ATP and ATP Media today announced that Amazon Prime Video is now an official streaming partner of the ATP World Tour. The new deal covers the worldwide distribution of the Next Gen ATP Finals through Amazon Prime Video.

Starting in 2017, Amazon will have worldwide OTT rights (excluding China), and the full exclusive rights in the U.S., to distribute the Next Gen ATP Finals, outside of ATP’s OTT channel, Tennis TV. This new event, held in partnership with the Italian Tennis Federation and the Italian National Olympic Committee, takes place from 7-11 November in Milan and will showcase the very best men’s tennis players aged 21-and-Under, as well as introducing many new innovations to the game.

The deal, which expires at the end of 2018, includes a commitment from Amazon to show all Next Gen ATP Finals matches produced by ATP Media. ATP has also produced three documentaries that will air on Amazon Prime Video. The documentaries take fans behind the scenes, tracking many of the #NextGenATP players as they battle to make the cut for the inaugural event later this year. As well as giving fans unique access, the documentaries also feature exclusive interviews with some of today’s top players, who offer their insights into the future stars of the sport.

This deal will provide an international reach for this new and innovative tournament providing a global audience for the tennis stars of the future.

Chris Kermode, ATP Executive Chairman & President, said: “Innovation is at the heart of everything we’re doing with the Next Gen ATP Finals, and the way in which we present and broadcast the event is central to that. Our agreement with Amazon will give this year’s inaugural tournament in Milan an international reach in a digital space that is only becoming increasingly important in the world of sport & entertainment.”

“We know live sports attracts a passionate fan base, many of whom are Prime members,” said Greg Hart, Vice President of Amazon Video. “We are thrilled ATP has awarded distribution rights to Amazon, showing their commitment to streaming live sports.”

Stuart Watts, COO ATP Media, added: “The synergies between a global brand such as Amazon and the future of our sport being showcased at the Next Gen ATP Finals are clear for all to see. This is an exciting deal that will not only bring great coverage for the Next Gen ATP Finals but will also offer a huge boost to the global reach of tennis.”

Damir Dzumhur and qualifier Liam Broady both booked their places in the St. Petersburg Open quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Dzumhur, last month’s Winston-Salem Open finalist, had his serve broken three times, but managed to get the better of Marcos Baghdatis 6-4, 7-6(4) in one hour and 38 minutes. Dzumhur, currently at a career-high World No. 55, is 24-7 at all levels since 19 June.

British qualifier Liam Broady saved a break point at 4-4 in the second set, before winning eight straight games to overcome Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, the Antalya Open runner-up, 2-6, 6-4, 6-0 to advance to an ATP World Tour quarter-finals for the first time.

Earlier in the day, two #NextGenATP players, Croatia’s Borna Coric and Daniil Medvedev of Russia, both made first-round exits but not without putting up a fight. Coric is currently in fifth position in the Emirates ATP Race To Milan for one of eight spots at the Next Gen ATP Finals from 7-11 November, while Medvedev is in seventh.

World No. 56 Coric, who won his first ATP World Tour title at the Grand Prix Hassan II in April (d. Kohlschreiber), lost to eighth-seed German Jan-Lennard Struff 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 43 minutes. World No. 62 Medvedev, a runner-up at the Aircel Chennai Open in January (l. to Bautista Agut), recovered from a 2-5 deficit in the second set against Italy’s Thomas Fabbiano before losing 7-6(4), 7-5 in one hour and 33 minutes.

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Veteran Frenchman Nicolas Mahut continued his push to break back into the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings with a 6-1, 7-6(4) first-round win over German shotmaker Dustin Brown at the Moselle Open in Metz, France, Wednesday.

The current World No. 107 slipped out of the Top 100 for the first time in more than two years in July but put himself back within range by winning five matches at the US Open to come through qualifying to reach the third round for the second consecutive year.

Mahut first played the Moselle Open in 2003. He is a two-time semi-finalist at the event (2013, 07) and has reached the quarter-finals the past two years. To reach the quarters again, he must beat lucky loser Kenny De Schepper, who claimed a main-draw slot when top seed Pablo Carreno Busta withdrew. (Mahut lost to the Spaniard in the third round at Flushing Meadows earlier this month.)

The 35-year-old has won one title in each of the past two seasons (both in ‘s-Hertogenbosch). His four career titles (and six finals appearances) have all come on grass.

Twenty-nine wins in 31 matches. It’s a run most players could only dream of.

For Jurgen Zopp, the dream has become a reality. The culmination of five years of hard work and dedication, Estonia’s most successful player is thriving once again in his bid to return to the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings.

Amidst a litany of injury setbacks, including back ailments and an abdominal tear, Zopp struggled to find his footing after reaching a career-high of No. 71 in 2012. Confidence was low and consistent success was hard to find. But that all changed in an instant in July. Hovering just inside the Top 500, Zopp would produce a magical run.

Four consecutive Futures events resulted in three titles and a final finish and he would kick off the month of September with an impressive return to the ATP Challenger Tour, notching his first title in three years in Alphen, Netherlands. With two days of torrential rain testing players’ patience, Zopp claimed seven wins as a qualifier to lift the trophy. He defeated former World No. 5 Tommy Robredo in the final at the Tean International.

“I didn’t even expect to get to the semis,” Zopp said, reflecting on his title run in Alphen. “I just took it match by match. I had a tight first round in the main draw, and then won 7-5 in the third in the second round. It could have gone either way. If somebody had told me I would win that week, I wouldn’t have believed it, but when you keep trying and keep pushing yourself, you might get lucky. I think this is what happened. I have had the level to play with those guys, but many times things don’t come together. This time though it really worked out well.”

In total, the Estonian has amassed a 29-2 record over the past two months, culminating with a run the semi-finals at the prestigious Challenger stop in Szczecin, Poland just last week. Most importantly, his flurry of wins has also yielded a significant boost in the Emirates ATP Rankings, soaring nearing 300 spots to No. 194.

A speechless Zopp attempted to explain his staggering run.

“Five years ago, I got to the Top 100 and then I started struggling with my back injury. I was out seven months, and then I played five months off and on, and then I was out six months again. I was struggling pretty much for one-and-a-half years. Now I’ve been fine for almost three years, but this year I had a little tear on my abdominal.

“In July, I just started winning. To be quite honest, I can’t point my finger at something specific. I went to play a $25k Futures in Germany and I managed to win that week. I think that was the key, to win that first week.”

As the wins continue to pile up, Zopp is refusing to be complacent in his work ethic. With new coach and former Finnish player Kim Tiilikainen joining his team in July, he believes he is still striving to discover his top level. The Top 100 is within reach once again and the 29-year-old’s journey is far from over.

“He has been a good mental support and now knowing that I am not alone has helped also,” Zopp said about Tiilikainen’s impact. “We haven’t really tried to work or make something really better, but it is a better feeling when you are not alone traveling and you have someone who is responsible for you and taking care of you.

“This year it didn’t start off good because of injury, but it’s been getting better. Tennis isn’t about how you feel with your forehand, or how good you feel you are moving. Sometimes it is difficult to understand tennis. I think maybe if you ask my coach he would say I am playing close to the Top 100 level. I am beating the guys around there and these past weeks I definitely played at that level. We will see if I can keep it up the next six months or next 12 months. That is the key I believe.”

With the 2017 season nearing the end, returning to the Top 100 is a lofty goal, but one that Zopp will not back down from. However, all numbers aside, he plans to make the most of his hot streak as he goes to play in the ATP Challenger Tour events in Ortisei, Italy and Ismaning, Germany.

“[Top 100] is always the goal, but I try not to think about it too much, because when you think about the numbers too much it might affect you. In tennis, if you get too emotional and want something too much, the emotion might get in the way of your game and performance. I just try to do my job and play my level. We will see what happens.”

It was an unhappy return for Frenchman Richard Gasquet as he played his first match in Metz since 2001. The sixth seed was beaten 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 by Denis Istomin in the first round of the Moselle Open on Tuesday.

It was a fast turnaround for Gasquet, who captured his first ATP Challenger Tour title in seven years when he triumphed in Szczecin on Sunday. Istomin saved 10 of the 13 break points he faced as he overturned a 1-6 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Gasquet to prevail in one hour and 54 minutes.

Seventh seed Benoit Paire recorded his third match win on his fifth appearance in Metz by beating Greek qualifier Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2, 6-4 in 57 minutes. He now plays Spain’s Marcel Granollers, the 2012 finalist, who lived to fight another day by saving one match point in the deciding set tie-break to scrape past Italian qualifier Simone Bolelli 7-6(9), 3-6, 7-6(8) in two hours and 42 minutes. Granollers, who struck 17 aces, saved one set point at 5/6 in the first-set tie-break, then one match point at 5/6 in the third-set tie-break in the pair’s first meeting for nine years.

Nicolas Almagro levelled his FedEx ATP Head2Head record with Frenchman Julien Benneteau at 3-3 after a 7-6(3), 7-5 victory. The Spaniard hit 10 aces and broke in the final game on his third match point to secure the victory.

It is the first match win in Metz for the former No. 9 in the Emirates ATP Rankings. He will next face No. 2 seed David Goffin for a place in the quarter-finals. Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili toughed out a 2-6, 7-(5), 6-4 win over French qualifier Vincent Millot and now challenges fourth seed Gilles Muller of Luxembourg.

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