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Kozlov Hits Hot Shot Double At Tempe Challenger

  • Posted: Feb 17, 2017

Kozlov Hits Hot Shot Double At Tempe Challenger

Next Gen ATP star credits Brown for inspiration

Rising American star Stefan Kozlov gave a nod to Hot Shot king Dustin Brown after striking two impressive Hot Shots of his own in the same point at this week’s $75,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Tempe, Arizona.

Facing Roberto Quiroz of Ecuador in the second-round, the #NextGenATP star hit a reflex shot between his legs at 1-1 in the second set. If that wasn’t enough, he responded to an overhead from Quiroz by leaping up and hitting an overhead winner of his own from the baseline, raising his arms in triumph.

“I don’t normally practise that,” joked Kozlov. “It just caught me in no-mans-land. I didn’t know whether to hit a forehand or a backhand. It was just instinct to hit it between my legs…I had a little adrenaline and got lucky when he hit the overhead right to me. It was a really tough overhead and I was pretty shocked afterwards. I haven’t had too many of those kind of points. It was exciting.”

Kozlov posted the video to his Instagram account afterwards and captioned it “On my @Dreddy_Ja game today,” referring to Brown. The American remarked that he’s “seen plenty of his Hot Shots in person and on social media, so obviously he’s really good at those. It almost seems like he does those casually now.”

Next up for Kozlov is a quarter-final battle on Friday against sixth seed Teymuraz Gabashvili of Russia. 

 

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Johnson Fights Back In Memphis

  • Posted: Feb 17, 2017

Johnson Fights Back In Memphis

Top seed Karlovic in action on Thursday

Fourth seed Steve Johnson showed impressive resilience on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals of the Memphis Open, rallying from a set down to defeat qualifier and fellow American Tim Smyczek, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2.

Smyczek appeared primed for the upset in the opening set, saving all four break points against him and breaking Johnson twice to grab the early lead. But the fourth seed shifted the momentum down 3-4 in the second set, winning nine of the final 11 games to take the match.

Johnson improves FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Smyczek to 2-0 and matches his best result in Memphis, a quarter-final showing in 2015.

Next up for the American is Mikhail Kukushkin, who stormed to a 6-3, 6-0 victory over qualifier Darian King. Johnson leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 2-1, but they haven’t played in two years.

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Dolgopolov Takes Out Cuevas In Buenos Aires

  • Posted: Feb 17, 2017

Dolgopolov Takes Out Cuevas In Buenos Aires

Berlocq upsets Ferrer on Thursday

Alexandr Dolgopolov provided the first major upset at the Argentina Open, putting in a solid performance on Thursday to move into the quarter-finals over second seed Pablo Cuevas 6-3, 7-6(4).

A lone break of serve was all the Ukranian needed to capture the opening set. Both players traded routine service holds throughout the second set, but Dolgopolov rallied from 1/4 down in the tie-break to win the final six points and prevail in one hour and 18 minutes.

Dolgopolov improves his FedEx ATP Head2Head record over Cuevas to 2-0, with his previous win over the Uruguayan coming three years ago in Buenos Aires.

Next up for him is Gerald Melzer, a 7-6(4), 6-3 winner over local qualifier Guido Andreozzi. The Austrian didn’t drop serve in moving into his first ATP World Tour quarter-final of the year.

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Carlos Berlocq delighted the local crowd with a convincing 6-4 6-2 victory over third seed David Ferrer. The Argentine never lost the lead throughout the match, dominating the baseline rallies against the three-time champion to record an upset win in one hour and 26 minutes. 

Next up for Berlocq in the quarter-finals is Thiago Monteiro, who needed all of his clay-court prowess to move past former Top 5 player Tommy Robredo 6-3, 6-4 in the last match of the day. The lone meeting between Berlocq and Monteiro came this past May on the ATP Challenger Tour, with Monteiro prevailing in the final of the $100,000 event in Aix-en-Provence, France. The Brazilian is looking to reach his first-ever ATP World Tour semi-final.  

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Dimitrov Delivers A Rotterdam Masterclass

  • Posted: Feb 17, 2017

Dimitrov Delivers A Rotterdam Masterclass

The Bulgarian has only lost one match so far in 2017

Grigor Dimitrov continues to soar in 2017 having booked a quarter-final place at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament with a 7-6(7), 6-1 win over Denis Istomin on Thursday.

Dimitrov, now holding a 16-1 match record this season, continued his impeccable recent form to instantly break the world No.76. However, Istomin duelled in a series of entertaining rallies to force a tie-break. The duo finished the set on 50 points apiece, but with 18 winners and 11/13 successful net points, the Bulgarian went ahead after Istomin’s only double fault.

Watch Full Match Replays At Tennis TV 

A pair of forehand winners secured a 3-0 advantage for the 25 year old and some outstanding retrieval play built on that lead to secure his third straight victory over the Uzbekistani.

World No. 12 Dimitrov will face David Goffin, whom he defeated in the final of the Garanti Koza Sofia Open on home soil last week, for a first Rotterdam semi-final since 2013.

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Nishikori Revisits Junior Glory Days In Buenos Aires

  • Posted: Feb 17, 2017

Nishikori Revisits Junior Glory Days In Buenos Aires

Top seed reflects on Roland Garros boys’ doubles win with Massa

Kei Nishikori’s connection to Argentina goes way beyond his partnership with current coach Dante Bottini. More than a decade after winning the 2006 Roland Garros boys’ doubles title, Kei Nishikori and former Argentine player Emiliano Massa reunited at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires.

After Nishikori defeated Diego Schwartzman in his opening match on Wednesday, he met up with Massa in the player’s lounge to relive those special memories. What they lacked in verbal communication during their junior playing days, they made up for with a natural partnership on court.

“We almost lost the first two matches. We barely spoke English at the time, so we talked very little to each other,” recalled Massa to the Argentina Open website. “What I remember most is his speed. Not only his movements, but also the acceleration.”

Their careers ultimately went in radically different directions. Massa was forced to retire from competitive tennis at age 23 due to injuries, while Nishikori went on to become a Top 10 fixture and global superstar. But the Argentine showed nothing but happiness for his former doubles partner and even took a picture with Nishikori to remember their reunion.

“I have the greatest memories with him from my junior years. It was the first time I won a Grand Slam and it was a very special moment for us,” said Nishikori. “Emiliano is an extremely nice guy. It’s been almost 10 years since we had seen each other and unfortunately he had so many injuries. [But] it’s been great to see him. All the memories came back.”

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