Jannik Sinner made a winning start to his debut Open 13 Provence campaign on Tuesday, beating Norbert Gombos 6-4, 7-6(5) in Marseille.

The reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion, who trailed the second-set tie-break 1/4, saved all six break points he faced throughout the two-hour, three-minute encounter. Sinner is competing at a career-high No. 68 in the FedEx ATP Rankings this week. At last week’s ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, the Italian recorded his maiden Top 10 victory against David Goffin to reach his first ATP 500 quarter-final.

That is RIDICULOUS @janniksin ?

Just how have you done that?!

?: @TennisTV | @Open13 pic.twitter.com/gpNkQmvd0d

— ATP Tour (@atptour) February 18, 2020

Sinner will face top seed Daniil Medvedev in the second round. Medvedev is making his second appearance in the main draw this year. The World No. 5 advanced to the quarter-finals on his tournament debut in 2017.

In the first match on Court Central, Hubert Hurkacz needed just 64 minutes to move past French wild card Antoine Hoang 6-4, 6-1. The eighth seed dropped just two points behind his first serve (22/24) to book a second-round clash against Vasek Pospisil. The Montpellier runner-up saved five of six break points to beat Emil Ruusuvuori of Finland 7-6(6), 6-3.

Carlos Alcaraz cites Rafael Nadal as his tennis idol and his heavy topspin groundstrokes could be viewed as a tribute. But the 16-year-old Spaniard sees his game more closely resembling another ATP Tour legend.

”I like to play very aggressively, with a lot of winners. My style is more or less like Roger Federer’s, aggressively coming to the net and playing a lot of drop shots,” Alcaraz said.

Alcaraz has already accomplished something that Federer could not: winning his ATP Tour debut. The 16-year-old defeated Albert Ramos-Vinolas on Monday at the Rio Open presented by Claro, outlasting the veteran Spaniard in a third-set tie-break that finished at 3:00am after three hours and 36 minutes.

He made fans sit up and take notice with his outstanding play, pushing Ramos-Vinolas around the baseline for much of their clash. Alcaraz tirelessly chased down balls in the early morning hours and held his nerve to close out the biggest moment of his fledgling career.

The 16-year-old has largely eschewed junior tournaments for pro events and has already made noise on the ATP Challenger Tour. Last year, the then-15-year-old defeated reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Jannik Sinner at a Challenger in Alicante, becoming the first player born in the year 2003 to win a match at that level. The following week in Murcia, he became just the fifth player aged 15-and-under in the past 20 years to defeat a Top 200 player.

Alcaraz’s talent was quickly noticed by former World No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero, who now coaches the young Spaniard. Ferrero is confident that his pupil could soon find himself in the mix as a contender for the biggest titles on the ATP Tour.

“He’s only 16 and he’s just starting to travel the world. He has the level, the speed, he’s getting better physically every day, so I think he can be one of the best,” Ferrero said. “I don’t know how high, but I think he can be up there in two or three years. I have a lot of experience with what he is going to deal with, [so] I’m giving him the best advice that I can.”

Alcaraz has been soaking in the week in Rio, making the most of his training sessions with top players and viewing his match with Ramos-Vinolas as an invaluable learning experience. The modest teenager is content to listen for now, preferring to let his racquet do the talking when he steps on court.

”When I spend time with tennis greats like Rafa or Ferrero or any other player, I don’t say anything. I listen to everything they say because it is very valuable to me,” Alcaraz said. “In each tournament I go to, I try to do my best. If that happens, then I will gradually go up.”

Orlando Luz/Rafael Matos kicked off doubles action at the Rio Open presented by Claro with a huge upset on Monday night, delighting the home crowd with a 6-1, 4-6, 10-8 victory over top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal/Robert Farah.

Neither Luz or Matos had won a tour-level match before, but they held their nerves and took the last three points of the Match Tie-break to prevail in one hour and 28 minutes. Luz/Matos have won two doubles titles together on the ATP Challenger Tour.

At the Open 13 Provence in Marseille, second seeds Wesley Koolhof/Nikola Mektic saved a match point to defeat Tomislav Brkic/Marin Cilic 7-5, 1-6, 12-10. Koolhof/Mektic fought back from 9/10 in the Match Tie-break before converting their third match point to reach the quarter-finals.

The Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com saw Nikola Cacic/Hugo Nys score a 6-4, 2-6, 10-4 first-round upset against Santiago Gonzalez/Ken Skupski. Cacic/Nys raced through the Match Tie-break to advance in one hour and 30 minutes.

Third-seeded Chilean Cristian Garin was pushed to the brink on Monday at the Rio Open presented by Claro, but converted his eighth match point to outlast Slovakian Andrej Martin in a wild 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(5) first-round battle.

Garin fought back from 2-4 in the final set, but let slip four match points with Martin serving at 5-6. The Chilean built a 6/2 lead in the tie-break and made good on his last chance to prevail after three hours and 10 minutes.

He is now on a five-match winning streak after taking the title two weeks ago in Cordoba (d. Schwartzman). Next up for Garin is Argentine Federico Delbonis, who scored a convincing 6-2, 6-4 win over Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena.

Pablo Andujar scored the upset of the day by defeating ninth seed Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 6-3 in an all-Spanish battle. Andujar broke Verdasco five times en route to tying their ATP Head2Head series at 3-3.

Awaiting him in the second round is another Spaniard in qualifier Pedro Martinez, who rallied to defeat Bolivian Hugo Dellien 3-6, 6-2, 7-5. The 22-year-old is still flawless (4-0) in first-round matches this season.

Four months ago, Ryan Harrison was lying in a hospital bed after undergoing surgery to repair a torn right extensor tendon. On Monday, the American showed he’s back in business by easing past Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia-Herzegovina 6-3, 6-2 at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com

The win is Harrison’s first tour-level victory since last April in Houston. Awaiting him in the next round is rising South Korean Soonwoo Kwon, who upset seventh-seeded Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.

#NextGenATP American Brandon Nakashima prevailed in his ATP Tour debut with a 7-6(4), 6-1 win over Czech Jiri Vesely. The 18-year-old took the last six games against the recent Pune champion to advance in one hour and 22 minutes. Nakashima will play the winner of third-seeded American Taylor Fritz and British qualifier Cameron Norrie.

American Mackenzie McDonald also completed a return from injury by taking out Japanese Yasutaka Uchiyama 6-2, 7-6(5). McDonald missed the last six months of the 2019 season after having surgery to repair a proximal hamstring tendon. He returned to action in January and has now earned his first tour-level win in 10 months.

Monday’s night session features fifth-seeded Aussie John Millman facing Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka, followed by American Frances Tiafoe taking on Ecuadorian qualifier Emilio Gomez.

Remember the name: Brandon Nakashima. The 18-year-old American made the most of his ATP Tour debut at the Delray Beach Open by VITACOST.com, scoring a straight-sets win on Monday over recent Pune champion Jiri Vesely.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to know about this talented teenager.

1. He’s Moved On From College Tennis
Nakashima announced in December that he would turn pro and not return to the University of Virginia for his sophomore season. He earned ACC Rookie of the Year honours last year and posted a 17-5 record in singles.

2. He Excelled In Juniors
The young American concluded his junior tennis career at last year’s US Open, where he reached the boys’ singles semi-finals. Nakashima won the 2018 ITF Junior Masters title and peaked at No. 4 in the ITF Junior Rankings.

3. Other Players Are Taking Note
Nakashima might be new to professional tournaments, but his solid baseline game is already turning heads in the locker room. Fellow American Frances Tiafoe sung his praises after narrowly defeating him earlier this month at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Dallas.

“Watch out for this guy. This guy’s special,” Tiafoe said. “I like his game, I like his demeanour. Great backhand, good serve and he’s level-headed… I’m a fan, for sure.”

Last night, we were all witnesses as Brandon Nakashima introduced himself in Dallas.

The 18-year-old announced his arrival in grand fashion, in defeat to Frances Tiafoe. Poise and focus beyond his years… pic.twitter.com/ETaypdzxKg

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) February 7, 2020

4. He’s Soaring Up The FedEx ATP Rankings
The San Diego native began last September at No. 942 in the FedEx ATP Rankings. He now sits at a career-high of No. 290 after reaching the semi-finals at two ATP Challenger Tour events last year and winning an ITF Futures title last month. Nakashima has no points to defend for the next seven months and can only continue to climb.

5. Tennis Runs In His Family
Nakashima was introduced to the sport at age 3 by his grandfather, Anh, an avid recreational player. The pair started playing at public parks in San Diego and he immediately took to the sport. By age 11, Nakashima was diligently training for three hours each day.

Mikael Ymer produced an impressive debut performance at the Open 13 Provence on Monday, beating home favourite Richard Gasquet 6-3, 3-6, 7-5.

The 21-year-old, who saved seven of 10 break points, converted his third match point to break the 2017 semi-finalist in a marathon final game. Following the two-hour, 22-minute victory, Ymer improved to 4-1 in first-round matches this year.

The 2019 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier will face defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round. The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion will be keen to rediscover his best form after a second-round loss to Aljaz Bedene at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament last week.

In the evening session, sixth seed Benoit Paire will meet wild card Gregoire Barrere in an all-French encounter on Court Central. Marton Fucsovics faces Alexander Bublik in the final match of the day.

The Mutua Madrid Open will begin an innovative new chapter in its tournament history this year, as Electronic Line Calling — the electronic review technology for clay courts — will make its debut on each of the tournament’s three main courts.

Players competing at Manolo Santana Stadium, Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario Stadium and Stadium 3, which all feature retractable roofs, will be able to challenge line calls in both singles and doubles matches, including play during the qualifying rounds. The use of the technology on clay, developed by FOXTENN, was officially approved by the ATP in November 2019 and is being trialled at select tournaments by both the ATP and WTA.

After an application process for the use of electronic review, the Mutua Madrid Open will be the only ATP Masters 1000 and WTA Premier Mandatory tournament that has the option to use this innovation during this year’s European clay swing.

“We’re very proud to have the opportunity to use Electronic Line Calling at the Mutua Madrid Open 2020. It has always been a hallmark of our tournament to innovate and lead the way, therefore the use of this technology reaffirms that spirit,” said Tournament Director Feliciano Lopez.

“In addition, there is no doubt that it will provide significant extra help to the players. I am so happy about this huge development. It was something we needed on clay, and we’re very happy to have it at the Caja Magica. I would like to reiterate Madrid’s commitment to always being at the cutting edge of technology.”

The use of electronic review on clay is designed to improve the accuracy of umpiring and it was introduced for the first time on the ATP Tour on hard courts at the 2006 Miami Open presented by Itau. Since then, it has been added to other surfaces — apart from clay — where the protocol of allowing players to ask the umpire to check the ball mark during points was maintained.

No. 34 Casper Ruud (Career High), +11
The 21-year-old became the highest-placed Norwegian in FedEx ATP Rankings history after beating Pedro Sousa for his first ATP Tour title at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires. Ruud rose 11 places to a career-high No. 34, five places higher than his father and coach, former World No. 39 Christian Ruud, who achieved his best ranking on 9 October 1995.

View Latest FedEx ATP Rankings

No. 45 Kyle Edmund, +17
The Briton returned to the Top 50 for the first time since 7 October 2019 (at No. 42) after he captured his second ATP Tour title at the New York Open (d. Seppi). His 17-place rise sees him at No. 45.

No. 71 James Duckworth (Career High), +12
The Australian, who compiled 49 matches wins and four titles on the ATP Challenger Tour last year, clinched the Bengaluru Open trophy (d. Bonzi) to jump 12 places to a career-high No. 71. Just two years ago, Duckworth was sitting outside the Top 1,000 as he bid to return from a litany of surgeries, including foot, shoulder and elbow operations.

Other Notable Movers
No. 14 Andrey Rublev (Career High), +1
No. 18 Felix Auger-Aliassime, +3
No. 27 Pablo Carreno Busta, +3
No. 33 Filip Krajinovic, +6
No. 47 Aljaz Bedene, +5
No. 62 Juan Ignacio Londero, +8
No. 68 Jannik Sinner (Career High), +11
No. 80 Andreas Seppi, +18
No. 98 Vasek Pospisil, +6