I’m not too sure why Casper Ruud gets a rough press, he even has done from some notable fellow players but the Norwegian lets his tennis talk as should those on tour who have critiqued him. Earlier this year after Wimbledon we saw the Norweigan win a hat trick of clay court tiles and this... Continue Reading →
Rublev vs Tsitsipas taught us a lot about both players’ levels but also questions is there more to come in Turin?
Andrey Rublev has played a lot of tennis this year, it has been a difficult year for the Russian outside of the final eight in Melbourne and Mixed Doubles Gold in Tokyo but on his 73rd match of the year he put on one of his best performances. I have been quite critical of the... Continue Reading →
Daniil Medvedev finds his groove against debutant Hubert Hurkacz to kick off his title defence in perfect fashion and without facing a break point
Daniil Medvedev walked out with a swagger in Turin with the lyrics "It's like a force of nature, no stopping now" ringing around on repeat, here as the defending champion up against the new boy at the ATP Finals, Hubert Hurkacz. Hubi stood on the court waiting for Daniil before the coin toss, taking in... Continue Reading →
Novak Djokovic to end the season as year end number one for an unmatched 7th season
Novak Djokovic creates history and rewrites history and in a season where he has added to his accolades and records he has achieved one of the ones he wanted the most, the year end number one. It is a recognition of a phenomenal season in tennis, since 2004 it has been dominated by Roger Federer,... Continue Reading →
161 matches played since the beginning of 2020 factoring a six month break, Turin could define his season but has there been much progression for Rublev in the last two years?
Last November we saw Andrey Rublev debut at the ATP Finals, a tournament I described before it began as a learning point a year on I find myself doing the full circle. Andrey left London last year with two defeats a final day win in the round-robin against an already qualified Dominic Thiem who lets... Continue Reading →
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ season fizzled out after Roland Garros, does the Greek have a point to prove and people to win over at the season finale?
Without doubt one of the best players I have watched live has been Stefanos Tsitsipas. In Melbourne and Madrid I watched the Greek strut around the court with his sublime tennis back in 2019. In the early stages of this year he was the form playing, he was winning big and you could see big... Continue Reading →
With his 50th win of 2021 Cameron Norrie keeps his hopes of being in Turin alive and firm pressure on Hubert Hurkacz and Casper Ruud
Tennis is a sport that moves quite quickly. On Monday night British fans were not big fans of Dominik Koepfer in Paris as he saved seven match points to beat Andy Murray but on Thursday fans will be hoping for another win for the German to help keep Cam Norrie's hopes of playing at the... Continue Reading →
Six players fighting for two spaces, who will be heading to the ATP Finals in Turin?
Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas have all qualified for the season finale debuting in Turin this year. Alex Zverev is almost over the line but who joins them? This leaves four spaces up for grabs, there won't be a Dominic Thiem, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer which means it will open up for... Continue Reading →
Paris, London & Melbourne, Daniil Medvedev’s 20 match unbeaten run comes to an end but it’s just the beginning for the Russian!
All good runs must come to an end. Daniil Medvedev's from Paris Masters through the ATP Finals, beginning his season at the ATP Cup and finishing as runner-up at the Australian Open has been nothing short of exceptional. In tennis there have been greater unbeaten runs, in recent times we have had Djokovic' 43, Federer's... Continue Reading →
A dip in intensity showed in a schedule hit 2020 season which Stefanos Tsitsipas will hope to put right in 2021
After an outstanding breakthrough 2019 season the following year was always going to be a bigger test. Even without what he has happened this year and without the usual structure of the season it has felt in 2020 something was missing for Stefanos Tsitsipas. I think back to 2019 and I think of the win... Continue Reading →