Tennis News

Goransson/Michelsen upset top seeds Arevalo/Pavic to reach Shanghai doubles final

Unseeded Andre Goransson and Alex Michelsen defeated top seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic 7-6(2), 2-6, 10-7 on Friday to reach the final of the Rolex Shanghai Masters.

The first-time duo was 0 for 7 on break points in the one-hour, 41-minute match, including 0 of 5 in the first set. Despite Goransson getting broken in the fourth and eighth games of the second set, they regrouped in the Match Tie-break.

Goransson/Michelsen went up 3-0 in the deciding tie-break and after Arevalo/Pavic tied it at 3-3, both teams held serve until Arevalo double-faulted at 7-8. Arevalo then hit a forehand wide on match point, putting the Swede and American in the final.

“It was like three or four days before I went to Laver Cup, he texted me and I was like, why not,” said Michelsen on how they teamed up. “Now we’re in the final.”

Goransson is the first Swede to reach the doubles final in tournament history (since 2009) and he will attempt to become the first Swede to win an ATP Masters 1000 doubles title since Robert Lindstedt in 2012 Cincinnati (with Horia Tecau). Goransson will be appearing in his first ATP Masters 1000 final and eighth career final (3-4). His last title came in April at the 500-level tournament in Munich, with Sem Verbeek. His other titles came in Newport last year (also with Verbeek) and Pune in 2020 (with Christopher Rungkat).

“It feels amazing and my first Masters 1000 final ever, so obviously I am really, really excited,” said Goransson. “It was quite nerve-wracking towards the end there, but it’s amazing to get through with a win.”

Michelsen is the first American to reach the Shanghai doubles final since 2016, when John Isner and Jack Sock won the title. This is the 21-year-old California native’s third career ATP Tour final (0-2), having lost in Stuttgart in June (with Rajeev Ram) and last year at the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 (with Mackenzie McDonald).

“This is feeling really good,” said Michelsen. “That’s the team I lost to in the final in Cincinnati last year, so super good to get the win over those boys, they’re very good, and we’re excited about the challenge in the final.”

Goransson and Michelsen will take on No. 3 seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz or alternates Guido Andreozzi and Manuel Guinard. The Germans will play the Argentine/French duo in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Source link

Federer returns to Shanghai centre court for exhibition match with Chinese actors

Two-time Rolex Shanghai Masters champion Roger Federer was back on centre court in China on Friday for an exhibition match, teaming with actor Donnie Yen to play actor Wu Lei and former WTA star Zheng Jie.

In a match featuring three tie-breaks, Federer and Yen earned a comeback victory, 5-7, 10-8, 7-1.

While the Chinese actors admitted to feeling nerves before the match, Federer praised their effort: “It shows that you care,” he said of their pre-match jitters. “I think you did really well. Thank you for coming. I could see you had a great time.”

The Swiss also credited Yen and Wu for their hard work in preparing for the match: “I want to say about practicing so hard to get ready for the match, for Donnie and for you, Lei. [Jie and I] don’t have to practice as much as them, but just to see the passion behind the practice sessions, I hope they can carry it after the match as well,” he said. “And also maybe people who are watching and who are here at the stadium, just to show how important sports is for everyday life, for happiness. I’m happy we could share centre court here in Qizhong Stadium today.”

Federer also played an exhibition match last year in Shanghai, teaming with Chinese singer and actor Eason Chan against the ATP Tour’s Zhang Zhizhen and table tennis champion Fan Zhendong.

<img alt=”Zheng Jie, Wu Lei, Roger Federer, Donnie Yen” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2025/10/10/16/16/federer-shanghai-exhibition-group-2025.jpg” />
Zheng Jie, Wu Lei, Roger Federer and Donnie Yen. Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images.

In his competitive playing days, former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings Federer posted a 23-6 record in Shanghai, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. The Swiss won titles in 2014 and 2017. He also reached the final in his 2010 debut, and made his eighth and final appearance in 2019.

Source link

ATP appoints Andre Silva as Chief Tour Officer

The ATP has today announced the appointment of Andre Silva as Chief Tour Officer. Silva brings extensive international leadership experience across professional tennis and global sport, including senior roles with TEAM8, tournament leadership at the Cincinnati Open, and executive positions at the PGA Tour overseeing flagship events such as THE PLAYERS Championship and The Presidents Cup.

He also previously served as ATP Chief Player Officer and Tournament Director of the Nitto ATP Finals. With a track record spanning athlete representation, major event delivery and commercial operations, combined with a deep understanding of player and tournament relations, Silva is uniquely positioned to lead the Tour at a transformative moment for men’s tennis. He succeeds Ross Hutchins, who has held the role since 2020.

Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, said: “Andre is a proven leader with a unique combination of experience across players, tournaments and other sports. His appointment comes at a pivotal time as we continue building a stronger, more compelling ATP Tour, as well as advocating to unify the broader tennis landscape through our OneVision plan.”

Andre Silva, incoming ATP Chief Tour Officer, said: “It’s an honour to return to the ATP and contribute to the sport that has shaped my professional life. I’m energised by the progress the Tour has made in recent years and look forward to working with players, tournaments and stakeholders to take our sport to even greater heights.”

Silva will assume his new role from 1 November 2025 and will be based out of the ATP’s Florida office.

Source link

Medvedev clinches 50th Top 10 win, advances to Shanghai SFs

Daniil Medvedev recorded his 50th Top 10 win on Friday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where he defeated Alex de Minaur to reach his second ATP Masters 1000 semi-final of the season.

In a physical encounter, with more than 32 points going beyond nine shots, Medvedev found the edge against De Minaur, who was slightly off his best. The 29-year-old struck 11 more winners than the Australian (27-16), committed two fewer unforced errors (25-27) and won 15 of his 16 first-serve points in the second set to advance after one hour and 53 minutes.

“I was super tired and I knew against Alex, like against Learner, we would have long points. I think in the third or fourth game we had a couple and I thought it was going to be a long day, but I am happy with the way I played,” Medvedev said. “I was really clutch in the important moments and hitting the ball great and putting him under pressure. The second set was tight but I found the best at the end. I am really happy with the level.”

Medvedev is chasing his first tour-level title since Rome in May 2023 and he will next meet Arthur Rinderknech in the last four. Earlier this season, Medvedev advanced to the semi-finals in Indian Wells but lost to Holger Rune.

Medvedev, who triumphed in Shanghai in 2019, has reached 50 tour-level semi-finals on hard courts, with 18 of his 20 titles coming on the surface. He has been made to work hard in Shanghai on his quest for title number 21, also surviving a three-set epic against Learner Tien in the fourth round.

De Minaur leaves Shanghai seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. The 10-time tour-level champion is 640 points clear of 10th-placed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who is the first player outside the Top 8 cut due to ninth-placed Jack Draper being sidelined for the rest of the year with injury. De Minaur, who now trails Medvedev 4-8 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, is aiming to compete at the Nitto ATP Finals for the second consecutive season.

Source link

Sabalenka extends Wuhan win streak to 20 matches

Aryna Sabalenka extends her winning streak at the Wuhan Open to 20 matches with a straight-set victory over Elena Rybakina in the quarter-finals.

Source link

Rinderknech continues dream run, defeats Auger-Aliassime to reach Shanghai SFs

Arthur Rinderknech earned the biggest win of his career on Friday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where he moved past Felix Auger-Aliassime to reach his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

Rinderknech defeated World No. 3 Alexander Zverev and World No. 19 Jiri Lehecka to advance to his maiden Masters 1000 quarter-final but ensured his run would not end against World No. 13 Auger-Aliassime. The Frenchman produced a high-quality display of aggressive striking and closed out the match with authority, sealing a dominant 6-3, 6-4 victory on his second match point after 87 minutes.

Following his victory, Rinderknech raised his arms aloft and looked toward his cousin Valentin Vacherot, who is in semi-final action against Novak Djokovic on Saturday. Read more about the pair’s story here.

“It is huge. First of all, I followed my cousin,” Rinderknech said, referencing qualifier Vacherot, who is set to break the Top 100 after becoming the first Monegasque player to reach a tour-level semi-final. “He was going through the emotions on Thursday and I am trying to follow and battle and do the same as him. It has been incredible since the start of the tournament.

“The whole family is following from home. We are in our own little world here. It has been incredible and today was a good performance from myself and I am happy it was straight sets, so I am not too tired for tomorrow.”

Rinderknech is up 17 spots to No. 37 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and is set to rise to a career-high on Monday. The 30-year-old, who has earned three consecutive Top 20 wins, is the third Frenchman to reach the semi-finals in Shanghai, joining Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (2013, ’15) and Gilles Simon (’14, 16). Rinderknech will next meet Alex de Minaur or Daniil Medvedev in the last four.

Auger-Aliassime had lost his serve just once all tournament before he met with Rinderknech, but was broken twice against the Frenchman. The Canadian gave Rinderknech an opening on his serve in the first set when he struck two unforced errors off the forehand and hit a double fault. The 30-year-old took his chance with a forehand pass to break and finished off a clean first set, in which he hit nine winners to just three unforced errors, on his first set point.

The 30-year-old continued to play front-foot tennis in the second set and battled hard on serve, crucially saving three break points at 2-1, 0/40 to maintain his break advantage. He struck 20 winners in the match and won 85 per cent of his first-serve points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to improve to 1-2 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Auger-Aliassime.

Rinderknech is delighted to have joined his cousin Vacherot in the last four and opened up after the match on the week they are having.

“I was stressing so much yesterday during his whole match,” said Rinderknech, who watched Vacherot’s three-set win against Holger Rune courtside. “I am not used to watching guys play on court and I wanted him to win so much. I was so stressed but I didn’t want to show anything. I didn’t want to stress him. Today was a lot calmer for me on court.”

Vacherot was in Rinderknech’s guest box and afterwards said: “It’s really nice that it’s happening here. I was thinking yesterday it will have been special to maybe be a bit closer to home so maybe some family would have get to come or anything. But I think we’re just in our little bubble here with my brother, my coach, who is also helping a little bit Arthur, my girlfriend. We’re just not many at all, and I think we’re in our little bubble doing our thing. So I am really happy that it’s happening here, and we’re having a lot of fun all together.”

Texas A&M University coach Steve Denton has been getting up in the early hours of the morning back in College Station to watch both of his former players.

“As their college coach I couldn’t be more proud of these two,” said Denton. “A dream week for both of them and it is a testament of what college tennis can do to young players if they are all in and trust the process of just trying to improve. Clearly they are feeding off each others energy and you can really see the joy they are playing with, much like they did when they were at Texas A&M. I have always believed in both of them that they will eventually put it together. Isn’t it ironic that they have done it during the same week.”

For Auger-Aliassime, the Canadian leaves Shanghai 10th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. The 25-year-old is 530 points behind eighth-placed Lorenzo Musetti, who is in the final qualification spot for the Nitto ATP Finals.

Source link

Five things to know about Arthur Rinderknech, who is into the Shanghai SFs with cousin Vacherot

Arthur Rinderknech is making his mark this week at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where he has advanced to the semi-finals at an ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time. The 30-year-old has earned three consecutive Top 20 wins at the tournament, defeating Alexander Zverev, Jiri Lehecka and Felix Auger-Aliassime.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to know about Rinderknech. Editor’s Note: This story was originally published on 31 August 2025.

College roots in Texas
While many future pros were travelling on the junior circuit, Rinderknech was charting a different course, 8,000 kilometres from home. The Frenchman chose to play college tennis at Texas A&M University, spending four years in College Station, a town better known for college football than tennis.

“I felt like it was the best fit for me,” Rinderknech told ATPTour.com in the past. “I wasn’t the best in juniors. I was probably only ranked about fifth, sixth or seventh at my age in France, so I didn’t have much help. I wanted to keep playing tennis, not only go to school, and I could do both of them in the States, so that’s why I decided to go there. It was just a great experience and I kept improving.”

Business background
Rinderknech is already thinking about life away from tennis. A business graduate from Texas A&M, the Frenchman recently took part in the ATP Player Mentoring Programme, designed to help players explore career interests beyond the sport. He was mentored by Denise Melone, Managing Director at global communications agency Havas, gaining valuable insight into the business world. The initiative connects players with industry leaders to expand their professional networks and prepare for opportunities post-tennis.

Family support
Tennis runs deep in the Rinderknech family. His father, Pascal, runs a tennis club in Paris, while his mother, Virginie, once played professionally, winning a match at Roland Garros in 1986. Alongside his parents, the 30-year-old is supported by wife and former collegiate player at Texas A&M University, Hortense Boscher. The pair married earlier this year in France. His cousin, Valentin Vacherot, is also in to the semi-finals in Shanghai.

Frenchman’s New York breakthrough
Rinderknech had never been beyond the third round in his previous 19 major appearances but broke new ground at the US Open in August to reach the fourth round for the first time. The Frenchman defeated Roberto Carballes Baena, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Benjamin Bonzi before he lost to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.

Captured first Top 10 wins earlier this year
Rinderknech has enjoyed success on the biggest stage already this season. He upset World No. 3 Alexander Zverev in five sets in the first round at Wimbledon to earn just the second Top 10 win of his career. His first arrived only two weeks prior at The Queen’s Club, where Rinderknech overcame American Ben Shelton. He made it three Top 10 wins in Shanghai, where he beat Zverev again.

Source link