It may have been 15 years since his first tour-level match win, yet the smile remains the same. Tomas Berdych, ear-marked for the top from a young age, continues to strive for his goals as one of the cleanest hitters – and dedicated stars – on the ATP World Tour. Today at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, a couple of hours after David Ferrer hit the 700 match wins milestone, Berdych celebrated his own career achievement: his 600th victory in a 6-3, 6-4 encounter against Carlos Berlocq on Court Pietrangeli, one of the most picturesque settings in world tennis. In breaking a tie with his coach, former World No. 2 Goran Ivanisevic (599), the 31-year-old Berdych becomes the 25th player in...
Five years ago, as a 20 year old, American Ryan Harrison reached No. 43 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. It seemed like he would only continue rising. But his journey, like most, has had its share of peaks and valleys. On Monday, Harrison reached a new career high of No. 42. He reflected on the milestone and his recent path on social media: To my family, friends, coaches and fans, Those who know me well will know that today is a big day for me and I wanted to write a note to say thank you to all of those who have supported me through what has been a very difficult time in my career. My whole life, I've been...
The body may be sore these days, but David Ferrer, who built his career on tremendous strength and fierce competitive instincts, remains the consummate professional: willing to work, living and breathing the sport that has shaped his life. Today, at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, one of Spain’s greatest exports became the 13th player in ATP World Tour history to reach the 700 match wins milestone (700-341) with victory over Feliciano Lopez in the first round. Having recorded his first win, 6-4, 6-3 over David Nalbandian, at the 2002 Croatia Open Umag, Ferrer now joins Rafael Nadal (840) as the only Spaniard to reach the 700 match wins mark. “The number indicates that I have been a very consistent player over...
A lot can change in one year. Novak Djokovic has learned that the hard way. A series of struggles between the lines has yielded a period of self-discovery, as the Serbian looks to reassume his throne atop the tennis world. Exactly 52 weeks ago, Djokovic was on top of the ATP World Tour, opening a 9,025-point lead in the Emirates ATP Rankings after clinching the title at the Mutua Madrid Open. But soon after, his fortunes began to fade. Professional athletes, even those at the pinnacle of their sport, are not immune to falling victim to their own success, and Djokovic would struggle to maintain his level of seemingly superhuman dominance. The 29 year old, who fell in his bid...
Horacio Zeballos has been enjoying a rich run of form on the ATP World Tour. The 32-year-old Argentine reached the semi-finals last week at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell and is now in the quarter-finals of the BMW Open by FWU. In doubles, he and Julio Peralta prevailed last month in Houston (d. Brown/Tiafoe) and finished runner-up in February in Quito (l. Cerretani/Oswald). Zeballos has even been making a splash on social media, posing for selfies Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic after losing to them in competitive matches in Barcelona and Doha, respectively. He shares some of his tennis memories in this Biofile with Scoop Malinowski. First Tennis Memory: I remember my father's club. He has a tennis club. I...
