Reilly Opelka is set to return to action for the first time in 15 months at this week’s ATP Challenger Tour 75 event in Charlottesville, Virginia.

The 26-year-old, who has been sidelined with a hip and wrist injury, will meet Tennys Sandgren on Tuesday in the opening round of the Jonathan Fried Pro Challenger, Opelka’s first tournament since August 2022.

A four-time tour-level titlist, Opelka enjoyed a career-best season in 2022 before suffering injury. The 6’11” American claimed two titles and reached a career-high No. 17 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in February 2022.

Fans can visit Challenger TV to watch all ATP Challenger Tour matches live and on demand at no cost. At the indoor hard-court event in Charlottesville, Opelka and Sandgren will follow seventh seed Denis Kudla and Chris Rodesch, who are scheduled to play at 4pm ET.

Dominic Thiem and Stan Wawrinka did not play for six and a half years entering their clash Monday evening at the Rolex Paris Masters, but the return of their Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry proved well worth the wait.

Thiem saved a match point at 3-5 in the third set before rallying past his fellow former World No. 3 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 for a place in the second round. The tantalising encounter between two of the best one-handed backhands in recent memory ultimately ended after two hours and 31 minutes at 2:22 a.m. Tuesday morning.

“It’s very nice to share a great and close match like that with Stan because we have a history together of many great matches,” Thiem said. “Obviously he’s one of my big idols backhand wise.”

What a finish 🤩

After saving a match point, @domithiem edges past Wawrinka 3-6 6-3 7-5.@RolexPMasters | #RolexParisMasters pic.twitter.com/aGn92D8Gsa

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 31, 2023

While Thiem hit highlight-reel shots throughout the match, especially with jaw-dropping passing shots, it was Wawrinka who was first on the verge of victory. The Swiss held match point at 5-3, 40/30 in the decider, but double-faulted long. It was one of six double faults he hit in the match.

Thiem took full advantage of the small opening, getting back on serve when Wawrinka missed a forehand long. In what turned into a battle of wills, the Austrian broke again in his next return game and did not let slip his opportunity to close out the match.

When Wawrinka missed a final forehand return long, Thiem held his arms out in celebration and took a deep breath, a sign of how much the moment meant. The victory was his first at a hard-court ATP Masters 1000 event since the 2019 Rolex Paris Masters.

“The last two years I have lost more close matches than I have won, so this one is very, very important for me. The tennis has been getting better since Vienna. I beat two great guys in the qualies and now Stan in a match after saving match point, so it gives me a huge boost.”

The No. 108 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, who is continuing his pursuit of top form after suffering a wrist injury in June 2021, will next play defending champion Holger Rune. The pair met earlier this year in Monte-Carlo, where the Dane prevailed in straight sets.

Did You Know?
Thiem saved 10 of the 13 break points he faced and converted four of his five break chances on Wawrinka’s serve.

Fifteen months ago, Roman Safiullin had never cracked the Top 100 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Now the World No. 45, he will face one of his biggest challenges yet on Tuesday at the Rolex Paris Masters against Carlos Alcaraz.

Having played Novak Djokovic in last year’s Tel Aviv semi-finals, Safiullin has gone from outside the Top 100 to consistently competing against the best players in the world.

“For this year, I made different preparation. So during the season, we changed maybe two or three times the preparation for tournaments, and it worked very well. For the next year, we’re going to change something and adapt to be even better,” Safiullin told ATP Podcast. “Like training schedule, training hours, fitness, tennis, physio, everything. We were mixing it up regarding the time and quality, everything.

“So we were changing, adapting, see what’s working, what doesn’t work. And slowly we were finding the solution which worked the best.”

In short, Safiullin explained that it is important for him to focus on “better quality work than quantity”. That strategy has paid dividends. In 2023, Safiullin has earned more tour-level wins (19) than he had previously claimed in his career (12).

Next up he will try to secure the best win of his career in the Bercy second round against World No. 2 Alcaraz. It would be the biggest win of his career by Pepperstone ATP Ranking.

It has already been a year of firsts for Safiullin, who advanced to his maiden major quarter-final at Wimbledon before making his first ATP Tour final in Chengdu.

“It showed we are working in the right way. And by the ranking, by the game, it’s improving. Quarter-final of Wimbledon is really my best result in the Tour and Grand Slams as well,” Safiullin said. “It was a nice to play there and it was my first attempt in the grass-court season because once I played just once Wimbledon then another season I played one tournament on grass. And this season I played three tournaments before Wimbledon on grass and Wimbledon was great.”

Safiullin is no stranger to some of the best players in the world. The former junior No. 2 grew up with the likes of Andrey Rublev, but did not ascend the Pepperstone ATP Rankings nearly as quickly.

“I had many problems regarding my health. I had big injuries and after big injuries, it’s tough to come back and especially if it’s something like a wrist, shoulder or something like hip, I don’t know,” Safiullin said, referencing how injury has affected the likes of Dominic Thiem, a major champion. “My highest position before injury, it was 315, 325. Let’s say after the injuries, I had to start all over again, and then these guys are working every day while I was not able to work.

“So let’s say everyone has a different life and I had a harder life. But still, I made it and hopefully I will be improving and improving and catch up with them in Top 10.”

The 26-year-old has prospered under the guidance of former World No. 39 Andrey Kuznetsov, whose playing experience has proven valuable for Safiullin.

“A lot of advice, because he used to be also a Top 50 guy and he knows many things like how to play, how to act on court, off court. Also some coaching advice. I can’t say it here, but regarding my game, he’s also helping a lot,” Safiullin said. “And the second coach, [Adrian Noerstenaes], is also more kind of a positive guy and he gives these energies when we travel in tournaments. They are completely different guys, but I always feel better to travel with them.”

Daniil Medvedev finished runner-up in the Erste Bank Open final Sunday but still left Vienna a winner after topping the inaugural ATP 500 bonus pool standings for the 2023 season.

Implemented this year as part of ATP’s OneVision strategy, the bonus pool distributes $1.3 million to eligible players who earned the most Pepperstone ATP Rankings points at the ATP 500 level, which comprises 13 events.

Boosted by titles early in the season in Rotterdam and Dubai, and a runner-up finish to Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s Vienna final, Medvedev earned more points than any other player this year at the ATP 500 level.

World No. 3 Medvedev moved past Carlos Alcaraz into first place of the bonus pool during his run to the Vienna final. The 20-time ATP Tour champion will receive a $600,000 bonus. Other players to finish in the top five of the bonus pool – Alcaraz, Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Alex de Minaur – will share $700,000 in bonus pool prize money.

“I’ve had an amazing season on many levels, but the 500s have been pretty amazing. I got a lot of points and good wins against great players,” Medvedev said.

“I started the year very strongly by winning the first two 500s I played in Rotterdam and Dubai, so that opened a big gap on a lot of players and I have managed to finish strong at the end here in Vienna.”

To be eligible for the bonus pool, a player must have played four ATP 500 tournaments in 2023, including one following the US Open.

“The 500s are a very important part of the Tour and you know they are going to be strong tournaments because of the points,” Medvedev said. “You win two and it’s the same as winning a Masters 1000 and almost like being in the final of a Slam.

“There was one moment in my career when I didn’t have a good record at 500s for whatever reason, but now I’m changing it.”

Medvedev is also in strong contention to finish atop the ATP Masters 1000 bonus pool, which will distribute $20m to the Top 30 eligible players, based on Pepperstone ATP Rankings points earned at the nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments and Nitto ATP Finals. Medvedev currently sits second in the bonus pool, just 90 points behind Alcaraz.

Final standings in the ATP Masters 1000 bonus pool will be determined following this week’s Rolex Paris Masters, and the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin from 12-19 November.

Taylor Fritz delivered a clinical display to keep alive his Nitto ATP Finals qualification hopes on Monday at the Rolex Paris Masters.

The ninth-seeded American wrapped a 6-1, 6-4 first-round triumph against Sebastian Baez at the ATP Masters 1000 event in the French capital. Fritz converted all three break points he earned to improve to 54-23 for the season and set a second-round meeting with #NextGenATP home favourite Arthur Fils or Daniel Altmaier.

“I’m pretty happy, especially with how the match started in the first set,” said Fritz, whose best Paris result is a quarter-final run in 2021. “I got an early break of serve in the second and luckily I was just able to hold on serve and finish it up.”

Moving on 👏@Taylor_Fritz97 knocks out Baez 6-1 6-4 to advance to R2 in Paris!
@RolexPMasters | #RolexParisMasters pic.twitter.com/oqGBDp0kaf

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 30, 2023

However, it was not all plain sailing on Monday for Fritz, who received treatment from the physio mid-way through the second set on his left abdomen. The 25-year-old spoke candidly after the match about the issue and he will hope it is nothing too serious as he next looks to move past Fils or Altmaier to set a potential third-round showdown with his Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin rival Holger Rune.

“It’s something that’s been bothering me for a little bit… I didn’t think it was anything too bad going in [to this match], but one where I slid out and sliced that forehand, I felt like I did something that I had never done to it before,” said Fritz. “Like maybe I tore something or pulled it. So I’m going to have to get it checked out and see what’s going on.”

With Monday’s win, Fritz moved above Hubert Hurkacz into ninth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin. He is currently 190 points behind the defending Paris champion Rune as he chases a second straight appearance at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.

A topsy-turvy year has Holger Rune hungry for a strong finish to the season.

In the first half of 2023, Rune saved four championship points to triumph in Munich, sandwiched in between final appearances at the ATP Masters 1000 events in Monte-Carlo and Rome. But following his Wimbledon quarter-final run, the World No. 7 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings has won just four of his past 12 matches.

Perhaps there is no better place to find his best form than at this week’s Rolex Paris Masters, where he is aiming to defend the title.

“It’s a good fight. It’s the last push of the season,” Rune told the ATP Podcast in Paris. “I’m really ready to give it my all and then prepare for the next one.”

One change Rune has made is hiring a new coach, six-time major champion Boris Becker. In their first tournament together last week in Basel, Rune made the semi-finals before falling to eventual champion Felix Auger-Aliassime.

“It’s been great working so far with Boris, what we’re working on is what you see on the court,” Rune said. “There were a few adjustments that we made to be able to come back on track a little bit more. And I think that I was willing to do those small changes. I played some better tennis [in Basel] and I was fighting very well. Obviously didn’t find my best level still, but I’m definitely building up more.”

Boasting a 41-21 season record, the 20-year-old Dane believes this coaching change will bring positive results.

“[I think] the more peace and quietness there is around a tennis player or an athlete, the better they can perform and if it’s less, the more tough it is to keep the focus,” Rune said. “It was definitely tough for me to be the best version of myself and that’s not good for any athlete.”

The sixth seed Rune is guaranteed to play a former major champion in his Paris opener as he awaits the winner of Stan Wawrinka and Dominic Thiem. Sitting at eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, Rune needs a strong week in France to hold off a list of players such as Hubert Hurkacz, Taylor Fritz and Casper Ruud, who all are battling for the critical eighth position in the Nitto ATP Finals. 

Should Rune qualify for Turin, the four-time tour-level titlist would make his Nitto ATP Finals debut. Last year, Rune was the first alternate at the prestigious year-end event.

“Last year, it would have been great to make it, but I didn’t expect to make it at all. Before the last three tournaments, I was not even near so it was a big push that I made,” Rune said. “Then all of a sudden, it was possible to make it. But during this tournament, I also didn’t think about it because I played Top 10 guys every match.

“It just kind of happened and I’m trying to do the same now, don’t try or anything to seek that, but just do everything I can on the court and at the end hope to make it.”

After notching a first-round win in Shanghai last month, Arthur Fils paused to sign the TV camera near the umpire’s chair, as is customary at many ATP Tour events. The #NextGenATP star’s message, ‘Moving Like La Monf’, was as much for his good friend and fellow Frenchman, Gael Monfils, as it was for fans watching at home.

“[It referred to] everything,” Fils told ATPTour.com last week when asked exactly what he had meant by his camera salute to Monfils. “I mean, on the court I’m trying to move like him. He is 37 years old, and he is moving like a god. And of course, [off court] he’s a smooth guy, walking nicely and everything, so I’m doing it like him.”

Fils’ message caught the attention of the man himself.

“It was very nice for me, to be honest,” said Monfils, who earlier this month lifted his 12th ATP Tour title in Stockholm. “I was flattered.”

It’s all in the name 🇫🇷

Arthur Fils x @Gael_Monfils
#RolexShanghaiMasters | @SH_RolexMasters pic.twitter.com/aXIInm0hld

— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 5, 2023

Fils’ tribute in Shanghai came just weeks after both he and Monfils had represented Team Europe at the Laver Cup. Despite already being good friends, both players enjoyed the opportunity to spend an extended period together at this year’s edition of the annual teams’ event, held in Vancouver.

“It was unbelievable, because he’s like a big brother to me,” said Fils. “To be with him, to be close with him, to talk with him during all five days was very nice. I’m really happy about his title [in Stockholm], because he played unbelievable, and I’m really happy to watch him winning again. I think he will be back very soon with a top ranking.”

Monfils reflected: “I got to spend more time with him, because he’s brand new to the Tour and Vancouver was really the first time we could spend a lot of time together. That was great to spend time with [Arthur] the person, and with all the players.”

Laver Cup 2023″ />

_{^{Fils and Monfils (middle) with Hubert Hurkacz and Andrey Rublev at the Laver Cup. Photo: Clive Brunskill/Getty for Laver Cup.}}

While the age gap between the two might naturally make Monfils something of a ‘mentor’ for Fils, the former World No. 6 says that his young countryman possesses many of the off-court characteristics he has always valued highly.

“With some players, we knew each other from a young age, so we grew up together,” said Monfils. “With [Arthur], we have a massive gap. He’s the age of my little sister, so I couldn’t have this chance to spend time with him.

“[Laver Cup] was great. I love the person he is. That’s the most important stuff for me. He’s unbelievable [on the court], of course. But he’s a young man, very nice, very kind, very polite, and that’s what matters for me.”

Fils is one of a host of #NextGenATP Frenchman making great strides on the ATP Tour. The 19-year-old, who is currently fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Jeddah, looks almost certain to reach the season-ending Next Gen ATP Finals, for which his countrymen Luca Van Assche and Arthur Cazaux are also in qualification contention.

It was in this context, as one member of a group of promising juniors, that the 12-time ATP Tour titlist Monfils first came across his young countryman. The 37-year-old, who has been one of the spearheads of French tennis for nearly two decades, recalls Fils being touted for a bright future from early on.

“As a junior, a lot of people were pointing out his name,” said Monfils. “Of course, not just focused on him, because there was a group of young kids and Arthur was a part of this. It was pretty cool. At Roland Garros he was in the [2021 Boys’ Singles] final against Luca [Van Assche].

“When I went to Paris to practise, I met him. We practised together for the first time. As always, you know, when you’re a bit older, you chat with younger players and always tell them, if they have any questions, don’t hesitate.”

Perhaps Fils’ reputation as a big talent explains why he Monfils did not offer him much time to settle when the pair first hit together at France’s National Tennis Centre.

“We practised together once, when I was probably 15 or 16. I remember that he was hitting the ball so hard,” recalled Fils, before cracking a smile. “I don’t know why, maybe he was trying to show me his paw!”

Fils’ earned his first Pepperstone ATP Ranking point at the age of 16 and has not had to wait long to build considerably on that early achievement. A year ago, the then-18-year-old was the World No. 308 and had never played a tour-level match. This week, Fils will compete at the Rolex Paris Masters at a career-high No. 36, having lifted his first ATP Tour crown in Lyon in May and reached another tour-level championship match in Antwerp earlier this month.

“I saw him doing his thing, trying to get up the rankings, and [I was] following him with a lot of interest,” said Monfils of Fils. “[I was] quite happy to see a kid who is something special be that strong that early. We met up at some tournaments, on some occasions, and then we started to get to know each other better.”

Arthur Fils” />

_{^{Arthur Fils in action earlier this month in Shanghai. Photo: Peter Staples/ATP Tour.}}

Although many of the younger Frenchmen on Tour have quickly established themselves as his rivals at the top of the game, the 37-year-old Monfils continues to offer advice whenever his countrymen may ask for it. Fils certainly hopes that Monfils’ return to the winners’ circle in Stockholm is a sign that there is plenty yet to come from one of the Tour’s great entertainers.

“It’s very nice, because he’s giving so much experience,” said Fils. “He’s helping us a lot… It’s very nice to have him on the Tour and I think he is going to stay for a bit longer now.”

With his Lyon title run, the then-18-year-old Fils became the youngest French ATP Tour champion since Monfils won in Sopot in 2005, and he has shown little sign of being overawed by success at such a young age. Monfils believes his younger colleague has all the tools to find his own path.

“In a way, I really want to protect him a little bit,” said Monfils.” It’s tough, because we of course all know he has a massive potential, and we say it. So, this puts a little bit of pressure [on him], and we don’t want to put [him under] pressure, because I want him to be him.

“He’s going to write his own story, though, and I’m sure he will do unbelievable stuff.”

Hugo Dellien endured double duty Sunday to triumph at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Curitiba, Brazil while Lukas Klein saved two championship points to claim the title in Ortisei, Italy.

After rain forced Dellien to play his semi-final and final match on Sunday, the 30-year-old survived two deciding-set matches to return to the winners’ circle. The Bolivian rallied past Argentine Guido Andreozzi in a two-hour, 47-minute semi-final before returning to court to collect his 10th title at the ATP Challenger Tour level and second of this season. Dellien defeated American Oliver Crawford 7-6(6), 4-6, 7-6(1) in the Festval Challenger final.

“What a crazy Sunday, six hours on court! They were worth the trophy!’ Dellien wrote in Spanish on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hugo Dellien (@hugodellien)

Klein won seven matches in eight days as he advanced through qualifying en route to winning the Sparkasse Challenger Val Gardena in Ortisei, Italy. In the final, Klein saved two match points to escape Poland’s Maks Kasnikowski 6-7(4), 7-6(4), 7-6(6) after two hours, 38 minutes.

“I’m extremely happy that I managed to win. Very, very close final,” Klein said. “A few points decided the final so I guess I’m lucky it fell my way. It’s a great feeling and I hope it boosts my confidence and my level.”

A three-time Challenger champion, Klein’s triumph in Italy marks his first trophy of the season. He became the 14th qualifier to make a title run at the Challenger level in 2023.

Kasnikowski, 20, became the youngest Pole to reach a Challenger final since Jerzy Janowicz in 2010.

Australian James Duckworth earned his second consecutive ATP Challenger Tour title by winning the City of Playford Tennis International. In a rematch of last week’s Shenzhen Challenger final, the 31-year-old Duckworth downed Hong Kong’s Chak Lam Coleman Wong 7-5, 7-5 to be crowned champion.

James Duckworth wins the Challenger 75 event in Playford, Australia.” style=”width: 100%;” />^{James Duckworth wins the Challenger 75 event in Playford, Australia. Credit: City of Playford Tennis International}
“It was a really difficult match. It was kind of cool that we played each other in the final last week. He came out all guns blazing and I thought the quality of the match was really high,” Duckworth said. “Tight breaks at the end of each set and I was able to sneak through so I’m really happy.

“I’ve never gone back to back before. To consistently put together 10 good matches is a real confidence boost, especially with all the injuries I’ve had.”

Duckworth is the most decorated Australian champion in ATP Challenger Tour history with 14 titles. The Sydney native collected his third crown in Playford, where the past six champions have all been Aussies. Duckworth also won the event in 2016 and 2019.

Spaniard Pedro Martinez collected his fourth ATP Challenger Tour trophy and first of this year at the Open Brest-Credit Agricole, where he defeated home favourite Benjamin Bonzi 7-6(6), 7-6(1) in the final. The title in France marks Martinez’s maiden hard-court trophy at any level.

With Bonzi’s final appearance in Brest, it marked the 50th ATP Challenger Tour final for Frenchmen in 2023 (26-24).

Pedro Martinez wins the Challenger 100 event in Brest, France.” />
^{Pedro Martinez wins the Challenger 100 event in Brest, France. Credit: Un Oeil Averty}