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Olivo On Cusp Of Top 100 Breakthrough

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Olivo On Cusp Of Top 100 Breakthrough

Argentine competes at ATP Challenger Tour event in Medellin

After a breakthrough week on the ATP Challenger Tour, Renzo Olivo is on the verge of achieving yet another milestone: reaching the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings.

The 24 year old from Argentina won his first Challenger at last week’s $40,000 event in Santos, Brazil. Having started the year at No. 173 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, Olivo now sits at a career-high standing of No. 102.

“It’s very important to me. I’ve been fighting for a Challenger title for a long time,” said Olivo. “I’ve reached a few finals and many semi-finals in the past three years and it’s been a barrier that I’ve had to overcome. I’m very happy.”

Another strong result at this week’s $50,000 event in Medellin, Colombia, would put him inside the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings. Olivo is off to a strong start after recording an opening-round win over local favourite Orlando Luz.

His recent Challenger success was inevitable after having his best results this season on the ATP World Tour. He reached the semi-finals in July at the German Tennis Championships 2016 and produced a quarter-final finish in February at the Ecuador Open Quito. But while some fans may have been surprised with those results, Olivo always knew he was capable of achieving them.

“I wouldn’t say that I exceeded my expectations, but I took my opportunities and played at the right level to do it,” he said. “And mentally, I managed it well.”

Olivo is now hoping to use another opportunity in Medellin to crack the Top 100. But while the achievement would be the fruition of years of hard work, the Argentine is making it a point to not put pressure on himself.

“The Top 100 is a big goal. The truth is you need to play well consistently and stay strong physically to reach it. To finish the year there is the objective,” said Olivo. “[But] I have no pressure… If I play my game and stay strong, I will have many chances to go far.”

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Johanna Konta beats Carla Suarez Navarro to reach quarter-finals at Wuhan Open

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Britain’s Johanna Konta boosted her hopes of qualifying for the WTA Finals with victory over Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro at the Wuhan Open in China.

Konta, seeded 11th, beat the seventh seed 7-5 7-6 (8-6) to reach the quarter-finals for the second time.

She also closed the gap on Suarez Navarro in the Race to Singapore, with the Spaniard in the eighth and final qualifying place, two ahead of Konta.

The Briton will play Angelique Kerber or Petra Kvitova in the last eight.

At the Tashkent Open, British number three Naomi Broady lost 6-2 6-4 to Russia’s world number 104 Irina Khromacheva in the second round.

More to follow.

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Zverev Ready For Shenzhen Debut

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Zverev Ready For Shenzhen Debut

Zverev to open against fellow NextGen rival Nishioka

Fresh off his first ATP World Tour title at the St. Petersburg Open, Alexander Zverev arrived in Shenzhen on Tuesday following an overnight flight to Hong Kong. Zverev opens his Shenzhen Open campaign Wednesday against fellow NextGen rival Yoshihito Nishioka, who celebrated his 21st birthday Tuesday.

WEDNESDAY PREVIEW: Three days after the biggest win of his budding career, Alexander Zverev will play a tour-level match in China for the first time against fellow #NextGen player Yoshihito Nishioka. Zverev stunned US Open champion and World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka at St. Petersburg on Sunday, capturing his first ATP World Tour title by ending the Swiss’ 11-match win streak in finals. The 19-year-old German is the youngest ATP World Tour champion since Kei Nishikori at Delray Beach in February 2008 and the first teenager to win a title since Marin Cilic at New Haven in August 2008. Zverev is now No. 19 in the Emirates ATP Race To London and could become the youngest player to end a year in the Top 20 since Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in 2006. 

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Zverev vs. Nishioka is the final first-round match of the Shenzhen Open, with four second-rounders also on Wednesday’s schedule. Among the men seeking quarter-final spots is qualifier Mischa Zverev, Alexander’s 29-year-old brother. The elder Zverev defeated Zhicheng Zhu and Henri Laaksonen over the weekend to qualify for the eighth time on tour in 2016, tying him for the lead with Chengdu Open qualifier Radek Stepanek. Mischa Zverev, who hasn’t reached an ATP World Tour quarter-final since Valencia in 2015, meets No. 7 seed Fabio Fognini.

On Centre Court, No. 2 seed David Goffin meets Jaziri in a match with Emirates ATP Race To London implications. Goffin is 11th in the race for eight berths at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, but he needs to reach the Shenzhen semi-finals to gain any points this week. Jaziri, meanwhile, is enjoying his best season as a pro, earning a career-high 15 tour-level wins and three titles on the ATP Challenger Tour.

Following that match, Australian qualifier Andrew Whittington meets No. 3 seed Richard Gasquet. The 23-year-old Whittington made a memorable ATP World Tour debut on Monday, saving four match points against fellow qualifier Luca Vanni. In the final match of the day, No. 6 seed Benoit Paire takes on 224th-ranked Tipsarevic. After struggling with foot and knee injuries for much of the last three seasons, Tipsarevic hopes to end a stretch of 22 tour-level events since his last quarter-final at Bogota in 2013. The former World No. 8 has not won back-to-back matches since reaching the 2013 US Open fourth round. 

If Alexander Zverev finishes the 2016 season in the Top 20, he will join elite company. Five of the last 10 teens to end a year in the Top 20 have gone on to become World No. 1, while three others peaked at No. 2.

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Shenzhen 2016

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Shenzhen 2016

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Chengdu 2016

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Chengdu 2016

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Previewing The ATP World Tour Asian Swing

  • Posted: Sep 28, 2016

Previewing The ATP World Tour Asian Swing

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#NextGen Zverev Chasing Djokovic, Murray In Bid For History

  • Posted: Sep 27, 2016

#NextGen Zverev Chasing Djokovic, Murray In Bid For History

Teenager trying to end the season in an elite club

Alexander Zverev is setting his sights on ATP World Tour history after his recent breakthrough title.

The 19-year-old #NextGen star is trying to become the first teenager to finish the year in the Top 20 of the Emirates ATP Rankings since 2006. Zverev, currently ranked No. 24, would join an exclusive list of players if he were to accomplish the feat. Since 2000, World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, World No. 2 Andy Murray, former Top 10 player Richard Gasquet and former World No. 1’s Rafael Nadal, Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick are the only players who have finished a year in the Top 20 as teenagers.

You May Also Like: #NextGen Zverev Beats Wawrinka For First ATP World Tour Title

Zverev, who turned 19 in April, matched his career-best ranking of No. 24 with his first ATP World Tour title on Sunday. The Hamburg native beat top seed Stan Wawrinka at the St. Petersburg Open. Zverev had played in two previous finals, losing to Dominic Thiem at Nice and Florian Mayer at Halle.

The 6’6” right-hander, who is No. 19 in the Emirates ATP Race To London, is the fifth seed this week at the Shenzhen Open. He’ll look to improve on his 38-21 record when he faces fellow #NextGen star Yoshihito Nishioka of Japan on Wednesday. Zverev prevailed in their previous FedEx ATP Head2Head match-up, a 7-6(1), 6-3 win at Washington last season.

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Emirates ATP Race To London Update 27 September 2016

  • Posted: Sep 27, 2016

Emirates ATP Race To London Update 27 September 2016

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Looking Back At The 2016 St. Petersburg Open

  • Posted: Sep 27, 2016

Looking Back At The 2016 St. Petersburg Open

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Goffin Gets Cooking In Shenzhen

  • Posted: Sep 27, 2016

Goffin Gets Cooking In Shenzhen

Second seed to open his Shenzhen campaign on Wednesday

David Goffin learned to make traditional Chinese dishes during a private cooking lesson on Tuesday in Shenzhen. The Belgian joined chef Anthony Dong at Shang Palace restaurant at Shenzhen Shangri-La Hotel to whip up Tofu Soup and Peking Duck. 

“It was really special because I eat a lot of duck, but for me it was the first time that I cooked it,” said the World No. 14. “It was a really nice experience. The chef did it really well. You have to be very precise in how you have to cut the duck.

“It’s really nice when you come here to China, it’s nice to see how they make the duck and how they cook. It’s a different kitchen and it’s nice to see that.”

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Goffin will make his Shenzhen debut against Malek Jaziri in the second round on Wednesday. It will be the first meeting between the pair.

“It’s the first time for me here in Shenzhen… I have a great feeling here in Shenzhen and I hope I can go really far in the draw. I hope I can play my best tennis here because it’s a great tournament.”

Moet and Chandon off-court news 

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