It’s been a long wait, but Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic are back in the winners’ circle.

The defending champions edged a dramatic encounter with John Isner and Diego Schwartzman at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Sunday afternoon in Rome, clinching their fourth ATP Masters 1000 title together with a 6-2, 6-7(6) 12-10 championship match victory.

Mektic and Pavic earned nine tour-level titles last season on their way to finishing 2021 as the year-end No. 1 team in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Team Rankings. They were yet to win a title in 2022 prior to arriving in Rome, but looked at home once again at the Foro Italico as they defended their 2021 crown for the loss of just one set all week.

“It’s big, we kind of started the year a little bit slow,” said Pavic after the match. “We were struggling, we were a little unlucky. It was not ideal.

“Obviously the first title of the year, it means a lot to gain some confidence. It’s been a while. We won a lot of tournaments last year, so always to win the title is a pretty good achievement, especially as it’s a Masters 1000 title.”

“It means so much,” added Mektic. “I mean, 11-9 [in the Match Tie-break], I don’t have to talk too much about it. Each point is so important, so I’m so, so happy that we made it this time.”

In contrast to their experienced opponents, Isner and Schwartzman were partnering for the first time in Rome. The duo became affectionately known as #Isnerman by fans, and the American-Argentine pair rallied well after an underwhelming first-set performance in Sunday’s final. They were inches from clinching the title themselves in the Match Tie-break, with a Schwartzman forehand just missing the line when they led 10/9.

A one-sided opening set saw Schwartzman and Isner broken once each as Mektic and Pavic started quickly. The Croatians were energetic at the net and solid from the baseline as Isner and Schwartzman struggled to settle into the encounter on Pietrangeli.

After a tighter second set was dominated by serve, Mektic and Pavic were on the brink of the title at 6/5 in the tie-break. After the third seeds let that championship point slip, however, Schwartzman raised his game at the perfect moment. The Argentine found a pair of inspired forehand winners to force a Match Tie-break as he and Isner became the only team to win a set against Mektic and Pavic across the Croatians’ back-to-back title runs.

Both teams let slip a championship match opportunity in the Match Tie-break before Mektic and Pavic found a way to rise above the tension to convert their third of the match, with their relentless solid net play helping them to a one-hour, 56-minute victory.

Isner was aiming for a third Masters 1000 of the year, having won the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells with countryman Jack Sock and the Miami Open presented by Itau with Hubert Hurkacz. For Schwartzman, the hunt for a maiden tour-level doubles crown goes on, with the Argentine now 0-5 in doubles finals.

Gael Monfils and Elina Svitolina announced on social media Sunday that they are expecting their first child, a girl, in October.

“With a heart full of love and happiness, we are delighted to announce that we are expecting a baby girl in October,” they wrote.

With a heart full of love and happiness, we are delighted to announce that we are expecting a baby girl in October ❤️ pic.twitter.com/LernKW9Seq

— Gael Monfils (@Gael_Monfils) May 15, 2022

Monfils and Svitolina, stars on the ATP Tour and the Hologic WTA Tour, respectively, married last July.

Several colleagues quickly congratulated the pair, including Naomi Osaka, who commented on Monfils’ post, “Congratulations 🥳 October babies are the best lol ⭐️.”

Novak Djokovic has had a lot on the line all week at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, and nothing will change on Sunday in the Rome final against Stefanos Tsitsipas. 

The World No. 1 slipped to No. 2 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings entering the week before his quarter-final victory over Felix Auger-Aliassime moved him back to the top spot ahead of Daniil Medvedev. Djokovic then downed Casper Ruud in the semis to earn his 1,000th tour-level win and guarantee himself the top seed at Roland Garros. 

Playing in his fourth straight Rome final, and his 12th overall in the Italian capital, the Serbian now seeks a record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 title against Tsitsipas. The Greek is bidding for his second title of 2022 after he successfully defended his Monte Carlo crown in April.

In the doubles final, John Isner and Diego Schwartzman face third seeds and defending champions Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, with the American-Argentine pairing looking to become champions in their first event as a team. Isner is on the hunt for his third Masters 100 doubles title of the year with as many partners.

[1] Novak Djokovic (SER) vs. [4] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)

The most recent ATP Head2Head meeting between these two men came last year in the Roland Garros final, when Djokovic battled back from two sets down to win his 20th Grand Slam title. Just prior to that, the Serbian engineered another comeback to defeat Tsitsipas in the Rome quarter-finals. He leads the overall series 6-2, including a perfect 4-0 on clay.

Djokovic is hot on the trail of his first title of 2022 as he begins to hit top form late in the European clay season. After an early exit in Monte Carlo, he reached the final in his native Belgrade and the semis in Madrid. He has not dropped a set this week in Rome, dominating Aslan Karatsev and Stan Wawrinka before winning closer yet still comfortable contests against Felix Auger-Aliassime and Casper Ruud.

Tsitsipas survived a pair of match points against him to defeat Grigor Dimitrov in the Rome opening round and later scored a pair of comeback wins against Karen Khachanov (third round) and Alexander Zverev (semis). In between, he ended the run of home favourite Jannik Sinner in straight sets.

The Greek enters the final in scintillating form with a 14-2 record on the clay swing. He backed up his Monte Carlo title with a run to the Barcelona quarters and the Madrid semis and avenged a loss to Zverev in the Madrid with his win on Saturday. His 31 tour-level wins on the season lead the ATP Tour.

Tsitsipas is competing in his first Rome final, and enters the title match with a 9-4 record at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

“It’s one of those tournaments that I think has the most history in sport,” he said upon reaching the final. “As you can see looking around the sides, one of the most beautiful stadiums. There’s a lot of history playing on these courts and you feel very proud that you made your way here and are able to participate in such a historically rich event.”

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Djokovic faces a quick turnaround after his evening win over Ruud, which was followed by an on-court celebration for his 1,000 wins, complete with a themed cake. He will look to extend his perfect record to 4-0 against Tsitsipas in finals.

“Another final against him at one of the biggest tournaments we have in the world,” Djokovic previewed. “He’s definitely in form. The last few years he’s been [one of the] top two, three clay-court players. In general, top two, three in the world.

“But especially on the clay court, winning Monte Carlo, always reaching the final stages of the biggest events on clay. I can expect a big battle on the court, but I’m ready for it.”

The Balance of Power and Steal & Conversion insights provide an interesting backdrop for Sunday’s match. The standout statistic from this week in Rome is Djokovic’s 42 per cent steal rate, which describes how often the Serbian wins points from defence. That could prove crucial in the final, with Tsitsipas edging the Balance of Power battle between the pair, playing 25 per cent of his shots in attack this week. Both men are above average in how often they convert points from attacking positions.

[3] Nikola Mektic (CRO) / Mate Pavic (CRO) vs. John Isner (USA) / Diego Schwartzman (ARG)

The Croatian defending champions knocked off home favourites Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini in Saturday’s semis, their straight-sets wins continuing their perfect progress this week in Rome. The third seeds have won all eight sets they played, getting pushed as far as a tie-break just once, by the Italians.

Mektic and Pavic won nine titles last season in their first campaign as a team, including three at the Masters 1000 level. They are seeking their first title of 2022 after losing a pair of Match Tie-breaks in the Dubai and Belgrade finals.

Isner teamed with Jack Sock to win Indian Wells and paired with Hubert Hurkacz for the Miami title before his Rome run with Schwartzman. The unlikely duo, dubbed #Isnerman, pairs the contrasting skills of the 6-foot-10 American and the 5-foot-7 Argentine. They survived three Match Tie-breaks to reach the final, including in the semis against Andrey Golubev and Maximo Gonzalez.

A pair of clay-court events just 112 kilometres apart host the action this week on the ATP Tour, with Geneva and Lyon the venues for a doubleheader in Western Europe.

World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev plays his first tournament since March at the Gonet Geneva Open, with Casper Ruud and Dominic Thiem also competing in a strong field in Switzerland. Cameron Norrie is the top seed at the Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon, where Gael Monfils leads an exciting group of French players seeking home success.

ATPTour.com looks ahead at five things to watch at each event.

View Draws: Geneva | Lyon

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN GENEVA
1) Medvedev Returns: World No. 2 Medvedev returns to competitive action for the first time since March after a layoff due to a hernia procedure. The top seed makes his debut in Geneva as he chases a first title of the year at the ATP 250 event, where he opens against Richard Gasquet or John Millman. Medvedev is a 13-time tour-level titlist, but arrives in Switzerland still hunting a maiden crown on clay.

2) Ruud Defends Title: Casper Ruud’s European clay-court season sparked into life with a semi-final run in Rome this week, a strong response from the Norwegian after he won just four matches across his four previous tournaments. Despite his patchy form, the World No. 10’s pedigree on clay is not in doubt ⁠— he is chasing a seventh tour-level title on the surface in Geneva, where he is the defending champion.

3) Thiem Chases Winning Feeling: Former World No. 3 Thiem may be 0-4 since making his comeback on Tour in April from a wrist injury, but the Austrian has shown signs of improvement in every match he has played. Despite defeat in a tough opener against Fabio Fognini in Rome last week, Thiem will feel capable of a deep run on debut in Geneva as he tries to recapture the level that has earned him 10 tour-level titles on clay and two championship match appearances at Roland Garros.

4) Shapovalov, Opelka Challenge: Third seed Denis Shapovalov was back to his exciting best during a quarter-final run in Rome, the highlight of which was a third-round victory over Rafael Nadal. The Canadian will hope to build on that performance as he hunts a second ATP Tour title. He came close to that goal in Geneva last year, reaching the final on tournament debut before falling to Ruud.

Reilly Opelka enjoyed a less-successful first appearance in Geneva in 2021, losing his first-round match to Pablo Cuevas, but the fourth-seeded American arrives in Switzerland this year a tour-level clay-court titlist after lifting the trophy in Houston in April. Opelka is 0-3 on the European clay since then, but the American’s huge serve remains the perfect weapon to power him back to form, no matter the surface.

5) Mektic/Pavic Lead Doubles Field: Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic are the top-seeds in the doubles draw, with the Croatian pairing making their debut at the Tennis Club de Geneve. A strong field also includes Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares, the British-Brazilian second seeds hunting a first clay-court title together, while third seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer are chasing a third tour-level crown of the year.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN LYON
1) Norrie Top Seed: World No. 11 Cameron Norrie has a strong record in Lyon. The Briton made the semi-finals on debut in 2018 and went one better last year, reaching the championship match at the ATP 250 event before falling to Stefanos Tsitsipas. Norrie’s solid early-season form propelled him into the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time on 4 April. Can he bounce back from a second-round defeat to Marin Cilic in Rome with a maiden clay-court title this week?

2) Carreno Busta Threat: One of the most consistent performers on Tour, World No. 18 Pablo Carreno Busta is seeded second as he prepares for his Lyon debut. The Spaniard will bid to put disappointing early exits at the ATP Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Rome behind him with a deep run in Lyon as he chases a first title since securing his maiden ATP 500 crown at the Hamburg European Open last July.

3) Monfils Leads Home Hopes: Gael Monfils was resurgent in the early stages of 2022, picking up an 11th tour-level title in Adelaide in January before reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. Lyon will be just the second event of the 35-year-old’s European clay season, however, and he has won only one match in two prior appearances at the ATP 250 event.

Monfils is an all-court player capable of strong performances on clay, but the 11-time titlist has won only one title on the red dirt, back in 2005. Can home support spur the third seed on to another this week?

4) Tsonga’s Farewell Tour: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga prepares for the penultimate tournament of his career at an event where he was the inaugural winner in 2017. The 18-time tour-level titlist will retire after Roland Garros. The 37-year-old faces Marrakech finalist Alex Molcan in the opening round in Lyon, with Tsonga chasing a first win on Tour since Marseille in March.

Ugo Humbert, Benjamin Bonzi, Arthur Rinderknech, Lucas Pouille, Arthur Rinderknech and Adrian Mannarino will also look to channel home support as they bid to emulate countrymen Tsonga and 2019 champion Benoit Paire in lifting the Lyon trophy.

5) Rune Flying High: The exciting #NextGenATP Dane Holger Rune returns to competitive action for the first time since clinching his maiden ATP Tour title in Munich two weeks ago. Rune’s exploits in Germany saw him jump into the Top 50 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time but the 19-year-old faces a tough opening opponent in Rinderknech, who won the pair’s only previous meeting in Kitzbuhel last year.

John Isner and Diego Schwartzman’s partnership continued its dream run at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome on Saturday, as the ‘little and large’ combination overcame Andrey Golubev and Maximo Gonzalez in the semi-finals of the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Isner and Schwartzman won 81 per cent (38/47) of points behind their first serve in the match, but Golubev and Gonzalez were still able to clinch the only break of the second set and force a Match Tie-break on Pietrangeli.

A tense climax saw Isner and Schwartzman let a first match point slip at 9/8 in the Match Tie-break, but they made no mistake the second time around to complete a 6-4, 4-6, 11-9 victory and move within one win of a Masters 1000 title in their first tour-level appearance together.

The triumph makes Isner the first player to reach three Masters 1000 doubles finals with three different players in the same year. The American lifted the trophy at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells with countryman Jack Sock in March, and then claimed the Miami Open presented by Itau crown with Hubert Hurkacz later that month.

In Sunday’s championship match, Isner and Schwartzman will face third seeds and defending champions Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, or home favourites Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini.

Novak Djokovic earned his 1,000th career tour-level win on Saturday with his 6-4, 6-3 victory over Casper Ruud in the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

The Serbian turned pro in 2003 and scored his first ATP Tour victory in 2004. Fittingly, he captured his 1,000th win in Rome, where he is a five-time champion and has never lost before the quarter-final stage in 16 appearances. 

The 34-year-old will face Stefanos Tsitsipas in Sunday’s final as he attempts to claim a record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 title to go along with his 20 Grand Slam trophies and 86 tour-level titles. 

How well have you been following the World No. 1 throughout his legendary career? Take our quiz to test your knowledge and look back at some of the highlights from Djokovic’s march to 1,000 wins.

Matteo Berrettini is back on the practice court after undergoing surgery on his right hand in March, but the World No. 8’s comeback schedule will not include competing at Roland Garros at the end of May.

“Following a very positive update from my medical team, I am now back on-court training at a high level,” announced the Italian on Instagram on Saturday. “My hand is feeling great and I am working hard to build up my match fitness.

“My team and I have made the decision that going straight back into five-set matches on clay at Roland Garros would not be sensible, therefore I will delay my comeback to compete in the full grass season.”

Berrettini reached the quarter-finals in Paris last year before falling to eventual champion Novak Djokovic, his best run at the Grand Slam event in the French capital, which will be held this year from 22 May to 5 June. The 26-year-old Berrettini is currently 9-6 for the 2022 season, having reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January.

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Despite the disappointment of missing out on this year’s clay season, Berrettini will return on another surface on which he has enjoyed significant success. The Italian won a second grass-court title at the Cinch Championships in London last year, before going on to reach a maiden Grand Slam final at Wimbledon.