out pretty good.”

At a career-high No. 142 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, the 25-year-old Moreno de Alboran, who played college tennis at the University of California, Santa Barbara, earned his first Challenger title last year in Braga, Portugal.

Three-time major champion Andy Murray won on home soil at the Surbiton Challenger to open the grass-court swing. The 36-year-old defeated Jurij Rodionov 6-3, 6-2 in the final to become the oldest grass-court champion in Challenger history (since 1978).

Murray, who won the Aix-en-Provence Challenger 175 title last month, is the sixth player to win Challenger titles on both clay and grass in the same season.

Are you ready for part two?

After successfully launching in January, Netflix’s new tennis series, Break Point, is back for five more dramatic episodes, premiering on Wednesday 21st June.

The series documents a game-changing year in the sport with unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to a select group of the world’s best players, with part one a favourite among fans.

Netflix on Monday released a trailer of part two, featuring several ATP Tour stars, including Stefanos Tsitsipas, Nick Kyrgios and Frances Tiafoe.

The trailer takes viewers through the pressure facing the world’s brightest young talents and the indescribable intensity of competing at the highest levels in tennis.

Break Point, produced by the team behind F1: Drive to Survive, gets up close and personal with the featured players throughout the 2022 season on the ATP Tour and Hologic WTA Tour. The show has already been commissioned for a second season, which will air next year.

Which players are featured in Netflix’s Break Point?

Felix Auger-Aliassime, Paula Badosa, Matteo Berrettini, Taylor Fritz, Ons Jabeur, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Nick Kyrgios, Casper Ruud, Aryna Sabalenka, Maria Sakkari, Sloane Stephens, Iga Swiatek, Frances Tiafoe, Ajla Tomljanovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The ATP has announced the relocation of the ATP Tour 250 tournament in Pune, India to Hong Kong SAR in 2024 following ATP Board approval of the relocation by tournament owner IMG.

The tournament returns to its previous home at Victoria Park Tennis Centre after a 21-year absence. The former ATP Tour tournament was played in Hong Kong from 1990 to 2002 with Michael Chang winning the title three times alongside other star players including Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Boris Becker, Marat Safin and Carlos Moya.

The tournament will take place from 1-7 January on outdoor hard courts with a total prize money of more than $650,000.

Gavin Forbes, Executive Vice President & Managing Director, Tennis Events, IMG, said: “Following a successful five years in Pune, we are excited to bring an ATP Tour event back to Hong Kong after a more than 20-year hiatus. We would like to thank the tennis fans in Pune for their support these past years. Hong Kong is an established tennis market with a passionate fanbase, and it is a convenient, competitive stop for players on their way to the Australian Open. We look forward to working with HKCTA and using IMG’s unparalleled expertise in tennis to kick off the 2024 season with an exceptional experience in Hong Kong.”

Philip Mok, President, Hong Kong, China Tennis Association, added: “Our goal has been to bring an ATP Tour level event back to Hong Kong for several years, and we are thrilled to make it a reality.”

Further details of the new Hong Kong tournament will be announced at a later date.

Novak Djokovic has returned to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after triumphing at Roland Garros. Several other ATP Tour stars have also climbed following the second major of the season. ATPTour.com looks at the movers of the week as of Monday, 12 June 2023.

No. 1 Novak Djokovic, +2 (Joint Career High)
The 36-year-old has begun a record-extending 388th week at No. 1 after he clinched a record 23rd major at Roland Garros. The Serbian, who defeated Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals and Casper Ruud in the final, is the first man to win all four major events at least three times. Djokovic is also the oldest Roland Garros champion at the age of 36 years and 20 days.

No. 10 Karen Khachanov, +1
Khachanov has returned to the Top 10 for the first time since 2019 after he reached the quarter-finals in Paris. The 27-year-old has enjoyed an impressive season, also advancing to semi-finals at the Australian Open and the Miami Open presented by Itau.

No. 23 Alexander Zverev, +4
Last year, Zverev tore three ligaments in his right ankle during his Roland Garros semi-final against Rafael Nadal. Twelve months on and the German was back at the semi-final stage in Paris, defeating seeds Frances Tiafoe and Grigor Dimitrov to reach the last four. The 26-year-old’s run in the French capital was his best result of the season.

No. 32 Tomas Martin Etcheverry, +17 (Career High)
The Argentine arrived at Roland Garros having previously earned only one main draw win at a major (Australian Open 2023). Ten days later he left as a major quarter-finalist after defeating Jack Draper, Alex de Minaur, Borna Coric and Yoshihito Nishioka. The 23-year-old has performed strongly on clay this year, also reaching finals in Santiago and Houston.

Other Notable Top 100 Movers
No. 15 Borna Coric, +1
No. 16 Tommy Paul, +1 (Career High)
No. 17 Lorenzo Musetti, +1 (Career High)
No. 18 Alex de Minaur, +1
No. 19 Pablo Carreno Busta, +2
No. 20 Francisco Cerundolo, +3 (Career High)
No. 24 Jan-Lennard Struff, +4 (Career High)
No. 26 Grigor Dimitrov, +3
No. 27 Yoshihito Nishioka, +6 (Career High)
No. 30 Nicolas Jarry, +5 (Career High)
No. 41 Lorenzo Sonego, +7
No. 45 Dusan Lajovic, +8
No. 48 Aslan Karatsev, +14
No. 53 Yannick Hanfmann, +12 (Career High)
No. 56 Zhang Zhizhen, +15 (Career High)
No. 57 Marcos Giron, +18
No. 59 Daniel Altmaier, +20
No. 61 Juan Pablo Varillas, +33 (Career High)
No. 69 Luca Van Assche, +13 (Career High)
No. 72 Matteo Arnaldi, +34 (Career High)
No. 78 Stan Wawrinka, +11
No. 81 Sebastian Ofner, +37 (Career High)
No. 88 Thanasi Kokkinakis, +20

Austin Krajicek on Monday climbed to World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings for the first time after earning his first major doubles title on Saturday alongside Ivan Dodig at Roland Garros.

“Of course, reaching No. 1 really is an honour,” Krajicek told ATPTour.com. “It’s an incredible honour to be on that list of guys and it’s always been a goal of mine since I was a little kid. There’s no doubt about that. I think a lot of players have that [goal].”

Krajicek won the biggest junior tournament in the United States at Kalamazoo in 2018. The lefty then played college tennis at Texas A&M, where in 2011 he won the NCAA Doubles title with Jeff Dadamo. The American embarked on his professional journey, cracking the Top 100 in singles in 2015.

But Krajicek has made his biggest mark in doubles. Fittingly his college coach, former doubles World No. 2 Steve Denton, was in his box (as were current coach Philip Farmer and others) Saturday for the biggest moment of his career.

“It’s [been] over a decade of ups and downs and struggles in Futures and Challengers and a lot of tough moments where you don’t know if you can do it. [There was] some doubt as well that everybody has, it’s completely natural,” Krajicek said. “But I can’t say that I could have had any better of a support staff, all the way from from my parents at the very beginning to everyone at Texas A&M, to my juniors, to working at IMG and [the] Bollettieri Academy before school, and then recently here with Phil. It is really all about that and the support staff.

“It takes a team. I can’t take any individual credit at all. I mean It’s all the team, my wife Misia has been incredible through all the tough stuff that we do as tennis players.”

Two years ago, Krajicek and his coach, Farmer, sat down to discuss short and longterm goals. Two of their longterm goals were for Krajicek to win a major and reach World No. 1. Before May of last year, the Dallas resident had never cracked the Top 30. 

“Once he came off from the trophy ceremony yesterday and signing autographs, he said, ‘Hey, come here.’ And so I went up to him in the players’ lounge and he got out his phone, and all these other goals were checked off — win a Masters and Davis Cup,” Farmer said. “There were two left and he did it in front of me. It was win a Slam, so he put a checkmark on his phone. And then the one above it was [reach] No. 1, and he checked that off. So that was a cool moment for me, as a coach and for for us as a team.”

Krajicek added: “It’s one of those things at the time, you’d like to say absolutely, I believe it. But it’s not easy to actually do it. We put our heads down and worked really hard these last couple of years. Last year, we were outside of the Top 30 and we never lost that belief and willingness to work hard and do the little things better. I think that’s the main thing that’s gotten better, is just the little details.”

Ivan Dodig (left) and Austin Krajicek celebrate clinching the 2023 Roland Garros doubles crown. Photo: Getty Images

Krajicek and Dodig became a full-time team last April and have not looked back. They qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals in 2022 and are currently the first-placed team in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Team Rankings.

“It’s amazing to have an incredible partner like Ivan, who’s not only a great player and obviously one of the best in history, but a great guy, a great leader,” Krajicek said. “I’ve learned so much from him, so much experience that he’s brought in how to handle these tough moments and be professional and expect to win and make a great team.”

Krajicek has been more focused on his team’s success than his own. That selflessness is something that another Texas A&M alumnus, Jackson Withrow, pointed to when discussing Krajicek’s accomplishment.

“Austin has always been the team-first type of guy. His continued hard work and selflessness makes those around him better, me being a perfect example of that,” Withrow said. “When we played a few years ago, his drive, his vision, his just overall care about his partner, about his team, goes a long way. You become better as a player, as a person, and I think that just speaks volumes to who he is as a person. I think he’s just the perfect example of what dedication and having a purpose looks like.”

Farmer concurred, adding: “I’m just so proud of Austin and in the way he approaches his craft and his career. He’s extremely diligent and professional. He’s loyal, and respectful. He’s very open-minded to coaching and doing whatever it takes to get better however [long] that process is and how much work it takes. He’s accountable, he’s reliable, he’s a team player and he’s just so coachable.”

^{Krajicek and Farmer celebrate after the Roland Garros final. Photo Credit: Philip Farmer}
One year ago, Roland Garros was the site of Krajicek’s toughest defeat. Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer saved three championship points in the final against Dodig and Krajicek.

Instead of allowing that moment to haunt them, Dodig and Krajicek returned to Court Philippe-Chatrier with a vengeance. Not only did Krajicek walk away with his first major, but doubles World No. 1.

“It is sweeter to have it happen at Roland Garros. I was joking with Ivan that obviously we’ve waited 12 months for another opportunity and for it to come at Roland Garros, I think it’s really cool,” Krajicek said. “Gosh, we’ve been thinking about that final for a while now [since] last year. It [was] just such a tough match and incredible how tennis can bring some of the toughest moments and best tournaments of your life together.”

Krajicek is already back home in the United States and excited to celebrate the moment with his family and friends. But after a couple of days, he knows it is straight back to work ahead of the grass-court season.

Farmer, who ironically coached Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan to their first major title at Roland Garros in 2003, said: “Kind of the stress, the monkey’s off your back so to speak. [With] the confidence, you really start to say, ‘Okay, I’ve done it now. And here we go, let’s kind of ride the momentum.’”