Fifth seed Fabio Fognini celebrated a milestone 250th victory on Tuesday at the Brasil Open in Sao Paulo. The Italian beat compatriot Marco Cecchinato 6-4, 7-6(4) in one hour and 35 minutes to advance to the second round. Fognini, who reached the semi-finals here in 2008, was nearly untouchable on his first serve, winning almost 80 per cent of those points. He will next face another Italian qualifier in Alessandro Giannessi, who dismissed home favourite Rogerio Dutra Silva of Brazil 6-4, 6-3. In an under-20 battle, #NextGenATP player Casper Ruud of Norway beat 19-year-old Akira Santillan of Japan 6-4, 6-4. The 18-year-old Ruud, who reached the semi-finals in Rio last week, will meet seventh-seeded Argentine Federico Delbonis in the second...
Novak Djokovic shook off the rust and battled for more than 90 minutes to take his debut match at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco on Tuesday evening. The Serbian improved to 3-0 against Slovakian veteran Martin Klizan with a 6-3, 7-6(4) victory at the ATP World Tour 500 event. “I wasn’t expecting an easy match, that’s for sure," Djokovic said. "I haven’t played an official tour match since Australia, one Davis Cup only. "So I was looking forward to coming out on the court and playing ... I got Klizan in the first round, who’s well known for playing his best tennis on the big stage against the top players. He’s not afraid. "Overall it was a good performance....
Andy Murray, who won his Dubai opener on Tuesday, wasn't quite sure he had shingles until his mother-in-law got involved. Murray had returned from the Australian Open and had noticed a rash developing on his side. “I had a little bit of a rash basically like on my bum 'round to kind of my stomach, and it wasn't terrible. But then normally if you have a little bit of a rash and you scratch it, it feels better. But with that, it was really, really painful. “I didn't think much of it at the beginning, and then it was actually my wife's mum, we were having dinner, and I was, like, 'This is really irritating'. She was, like, 'Pull your...
Damir Dzumhur recorded the biggest match win of his career on Tuesday when he knocked out World No. 3 and defending champion Stan Wawrinka at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. The 24-year-old Dzumhur, who is currently No. 77 in the Emirates ATP Rankings and making his debut at the ATP World Tour 500 tournament, recovered from a 0-3 deficit in the first set en route to beating Wawrinka 7-6(4), 6-3 in 72 minutes. He will next play Marcel Granollers in the second round. "[I was] not good enough," said Wawrinka, who was playing his first match since the Australian Open semi-finals (l. to Federer). "I think I started well, but it was a tough match, missing a little bit...
David Goffin’s Abierto Mexicano Telcel campaign is off to a blistering start with the Belgian easily accounting for Stephane Robert on Monday night. The fifth seed needed just 54 minutes to post a 6-1, 6-2 result to progress to the second round. “I was really solid on my serve, when I needed to, and I am really happy with my performance tonight," said Goffin. "It was close at some points, especially in the middle of the second set, but I was really solid and it was not an easy match. I’ve won a lot of matches in the past couple of weeks and I’m in good shape. The crowd were amazing and it’s really nice to play the night session....
