Jason Kubler was sitting in his hotel room at the City of Playford Tennis International, a $75,000 event on the ATP Challenger Tour, when the phone rang. "I didn't expect it at all, but Lleyton called me and there were so many emotions. Six months ago I would have never guessed that I'd be in this situation." Lleyton Hewitt was on the other end, awarding his 24-year-old countryman with a main draw wild card into the Australian Open. As Kubler admits, the call was not expected, but, having finally found consistent success after years of physical struggles, it was more than well-deserved. "I didn't have Lleyton's number saved on my phone, so I said 'ok, I'll just answer this one'....
Denis Shapovalov is aiming to soar to greater heights than in 2017, a season which saw him rise up the ATP Rankings and build upon his experience at ATP World Tour events. After a nail-biting opening-round loss to Kyle Edmund at last week’s Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, the 18-year-old has returned to the practice courts to evoke memories of his off-season training. “I’ve worked hard in the off-season and I feel like my game’s there, so I’m ready to play these tournaments,” said Shapovalov at the ASB Classic in Auckland. “It’s always a little bit tough at the start of the year, you don’t know where your game’s at. But I’m confident in myself and I’m sure I’m going...
“That was incredible!” “Thanks, Lleyton.” On Wednesday night, Alex de Minaur earned his most important victory as a professional so far by defeating Milos Raonic, 6-4, 6-4, in the second round of Brisbane International presented by Suncorp. In the tunnel between the changing rooms and the court, de Minaur was congratulated by Australian legend Lleyton Hewitt, who plays an advisory role in steering de Minaur through the early stages of his career. By defeating Raonic, the 2016 champion in Brisbane and this year's fourth seed, de Minaur earned a spot in the quarter-finals and improved on his previous best showing (Round of 32 in 2017). This year, de Minaur is clearly in a different position. “I've improved a lot of...
All seemed well for Andy Murray when he spoke to Nick Kyrgios at the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp earlier this week to arrange a practice session. The British No.1 spoke to Kyrgios, hoping to arrange an early morning hit ahead of the start of the 2018 ATP World Tour season but the 22-year-old, sensing an opportunity for competition, quickly fired back with his own request. “He was actually trying to organise a hit for me at 8am,” revealed Kyrgios. “I [said], Andy, I'm not going to make that hit." The initial response from the World No. 21 gave Murray food for thought but with both men standing strong, negotiations eventually broke down. “I offered him 9am. I thought 9am...
The wins – some of the biggest of Andrey Rublev's career – arrived in a flurry. At the US Open, the Russian beat then-No. 9 Grigor Dimitrov and David Goffin, who'd finish at No. 7 in the year-end ATP Rankings, en route to becoming the youngest US Open quarter-finalist since Andy Roddick in 2001. A month later, at the China Open in Beijing, Rublev fought back from a set down to beat both year-end No. 8 Jack Sock and Top 10 stalwart Tomas Berdych. Four big wins you could easily call “career-building” for the #NextGenATP Russian. But the 20-year-old doesn't view them in such a linear, stepping-stone way. To Rublev, the matches were simply good wins on good days, no...