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Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: Roland Garros Week 1

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This Week’s Tournament:
Roland Garros – Paris, France

Last Week’s Winners:
Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open– Stan Wawrinka
Open Parc Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Lyon– Jo-Wilfred Tsonga

Roland Garros 101
Where to Watch: Tennis Channel and NBC
Tournament Dates:  May 28 – June 11
Time:  Play starts daily at 5am EST
Social Media: #RG17 @RolandGarros

Stefanos Tsitsipas Qualifies for 1st Slam Main Draw
The 18-year old Greek player turned pro at the start of 2017 after an outstanding junior career.  Stefanos played through the qualifying draw at Roland Garros to earn a spot in the main draw of a slam for the first time in his career.  He played a close match against Ivo Karlovic in the 1st round, losing 6-7, 5-7, 4-6.

Sascha Zverev Upset in 1st Round
Sascha’s outstanding clay court season, capped off by winning his first Masters 1000 Title in Rome, came to an end early in Paris. Sascha fell in the first round to Fernando Verdasco in 4 sets.  He did land the cover of an Italian magazine!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BUtxZABA0l5/?tagged=zverev

Gael Monfils Wins 400th Career Match
Gael Monfils won the 400th match of his pro career at Roland Garros.  Gael faced the equally flashy Dustin Brown in the most entertaining first round match of the tournament, with one hot shot after another.

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open – Geneva, Switzerland
Open Parc Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Lyon – Lyon, France
Roland Garros Qualifying – Paris, France

Last Week’s Winners:
Internazionali BNL d’Italia – Sascha Zverev

Sascha Zverev Wins 1st Masters 1000 Title
Sascha got revenge for his good friend Dominic Thiem’s semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic, with a strong 6-4, 6-3 win over Djokovic in the finals in Rome.  The win is the first Masters 1000 title for Sascha, who at 20-years-old is the youngest to win a Masters title since Novak Djokovic in 2007.   Sasha will also enter the Top 10 for the first time in his career with the title in Rome.  We think Sascha has officially gone from #NextGen to #GenerationNow.

Thanasi Kokkinakis Makes Return to Singles
The young Aussie is playing in his first ATP World Tour level event in singles since he made a (brief) comeback in January.  Kokkinakis has had a rough time with injuries so early in his career, and we’re so glad to see him back on court!  Unfortunately, he lost in the first round to Denis Istomin in Lyon but we hope this is just the beginning of a strong comeback for him.

Novak Djokovic Announces Andre Agassi as New Coach
Rumors had been swirling for a while that Andre Agassi would be joining Djokovic’s coaching team.  Djokovic confirmed the rumors in his post-match conference in Rome, following his loss to Zverev.  Djokovic will officially start working with Agassi in Paris on a trial basis.

Dominic Thiem Beats Rafael Nadal in 3rd Straight Try
The hottest new rivalry on tour lately has been Rafa vs Domi.   The two met in the finals in both Barcelona and Madrid, with Rafa emerging as the winner of both titles.  Domi came closer to victory each match, and finally figured out a way to beat Rafa in the quarterfinals in Rome.  Thiem won the match 6-4, 6-3, showing off his aggressive and powerful playing style.  Bamos!

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Rome 2017 😊 #mygame

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Roland Garros Qualifying Underway
It’s hard to believe that it’s already time for the second slam of the season!   Roland Garros Qualifying is officially underway.  In the US, you can watch the action on Tennis Channel Plus.   Players to watch include young Americans Reilly Opelka, Dennis Novikov, and Stefan Kozlov, and new pros Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Casper Ruud.

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What a city 🇫🇷

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Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Mutua Madrid Open – Madrid, Spain

Last Week’s Winners:
Millennium Estoril Open – Pablo Carrena Busta
BMW Open – Alexander Zverev
TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open – Marin Cilic

Sascha Zverev Wins 3rd Title in Munich
20-year-old Sascha Zverev won his 3rd career title, and his 2nd title of the year at the BMW Open in Munich.   The title is Sascha’s first on home soil in Germany.  The young German beat Guido Pella in the final, 6-4, 6-3.

Thiem Throwback
Riccardo Bellotti, fellow player and close friend to Dominic Thiem, posted this throwback photo on Instagram of him, Domi, and Dennis Novak.  We love the early 00s boyband vibes they’ve got going on – especially Rico’s JT inspired hair!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BTzBZv2Aiby/?taken-by=ricobellotti

Novak Djokovic Splits With Longtime Team
Novak Djokovic has been struggling to find his form lately, ever since winning the French Open last year.   He announced this week he was cutting ties with his long time team:  coach Marian Vajda,  fitness coach Gebhard Phil Gritsch and physiotherapist Miljan Amanovic, after over 10-years working together.   Djokovic shared the news on his website with theheadline, “I want to find the winning spark on the court again.”


Tennys Sandgren Wins USTA Roland Garros Wildcard
26-year-old American Tennys Sandgren has qualified for the main draw of a grand slam for the first time in his career.  Tennys (yes, it’s pronounced like “tennis”) won the USTA Roland Garros Wildcard challenge by reaching the finals of the challenger in Sarasota and winning the challenger in Savannah.

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournament:
Davis Cup

Last Week’s Winner:
Miami Open – Roger Federer

Roger Federer Wins Sunshine Double
Roger Federer’s incredible comeback continues!  He pulled off the “sunshine double” (aka winning both Indian Wells and Miami) for just the 3rd time in his career, defeating Rafael Nadal in the Miami Open final 6-3, 6-4.   It’s Federer’s 3rd title of the 2017, and the 3rd time he’s played and defeated Nadal this year.  2017 has been a fun year for tennis, hasn’t it?   Federer did say on court that he’d be sitting out most of the clay season and his next tournament would be Roland Garros.

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🍊

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Davis Cup Quarterfinals This Weekend
The Davis Cup is back April 7-9!  The World Group Quarterfinals are taking place in venues across Europe and Australia.  We’re looking forward to the tie between the US and Australia as John Isner, Jack Sock, Sam Querrey & Stevie Johnson take on Nick Kyrgios, Jordan Thompson, Sam Groth & John Peers.

Australia (host) vs USA
France (host) vs Great Britain
Belgium (host) vs Italy
Serbia (host) vs Spain

The #NextGen is Coming
#NextGen ATP stars Sascha Zverev and Jared Donaldson were both impressive in Miami.  Sascha defeated John Isner (saving 3 match points) and Stan Wawrinka en route to the Quarterfinals, where he fell to Nick Kyrgios in one of the best matches of the Miami Open.  Jared Donaldson played his way through qualifying and made it to the 4th round.  He eventually lost to Jack Sock, but his run in Miami brings him to a career high of 75 in the ATP rankings.

Tennis Watching Etiquette
We’ve covered concert etiquette before, and after watching the match between Nick Kyrgios and Roger Federer last week, we feel the need to address tennis watching etiquette as well.  If you’re lucky enough to be watching a professional tennis match in person, here are some things to keep in mind.
1. Cheering in support of your favorite player is fine, but show some respect for the other player.  Calling out against them, cheering negative things, or playing linesman and calling close balls “out” is rude and distracting to both players.
2. Learn when to cheer and when to be quiet.  Generally speaking, if the ball is in play, that’s your cue to sit and watch.   Between points, cheering is welcome and encouraged!   But please do not applaud double faults and do not call out in between 1st and 2nd serves.
3. Wait for the changeovers to enter or leave your seats.  It’s distracting to both the players and the other fans in the stadium to have people constantly going in and out.
4. Enjoy points like this!

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Memphis Open – Memphis, TN, USA
ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament – Rotterdam, Netherlands
Argentina Open – Buenos Aires, Argentina

Last Week’s Winners:
Open Sud de France – Sascha Zverev
Garanti Koza Sofia Open – Grigor Dimitrov
Ecuador Open – Victor Estrella Burgos

Grigor Dimitrov Wins Hometown Tournament
Grigor won the Sofia Open, the first ATP World Tour tournament he’s played in his home country.  He defeated David Goffin in the final, 7-5, 6-4, in front of an enthusiastic hometown crowd.  The 12,000 capacity arena was sold out for the finals, with the Bulgarian fans out in full force to support Grigor.  The win is Grigor’s 2nd title of the season, and brings his record for the year to 14-1.  Let’s go Grisha!

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🏆🇧🇬

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Sasha Zverev Takes Singles & Doubles Titles In Montpellier
#NextGen star Sascha is also having a great 2017 so far.  He just won the 2nd singles title of his career at the Open Sud de France, defeating hometown favorite Richard Gasquet, 7-6 (4), 6-3, in the final.  Sascha then teamed up with his brother, Mischa Zverev, to win the doubles title, with a victory over Fabrice Martin and Daniel Nestor.  This is the first time an ATP player has won both the singles and doubles titles in the same tournament since Lleyton Hewitt in 2014.  The win also puts Sascha up to a career high ranking of #18 in the world, and at #1 in the #NextGenATP Race to Milan.

 

Toni Nadal To Step Down as Rafael Nadal’s Coach
The tennis world was shocked over the weekend when it was announced that Rafa’s uncle and longtime coach, Toni Nadal, would be stepping down at the end of 2017.  Toni has worked with Rafa for most of his life and for his entire professional career to date.   Carlos Moya joined Rafa’s coaching team before the start of this season.  Toni will no longer travel with Rafa and will instead focus on training emerging players at the recently opened Rafa Nadal Academy in Majorca.

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: 2016 Season Comes To An End

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Davis Cup Finals – Zagreb, Croatia

Andy Murray Is Year End #1
For the first time in history, the battle for the year end #1 ranking came down to the final match in the last tournament of the year.  Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray fought for the #1 spot in the ATP World Tour Finals, with Murray  winning 6-3, 6-4.


Davis Cup Finals November 25-27
If you thought the tennis season was officially over, not yet!  The Davis Cup Finals are happening this weekend.  Argentina will take on Croatia at the Arena Zagreb.   Argentina has never won Davis Cup, but have come close as 4 time runners up.   Croatia won their only Davis Cup title in 2005.   With Delpo in action (remember his 5-set epic win over Andy Murray in the semi-finals?)  and a strong Croatian team, it should be an exciting final.

Argentina: Juan Martin del Potro, Guido Pella, Federico Delbonis, Leonardo Mayer

Croatia: Marin Cilic, Borna Coric, Ivo Karlovic, Ivan Dodig


ATP #NextGen Finals Launching in 2017
The ATP announced that Milan will host a season-ending final tournament for the top players under 21 starting next year.  The format will be similar to the ATP World Tour Finals, with the top 7 players under 21 qualifying based on ranking points earned throughout the season.  The 8th spot will be awarded via wildcard.  We love this idea and if anyone would like to send us to Milan next year, we are so there.

The tournament will feature “rule changes and innovations,” to make tennis more appealing to “the millennials,” to which we must again say please, please leave the format and rules of the game alone.

If the tournament existed in 2016, the players would have been: Nick Kyrgios, Sascha Zverev, Kyle Edmund, Borna Coric, Karen Khachanov, Taylor Fritz, Yoshihito Nishioka, Hyeon Chung


It’s The Off Season!
For everyone not participating in Davis Cup this week that is.  That means vacation Instagrams from your favorite players for the next month or so.  Also a reminder the Australian Open is in 55 days!

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Putting my agent to work // @chrisgmccormack

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Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Chengdu Open – Chengdu, China
Shenzhen Open – Shenzhen, China

Lucas Pouille Wins 1st Title in Metz
Pouille has had a terrific year so far – he reached the quarterfinals of both Wimbledon and the US Open, where he defeated Rafael Nadal.  The 22-year-old Frenchman just hit another milestone and won his first ATP World Tour Title at the Moselle Open in Metz, France, defeating #1 seed Dominic Thiem in the final 7-6(5), 6-2.  Pouille is now #16 in the rankings and on the rise.  Allez!

Alexander Zverev Wins St. Petersburg Open
19-year-old Sascha Zverev became the first teenager to win an ATP title since Marin Cilic in 2008.   Zverev defeated Stan Wawrinka to win his first title in St. Petersburg 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.  It’s fun to see another #NextGen player on the rise and we’re looking forward to seeing much more from him in the future!

2017 Davis Cup Draw Revealed
The draw for the 2017 Davis Cup was held last week in London.  First round action will take place from February 3-5, with some intriguing matchups.  Stay tuned for site selection announcements in the coming weeks.  (We’re hoping we can make it to USA vs. Switzerland!)

Argentina vs Italy
Germany vs Belgium
Australia vs Czech Republic
USA vs Switzerland
Japan vs France
Canada vs Great Britain
Serbia vs Russia
Croatia vs Spain

In the meantime, we still have the Davis Cup Finals coming up November 25-27, with Argentina taking on Croatia in Zagreb.

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: ATP News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Aegon Open – Nottingham, England
Wimbledon Qualifying – London, England

Lleyton Hewitt Receives Wimbledon Doubles Wildcard
We knew Lleyton couldn’t stay away from tennis for too long!  While he officially retired from singles at this year’s Australian Open, Lleyton has since suited up for Davis Cup doubles and he was just given a wildcard into Wimbledon.  Lleyton is teaming up with fellow Aussie Jordan Thompson in doubles.  Get your “c’mon!” cheers ready.

Dominic Thiem Hot Shots
Thiem has pretty much been a highlight reel lately.  Check out some of his hot shots from Halle.  We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, we are so on board #TeamThiem.

Herbert/Mahut Win Queen’s Club Title
The French duo picked up their 4th title of the season at the Wimbledon warm up.  We’re hoping to see them team up at both Davis Cup in July and the Olympics in August.  ALLEZ!

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One more time🍾🏆

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Andy Murray Wins Record 5th In London
Murray couldn’t have asked for better prep for Wimbledon.  With coach Ivan Lendl back on his team, Murray defeated Milos Raonic in a 3 set final.  He became the first man to win a 5th Queen’s Club Title.

Sascha Zverev Beats Roger Federer In Halle
Thiem isn’t the only young gun to have defeated Federer this season – 19-year-old Sascha Zverev took out Federer in 3 sets in the semi-finals in Halle.  We’re excited to see more from this #NextGen player this season!