It did not take long for the thrills to begin in the 2018 ATP World Tour season. Australian #NextGenATP contender Alex de Minaur put on a show for his home crowd on the final day of 2017, earning the best win of his young career by ranking, defeating World No. 44 Steve Johnson 7-6(7), 6-4 at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp on Sunday. The 18-year-old wild card saved five set points — two while serving at 5-6 and three more in the ensuing tie-break — in the opening set before riding the momentum to his third ATP World Tour victory. “It was the best way to finish off the year. I couldn't ask for more. I beat a high-quality opponent...
Milos Raonic is the first to admit that 2017 did not go as planned. The injury-plagued Canadian shut down his season prematurely, after suffering a calf ailment in Tokyo in early October. Having also endured a partially torn hamstring and wrist surgery, Raonic was forced to withdraw from five events during the year. Now fully healthy and with a new team surrounding him, the 27-year-old is taking it one match at a time as the calendar flips to 2018. Raonic, who saw his position in the ATP Rankings fall to No. 24, has pressed the refresh button on his career as he targets a healthy campaign. His first stop: the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp. "I've also had some time...
The 2018 ATP World Tour season gets underway with a trio of tournaments, as today's stars descend on Brisbane, Doha and Pune. Reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov is the top seed and defending champion at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, while Dominic Thiem leads the field at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open and Marin Cilic leads the pack at the Tata Open Maharashtra. View Draws: Brisbane | Doha | Pune 10 THINGS TO WATCH IN BRISBANE (1) 2018 Begins in Brisbane: The 2018 ATP World Tour kicks off with the 10th Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, where main draw play begins on New Year’s Eve. World No. 3 and Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov, two-time Brisbane winner and...
Rafael Nadal has begun his preparations for the Australian Open. Despite withdrawing from the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, the first ATP World Tour tournament of 2018, to recover from an exhausting 2017, the No. 1 player in the ATP Rankings plans to storm into this year's Australian Open with the same ambition and enthusiasm he showed in his run to the final last year. By Nadal's side will be fellow Spaniard and former World No. 1 Carlos Moya, who made a successful addition to Nadal's team for the 2017 season. Being rested going into the first major tournament of the year is essential if Nadal is to repeat the success he achieved in 2017, according to Moya. In this...
The 26th edition of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open commences this week and with legendary former champions such as Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal (the list goes on and on...), players will be keen to get their hands on the tournament’s coveted golden falcon trophy. The 2018 event, held at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex in the Qatari capital of Doha, features Dominic Thiem as the tournament’s top seed after two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic withdrew due to an ongoing elbow injury. The World No. 5 will be arriving in Doha for the second time in his career, having qualified back in 2013 before losing in the first round to Peter Gojowczyk. Thiem enters the...