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Viva Las Vegas: American @StefanKozlov Nabs Sin City Title

Posted by Admin on October 23, 2017
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Las Vegas, USTA, USTA Pro Circuit. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Stefan Kozlov Beats Liam Broady To Win Las Vegas Tennis Open ATP Tour Challenger Championship

Stefan Kozlov (Photo: Penelope Eischer)

Stefan Kozlov (Photo: Penelope Eischer)

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 22, 2017) – It took a patient Stefan Kozlov a set and a few games to adjust to lefty Liam Broady’s crafty game, but once he did he was able to secure his second career $50,000 pro title by winning the ATP Tour Challenger Las Vegas Tennis Open on Sunday, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4.

“We both just put it on the line today and it was 50-50,” the 19-year-old Kozlov told the appreciative Las Vegas crowd during the trophy presentation at the Fertitta Tennis Complex on the campus of UNLV. “We were both left gasping for air and it wasn’t easy. It could have gone either way today. I was very impressed with Liam’s sportsmanship today.”

Kozlov seemed to pick up his game down a set and an early break in the second set. He broke serve for 3-all and then hit several nice finesse shots, to earn a hold at 4-3, pumping his fist and getting the crowd fired up after each point.

“I haven’t had the best last couple of months, a lot of ups and downs,” said Kozlov, who earned $7,200 with the win. “For all the downs, you have to kind of look for the ups and today I had to dig deep for my up.”
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Broady received treatment from the tournament trainer for some late-match cramping right after the match and before the awards ceremony, laying on a towel. He told the crowd a few minutes later that he “left it all out there, and sometimes you pay the price.”

Broady was playing in Las Vegas for his third time and received $4,240. He was watched all week by his coach David Sammel. “Obviously Kozlov has so much experience in these big matches,” he said. “Maybe I wasn’t aggressive at the right times of the match, and Koz has such good defense.”

It will be 20 years next month that Kozlov’s favorite player and Las Vegas resident Andre Agassi returned to tennis at age 27 ranked No. 141 in the world and made the final of a similar USTA Pro Circuit $50,000 Challenger in his first tournament back. On these same UNLV courts Agassi began his inspiring journey to regaining the No. 1 ranking in the world.

Like Agassi, Kozlov was a young prodigy who made his ATP World Tour debut as a wild card in Newport at the age of 15. He reached two junior Grand Slam finals in 2014, the Australian Open (lost to current world No. 5-ranked Alexander Zverev) and Wimbledon.

In the doubles final, the top-seeded team of Brydan Klein and Joe Salisbury of Great Britain beat the No. 3-seeded team of Hans Hach Verdugo of Mexico and American Dennis Novikov, 6-3, 4-6, 10-3. Tied 3-all in the super tiebreaker after splitting sets, Klein-Salisbury rallied off seven straight points for the win. Having played together for the past six month, Klein and Salisbury split $3,100. Both Hoch Verdugo (Abilene Christian) and Novikov (UCLA) each played college tennis and were playing for the first time together. They split $1,800.

“It was an amazing week of tennis at the Fertitta Tennis Complex,” said tournament host Owen Hambrook, the head UNLV men’s tennis coach. “This event keeps growing each year and it’s become one of the favorite stops for the players on the ATP Challenger tour. It was great to see a bunch of our up and coming American player do well this week, and we know we’ll be seeing them at the bigger ATP events in the future. Without the support of the amazing Las Vegas tennis community, this event wouldn’t be possible.”

FINAL RESULTS
Men’s Singles – Finals
[4] Stefan Kozlov (USA) def. Liam Broady (GBR), 3-6, 7-5, 6-4
Men’s Doubles – Finals
[1] Brydan Klein (GBR) / Joe Salisbury (GBR) def. [3] Hans Hach Verdugo (MEX) / Dennis Novikov (USA), 6-3, 4-6, 10-3

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.@ReillyOpelka Advances to Quarterfinals at Las Vegas Open

Posted by Admin on October 20, 2017
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Las Vegas. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Reilly Opelka Beats Qualifier Jared Hiltzik To Advance To Quarterfinals At Las Vegas Tennis Open ATP Tour Challenger $50,000 Men’s Tournament

itf opelka

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 19, 2017) – Six-foot, 11-inch Reilly Opelka took advantage of what he described as perfect court conditions to advance to the quarterfinals of the Las Vegas Tennis Open as the No. 8-seeded Floridian beat qualifier Jared Hiltzik, 7-6 (5), 6-4, at the ATP Challenger Tour $50,000 Men’s tournament taking place at the Fertitta Tennis Complex on the campus of UNLV.

“There is altitude and the courts are playing pretty fast,” said the 20-year-old Opelka. “They are using a Penn ball which tends to be a little more livelier than Wilson. The ball is jumping and it’s a condition that definitely promotes big serves here. It’s easy for everyone to hold.”

Opelka will next meet Britain’s Liam Broady, who scored a solid win over No. 2-seeded and fellow countryman Cameron Norrie by the same exact score at Opelka, 7-6 (5), 6-4, on Friday as the final eight spots have been determined in singles.

Opelka described Broady as a “scrappy lefty” who hits a lot of slice balls “and tries to make you play an extra ball.”

Down 5-4 with Hiltzik serving in the first-set tiebreaker, Opelka hit a nice backhand crosscourt winner to even things up and then served out the first set with an ace.

Opelka spent the summer playing regular ATP-level tournaments, but said “coming back down to the Challenger level” was just what he needed.

“I lost a ton of matches this summer, maybe five of them, 7-6 in a third set and I think four of them I had match points,” he said. “What could have been a great summer ended up being brutal for me. I haven’t had too any main-draw wins consecutively for a while. This is perfect and just where I need to be right now.”

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Opelka is rooming this week with fellow ATP “Next Gen” player and quarterfinalist Stefan Kozlov and the pair are staying in a house 20 minutes away from the Strip and UNLV in Henderson.

“Last night was the first night we got out and had dinner on the Strip,” Opelka said, adding that fellow American Michael Mmoh has also joined them for some basketball watching and playing during the week.

Defending champion Sam Groth of Australia was forced to retire down 2-1 in the first set against qualifier Jan Choinski of Germany because of a hip flexor. Top-seeded Tennys Sandgren continued his strong play, beating Lucas Miedler of Austria, 7-5, 6-4.

The tournament website is: www.lasvegastennisopen.com.

RESULTS – OCTOBER 19, 2017
Men’s
Singles – Second Round
[1] T. Sandgren (USA) def. L. Miedler (AUT) 7-5, 6-4
L. Broady (GBR) def. [2] C. Norrie (GBR) 7-6(5), 6-4
[Q] J. Choinski (GER) def. [7] S. Groth (AUS) 2-1 Retired
[8] R. Opelka (USA) def. [Q] J. Hiltzik (USA) 7-6(5), 6-4

Men’s
Doubles – Quarterfinals
[1] B. Klein (GBR) / J. Salisbury (GBR) def. B. Kozlov (USA) / S. Kozlov (USA) 7-6(0), 4-6, 10-3
K. King (USA) / R. Roelofse (RSA) def. [WC] B. Lock (ZIM) / C. Lock (ZIM) 6-3, 7-5

ORDER OF PLAY – FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2017
COURT 1 start 11:00 am
[4] S. Kozlov (USA) vs K. King (USA)
[PR] B. Klahn (USA) vs E. King (USA)
[3] H. Hach Verdugo (MEX) / D. Novikov (USA) vs [2] J. Chaplin (AUS) / M. Libietis (LAT)

COURT 7 start 11:00 am
[1] T. Sandgren (USA) vs [Q] J. Choinski (GER)
[8] R. Opelka (USA) vs L. Broady (GBR)

—S. Pratt

4 of Next Gen of American Men Wild Carded to @CincyTennis

Posted by Admin on August 8, 2017
Posted in: ATP, Cincinnati, Western & Southern Open. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment
Tommy Paul, 2017 Citi Open

Tommy Paul, 2017 Citi Open

CINCINNATI (August 8, 2017) — Four Americans aged 20-and-under have been awarded wild card entries into the men’s field at the Western & Southern Open. Tommy Paul (20), Jared Donaldson (20), Stefan Kozlov (19) and Frances Tiafoe (19) will play in the main draw of the tournament that will be held August 12-20 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio.

“We are thrilled to welcome these four American rising stars to the Western & Southern Open,“ said Tournament Director Andre Silva. “There is an energy and buzz around the youth movement that is taking place in the game, and we’re excited to have the opportunity to see that firsthand.”

Jared Donaldson ATP Atlanta Qualifying 2015

Jared Donaldson was clutch

Paul, who was raised in North Carolina, has reached consecutive quarterfinals this summer in Atlanta and Washington, D.C. Those results propelled him to win the 2017 US Open Wild Card Challenge, and have cut his ranking in half since Wimbledon, pushing him to a career high ranking this week. In juniors, Paul was ranked as high as No. 3 after winning the French Open title and reaching the US Open final during the 2015 season.

Donaldson is a Rhode Island native who will be making his third main draw appearance at the Western & Southern Open, where he owns a 2-2 record. Last year, Donaldson reached the third round at the US Open, becoming the youngest American to do so since 2007. This summer, Donaldson has won at least one round in his last four events, including reaching the third round at both Wimbledon and Washington, D.C.

Stefan Kozlov

Kozlov, who lives in South Florida, was the junior finalist at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon while reaching as high as No. 2 in the junior rankings in 2014. He closed the 2016 season by claiming his first career Challenger title in nearby Columbus, Ohio. Kozlov will be making his Western & Southern Open main draw debut.

Francis Tiafoe (Photo: Cynthia Lum/USTA)

Francis Tiafoe (Photo: Cynthia Lum/USTA)

Tiafoe, one of just two teenagers in the Top 100 of the ATP Rankings, whose father is an immigrant from Sierra Leone who brought Frances to work while serving as the facilities manager of a tennis center in Maryland. In 2015, Tiafoe won the USTA Boys 18s title at Kalamazoo. The winner of two Challenger titles this season, he will be making his main draw debut.

The four join a men’s field that includes seven-time champion Roger Federer, two-time champion Andy Murray, former champion Rafael Nadal and defending champion Marin Cilic.

Paul Upsets Chung, Kozlov Unlucky Against Halys on Day 1 @BBTAtlantaOpen

Posted by Admin on July 25, 2017
Posted in: Atlanta, ATP, BB&T Atlanta Open, Steen Kirby. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Paul Upsets Chung, Kozlov Unlucky Against Halys on Day 1 at BB&T Atlanta Open
Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic

Embed from Getty Images

Tommy Paul, ranked barely inside the ATP top 300, earned one of the biggest wins of his career in Atlanta. The 20 year old came back to defeat Hyeon Chung 4-6 6-2 6-3 after coming through weekend qualifying with a pair of three set wins. Chung, a top 60 player at just 21, had miles more ATP experience in the matchup, and was a heavy favorite after taking the first set, but it was Paul who found his fourth gear and won the last two sets.

The first set was a sloppy affair as Chung dropped service twice, but Paul dropped serve three times. Paul played his best in set two, breaking Chung twice, while Chung had no breaks. The trend in favor of Paul continued in the third set, he went up a break twice, and in the end he broke Chung to win the match. The young gun Korean was let down by his rusty serve without the match, as it was an unreliable tool in his arsenal. Paul, backed by a strong serve, won just the second ATP match of his career.

Another young American, Stefan Kozlov, wasn’t as lucky, facing Quentin Halys, he came up just a few points short, as Halys won 7-5 7-6. The 20 year old Frenchman won his first tour level match of the season in just under 20 hours as he broke twice in the first set, saved a break point in the second set, and then overcame losing three match point chances up 6-5 in the second set to take the tiebreak after a total of six match points. Kozlov didn’t go away, but he wasn’t able to pull ahead either.

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In other action on a rainy opening day of main draw play in Atlanta, Lukas Lacko dominated Thomas Fabbiano 6-1 6-2, and Jared Donaldson put away Ernesto Escobedo 6-3 6-1.

Embed from Getty Images

The doubles winners were Raja/Sharan, Millman/Ratiwatana, and Gonzalez/Lipsky as all three teams advanced into the last eight in the doubles competition.

2016 Le Gosier and Napoli Challenger Recaps

Posted by Admin on April 13, 2016
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Chris De Waard. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

2016 Le Gosier and Napoli Challenger Recaps
Chris De Waard, Tennis Atlantic

 ATP Challenger Tour Official Page

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.

 

 

Napoli

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.

 

 

 

Kozlov, Kuznetsov, Rubin, Paul Advance to Quarterfinals @CVilleTennis

Posted by Admin on November 6, 2015
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Charlottesville. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Kozlov, Kuznetsov, Rubin, Paul Advance to Quarterfinals @CVilleTennis
ATP Challenger Tour

Charlottesville, Va., November 5, 2015 – Americans came out on top today, winning all four singles matches at stake. The American duo and No. 2 seeded team of Chase Buchanan and Tennys Sandgren also advanced to the semifinals of the doubles competition.

Kicking off the day was American Stefan Kozlov and Great Britain’s David Rice. The two qualifiers quickly started with long rallies, but Rice was able to get a early break and took the first set rather easily. Kozlov started to find his game in the second set and while his first serve percent was still only at thirty-seven percent, he stayed in the longer points, forcing a deciding set. Kozlov fired in two aces and was able to win the match 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in just over two hours.

Next up was fellow American teen, Tommy Paul, as he took on Frederik Nielsen. Paul came onto the court with determination and stride, winning fifty-six percent of total points. Paul quickly won the match 6-3, 6-3.

No. 6 seed and Jared Donaldson then faced off against qualifier and 2014 Wimbledon Boy’s Singles Champion, Noah Rubin. The two American teens slugged it out for just under two hours, but it was Rubin who came out on top winning the match 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.
In the final singles match of the day, rising American teen, Frances Tiafoe, took on USTA Pro Circuit Tour Veteran and fellow American, Alex Kuznetsov. Tiafoe quickly won the first set 6-2, but after a series of line calls that did not go his way, he lost his composure and Kuznetsov quickly took hold, winning the remain sets 6-3, 6-0.

—J. Stuckey, USTA

Post-Match Interviews: @StefanKozlov, @FTiafoe Complete American Teen Sweep @CvilleTennis

Posted by Admin on November 4, 2015
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Charlottesville, USTA. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Post-Match Interviews: @StefanKozlov, @FTiafoe Complete American Teen Sweep @CvilleTennis

Charlottesville Men’s Pro Challenger
A USTA Pro Circuit Event
Tuesday, November 3
The Boar’s Head Sports Club
Charlottesville, Va.
Purse: $50,000
Surface: Hard, DecoTurf-Indoor

Tuesday, November 3 – RESULTS
Singles – First Round
Frances Tiafoe, United States d. Malek Jaziri (1), Tunisia 7-6(5), 6-4
Q-Stefan Kozlov, United States d. WC-Colin Altamirano 6-3, 6-0
Alex Kuznetsov, United States d. Q-Takanyi Garanganga, Zimbabwe 5-7, 7-6(4), 6-0
ALT-Tommy Paul, United States d. Chase Buchanan, United States 6-2, 6-4
WC-Ernesto Escobedo, United States d. Liam Broady (8), Great Britain 0-6, 7-6(5), 6-3
Mitchell Krueger, United States d. WC-Mac Styslinger, United States, 4-6, 6-1, 6-0
Jared Donaldson (6), United States d. Marek Michalicka, Czech Republic 7-6(3), 6-4
Q-Noah Rubin, United States d. Eric Quigley, United States 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4
Q-David Rice, Great Britain d. James Duckworth (2), Australia 4-6, 6-4, 6-2

Doubles – First Round
Daniel Smethurst and Darren Walsh, Great Britain d. Sekou Bangoura, United States and Marek Michalicka, Czech Republic 6-3, 7-6(5)
Bjorn Fratangelo, United States and Joshua Milton, Great Britain d. WC-Luca Corinteli and Ryan Shane, United States 6-4, 7-6(5)
Henri Laaksonen and Luca Margaroli, Switzerland d. Q-Reilly Opelka and Tommy Paul, United States 6-2, 6-2.

ORDER OF PLAY – WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 04, 2015
COURT 7 start 11:00 am
D. Kutrovsky (BUL) vs [WC] E. Escobedo (USA)
[5] B. Fratangelo (USA) vs M. Krueger (USA)
[3] T. Smyczek (USA) vs S. Bangoura (USA)

Not Before 5:00 pm
[3] P. Polansky (CAN) / A. Shamasdin (CAN) vs [WC] T. Kwiatkowski (USA) / M. Styslinger (USA)
H. Laaksonen (SUI) vs [4] R. Harrison (USA)

COURT 9 start 11:00 am
F. Nielsen (DEN) vs [7] B. Kavcic (SLO)
Not Before 12:30 pm
L. Broady (GBR) / D. Evans (GBR) vs [2] C. Buchanan (USA) / T. Sandgren (USA)
After Appropriate Rest – [1] J. Brunstrom (SWE) / F. Nielsen (DEN) vs D. Rice (GBR) / M. Willis (GBR)
After Appropriate Rest – A. Bossel (SUI) / M. Krueger (USA) vs J. Chaplin (AUS) / J. Duckworth (AUS)
D. Smethurst (GBR) / D. Walsh (GBR) vs [4] D. O’hare (IRL) / J. Salisbury (GBR)

American Teen Takeover @USTAProCircuit Charlottesville Challenger (@CvilleTennis) Tuesday

Posted by Admin on November 3, 2015
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Steve Fogleman. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

American Teen Takeover @USTAProCircuit Charlottesville Challenger (@CvilleTennis) Tuesday
Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic

Jared Donaldson
I don’t get out to see junior tennis very often, but that’s okay, since the US Junior Circuit was kind enough to come to the Charlottesville Challenger and put on a clinic today.

Ernesto Escobedo

Ernesto Escobedo


First up was 19-year-old Ernesto Escobedo, who came back from a 0-6 first set to stun Liam Broady, two years his senior, 0-6, 7-6(5), 6-3.

Noah Rubin
After that, 19-year-old Noah Rubin overcame a bad first set against 26-year-old Eric Quigley to win in three, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-4.

Tommy Paul
Fellow teen Tommy Paul cruised past a noticeably irritated Chase Buchanan after grinding out three razor-thin games in the first 24 minutes of the match. The other 15 games of the match flew by in 57 minutes with a 6-2, 6-4 result.

Then, Jared Donaldson, showing poise beyond his 19 years, closed out a close one against 28-year-old Marek Michalika 7-6(4), 6-4 in 2:03. I last saw Donaldson play in a loss at Newport, and he was more miserable and self-loathing that day than almost anyone I’d ever seen on court. Today, he publicly chastised himself in the first set but was cool and composed in the second. Each of the sets were nail-biters, but his rising maturity level helped him stay with it. Donaldson said, “I think I’m still learning a lot and I think it’s important to have those tricky situations. After the challengers in California, my coach told me, ‘you need these tricky matches to draw on them and remember how you acted’.” On his emotions, Donaldson said, “Sometimes I think I’m a little bit too up and down. I think it’s a step in the right direction, but I have a long way to go.”

As Jonathan Kelley said on twitter, it’s still early in the day. The U.S. will add at least one more teen to the 2nd round and maybe two, as Colin Altimirano faces Stefan Kozlov and Frances Tiafoe takes on top seed Malek Jaziri this evening.

Stay tuned!

From Virginia-“Mureca” With Love: Smyczek Finally Wins @CvilleTennis, @StefanKozlov Comes Back To Qualify; OOP

Posted by Admin on November 2, 2015
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Steve Fogleman. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

From Virginia-Mureca With Love: Smyczek Finally Advances @CvilleTennis, @StefanKozlov Comes Back To Qualify
Virginia Mureca

In 2013, Charlottesville top seed Tim Smyczek was upset by #313 Saketh Myneni. Last year, as the #2 seed, he was stunned by Liam Broady. So it was no small matter that our good ‘Murecan’ Smyczek is moving on at the Charlottesville Challenger. He easily dispatched Great Britain’s Daniel Evans 6-4, 6-4 to advance to the second round for the first time here since 2012. He’ll meet Sekou Bangoura in the next round on Wednesday.

Stefan Kozlov, Charlottesville 2015

Stefan Kozlov looked inspired and just a little tired in a comebacker against British foe Marcus Willis 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. After the match, Kozlov explained that with the win, he’ll be playing a match tomorrow for the 9th straight day. He jokingly chastised USTA Supervisor Keith Crossland for scheduling a doubles match with Frances Tiafoe for later in the day, and Kozlov and Tiafoe lost that match in straights.

For Kozlov, he’ll face Colin Altamirano in the first round, a familiar opponent. But tomorrow’s prime-time action will feature Tiafoe, who might be set to score an upset against Malek Jaziri, the tournament’s top seed.

About the license plate above. This is the actual license plate of the actual truck next to my parked car as I write. It is a symbol of pride. My only concern is that it might be an unfortunate misspelling of Merica like a botched neck tattoo. Twitter hashtaggery for #MURECA shows that foreign citizens commonly use this version and often to make fun of American foibles and bloopers. It’s the thought that counts, and the ‘Mericans/’Muricans/’Murecans are playing very competitive tennis early this week in Charlottesville.

Charlottesville Men’s Pro Challenger A USTA Pro Circuit Event
Monday, November 2

The Boar’s Head Sports Club Charlottesville, Va.
Purse: $50,000

Surface: Hard, DecoTurf-Indoor

Monday, November 2 – RESULTS Singles – First Round
Ryan Harrison, United States (4) d. Tennys Sandgren, United States, 7-5, 6-3
Tim Smyczek, United States (3) d. Daniel Evans, Great Britain, 6-4, 6-4
Sekou Bangoura, United States d. WC-Ryan Shane, United States 6-3, 6-2
Dimitar Kutrovsky, Bulgaria d. Adrien Bossel, Switzerland 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
Bjorn Fratangelo, United States (5) d. Kevin King, United States 6-4, 6-3
Henri Laaksonen, Switzerland d. Joshua Milton, Great Britain 6-3, 6-2.

S. Bangoura (USA) / M. Michalicka (CZE) vs D. Smethurst (GBR) / D. Walsh (GBR)
[Q] S. Kozlov (USA) vs [WC] C. Altamirano (USA)

Doubles – First Round

David O’Hare, Ireland/Joe Salisbury, Great Britain (4) d. WC-Stefan Kozlov/Frances Tiafoe, United States 6-3, 6-4.

Qualifying Singles – Final Round

Noah Rubin, United States (8) d. Joe Salisbury, Great Britain 6-4, 6-4
David Rice, Great Britain (7) d. Michael Mmoh, United States (2) 7-5, 3-6, 6-1
Takanyi Garanganga, Zimbabwe (5) d. Daniel Smethurst, Great Britain (3) 6-1, 6-4
Stefan Kozlov, United States (6) d. Marcus Willis, Great Britain (4) 4-6, 6-2, 6-2

Qualifying Doubles – Final Round

Reilly Opelka/Tommy Paul, United States (2) d. Raymond Sarmiento/Clay Thompson (1) 7-6(5), 6-4

ORDER OF PLAY – TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 03, 2015 COURT 7 start 10:00 am
[WC] E. Escobedo (USA) vs [8] L. Broady (GBR)
[6] J. Donaldson (USA) vs M. Michalicka (CZE)
[Q] D. Rice (GBR) vs [2] J. Duckworth (AUS)
[WC] M. Styslinger (USA) vs M. Krueger (USA)

Not Before 5:00 pm

B. Fratangelo (USA) / J. Milton (GBR) vs [WC] L. Corinteli (USA) / R. Shane (USA) [1] M. Jaziri (TUN) vs F. Tiafoe (USA)

COURT 9 start 10:00 am

[Q] N. Rubin (USA) vs E. Quigley (USA)
C. Buchanan (USA) vs [Alt] T. Paul (USA)
A. Kuznetsov (USA) vs [Q] T. Garanganga (ZIM)

Not Before 1:00 pm

After Suitable Rest – H. Laaksonen (SUI) / L. Margaroli (SUI) vs [Q] R. Opelka (USA) / T. Paul (USA)

2015 @USTAProCircuit Charlottesville Challenger (@CvilleTennis) Preview, Predictions

Posted by Admin on November 2, 2015
Posted in: ATP, ATP Challenger, Charlottesville, Chris De Waard, University of Virginia. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

2015 @USTAProCircuit Charlottesville Challenger (@CvilleTennis) Preview, Predictions

Tim Smyczek, Charlottesville

Charlottesville Men’s Pro Challenger

ATP Challenger Tour
Charlottesville, VA, USA
2-8 November 2015
Hardcourt, DecoTurf
Prize Money: $50,000

Seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)

1: Malek Jaziri (92)
2: James Duckworth (99)
3: Tim Smyczek (101)
4: Ryan Harrison (107)
5: Bjorn Fratangelo (129)
6: Jared Donaldson (135)
7: Blaz Kavcic (154)
8: Liam Broady (224)

The last direct acceptance is Sekou Bangoura, ranked 372nd.

First Round Match-Ups To Watch

(1) Malek Jaziri – Frances Tiafoe

Francis Tiafoe (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

Frances Tiafoe (Photo: Tennis Atlantic)

17-year-old Frances Tiafoe is having an outstanding year, starting outside of the top 1000 and working himself up to his current ranking of #226, showing rapid development beyond his years. He competed at his first Grand Slam at Roland Garros after winning the Har-Tru USTA Pro Circuit Challenge, earning a wild card after reaching a quarterfinal, semi-final and final in the three American Challenger tournaments that counted towards qualification. A couple of months later he saw his efforts rewarded with a wild card into the US Open main draw. Naturally, his draw here is a tough one, facing top seed Malek Jaziri. The Tunesian won a strong Challenger in Rennes just two weeks ago, so he is bringing good form to Charlottesville. Regardless, this will be a good experience for Tiafoe no matter what happens, getting to test his game against a top 100 opponent.

(3) Tim Smyczek – Daniel Evans

Tim Smyczek hit a bit of a rough patch in the middle part of the season after losing a thrilling five-setter to Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open and reaching a career high ranking of #68 in early April. However, he seems to be recovering as of late, reaching a semi-final at the Columbus Challenger in late September, while taking the title in Tiburon the following week. The title came after a dramatic encounter against Denis Kudla in the final, winning 1-6 6-1 7-6(7) after saving four match points. Daniel Evans experienced Smyczek’s slump in extremis. After reaching an ATP semi-final in Zagreb and getting close to the top 100 in February last year he completely went off the rails, starting over again outside of the top 700 after those points dropped off. He is currently on the way back and ranked #263, but Smyczek can still be marked a decent favorite here.

Top Half

Assuming top seed Jaziri gets past Tiafoe, which is far from a certainty, he will face stiff competition from former world #68 Blaz Kavcic, the seventh seed who is placed in his quarter. The Americans in this section, Alex Kuznetsov, Chase Buchanan and Tommy Paul, are outsiders and it would be surprising to see one of them upset Jaziri or Kavcic.

In the second section Smyczek is the clear favorite to uphold his seeding, but eighth seed Liam Broady has shown that he enjoys playing here. Not only that, he took out Smyczek in the first round last year on his way to the final, also beating Ryan Harrison and Denis Kudla before losing to James Duckworth. He has not been playing well this year and Smyczek will still be a big favorite against him, but his run last year is definitely something to keep in the back of your head.

Bottom Half
James Duckworth
Defending champion Duckworth is heading this section and landed a comfortable draw, facing a qualifier in the first round and another qualifier or wildcard Collin Altamirano in the second round. He might have wanted a slightly more dangerous path, because the contrast with his likely quarterfinal opponent, sixth seed Jared Donaldson, will be big. The 19-year-old is having a great year and reached the final of the Sacramento Challenger earlier this month, after which he went on to reach quarterfinals in Fairfield and Las Vegas in the following weeks. Duckworth has a history of getting tight when it matters and with him defending a lot of points this week, I’m picking Donaldson to get through to the semi-final.

Ryan Harrison, 2012 ATP Newport

In the top section fourth seed Ryan Harrison has to be favored to come through, despite his extremely volatile nature. A lot has changed since Harrison was a top 50 player more than three years ago, and not for the better. His recent form is a perfect example of that. After reaching back to back finals in Cary and Columbus, he went on to post a 1-3 record, losing to world #255 Marek Michalicka, #253 Darian King and #472 Michael Mmoh. His main rival in this section will be fifth seed Bjorn Fratangelo, who has been a steady factor on the Challenger circuit this year, regularly reaching quarter- and semi-finals on top of a title in Launceston and finals in Caltanissetta and Binghamton, which saw him rise over a hundred ranking spots. In many ways he is the opposite of Harrison, who has a higher peak level, but can’t deliver it consistently throughout the year.

Predictions

Semis:

Smyczek def. Jaziri
Fratangelo def. Donaldson

Final:

Smyczek def. Fratangelo