Frances Tiafoe won his 13th consecutive tie-break to clinch victory on Thursday in Tokyo, advancing to the quarter-finals for the first time at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

In a 6-1, 7-6(7) win against Bernabe Zapata Miralles, Tiafoe closed out a high-level second set on his fifth match point. He is through to his sixth ATP Tour quarter-final of the season.

“I think handling those big moments, tie-breaks and stuff like that, [the key is] focussing on what you can focus on and just playing to win, playing aggressive,” Tiafoe said, also acknowledging the role of luck in his streak. “I have a lot of shots in the book, so I’m trying to make the match on my terms and have that belief.”

The fourth-seeded American has not lost a tie-break since Cincinnati, winning eight in his run to the US Open semi-finals and another two at the Laver Cup, including a trophy-clinching Match Tie-break for Team World.

Against Zapata Miralles, Tiafoe raced to a 4-0 lead in the opening set after saving two break points in his first service game. But the Spaniard raised his level in set two, creating two chances for what could have been a double-break lead at 4-1. Instead, the American got back on serve to set up an eventful close to the pair’s first ATP Head2Head meeting.

Tiafoe could not convert on two match points with Zapata Miralles serving at 4-5, then saved a break point on his own serve at 5-5.

A thrilling tie-break included a sumptuous drop volley from Tiafoe and a stunning on-the-run pass from Zapata Miralles as the competitors traded heavy blows in the Ariake Colosseum. With big serves at key moments, Tiafoe never gave his opponent a set point as he closed out the victory.

The American finished the match with 12 aces and a 78 per cent (28/36) win rate on first serve. He saved five of six break points in the one-hour, 32-minute contest.

Tiafoe is now two wins away from matching the run of his coach, South Africa’s Wayne Ferreira, to the 1999 Tokyo final.

“Wayne’s been pushing me to just keep believing in myself and believing in my game,” said Tiafoe, who was not aware of his coach’s success in Japan. “When I’m at my best, I can play with anyone. He’s been really pushing that message for me.”

Tiafoe, who beat Japan’s Yasutaka Uchiyama in the opening round, will next face either eighth seed Daniel Evans or Miomir Kecmanovic.

Did You Know?
The last American to win the Tokyo men’s singles title was three-time champion Pete Sampras in 1996. 

Photo Credit: Hiroshi Sato

Stunning stadiums set in glamorous destinations have long been part of life on the road for the best players in the world, but that doesn’t mean the ATP Tour can’t throw a surprise or two their way. Just ask Andre Agassi and Roger Federer.

In 2005, the legendary duo stepped out to play on the helipad at the top of the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, 690 feet above the ground. This iconic meeting in the clouds is one of 50 game-changing moments of the past 50 years collated by ATPTour.com in an immersive feature, part of the ATP’s anniversary celebrations.

At a time when the ATP Tour extended its broadcast reach to more than 200 countries in 1998, a new STARS program was established to help make players more accessible to media, sponsors and fans at each tournament. Perhaps the most memorable promotional activity came on 22 February 2005, when organisers of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships invited Roger Federer and Andre Agassi to hit for 20 minutes on a tennis court positioned on the helipad of the super luxurious Burj Al Arab hotel, more than 200 metres above sea level.

“It was an absolutely amazing experience,” said Agassi. “When you first get over how high you are and start playing, it’s an absolute joy, and it was a great time.” Federer added, “It was amazing. We had this picture-perfect day, no sand storms, just a clear day, no winds.

“I didn’t know at the time, when we were doing this, that it was going to have such an impact. I had an idea of how we could make it better. We had a helicopter, which was going to film it all around, [and] really show on what kind of a platform we were playing. Instead of just having a picture taken of the hotel.”

From classic matches to legendary players, relive all 50 game-changing moments.

Read more special features in our ATP50 series.

Stefanos Tsitsipas held firm to see off the challenge of #NextGenATP Italian Luca Nardi on Wednesday in a high-quality second-round battle at the Astana Open.

The third seed was solid throughout a hard-fought clash at the ATP 500 event in Kazakhstan but found it hard to shake off his younger opponent en route to his 7-6(2), 7-6(3) victory. The Greek needed to be at his best behind serve in the face of a highly promising performance from 19-year-old Nardi, who was playing just his fifth tour-level main-draw match, but Tsitsipas ultimately prevailed by staying more consistent at key moments en route to a one-hour, 45-minute win.

“He’s a player that can play very well in the future,” said Tsitsipas after the match. “I was impressed by his level, he was able to maintain that throughout the entire match. There weren’t any holes. I believe today he was able to sustain that level from the beginning to end, and that was extremely impressive.

“I was trying to do my best, I was trying to switch it up as much as I can, but it wasn’t as easy as I had it planned in my head. He made it difficult today.”

Although Nardi carved out the only two break points of the match, Tsitsipas won 84 per cent (41/49) of points behind his first serve on the way to his 12th consecutive tour-level win against Italian opponents. With the victory, the World No. 6 advanced to his 12th tour-level quarter-final of 2022, where he will face seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz or home favourite Alexander Bublik.

Tsitsipas’ wins in Astana this week against home favourite Mikhail Kukushkin and Nardi have improved the Greek’s record for the season to 51-18. The Greek, who has already qualified for November’s Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, is chasing his first hard-court crown since his Marseille triumph in 2020.

Andrey Rublev enjoyed a more comfortable route to the quarter-finals on Wednesday as he eased to a 6-3, 6-2 triumph against Zhang Zhizhen.

Zhang, who is No. 108 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, had an opportunity to surge into the Top 100 in the live standings with a win, but was unable to resist the powerful return game of Rublev in the pair’s first tour-level meeting. The fifth-seeded Rublev was clinical in converting three from four break point chances to wrap a 59-minute win and improve his record on indoor hard courts in 2022 to 9-1.

Rublev will meet Adrian Mannarino in the quarter-finals, after the Frenchman backed up his first-round win against Stan Wawrinka with another impressive display of clean hitting against David Goffin. The Winston-Salem champion rallied to a 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 victory against lucky loser Goffin to reach his seventh tour-level quarter-final of the season.

Taylor Fritz did not think he would be able to compete in Tokyo after testing positive for COVID-19 in South Korea. But after a week in full quarantine, the American finished a whirlwind Wednesday with his first career victory at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

The third seed was forced to pull out ahead of the Seoul event last week, but was cleared to make the two-hour flight to Tokyo in the nick of time, the morning of his opening-round match against James Duckworth.

Fritz capitalised on the opportunity with a 6-2, 6-7(2), 6-1 victory to advance to the second round for the first time in four attempts at the ATP 500.

“[I’m feeling] better than I thought I would be,” Fritz said in his post-match press conference. “I don’t feel amazing, but I’m really happy that I was able to go through all that and still show up and win my match.”

The American was too sick to even exercise in his room for much of his quarantine period, but began to work out over the past three days. Still, he maintained a positive mindset entering Japan, where he has an opportunity to improve on his 10th place position in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin.

“I felt, for whatever reason, confident that I was going to be able to come out of lockdown and strike the ball well,” said Fritz, who is seeking his debut at the Nitto ATP Finals. “I was more concerned about the cardio and my conditioning after being really sick and not having been able to do anything. Luckily the court was very fast, and so we were not playing long points, so physically I was OK.”

Fritz dominated the opening set and had two break points early in the second, but had to recover from a break down to force a tie-break, in which he struggled with his control. Duckworth began the deciding set full of confidence and created an early 15/40 opening on return, but the American erased the opportunity, using the escape to launch a run of five games to seal the match.

“A little bit scary in the third, a couple of break points. But aside from that I played well,” said Fritz, who fired 24 aces in winning 88 per cent (50/57) of his first-serve points.

“My mindset was never that he was beating me, or up. I let some chances slip in the second set that I shouldn’t have. I played a really bad game on my serve. He definitely was playing better, playing some good points, but I just told myself in the third to just keep doing what I was doing.

“I felt like all the chances were there in the second set; I felt like I was better. I just didn’t convert, then let him convert on my serve and didn’t play the best tie-break.”

Noting his standing in the Race To Turin, the American said he would have been devastated to miss both Seoul and Tokyo with COVID. After the win, he was thankful to still be playing in what he called one of his favourite tournaments.

Fritz will meet Japanese lucky loser Hiroki Moriya in the second round, with their matchup scheduled for Thursday night in the Ariake Colosseum.

“It’ll be fun,” he said of the matchup against the home favourite, one of two Japanese men in the second round, alongside Rio Noguchi.

“I’m going to have to play well,” he continued. “I’m obviously still feeling the effects of everything I’ve been through, so I just have to take it one match at a time, just go out there and compete. I’m excited to play at night in front of the home crowd.”

Novak Djokovic delivered an ominous opening display Wednesday at the Astana Open, where the fourth seed breezed past Cristian Garin 6-1, 6-1 in just 62 minutes at the ATP 500 event.

Fresh from winning his 89th tour-level title without dropping a set in Tel Aviv on Sunday, Djokovic maintained his impressive level in a near-flawless performance on tournament debut in Kazakhstan. The Serbian was in control from the start, finding consistency and accuracy with his groundstrokes to keep Garin under pressure as he converted five from eight break points en route to increasing his ATP Head2Head series lead against the Chilean to 3-0.

With his triumph in Tel Aviv last weekend, Djokovic became the only ATP player to have won titles on clay (Rome), grass (Wimbledon) and hard courts in 2022. The Serbian’s next opponent in Astana as he chases his fourth tour-level title of the season will be World No. 34 Botic van de Zandschulp.

More to follow…

Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios made the most of an unexpected appearance in the Ariake Colosseum with a dominant doubles victory on Wednesday night at the
Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo.

Originally scheduled for Tokyo’s second stadium, the Aussies’ matchup against Japanese wild cards Yoshihito Nishioka and Kaichi Uchida was moved to the roofed centre stage after persistent rain. The top seeds thrived under the spotlight and did not face a break point as they cruised through, 6-1, 6-2.

The reigning Australian Open and Atlanta champions are seeking their third title of the season as they step up their bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. The pair is currently seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, with a place in the top eight needed to guarantee a spot in Turin.

Also fighting for a spot in the year-end event is another Australian duo — the second-seeded team of Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell. This year’s Wimbledon titlists opened their Tokyo campaign with a 6-2, 7-6(4) win against Alexei Popyrin and Ramkumar Ramanathan.

Third seeds Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez also advanced, courtesy of a 7-6(5), 6-4 decision against Hans Hach Verdugo and Miomir Kecmanovic, while Alex de Minaur and Frances Tiafoe bowed out with a 6-3, 6-1 defeat to Mackenzie McDonald and Marcelo Melo.

Wednesday’s lone doubles contest to require a Match Tie-break was the first match on. Americans Brandon Nakashima and Hunter Reese survived with a 4-6, 6-1, 10-2 win against France’s Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul.

Denis Shapovalov did not let the disappointment of losing Sunday’s Seoul final linger. Making a quick transition to the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, the Canadian rode a near-perfect serving performance to victory against Steve Johnson on Wednesday.

In a 6-3, 7-6(3) win, the seventh seed lost just one point on first serve, firing 11 aces as he won 37 of 38 points behind his first delivery. He was further aided by making 76 per cent of his first serves and did not face a break point in the first-round encounter.

“[This was] definitely one of my best serving matches,” Shapovalov assessed. “I kind of felt like I needed to against Steve. Obviously if I’m giving him a lot of looks on second serves, then he’s going to capitalise and put a lot of pressure. I’m very happy with my serving performance today and hopefully I can keep it up throughout the week.

“The courts are playing pretty quickly, so if you’re putting a lot of first serves in, I think the percentage to win the point is really high here.”

Shapovalov avoided the Tokyo fate of his Seoul final opponent, Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka, who lost earlier in the day as he struggled with his energy levels and the new conditions after the short adjustment period.

“I feel good,” the Canadian said. “I’ve had this experience a couple times already, playing the week after making a final and having a quick turnaround.

“In general, I think the most important thing for me is to feel mentally fresh. The body has always been feeling good, knock on wood. I feel good mentally, very motivated. When you do lose in a final it almost motivates you a little bit more than winning, to play the next week.

“I was fighting like crazy today. I had to against Steve and will continue to do so the rest of the week.”

A 2018 semi-finalist in Tokyo, Shapovalov will next face Japanese qualifier Rio Noguchi for a place in the quarters.

Two 19-year-olds appeared in the main draw at this week’s Astana Open. Now only one remains, but it might not be the one most expected.

While the No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Carlos Alcaraz, suffered a rare blip on Tuesday, Luca Nardi enjoyed one of the finest days of his burgeoning career.

Hours before Alcaraz fell to lucky loser David Goffin, the Italian qualifier tallied his first tour-level win by downing Alexander Shevchenko 7-6 (4), 6-2.

“It was a very special day for me. And it was a special moment because I was looking for it,” Nardi said, referring to that first ATP win. “I’m really glad it came now. So I’m very, very happy.”

Even though Nardi’s position in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings has soared to No. 152 from No. 440 this time last year, he did not necessarily expect his unforgettable moment to happen at the new ATP 500. Indeed, the #NextGenATP star pondered not making the trip to Kazakhstan after losing in qualifying at the Tel Aviv Watergen Open last week to a player then ranked No. 446, Edan Leshem.

But once in Astana, Nardi defeated none other than Goffin, the former World No. 7, in the final round of qualifying on Sunday — and in far from routine fashion. He saved three match points in the second set of his 3-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) win, recalling that one was fended off with a drop-shot winner.

That was not it. Nardi cramped in both legs as the slugfest stretched to three hours. Yet despite suffering physically, the Italian drew enormous confidence from prevailing, helping to banish memories of the qualifying reverse in Tel Aviv.

Nardi proved there were no ill effects against Shevchenko, who entered their contest six spots higher in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. He overcame losing a 25-shot rally, when Shevchenko moved the Pesaro native from side to side, to clinch the first-set tie-break.

“Actually, after this long season, right now I’m feeling great both physically and mentally, and after the match with Goffin, even more, because I understood I can play at (a certain) level, which is this level, and this gives me so much confidence,” said Nardi.

“I’m really glad I won this match and I hope I can keep going like this until the end of the season.”

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Nardi has lifted three ATP Challenger Tour trophies in 2022, all on hard courts, with the most recent coming in early September at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar. Nardi admitted Nadal provided inspiration, even as the 22-time Grand Slam champion contested the US Open an ocean away.

“It was special because while I was playing on the centre court, I was imagining that Rafa was there,” said Nardi, who added that Nadal’s great rival, Roger Federer, was his idol. “I was trying maybe to imitate him with the fighting spirit, and stuff like that.

The title in Spain marked Nardi’s first event since contracting Covid-19. A serious case, it left him bed ridden for about nine days.

He consequently missed the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag ATP 250 event, where he had been given a main-draw wildcard. Nardi had momentum, too, having just qualified for the Hamburg European Open.

“I was playing good,” said Nardi. “I was very sad.”

Lorenzo Musetti, 20, ended up winning Hamburg and Jannik Sinner, 21, triumphed in Umag. Nardi knows both of his fellow Italians, especially Musetti. They have played matches together, practiced, and been on the same national teams. Nardi is not only the youngest of the trio, but the youngest of 18 Italians in the top 200.

Musetti and Sinner own Top 10 wins and Nardi bids for his first in Wednesday’s night session in Astana against Stefanos Tsitsipas. He is realistic, but hopeful about his chances against the Greek nine-time tour-level titlist.

“Of course it’s going to be very, very, very hard for me. I don’t know if I have many chances, but I will try to do my best and let’s see what happens,” said Nardi. “I will try to enjoy every moment on court.”

If you are a supporter of Novak Djokovic, you will be relieved to know that he was not injured carrying that monstrous Tel Aviv trophy to his next stop at the Astana Open.

“No,” he said in a Tuesday interview with ATP Media in Kazakhstan. “That’s an original size that stays in Tel Aviv. We got the smaller replica version. It’s better, more convenient for travelling.”

Djokovic collected that gleaming silver trophy (it was almost as wide and tall as his torso) by defeating Marin Cilic in the Sunday final 6-3, 6-4.

“Winning gives you confidence,” Djokovic said. “I haven’t played an official tournament in three months, so it’s been a while. I’m just excited to compete more.”

Indeed, since winning his seventh Wimbledon title in July, he had only played two Laver Cup matches heading into Tel Aviv. After winning four matches in Israel, he’ll try to go one better in Kazakhstan, an ATP 500 event. The journey begins Wednesday when he plays Cristian Garin of Chile in the first night match (6 p.m. local time) at the National Tennis Center. The Serbian star holds a 2-0 ATP Head2Head advantage over Garin, most recently a straight-sets victory in last year’s Wimbledon Round of 16. Botic Van de Zandschulp awaits the winner in the second round.

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It’s a fresh start for the 21-time Grand Slam singles champion after what has so far been a turbulent, disjointed season. A year ago, though, Djokovic couldn’t have been much better.

He won the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon, then found himself one set from a calendar-year Grand Slam. He was trying to join Don Budge (1938), and Rod Laver (1962, 1969) as only the third man to achieve that spectacular feat, but Daniil Medvedev denied him at the US Open.

Nonetheless, Djokovic finished the season having won 55 of 62 matches and positioned himself to take control of the three-way race with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer that found them all tied with a record 20 major titles apiece. It didn’t quite work out that way.

Nadal began the year by winning the Australian Open and Roland Garros, although the Serb narrowed the Spaniard’s lead to 22-21 by winning Wimbledon.

Djokovic said that despite the similar indoor hard-court venues, conditions in Astana differ greatly from Tel Aviv.

“Tel Aviv was fast, so if you serve well, the ball skids through the court and you get a lot of free points,” said Djokovic, who served exceptionally well in Israel. “Here, it’s not such a great asset. It’s tough to penetrate the court. You have to use the tactics of clay, constructing the points.

“It’s going to be much more physical.”

Djokovic, despite playing only 34 matches this year (28-6), is the only ATP Tour player to collect titles on three different surfaces: Rome (clay), Wimbledon (grass) and Tel Aviv (hard).

“Considering the small amount of tournaments I played this year, it’s a great success to play consistently well on the different surfaces,” Djokovic said. “That’s always a goal to play well all around.”

His immediate goal, of course, is to win this Astana Open, but there is a larger challenge as well. Djokovic is currently No. 15 in the Pepperstone ATP Race to Turin, and there are only five weeks left in the regular season. Provided he remains inside the Top 20, he will secure a Nitto ATP Finals berth based on his status as a current-year Grand Slam champion.

“Hopefully, I can accumulate some points that will secure me a spot in Turin,” Djokovic said. “That’s one big goal to the end for the year, to qualify.”