Madrid Open Daily Preview: Novak Djokovic Plays His Opening Match Against Gael Monfils - UBITENNIS
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Madrid Open Daily Preview: Novak Djokovic Plays His Opening Match Against Gael Monfils

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Novak Djokovic practicing last week in Madrid (twitter.com/MutuaMadridOpen)

Novak Djokovic’s vaccination status has caused him to miss much of the 2022 season.  But with vaccination requirements easing, the 20-time Major champion is eager to gain match play in just his fourth tournament of the year.  While he’s only 5-3 this season, Novak is 17-0 lifetime against his opponent on Tuesday, Gael Monfils.  Could this be an opportunity for the Frenchman to finally defeat Djokovic?

 

Another Slam champ trying to play their way into form is Bianca Andreescu.  The 21-year-old Canadian has battled injuries, COVID, and mental health issues since winning the 2019 US Open.  In the last round, she captured only her third win of 2022 in a dominant performance over Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins.  On Sunday, Andreescu faces another American in Jessica Pegula, who is just a few wins away from breaking into the top 10.

Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule.  Tuesday’s play gets underway at 12:00pm local time.


Jessica Pegula (12) vs. Bianca Andreescu – Not Before 3:30pm on Arantxa Sanchez Stadium

This will be their first tour-level meeting.  Three years ago in the final of an American ITF event, Andreescu defeated Pegula in three sets.  That was the first title in an amazing season for Bianca, which would also see her win in Indian Wells, Toronto, and of course New York.  But all of that success came on hard courts.  On this surface, Andreescu is still rather inexperienced.  In her young career, she’s only 6-2 on clay in the main draws of WTA events.  Pegula owns a bit more experience on the dirt, yet between 2019 and 2021, went only 9-9 on this surface.  But she’s the much more in-form player, with a 14-8 record on the season.  This is a surface which rewards grit, something nearly no other player has exhibited more of over the last few years than Andreescu.  And in a draw where only four of the 12 remaining players are seeds, another upset feels entirely possible.


Novak Djokovic (1) vs. Gael Monfils – Not Before 4:00pm on Manolo Santana Stadium

As one-sided as their history is, Monfils has made many of their recent encounters competitive, taking a set in six of their last nine encounters.  However, Gael’s recent record on clay is quite unimpressive.  Since 2017, he is only 22-25 on this surface.  And only one his 11 titles have come on clay, which was actually his very first all the way back in 2005.  Djokovic is vying for his first title in six months, since the Paris Masters last November.  Novak is a three-time champion in Madrid, and won this event the last time he played it three years ago.  He’s struggled with his form and endurance at his first two clay events this season, yet fought his way to the final of Belgrade two weeks ago.  Despite his recent lack of match play, Djokovic remains a considerable favorite against this opponent, especially on this surface.


Other Notable Matches on Tuesday:

Daria Kasatkina vs. Sara Sorribes Tormo – Kasatkina upset Maria Sakkari in the last round, while Sorribes Tormo became emotional after taking out Naomi Osaka.  Daria and Sara have never played at tour-level.

Emma Raducanu (9) vs. Anhelina Kalinina – Raducanu lost only three games on Sunday to Kalinina’s fellow Ukranian Marta Kostyuk.  Meanwhile, Anhelina also lost only three games in her upset of Spain’s Garbine Muguruza.  This is yet another first-time WTA matchup on the day.

Denis Shapovalov (14) vs. Andy Murray (WC) – On Monday, Murray garnered his first win on clay in five years, at the expense of fellow Major champion Dominic Thiem.  Shapovalov is only 2-2 since February.  Last year at Wimbledon, Denis eliminated a depleted Andy in straight sets.

Carlos Alcaraz (7) vs. Nikoloz Basilashvili – Alcaraz is a stellar 23-2 on the year, and is coming off his third title this season in Barcelona.  Basilashvili was the runner-up in Doha three months ago, but is just 2-6 since.  At last year’s French Open, when Carlos was a qualifier, he upset Nikoloz in straight sets.


Tuesday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Miami Open Daily Preview: Thursday’s Action Features Azarenka, Thiem, Rybakina

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A look at the grounds of the Miami Open (twitter.com/HardRockStadium)

Women’s second round action begins on Thursday, including Major champions like Victoria Azarenka and Elena Rybakina, as well as American top seeds Jessica Pegula and Coco Gauff.

 

The highest profile WTA match of the day sees Azarenka, a three-time Miami Open champion, face Italy’s Camila Giorgi, who is always a threat on a faster hard court.  Meanwhile, men’s first round action concludes on Thursday, headlined by 2020 US Open champ Dominic Thiem facing Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego.

Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule.  Thursday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.


Lorenzo Sonego vs. Dominic Thiem (WC) – Not Before 7:00pm on Stadium Court

Dominic Thiem continues to struggle to regain his form after missing nearly a year of action due to a wrist injury.  He showed some signs of his former self during the fall, reaching the semifinals of both Gijon and Antwerp.  However, he is just 1-8 at all levels to start 2023, with his only win coming on clay in Buenos Aires over Alex Molcan.  Thiem has lost two of his last three matches in a final-set tiebreak, including two weeks ago to Adrian Mannarino at Indian Wells, a tournament Dominic won four years ago.

Sonego was ranked as high as 21st in the world just 18 months ago, but is now 59th, and owns a 5-8 record in 2023.  Yet it’s worth noting he’s also had some tough draws.  Five of those eight losses have come against top 20 opposition.

These players have split two previous meetings., both on clay.  In 2019 in Kitzbuhel, Thiem prevailed in straight sets.  In 2021 in Rome, Sonego prevailed in an epic encounter on his home soil, claiming a third-set tiebreak after nearly three-and-a-half hours.  While neither man arrives in Miami with much confidence, it’s hard to favor Dominic until he gets back to his winning ways.


Camila Giorgi vs. Victoria Azarenka (14) – Not Before 7:00pm on Grandstand Court

Azarenka’s three Miami titles came in 2009, 2011, and 2016, defeating Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, and Svetlana Kuznetsova in those finals.  She is 38-10 lifetime in Miami, and 10-6 on the season, with half of those victories coming during her semifinal run at the Australian Open.

Giorgi is also 10-6 this year, with half of her wins coming during her title run last month at a hard court event in Merida.  In the first round on Tuesday, she survived a dramatic affair against another of the WTA’s hardest hitters, defeating Kaiai Kanepi in a match that consisted of three tiebreak sets and lasted over three-and-a-half hours.

Giorgi leads their head-to-head 2-1.  That includes a victory nine years ago on grass, as well as a win five years ago on a hard court, though Azarenka retired after only eight games in that match.  Most recently, four years ago on a hard court in Toronto, Vika won in straight sets.  On Thursday, I give Azarenka the edge in a city where she has enjoyed much success, especially considering Giorgi may be a bit physically depleted after her opening round.


Other Notable Matches on Thursday:

Jessica Pegula (3) vs. Katherine Sebov (Q) – Pegula is 15-5 in 2023, and lost a heartbreaker at Indian Wells to Petra Kvitova in an extended third-set tiebreak, during which both players held multiple match points.  Sebov is a 24-year-old Canadian who has claimed two ITF-level hard court titles within the past few months.

Rebecca Marino vs. Coco Gauff (6) – Gauff is 14-4 this season, and is just 3-3 lifetime at her home state’s biggest event.  Marino is a 32-year-old Canadian who has taken several extended breaks from competitive tennis, but won 49 matches at all levels last year.  At the 2022 French Open, Coco defeated Rebecca 7-5, 6-0.

Elena Rybakina (10) vs. Anna Kalinskaya – Rybakina is now 16-4 on the year, coming off her Indian Wells title run last week, where she avenged her Australian Open final loss to Aryna Sabalenka.  Kalinskaya is 6-4 in main draws this season, and while she’s never played Elena at tour level, she did defeat her four years ago in the final of an ITF-level event in Australia.


Thursday’s full Order of Play is here.

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SuperTennis Granted Rights To US Open Until 2027

SuperTennis will be the home for the US Open in Italy until 2027.

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(@GeorgeSpalluto - Twitter)

SuperTennis have been given exclusive rights to show the US Open in Italy until 2027 after a new agreement was reached.

 

The USTA and SportCast reached the agreement as announced in a press release.

SportCast are the Italian Tennis and Padel Federation Group company that manages the SuperTennis TV channel in Italy.

In the press released the USTA confirmed they reached a five year agreement with SportCast for SuperTennis to show the US Open until 2027.

The deal means that SuperTennis will show the best daily matches live and delayed alongside coverage on the SuperTenniX digital platform, which gives FITP members and subscribers access to stream all matches across the two week tournament.

It also means that the US Open joins Wimbledon, Davis Cup and a number of ATP and WTA events to be shown on SuperTennis.

Chief Commercial Officer at the USTA, Kristen Corio, had this to say on today’s announcement, “SuperTennis has proven to be a trusted home for the sport in Italy,” Corio said in the press release.

“With a number of Italian players at the forefront of this rising generation of talent, it’s an exciting time to begin this new partnership and we look forward to working together with SuperTennis to continue growing the audience for the US Open.”

Meanwhile the president of Italian Tennis and Padel Federation, Angelo Binaghi, was delighted with the latest news and talked about the impact it has on Italian tennis, “The Italian Tennis and Padel Federation continues its development policy through the promotion of great tennis in our country, and with the founding of the SuperTennis channel 15 years ago, it brought back the sport of tennis to our dedicated audience,” Binaghi said.

“Alongside providing extensive coverage of Wimbledon, we are now proud to make another tennis Grand Slam available to all Italian tennis fans. The US Open is a tournament that has recently provided some incredible stories, including the historic 2015 US Open final won by Flavia Pennetta over Roberta Vinci.

“The level of access that SuperTennis can provide to its viewers will only contribute to the further promotion of tennis and the increased support of our national tennis players.”

This year’s US Open will take place from the 28th of August until the 10th of September with Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz looking to defend their titles.

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Miami Open Daily Preview: US Open Champions Bianca Andreescu and Emma Raducanu Collide

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A look at the grounds of the Miami Open (twitter.com/HardRockStadium)

On Wednesday, Major champions Bianca Andreescu and Emma Raducanu will meet in a blockbuster first round matchup.

 

Main draw action is already underway in Miami.  The women’s singles draw started play on Tuesday, with the men joining them on Wednesday.  Just like Indian Wells, the top 32 singles seeds receive first round byes, so the big names will begin play later this week.

Those top names include Indian Wells champion Carlos Alcaraz, who needs to defend this Miami title in order to maintain the No.1 ranking he just regained on Monday.  WTA No.1 Iga Swiatek looks to defend this title after failing to do so at Indian Wells, and is one of 11 Major singles champions in the women’s draw, which also includes Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka and newly-crowned Indian Wells champ Elena Rybakina.

Each day, this preview will analyze the two most intriguing matchups, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule.  Wednesday’s play gets underway at 11:00am local time.


Bianca Andreescu vs. Emma Raducanu – 12:00pm on Stadium Court

Andreescu is just 6-6 on the year, but played well against Swiatek earlier this month at Indian Wells.  She’s only played the Miami Open twice, reaching the fourth round in 2019, and the final in 2021, eventually retiring during that championship match against Ash Barty.

Raducanu is 5-3 in 2023, and also lost to Swiatek at Indian Wells.  While Emma only managed to claim four games against the World No.1, but she did manage to win three matches earlier in the event.  Raducanu made her Miami Open debut last year, losing her opening round match 7-5 in the third to Katerina Siniakova.

Their only previous meeting did not reveal much.  It took place last May on clay in Rome, with Andreescu prevailing after Raducanu retired during the second set.  Both players have suffered from many injuries of late, so hopefully they’re both fully healthy for what could be a great match if they are.  But based on recent form, as well as her previous success at this event, I like Bianca to win again on this day.


Sloane Stephens vs. Shelby Rogers – Not Before 7:00pm on Stadium Court

Stephens is just 4-6 to start the year, and lost in the first round of Indian Wells two weeks ago to another American, Sofia Kenin.  Sloane won this event in 2018, the only WTA 1000 title of her career.

Rogers is 5-6 this season, and had a losing record in 2022.  She’s only 5-4 lifetime in the main draw of the Miami Open, but two of her biggest results have come on American soil: a US Open quarterfinal as well as an Indian Wells quarterfinal.

Surprisingly, this is the first career meeting between these two WTA veterans.  Both are now 30-year-old, after Stephens celebrated her birthday on Monday.  I give Sloane the slight edge in this all-American matchup based on her superior movement, as well as her fond memories of playing in Miami.


Other Notable Matches on Wednesday:

Alexander Bublik vs. J.J. Wolf – Wolf reached the second week of the Australian Open in January, and the semifinals of the Dallas Open in February.  Bublik has struggled this season, losing his first eight matches in 2023.  This past October in Florence, Wolf defeated Bublik in three sets.

Andy Murray vs. Dusan Lajovic – Murray is now 8-4 on the year, and has played and won some of 2023’s most dramatic matches.  Lajovic is 7-5 this season, but hasn’t won a hard court match in six months.

Sofia Kenin vs. Storm Hunter (Q) – Kenin is 6-7 this year, but is showing signs of her 2020 level, losing two very competitive sets at Indian Wells against Rybakina.  Storm has not won a WTA tour main draw singles match in nearly two years.

Ugo Humbert vs. Gael Monfils (PR) – Monfils is 0-2 at all levels since returning from an extended injury leave.  His fellow countryman is a former top 25 player who reached a Challenger final on a hard court earlier this month.


Wednesday’s full Order of Play is here.

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