Tennis News

20 years since Beijing’s bow! Champions in the Chinese capital

For the past 20 years, Beijing has been home to the China Open, an outdoor hard-court tournament that has attracted some of the ATP Tour’s biggest names.

The ATP 500, which has been a combined event since its inception in 2004 after the WTA Tour moved its WTA 1000 from Shanghai, has been won by a host of notable champions, including Marat Safin, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, and most recently, Jannik Sinner.

Ahead of the 20th anniversary edition of the event, ATPTour.com looks back on some of the men’s singles champions in Beijing.

2004: Safin, Beijing’s First Champion
There can hardly have been a more emphatic first champion in Beijing than Safin. The former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings competed as the fifth seed in the inaugural edition of the ATP 500 and he did not drop a set all week.

Safin’s dominance in the Chinese capital kick-started a red-hot run on the hard courts. He won ATP Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Paris later that year, before lifting his second Grand Slam title at the 2005 Australian Open.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/20/13/15/safin-beijing-2004-trophy.jpg” style=”width: 100%;” alt=”Marat Safin” />

_{^{Marat Safin lifts the trophy at the inaugural China Open in 2004. Goh Chai Hin/AFP via Getty Images}}

2005 & 2017: Nadal Bookends in Beijing
Nadal won the Beijing title on his both his event debut in 2005 and his most recent appearance there in 2017. He defeated Juan Carlos Ferrero and Guillermo Coria en route to the 2005 crown, a title run that in came in the midst of his stunning breakout season during which he won 11 tour-level titles overall.

Twelve years later, in 2017, the Spaniard triumphed in Beijing once again, despite facing two match points in his first-round match against former World No. 10 Lucas Pouille. Nadal defeated three opponents from the Top 20 of the PIF ATP Rankings — John Isner, Grigor Dimitrov and Nick Kyrgios — to cap his run in the Chinese capital.

“It is an important title for me,” said Nadal after his 2017 triumph. “The last year that I had the trophy with me was in 2005. In 2005 I never would have believed that I will keep playing tennis in 2017… I’m very happy.”

<img src=”/-/media/images/articles/nadal-beijing-2024-20-years-on.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Rafael Nadal” />

_{^{Rafael Nadal wins the 2017 Beijing title. Photo Credit: Etienne Oliveau/Getty Images}}

2008: Roddick, Beijing’s Only American Winner
In 2008, Andy Roddick achieved history by becoming the first and only American to raise a title at the China Open.

The 2003 US Open champion lifted his fifth and final ATP 500 title in Beijing, where he defeated his fellow former World No. 1 Ferrero in the quarter-finals and Dudi Sela in the championship match.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/20/13/08/roddick-beijing-2008-backhand.jpg” style=”width: 100%;” alt=”Andy Roddick” />

_{^{Andy Roddick in action during the 2008 Beijing championship match. Photo Credit: Andrew Wong/Getty Images}}

2009-10, 2012-15: The Djokovic Dynasty in Beijing
Novak Djokovic has become synonymous with Beijing’s tournament. The Serbian holds a 29-0 record at the ATP 500.

In 2009, the Serbian defeated Marin Cilic in straight sets to win his first China Open title. The victory over the Croatian opened the door to years of Djokovic dominance in the Chinese capital, including titles in five of the next six years (2009-10, 2012-15). The former World No. 1 has won the China Open six times, a tournament record, without dropping a single set in the final on any occasion.

“This is right at the top, one of the best achievements I’ve had in my career,” said Djokovic prior to his 2015 championship-match clash with Nadal. “Every time I keep coming back, I have these positive, great memories from the success, the great performances I had on the centre court, support, just overall feel is very positive. I try to use that in my favour.”

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/20/13/12/djokovic-beijing-2015-celebration.jpg” style=”width: 100%;” alt=”Novak Djokovic” />

_{^{Novak Djokovic defeats Rafael Nadal in the 2015 China Open final. Photo Credit: Chris Hyde/Getty Images}}

2016: In the Midst of Murray Magic
Andy Murray arrived at Beijing in 2016 on the backdrop of a remarkable year. The Scot was in the midst of an incredible season that included becoming the first player to win back-to-back Olympic Gold medals, while also winning the Wimbledon championships and reaching two other major finals (Australian Open, French Open).

In the 2016 China Open, Murray capped off a dominant year, by defeating two former Top 10 players to win his first title at the China Open. Murray won 26 straight matches to finish the year as the ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/18/20/25/murray-beijing-2024-20-years-on.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Andy Murray” />
^{Andy Murray won his sole Beijing title in 2016. Photo Credit: Emmanuel Wong/Getty Images}

2023: Sinner flourishes in Beijing
One of the key moments of Jannik Sinner’s breakthrough 2023 season was in Beijing, where he defeated two Top 3 players, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev, to lift the title. Medvedev had won all six of their previous Lexus ATP Head2Head matchups.

Sinner’s impressive form carried over to 2024, when he won his maiden major at the Australian Open before becoming the first Italian No. 1 in PIF ATP Rankings history in June.

With these historic moments in mind, the stage is set for this year’s edition of the China Open, which will be played from 26 September-2 October.

Will a Chinese man break through to triumph on home soil? Zhang Zhizhen, who recently won the mixed doubles silver medal in the Paris Olympics, is the country’s leading hope. Other home favourites to watch include #NextGenATP Shang Juncheng and Buyunchaokete.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

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Gauff splits with coach Gilbert

Coco Gauff ends her partnership with coach Brad Gilbert just a fortnight after what she described as a “disappointing” US Open title defence.

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Remembering Robert Lansdorp: Austin, Davenport, Teacher & Teltscher pay tribute

Robert Lansdorp, the pioneering coach based in California who mentored four World No. 1s and impacted countless players at all levels throughout his career, has passed away aged 85.

Lansdorp, who was born in Indonesia and then moved with his family to the Netherlands before they relocated to the United States, played college tennis at Pepperdine University. The All-American will not be remembered for his competitive achievements, though. He became a legend as a coach, inspiring several generations of stars to reach their potential.

Lansdorp mentored both ATP and WTA greats from an early age, developing them into the international icons they became. Notable legends he coached include Tracy Austin, Pete Sampras, Lindsay Davenport and Maria Sharapova.

Lansdorp began working with eventual World No. 1 Austin at the Jack Kramer Club in California when she was seven. In 1979, aged 16, she won the US Open.

“As a coach, it didn’t matter whether he was coaching a No. 1 in the world or someone that was hoping to make the high school team, he gave 100 per cent,” Austin told ATPTour.com. “He just loved the challenge of trying to make that person on the other side of the court the best tennis player that they could be. He enjoyed that. He actually enjoyed that challenge of making that person a better tennis player with the half an hour or the hour that he had.

“His DNA was to to push you, but he also pushed himself. And I think when we realised that, then you you were on board. You were on board [and knew] that we were on this journey together… He asked for perfection, but you were more than willing to try to get there.”

Another World No. 1, Davenport, added: “Robert was so unique. He was a personality like no one I’ve ever met or been around, and I was really fortunate to have him come into my life when I was around nine years old.

“He changed my life in terms of, I would never have gone down the path or achieved anything I was able to achieve without having him in my life. It’s hard to put in words, because all of us that worked with him, I’ve talked to so many people in the last day and a half, and we have this bond even though we don’t necessarily speak all the time, just because of our history [with Robert]. He was so important to so many people over such a long period of time.”

The former No. 6 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Eliot Teltscher, also started with Lansdorp well before he was a teen. Now 65, he has remained close with his mentor ever since.

“I stopped playing tennis almost 40 years ago, but I stayed friends with Robert until the very end. So his impact for me didn’t end when I stopped playing tennis. His impact was, for me, for my life. The best way I could put it is he never stopped coaching me,” Teltscher said. “We would talk and discuss things and talk about things when I wasn’t playing tennis, when I was in my 40s and 50s and 60s. It never ended. He was, I think for me, a little more of a mentor than a coach.

“It didn’t stop when tennis stopped, it continued. A lot of times, you teach somebody when they’re done playing, that’s it, that’s the end of it. I’m going to speak for myself and not for others, but I think a lot feel the same way. My relationship with Robert never ended. It went on forever. I called him up every few months to just say, ‘Hey, what’s going on? What’s this? What’s that?’ It never, never stopped. So I’ll miss that.”

Author Malcolm Gladwell popularised the 10,000-hour rule, which presents the idea that it takes practising a skill for 10,000 hours to master it. According to Teltscher, Lansdorp embodied that long before it was widely discussed like it is today.

“The most common thing people had was all his students tried really, really hard, and it was because of the respect they had for Robert as a person. It was that respect that you wanted him to be proud of you, so you tried really hard,” Teltscher said. “Before the guy came out with it, Robert was basically preaching it. If you want to get good, you’ve got to hit a million balls. And he had a very large basket of balls, much larger than, actually, anybody I’ve ever seen. And so you didn’t get too many breaks, and you got a tonne of balls until it became where you could do it without thinking. You could just do it.”

Austin recalled drills in which Lansdorp would hang a broom handle from the net with a hook and there would be a tennis can that would sit nicely on the top. It was a target that required a lot of accuracy. The coach would then feed ball after ball to see how often his player could hit it.

“You’d do it over and over again, and he’d place it for the cross court, and place it for the down the line, and then you’d play a game and see how many out of 10 you could get,” Austin said. “There was always some method to his madness, whether it was trying to hit you slices and top spins, or trying to make you hit on the rise, to challenge your timing, or trying to make you mentally tough.

“You’d play a game, and you’d be up in the game, and it’s 15-7 and he’d go, ‘Nope, it’s 15-7 for me’. You’d go, ‘No Robert, it’s 15-7 for me’, and he’d kind of chuckle. You knew he was doing this for a reason, just to [make you] dig in a little bit stronger and not not give in, try to make you tougher.”

According to Davenport, Lansdorp’s drills remained the same over the decades. She did the same things Austin did and her son Jagger Leach, the junior World No. 15 who is playing his first professional tournament this week, had to go through the same drills when he visited with Lansdorp in 2017.

“You had to become great at them, and you had to do them all the time,” Davenport said. “If you didn’t do it well one day, guess what? You were going to keep doing it until you figured it out.”

Brian Teacher, the 1980 Australian Open champion, began taking lessons with Lansdorp when he was a freshman at UCLA. 

“He helped me quite a bit with hitting over my backhand,” Teacher said. “We would work out once a week. I always enjoyed my lessons with him. He pushed. He pushed all his kids very hard and harder.

“He he would kind of make you want to vomit in the back of the court because he’d work you so hard, but you got better. No questions about that. He really specialised in getting you to hit the ball deep. To hit deep and penetrating balls, he liked you to hit clean through the ball. I think he pushed all his students hard. It was his specialty.

“Everybody loves Robert and they loved for him to work them out. He helped my game a tonne and started me on a good progression as a freshman to move to the top of the ranks in college. I always considered Robert a good buddy as well as a great coach. I had true love for his passion and his character and humanity. He will truly be missed.”

Earlier this year, several of Lansdorp’s former players and others in the community gathered at the Jack Kramer Club to honour the 85-year-old. It is clear his legacy will carry on.

“He was a character,” Davenport said. “He won’t be forgotten, that’s for sure.”

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'I couldn't feel my arms and legs' – Murray on pro-am nerves

Andy Murray endured a bout of nerves when he played in the BMW PGA Championship pro-am with fellow Scot Bob MacIntyre on Wednesday.

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Cilic, Marozsan record wins on Day 1 in Hangzhou

Marin Cilic secured his first win on the ATP Tour since January 2023 on Wednesday, finishing with a flourish to complete a 5-7, 6-3, 6-0 comeback over Zachary Svajda in the first round of the inaugural Hangzhou Open.

The former No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings has been hampered by injuries over the course of the past two seasons, eventually undergoing a second knee surgery in May this year. After a spell on the sidelines, Cilic returned to action on the ATP Challenger Tour last month and has worked his way back to record an impressive triumph over Svajda.

“It means a lot,” Cilic said of his return to winning ways. “It means a lot for me, for my team who have been with me through this extremely long, boring and difficult period. Two surgeries, lots of recovery, rehab and training. [I’m] just extremely happy that I am healthy, enjoying myself on the court, and physically back to 100 per cent.”

A winning return 🔙 for @cilic_marin 🙌@HangzhouOpen | #HangzhouOpen pic.twitter.com/CtN17wrNzj

— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 18, 2024

The 35-year-old, who clinched his maiden Grand Slam at the 2014 US Open, won 92 per cent of first-serve points in the deciding set according to Infosys ATP Stats to cruise to victory and book his spot in round two, where he will face Maximilian Marterer or Yoshihito Nishioka for a place in the quarter-finals.

Earlier in the day, seventh seed Fabian Marozsan secured an emphatic 6-0, 6-2 win over Luca Nardi to advance in one hour, 10 minutes. The Hungarian has established himself as a persistent threat on hard courts this season and is off to a strong start in Hangzhou with a statement win, overpowering Nardi with a comfortable triumph.

The Italian Nardi produced a stellar run to defeat Novak Djokovic en route to the fourth round of the ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells in March but has since been unable to record a win over a Top 50 opponent.

Just like Cilic, veteran Mikhail Kukushkin also rolled back the years with a dominant display to defeat fifth seed Luciano Darderi 6-3, 6-4. The 36-year-old, who currently sits at No. 112 in the PIF ATP Rankings, used his craft and guile to record his first tour-level win since October 2023.

The former World No. 39 will now attempt to notch his 175th tour-level win when he faces either Alexander Shevchenko or Marco Trungelliti in the second round. 

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‘No, you’re the king!’ Federer greets Captains Borg, McEnroe ahead of Laver Cup

A host of tennis greats is gathering in Berlin.

Roger Federer on Tuesday headed to the city’s Uber Arena to help welcome his fellow former No. 1s in the PIF ATP Rankings and Laver Cup captains Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe to the German capital.

“The king!” exclaimed Team Europe captain Borg upon seeing Swiss great Federer, who is a co-founder of the Laver Cup and featured in a victorious Team Europe lineup at three editions of the teams’ event.

“No, you are the king!” replied Federer to Swedish legend Borg, who will captain Team Europe for the seventh and final time in Berlin.

Roger Federer arrives at the Uber Arena ahead of Laver Cup Berlin 2024. pic.twitter.com/f5TAfPlYDl

— Laver Cup (@LaverCup) September 17, 2024

Also set for his final outing as a captain this year is McEnroe, who had just finished hitting with his brother and Team World Vice-captain Patrick McEnroe on the iconic black Laver Cup court when Federer appeared.

“Good surprise, they said nobody was hitting!” said Federer to the McEnroe brothers.

First held in 2017, the Laver Cup pits a lineup of six European ATP Tour stars against six counterparts from the rest of the world. Team Europe has won four of the past six editions of the event and boasts a strong lineup this year that includes World No. 2 and home favourite Alexander Zverev and No. 3-ranked debutant Carlos Alcaraz.

Team World, which triumphed in the past two editions of the Laver Cup in London and Vancouver, respectively, will this year be spearheaded by a trio of Americans in Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

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Mpetshi Perricard, Daniel make winning starts in Chengdu

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard survived a scare on Wednesday, when he rallied from a set down to defeat Chinese wild card Fajing Sun 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4 and advance to the second round of the Chengdu Open.

The Frenchman, who has experienced an eye-catching breakthrough year, dug deep to outlast the No. 359 in the PIF ATP Rankings in a gripping contest that lasted two hours, 28 minutes. The win was just Mpetshi Perricard’s second hard-court triumph on the ATP Tour this season but will be a welcome one as he quashed a four-match drought to advance in China.

The 21-year-old enjoyed a dazzling run to the fourth round of Wimbledon earlier this year, becoming just the seventh man in history to hit more than 50 aces in a match (51). Seeking a second title of the season, the Lyon champion will next play Yannick Hanfmann or Shintaro Mochizuki. 

34 aces 🎯

Mpetshi Perricard closes the day with a 6-7 7-5 6-4 win over sun to advance into the second round!@ChengduOpen | #ChengduOpen pic.twitter.com/3o4EaNdgLD

— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 18, 2024

Taro Daniel bounced back from his gut-wrenching five-set defeat in the US Open first round to Tristan Schoolkate to secure his first Top 50 win since January, upsetting sixth seed Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 7-5 to progress to the second round.

In winning his first tour-level match since the Mutua Madrid Open in April, the Japanese star snapped an 11-match losing streak. Sonego, the No. 50 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, has been unable to capitalise on the form that drove him to his fourth ATP title at the Winston-Salem Open last month, falling to back-to-back first-round defeats in his past two tournaments.

In the first match on centre court, Lukas Klein muscled his way past Adam Walton 7-6(3), 6-4 in a battle that was largely dominated by the serving prowess on display from both men. Klein, however, slammed down 12 aces to seal victory as he became the first Slovak to record a match win in Chengdu.

Walton’s difficult end to the season continued as the Australian fell to his seventh straight defeat at all levels since reaching the last 16 at the Atlanta Open in July.

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Murray swaps racquet for golf clubs, stars at Celebrity Pro-Am in Wentworth

Andy Murray has wasted little time in getting his competitive juices flowing again following his retirement from tennis last month. The Scot swapped his racquet for golf clubs on Wednesday in England, where he competed in the celebrity Pro-Am event ahead of the DP World Tour tournament in Wentworth.

The former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings retired following the Paris Olympics last month and has since spent time improving his golf game. The Scot will put his newfound skills to the test at the celebrity warm-up event in Surrey, where he will team with countryman and professional golfer Robert MacIntyre in the exhibition event.

Ahead of his round, Murray caught up with four-time major champion Rory McIlroy, with the pair in high spirits as they shared a laugh.

Andy Murray 🤝 Rory McIlroy #BMWPGA | #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/TVeOBqMgPm

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) September 18, 2024

Murray will feature in the Pro-Am alongside a host of other celebrity names, including former Real Madrid star Gareth Bale and English cricketers James Anderson and Ollie Pope.

MacIntyre forms part of a strong field for the BMW PGA Championship, which commences Thursday. Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Matt Fitzpatrick and Justin Rose are all set to be in action.

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Watson beaten by Kostyuk at Korea Open

Great Britain’s Heather Watson is knocked out of the Korea Open following a straight-set defeat by Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the second round in Seoul.

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Tien, Fearnley continue red-hot form with Challenger titles

American teen Learner Tien and Briton Jacob Fearnley are two of the most dominant players on the ATP Challenger Tour right now.

The #NextGenATP Tien added his name to elite company in American tennis history Sunday when he won his second Challenger title at the Las Vegas Tennis Open. Fearnley, 23, lifted his third trophy in just his fourth appearance at that level this year.

Tien, seeded third, overcame Tristan Boyer 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 in the Las Vegas Challenger final, during which Tien won 65 per cent of his second-serve return points, compared to Boyer’s 37 per cent.

“I put a lot more importance on return points. I know how much pressure winning a couple points in someone’s service games can make them feel,” Tien told commentator Bryan Fenley.

By triumphing on the Las Vegas hard courts, Tien became the fifth-youngest American to win multiple Challenger titles, only behind Taylor Fritz, Andy Roddick, Frances Tiafoe, and Sam Querrey.

Youngest Americans To Win A Second Challenger Title

“I’m happy I was able to get through this week,” Tien said. “Tougher conditions here with the altitude and wind. Some moments I wasn’t playing as well as I wanted to, but I’m happy I was able to problem solve and make it through the week.”

In May, Tien was No. 432 in the PIF ATP Rankings, but the 18-year-old has since propelled to a career-high No. 151. The teenager claimed his maiden Challenger title in Bloomfield Hills in June amidst his 28-match winning streak — including four ITF World Tennis Tour titles — across all levels.

Tien is seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. He is aiming for his maiden trip to the 20-and-under Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December.

The Briton Fearnley beat three of the Top 4 seeds at the Open Blot Rennes, including fourth seed and home favourite Quentin Halys in the final, which Fearnley won 0-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 after saving 12 of the 15 break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Fearnley completed his standout five-year collegiate career at Texas Christian University this year and has since made a rapid rise on the ATP Challenger Tour, boasting an 18-1 season record at that level. Up to a career-high No. 129 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Fearnley won his first major main-draw match at Wimbledon, where he then pushed Novak Djokovic to four sets in the second round.

Trophy time in Rennes 🏆#ATPChallenger | @jakefearnley01 | @OpenBlotRennes pic.twitter.com/27GrrhAYL5

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) September 15, 2024

In other Challenger action, Vit Kopriva went one step further than last year’s runner-up finish at the Invest In Szczecin Open to claim his fourth title. The Czech avenged last year’s final loss against Federico Coria in dramatic fashion, fending off five match points in the semi-finals to survive the Argentine. Kopriva raced past Andrea Pellegrino 7-5, 6-2 in the final.

“The whole week was very special. Very tough for me coming back after last year’s final,” Kopriva said. “I’m really happy for the whole week. Today’s final was up and down. It was windy. We both struggled a little bit at the beginning, losing service games. The first set was the deciding one and luckily I made it.” 

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/17/17/15/kopriva-szczecinch-2024.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Vit Kopriva wins the Szczecin Challenger.” />
^{Vit Kopriva wins the Challenger 125 event in Szczecin, Poland. Credit: Invest In Szczecin Open}

Guy Den Ouden did not drop a set all week at the IZIDA Cup in Dobrich, Bulgaria, where the 22-year-old beat Jelle Sels 6-2, 6-3 in the final. Following the Dutchman’s maiden Challenger title, Den Ouden is up to a career-high No. 277 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Christopher O’Connell won his sixth Challenger title and first of this season at the Guangzhou Huangpu International Tennis Open. The 30-year-old Australian, who has won a trophy on Asian hard courts each of the past three seasons, downed Sho Shimabukuro 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(5) in the championship match. O’Connell was competing in his first tournament since reaching the third round of the US Open and falling to World No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/17/17/00/oconnell-guangzhouch-2024.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Christopher O’Connell in action at the Guangzhou Challenger.” />
^{Christopher O’Connell in action at the Guangzhou Challenger. Credit: Guangzhou Huangpu International Tennis Open}

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