Botic van de Zandschulp wasted no time settling in Tuesday at the Tel Aviv Watergen Open, where the fifth-seeded Dutchman dispatched Joao Sousa 6-2, 6-3 at the ATP 250 event in Israel.

Van de Zandschulp was particularly dominant on serve in his first ATP Head2Head meeting with four-time Tour titlist Sousa. The Dutchman won 83 per cent (29/35) of points behind his first delivery, while also crushing 28 winners to Sousa’s six as he completed a 81-minute first-round victory.

With the win, van de Zandschulp improved his record in first-round matches in 2022 to 18-6, and 10-2 on hard courts. The Dutchman, who played in his maiden ATP Tour final on the clay in Munich in May, will hope to notch his 37th tour-level win of the season in the second round against Liam Broady. The British qualifier earlier downed Serbian wild card Hamad Medjedovic 7-5, 6-3.

Van de Zandschulp’s triumph was followed by a first-round upset on the centre court in Tel Aviv, where Tomas Martin Etcheverry rallied after losing a one-sided second-set tie-break to complete a 6-2, 6-7(0), 6-4 win against sixth seed Aslan Karatsev. The win against the World No. 39 was the biggest of Etcheverry’s career, and the Argentine’s reward is a second-round clash against Roman Safiullin.

Also on Tuesday, Arthur Rinderknech set a first tour-level meeting with third seed Diego Schwartzman in the second round in Israel. The big-serving Frenchman, a quarter-finalist in Metz last week, prevailed 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3 against Romanian qualifier Marius Copil. Emil Ruusuvuori was also a first-round winner, breaking J.J. Wolf’s serve five times in a 6-3, 6-2 win to advance to face one of two Frenchmen ⁠— seventh seed Adrian Mannarino or Constant Lestienne.

The ATP Tour has returned to Tel Aviv for the first time since 1996 this week. The 88-time tour-level titlist Novak Djokovic is the top seed on the Mediterranean Coast, where the Serbian is also competing in the doubles alongside home favourite Jonathan Erlich.

There was little to separate Holger Rune and Tim van Rijthoven in a hard-hitting first-round clash at the Sofia Open on Tuesday afternoon.

Yet Rune’s ability to raise his level in a pair of tie-breaks ultimately proved decisive in Bulgaria, where the #NextGenATP Dane prevailed 7-6(2), 7-6(6) to ensure his maiden appearance at the ATP 250 indoor hard-court event was a successful one.

“It feels very good,” said Rune, who reached his career-high of No. 26 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in August. “I had just a couple of days of practice here, but I’m really enjoying my time. It’s a tough first round, you never know who can play amazing [and he’s had] some great results, so I’m super happy to get through.”

Despite firing only 18 winners to Van Rijthoven’s 27, Rune showed his mettle under pressure at key moments in the pair’s maiden ATP Head2Head meeting, most significantly when he saved a set point at 5/6 in the second-set tie-break.

“[I didn’t] want to go to three sets,” said Rune, who will meet Metz champion Lorenzo Sonego or Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the next round. “I had the break and led 5/2 in the [second-set] tie-break. If it [had happened], I was going to fight for sure and try to take it in three, but I’m very happy to finish in two.”

The 19-year-old Rune enjoyed a stellar first half of 2022, lifting his first ATP Tour title in Munich and reaching his maiden Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros. Despite struggling to back up those results across the grass and North American hard-court seasons, the Dane is currently fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan as he seeks to qualify for November’s Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals for the second straight year.

“I’m really working hard every day and trying to improve any small things I can,” said Rune. “I think today I stayed very focused all the time. I lost my focus one time on my serve, when maybe I shouldn’t have been broken, but other than that I’m happy with my first match. The first match is always a bit difficult.”

Jenson Brooksby’s resolve was given an early test at the Eugene Korea Open Tennis Championships on Tuesday, but the eighth seed dug deep before accelerating away from qualifier Wu Tung-Lin to seal a 7-6(5), 3-6, 6-0 first-round victory at the ATP 250 event in Seoul.

Wu exerted plenty of pressure on Brooksby’s serve in the two-hour, 20-minute encounter, but the American found a way to save nine of the 11 break points he faced against the World No. 212. Brooksby fended off three set points at 5-6 before going on to take the first-set tie-break, but Wu levelled the match with two second-set breaks of serve as the 24-year-old from Chinese Taipei showed no sign of nerves in his first match against a Top 50 opponent.

Rise-n-Grind 🔥

Jenson Brooksby pulling out all the stops to finally break Wu in Seoul. #KoreaOpen pic.twitter.com/wzWC38Oiuh

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) September 27, 2022

Brooksby, who reached ATP Tour finals this year in Dallas and Atlanta, reacted to that setback in style, delivering a clinical deciding-set showing to book a second-round meeting against Soonwoo Kwon. The top-ranked South Korean in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Kwon overcame his countryman Yunseong Chung 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-1 in the final match of the day at the outdoor hard-court tournament.

Also on Tuesday, Yoshihito Nishioka maintained his unbeaten record against Daniel Evans with a 6-2, 7-6(3) triumph against the fifth-seed. The Japanese World No. 56 carved out 14 break point chances against Evans, converting four of them to complete a one-hour, 49-minute victory and extend his ATP Head2Head series lead against the Briton to 6-0. Nishioka will take on countryman Taro Daniel or Emilio Gomez in the second round.

Mackenzie McDonald and Steve Johnson joined their countryman Brooksby in the second round in Seoul with straight-sets victories on Tuesday. The World No. 82 McDonald downed Pedro Martinez 7-5, 6-4 to set a meeting against third seed Taylor Fritz, while four-time tour-level titlist Johnson proved too strong for home wild card JiSung Nam. Johnson prevailed 7-6(3), 6-4 against the South Korean and will next face Radu Albot.

Nicolas Jarry will be top seed Casper Ruud’s second-round opponent in Seoul, after the Chilean qualifier prevailed 6-3, 7-6(8) against Ryan Peniston in his opening match. #NextGenATP star Chun-Hsin Tseng also advanced Tuesday in the South Korean capital after his opponent Christopher O’Connell was forced to retire from the pair’s first-round clash with Tseng having taken the first set 6-4.

Dominic Thiem didn’t have things all his own way Monday, but he stepped up when needed to reach the second round at the Tel Aviv Watergen Open.

The Austrian wild card improved on serve and found his range as the match went on to overcome Laslo Djere 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-4 in two hours and 40 minutes at the ATP 250 event in Israel.

“I didn’t get off to a great start. I got the break in the second set and then I was a bit lucky I could turn the match around,” Thiem said in his on-court interview. “The third set was a real grind… I am very grateful to everyone who came tonight. It is really nice to play in Israel.”

The former World No. 3 Thiem, who reached the final at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Rennes earlier this month, will next play second seed Marin Cilic as he aims to advance to his fourth tour-level quarter-final of the season.

In a hard-fought battle, Thiem fired 25 winners and was strong on serve in the third set, not facing a break point in the decider to level his ATP Head2Head series against Djere at 1-1.

In other action, Roman Safiullin defeated Frenchman Hugo Grenier 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 in two hours and four minutes to earn his first tour-level win since he defeated Mikael Ymer in Belgrade in April.

Two players claimed their first ATP Challenger Tour title Sunday. American Nicolas Moreno De Alboran was crowned champion in Braga, Portugal while Bosnia’s Nerman Fatic triumphed at the Sibiu Challenger.

Moreno de Alboran won seven matches in eight days as he advanced through qualifying en route to the title at the Braga Open, defeating Brazil’s Matheus Pucinelli De Almeida 6-2, 6-4 in the final.

The 25-year-old’s maiden Challenger title comes five months after he relinquished serving for a straight-sets victory in the Salinas Challenger final, eventually falling to Ecuadorian Emilio Gomez.

“I’m very happy, it’s been a very emotional week,” Moreno de Alboran said. “It’s been a tough year for me with a lot of injuries so coming here, qualifying, and then winning the tournament means a lot. I’ve put in a lot of work to be here.”

Moreno de Alboran, who was born in New York City and played college tennis at UC Santa Barbara, now resides in Madrid, Spain. Backing up a run to the semi-finals at the Cordenons Challenger in August (l. Vavassori), this week’s title in Portugal lifts him to a career-high No. 201 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Pucinelli de Almeida, 21, was competing in his first Challenger final; a run that lifts him to a career-high World No. 190.

Fatic, 27, won the all-Bosnian clash in the Sibiu Open final, defeating Damir Dzumhur 6-3, 6-4.

“It was a crazy week,” Fatic said. “I was playing really well, I didn’t expect this result. I’ve been working hard all my life to achieve this.”

Nerman Fatic celebrates his maiden Challenger Tour title. Credit: Drogos Dumitru/Zeppelin Studio Focus Agency

In Fatic’s semi-final match, he took down top-seeded Federico Coria, to whom he dropped his only set en route to the title in Romania. In the championship match, Fatic, who now climbs to a career-high mark No. 196, defeated his close friend and former World No. 23 Dzumhur.

“Me and Damir were pretty much raised together in Bosnia,” Fatic said. “It is tough to have a tennis career there, but if you have the will and passion, doors will open and you’ll find a way.”

At the ATP Challenger 125 event in Genoa, Italy, Thiago Monteiro captured his second Challenger title of the season, taking down home favourite Andrea Pellegrino in the final 6-1, 7-6(2).

As rain halted play on Saturday, the Brazilian was forced to win back-to-back matches on Sunday to collect his eighth Challenger title. The 28-year-old’s championship run at the AON Open Challenger ties him at his career-high mark No. 62, which he reached this past month shortly after triumphing at the Salzburg Challenger.

“It was a perfect week,” Monteiro said. “I’m really happy to win in Genoa, it’s a beautiful city and a beautiful tournament. I’d like to dedicate this victory to my family and to all my team that works with me.”

Monteiro is riding a 10-match winning streak at the Challenger level and boasts a 18-6 Challenger match record in 2022. When the lefty made his ATP Tour debut in 2016, he defeated then-World No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in Rio de Janeiro.

Thiago Monteiro in action during the Genoa Challenger final. Credit: Tiziano Meoni

In Genoa doubles action, German Dustin Brown teamed up with Italian Andrea Vavassori to win their third doubles title this season at the Challenger level (Cordenons and Szczecin). Brown also paired with American Evan King to collect the Troisdorf title in May.

On the hard-courts in Columbus, Ohio, Australian Jordan Thompson didn’t drop a set en route to claiming his second Challenger title of the season, taking down Emilio Gomez 7-6(6), 6-2 in the championship match.

During a nine-match winning streak this summer, Thompson dropped just one set to triumph at the Surbiton Challenger and finished runner-up in Nottingham the following week (l. Evans).

In 2018, The Sydney native collected 52 Challenger match wins (including reaching the final in Columbus, l. Mmoh), a Challenger Tour season record that is only behind Carlos Berlocq’s 57 Challenger match wins in 2010.

Thompson reached a career-high No. 43 in July 2019, shortly after reaching the final at the ATP 250 event in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

Argentine Nicolas Kicker won his first Challenger title since 2017 on home soil, defeating countryman Mariano Navone 7-5, 6-3 to win the Challenger Dove Men+Care Villa Maria.

Kicker, 30, finished runner-up at the Todi Challenger in July (l. Cachin) and is a four-time tiltist on the Challenger Tour: Perugia, Guayaquil, Buenos Aires, and this week in Villa Maria. Players from Argentina have combined for a season-leading 18 Challenger titles.

Argentine Nicolas Kicker is crowned champion in Villa Maria. Credit: Challenger Dove Men+Care Villa Maria

In 2017, Kicker made his Grand Slam debut at Roland Garros, where he claimed a first-round victory (d. Dzumhur), which propelled him to a career-high No. 78. The following season, the Argentine reached the third round at the Australian Open.

Navone took out three of the Top-8 seeds en route to the final, defeating countrymen Camilo Ugo Carabelli, Juan Manuel Cerundolo, and Facundo Bagnis. The 21-year-old climbs to a career-high No. 265.

Ilya Ivashka and Mikael Ymer closed Monday’s play at the Sofia Open with the match of the day. After three hours and 22 minutes, Ivashka emerged victorious, 7-6(8), 4-6, 7-5, at the ATP 250 in Bulgaria.

The two men split 10 breaks of serve across 24 combined break points, Ivashka sealing victory by battling through deuce to break in the final game. Both men struggled on serve, posting matching 57 per cent win rates on their deliveries, while Ivashka saved eight of 13 break points.

The World No. 71, who reached the fourth round at the US Open before losing a five-setter to Jannik Sinner, will face third seed and home favourite Grigor Dimitrov in the Sofia second round.

In other Monday main-draw action, Kamil Majchrzak defeated Ricardas Berankis 7-5, 6-2 and Bulgaria’s Alexandar Lazarov downed Czech #NextGenATP star Jiri Lehecka 7-5, 6-3 in front of his home fans.

For Lazarov, the World No. 334, it was his first win at an ATP Tour tournament and his first Top 100 triumph.

“I was waiting a long time for this win,” said the Miami-born Bulgarian. “I’m playing this tournament since [2016]. I always dreamed to pass the first round in front of the Bulgarian crowd and I finally made it, so I’m very, very happy.

“It’s extra special. I’m a late bloomer, what they call, because I’m 24. But I think that hard work beats talent and I hope I get to realise what I can do.”

In the final day of qualifying, top seeds Ugo Humbert, Jan-Lennard Struff and Geoffrey Blancaneaux advanced to the main draw, as did Sweden’s Dragos Nicolae Madaras.

It’s been a dream year for Italian Matteo Arnaldi.

In May, the 21-year-old practised with his longtime idol Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome. It must’ve prepared them both well. Djokovic went on to capture a record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 crown in Rome while Arnaldi collected his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title the following week in Francavilla al Mare.

“It was incredible,” Arnaldi said. “I played the week before in Rome, my first Masters 1000 event (l. Cilic). My coach and I didn’t know whether to go to Francavilla or not, I was also in qualies at the Geneva ATP event. We decided to go to the Challenger and I played very well the whole week, I didn’t drop a set until the final.”

The Sanremo native took down countryman Francesco Maestrelli 6-3, 6-7(7), 6-4 to triumph on home soil, claiming the title at the C.T. Francavilla Sporting Club. That was just the start of Arnaldi’s breakthrough on the ATP Challenger Tour. Now, after reaching four Challenger semi-finals this season, including San Marino, where he was a finalist (l. Kotov), the World No. 157 is nearing his 2022 goal.

“I started the year so-so,” Arnaldi said. “It’s my first year playing just Challengers. Last year, I played Futures and I tried to improve my ranking. Until April, I was losing a lot of first rounds, so I didn’t start how I wanted. When the clay season began, where there’s a lot of Challengers at home in Italy, I started to play very well. When you play a lot of matches, you feel better and feel more comfortable.

“My goal for this season was to be Top 150. I’m very close to my goal and I have two or three months to go up more. Everything that comes now is something more than we expected.”

Matteo Arnaldi celebrates his first Challenger Tour trophy with coach Alessandro Petrone (left). Credit: Challenger Francavilla al Mare

Arnaldi is one of six Italian #NextGenATP youngsters who have claimed a Challenger title in 2022. Luca Nardi, Flavio Cobolli, Lorenzo Musetti, Francesco Maestrelli, and Francesco Passaro have also triumphed this season.

Arnaldi, who is 13th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan, now sets his sights on being at the eight-player Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals, which hosts the world’s Top 8 21-and-under players (8-12 November).

“The Next Gen Finals is my goal for the rest of the year. But I don’t like to check the points every week. I just like to play and do my best.”

Arnaldi hopes to be in Milan with Passaro, who is ninth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan. Arnaldi and Passaro teamed up to reach the semi-finals at the ATP Challenger 80 events in Sanremo and San Benedetto Del Tronto earlier this season.

“I’ve known Francesco since I was 11 or 12,” Arnaldi said. “We played all the juniors and played doubles together. We are very close, his team and my team are like a big family.”

In June, Arnaldi made his Grand Slam qualifying debut at Wimbledon, falling short to Portugal’s Nuno Borges. This past month, the Italian made the final round of qualifying at the US Open, losing to Daniel Elahi Galan, who upset fourth seed Stefanos Tstisipas in the opening round.

Boasting a 28-20 Challenger match record in 2022, Arnaldi will next play the Alicante Challenger, 3-9 October.

When the time came for his ATP Tour main draw debut, things couldn’t have gone much better for Aleksandar Kovacevic.

The 24-year-old American stunned seventh seed Miomir Kecmanovic 6-4, 6-4 at the Eugene Korea Open Tennis Championships on Monday. Kovacevic had fallen in the final round of qualifying at the ATP 250 hard-court event in Seoul, but he took advantage of a lucky loser spot in style as he broke the World No. 32 three times en route to an impressive 93-minute first-round victory.

“[It is] a little bit surreal,” said Kovacevic, who will meet Christopher O’Connell or Chun-Hsin Tseng in the second round. “I watch these matches on TV every day. I consider a lot of these guys my peers and I feel like I’m playing at a pretty good level, but just being out there in an ATP event in the main draw… I thought that I needed a little more experience to be honest before I did well.

“I played really well out there. There’s something about big matches for me. For Miomir this is obviously not a huge moment because he’s been here for a while, but for me it is a big deal, so it brings out some of my best tennis. [I’m] really glad for this one, but hoping to continue it during the week. Definitely happy to get this first one, but not fully satisfied yet.”

Welcome to the ATP Tour 👏

Lucky Loser @kova_aleks storms past Miomir Kecmanovic 6-4 6-4 on his ATP debut. #KoreaOpen pic.twitter.com/6uhtHNJuix

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) September 26, 2022

Born to a Serbian father and Bosnian mother and raised in New York City, Kovacevic has just completed his first year as a pro after playing college tennis at Florida Atlantic University. After reaching his maiden ATP Challenger Tour final in Indianapolis in August, Monday’s win represents an instant reward for the World No. 222’s decision to take the trip to Seoul.

“I don’t really travel the world much,” said Kovacevic. “I graduated from college about a year ago, so this is my first kind of year on Tour, and I’ve been mainly playing tournaments in the US so it is definitely a change. I kind of came here to get myself a little bit out of my comfort zone, and that’s exactly what these past few days has been.

“[It has been] kind of rough, I came down with a cold the first day I was here and been trying to accustom myself to the conditions and sleep and all that. But South Korea is amazing, I’ve been loving it. I’m here for four weeks, I’ve committed to doing that, and I couldn’t be happier right now.”

Also on Monday, Radu Albot marked his Seoul debut with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 win against Japanese lucky loser Hiroki Moriya. Albot will meet American Steve Johnson or home wild card JiSung Nam in the second round as he seeks to reach his second tour-level quarter-final of 2022.