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Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournament:
Miami Open – Miami, FL USA

Last Week’s Winner:
BNP Paribas Open – Roger Federer

Introducing the (One-Handed) Backhand Boys
Roger Federer may have won the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells over the weekend, but he also won the internet and the hearts of fangirls around the world with the return of the Backhand Boys.  Federer joined fellow one-handed backhanders Grigor Dimitrov and Tommy Haas for a singalong of Chicago’s “Hard to Say I’m Sorry.”  You might recall the trio singing  together back at the Australian Open, and this new video shows they’ve been working on their moves and their vocals.  Tour soon?

As much as we love the Backhand Boys, we think they could use a couple of extra members to make up the classic 5 member boyband!   We’d love to see Stan Wawrinka, Dominic Thiem, Richard Gasquet or Feliciano Lopez join the lineup.  Auditions in Miami?

The Backhand Boys could use a rival boyband just to keep things fresh.  May we present *NSYDE OUT led by some of the best forehands on the ATP Tour: Juan Martin del Potro, Jack Sock, and Rafael Nadal with Vasek Pospisil (he so needs/wants to be in a boyband) and Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Denis Shapovalov Wins 1st Challenger Title
#NextGenATP player Denis Shapovalov won his first challenger title over the weekend in his native Canada at the Challenger Banque Nationale Drummondville.  At 17-years-old, Denis is the youngest ATP Challenger winner so far this year and now the youngest player in the top 200.  Denis defeated his friend and countryman Felix Auger-Aliassme in the semi-finals en route to the title.

Gael Monfils Out With Injury
Gael Monfils is one of the most entertaining players in tennis, with an explosive game and incredible athleticism.   Unfortunately, his big game has led to quite a few injuries over the years, and Gael’s latest setback is a tear in his Achilles’ heel and chondropathy Patella.  He is out of the Miami Open and will start rehab.  We hope to see Gael back on court soon!  (so we can see more shots like this)

ATP University Class of 2017 Graduate in Miami
Every year in Miami, the ATP World Tour hosts “ATP University” for the youngest players on tour.  The 3-day program teaches the players about life on tour including player relations, social media, nutrition, and finance.  It also gives the new players a chance to get to know each other and adjust to their hectic new schedule.  This year’s class included young Americans Reilly Opelka, Noah Rubin, Michael Mmoh, and Stefan Kozlov.

Roger Federer Covers GQ‘s April Issue
Things can be rough for a tennis fan in the off-season.  It’s hard to fill the time normally spent with following scores and matches across the globe with some non-tennis related activities.  Which is how back in December, with no brackets to fill out, tennis fans made it their priority to vote Roger Federer as the Best Dressed Man in GQ‘s Most Stylish Man poll.   Federer won the poll in a landslide, taking out Kanye West, Ryan Gosling, and more in the process.  With his new honor, Federer is on the cover of GQ‘s April issue.  Read the story here!

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournament:
BNP Paribas Open – Indian Wells, CA

Indian Wells Brings The Heat
While we’re having a blizzard/icy mess in the Northeast, the tennis world is in blazing hot Indian Wells for the BNP Paribas Open, one of the best tournaments of the year.  We’d gladly take 97 degrees over this snow!   Although the best part of having a snowday is we get to watch the incredible matches on the schedule for today!  The tournament has been getting lots of buzz for the so called “quarter of death” that includes Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Juan Martin del Potro, Nick Kyrgios and more, who are all in action today.  We can’t wait for Zverev vs Kyrgios, Sock vs Dimitrov, Nadal vs Verdasco, Del Potro vs Djokovic..

Vasek Pospisil Shocks Andy Murray
Canadian Vasek Pospisil has had a rough year.  He dropped out of the top 100 in the rankings, and has had to play through Qualifying and Challengers to keep up.  Vasek made it through the qualifying draw in Indian Wells before facing Andy Murray in the 2nd round.  He ended up beating Murray, whom he had never taken a set off of, in 2 straight sets: 6-4, 7-6(7).  It was the biggest win of Vasek’s career so far and we hope it will help give him the confidence to go back to the high level we all know he’s capable of!  After all, Anything is Pospisil.

Mylan WTT Roster Draft Announced
Each of the six Mylan WTT Teams rounded out their teams today, adding more players in the roster draft to the previously announced marquee players.  Check out each team!  This year’s WTT season runs from July 16 to August 2nd, with the top 2 teams advancing to the finals in San Diego on August 5th.

1. New York Empire
John Isner, Genie Bouchard, Mardy Fish, Guido Pella, Kristin Flipkens, Maria Sanchez
2. Springfield Lasers
Jack Sock, Jean-Julien Rojer, Daria Kasatkina, Benjamin Becker, Michaella Krajicek
3. Philadelphia Freedoms
Andy Roddick, Sloane Stephens, Taylor Townsend, Darian King, Donald Young, Fabrice Martin
4. Washington Kastles
Sam Querrey, Venus Williams, Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Martina Hingis, Bruno Soares, Madison Brengle, Anastasia Rodionova
5. Orange County Breakers
Yanina Wickmayer, Michael Venus, Andreja Klepac, Teymuraz Gabashvili
6. San Diego Aviators
Shelby Rogers, Rajeev Ram, Raven Klaasen, Darija Jurak

 

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships – Dubai, UAE
Abierto Mexicano Telcel – Acapulco, Mexico
Brasil Open – São Paulo, Brasil

Last Week’s Winners:
Rio Open – Dominic Thiem
Delray Beach Open – Jack Sock
Open 13 Marseille – Jo-Wilfred Tsonga

Grigor Dimitrov Walks Dolce & Gabbana Show
Grigor, who has the most wins on the ATP tour so far this season, is taking some time off before heading to Indian Wells next week.  He was spotted in Milan over the weekend, walking in the Dolce & Gabbana show, where Austin Mahone also performed.  We couldn’t have dreamed up a better show tbh.  Also, how does Grigor not have any modeling campaigns yet?  Watch out, Rafa!

Dominic Thiem Wins Title #8 in Rio
Thiem dominated his first clay court tournament of the season, winning the Rio Open without dropping a set.  Thiem was impressive all week, with his powerful ground strokes on full display.  Oh, and he also did this.   The title is the 8th of Thiem’s career, and we love seeing Domi back at the top of his game.    Bamos!

Jack Sock Wins Delray Beach Open
Jack won his 2nd title of the season in Delray Beach, albeit not in the way he had imagined.  He won the title after his opponent, Milos Raonic, had to withdraw before the match due to a hamstring injury sustained during his semi-final against Juan Martin del Potro.  The win puts Jack, the current #1 American player, up to a new career high of #18 in the ATP World Tour rankings.  Jack’s record so far in 2017 is 11-1, with his only loss to Jo-Wilfred Tsonga in the 3rd round of the Australian Open.   Congrats to Jack and wishing Milos a speedy recovery!

Vasek Pospisil Launches “Bounce” YouTube Channel
Vasek officially launched his YouTube channel, named “Bounce,” which promises to take a look at his life outside the tennis world.  Videos so far include Vasek trying out hockey and baseball, and singing some country songs.  Tune in every Friday for new videos!  #AnythingIsPospisil

World Tennis Day Is Next Week
Don’t forget World Tennis Day is next Monday, March 6th!  There will be festivities all over the world to celebrate, including  the BNP Paribas Showdown at Madison Square Garden.  Tickets are still available for the event, which will put Team Americas (Jack Sock, Andy Roddick, Juan Martin del Potro, Venus Williams) against Team World (Nick Kyrgios, Lleyton Hewitt, Kei Nishikori, Garbine Mugaruza).

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Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: News Roundup

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This Week’s Tournaments:
Rio Open – Rio de Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Delray Beach Open – Delray Beach, FL USA
Open 13 Marseille – Marseille, France

Last Week’s Winners:
Memphis Open – Ryan Harrison
ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament – Jo-Wilfred Tsonga
Argentina Open – Alexandr Dogopolov

Ryan Harrison Wins 1st ATP Title
24-year-old American Ryan Harrison won his first ATP title at the Memphis Open!   The win puts Ryan back up to his career high ranking of #43 in the world, which he first reached in 2012.  Since his breakout, Ryan has had a tough few seasons, but he never gave up.   Ryan made it to both the singles and doubles finals in Memphis, with partner Stevie Johnson.  Even though he lost in the doubles final, it means Ryan gets the full set of Memphis trophies:  a Gibson guitar as singles champion, and a gold record as doubles runner-up.   We’re glad to see Ryan playing well and hope he can keep the momentum going!

Juan Martin Del Potro Back In Action
Delpo is back this week, playing his first tournament of 2017 at the Delray Beach Open in Florida.  Delpo decided to take a longer off season to rest, after leading Argentina to the Davis Cup title in late November of last year.    Delpo’s 2017 campaign kicks off tonight against Kevin Anderson.  Vamos!

World Team Tennis Marquee Draft Announced
The Mylan WTT marquee player draft took place last week,   and we are already excited for what looks to be a fun season coming up this Summer!  Jack Sock was the first overall pick, tapped by the Springfield Lasers to head up their team.  Genie Bouchard, John Isner, and Mardy Fish will join the New York Empire, who are moving their home court from Forest Hills to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and US Open fan favorite Court 17.   Venus Williams, the Bryan Brothers, and Martina Hingis will play for the Washington Kastles, while Andy Roddick and Sloane Stephens join the Philadelphia Freedoms.  Stay tuned for additional player announcements and the full schedule coming up in March.  The dates for this year’s World Team Tennis season are July 16 – August 2nd, with the finals on August 5th.

Vasek Pospisil to Launch YouTube Channel
Canadian player Vasek Pospisil announced he will launch his own YouTube Channel this Friday, February 24th.  The channel, which he has been working on for some time, will take a look at Vasek’s life off the court.  You know we’ll be tuning in!  #AnythingIsPospisil

https://www.instagram.com/p/BQvmGSIjsMR/?taken-by=vasek.pospisil&hl=en

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: ATP News Roundup

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We’ve got less than a month to go until Roland Garros!  Our clay season started over the weekend as it’s finally Spring here in NYC and the courts are open!    Not everyone got the memo – the BMW Open in Munich has been delayed this week because of … snow.

This Week’s Tournaments:
Millinneum Estoril Open – Estoril, Portugal
BMW Open – Munich, Germany
TEB BNP Paribas Istanbul Open – Istanbul, Turkey

Rafa Ties Guillermo Villas With 49 Clay Titles
Rafa has been having a terrific European clay season so far,  starting with winning the Monte Carlo Masters last week.  He kept the momentum going in Barcelona, defeating defending champion Kei Nishikori in the final to win his 49th career clay title.   The win ties him with Guillermo Villas for the all-time record.  We would definitely bet on Rafa surpassing it.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow
Rain delays are frequent on the tennis tour, but this week in Munich has brought on some new challenges:  snow delays!    The outdoor clay tournament has been hit with below freezing temperatures, and snow, much to the amusement of players who are used to chasing the sun around the globe!   (cue The Wanted song)  Or, if you’re Canadian like Vasek Pospisil, you just practice in the snow.

Bjorn Frantangelo Wins Savannah Challenger
The young American has had a great couple of months – earlier this year, he pushed Novak Djokovic to 3 sets in Indian Wells in an entertaining match.  Bjorn captured the Savannah Challenger title over the weekend, defeating fellow American Jared Donaldson in the final.  Because of the win, Bjorn is now first in the USTA Pro Circuit Roland Garros Wildcard Challenge Standings.  USA!  USA!

Sports, Tennis

Tennis Tuesday: Welcome to Miami

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This week the tour moves to the East Coast, with Miami Open action starting on Wednesday.  Enjoy this last hardcourt tournament in North America before the tour moves to Europe for the clay season!

This Week’s Tournament
Miami Open – Miami, FL USA

Novak Djokovic Wins BNP Paribas Open
Djokovic captured a record 5th title in Indian Wells.  It was one-way traffic in the men’s final, mostly due to opponent Milos Raonic’s recurring injury, but also due to Djokovic’s outstanding play.

 

Pierre-Hugues Herbert & Nicolas Mahut Win Indian Wells Doubles
P2Hugz and Nico had an incredible week, winning their first Masters 1000 title as a team.  (yes team, not squad ahem tennis commentators…)  They defeated “Team North America” in the finals, AKA American Jack Sock and Canadian Vasek Pospisil.  We’re big fans of both these teams and happy to see them continue to do well!

 

World Team Tennis Draw March 25
We already know that Andy Roddick will be leading the New York Empires in WTT this Summer in Forest Hills (best news ever).  The WTT draw on Friday will reveal the rosters for all of the teams in the league.  Stay tuned to WTT.com!

WTT_draftday2016

header photo via the Miami Open