Tomas Berdych moved to within 330 points of Rafael Nadal in the Emirates ATP Race To London as he won his first ATP World Tour title of the season at the Shenzhen Open. In his 15th meeting with Richard Gasquet, defending champion Berdych retained his title with a 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 6-3 victory in the final on Sunday. Berdych is currently ninth in the year-to-date standings, with the top eight at the end of the regular season set to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Berdych has played at the prestigious season finale in London the past six years. After being forced to miss the US Open due to appendicitis, Berdych has hit top form quickly on his return...
First-time duo Fabio Fognini and Robert Lindstedt proved to be an unbeatable combination at the Shenzhen Open, winning their first ATP World Tour doubles title together with a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory over second seeds Oliver Marach and Fabrice Martin in the final on Sunday. "We're really, really happy," said Fognini. "I haven't enjoyed myself this much in doubles in a long time. Thanks to Rob for playing with me. It was a great week." "I think we both played really, really well from the first match on," said Lindstedt. "The only set we lost was very tight as well (against the top seeds). We played some really good teams this week and it was really fun to play." Fognini and...
Tomas Berdych took a significant step in his quest to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for a seventh consecutive year, downing Thomaz Bellucci 6-2, 7-5 in the Shenzhen Open semi-finals. He will face off against Richard Gasquet for the title. Defending champion Berdych needed one hour and 22 minutes to dispatch his Brazilian opponent, securing his place in the Shenzhen final once again. He fired nine aces and claimed an impressive 88 per cent first serve points, while converting four of 10 break chances. "It's always a pleasure to play in front of a full stadium here," said Berdych. "Today it was a great atmosphere and a great time to be on the court. I like the...
Richard Gasquet is through to his second ATP World Tour final of the season at the Shenzhen Open. The Frenchman was leading 6-2, 4-1 when Janko Tipsarevic was forced to retire from their semi-final clash with a groin injury. "Tennis is a tough sport," said Gasquet. "It’s difficult to have no injuries, especially at this time on the year. Our matches are very tough, physically everyone is getting better and better. The game is more and more demanding. He’s had injuries in the past, same as me, and I hope he will recover well." Competing in his 26th ATP World Tour final, Gasquet will look to win his 14th title when he faces defending champion Tomas Berdych. The right-hander lifted...
Tomas Berdych began to close the gap on Rafael Nadal in the Emirates ATP Race To London on Friday as he defeated Jiri Vesely 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-2 in the Shenzhen Open quarter-finals. The Czech is now 490 points behind eighth-placed Nadal in the year-to-date standings, with the Top 8 at the end of the regular season qualifying for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. Berdych will look to make up yet more ground on the Spaniard when he faces Thomaz Bellucci in the semi-finals of this ATP World Tour 250 tournament. Berdych has a 3-1 record over Bellucci in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series. [ALSO LIKE] The last match Berdych played against the No. 52-ranked Vesely was an epic in...