One year ago this week, David Goffin made his first big run of what would turn out to be many in a career campaign when he advanced to the final in Sofia (l. to Dimitrov). This year, the Belgian is in a different location, Montpellier, but the result looks much the same. Goffin reached the semi-finals at the Open Sud de France with an impressive 6-4, 6-4 victory against 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier Karen Khachanov, the World No. 49, on Court Patrice Dominguez on Friday. It is the first semi-final of the season for the 27-year-old. The right-hander battled to the semi-finals seven times in 2017, winning five of those matches. Goffin, who entered the match with a...
French tennis fans had a field day of good homegrown tennis on Thursday at the Open Sud de France, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga led the way in Montpellier. The third seed never broke countryman Nicolas Mahut, but Tsonga still prevailed past the serve-and-volleying Mahut 7-6(3), 6-7(3), 7-6(4). Tsonga saved three break points, and Mahut saved four in the second-round match that lasted two hours and 24 minutes. Tsonga has made the semi-finals both times he’s played Montpellier, 2010 and 2017, and in the quarter-finals, he'll meet #NextGenATP Russian Andrey Rublev. [ALSO LIKE] Three other Frenchmen also advanced, including second seed Lucas Pouille, who dropped only one point on his first serve (22/23) to breeze past #NextGenATP Spaniard Carlos Taberner 6-1, 6-2....
Belgium’s David Goffin booked his place in his first quarter-final of the 2018 ATP World Tour season at the Open Sud de France after beating Gilles Simon 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday. The match was dominated by the returner in the early stages, with seven breaks of serve in the opening set, before Goffin finally took advantage with timely first serves proving crucial to secure the first set. From there, Goffin grew in confidence with a much improved serving performance and continued his assault on the Tata Open Maharashtra champion’s serve with two more service breaks before closing the match out with two aces and an unreturned serve to seal his spot in the last eight. The World No. 7 awaits...
Russian Karen Khachanov came back from a set down against one of the toughest competitors on the ATP World Tour to advance on Tuesday at the Open Sud de France. The 21-year-old Khachanov beat Spain's David Ferrer 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4, avoiding a single break point in the decider to reach the second round in Montpellier. Both players were coming off of good runs in Auckland, before the Australian Open. Khachanov reached the quarter-finals at the ASB Classic, Ferrer the semi-finals. They both lost to Juan Martin del Potro. In fact, Khachanov's two losses this season have come against Del Potro (also second round Australian Open). [ALSO LIKE] Khachanov will next face Lithuania’s Ricardas Berankis, who battled past 36-year-old Frenchman Julien Benneteau. Berankis,...
Daniil Medvedev, who qualified for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan last year, did not get off to the best start in 2018. The Russian began his season at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Playford, Australia, where he lost in the first round against World No. 379 Marinko Matosevic. “It was very disappointing to start the year like this, because I went to the Challenger event to get some matches,” Medvedev told ATPWorldTour.com. “We knew it happens in tennis. The guy played a very good match. There will always be losses. So I just knew I had to be ready for the next one.” The 21-year-old was more than ready, as he cruised through qualifying before winning...
