Tennis News

Traffic Stopper & Head Turner, 'Federer Express' Is On The Right Track

It was all aboard the Federer Express in Basel Friday when Swiss legend Roger Federer inaugurated a sleek new tram named in his honour.

Painted head-to-toe with images from Federer’s playing days and decked out inside with factoids about his career and even seats in the style of on-court player benches, the tram is sure to be a traffic stopper when it’s pressed into service in the near future.

“The project was very important to me. That is why it is a great honour for me to be able to see the tram on the streets of Basel in the future,” Federer said.

Hopping aboard the Fedexpress!???Thank you for the incredible honor. It feels like just yesterday I was a boy getting to practice everyday on No.8 ?? Dangge Basel pic.twitter.com/F396FkIg1H

— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) October 22, 2021

He later tweeted: “Thank you for the incredible honor. It feels like just yesterday I was a boy getting to practice everyday on No.8,” the former No. 1 wrote on Instagram.

Federer, who recently underwent his third knee surgery, has not played since Wimbledon but is eyeing a comeback in 2022.

Photos courtesy Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe/Bettina Matthiessen

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Schwartzman Seals SF Spot In Antwerp

Second seed Diego Schwartzman may only be 5′ 7″, but he produced a dominant serving performance that John Isner would have been proud of on Friday at the European Open to march into his second tour-level semi-final of the season.

The 29-year-old dropped just seven points on serve, moving past #NextGenATP American Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 6-2 in Antwerp.

The Argentine backed up his impressive straight-sets victory over Andy Murray in their first ATP Head2Head meeting with a controlled performance against the big-hitting qualifier, not facing a break point in the match as he hit with great depth to advance after one hour and 34 minutes.

“For me, the stats are very important,” Schwartzman said in his on-court interview. “I am not coming to the court thinking I am going to hit 10 aces. I have to do everything. I have to work, run and think for every single point. The opponent is going to play every shot and when I am returning well, everything is better for me.”

With his victory, Schwartzman now leads Nakashima 1-0 in their ATP Head2Head series and will face World No. 70 Jenson Brooksby or Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the last four.

“It was tough because we have never played before,” Schwartzman said. “He is a big player, very young. He has reached two finals already this season. He is improving a lot and will be very tough to play in the future, so maybe better to play him now.”

Schwartzman is aiming to win his second tour-level title of the season in Antwerp, having triumphed on home soil in Buenos Aires in March. The 29-year-old has fond memories at the European Open, reaching the championship match in 2016 and 2017 and the semi-finals in 2018.

“Here in Antwerp I am always feeling good, so being back in the semi-finals I am very happy,” Schwartzman added. “I really love the city and the people here, I have confidence on this court.”

The World No. 14 arrived at the ATP 250 event in strong form, after advancing to quarter-finals in San Diego and Indian Wells earlier this month.

Nakashima, who was bidding to reach his third tour-level semi-final of the season, began the week eighth (686 points) in the ATP Race To Milan as he aims to make his debut at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals.

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Sinner Continues Turin Pursuit In Antwerp

With the FedEx ATP Race To Turin heating up, top seed Jannik Sinner continued his bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals on Friday at the European Open, overcoming Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-2 to reach his sixth tour-level semi-final of the season.

The Italian, who downed countryman Lorenzo Musetti in his opening match in Antwerp, is in 11th (2,685 points) in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin, 270 points behind ninth-placed Hubert Hurkacz (2,955).

The Pole currently occupies the final qualification spot with eighth-placed Rafael Nadal out for the rest of the season. Briton Cameron Norrie sits one spot ahead of Sinner in 10th (2,795) after he won his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title in Indian Wells last week.

“I think I was very solid today,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “I played against him in Lyon and he is a very great player and he wants to hit the ball hard. I tried to stay solid and play deep, so I am very happy with the performance today.”

The 20-year-old is aiming to make his debut at the season finale, to be held at the Pala Alpitour in Turin from 14-21 November. In an entertaining match against Rinderknech, Sinner saved two break points when serving for the first set at 5-4 as he struck his flat groundstrokes with consistent depth, dictating on his backhand throughout to advance after 79 minutes.

Sinner has enjoyed a breakthrough season, winning three tour-level titles in Melbourne, Washington and Sofia. The World No. 13 also enjoyed a run to his first Masters 1000 final in Miami in April, becoming just the fourth teenager to reach the championship match in the tournament’s 36-year history.

With his victory, Sinner has levelled his ATP Head2Head series with Rinderknech at 1-1, avenging his defeat to the World No. 65 in Lyon. The Italian will next face seventh seed Lloyd Harris in the last four after the South African moved past Marton Fucsovics 6-2, 7-5 in 85 minutes.

“I am happy to be in the semi-finals,” Sinner said. “He [Lloyd Harris] has had a great season and he is once again trying to find a way through. He serves well, he moves well. Today he played a wonderful match, so it is going to be very exciting.”

It is the second time Harris has reached a tour-level semi-final this season, after he advanced to the final in Dubai.

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Nadal Sends Birthday Message To 90-Year-Old Fan

Spaniard Rafael Nadal made one fan’s birthday unforgettable this week when he sent a video message to congratulate the 90-year-old.

The World No. 5, who is currently out for the rest of the season due to a foot injury, recorded a video message, which moved the grandfather to tears.

Earlier in October, the granddaughter of one of Nadal’s biggest supporters reached out to the 35-year-old on Twitter asking for a birthday message, writing: “Hi @RafaelNadal! The person you see in the video is my grandpa “O Parrallo”, who will turn 90 on October 20th. He admires you! The best present life can give him is that you wish him a happy birthday in a video message. Thanks a lot!”

She then shared a touching update on Wednesday, revealing the video the 20-time major champion had sent.

Hola @RafaelNadal! La persona que ves en el video es mi abuelo “O Parrallo”, cumple 90 años el 20 de Octubre. Te admira! Y el mejor regalo que le puede hacer la vida, es que tú le felicites en un video. Muchísimas gracias! pic.twitter.com/C6pYVrx9yT

— Pilar Leon (@pilarleon007) October 4, 2021

We absolutely love this @RafaelNadal ❤️ https://t.co/3q0kOMxTiX

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 21, 2021

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Cilic Moves Into Moscow SFs

Sixth seed Marin Cilic’s love affair with the VTB Kremlin Cup continued on Friday as he overcame Spaniard Pedro Martinez 6-1, 6-2 to reach the semi-finals in Moscow for the fourth time.

The Croatian triumphed at the ATP 250 event in 2014 and 2015, defeating Roberto Bautista Agut in both finals, before he enjoyed a run to the last four in 2019.

In a dominant performance against Martinez, Cilic fired 15 aces, won 84 per cent (26/31) of his first-serve points and saved the one break point he faced to advance in 63 minutes in their first ATP Head2Head meeting.

“Today was an amazing match from my side, serving and everything was working well,” Cilic said in his on-court interview. “I feel match after match I am playing better and better and it is great. I am enjoying this court and this stadium and thank you to the crowd for the support.”

It is the fourth time Cilic has advanced to a tour-level semi-final this season, having reached this stage in Singapore and Estoril, while he won the title in Stuttgart.

The World No. 41 will next face lucky loser Ricardas Berankis after the Lithuanian moved past Adrian Mannarino 6-2, 7-6(1) after one hour and 58 minutes.

“Ricardas has had a second chance this week as a lucky loser and has played an amazing three matches in the main draw and he is a great player,” Cilic added. “He loves hard courts and loves to play on this surface. It is important for me to keep going like this to push myself day after day to play at this level.”

Berankis, who reached the final in Moscow in 2017, broke the Frenchman’s serve three times to advance to his first tour-level semi-final of the season. The 31-year-old now trails Mannarino 3-4 in their ATP Head2Head series and is chasing his first tour-level title this week.

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Murray: 'Sports Is A Results Business'

If given the option of playing well or winning, former World No. 1 Andy Murray knows which he would pick.

After a disappointing straight-sets defeat against second seed Diego Schwartzman on Thursday at the European Open, the Scot explained that he is less concerned with his level and more worried about adding to his win total.

“Sport is a results business. If you play well or poorly, it doesn’t really matter if you lose the matches,” Murray said. “You need to be winning and winning matches maybe when you’re not playing your best, which I have done a few times these past few months, but certainly not as many as I would have liked. That’s obviously what I want [in] the last few tournaments [of the season].”

In recent weeks, the 46-time tour-level titlist has discussed how he has felt slow in reading points and adjusting to rallies. Murray added that he has to improve his decision-making.

“I think at times being a bit more solid in the important moments and just getting the balance right about how I’m trying to play,” Murray said. “Today for example, I feel like I moved to the net way too often and it wasn’t particularly successful. Obviously there are some matches if you’re doing that and it’s working, fine.

“But if you keep repeating the same pattern of play or keep trying the same thing and it’s not working, that shows that you’re just not making the right decisions.”

Murray explained that decision-making will never be perfect, but that it is important to recognise when a tactic is not working and changing it accordingly.

“You’re not going to get every single one right in the match,” Murray said. “But you also have to be present enough to acknowledge what is actually happening in the points and why you are winning and losing points.”

The 2019 champion has proven he is capable of competing with some of the ATP Tour’s best players, pushing Stefanos Tsitsipas to five sets at the US Open and battling Alexander Zverev in a tight two-setter in Indian Wells. He also showed his fighting spirit in a three-hour, 45-minute victory against Frances Tiafoe in Antwerp.

But Murray knows there is still work to be done to consistently get over the line in tight matches.

“Mentally today I was poor. My attitude was poor on the court and those are two things you can control,” Murray said. “If they’re not there, that also will make the decision-making harder.”

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Andy Murray loses to Diego Schwartzman at European Open in Antwerp

Andy Murray suffers defeat to Diego Schwartzman in tense second-round battle at the European Open in Antwerp.

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Harris/Malisse Continue Dream Run, Stun Top Seeds Dodig/Melo In Antwerp

Lloyd Harris and Xavier Malisse are making the most of their one tournament as a team.

The wild cards advanced to the semi-finals of the European Open on Thursday with a 6-4, 3-6, 10-7 victory against top seeds Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo. They will play third-seeded Dutchmen Wesley Koolhof and Jean-Julien Rojer to reach the final.

Malisse has recently been travelling with Harris to coach the South African. They thought it would be fun to compete together once, and received a wild card into the Antwerp doubles draw.

Before this week, Malisse had not competed in a tour-level event in more than eight years — since the 2013 US Open — but he has found the level that took him into the Top 25 in both singles and doubles. The South African-Belgian duo won four fewer points in the match, but still triumphed after 70 minutes.

“I didn’t expect to win,” Malisse told ATPTour.com after the pair’s first-round victory. Now they are just two wins from lifting the ATP 250 trophy. 

Second seeds Nicolas Mahut and Fabrice Martin also made the last four with a 7-6(3), 6-4 triumph against Austrians Oliver Marach and Philipp Oswald. The Frenchmen will face Ukrainian Denys Molchanov and Kazakhstan’s Aleksandr Nedovyesov in the semi-finals.

Brkic/Cacic Claw Through In Moscow
Fourth seeds Tomislav Brkic and Nikola Cacic continued their pursuit of a second ATP Tour title together this year with a 7-6(4), 5-7, 10-8 victory against Britons Dominic Inglot and Ken Skupski in the VTB Kremlin Cup quarter-finals.

They will compete against Belarusian Ilya Ivashka and Spaniard Pedro Martinez in the semi-finals, after Ivashka and Martinez defeated Indian Rohan Bopanna and Pakistan’s Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi 7-6(4), 5-7, 10-8.

Finland’s Harri Heliovaara and Dutchman Matwe Middelkoop also advanced by battling past Russian singles stars Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev 6-4, 2-6, 10-7.

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Schwartzman Downs Murray In Antwerp

Diego Schwartzman had to bide his time before getting his shot at Andy Murray. Collectively, the Argentine and Scot have played more than 1,250 tour-level matches and their careers have overlapped by more than a decade. But until Thursday, they had never faced off.

But Schwartzman made sure to make the long-awaited moment count when he toughed out a 6-4, 7-6(6) win over the former World No. 1 to reach the quarter-finals of the European Open in Antwerp.

The 29-year-old, who reached back-to-back finals in Antwerp in 2016 and 2017, played consistently from the baseline and demonstrated his fighting skills as rallied from 1-4 down in the first set, before advancing in two hours and 15 minutes.

“It was a pleasure to play against Andy,” Schwartzman said in his on-court interview. “We had not played before and he is coming back and every week he is playing better and moving better. I have a lot of respect because when I grew up playing tennis, I was watching Roger [Federer], Rafa [Nadal], Andy and Novak [Djokovic] and right now playing against him, is a pleasure for me.”

Schwartzman arrived in Antwerp after he reached the last eight in Indian Wells, where he defeated Daniel Evans and Casper Ruud before falling to eventual champion Cameron Norrie. The World No. 14 also advanced to the quarter-finals in San Diego.

The 29-year-old now leads Murray 1-0 in their ATP Head2Head series and will face #NextGenATP American Brandon Nakashima in the last eight. Earlier this season, Schwartzman captured his fourth ATP Tour title on home soil in Buenos Aires and reached the quarter-finals at Roland Garros.

“I really like to play here,” Schwartzman added. “I like the city and the story. It is a very special city for me because when I started to play my best tennis, I reached the finals here twice. I also enjoy it here with the people. It is special after so many months with playing without crowds.”

In a lively start, Murray played aggressively as he hit his groundstrokes with power and depth to outmanoeuvre Schwartzman and move 4-1 ahead. However, the Argentine began to find his range and as Murray began to drop the ball short, Schwartzman started to dictate, winning five straight games to lead.

Fuelled by momentum, the 29-year-old broke in the fifth game of the second set, but was unable to close out the match, with Murray pegging the Argentine back as they moved to a tie-break. In a tight tie-break, Murray saved a match point at 5/6 with one of the eight aces he hit in the match. But the Scot was unable to keep Schwartzman at bay, with the second seed advancing when Murray pushed a forehand long.

Murray, who won the title in Antwerp in 2019, saved two match points in his first-round victory against American Frances Tiafoe that lasted three hours and 45 minutes. The wild card was aiming to reach his second tour-level quarter-final of the season, having enjoyed a run to the last eight in Metz.

Schwartzman’s next opponent, Nakashima, clawed past Swiss Henri Laaksonen 7-6(5), 6-7(5), 6-3 after two hours and 24 minutes.

Nakashima is pursuing a spot in the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals. The American began the week in eighth in the ATP Race To Milan.

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Karatsev Overcomes Jetlag, Gerasimov In Moscow

Aslan Karatsev has been dealing with jetlag since arriving in Moscow, but that did not stop him from making a good start in Moscow on Thursday.

Following defending champion Andrey Rublev’s loss, Karatsev beat Belarusian Egor Gerasimov 6-4, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the VTB Kremlin Cup. He will play former Top 10 star Gilles Simon or American Mackenzie McDonald for a place in the last four.

“It’s quite difficult [to adjust]. The first two days I wasn’t able to sleep on time. I was waking up at 2 a.m. and then I tried to sleep again. I’d fall asleep at 7, get a few hours more from 7 to 10 and then during the day I told myself not to sleep,” Karatsev told ATPTour.com. “The first day I couldn’t manage it, I fell asleep early in the day. Then the second day I got better, and then today I feel more or less fine. [It’s] just getting better day by day.”

Karatsev and Rublev reached the doubles final at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, giving them a quick turnaround to get used to the time difference and indoor conditions in Russia. 

But Karatsev is enjoying competing in Moscow, where he first played in 2012 aged 19. Now 28, he is the second seed and one of the breakthrough stars of 2021. The World No. 22 made a dream run to the Australian Open semi-finals as a qualifier and lifted his first ATP Tour trophy in Dubai.

“To play here with the home crowd, it’s something special. I’ve played many, many times, passing qualies,” Karatsev said. “It’s not like every tournament you play during the year. You have a lot of friends [and] family come here to watch you. It makes it special.”

The home favourite saved the only break point he faced against Gerasimov and won 72 per cent of his service points to advance after one hour and 26 minutes.

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