Seppi Sets Sights On Melbourne After Canberra Triumph

  • Posted: Jan 14, 2018

Seppi Sets Sights On Melbourne After Canberra Triumph

Jan142018

Revisit the week that was on the ATP Challenger Tour as we applaud the achievements of those on the rise and look ahead to who’s in action in the week to come

A LOOK BACK
East Hotel Canberra Challenger (Canberra, Australia): Australia has been a home away from home for Italian veteran Andreas Seppi. A trio of Round of 16 appearances at the Australian Open included upsets of Marin Cilic in 2013, Roger Federer in 2015 and Nick Kyrgios in 2017. The 33-year-old’s success Down Under has continued in 2018, picking up his eighth ATP Challenger Tour title on Saturday in Canberra. 

It was his first title at any level since 2014, when he won on home soil in Ortisei. Seppi overcame sixth seed Marton Fucsovics 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 in the final and is primed for another run into the second week at Melbourne Park. He will open the first Grand Slam of the year against French teenager Corentin Moutet.

Bangkok Open 2018 (Bangkok, Thailand): Marcel Granollers could not have asked for a better start to 2018. The 31-year-old Spaniard completed back-to-back titles in Bangkok to open his campaign, extending his win streak to 10 in a row. A 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 victory over second seed and countryman Enrique Lopez Perez clinched the crown for Granollers on Sunday. It marked the second straight week in which he rallied from a set down in the final.

In total, the Barcelona native lifted his sixth ATP Challenger Tour trophy. Granollers followed in the footsteps of fellow former Top 50 stalwart Janko Tipsarevic in going back-to-back in Bangkok. Last year, the Serbian completed the feat en route to nomination for Comeback Player of the Year in the 2017 ATP World Tour Awards presented by Moët & Chandon. 

A LOOK AHEAD
The lone tournament of the week is in Koblenz, Germany, where Andrey Kuznetsov leads the field at the indoor hard-court event. Marco Cecchinato is seeded second, with Sergiy Stakhovsky and Oscar Otte rounding out the Top 4 in the draw. Former Top 10 players Ernests Gulbis and Tommy Robredo are also in action, as well as 17-year-old Nicola Kuhn. The #NextGenATP is on the rise and will be looking to complete his Top 200 ascent in the ATP Rankings.

View Koblenz Draw

ATP Challenger Tour 

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