From College Tennis to the Tennis Hall of Fame: Millennials are so Impatient
Tennis Hall of Fame Hosts ITA Collegiate Team Event on the Grass in Newport
The Hall of Fame ITA Grass Court Invitational will draw four men’s teams and four women’s teams for a first of its kind tournament, which is free and open to the public.
NEWPORT, R.I., September 13, 2016 – In a first of its kind event, the International Tennis Hall of Fame has partnered with the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) to host a three-day grass court tournament that will draw eight NCAA Division 1 tennis teams to compete on the grass courts of the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island this weekend. The Hall of Fame ITA Grass Court Invitational will be held September 16 – 18. The tournament will be free of charge and open to the public, providing a great opportunity for fans to see high-caliber competitive tennis. The tournament will be streamed live on FloTennis – the inaugural broadcast of the ITA’s new partnership with FloSports.
“This is an exciting new event to add to the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s calendar. The objectives of this tournament are multi-faceted. Every day at the Hall of Fame, we strive to inspire the next generation of great tennis champions and very likely, some of them are playing collegiate tennis at this moment. We are delighted to welcome some of the top collegiate players to the Hall of Fame, where they will be immersed in our sport’s rich history and hopefully inspired by the Hall of Famers who are honored here,” said International Tennis Hall of Fame CEO Todd Martin.
He continued, “Additionally, the Hall of Fame is a place where our sport is celebrated every day. Collegiate tennis is an integral part of our sport in so many ways and it is also really exciting to watch. These players are competitive and incredibly talented. They are committed to the sport and to pursuing a higher education. It will be a great event for families with aspiring young players to attend as well as for general tennis fans who are interested in watching some top-notch competitive tennis. For any tennis fans who have been meaning to plan a visit to the museum at the International Tennis Hall of Fame – this would be a great weekend to do it.”
Matches will be played on the historic Bill Talbert Stadium Court and on the additional grass courts at the Hall of Fame, all of which have hosted many of the sport’s greatest tennis legends over the years.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for ITA college athletes to compete in a venue that is really special to tennis worldwide, and to learn more about our sport. We are very pleased to be collaborating with the Hall of Fame to make this unique opportunity available to the student-athletes and look forward to growing this partnership in the future,” said Tim Russell, CEO of the ITA.
Eight teams (4 women’s and 4 men’s) will compete in a flighted singles and doubles round robin format, playing for individual ITA Ranking Points. Following is a list of participating teams, listed with their national ITA ranking, based on the standings at the end of the 2015-2016 seasons.
Men’s Teams:
University of Virginia, No. 1
Texas Christian University, No. 3
University of Michigan, No. 25
Princeton, No. 52
Women’s Teams:
University of California, No. 2
Oklahoma State, No. 8
Georgia Tech, No. 16
Harvard University, No. 55
The Hall of Fame ITA Grass Court Invitational will be held September 16 – 18 at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island. The event is free of charge and open to the public, providing a great opportunity for fans to see high-caliber competitive tennis. During the event days, admission to the museum at the International Tennis Hall of Fame will be reduced to $8 from the standard $15, making it a great time for tennis fans to visit. Admission to the museum for kids ages 16 & under is always free.
Rain Doesn’t Slow Down Mannarino at Tennis Hall of Fame Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
Adrian Mannarino Wins on Bastille Day!
NEWPORT, R.I.–Rain hit the Tennis Hall of Fame Championships for the first time in 2016 today, but it didn’t slow down Adrian Mannarino. The Frenchman won the first set tiebreak just before play was suspended. After a delay of nearly three hours, he came out and closed it out against Sam Groth, 7-6(6), 6-3 to advance to the quarterfinals on Bastille Day.
The rain delay was the hardest part of the match for Mannarino.
“Today, we didn’t know if it was going to be a little break like 15-20 minutes or a long one”, he said. “Just trying not to change your mind too much. You have to eat a little bit, but not too much if you don’t want to get a little bit tired. This is really tough, actually. So you just try to stay focused. You could get a little bit disconcentrated”.
No time for ‘disconcentration’ now: he faces Gilles Muller for a trip to the semifinals tomorrow.
Windy Wednesday as Winners Book Quarterfinals at Tennis Hall of Fame Championships Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
Put the Phone Down Low for Ivo Selfies
NEWPORT (July 13, 2016) If I don’t like Mondays at a tournament, then I love Wednesdays. Today’s Tennis Hall of Fame Championships featured six second round matches and a single first round match under cloudless skies and very breezy conditions.
Victor Estrella Burgos became the last man in the second round with a routine 7-6(3), 6-3 win over American Dennis Novikov. Meanwhile, on Stadium Court, Frank Dancevic played his fourth match in four days and came out swinging against the big-serving Ivo Karlovic. Ivo had just two aces in the first set, but settled down to win a tiebreak in the second, netting ten aces in that frame. He added another eight in the final stanza, and Dancevic gave up his only break in the match at 4-4 to set up Karlovic to serve it out. He did, and advances as the favorite to beat Marco Chiudinelli in the quarterfinals.
Asked about his slow start, Karlovic told Tennis Atlantic, “It was windy and it was early. I didn’t really wake up soon. 11:00, I normally have breakfast, and today I already had a match, so I didn’t really wake up”. On winning a title in Newport after two appearances as a finalist, he said, “Yeah, I’m ready. If not, then when? So, I’m ready. This year I got a bye, so hopefully this year four matches will be enough”.
Meanwhile, Newport regular John Patrick Smith took on Marco Chiudenelli on Court 1. No one seems to know these courts like Smith does and he over-performs here. But today, after posting an impressive 6-1 first set, it was Chiudenelli’s time to pull a rabbit out of a hat, and he did, winning 1-6, 6-3, 6-3. Following the Chiudinelli win on Court 1, a battle I had anticipated between Stefan Kozlov and Donald young never materialized. Young busted out of the gate en route to a 6-0, 6-4 victory and he will play top seed Steve Johnson in the quarters. The quiet-in-press Young was as close to elated as I’ve ever seen him as he declared, “I don’t know if I’ve won two in a row this year, so this might be the first time or the second, so this is a confidence builder at a tournament I’ve struggled at in the past.”
Johnson’s victory was also unexpectedly lopsided, as he posted a 20-minute breadstick on Sugita and cruised into the quarters, 6-1, 6-4.
Brian Baker had a wonderful ride in Newport, winning his first match since 2013 in Cinncinati. Marcos Baghdatis stood in his way of the quarterfinals, and both played very well from the start of the match. Baghdatis simply played better, winning 91% of his first service points to 81% for Baker in the first set. Baghdatis advanced, 6-4, 6-3, and will meet either Dudi Sela or defending champ Rajeev Ram tomorrow.
Qualifiers In @TennisHalloFame; Main Draw Underway Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
I normally don’t like Mondays at a tennis tournament. You get leftover qualifying rounds and a few first round matches. The real red meat of the tournament always starts later in the week. So Monday is tennis subsistence day. Like watching Lucas Lacko, who reached the third round of Wimbledon, flame out in the first round at Newport. The best part of that match was learning that the victor, Dudi Sela, was traveling with his 2 year old and 7 month old, and he looked really busy after the match, like “we need you now” busy. Sela faces off against defending champ Rajeev Ram in the second round.
Ram cruised over Mackenzie McDonald later in the day to set up the second round match. As for McDonald, the UCLA champ was in great spirits just to have had the opportunity to play on Center Court in Newport. That made Monday better.
The first sign that it wasn’t going to be the usual Monday were the qualifiers: Old hands Frank Dancevic and Alex Kuznetsov advancing in three grueling, up-and-down sets.
Kuzentsov
Dudi had a Baby
Then it was Brian Baker’s turn. Baker, after spending only 25 minutes on court yesterday due to the retirement of Jan Hernych, had a closer match against Great Britain’s Brydan Klein. Baker looked like his old self again, and he closed out the match to qualify in straights/ Seeing him out there was enough to make my Monday.
As he heads to the Olympics next month to represent the U.S., Baker told Tennis Atlantic, “I feel great. I’m getting fitter and better each week. I just need to get some more matches. This year has been a little bit of a struggle just because coming back from so much time off, and playing the bigger events with my protected (ranking), if you’re not winning a ton, you’re just not getting a lot of matches. It’s nice this week to already get two matches under my belt and hope to get more”.
One good thing about Mondays is a chance to see young players on the rise and local players of interest. Today, the crowds got to see Rhode Island’s own Jared Donaldson. In fact, they wouldn’t have been much of a press corps here today without Donaldson on the schedule. Donaldson is an intense young player with a bright future. I will let the entire local press corps tell you all about him, because going against the grain is what Mondays are all about. I will tell you that he lost in straights to Donald Young, but that is all.
Ready, Play! Tennis Hall of Fame Qualifying Kicks Off in Newport Steve Fogleman, Tennis Atlantic
It’s a scaled-down field at the best-looking ATP Tour tournament in North America. the International Tennis Hall of Fame Championships in Newport, Rhode Island. The 250-level event now has a main draw field of 28, down from 32. Tournament organizers cut the qualifying field down to 16, so two wins are now all that are required to enter the main draw.
A small crowd watched eight matches on the outer courts today in excellent weather, but easily the most anticipated match was the one involving Reilly Opelka, the American ranked #852 with a big serve and a qualifying wild card. Opelka waited alone for several minutes before Frank Dancevic marched onto the court. It may have psyched out the American youngster, as Opelka committed eight double-faults in the first set (and 20 in the match) but still managed to take the set to a tiebreak won by Dancevic. Opelka creeped back to win the second set breaker, but quickly fell apart after being broken early in the final stanza and Dancevic feasted. In the third set, Frank the Tank won 82% of first service points while Opelka won a paltry 40%. Check out this sick shot in the final game of the set:
In other matches, top qualifying seed Alejandro Falla was routined by Daniel Cox of Great Britain in 65 minutes. Cox will face Alex Kuznetsov for a main draw booking tomorrow, as Kuznetsov outlasted Ernesto Escobedo in three sets today. Israel’s Amir Weintraub, the second seed in qualifying, edged past Evan King in two tiebreaks and is scheduled to play Dancevic tomorrow. Michal Przysiezny of Poland (and of brief Wimbledon 2010 fame) was all business in a straight setter over Evan King. He’ll face Australia’s Matt Barton, a winner today over Adrian Bossel.
The return of Brian Baker was almost perfect, but we only got to see a 25-minute set of him before Jan Hernych retired. I saw Baker in warm-ups, with his thicker, fuller beard, and went into the media center a happier man. Twenty minutes later, I overheard a walkie-talkie announcing “Brian Baker…retirement” and got nervous, giving Baker’s injury slides that would have caused a reasonable person to walk away from the competitive game forever. Baker, who was awarded a qualifying wild card, will attempt to ascend to the main draw here when he faces the winner of Michael Mmoh and Brydan Klein on Monday.
2015 ATP Newport Preview and Predictions Steen Kirby, Tennis Atlantic
One final grass court tournament remains on the year, as the classic 250 in picturesque Newport, Rhode Island in the USA is next up for the ATP World Tour. Those looking for a final chance at points on grass have headed to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, and Tennis Atlantic once again has on-site coverage this week of the tournament.
ATP Newport
2015 ATP Newport Preview
Hall of Fame Tennis Championships
ATP World Tour 250
Newport, RI, USA
July 13-July 19, 2015
Prize Money: $488,225
Top 4 seeds (ATP ranking in parentheses)
1: John Isner (17)
2: Ivo Karlovic (25)
3: Bernard Tomic (26)
4: Jack Sock (31)
One top 20 player is in the field for the final grass court tournament of 2015. The seed cutoff is #77, which is quite high, even for a 250 in what should be a wide open week in Newport.
Haas is 10 years older than the top 40 Mannarino and this match could be a great grass court classic, with a lot of smooth hitting and graceful play from both players. Haas is of course a skillful veteran with a one handed backhand a good grass court record. Since returning from injury he’s 2-3, and lost in the second round of Wimbledon to Milos Raonic. Mannarino has gone 4-4 on grass this year with a quarterfinal in Den Bosch as his best result. Haas has more talent, but Mannarino has a tricky game for an opponent lacking rhythm, and thus I give him a slight edge over the still rusty Haas.
Jared Donaldson vs. Austin Krajicek
An all-American battle, the 18 year old Donaldson can cement himself as the rise if he has a good showing here. 25 year old former Texas A&M player Austin Krajicek stands in his way round 1, and he’s beatable on grass as he went 0-4 on the surface this year, much preferring clay and slow hard courts. Donaldson is an aggressive American baseliner and he qualified at ATP Queens on grass already. This year he won an ATP main draw match in Memphis, and reached the semis of the Tallahassee challenger, along with taking the title in Maui at the challenger out there. With a versatile game, look for Jared to slip past his countryman and into round 2.
Sock should be the favorite with his powerful and aggressive game that is built around his forehand, but the serve and volleying 36 year old Stepanek can’t be counted out. Stepanek has been struggling this season since returning from injury though, and while grass suits his game, Sock isn’t poor on it either, excluding his round 1 loss at Wimbledon. Stepanek could snatch a set if Sock struggles like he did there, but look for Jack to pull this match out.
John Isner will face off with 2009 champion Rajeev Ram round 1, in what will be a battle of former champions (Isner won the title here in 2011 and 2012). Ram is a lighting in the bottle serve and volleyer who normally does better in doubles than singles at this stage in his career, but can catch fire on grass at any time. That said, Isner reached round 3 at Wimbledon and the quarterfinals at Queens so he should be able to continue his relatively good form and get into round 2 where I’d expect him to beat either Ryan Harrison or Yuichi Sugita. Harrison comes off the semis in the Winnetka challenger, while Sugita is solid on grass and qualified at Wimbledon. Given Harrison’s mental errors at times, Sugita will have a shot, and I have him advancing before falling to Isner.
Haas/Mannarino is almost certain to be Isner’s quarterfinal opponent, the winner of that should get past Edouard Roger-Vasselin or Blaz Kavcic, both of whom have struggled this season. ERV has a slight edge to get out of round 1 before falling to Haas/Mannarino, and I have an Isner vs. Mannarino quarterfinal lined up. Isner beat Mannarino at Newport in 2013, and I give him an edge to do so again and reach the semis on home soil.
Bernard Tomic opens with his countryman J.P. Smith in round 1, Tomic, despite his frustrations with Tennis Australia, reached the third round at Wimbledon and the quarters in Stuttgart on grass, and has put together one of his most consistent seasons on tour thus far in 2015. Smith qualified for Wimbledon but he’s far less accomplished than Tomic at this level, and on grass, and thus Bernie is the favorite to win that one, and beat the Donaldson/Krajicek winner round 2. In the quarters, Steve Johnson is his likely opponent. Stevie J will face serve and volleyer Michael Berrer round 1, and then the winner of Noah Rubin/Tatsuma Ito round 2. Berrer has had a great season in his final season on tour thus far, qualifing for the French Open, Wimbledon and Stuttgart , but Johnson is on the rise overall and won matches at both Halle and Wimbledon.
Rubin is a young American, and at 19 has limited experience at this level, but he’ll have a chance against Ito, who qualified in Den Bosch and won a round, but otherwise has done little on grass. Look for Johnson to beat Berrer and Ito, and test Tomic, who he beat in Halle. I have a feeling that poor result from Tomic was more mental than anything else, and he’ll be able to recover and reach the semifinals with a win over Johnson.
Another veteran in this draw, the 36 year old Ivo Karlovic, continues to find success on grass regardless of his age, and he’s a favorite against his round 1 opponent Illya Marchenko, though the Ukrainian did reach the quarters in Den Bosch, a grass court event. Karlovic has had an excellent grass court season, reaching the quarters in Den Bosch, the semis in Halle (upset Tomas Berdych), and the fourth round at Wimbledon (upset Jo-Wilfried Tsonga). His massive and reliable serve, along with his experienced volleys should allow him to blitz past Marchenko, and a qualifier or Malek Jaziri, before facing Sam Querrey or Dustin Brown in the quarters.
the 6 seed Querrey played a decent match against Federer at Wimbledon, and can compete on grass. He opens with a qualifier, as does Brown, who upset Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon in the performance of his career. Brown, a fan favorite, is my favorite to reach the quarters, as his game is best on grass, and Querrey tends to mentally struggle under relentless pressure, the type of pressure Brown can provide by net rushing and holding serve. Karlovic-Brown has historically been a close match, Karlovic won their Delray Beach meeting this year, while Brown won the two prior meetings, and each match has featured at least one tiebreak. Karlovic may be more fatigued, and thus I have Brown into the semifinals as a dark horse.
The Sock/Stepanek winner will become a semifinal favorite in a weak section of the draw. Sock should beat Stepanek, and then Lukas Lacko, a talented player whose achievements have been well, lacking, over his career. His round 1 opponent Niels Desein isn’t a great fan of grass. Sock beat Lacko in Atlanta last year, and he should be able to do so again, which would result in him reaching the quarters.
In those quarters, I’d consider Alejandro Falla his most likely opponent, Falla will face Adrian Menendez-Maceiras round 1. AMM isn’t a fan of grass, and Falla qualified for both Halle and Wimbledon this year, he’s also a previous finalist on grass in Halle. After AMM, Tim Smyczek or a qualifier will be his opponent. Smyczek doesn’t do great on grass, and thus should have a hard time this week.
Falla-Sock is an interesting quarterfinal, they have never met before, and both have had up and down results. Sock has more talent, and they both have huge forehands, while Falla will be able to hit from a left handed angle. It’s a tough call, but on US soil I favor Sock to reach the semis.
Dark Horse: Dustin Brown
Dreddy (photo credit: Tennis Atlantic)
The unseeded Brown already showed his skillset off in the shocking upset of Nadal, and with a batch of less talented and well-known players in the draw this week, he could romp if he finds his groove on grass. Dreddy will need to get past Querrey, Karlovic in the quarters, and Sock/Falla in the semis but all of those opponents are beatable if he keeps the pressure on and sticks his volleys with pinpoint accuracy. In the final his opponent is likely to be Isner or Tomic, who are tough, but beatable opponents, as he could walk away with his first ATP title this week, on the heels of the win of his career at Wimbledon. His problem has always been consistency, not talent, and thus we’ll have to see what happens.
Predictions
Semis: Isner d. Tomic
Brown d. Sock
Isner has beaten Tomic once previously, and he appears more focused at the moment. On grass I’d consider Tomic vulnerable to big servers with his less powerful game. As mentioned, I have the dark horse Brown reaching the final this week.
Final: Isner d. Brown
Brown beat Isner on clay in Houston last year, but I’d consider Isner the more consistent big server who is less likely to mix in a poor game, and with that in mind, I have him as the favorite to win a third Newport title. He has previous success here, and his form seems good another to win another American 250 level tournament.
Krueger, Ginepri, Thompson Nab Main Draw Wild Cards @TennisHalloFame
Ginepri (Photo: Tally Challenger)
NEWPORT, R.I., July 5, 2014 – Wild cards for the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, R.I. have been awarded to past champion Robby Ginepri, and young Americans Mitchell Krueger and Clay Thompson, both of whom are making their ATP World Tour main draw debut.
“Newport has a long history of welcoming young players who have gone on to have highly successful careers, and we are happy to welcome Mitchell and Clay for their main draw debuts on the ATP World Tour. Robby has always had many fans in Newport. We look forward to having him back in Newport as he continues his comeback,” commented Tournament Director Mark Stenning.
Robby Ginepri is no stranger to the grass courts in Newport, where he reached his first ATP World Tour semifinal in 2002, and captured the title in 2003. He reached the second round two other times, compiling a 10-3 record for the event. This will be his fifth appearance in Newport, and first since 2009. Ginepri is a three-time champion on the ATP World Tour, having also won titles at Indianapolis in 2005 and 2009. A 13 year ATP World Tour veteran, Ginepri has been focused on a comeback this season after an elbow injury had him sidelined for the better part of last year. Earlier this season, he won the title at the Tallahassee Challenger and successfully qualified for Houston and Indian Wells.
Southern California native Clay Thompson just wrapped up a successful four year career for UCLA. He played No. 3 for the Bruins as a freshman, No. 1 as a sophomore, and No. 5 as a junior, due to an injury, before returning to the top spot as a senior. He had an 18-1 senior season, and was the No. 1 ranked player in the ITA rankings from January to May. Thompson closed the season at No. 2 in the ITA rankings, just behind teammate Marcos Giron. While at UCLA, Thompson earned multiple All-Pac-12 team selections and he was the 2014 Pac-12 Tennis Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Mitchell Krueger, age 20, is the youngest player in the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships main draw. He is ranked world No. 330 and has been climbing up the world rankings due to his success in ITF Futures tournaments, including three finishes as a finalist this season. Last season, Krueger, won the title at a Futures event in The Netherlands. In 2012, he reached a career high of world No. 5 in the ITF Juniors rankings and was the No.1 American junior.
Milos Raonic discussed the lure of the Olympics and the challenging Newport grass in his first round press conference yesterday. Milos had just beaten Matthew Ebden in three sets and prepares to play top qualifier Benjamin Becker tomorrow at the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Championships in Newport, RI.
Dudi Sela became the first man to earn a berth in the Campbell’s Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, RI, this afternoon. In a comeback 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-2 roll over Sam Querrey, Sela won 83% of his first serve points in the last set. He took a spill in the final game of the match, but quickly recovered to close it out. He’ll face either Lleyton Hewitt or Tim Smyczek, who play later.
Tennis Atlantic 