#NextGenATP Russian Daniil Medvedev improved his chances of qualifying for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals, to be held 7-11 November, on Wednesday at the VTB Kremlin Cup in Moscow. The 21-year-old right-hander hit 16 aces and saved eight of 11 break points to outlast countryman Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(6). “It's always tough to play a friend and you always feel sorry to beat him,” Medvedev said. The Moscow native is in eighth place in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan. The top seven qualify for the inaugural event, with the eighth spot reserved for the winner of an Italian 21-and-under tournament. Medvedev has 747 Race points, only 13 behind seventh-placed Hyeon Chung of South Korea, who plays second...
France’s Julien Benneteau swept past Henri Laaksonen of Switzerland 6-1, 6-1 in 54 minutes to reach his second ATP World Tour quarter-final of the year (also ‘s-Hertogenbosch) on Wednesday at the European Open in Antwerp. The 35-year-old Benneteau will next play a compatriot, second seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or qualifier Kenny De Schepper. Portugal’s Joao Sousa withstood 18 aces and lost just seven of his first-service points (45/52) to beat Sergiy Stakhovsky of Ukraine 5-7, 6-4, 6-4. He will next face Ruben Bemelmans of Belgium, who beat Aussie Nick Kyrgios 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals for a third time in tour-level action. Bemelmans saved five of six break points against the third seed. [ALSO LIKE] His countryman Steve Darcis...
One out of a hundred. Ninety-nine players out of the Top 100 have a losing record holding serve in 2017 when falling behind 15/40. Only one player has won more than 50 per cent of his service games from this perilous point score. An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of the Top 100 players this week reveals that one player is World No. 1 Rafael Nadal. It’s an amazing achievement, considering the Spaniard does not possess a flame-thrower of a serve, or routinely ace his way out trouble. Nadal is ranked 33rd on tour this season in total aces hit at 278 from 75 matches – averaging 3.7 aces per match. [ALSO LIKE] He is not the fastest server,...
Two-time finalist Jack Sock snapped a five-match losing streak on Wednesday at the Intrum Stockholm Open. The third seed won 78 per cent of his service points and erased the lone break point faced to beat Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-4, 6-4 and improve to 3-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series. Sock improved to 12-4 in Stockholm and reached his eighth quarter-final (or better) of the season. The 25-year-old American will next face Italian Fabio Fognini, who drew on his big-match experience to save one match point in a thrilling end to a 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(7) victory over top Swede and #NextGenATP Elias Ymer. The 21-year-old Ymer had come within two points of winning when serving at 5-4 in the...
Fifth seed David Ferrer saved a match point and fought for more than two hours and 20 minutes on Tuesday to advance at the European Open. The Spaniard beat 25-year-old Italian Stefano Travaglia 4-6, 6-4, 7-6(3) to move into the second round in Antwerp. Ferrer was down 30/40 while serving at 4-5 in the third set but won three consecutive points to hold. The 35-year-old Ferrer, a titlist in Bastad earlier this year, will next face German Cedrik-Marcel Stebe or Belgian Steve Darcis. #NextGenATP American Frances Tiafoe bolstered his chances of reaching the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals next month in Milan by beating German Florian Mayer 6-3, 6-4. Tiafoe won 47 per cent (28/60) of his return points in...
