Dominic Thiem recovered from 2-6, 3-5 down to beat Karen Khachanov 2-6, 7-6(5), 7-5 at the China Open on Saturday and book his place at the Nitto ATP Finals in London.

The top seed was overpowered in the early stages by the Russian, but fought back impressively to claim victory after two hours and 41 minutes. Thiem’s success confirms his spot alongside Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Daniil Medvedev at The O2 in London. Three spots remain up for grabs at the elite eight-man event, which takes place from 10-17 November.

“[Qualifying for London] was one big goal when I started the season,” said Thiem. “I’m very, very happy that I made it again. But it’s not because of today’s win, it’s because of all the season.

“It’s a big honour for me to be again a part of that big event in London. It also shows that I played another very good and consistent season. I’m looking forward a lot to it.”

Thiem improves to 2-1 in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Khachanov. The Austrian also defeated Khachanov en route to his second straight Roland Garros final in June. Thiem will attempt to lift his fourth tour-level crown of the season, having already hoisted trophies in Indian Wells, Barcelona and Kitzbuhel.

Thiem will meet second seed Alexander Zverev or third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. The 14-time tour-level titlist leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Zverev 5-2 and owns a 3-2 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Tsitsipas.

Thiem entered the contest with an impeccable record on serve in Beijing, dropping just one of his 28 service games en route to the semi-finals. But Khachanov found regular success on return in the opening set.

The World No. 9 pushed his opponent behind the baseline with his forehand and moved up the court with success to seize an early advantage. After dropping his own serve, Khachanov continued to punish short balls and ripped a powerful forehand return to the laces of Thiem to earn his third service break and a one-set advantage.

After committing back-to-back unforced errors to hand Khachanov an opportunity to serve for the match at 5-3, Thiem attacked the Russian’s backhand with added power on his forehand. The Austrian then claimed the 63-minute second set in a tie-break with aggressive play on his backhand to level the match.

Thiem and Khachanov traded early breaks in the deciding set, but the BNP Paribas Open titlist found the crucial breakthrough late in the decider as Khachanov served to reach a final-set tie-break. The World No. 5 drilled a backhand down the line early in the game and moved Khachanov off the court with a series of powerful forehands to claim the win.

“I’m really proud that I was fighting like crazy throughout the whole match because Karen was playing exceptionally well today,” said Thiem. “Quality-wise it was the best of our three matches we had so far.

“I have the feeling that until maybe one and a half sets or until 6-2, 5-3 for him, he was the little bit better player. I only came back into the match because I was fighting, because I was always believing that I can still turn it around. That feels great now.”

Khachanov was bidding to reach his first championship match of the season. The 23-year-old’s most recent title run came at last year’s Rolex Paris Masters, where he defeated Thiem and Djokovic in back-to-back matches to lift the trophy.

Did You Know?
This is the first time in China Open history that the top four seeds have contested the semi-finals. Through 58 tournaments this season, this is just the second event — alongside Roland Garros — that has featured the top four seeds in the semi-finals.

Dominic Thiem has become the fifth singles player to qualify for the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals, after beating Karen Khachanov in the semi-finals on Saturday at the China Open in Beijing. He joins Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Daniil Medvedev at The O2 in London from 10-17 November.

The 26-year-old Thiem has secured his place at the season finale for the fourth consecutive year (2016-2019), matching the record of fellow Austrian and former World No. 1 Thomas Muster, who participated at the tournament in 1990, 1995-97.

Thiem, who has been a permanent fixture in the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings since 6 June 2016, captured the biggest title of his career in 2019 with his first ATP Masters 1000 crown at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells (d. Federer) in March. He did not drop a set in also lifting clay-court silverware at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where he beat Nadal and Medvedev in the last two rounds, and at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel (d. Ramos-Vinolas), his first title on home soil. Thiem has won at least three ATP Tour titles in for of the past five years (except 2017).

The Austrian went 23-7 on clay courts this year, which included a run to his fourth straight Roland Garros semi-final and his second successive final (l. to Nadal). He broke Djokovic’s 26-match winning streak at Grand Slam championships with victory in the Paris semi-finals.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals champion, is currently in sixth position in the 2019 ATP Race To London, followed by Roberto Bautista Agut and defending champion Alexander Zverev. David Goffin, Matteo Berrettini, Kei Nishikori and Gael Monfils are also pushing hard with six weeks to go until the prestigious tournament.

The ATP’s crown jewel event is to be held at The O2 in London through to 2020, where it has been staged to wide acclaim since 2009. The event has successfully established itself as one of the major annual sporting events worldwide, broadcast in more than 180 territories with global viewership figures reaching an average of 95 million each year.

Croats Nikola Mektic and Franko Skugor ousted top seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos in the first round of the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, and they have not looked back since.

Mektic and Skugor defeated Frenchman Lucas Pouille and defending champion Jan-Lennard Struff (w/McLachlan) 7-6(5), 7-6(3) on Saturday after one hour and 33 minutes to reach the Tokyo final. It is their second ATP Tour final as a team after winning this year’s Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

“It was a tough match, a really tough match,” Skugor said. “Maybe it wasn’t the best level, but it was really tough to get into the points and we tried our best. Maybe we were a little bit also lucky because we managed to come back [in the first set] and in the second set we were a little bit more solid on the serve.”

The Croats earned 10 break points, and were only able to convert once. But Mektic and Skugor were the better team on serve, winning 75 per cent of their service points compared to 65 per cent for Pouille and Struff.

After their victory, Mektic and Skugor were delighted to hit balls into the Colosseum crowd, pose for numerous selfies and sign autographs for every fan who asked.

“It’s one of the nicest places I’ve ever been. I’m really surprised positively with how nice the people are,” Mektic said. “It’s really one of the best places for me to play. We managed to get flowers from fans, pictures from fans, so it’s never too hard to stay and sign some autographs and make pictures because they’re really the nicest people ever.”

Mektic and Skugor will face second seeds Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the final. The Croats have never played the Frenchmen, but they lost to Mahut and another Frenchman, Pierre-Hugues Herbert, in Cincinnati.

“I just hope we do a good match and keep the level we are having right now,” Skugor said. “It’s going to be an interesting final.”

Dodig/Polasek Advance To Beijing Final
Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek booked their place in the China Open final on Saturday, defeating Jamie Murray and Neal Skupski 6-4, 6-4.

The unseeded duo saved all six break points it faced and claimed 88 per cent of first-serve points (30/34) to overcome the British pairing after 76 minutes. The Western & Southern Open champions will attempt to lift their second ATP Tour trophy of the season in the championship match.

Dodig and Polasek will meet defending champions Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo for the title. Kubot and Melo own a seven-match winning streak in Beijing and are yet to drop a set in the Chinese capital this week.

Ten players who have held the No. 1 ATP Ranking have triumphed at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. And on Sunday, Novak Djokovic will have an opportunity to become the 11th.

Djokovic defeated 2017 Tokyo champion David Goffin 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 29 minutes on Saturday to reach the final of this ATP 500 event, marking his fifth tour-level championship match of the season. The Serbian is competing in the Japanese capital for the first time, and he is trying to capture a 10th title on a tournament main draw debut, with the last instance coming in Eastbourne two years ago.

It has been a clean run through the draw for Djokovic, who has not dropped a set through four matches. None of Djokovic’s eight sets have gone to a tie-break, and he has been broken just twice in the tournament, losing an average of 3.5 games per set.

Djokovic’s first set against Goffin lasted 46 minutes, just four minutes short of the length of his quarter-final victory against Lucas Pouille. But the Serbian appeared in control throughout, saving the four break points he faced to improve his FedEx ATP Head2Head series advantage over Goffin to 7-1.

For the second consecutive match against a seeded opponent, the 75-time tour-level titlist got off to a quick start. Djokovic broke Goffin in his first return game and he never relinquished that lead. And he wasted no time in the second set, either, playing unfathomable defence near the back wall before sprinting forward to slide an angled winner past Goffin off of a drop shot, earning a break to start the second set.

Does anyone move better around a tennis court than @DjokerNole? ?#RakutenOpen pic.twitter.com/lvQ8KavIvs

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 5, 2019

Goffin said before the match that a key for him would be to serve as well as he has throughout the week, earning as many free points as he can. But it was Djokovic who yielded better results off his first delivery, winning 87 per cent (34/39) of his first-serve points.

Djokovic will face Aussie John Millman — who will compete in his maiden ATP 500 final — for the trophy. It’s not the first time they have faced one another on a big stage, with the Serbian triumphing last year in the US Open quarter-finals. Djokovic leads Millman 2-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

Goffin, who reached the Cincinnati final less than two months ago, is making a push in the ATP Race To London to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals, leaving Tokyo in ninth place. In 2017, he reached the championship match at The O2.

The Belgian falls to 12-2 in the Japanese capital, where he has advanced to at least the semi-finals in each of his three appearances.

Did You Know?
Djokovic is now tied with Roger Federer for the most tour-level wins this season with 45. Daniil Medvedev, the 2018 Tokyo champion, leads the ATP Tour with 54 victories.

Entering Saturday, four qualifiers had reached ATP Tour finals in 2019. And after a solid performance at Ariake Tennis Park, John Millman became the fifth.

A week after saving three match points in the first round of qualifying at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, Millman defeated Reilly Opelka 6-3, 7-6(4) to reach his first ATP 500 final. After losing his first set of the main draw, the Aussie has won eight consecutive sets en route to his second tour-level championship match.

“That was a pretty good match. It’s always difficult playing against someone like Reilly, who has got such a massive serve. I was really happy to take the few little chances I had and took care of my own service games pretty well,” Millman said. “Managing to get through to play a final in Tokyo, that’s pretty special for me.”

Millman wasted no time putting pressure on this year’s New York Open champion, breaking in his first return game of the match. That was a key moment, as Opelka had only dropped serve once from 31 previous service games in the tournament.

Despite landing only 50 per cent of his first serves in the first set, Millman faced few difficulties in maintaining his advantage. When he served for the opener, Opelka blasted away from the baseline, eventually cracking a massive inside-out forehand to earn his first break point. But Millman saved that chance when the American hit a backhand return into the net.

Opelka saved the two break points he faced in the second set with booming serves, and that paid dividends when he earned a set point on the Aussie’s serve at 5-4. But once again, Millman went to the American’s backhand, and Opelka was unable to put the ball in the court.

Millman won the final four points of the second-set tie-break to clinch his victory after one hour and 29 minutes.

“When he’s got such a big serve and they’re coming down so quick, even if you are leaning towards the right way, it’s still very tough to put that ball back,” Millman said. “Really happy, really nice to also get off in straights.”

It has been a tremendous stretch of tennis for the 30-year-old, who won his 12th ATP Challenger Tour title two weeks ago in Kaohsiung. He also made the quarter-finals of the Winston-Salem Open the week before the US Open, where he faced eventual champion Rafael Nadal in the first round.

Awaiting in the final will be World No. 1 Novak Djokovic or 2017 Tokyo titlist David Goffin. Millman trails Djokovic 0-2 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series and he lost to Goffin in their only previous meeting.

“It doesn’t get any easier, does it? Those two guys are both incredible players, obviously. Both so strong from the back of the court. That’s what I like to bring into my game, so I’m sure it’ll be physical, lots of baseline exchanges,” Millman said. “I get to play a final of an ATP 500 in such a special place like Tokyo. For me, that’s why you play. That’s why you go through the graft and some of the tougher times, to give yourself an opportunity like this. It’s pretty special.”

Opelka was the first American to reach the last four in Tokyo since Mardy Fish did so eight years ago. An American has not captured the title here since Pete Sampras in 1996.

Did You Know?
The last qualifier to lift a trophy on the ATP Tour was Daniil Medvedev, who did so here in Tokyo last year. At the time, it was the biggest title of the Russian’s career.

Defending Rolex Shanghai Masters champions Lukasz Kubot/Marcelo Melo will need to bring their best tennis if they want to prevail once again in the eighth ATP Masters 1000 event of the year. The second seeds start their week against Borna Coric/Runhao Hua and could face Russian duo Karen Khachanov/Andrey Rublev in the second round.

Top seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal/Robert Farah begin their campaign against Oliver Marach/Jurgen Melzer. The reigning Wimbledon (d. Mahut/Roger-Vasselin) and US Open (d. Granollers/Zeballos) champions have won 22 of their past 26 matches.

Third seeds Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos open against Radu Albot/Nikoloz Basilashvili and fourth seeds Raven Klaasen/Michael Venus battle Wesley Koolhof/Stefanos Tsitsipas in the first round. Several Grand Slam-winning doubles pairings also headline the draw, including fifth seeds Kevin Krawietz/Andreas Mies, seventh seeds Jean-Julien Rojer/Horia Tecau and Henri Kontinen/John Peers.

Novak Djokovic is among the top singles players who round out the doubles field. He teams with fellow Serbian Filip Krajinovic to face Krawietz/Mies opening-round action.

Click here to view the full draw.

As the No. 1 player on the ATP Tour, Novak Djokovic has no shortage of fans at any event he visits. But after an encounter with a Japanese fan at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships in Tokyo, the 75-time tour-level titlist may be able to call off the search for his greatest fan.

“I have met many people travelling, but I don’t know if I have met anyone more passionate and enthusiastic than this guy on the tennis court,” said Djokovic on Instagram.

Introducing Iori Yoshida, the Japanese fan who moved to Serbia for four years after watching his idol rise to the top of the ATP Rankings in 2011. After being given permission to move across the world by his father, who saw the passion his son had for Djokovic’s game, Yoshida learned to play tennis and speak the language during his time in Serbia. But it was in his home country of Japan that he finally met the 16-time Grand Slam champion.

After spotting Yoshida’s videos on YouTube, Djokovic got in contact with him during his debut appearance in Tokyo. The World No. 1 invited Yoshida to one of his matches and took to the court with him afterwards. Keen to capture the moment, Djokovic shared a video of their meeting for his 6.3 million followers on Instagram.

“It was a truly remarkable experience, one that really fills my heart with joy and happiness. Seeing the passion he shared while we were together was fascinating,” said Djokovic.

It wasn’t just Yoshida’s passion that impressed Djokovic. The 32-year-old also praised Yoshida for his impressive Serbian language skills and humour.

“He speaks Serbian so well and is a very funny guy,” said Djokovic. “[He] made me laugh so hard. I had a blast and these are exactly the situations that remind me how grateful I need to be every day to have the position to positively impact many lives. [It is] a true blessing.”

Djokovic will next face 2017 champion David Goffin for a spot in the championship match. Time will tell if he is able to find his greatest level, but he may have already found his greatest fan.

How much do you know about the Rolex Shanghai Masters, the eighth ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournament of the 2019 season?

You may be aware that Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray have each won multiple titles at this tournament, but do know who has reached three straight finals here? Or do you remember the only player not part of the Big Four to win the Rolex Shanghai Masters? (Hint: It was at the inaugural edition in 2009.) We test your knowledge in this quiz!

Need a little assistance? Check out these Shanghai resource pages:
Tournament Profile | All You Need To Know

Click here to stay informed all year with tennis news from the ATP Tour.

Done with the quiz? Scroll back up to the top to see how you did!

After falling to top seed Dominic Thiem in his ATP Tour quarter-final since his second right hip surgery on 28 January, former World No. 1 Andy Murray took time to reflect on a positive week of improvement at the China Open.

For the first time this season, the Brit scored back-to-back tour-level victories to reach the last eight in China and showed signs of his best level throughout his clash against BNP Paribas Open titlist Thiem. Following wins against US Open finalist Matteo Berrettini and countryman Cameron Norrie, Murray is now confident that he can challenge all players on the ATP Tour.

“I’m playing well enough to be competitive at this level against all of the players,” said Murray. “Maybe not quite consistent enough just now to beat maybe the top players. But I think against guys that are No. 10 or No. 20 in the world, I can compete well against them just now.

“I think I need a few more weeks of playing matches like this. [I need] two, three or four matches in a week, trying to play consistently well in all of those matches to say I’m playing Top 20 tennis or something like that. But I’m getting there.

“This week is better than last week. I hope next week is better than this week. That’s how I have to try to keep going to see where my limit is. I don’t think I’m at that limit now. I think I can keep improving. That’s what this week has shown me.”

Since Murray’s return to singles action at the Western & Southern Open in August, the 32-year-old has showcased his signature fighting spirit on the court. Murray earned his first tour-level victory since his return in Zhuhai last week before an encouraging three-set battle against eventual champion Alex de Minaur.

With two wins and a competitive showing against Nitto ATP Finals contender Thiem this week, Murray is positive that his level is continuing to rise with each passing week.

“I think this was maybe the best in terms of how I played since I came back. It was great for me. I played three matches in four days, which is quite a lot,” said Murray. “Actually, I felt better than I expected today, as well… It was just another step for me. I wasn’t expecting to go from here to my highest level or winning tournaments straight away. Everything has kind of been a pretty gradual progress for me. This week was another step in the right direction.”

Murray also sees room for improvement after his loss to the World No. 5. The 45-time tour-level titlist, who admitted to feeling tired before the match, reflected on his change of approach to the contest after losing a marathon opening game to the Austrian on Diamond Court.

“I was feeling a little bit tired this morning,” said Murray. “We talked about, ‘If you are feeling that way, try to finish off some of the points’.

“I feel like I was playing the right way in the first game. When I lost that, I felt like I needed to try and finish the points a little bit quicker. I wasn’t that happy with the way I went about the match after the first game. I went a bit off track there at first in terms of how I was playing.”

But while Murray seeks to improve in certain areas, the three-time Grand Slam champion also recognises the progress he has already made in other areas of his game. Murray has noticed a marked improvement in his movement, which has proven to be one of his major strengths throughout his career on the ATP Tour.

“Last week felt like quite a big step for me. The matches I played, just in terms of my movement around the court, I actually felt quite confident by the end of the week. I’m actually moving pretty well,” said Murray.

“When I was over in the States, and when I played the Challenger in Mallorca, I was a little bit concerned with that. I just didn’t feel that comfortable moving around. When I watched videos of the matches, I just didn’t really like how I looked in terms of my movement.

“Whereas last week – and I think it was the case here as well – my movement on the court is not like it was before, but it’s enough to be very competitive at this level. Hopefully that can continue to improve over the next couple of months.I think I’m doing pretty well. I would say I’m quite happy with that.”

Throughout this year, Murray has had to overcome many challenges to be back on court competing against the top players in the ATP Rankings. But he has always been able to rely on the support and encouragement of his team and his family.

This week proved no different. His brother, Jamie, is through to the semi-finals in the doubles draw alongside Neal Skupski and his mother Judy has also been in attendance to support activities at the tournament.

“My team and my family have been very supportive of me. [In the] times when I maybe wasn’t feeling like I wanted to keep going or keep trying, they were also pushing me a little bit to keep going,” said Murray. “My mum is here this week doing a little bit of work for the tournament. Obviously I have got my brother here, as well. It’s nice for me to see them.

“When I’m traveling, when you’re away from the rest of your family, to have some of them here is nice. They have always been very supportive of my tennis and my career. I’m very thankful for all of the help they have given me.”

Murray will now travel to the Rolex Shanghai Masters to compete in just his second ATP Masters 1000 event of the year. The 32-year-old is one of only four men to lift the trophy since the inaugural edition of the event in 2009, claiming three tournament victories (2010-‘11, ’16).