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...
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...
Defending champion Tomas Berdych stayed undefeated at the Shenzhen Open on Thursday. The top-seeded Czech delivered 16 aces and withstood a tight contest from Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin to move into the quarter-finals 7-6(7), 7-6(4) in about two hours. Berdych and Kukushkin both won exactly 84 points during their second-round match but the Czech was more clutch when the match was on the line. Serving at 5/4 in the second-set tie-break, Berdych delivered his 16th ace. Kukushkin netted a backhand on match point to give Berdych his fifth consecutive win in Shenzhen. “It wasn't easy at all,” said Berdych. [ALSO LIKE] The 31-year-old right-hander is trying to reach his first final of the season. The nine-month drought is the longest Berdych...
Tomas Berdych was solid on serve on Friday at the St. Petersburg Open to reach his fourth tour-level semi-final of the year. The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals contender, who is currently No. 9 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, struck six aces and lost only four of his first service points to dismantle Paolo Lorenzi 6-4, 6-3 in 78 minutes. "I felt good," Berdych said. "I am trying to improve day by day, trying to find my rhythm. My goals is to play as many matches as possible." Berdych will next face fifth seed and #NextGen star Alexander Zverev, who downed 2004 champion Mikhail Youzhny. Berdych is looking for his first final of the year, having lost to eventual champion Andy...
It was a day for sightseeing in St. Petersburg as Tomas Berdych and Milos Raonic took time away from the St. Petersburg Open to visit the iconic St. Isaac cathedral on Tuesday. The duo were joined by Raonic’s girlfriend Danielle Knudson to take a tour of one of the city’s most picturesque landmarks, as well as a climb up a private staircase to the Balustrade where 12 bronze angels overlook St. Petersburg. “I think it’s pretty special,” said Raonic, who will open his title defence in the Russian city against 2004 champion Mikhail Youzhny in the second round. “You can see most of fantastic cultural icons, monuments here in St. Petersburg. From this point atop St. Isaac’s Church, you can...
