After graduating from college this year, Sem Verbeek is now ready to graduate onto a pro tennis career.

The 22 year old from the Netherlands took another step towards that at this week’s $100,000 ATP Challenger Tour event in Stockton, California. Verbeek received a main draw wild card for his success as a player at Stockton-based University of the Pacific and fittingly drew reigning NCAA champion Mackenzie McDonald in the first round.  Although he lost in straight sets, he said the match was an experience that will serve him well.

“Coming home is always a great experience, especially getting to play at this level. There’s a lot to learn, but that’s what makes these matches exciting,” said Verbeek. “Obviously the result sucks, but that’s what makes you more hungry to go out there and work hard.”

Verbeek completed his senior year on the team with an 18-2 record, earning him a selection as West Coast Conference men’s tennis Player of the Year. But while he hopes to one day have a similar record on the ATP World Tour, he admitted there will be a steep learning curve initially.

“The biggest difference is the base. They hit the ball a little harder and a little bit faster than college players. They reach a level of tennis that I have in me, but find hard to produce consistently now,” said Verbeek. “The opportunities lie in some very small corners and these guys take advantage of them because they’re professionals.”

Verbeek kicked off his pro career last month and has played four tournaments so far, all in California. He’ll now head back to the Netherlands to train and figure out his next tournaments, but is the optimistic that this is the beginning of a long career.

“There are some mental and technical errors that I can’t make anymore at this level, so that’s what I’m working on now to make these types of matches mine,” said Verbeek. “I’m excited to get this process started and get to work. It’s going to take a lot of improvement on my part, but I’m ready for it. This is what I want to do.”

Top seed Andy Murray of Great Britain advanced to the final eight of the China Open after dismissing Russia’s Andrey Kuznetsov 6-2, 6-1 on Wednesday evening.

The 2014 semifinalist (l. to Djokovic) won 81 per cent of first-serve points and broke his opponent seven times during the 76-minute encounter.

By reaching his 11th quarter-final of the season, Murray improves to a 57-9 match record — the most wins on the ATP World Tour this season. Along the way, he picked up four titles: Rome (d. Djokovic), London/Queen’s Club (d. Raonic), the Rio Olympics (d. del Potro), and his second Wimbledon crown (d. Raonic).

He next faces countryman Kyle Edmund, who dismissed Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in their second-round match. Murray leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 1-0, with the win coming on grass this June at the Aegon Championships.

“[On] the day of the match, it’s always a little bit uncomfortable,” said Murray about playing against his Davis Cup teammate, “because normally when you see your friends and stuff in the locker room, you have a chat, joke around a bit. But on match days, it always tends to be a little bit more serious.

“Once you get out on the court and start competing, it’s fine. After the match, again, it’s always fine. But it’s just sort of the couple hours before when you see each other in the locker room, it can be a little bit uncomfortable.”

Pablo Carreno Busta and Rafael Nadal reached the China Open semi-finals as they defeated local wild cards Mao-Xin Gong and Ze Zhang 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday in Beijing.

Carreno Busta is looking to reach his second ATP World Tour doubles final in as many weeks after finishing runner-up in Chengdu on Sunday (w/ Fyrstenberg). The 25 year old also made the US Open final last month (w/ Garcia-Lopez). Nadal, meanwhile, is chasing his second doubles triumph of the season after winning the gold medal with Marc Lopez at the Rio Olympics.

Second seeds Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo opened their campaign with a 7-6(10), 6-3 victory over Pablo Cuevas and Viktor Troicki. The Polish/Brazilian duo are bidding for their second ATP World Tour team title this week, having lifted the trophy in Vienna last year.

There was success for two French teams in the first round. Richard Gasquet and Lucas Pouille combined for a 4-6, 6-4, 10-6 victory over Mate Pavic and Michael Venus, while Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin beat Milos Raonic and Nenad Zimonjic 6-4, 7-5. 

The ATP and Garanti Koza, a Turkish construction and property development company, have entered an agreement that sees Garanti Koza become a Gold Partner as well as Official Real Estate Development Company of the prestigious season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at The O2 in London.

Garanti Koza is an industry leader in construction contracting and property development, with industrial construction, commercial ventures and residential projects worldwide. This sponsorship is the latest addition to Garanti Koza’s expanding tennis portfolio, which includes the ATP Istanbul Open, ATP Sofia Open and WTA Istanbul Cup. Garanti Koza has also recently completed construction on its 55 tennis court training complex, Koza World of Sports, which provides a home to tournaments, player development and recreational health and fitness.

“This sponsorship represents an exciting opportunity for Garanti Koza to partner with the ATP World Tour for their end-of-year finals. As a Gold Sponsor and the Official Real-estate Development Company of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, we look forward to the Garanti Koza brand being synonymous with the highest level of tennis.” – Mr. Murat Binark, Vice President of Garanti Koza.

“We are delighted to welcome Garanti Koza on board as a partner to our prestigious season finale in London,” said Chris Kermode, ATP Executive Chairman & President. “The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals attracts more than 100 million television viewers worldwide, offering a truly global platform not only for our players but also for our commercial partners. We look forward to a successful partnership with Garanti Koza.”

The Barclays ATP World Tour Finals has attracted more than 1.8 million fans to The O2 arena since the tournament moved to London in 2009. The tournament features the world’s best eight qualified singles players and doubles teams battling to win the biggest indoor tennis tournament in the world.

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World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and US Open winner Stan Wawrinka are the first singles players to qualify for this year’s tournament, which will offer US$ 7.5 million in prize money. The prestigious event has been contested in major cities around the world with a rich history dating back to the birth of The Masters in 1970 in Tokyo. Since 2000, the event has taken place in cities such as Lisbon, Sydney and Shanghai, before moving to London in 2009 where it will be held through 2018.