Top seed Rafael Nadal is back at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on a mission to remain within striking distance of reclaiming No. 1 in the ATP Rankings from Roger Federer. But an all-too-familiar foe, compatriot Feliciano Lopez, presents a dangerous first obstacle for last year’s runner-up on Tuesday. In the opening-round battle between the two left-handed Spaniards, 36-year-old Lopez will bid to record his third straight FedEx ATP Head2Head victory over his more decorated opponent. While Nadal leads the pair’s ledger 9-4, it is Lopez who landed wins in their past two hard-court encounters in ATP World Tour Masters 1000 events – the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati (2015) and the Rolex Shanghai Masters (2014). [ALSO...
Top seed Rafael Nadal is back at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on a mission to remain within striking distance of reclaiming No. 1 in the ATP Rankings from Roger Federer. But an all-too-familiar foe, compatriot Feliciano Lopez, presents a dangerous first obstacle for last year’s runner-up on Tuesday. In the opening-round battle between the two left-handed Spaniards, 36-year-old Lopez will bid to record his third straight FedEx ATP Head2Head victory over his more decorated opponent. While Nadal leads the pair’s ledger 9-4, it is Lopez who landed their past two hard-court encounters in ATP World Tour Masters 1000 events – the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati (2015) and the Rolex Shanghai Masters (2014). [ALSO LIKE] Given...
Former runner-up Kevin Anderson is enjoying his return to the Top 10 in the ATP Rankings, surging past Moldova’s Radu Albot in the opening round of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC on Monday night. The fifth seed’s 6-4, 6-3 result marked his fifth straight match win after his recent title run at the New York Open. It is the 31-year-old’s first tournament ranked in the Top 10 since the Shanghai Rolex Masters in October 2015. The South African, who reached the Acapulco final in 2014 (l. to Dimitrov), arrived in Mexico at a career-high of No. 8. In his first FedEx ATP Head2Head encounter with the 86th-ranked Albot, Anderson recovered from an early break down and reeled off...
Watch highlights from day one in Acapulco as four-time champion David Ferrer and Ryan Harrison of the U.S. advance. Watch live tennis at tennistv.com. Getty Images photo.