Quarter finalists locked in as Tsitsipas the sole seed in bottom half
IN a day that was far from predictable with a couple of upsets knocking top 20 players out of the Hamburg European Open, Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas provided some normality to the draw with a straight sets win over Uruguayan qualifier Pablo Cuevas. Tsitsipas won 7-5 6-4 to advance through to the quarter finals, one […]
Bertens retires as Alexandrova outclassed at Internationaux de Strasbourg
THE second day of Round of 16 action at the 2020 Internationaux de Strasbourg saw just the one seed proceed through to the quarter finals, with third seed Kiki Bertens retiring in the latter stage of the third set and seventh seed Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova downed by Czech talent Katerina Siniakova. The one seeded winner […]
Lucky loser Bublik making the most of his second chance
KAZAHKSTAN’S Alexander Bublik would be thankful that Rome Masters finalist, Diego Schwartzman opted to pull out of the Hamburg European Open. The world number 56 suffered defeat in qualifying and looked to miss the final lead-up tournament to Roland Garros. That was until the seventh seeded Argentinian decided rest was more of a priority after […]
Tough day at Strasbourg sees tiebreakers aplenty
DAY three of the Internationaux de Strasbourg saw the beginning of the Round of 16, with the two top seeds of the day in second seed Elina Svitolina and fifth seed Elena Rybakina heading through to the quarter finals. Qualifier Zhang Shuai and Jil Teichmann joined the duo in the next round after respective wins, […]
In-form Humbert and Hanfmann build on recent form to stun top 10 players
RED-hot duo, Ugo Humbert and Yannick Hanfmann continued their fantastic recent form to upset top 10 players, Daniil Medvedev and Gael Monfils at the Hamburg European Open today. All bar two of the Round of 32 matches were completed, with the top three seeds the major casualties of the day. Humbert defeated Medvedev 6-4 6-3, […]
Horror day on clay for US as seeds stumble ahead of Roland Garros
IF you were a United States fan turning in to watch your competitors run around on the clay at the Strasbourg International, then by the end of the first round you would have been deeply disappointed. All five American hopes were bundled out in the first round, including seeds Amanda Anisimova and Sloane Stephens. Both […]
Former Hamburg champion Simon out as qualifiers reign supreme
JUST four matches took place on the opening day of the 2020 Hamburg European Open, with former winner Gilles Simon bombing out in straight sets and three of the four qualifiers advancing to the Round of 16. Simon had lost in the qualifying stages to Pablo Cuevas, but earned a reprisal, only to lose to […]
Thigh injury ends Pliskova’s Rome run as Halep claims title
WORLD number two Simona Halep has had the perfect lead-up to Roland Garros by claiming her first Internazionali BNL d’Italia with a win over an injured Karolina Pliskova. The Romanian was announced the winner after Pliskova was forced to retire early in the second set with a thigh injury. In her third Rome final – […]
Djokovic claims record-breaking Masters 1000 title in Rome
NOVAK Djokovic has claimed a record-breaking 36th ATP Masters 1000 crown, defeating Argentinian Diego Schwartzman at Rome in straight sets, 7-5 6-3 in an hour and 53 minutes. The Serbian was level with world number two Rafael Nadal on 35 titles a piece, but has now gone outright top with his fifth Rome Masters title. […]
Top two seeds in Halep and Pliskova to do battle for Rome title
TWO huge battles were the talk of the town at the WTA Tour’s Internazionali BNL d’Italia, fittingly seeing the top two seeds in Simona Halep and Karolina Pliskova proceed into the final. With two seeded battles going ahead, neither player got away with easy wins although Pliskova certainly came away with the quicker victory. Halep […]
2020 Hamburg European Open preview: Basilashvili eyes off third straight title
BACK-to-back Hamburg European Open winner, Nikoloz Basilashvili will start as an underdog in the ATP 250 tournament with a tough first round match up against fourth seed, Roberto Bautista Agut. The unseeded Georgian is one of only three past winners in the 32-player draw, with Fabio Fognini (2013) and Gilles Simon (2011) the others making […]
Schwartzman set for Djokovic test after reaching Rome Masters final
DIEGO Schwartzman will take on world number one Novak Djokovic in the final of the Rome Masters after winning his semi-final against Denis Shapovalov. The eighth seed will eye off a top 10 ATP Tour ranking with an upset win over Djokovic, who took out unseeded clay court specialist Casper Ruud in the other semi-final. […]
