The Grandstand
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The Grandstand
1d ago
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina has home-court advantage in Barcelona but faces a tough opening test in the form of Tomas Machac on Wednesday. Lorenzo Musetti and Roberto Carballes Baena are also hoping for a place in the round of 16.
(11) Alejandro Davidovich Fokina vs. Tomas Machac
Davidovich Fokina and Machac will be squaring off for the first time in their careers when they meet in round two the Barcelona Open Banc Sabaell on Wednesday. Despite being ranked No. 50 in the world, it feels like only a matter of time before Machac starts getting seeded at Grand Slams. The 23-year-old Czech is 11-6 ..read more
The Grandstand
1d ago
Rafael Nadal was not seriously tested in his comeback match at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, but that figures to change in the second round.
After cruising past Flavio Cobolli 6-2, 6-3 on Tuesday afternoon, Nadal will face fourth-seeded Alex de Minaur on Wednesday. The 37-year-old Spaniard leads the head-to-head series 3-1, but they have squared off only once since 2020 and De Minaur won their most recent encounter 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 at last season’s United Cup.
In 15 months since then, Nadal has been almost entirely idle whereas De Minaur has soared to the highest points of his career. The 2 ..read more
The Grandstand
1d ago
Rafael Nadal is back. And back in the winner’s circle.
Playing an official ATP event for the first time since the Brisbane International in January, Nadal defeated Flavio Cobolli 6-2, 6-3 in round one of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on Tuesday evening. The 37-year-old Spaniard lost serve only once and broke Cobolli four times while advancing in one hour and 25 minutes.
As if he never left…@RafaelNadal returns to winning ways as he defeats Cobolli 6-2 6-3 in Barcelona@bcnopenbs #BCNOpenBS pic.twitter.com/xVmeXEYXm8
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) April 16, 2024
Nadal served at well less than 1 ..read more
The Grandstand
2d ago
Twelve months ago, Andrey Rublev was on top of the world. The Russian had just lifted his first-ever Masters 1000 trophy, storming back from 4-1 down in the third set against Holger Rune to claim the title in Monte-Carlo.
He went on to make the final in Banja Luka the next week before winning an ATP 250 in Bastad and adding two more Grand Slam quarterfinals and a Masters 1000 final to his resume. By the end of the year, Rublev had returned to his career-high ranking of No.5 in the world and it looked as though the 26-year-old had well and truly raised the ceiling in his career.
There were crac ..read more
The Grandstand
3d ago
In terms of quantity, this is the busiest week on the clay-court calendar: one 500 event (Barcelona) and a pair of 250s (Munich and Bucharest). We are in between Masters 1000 events–Stefanos Tsitsipas triumphed in Monte-Carlo on Sunday and both Madrid and Rome are on the immediate horizon–but the fun doesn’t stop.
Barring a late withdrawal, this week’s festivities will be headlined by Rafael Nadal’s return in Barcelona. Other notable players in action are Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, Alex de Minaur, Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Den ..read more
The Grandstand
3d ago
It’s fair to say that nothing is confirmed until Rafael Nadal actually takes the court, but all systems are reportedly go for him at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.
Nadal is in the draw, and if he plays it would mark his first appearance on the ATP Tour since the Brisbane International in January (lost to Jordan Thompson in the quarterfinals). The 37-year-old Spaniard faced Carlos Alcaraz in the Netflix Slam last month in Las Vegas but withdrew from Indian Wells a couple of days later. Nadal also announced that he wasn’t yet ready to play in Monte-Carlo.
Speaking of Alcaraz, he will not be ..read more
The Grandstand
4d ago
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers on the main tour when they battle for the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title on Sunday afternoon.
When the tournament began (and especially after Carlos Alcaraz withdrew), a championship match between No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 2 Jannik Sinner seemed like an obvious destination. That became increasingly probable heading into semifinal Saturday, when Djokovic ran into Casper Ruud and Sinner faced Stefanos Tsitsipas. Instead, each semifinal produced a significant upset.
Ruud’s 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 success agai ..read more
The Grandstand
4d ago
Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner were on a collision course for the final of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. Both Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas had other ideas, however.
Before Ruud upset Djokovic 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 for his first-ever win at the 36-year-old Serb’s expense, Tsitsipas pulled off a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Sinner. The result is a surprising Sunday showdown for the title between Ruud and Tsitsipas.
Although a loss by the world No. 1 may be the biggest story, Tsitsipas’ defeat of Sinner was no less surprising–especially considering the circumstances of the match. After losing th ..read more
The Grandstand
5d ago
World No.1 Novak Djokovic is inching closer to his first title of 2024 in Monte-Carlo as he takes on Norway’s Casper Ruud.
Novak Djokovic came into Monte-Carlo with an 8-3 match record and no titles. And this time it’s not because of travel bans or other extra-tennis drama. It’s just that the Serb has been just a little off the boil. He was diabolical against Jannik Sinner in the semis of the Australian Open, but it was Djokovic’s loss to world No. 123 Luca Nardi in Indian Wells that raised eyebrows.
Still, he’s been efficient this week. The world No. 1 had fairly tidy wins over Roman Safiulli ..read more
The Grandstand
5d ago
Jannik Sinner and Stefanos Tsitsipas will be squaring off for the ninth time in their careers when they battle on Saturday for a spot in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title match.
Tsitsipas leads the head-to-head series 5-3, but–like plenty of other matchups involving Sinner–this rivalry appears to be turning in the Italian’s favor. Once 1-5, Sinner won their last two meetings in 2023 (6-4, 6-3 in Rotterdam and 6-4, 6-4 at the Nitto ATP Finals).
A move from indoor hard courts to clay might give Tsitsipas somewhat of an advantage. The world No. 12 is a former French Open runner-up (2021) and ..read more