Kevin Anderson spent one week in the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings in October 2016, but then ankle and dental operations, a hip injury and more setbacks kept the right-hander off the court or far from his best. Exactly one year ago he competed at the Memphis Open, losing in the first round as the World No. 74. A year later, the Memphis event has moved to Long Island and is now the New York Open. The last time the top seed was in the big apple, he advanced to his first Grand Slam final at the 2017 US Open, the culmination of an impressive comeback that saw Anderson thrust himself into contention for a spot at the Nitto...
When Diego Schwartzman was 13 years old, a doctor told him he wouldn't grow beyond 5-foot-7. The news didn't sit well with Schwartzman, who had dreams of becoming a professional tennis player from an early age. The doctor's prediction came when only three of the 23 players to hold the ATP World Tour No.1 ranking at the time measured below 5-foot-11 (Marcelo Rios, 5-foot-9; Lleyton Hewitt and Jimmy Connors, both 5-foot-10). Feeling defeated, Schwartzman returned home with his head held low and shoulders slumped. Quieter and more reserved than his usual cheery self, the teenager told his parents: "I'm not going to play tennis anymore." Perhaps at that moment it felt unfair to Diego that his older siblings -- Andres,...
Neal Skupski has started his 2018 much like he finished 2017. At the end of last season, he teamed with brother Ken Skupski to make the ATP Challenger Tour final in Eckental, Germany, and triumph in Bratislava, Slovakia. The brothers then captured the trophy two weeks ago at another Challenger in Quimper, France. But this past week, Neal achieved his greatest result to date, joining Ken again to win his first tour-level title at the Open Sud de France in Montpellier. Skupski spoke to ATPWorldTour.com upon his arrival at the New York Open, where he is competing alongside 91-time tour-level titlist Daniel Nestor. How does it feel to be an ATP World Tour champion? It’s unbelievable. It’s obviously a dream...
One might be surprised that one of the opening-night matches at the inaugural New York Open — held on Long Island — features a 17-year-old. But don’t be. Wild card Sebastian Korda recently won the Australian Open boys’ singles event, the victory catapulting him to the top spot in the junior world rankings. And not only that, but the right-hander — who is competing in his first ATP World Tour match against compatriot and friend Frances Tiafoe on Monday evening — has a bloodline plenty familiar to Long Islanders. > Former World No. 2 Petr Korda, Sebastian’s father, defeated 94-time tour-level titlist Ivan Lendl in straight sets to triumph at Long Island’s ATP World Tour event 16 years ago. “We...
Mirza Basic claimed his first ATP World Tour crown on Sunday in a tense three-set battle with Marius Copil, edging out the Romanian 7-6(6), 6-7(4), 6-4 in a high-quality final at the DIEMA XTRA Sofia Open. The victory propels the 26-year-old Bosnian into the Top 100 of the ATP Rankings for the first time and he becomes just the second player from his country to win a tour-level title (Damir Dzumhur). Afterwards, Basic spoke to ATPWorldTour.com: How does it feel to be holding your first ATP world tour trophy? It’s a dream come true. This week... I made the breakthrough to the Top 100 and I won my first ATP title, so I’m very happy. Winning the first [title] from...
