Djokovic Completes Career Grand Slam, Becomes First Man Since Laver in 1969 to Hold All Titles Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
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Novak Djokovic had to be patient. After the US Open in 2011 he had won titles at three of the four Grand Slams, but it took him almost five years to complete the entire set. After losing Roland Garros finals in 2012 and 2014 to Rafael Nadal (and who can forget their semi-final in 2013, which Nadal won 9-7 in the fifth set), Djokovic lost a third final last year, to Stan Wawrinka. But this year the Serbian world number one finally prevailed, beating Andy Murray 3-6 6-1 6-2 6-4.
Djokovic was visibly nervous in the first set and who can blame him, after all he has been through at this tournament. The pressure was enormous. Murray smelled blood and was extremely pumped up throughout the first set, not facing any more problems after losing the first game through a love break. Once Djokovic had settled in, however, he left no doubt as to which of the two players would take home the trophy.
In the blink of an eye Djokovic swept through the next three sets and only at a score of 3-6 6-1 6-2 *5-2 he slipped up, failing to serve out the match on his first attempt. None of that mattered in the end, however, as he didn’t make that mistake twice and deservingly won his first Roland Garros title and twelfth overall Grand Slam title. Djokovic celebrated with a tribute to three-time winner Gustavo Kuerten, drawing Kuerten’s trademark heart on the clay.
Djokovic only dropped two sets on his way to the title, the other one coming in his fourth round match against the #14 seed Roberto Bautista Agut, a match plagued by rain delays. Once Djokovic had survived that tricky 3-6 6-4 6-1 7-5 encounter, however, he knew little trouble in the quarter- and semi-final. Respectively seventh seed Tomas Berdych, 6-3 7-5 6-3, and thirteenth seed Dominic Thiem, 6-2 6-1 6-4, were no match for Djokovic.
For 22-year-old Thiem it was still a very special tournament, not only reaching his first Grand Slam quarter- and semi-final, but also cracking the top ten for the first time in his career. A big jump of eight ranking spots sees him land at #7. David Goffin, who lost 6-4 6-7(7) 4-6 1-6 to Thiem in the quarterfinal, is very close to reaching the top ten for the first time as well at #11, only 65 points away from #10 Richard Gasquet.
After dropping four sets in his first two matches, Murray caught a lucky break in the next two rounds, facing very favorable match-ups in serving giants Ivo Karlovic and John Isner. Neither of them managed to take a set off Murray. In the quarterfinal Murray fought out two very high quality sets against ninth seed Richard Gasquet, 5-7 7-6(3), before the Frenchman couldn’t keep any longer and Murray easily took the final two sets 6-0 6-2. In the semi-final Murray rather convincingly took out the defending champion, third seed Stan Wawrinka, 6-4 6-2 4-6 6-2. Wawrinka beat the surprising unseeded quarterfinalist Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the previous round, 6-2 6-1 7-6(7). To get there, Ramos-Vinolas upset eighth seed Milos Raonic in the fourth round, 6-2 6-4 6-4.
Murray did well to reach his first ever Roland Garros final, but will probably not look at his current 2-8 record in Grand Slam finals with much pleasure. A remarkable difference with the man he beat in the semi-final, Wawrinka, who holds the same amount of Grand Slam titles, but with a 2-0 record in Grand Slam finals.
2016 Seoul, Bordeaux, Heilbronn and Samarkand Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Seoul
Top seed John Millman came through the first two rounds in straight sets, but not without a price to pay, as he had to withdraw from his quarterfinal match against Lukas Lacko citing a left ankle injury. Fifth seed Yen-Hsun Lu knows the feeling, playing only his first tournament of the year here after being out with injury himself. Lu started in fine fashion, shaking off the rust in three sets against Di Wu in the first round, before winning his next two matches in straight sets. Lacko was his biggest challenge thusfar, but Lu survived it in three sets, 7-6(4) 5-7 6-3.
Third seed Sam Groth ended his bad streak of losses against very low-ranked players with two three-set victories in his first two rounds, after which he faced Alexander Kudryavtsev in the quarterfinal. Kudryavtsev took out sixth seed Tatsuma Ito a round earlier, 7-6(6) 7-5. Disaster struck once again for Groth, however, having to retire at 4-1 down in the first set citing a right wrist injury. Kudryavtsev was an easy prey for Sergiy Stakhovsky in the semi-final, who beat him 6-2 6-4 and reached the final without dropping a set. There Lu’s comeback was given a mind-blowing ending, with Stakhovsky saving not less than seven match points to take down his fifth Challenger title, 4-6 6-3 7-6(7). Stakhovsky reentered the top 100 at #96, rising twenty-two spots. The same went for Lu, who rose eight spots to #100.
Serhiy Stakhovsky passed to semi-final of the Seoul ATP Challenger Tour. Serhiy, we believe in you! pic.twitter.com/h2eYvpHaal
Only two seeds survived the first round and only one of them the second round as well. Diego Schwartzman, top seed and new owner of a ATP title, knew a shocking first round exit, with wildcard Mathias Bourgue beating him 6-7(5) 6-4 6-1. In the second round Bourgue lost 3-6 6-3 6-4 to Steve Darcis, who because of injury played his first tournament in three months. He nearly managed to reach the semi-final as well, but Bjorn Fratangelo stopped him in a third set tiebreak, 4-6 6-2 7-6(3). Fratangelo won another crucial tiebreak in his next match, beating Maximo Gonzalez 7-6(5) 6-1 for a place in the final.
Elias Ymer took out second seed Lukas Rosol in the first round, 6-4 6-4, dropping the exact same number of games as in their quarterfinal encounter in Aix-En-Provence last week. A round later something even more remarkable happened, as Ymer had a nasty fall while match point up in the third set tiebreak at *6-5 against Roberto Carballes Baena, keeping him on the ground for a good while and forcing him to take a medical timeout. He recovered in miraculous fashion, however, losing the next point after he served underarm, but after that saving the match point and winning the tiebreak 9-7.
It didn’t seem to be a serious injury for Ymer, as he beat qualifier Jonathan Eysseric a round later to reach the semi-final. There Ymer was outsmarted by the lone seed who made it past the second round, seventh seed Rogerio Dutra Silva, who won 4-6 6-1 6-3. The final against Fratangelo was a piece of cake for the Brazilian, winning 6-3 6-1 to claim his eighth Challenger title. Dutra Silva is now also very close to his career high ranking of #84, rising nine spots to #85. Fratangelo rose twelve spots to #104, a career high.
Remise du trophée au brésilien Rogerio Dutra Silva, vainqueur de #Primrose2016
— Virginie Calmels (@VirginieCalmels) May 15, 2016
Heilbronn
The many matches top seed Ricardas Berankis has played recently caught up with him, losing 6-3 1-6 6-3 to Marsel Ilhan in the first round. Ilhan’s opponent was decided between a blast from the past match-up between former top 10 player Janko Tipsarevic and former top 40 player Carlos Berlocq, both struggling with injury. Berlocq won 7-5 6-3 and also beat Ilhan a round later, 2-6 6-2 6-3. Rising youngster Jozef Kovalik was too much in the quarterfinal, however, with the match ending 6-1 6-4. Kovalik’s semi-final opponent was Nikoloz Basilashvili, who in all honesty was fortunate to win his previous two matches against Blaz Rola and eighth seed Igor Sijsling. Against both Basilashvili was the lesser player for the biggest part of the match, but had luck and clutchness on his side when it mattered. Rola and Sijsling respectively went out with 6-7(4) 6-3 7-6(5) and 6-2 3-6 6-4 scorelines. The semi-final saw Basilashvili play a lot better, at least after a terrible first set, beating Kovalik 1-6 6-4 6-3 for a place in the final.
Despite his loss Rola went viral, due to this remarkable shot.
One of the most absurd winners of the year on ATP Challenger Tour by Blaz Rola pic.twitter.com/IAS8kw58QW
In the bottom half another blast from the past, former top 20 player Florian Mayer. Like Tipsarevic and Berlocq, he struggled a lot with injury. Mayer started the tournament well and took out second seed Horacio Zeballos and Frances Tiafoe in three sets. In the quarterfinal sixth seed Jan-Lennard Struff was way too strong, however, 6-2 6-3. Struff continued his dominance in the semi-final against third seed Albert Montanes, 6-0 6-3. In the final the ever unpredictable Basilashvili played another great match, taking down his second Challenger title of the year, 6-4 7-6(3). This despite hiccups at 5-3* and 5-4 in the second set, where he missed a match point in both games.
A remarkable season so far for Basilashvili, in which he either won the tournament or played terrible tennis and lost after one or two matches. If only he would be able to build some consistency into his game, because the 24-year-old has an attractive game and lot of potential. Nevertheless, he is close to the top 100 again, rising twenty spots to #105. Struff rose five spots to #102.
There are not a lot of people who love tennis as much as Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo. The 38-year-old refuses to retire and still has an endless passion for playing the sport, still being well capable of posting a decent result here and there. This was one of those weeks. Ramirez Hidalgo beat third seed Amir Weintraub 6-2 6-4 for a place in the semi-final against Ramkumar Ramanathan, which had to be played on the same day due to rain earlier in the week. No problem for the veteran. He ousted his 17-year younger opponent after a marathon match, 2-6 7-6(5) 7-6(0), even handing him a bagel in the deciding tiebreak. This also secured him of a record, that of oldest Challenger finalist of all-time.
Surely after effectively playing a gruelling five-set match he will be left with no chance in the final against top seed Karen Khachanov the next day, who is half his age at 19 and advanced to the final when Agustin Velotti retired after eight games? Not quite. Despite Khachanov winning the first set 6-1, Ramirez Hidalgo fought himself back into the match and in remarkable fashion managed to win the tiebreak after being 1-5* down in it, 7-6(6). A true testament to his character. There was no shame in the third set once again ending convincingly in Khachanov’s favor, 6-1. Khachanov rose fourteen spots to #109 after winning his second Challenger title, a new career high. Ramirez Hidalgo made a big jump of sixty-eight spots to #250, exactly 200 spots shy of his career high ranking of ten years ago. Keep on grinding, Ruben.
The champion of#ATP#Challenger#Samarkand is Karen Khachanov! Our congratulations! pic.twitter.com/58IyaMnhUx
Last but not least, if you follow me on Twitter (@TennisPurist) and wondered why my account has been suspended, it’s because the ATP is behind it. Hundreds, perhaps evens thousands, of tennis accounts are regularly posting innocent videos about the sport we all love so dearly, providing the ATP with free advertisement through video clips of mostly thirty seconds. Yet I became the first person ever to get targeted for it due to copyright infringement, immediately resulting in the permanent suspension of my Twitter account.
Coincidentally I’m also one of the few people in the tennis world who extensively writes about match-fixing and doping, not only on Twitter but for example also through my own blog, making the reason why out of so many people to choose from the ATP only decided to target me seem very sinister. Read more about it here, I will update the thread if there are new developments:
2016 Anning, Taipei, Tallahassee and Ostrava Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Anning
Top seed Yoshihito Nishioka didn’t sign up in time and had to play one round of qualifying first, but it didn’t help him to gain rhythm, as he lost 7-5 7-6(2) to Andrew Whittington in the first round of the main draw. Nishioka was the only seed with an early loss in this half. Seventh seed Mathias Bourgue beat Whittington 6-1 6-4 in the quarterfinal, while third seed Saketh Myneni beat eighth seed Arthur de Greef 6-1 6-3 to reach the semi-final. Unfortunately, Myneni came down with a right shoulder injury there, having to retire while trailing Bourgue 6-0 3-1.
In the bottom half fifth seed Alexander Sarkissian got upset in the first round by eternal youngster Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo (38), 6-4 7-5. Ramirez Hidalgo got close to beating another seed in the quarterfinal, when he faced second seed Jordan Thompson. It would turn into a nightmare match for Ramirez Hidalgo, as he missed five match points and saw Thompson take down the match in a third set tiebreak, 6-3 6-7(5) 7-6(9). Thompson went on to show how close to each other glory and agony can be, as he beat Aleksandr Nedovyesov 4-6 6-3 6-2 in the semi-final and Bourgue 6-3 6-2 in the final, winning his second Challenger title. And that wasn’t all, as the twenty-eight ranking spots he gained meant entry into the top 100 for the first time for the 22-year-old Australian, coming in at #90. Bourgue rose twenty-three spots to a career high #170.
The agony of Sam Groth continues, as the second seed lost 1-6 7-6(2) 6-4 in the first round to 29-year-old qualifier Yuya Kibi, ranked 445th. Top seed Ricardas Berankis is on a completely different path, reaching three finals in a row (winning two of them) and sitting on a career high ranking and continuing his good run here. Berankis didn’t drop a set on his way to the semi-final, beating fifth seed Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-4 7-5 to reach that stage. Eighth seed Konstantin Kravchuk beat third seed Tatsuma Ito 3-6 6-1 6-2 to set up a semi-final meeting against Liam Broady, whom the Russian beat as well, 6-2 6-4.
Berankis faced Daniel Evans in the semi-final, who beat Marinko Matosevic 6-3 7-5 to get there. Berankis was on a 13-match winning streak, but Evans ended it, beating Berankis 6-3 7-6(5) for a place in the final. There a hard-fought battle with Kravchuk followed, but Evans managed to come out on top and win his fourth title, 3-6 6-4 6-4. Another first time entrant into the top 100, as 25-year-old Evans rose twenty-six spots to #97. Impressive, especially given that he wasn’t even ranked inside of the top 750 just one year ago. Kravchuk repeated his result of last year and dropped one spot to #126.
An interesting draw in Tallahassee, as top seed Donald Young had a rematch with Daniil Medvedev in the second round. Medvedev got defaulted from their second round match in Savannah a week earlier, due to an alleged racial slur, while suggesting Young and the umpire were friends. No such thing this week, as Young beat him 6-4 7-6(5). Young faced his young countryman Frances Tiafoe in the quarterfinal, where Tiafoe showed he might have a lot more potential than former child prodigy Young, beating him 2-6 6-4 6-3. Another American who was promised a bright future but doesn’t seem to deliver followed next for Tiafoe, as he faced Ryan Harrison in the semi-final. And once again Tiafoe prevailed, 7-6(4) 6-4.
Young was the only seed to reach the quarterfinal, creating a lot of opportunities for lower-ranked players. One of them was Quentin Halys, a 19-year-old Frenchman. Halys beat James Ward 1-6 6-4 6-4 in the quarterfinal, after which he had less trouble with James McGee in the semi-final, 6-4 6-1. This gave us an interesting encounter between teenagers in the final, with Halys facing 18-year-old Tiafoe. The match turned out to be spectacular and gave us a taste of things to come in the future from these two, with Halys prevailing 6-7(6) 6-4 6-2 to win his first Challenger title. Halys reached a new career high ranking, rising forty-four spots to #158. Tiafoe repeated his result of last year and remained unchanged at #191.
Another tournament in which the seeds went out like flies in the early rounds, with only third seed Jurgen Zopp moving past the second round. Top seed Adam Pavlasek lost 6-3 7-6(2) to Yasutaka Uchiyama and second seed Blaz Rola 6-4 6-4 to Pedro Cachin, both in the first round. 19-year-old wildcard Zdenek Kolar rose to the occasion, beating Uchiyama 4-6 6-4 6-3 in the second round, Jordi Samper-Montana 6-3 3-6 6-3 in the quarterfinal and qualifier Marek Michalicka 6-2 6-1 in the semi-final. An absolute dream run.
A similar story would develop in the bottom half, with world #276 Constant Lestienne becoming the other finalist. Lestienne beat Zopp 6-4 6-3 in the quarterfinal and qualifier Stefano Napolitano 6-2 6-4 in the semi-final. A tournament of dream runs, with qualifiers Michalicka en Napolitano also qualifying for that term by reaching the semi-final. Lestienne’s experience prevailed in the final against Kolar, beating him 6-7(5) 6-1 6-2 to win his first Challenger title. Lestienne rose seventy-one ranking spots to a career high #205, while Kolar rose 133 spots to #354, also a career high.
2016 Busan, Aix en Provence, Karshi and Rome Challenger Previews & Predictions Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Busan Open Challenger Tour Tennis
ATP Challenger Tour
Busan, Korea
2-8 May 2016
Hardcourt, Rebound Ace
Prize Money: $100,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Ricardas Berankis (55)
2: John Millman (66)
3: Sam Groth (80)
4: Hyeon Chung (84)
5: Tatsuma Ito (104)
6: Lukas Lacko (113)
7: Yuichi Sugita (114)
8: Michael Berrer (115)
The last direct acceptance is Ti Chen, ranked 213th.
First round match-up to watch
(4) Hyeon Chung – Konstantin Kravchuk
19-year-old Chung peaked at a ranking of #51 in October, but still struggles with the transition to main tour tennis, having dropped to his current ranking of #82 and now trying to increase his ranking again by playing a Challenger. Hopefully this won’t be a recurring theme, because in the long run he will be better off facing stronger opposition in main tour events. Chung has already shown he is above Challenger level and will likely pick up another title here.
Top Half
Top seed Ricardas Berankis has successfully played a lot of tennis in the past couple of weeks and one has to imagine he is starting to feel tired. He might reach the semi-final solely based on how far above the rest of his opposition he will be skill wise, but it won’t be enough to beat Chung. Like Chung, let’s hope Berankis can settle down on the main tour for good now that he has increased his ranking close to the top 50 with a lot of Challenger tennis.
Bottom Half
Third seed Sam Groth has not returned well from foot surgery and is currently in very bad form. He is projected to meet Daniel Evans in the second round, who won a title last week, which will probably be the end of the road for Groth. Second seed John Millman is the favorite to come out of this half, but he has a very tricky draw, which might see him get upset prematurely. Millman faces Austin Krajicek in the first round, after which his projected path consists of respectively Sergiy Stakhovsky, Michael Berrer and Daniel Evans.
Predictions
Semi-finals:
Chung d. Berankis
Millman d. Evans
Final:
Chung d. Millman
Open du Pays d’Aix-Trophee Caisse d’Epargne
ATP Challenger Tour
Aix en Provence, France
2-8 May 2016
Red Clay
Prize Money: €85,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Lukas Rosol (65)
2: Diego Schwartzman (87)
3: Rogerio Dutra Silva (101)
4: Stephane Robert (116)
5: Mischa Zverev (129)
6: Elias Ymer (132)
7: Daniel Brands (135)
8: Maximo Gonzalez (136)
The last direct acceptance is Tristan Lamasine, ranked 203rd. Former world #25 Julien Benneteau received a wildcard.
First round match-up to watch
Edouard Roger-Vasselin – Kimmer Coppejans
22-year-old Coppejans looked to be on the verge of breaking through many times, but can’t seem to make the step to main tour level. He cracked the top 100 almost a year ago, but has only regressed since, now being ranked 165th. He faces a tricky veteran in former world #35 Roger-Vasselin, who despite dropping to his current ranking of #190 is still a tough draw. However, if his ranking doesn’t improve soon he might retire from singles altogether and focus on his doubles career, where he is ranked 17th.
Top Half
Top seed Lukas Rosol might be by far the best ranked player in this half, you can’t call him by far the most likely to advance to the final. He hasn’t been in good form lately and there will be many tricky players on his path. Sixth seed Elias Ymer is his projected quarterfinal opponent and the 20-year-old is in good form, having won the Barletta Challenger two weeks ago. The same goes for Mischa Zverev, who comes off a tournament win at the Sarasota Challenger. Although it has to be said the green clay in the United States and the red clay here are a world of difference.
Bottom Half
Diego Schwartzman is the second seed, but I think it’s unlikely he will play here, having just won his first ATP title at Istanbul yesterday. Perhaps veteran fourth seed Stephane Robert can profit, being placed in a quarter with seventh seed Daniel Brands, who prefers faster courts. I would say Brands even is an underdog to get past his first round match against Renzo Olivo, who is likely to battle it out with Robert for a place in the semi-final. The winner of that match will be the favorite to reach the final as well.
Predictions
Semi-finals:
Rosol d. Dutra Silva
Olivo d. Monteiro
Final:
Rosol d. Olivo
Karshi Challenger
ATP Challenger Tour
Karshi, Uzbekistan
2-7 May 2016
Hardcourt, Plexipave
Prize Money: $50,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Dudi Sela (78)
2: Karen Khachanov (128)
3: Radu Albot (151)
4: Aleksandr Nedovyesov (197)
5: Amir Weintraub (198)
6: Denys Molchanov (224)
7: Dmitry Popko (230)
8: Aslan Karatsev (231)
The last direct acceptance is Ilya Ivashka, ranked 365th.
First round match-up to watch
(2) Karen Khachanov – Aleksandre Metreveli
Khachanov is really breaking through this year, currently ranked at a career high #128 after a great showing at the ATP 500 event of Barcelona. There he beat Aljaz Bedene, before adding an impressive top 20 victory over Roberto Bautista Agut to his résumé in the second round. Even though that was a clay event, he is equally as good on hardcourt and should be the clear favorite to reach the final here. There an interesting encounter with top seed Dudi Sela is projected, who won the Shenzhen Challenger last month and reached two other Challenger semi-finals.
Draw
I already gave away my expected final and it’s difficult to see another outcome, with Sela and Khachanov clearly being ahead of the rest of the field. This can also be seen in the rankings, with third seed Radu Albot ranked outside of the top 150, while fourth seed Aleksandr Nedovyesov is only barely ranked inside of the top 200.
Predictions
Semi-finals:
Sela d. Albot
Khachanov d. Nedovyesov
Final:
Khachanov d. Sela
Roma Garden Open
ATP Challenger Tour
Rome, Italy
2-7 May 2016
Red Clay
Prize Money: €42,500
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Jiri Vesely (63)
2: Kyle Edmund (89)
3: Horacio Zeballos (91)
4: Adam Pavlasek (109)
5: Filip Krajinovic (110)
6: Jordan Thompson (118)
7: Kenny De Schepper (148)
8: Vincent Millot (149)
The last direct acceptance is Axel Michon, ranked 217th.
First round match-up to watch
(1) Jiri Vesely – Marsel Ilhan
Novak Djokovic will be relieved, one less thing to worry about in Madrid this week, as the man who took him out in Monte Carlo is playing a Challenger this week. Vesely is prioritizing this event over playing qualifying in Madrid, a decision certainly made before that legendary victory over the world number one. Vesely has been handed a good draw, with the players who could potentially threaten him being placed in the bottom half, so he is a big favorite to reach the final.
Top Half
As said, Vesely has a comfortable draw, being placed in a quarter with mostly players who don’t even have clay as their favorite surface. In the semi-final he is likely to faced third seed Horacio Zeballos or Adrian Ungur. Ungur faces fifth seed Filip Krajinovic in the first round, a rematch of their first round match in Istanbul last week, which Ungur comfortably won 6-3 6-3. Ungur then went on to massively threaten second seed and eventual runner-up Grigor Dimitrov in the second round, with the match ending 7-5 4-6 7-5.
Bottom Half
Second seed Kyle Edmund should be able to comfortably get through to at least the semi-final, where he is projected to face the in-form fourth seed Adam Pavlasek or sixth seed Jordan Thompson, who won the Anning Challenger last week. Pavlasek has already reached three Challenger finals this year, although he lost them all, one of which to Thompson in Cherbourg. Nevertheless, Edmund should be a decent favorite against either one of them.
2016 Sarasota, Gwangju and Barletta Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Sarasota
Top seed Denis Kudla was upset by his countryman Noah Rubin in the first round, losing a marathon three-set match after missing a match point, 7-5 2-6 7-6(8). Rubin followed up with a win over Gonzalo Lama in the second round, after which he was convincingly beaten Guilherme Clezar, 6-3 6-0. Fifth seed Tim Smyczek lost to Frances Tiafoe in the first round, 6-4 6-3, although that wasn’t really an upset. Third seed Gerald Melzer was the only seed in the top half to move past the first round, eventually beating Clezar in the semi-final after the Brazilian was forced to retire down in the third set at 6-7(4) 6-4 3-2, because of a quad strain.
In the bottom half, second seed Diego Schwartzman couldn’t break his patch of bad form in recent times, losing to Henri Laaksonen in the second round, 6-4 6-7(5) 6-4. Laaksonen lost to Mischa Zverev in the quarterfinal, 2-6 6-3 7-5, after which the older brother of Alexander also dispatched sixth seed Bjorn Fratangelo in the semi-final, 6-2 6-4. Zverev continued his great run in the final against Melzer, Jurgen’s younger brother, beating the Austrian 6-4 7-6(2) in this battle of lesser-known brothers. It meant the fifth career title for Zverev, rising thirty-one spots to #131 in the rankings. Melzer rose ten spots to #112, a career high ranking.
Challenger Sarasato: Stark! Mischa Zverev gewinnt das Endspiel in drei Sätzen gegen Gerald Melzer!! #Tennispic.twitter.com/rVM90viRfW
Judging by top seed Ricardas Berankis’ scorelines in this tournament, you would think he played a Futures event. The skill gap between the world #80 and his opponents, all ranked outside of the top 150, was simply too high. Little can be said. Berankis dropped only fourteen games on his way to the semi-final and not a lot was added to that count when he faced two seeded players in Di Wu (#4) and Grega Zemlja (#6, beat #2 seed Tatsuma Ito 6-4 6-3 in the semi-final), respectively beating them 6-4 6-1 and 6-3 6-2 to win his sixth title. He rose eighteen ranking spots, landing at a career high #62. Zemlja rose twenty-eight spots to #161.
The top two seeds were far from upholding their seeding in this event. Rogerio Dutra Silva, the top seed, lost 7-6(5) 6-4 to Jurgen Zopp in the quarterfinal, while second seed Roberto Carballes Baena lost 5-7 6-4 6-4 to Alessandro Giannessi in the second round. Zopp lost his semi-final to eighth seed Elias Ymer, who turned twenty last week, 6-2 6-4. Third seed Adam Pavlasek recovered well from his tough victory over Marton Fucsovics in the second round, 5-7 6-4 6-3, beating qualifiers Lorenzo Sonego and Enrique Lopez-Perez respectively 6-2 6-0 and 6-1 6-3 to reach the final. There Ymer was too strong, however, with the Swede winning 7-5 6-4 to take down his second title. He rose nineteen spots to a career high ranking of #123, while Pavlasek rose twelve spots to #108, a career high ranking as well.
2016 Le Gosier and Napoli Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Le Gosier
After being forced to withdraw from his second round match at Miami due to sickness, Rajeev Ram took a wildcard into this event and became the top seed. 15-year-old revelation Felix Auger-Aliassime received a wildcard as well, but had to withdraw in the third set of his first round encounter against Gianni Mina. He cited weakness as the reason, which I don’t think I have ever seen before. Ram survived the first two rounds, but then received a beatdown at the hands of sixth seed Yoshihito Nishioka in the quarterfinal, 6-2 6-2. The other semi-finalist from the top half was 18-year-old Stefan Kozlov, who beat Vincent Millot 5-7 7-5 6-2 in the quarterfinal. In a great match between youngsters, Nishioka is 20, Kozlov managed to squeeze out the win, 3-6 7-5 6-3.
In the bottom half second seed Taylor Fritz survived a spectacular match in the second round against Gonzalo Lama, surviving four match points in his 6-7(9) 6-4 7-6(10) win. Fritz’s eventual loss followed in similarly spectacular fashion, losing 6-7(5) 6-4 7-5 to third seed Malek Jaziri in the semi-final. The final put a halt to all the marathon matches, with Jaziri convincingly beating his 14-year younger opponent, 6-2 6-4. Jaziri rose twenty ranking spots to #74 after winning his fifth Challenger title, while Kozlov made a big jump of seventy spots to #225, a career high ranking.
Top seed Filip Krajinovic barely survived his first round match against qualifier Julian Reister, after which Arthur De Greef beat him in the second round, 6-4 7-5. Third seed Jan-Lennard Struff went out in the first round to wildcard Gianluca Mager, 7-6(4) 4-6 6-4. De Greef took out another seed in the quarterfinal, fifth seed Roberto Carballes Baena, 7-6(2) 6-3. Marius Copil offered even less resistance in the semi-final, with De Greef prevailing 6-3 6-2. In the bottom half the seeds did equally bad, with, fourth seed Thomas Fabbiano going out in the first round and second seed Rogerio Dutra Silva only going one round further.
Dutra Silva lost to Jozef Kovalik, who took full advantage of the draw opening up. He beat old-timer Filippo Volandri in the quarterfinal, 6-4 6-7(4) 6-2, before beating sixth seed Gastao Elias 6-1 6-7(6) 6-3 in the semi-final. Kovalik had it easier in the final, beating De Greef 6-3 6-2 to win his second Challenger title. Kovalik rose thirty-two ranking spots to a career high ranking of #139, while De Greef rose eight spots to crack the top 200 for the first time at #198.
The last direct acceptance is Gonzalo Lama, ranked 225th.
Second round match-up to watch
(6) Bjorn Fratangelo – Dennis Novikov
Fratangelo
In the first round Novikov had a solid 6-4 6-4 win over former world #20 Dmitry Tursunov, who despite not having played a lot of matches since returning from injury is still a tricky opponent. Both men have displayed similar form this year, so perhaps their personal match-up is what will decide this match. They have played each other three times, with Fratangelo prevailing every time. It has been close, however, 3-6 7-6(3) 6-1 at the Lexington Challenger on hardcourt and 3-6 6-3 6-2 at the Caltanissetta Challenger on clay, both last year.
Top Half
Third seed Gerald Melzer is the only seed to have survived the first round, granting him with a big opportunity to reach the final. His toughest challenger on the way to the final will probably be Frances Tiafoe, who reached the second round by beating fifth seed Tim Smyczek, 6-4 6-3. Melzer, who is playing the best tennis of his career, should be too solid for Tiafoe at this point. Melzer has already won three Challengers this year and came close to beating the eventual winner Juan Monaco in the first round of Houston last week, losing 2-6 7-6(3) 4-6.
Bottom Half
Second seed Diego Schwartzman had one of the most horrifying performances you will ever see at Houston last week, when he lost 0-6 0-6 to Marcos Baghdatis in the first round. He is desperate to recover from it and made a good start by only dropping four games in his opening round against qualifier Jose Hernandez-Fernandez. Viewing last week’s performance as an incident, he should be above the rest of his opponents in this half. He will face the winner of Facundo Arguello – Mischa Zverev in the quarterfinal and likely Fratangelo in the semi-final, all of whom he is a firm favorite against.
2016 Irving Challenger Preview & Predictions Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
2016 BMW of Dallas Irving Tennis Classic
ATP Challenger Tour
Irving, USA
15-20 March 2016
Hardcourt, Laycold Purple
Prize Money: $125,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (38)
2: Gilles Muller (45)
3: Lukas Rosol (50)
4: Aljaz Bedene (51)
5: Inigo Cervantes (59)
6: Denis Kudla (66)
7: Daniel Munoz De La Nava (69)
8: Iliya Marchenko (72)
The last direct acceptance is Jozef Kovalik, ranked 183rd.
First round match-ups to watch
(1) Guillermo Garcia-Lopez – Marco Cecchinato
This should be an interesting match press wise, as it got known a couple of days ago that Cecchinato is under investigation by the Italian Tennis Federation because of suspected match-fixing at the Mohammedia Challenger last year. The alleged fix took place in his quarterfinal match against Kamil Majchrzak, a match he lost 1-6 4-6.
(WC) Ryan Harrison – Andrey Rublev
18-year-old Rublev won his first Challenger in Quimper two weeks ago, beating home player Paul-Henri Mathieu in the final. Harrison had a good showing at the Acapulco 500 event, beating world #12 Marin Cilic in the first round, before losing in a third set tiebreak to Iliya Marchenko, the eighth seed here in Irving.
(WC) Dimitry Tursunov – Donald Young
Donald Young (Photo: Chris Levy @Tennis_Shots for TennisAtlantic.com)
33-year-old former world #20 Tursunov recently returned from a very lengthy injury lay-off, that saw him sidelined for more than a year. He pushed eventual winner Dominic Thiem to the brink in the second round of Acapulco, losing 7-6(5) 3-6 4-6. At Indian Wells he lost in the first round to Marchenko, despite reeling off a spectacular volley winner. Young, a former top 40 player, has lost in the second round of four of the six tournaments he played this year, the other two losses were in the first round. In the first round of Indian Wells he lost in three sets to Andreas Seppi.
Top Half
As always, this tournament has a stacked draw, in reality lifting it from Challenger status to a low-tier 250 event. In the top half top seed Garcia-Lopez landed a cushy draw, with perhaps only an on-fire Rublev who will be able to stop him from reaching the semi-final. The Russian however is still very erratic and it makes sense to favor Garcia-Lopez. When it comes to the other semi-finalist I predict Aljaz Bedene, although he will face stiff competition from guys like Tursunov/Young and perhaps even Frances Tiafoe, who had a great win over Taylor Fritz at Indian Wells a couple of days.
Bottom Half
Second seed Gilles Muller came close to an upset against Rafael Nadal in the second round of Indian Wells, but the Spaniard edged him out 6-2 2-6 6-4. Muller should be able to at least reach the semi-final here, although he likely faces tough competition in the quarterfinal from Marchenko, who has been in good form lately. In the top section third seed Lukas Rosol has a comfortable draw and should be able to get through. The other seed in this section is Denia Kudla, who got absolutely hammered by Philipp Kohlschreiber in the first round of Indian Wells, 6-0 6-1.
Predictions
Semi-finals:
Bedene d. Garcia-Lopez
Rosol d. Muller
Final:
Rosol d. Bedene
This would mean a final between the winner in 2014 (Rosol) and this year’s defending champion, Bedene.
2016 Kyoto and Cherbourg Challenger Previews & Predictions Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Shimadzu All Japan Indoor Tennis Championships
ATP Challenger Tour
Kyoto, Japan
22-28 February 2016
Carpet, Indoor Synthetic
Prize Money: $50,000
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Yuichi Sugita (117)
2: Tatsuma Ito (120)
3: Go Soeda (131)
4: Luke Saville (184)
5: Hiroki Moriya (190)
6: Yan Bai (211)
7: Ti Chen (220)
8: Duckhee Lee (230)
The last direct acceptance is Jimmy Wang, ranked 441st.
First round match-up to watch
(5) Hiroki Moriya – Flavio Cipolla
Cipolla’s results have been dire lately, but last week he had somewhat of a resurgence he will perhaps be able to build on. The former world #70 reached the semi-final in New Delhi, so perhaps he can cause some troubles against the fifth seed here.
Top Half
A potential clash of generations awaits in the quarterfinal, with 31-year-old Go Soeda and 17-year-old Duckhee Lee on course to meet. They played each other three times, with Soeda winning all of them, but Lee got closer on each occasion, so perhaps he can finally go all the way this time.
If Moriya is able to survive his opening round against Cipolla, a very familiar face might await him in the quarterfinal, top seed Yuichi Sugita. The two have met ten times, with Sugita leading 6-4.
Bottom Half
Second seed Tatsuma Ito is the clear favorite to go through to the final here, although he has a tricky first round opponent in Ze Zhang. Nevertheless, he is expected to go through in this half, which also features Luke Saville, Ti Chen and Yan Bai as outsiders.
Predictions
Semi-finals:
Sugita d. Lee
Ito d. Saville
Final:
Sugita d. Ito
Challenger La Manche – Cherbourg
ATP Challenger Tour
Cherbourg, France
22-28 February 2016
Hardcourt, Green Set
Prize Money: €42,500
Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: Filip Krajinovic (98)
2: Yoshihito Nishioka (110)
3: Pierre-Hugues Herbert (111)
4: Daniel Brands (132)
5: Adam Pavlasek (144)
6: Jordan Thompson (149)
7: Karen Khachanov (150)
8: Kenny De Schepper (152)
The last direct acceptance is Rankumar Ramanathan, ranked 211th.
First round match-ups to watch
Marco Chiudinelli – Ramkumar Ramanathan
Can 34-year-old Chiudinelli continue the great form that saw him win the Wroclaw Challenger last week? Ramanathan started out the year great by reaching the quarterfinal at the Chennai 250 event, but hasn’t won a match since, so it isn’t a bad draw for Chiudinelli.
(5) Adam Pavlasek – (SE) Jan Hernych
36-year-old Hernych is the man who fell to Chiudinelli in the Wroclaw final and guess who Hernych can potentially face in the second round? Exactly, Chiudinelli. It would be a nice little story and surely is possible given Pavlasek’s limited expertise on indoor hardcourt.
Top Half
One of Chiudinelli and Hernych might reach the quarterfinal, but it’s hard to imagine them making back to back deep runs at their age. Fourth seed Daniel Brands is placed in this section as well and has a great opportunity to reach the semi-final. His opponent there is hard to predict, with several players having a good opportunity. Top seed Filip Krajinovic faces a tough first round opponent in Daniel Evans, while youngster Andrey Rublev and Kenny De Schepper also have an excellent chance to advance.
Bottom Half
Pierre-Hugues Herbert won the Bergamo Challenger two weeks ago and after a spectacular first round loss against Farrukh Dustov in Wroclaw last week, 6-7(4) 7-6(5) 6-7(3), he should be ready for another deep run. He certainly has a comfortable enough draw to do so. Herbert should at least be able to reach the semi-final, where he will likely reach one of Yoshihito Nishioka, Vincent Millot or Karen Khachanov.
2016 Wroclaw, Morelos and New Delhi Challenger Recaps Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic
Wroclaw
Top seed Evgeny Donskoy held match points against Jeremy Chardy in the first round of the glamorous 500 event in Rotterdam a week earlier, but it was back to the grind for him in Wroclaw this week. He started off well in his first two matches, but then the Rotterdam scenario repeated itself against Konstantin Kravchuk in the quarterfinal, with the seventh seed winning 7-6(4) 6-7(9) 6-4. In the second section veteran Marco Chiudinelli began an excellent run by beating Daniel Evans, fifth seed Mirza Basic and Alexander Kudryavtsev to set up a semi-final encounter with Kravchuk. It didn’t stop there for Chiudinelli, as he ousted Kravchuk in two tight sets, 7-6(8) 7-6(4).
In the bottom half another veteran would have a dream run. Jan Hernych, 36, came through qualifying and immediately made an impact in the main draw by beating third seed Jan-Lennard Struff in the first round, 4-6 6-2 7-6(5). Eventually he went all the way to the the semi-final, where he met second seed Dustijn Brown, who cruised tot he draw and didn’t drop a set. That would change against Hernych, however, as the 36-year-old beat Brown 7-6(5) 6-4 for a place in the final, his first since 2012. There the younger of the two would prevail in the veteran encounter. Chiudinelli, 34, won 6-3 7-6(9) to claim his first Challenger title since 2009. He gained thirty-seven ranking spots and landed at #146, while Hernych rose eighty-one spots to #269.
Morelos
The tournament lost its top seed beforehand as Victor Estrella Burgos withdrew and ninth seed Giovanni Lapentti took his spot. Lapentti lost his first round to Alessandro Giannessi, who took full advantage of the opportunity and reached the semi-final after beating sixth seed Alexander Sarkissian 2-6 6-1 6-3. There he faced fourth seed Alejandro Gonzalez, who had no problem getting rid of Giannessi in a 6-3 6-1 beatdown.
In the bottom half the top seeds held their own, resulting in both second Horacio Zeballos and third seed Gerald Melzer reaching the semi-final without too many problems along the way. They fought out a major battle, with Melzer eventually coming through in three hard-fought sets, 6-7(1) 6-3 6-4. The final against Gonzalez was easier for he Austrian, winning 7-6(4) 6-3 to take down his fourth Challenger title. He also reached a career high ranking of #116, rising twenty spots. Gonzalez rose eleven spots to #143.
Another top seed who didn’t get far here, with Yuki Bhambri getting upset by Joris De Loore in the first round, 6-4 7-6(4). De Loore lost the next round to Flavio Cipolla 6-4 7-6(2), who in his turn lost 6-3 6-2 to third seed Stephane Robert in the semi-final. Robert faced fourth seed Saketh Myneni in the final, who decimated second seed Kimmer Coppejans with the same score in the semi-final, 6-3 6-2.
So the final came down to two players who absolutely trashed the opposition on their way. Robert won his quarter- and semi-final respectively 6-2 6-0 and 6-3 6-2, while Myneni did so 6-4 6-1 and 6-3 6-2. Robert would be the one to continue the trend however, as the 35-year-old beat Myneni 6-3 6-0 to close out his spectacular run and win his seventh Challenger title, and the first one in five years. He rose twenty-two ranking spots to #139, while Myneni rose eight spots to #158.
