Rafael Nadal starts the penultimate week of the ATP World Tour season focused on two more career milestones in what has already been a resurgent 2017 for the Spaniard. No. 1 is No. 1: Nadal needs to win only one more match to clinch his fourth year-end finish atop the Emirates ATP Rankings (also 2008, 2010, 2013 ). No. 2 is No. 31: The number of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles Nadal will have – which would be a record – if he wins the Rolex Paris Masters this week. He is currently tied with Serbian Novak Djokovic for the all-time lead at 30. Winning one more match is likely to happen here or at the Nitto ATP Finals,...
Rafael Nadal discusses his chances of finishing the year-end World No. 1 and winning a first Rolex Paris Masters crown. Watch live tennis at tennistv.com.
Qualifier Jeremy Chardy recorded his first victory in five matches against Gilles Simon, a semi-finalist at the 2012 Rolex Paris Masters, 6-3, 6-0 in 66 minutes on Monday. He advances to play No. 14 seed Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain in the second round. French wild card Nicolas Mahut scraped past Canadian qualifier Vasek Pospisil 5-7, 7-5, 7-6(4) in two hours and 35 minutes. Pospisil hit 12 aces and lost only six of his first-service points (49/55), while Mahut — who will now challenge Nitto ATP Finals contender Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain — struck 11 aces and lost seven of his first-service points (47/54). “I feel good physically and I have a lot of energy,” said Mahut. “I was...