Kevin Anderson and Sam Querrey made improvements on their respective chances of making debut appearances at the Nitto ATP Finals on Tuesday with both posting straight-sets first-round triumphs at the Shanghai Rolex Masters. No. 11 seed Anderson had an equally impressive 6-3, 6-1 victory over last week’s Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships runner-up Adrian Mannarino while No. 10 seed Querrey landed a dominant 6-3, 6-2 result over Japan’s Yuichi Sugita. Anderson will face Jan-Lennard Struff for a quarter-final berth. The German advanced when compatriot Mischa Zverev retired due to heat exhaustion with Struff leading 3-6, 6-5. Querrey broke twice on his way to a 4-0 second-set lead and comfortably carried the advantage to the finish line. He brought up three...
The 2013 Shanghai Rolex Masters finalist got off to a good start in his campaign to make another deep run, as Juan Martin del Potro battled past a tough Nikoloz Basilashvili, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 in just under two hours. After a 23-minute opening set, it appeared that the No. 16 seed would have few problems with the Georgian qualifier. But that turned around quickly, and as the Argentine served at 4-4 in the third set, it was Basilashvili who had four break points to serve for the match. But del Potro managed to stave off each of his opponent’s opportunities, and after missing out on two match points in the next game, he converted on his third to clinch the...
Any hopes the defending Shanghai Rolex Masters finalist had of qualifying in the Race To London are in jeopardy after Hyeon Chung ousted ninth-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-4, 6-3 on Monday. The #NextGenATP Korean equalled the best win of his career with his victory over the No. 13 in the Emirates ATP Rankings (also d. No. 13 Goffin in Montreal) in his first ATP World Tour match since the US Open. Chung was never truly threatened against Bautista Agut, only facing three break points in the match, all of which he saved in the same game in the second set. He broke Bautista Agut three times, including in his final two service games to close out the match. For Bautista...
Main draw action at the Shanghai Rolex Masters got underway on Sunday with 15th seed Lucas Pouille overcoming Daniil Medvedev in straight sets. Pouille, who earlier this season had defeated Medvedev in their only previous meeting in Marseille, produced a dominant display against his tricky Russian opponent. Trading breaks mid-way through the first set, it was the Frenchman who was eventually able to wrestle control of the match and notch his 29th win of the season in a 6-4, 6-2 decision. Despite the loss, Medvedev remains in contention for a spot at the inaugural #NextGenATP Finals, where he currently stands eighth in the Emirates ATP Race to Milan. Earlier in the day, fellow #NextGenATP stars Jared Donaldson and Yibing Wu...
If Rafael Nadal is to finish as the year-end No. 1 for a fourth time, his recent performances on hard courts will be of critical importance. Nadal extended his win streak to 12 straight with the China Open title on Sunday, defeating Nick Kyrgios 6-2, 6-1. The Spaniard, who remains undefeated since returning to World No. 1 on 21 August, tightened his grip on the top spot in the Emirates ATP Race To London. Now up to 2,360 points over Roger Federer, he has put himself in prime position to cap his 2017 campaign in No. 1 fashion. Victory in Beijing gives Nadal his 75th career crown, moving to within two titles of John McEnroe for fourth on the Open...