Austin Krajicek and Franko Skugor captured their maiden ATP Tour trophy as a team on Sunday, beating Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 7-6(5), 7-5 at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel.

The American-Croatian team saved seven of 10 break points across the two-hour, five-minute contest to triumph in their first tour-level championship match as a pairing. Krajicek and Skugor entered the tournament with a 4-4 team record, having joined forces at the ASB Classic in January.

“It has been an awesome week,” said Krajicek. “It was a great way for us to start the clay-court season and we are working hard as a team. I think it is coming together a little bit, so hopefully we can keep going in Rome and at Roland Garros.”

The fourth seeds were made to work hard from their first match at the ATP 250. In each of their three matches en route to the final, Krajicek and Skugor clinched victories in Match Tie-breaks.

This is Krajicek’s fourth victory in nine ATP Tour doubles finals. Skugor has now lifted six trophies from nine tour-level doubles championship matches.

“It was a very strange match with a lot of breaks, but I still thought the quality was pretty good. We were all returning very good. There were a lot of ups and downs, but I am happy we managed to win this one,” said Skugor.

Granollers and Zeballos were aiming to become the first doubles pair to win three ATP Tour titles this year. In February, the top seeds won back-to-back trophies on clay at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires and the Rio Open presented by Claro.

Krajicek and Skugor earn 250 FedEx ATP Doubles Ranking points and share €8,840 in prize money. Granollers and Zeballos earn 150 points and split €6,450.

New York City is the theatre capital of the world, so it’s a fitting location for some of the most dramatic moments in Dominic Thiem’s career during the US Open.

From devastating losses to milestone moments, ATPTour.com looks at the Austrian’s memorable highlights in New York ahead of his championship match on Sunday against Alexander Zverev.

2018: Late Night With Rafa
Thiem struck 74 winners and won more points (171 to 165) than Rafael Nadal in their US Open quarter-final, but it still wasn’t enough for victory. The Spaniard prevailed 0-6, 6-4, 7-5, 6-7(4), 7-6(5) in an epic four-hour, 49-minute marathon that finished at 2:04am.

The 11th match in their ATP Head2Head rivalry was their first on a hard court. Thiem made it clear from the first point that he would look to control the rallies, standing well behind the baseline to take massive cuts at topspin-heavy groundstrokes. He became the first player in 18 months to hand Nadal a 6-0 set and the first since Andy Roddick (2004) to do so at the US Open.

Nadal was forced to play defence for much of the match, but managed to win more of the points that mattered most. A heartbroken Thiem admitted that the loss would sting for awhile despite being proud of his performance.

”It’s going to be stuck in my mind forever,” Thiem said. “I’m going to remember this match, for sure. Tennis is cruel sometimes because I think this match didn’t really deserve a loser. But there has to be one.”

2017: Devastating Defeat To Del Potro
Thiem found himself on the receiving end of Juan Martin del Potro’s comeback of the year in their fourth-round clash. After sprinting through the first two sets against a fever-ridden del Potro, the Argentine dug deep and saved two match points in the fourth set to score an incredible 1-6, 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(1), 6-4 win.

The Austrian needed just over an hour to score a two-sets lead as a woozy del Potro received medical treatment late in he second set. It appeared at one stage that the 2009 US Open champion might retire. But as a heavily partisan Argentine continent urged him on and chants of “Del-Po! Del-Po!” rang out through the Grandstand, he became energised and found the range on his shots. Thiem failed to serve out the match at 5-3 in the fourth set and del Potro saved two match points with aces at 5-6.

After well over three hours, Thiem double faulted on match point and dropped his head as Del Potro raised his arms in triumph. But despite the loss, Thiem was able to appreciate the incredible atmosphere inside the stadium.

”I was really pumped to play in front of a packed Grandstand,” Thiem said. “I enjoy playing more in a packed stadium, even when it’s more for the opponent, than in front of 500 people cheering for me.”

Illness, Injury & Breakthroughs
Thiem has had other moments of pain and pleasure in his previous visits to New York. After pulling out of Cincinnati last year due to Illness, he arrived in New York short on fitness and match preparation. The end result was a shocking first-round loss to Thomas Fabbiano in which Thiem declared that his performance was “not the real me.”

His highly-anticipated fourth-round showdown with Del Potro in 2016 was short-lived after the Austrian was forced to retire due to a knee injury midway through the second set. Thiem said he struggled to bend his knee for three days and the volume of matches he played that year – 69 in total – finally caught up to him.

New York is also the sight of Thiem’s Grand Slam breakthrough. In 2014, the then-20-year-old reached the second week of a major for the first time with upset wins over No. 11 seed Ernests Gulbis and No. 19 seed Feliciano Lopez.

Nick Kyrgios has pledged to provide programming support to a new tennis facility in the Australian Captial Territory.

A few weeks ago, Kyrgios showed his support for the Gungahlin tennis facility on social media and he has since extended his commitment to the project through the NK Foundation. The ACT Government will commit to the project — which will support a minimum of 24 new jobs during construction and five ongoing jobs — if re-elected in October.

“It’s going to give a chance for disadvantaged kids. Funding to get them out here and play together,” said Kyrgios. “To have another facility like this, hopefully my foundation can give kids a shot to get out there and play and hopefully they fall in love with it and something great happens. I just want to come down here and see people happy.”

Nick Kyrgios plans to establish the NK Foundation Squad at the Gungahlin tennis facility.” />

Canberra native Kyrgios also announced that he would establish the NK Foundation Squad at the new venue to support youths in need in the Gungahlin region.

The NK Foundation will provide and fund free coaching clinics at the facility throughout the year. Off the court, there will be a range of activities that will bring the squad together such as social outings and team experiences. The squad will be open to both boys and girls aged 18 and under, with no tennis experience required.

“Nick is always supportive of the local tennis landscape here in Canberra and we are excited that his generosity will provide kids the opportunity to get on court through the NK Foundation,” said Tennis ACT CEO Kim Kachel.

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr MLA and ACT Minister for Sport and Recreation Yvette Berry MLA announced that they would support approximately AUD $8 million in investment for the project as a pre-election commitment.

The plans for the facility include 12 ITF specified hard courts, two Tennis Hot Shots courts, along with a multi-lined and multi-use centre court that can be utilised for other sports.

“Tennis in the ACT continues to grow with over 32,000 participants,” said Berry. “This facility will not only help the sport continue to grow – through initiatives like Book-a-Court and the Tennis in Schools Program – but will also support the ACT to host bigger tennis events.”

Rafael Nadal will make his return to the ATP Tour against US Open semi-finalist Pablo Carreno Busta at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome.

In his first appearance since the ATP Tour suspension in March, the nine-time titlist will need to be at the top of his game when he meets his countryman for the sixth time in their ATP Head2Head series (Nadal leads 5-0). Carreno Busta has made a strong return to the ATP Tour, reaching his second US Open semi-final earlier this week. The Spaniard also lifted his maiden doubles trophy at the Western & Southern Open last month.

Nadal and Carreno Busta most recently met in the third round of this year’s Australian Open, with Nadal winning in straight sets. If the 34-year-old gets past Carreno Busta, he could meet Western & Southern Open finalist Milos Raonic in the third round. Nadal shares the bottom quarter of the draw with eighth seed Diego Schwartzman and US Open quarter-finalist Andrey Rublev.

View Rome Singles Draw

The five-time year-end World No. 1 enters Rome with a 13-3 record this year. At his most recent event in February, Nadal did not drop a set en route to his 85th tour-level trophy at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC in Acapulco.

Chasing his 10th title at the Foro Italico, the Spaniard will look to add to his 61-6 record at the ATP Masters 1000 event. Nadal is currently on a 10-match winning streak in Rome, having won the past two editions of the tournament. The 35-time ATP Masters 1000 winner won three-set battles against Alexander Zverev in the 2018 championship match and Novak Djokovic in last year’s final.

Djokovic will headline the top half of the draw in the Italian capital. The Serbian will open his bid for a fifth Rome crown against Salvatore Caruso or a qualifier. Djokovic could meet #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round. The four-time champion is joined in the top quarter by fifth seed Gael Monfils and 2008 runner-up Stan Wawrinka.

Third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas features in the bottom half of the draw alongside Nadal. The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion will begin his title bid against Benoit Paire or Next Gen ATP Finals champion Jannik Sinner. Tsitsipas, who reached the semi-finals last year, shares the third quarter of the draw with seventh seed Fabio Fognini, US Open quarter-finalist Denis Shapovalov and 15th seed Grigor Dimitrov.

Home favourite Matteo Berrettini leads the way in the second quarter. The fourth seed will face Jan-Lennard Struff or a qualifier in his opening match. Sixth seed David Goffin, 11th seed Karen Khachanov and this year’s Cordoba and Rio de Janeiro champion Cristian Garin are also present in Berrettini’s section of the draw.

Did You Know?
If Nadal triumphs for the third straight year in Rome, he will capture a 10th trophy at a single event for the fourth time in his career. The Manacor native owns 12 Roland Garros trophies and has won 11 crowns at both the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Roger Federer is the only other player to have reached double digits at a single ATP Tour event in the Open Era. The Swiss owns 10 trophies at the NOVENTI OPEN in Halle and the Swiss Indoors Basel.

Second seed Dominic Thiem and fifth seed Alexander Zverev have in recent years become familiar with facing each other in the biggest events on Tour. The pair of talented young stars take their rivalry to new heights on Sunday as they each look to win their maiden Grand Slam title in the US Open final.

”When you start playing tennis at a young age, the thing that you always wanted to do is play in big tournaments [and] the big finals. I feel like this is the reason I started playing tennis,” Zverev said. “You’ve got to be able to handle it… For me, it was always about the big moments in big tournaments.”

Dominic Thiem (2) vs. Alexander Zverev (5) – Thiem leads 7-2

Read Player Features
Thiem: ‘The Chance Is Now’ 
Zverev: ‘There’s Still One More Step To Go’

Thiem leads Zverev 7-2 in their ATP Head2Head series and won their past three matches, including a four-set triumph in this year’s Australian Open semi-finals. Both players hit more winners than unforced errors that night in producing arguably the highest-quality match to date in their rivalry.

It’s a level that Thiem was far from a few weeks ago as he crashed out in his opening match at the Western & Southern Open. The 27-year-old gradually found his form this tournament and is now in full flight, winning his past three matches without dropping a set. Thiem’s mental toughness was also on display in his semi-final with Daniil Medvedev as he saved a set point in the second and third sets.

Unlike his three previous Grand Slam finals against Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic, he’ll arrive as the on-paper favourite against Zverev. But despite his favourable record, Thiem will put history aside and approach the match with a clean slate.

”I won’t change my mindset at all. I know what Sascha is capable of,” Thiem said. “He’s a hell of a player. One of the greatest ones in [the] past years. Won all titles besides a major. He will also try everything that he’s capable of doing to win the title. It’s going to be a super difficult match.”

The 2020 #USOpen final will be the youngest Grand Slam final since the 2012 #AusOpen final.

Djokovic d. Nadal 5–7, 6–4, 6–2, 6–7(5), 7–5.

At 5 hours & 53 minutes, it’s the longest Grand Slam singles final in the Open Era ? pic.twitter.com/kQshT6ys3I

— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 12, 2020

Thiem leads the tournament in return games won (32/82, 39%) and will look to apply pressure on Zverev’s serve, which has been prone to spurts of double faults. Although he shines in long baseline rallies, Thiem has also shown a greater willingness to finish points at net. That could serve him well as he hopes to avoid testing a minor right ankle injury that he sustained against Medvedev.

Zverev had struggled with internal and external pressure at Grand Slams, but broke free from that this year. After achieving his first Grand Slam semi-final in Melbourne, the 23-year-old is the youngest player to reach the US Open final since Djokovic in 2008. Should he prevail on Sunday, he’ll become the youngest major winner since a 20-year-old Juan Martin del Potro at this event in 2009.

The German showed impressive mental toughness in shaking off slow starts during his quarter-final and semi-final matches. He rallied from a set and a break down against Borna Coric in the quarter-finals, then fought back from two sets down against Pablo Carreno Busta to reach the final. His fitness is also evident in continuing to bounce back from long matches. Zverev’s average match time this fortnight has exceeded three hours.

One more Step? pic.twitter.com/cqEl8jEjyX

— Alexander Zverev (@AlexZverev) September 12, 2020

Although his comebacks have been admirable, Zverev can’t afford to start slowly against Thiem. He’ll need to use his serve and forehand to keep the points short and avoid lengthy rallies with the tireless Austrian. The longer the match goes, the more it will likely swing in favor of Thiem, who produced a 15-3 record last year in deciding sets.

But perhaps the biggest factor will be who handles the occasion better. Thiem will have to erase the memories of his previous defeats in Grand Slam finals and Zverev will need to handle his nerves as he plays the biggest match of his career. The Austrian will also face his first major final without any fans. Although Thiem has adapted well to the unique atmosphere, he fed off vocal crowds throughout his three previous Grand Slams finals and will need to draw energy from elsewhere.

”It’s the biggest goal and also the biggest dream I’ve had in my tennis career for a few years now,” Thiem said. “Of course, it’s pressure for me. At the same time, I try to think not too much about it. If it’s not going to happen on Sunday, I have to continue working and maybe get the chance at another Slam. [But] the chance is now… I’ll try everything to make it.”