Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger Aliassime headline a strong line-up at the Davis Cup Finals - UBITENNIS
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Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger Aliassime headline a strong line-up at the Davis Cup Finals

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The eight best teams will compete in the 2022 Davis Cup by Rakuten Knock-out stage in Malaga from 22 to 27 November. 

 

Malaga is the new home of the Davis Cup Finals after the previous two editions held in Madrid in 2019 and 2021. The quarter finals start on Tuesday with the match between Australia and the Netherlands. 

Two top ten players Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger Aliassime will headline the strong line-up.

Australia against the Netherlands – 22nd November 

The Netherlands won the Group D last September in Glasgow. Botic Van de Zandschulp led the Dutch team by winning all of his three of his singles matches, including straight set victories against Cameron Norrie, Alexander Bublik and Taylor Fritz. Van de Zandschulp beat Diego Schwartzman in five sets at the US Open in 2021 to reach his first quarter final at Grand Slam level. He then lost to eventual US Open champion Danil Medvedev. He was the only player to take a set off Medvedev during the tournament. This year Van de Zandschulp reached the first ATP 500 semifinal of his career at Queen’s Club in London and advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon. The Dutch team also features Wesley Koolhof, who is part of the world number 1 doubles team alongside Neal Skupski. The Netherlands is one of the two teams at this year’s Finals, along with Canada, that has never won a Davis Cup title. 

The Dutch team will face Group B runners-up Australia in the Group B. The Australian team led by Lleyton Hewitt beat Belgium and France during the Group stage, but lost to Germany in Hamburg last September. Everyone in the five-man Aussie team with at least one win. De Minaur scored two singles wins against Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi and Belgian David Goffin and has won eight of his last nine singles Davis Cup matches. Australia is chasing its first Davis Cup title since 2003. 

The Australian doubles team will be formed by Max Purcell and Matthew Ebden, who won the Wimbledon title and reached the Australian Open final.

Croatia vs Spain 23rd November

This year’s US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz and 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal will not play, but the Spanish team captained by Serg Bruguera will feature 2019 Davis Cup champion Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno Busta, Albert Ramos Vinolas, Pedro Martinez and Marcel Granollers. Alcaraz has been forced to withdraw from the match due to an injury. 

Bautista Agut was the only player to win three points for the Spanish team in Group B in Valencia against South Korea’s Seong Chen Hong, Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic and Canada’s Vasek Pospisil last September. 

Spain will take on Croatia in a blockbuster quarter final match. Croatia, the highest ranked nation in Davis Cup and last year’s Davis Cup finalists, beat Argentina (3-0) and Sweden (2-1) in Group A in Bologna last September. This year’s Cincinnati Masters 1000 champion Borna Coric scored two singles wins against Mikael Ymer and Francisco Cerundolo.

Croatia will feature 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic, Borna Coric, Borna Gojo and the doubles team formed by Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, who reached the championships match at last week’s Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. Cilic won the Davis Cup title in 2018.

Spain has won all three previous ties against Croatia. 

The winner of the match between Australia and the Netherlands will take on either Croatia or Spain in the semifinal. 

Italy vs USA 24th November

The Italian team captained by Filippo Volandri won Group A in Bologna and will be one of the teams to beat in the Knock-out stage in Malaga despite the absence of 2021 Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini and four-time Grand Slam quarter finalist Jannik Sinner. The hopes of the Italian team are carried by Lorenzo Musetti, Lorenzo Sonego and the experienced doubles team formed by Fabio Fognini and Simone Bolelli, who have each played 28 Davis Cup matches. Musetti enjoyed his breakthrough season in 2022 winning two titles in Hamburg and Neaples and reaching his first Masters 1000 quarter final in Paris Bercy after beating Casper Ruud in the third round.

The US team finished second in group stage after wins over Great Britain and Kazakhstan and a defeat against the Netherlands. Rajeev Ram and Jack Sock scored two doubles wins against Great Britain and the Netherlands. The US team captained by Mardy Fish features Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul and doubles specialist Jack Sock.  Fritz won his first Masters 1000 title in Indian Wells and Tokyo beating Tiafoe in the final and reached the semifinals at last week’s ATP Tour Finals in Turin. Tiafoe reached the semifinals at the US Open. Paul beat Rafael Nadal to advance to the quarter final at the Paris Bercy Masters 1000.

Germany vs Canada 24th November

Germany won Group C in Hamburg after winning all three ties in Hamburg against France, Australia and Belgium. Jan  Lennard Struff won all of his three singles matches. Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz scored four wins together at the 2021 Davis Cup finals and won all three of their decisive matches at the Group Stage last September. 

Canada beat Spain 2-1 in a decisive Group stage tie with wins scored by Felix Auger Aliassime over Carlos Alcaraz (6-7 6-4 6-4) and the doubles team formed by Auger Aliassime and Vasek Pospisil over Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez (4-6 6-4 7-5). 

Canada will feature both Auger Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov for the first time since the 2019 Davis Cup final, when the team led by Frank Dancevic finished runner-up to a strong Spanish team led by Rafael Nadal and Roberto Bautista Agut. 

Auger Aliassime won four ATP titles this year in Rotterdam, Florence, Antwerp and Basel. Shapovalov finished runner-up to Danil Medvedev in the Vienna ATP 500 final.

The winner of the match between Italy and the USA will clash against either Germany or Canada in the second semifinal.  

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Hamad Medjedovic wins the Next Gen Finals title in Jeddah

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02/12/2023

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Hamad Medjedovic came back from one set down to beat Arthur Fils 3-4 (6-8) 4-1 4-2 3-4 (9-11) 4-1 after 2 hours and 11 minutes at the Next Gen ATP Finals at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah. 

 

Medjedovic hit 38 winners to 21 unforced errors. 

The first set went on serve en route to the tie-break. Medjedovic earned a mini-break to take a 3-2 lead and held two set points at 6-4, but he was not able to convert them. Fils won four consecutive points to win the tie-break 8-6. 

Medjedovic earned a break in the second game to win the second set 4-1. 

Medjedovic becomes the sixth Next Gen ATP Finals champion, joining top 10 players Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. The 20-year-old Serbian player is the lowest-ranked champion in tournament history. 

Medjedovic started the third set with an early break in the first game. The Serbian player held on his serve to seal the set 4-2. 

Medjedovic recovered from squandering two match points at 6-4 in a thrilling tie-break of the fourth set at 5-6 and 7-8. Fils saved both chances on second serves and won four of the next five points to win the tie-break 11-9 forcing the match to a deciding set. 

to win the first five-set final in tournament history. The Serbian player won 88% and converted his third match point to clinch the biggest title of his career so far. 

Medjedovic earned a break in the second game of the fifth set. Fils earned himself a penalty point for a smash of his raquet and went down 0-3. Medjedovic held on his next service games and converted his third match point. 

“Two of us from Serbia. Djokovic won the big Masters, the real one, and I won the Next Gen. Obviously it’s a huge thing and I am happy to follow in his footsteps in some way. I can’t believe I have won this title. It’s going to give me a lot of confidence for 2024. Arthur is an amazing player. He is top 40 for a reason”, said Medjedovic. 

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Elena Rybakina headlines a strong line-up in Adelaide

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02/12/2023

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Elena Rybakina, Zheng Qinwen, Carolina Garcia and Angelique Kerber will highlight the Adelaide International, a WTA 500 tournament.

 

Rybakina reached the final at the Adelaide International on her tournament debut in 2022, losing to now retired Ashleigh Barty. Rybakina went on to win her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon later last year. The Kazakh player finished runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka in the Australian Open final in 2023. 

Zheng won her first WTA 500 title in Zhengzhou and reached the final in Zhuhai, ending the 2023 season at a career-high of world number 15. 

Angelique Kerber will make her come-back to the WTA Tour at the United Cup before playing her first WTA draw in Adelaide. Kerber gave birth to her daughter Liana last February. The German player won titles at the 2016 Australian Open and in Sydney 2018 and reached in Sydney 2014 and in Brisbane 2018. 

Kerber is one of the three former number 1 players, who are making her come-back on the WTA Tour after giving birth to their children. 

Caroline Wozniacki lost to eventual champion Coco Gauff in the Round of 16 at the US Open in her third tournament back. 

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka is planning to make her return next January after giving back to her child Shai last July. 

“It’s definitely way more tournaments than I used to play. So I think some people will be happy with that. I realized that I don’t know how the beginning of the year is going to go for me. I don’t know the level of player and I think I have to ease into it. At the very least, I will set myself up for a very good end of the year”, said Osaka.

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Arthur Fils beats Luca Van Assche in all-French semifinal at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah

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01/12/2023

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World number 36 Arthur Fils beat his friend Luca Van Assche 2-4 4-1 4-3 (7-1) 4-3 (8-6) in an all-French clash after 1 hour and 37 minutes to reach the final at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah. 

 

Van Assche, who was born in Belgium but moved to Belgium when he was three years old, broke serve in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead and served out the first set to 15. Van Assche won 12 of the last 14 points. 

Fils hit a couple of big forehands to earn three break points at 2-1 15-40. Van Assche saved one break point with a volley, but Fils converted his second chance to open up a 3-1 lead, as Van Assche netted a backhand. Fils served out with a hold at 15 to level the match at one set apiece. 

The first five games of the third set went on serve. Van Assche led 2-3 30-40 on Fils’serve to earn two set points. 

Fils saved them before racing out to a 5-0 lead. Van Assche won his first point with a forehand. Fils earned five set points and closed it out when Van Assche netted a backhand. 

Fils won 22 consecutive points on his first serve until 2-1 in the fourth set. Van Assche faced a match point at 2-3, but Van Assche saved it to force another tie-break. Fils opened up a 4-1 with a mini-break. Van Assche won three points to 4-4 before saving two match points at 4-6 and 5-6. Fils hit a forehand to earn a fourth match point and converted it when Van Assche sent a backhand over the baseline. 

Van Assche beat Fils in the boys’ singles final at 2021 Roland Garros. Fils won his first title in Lyon last May. 

“I played every point trying everything with my forehand, moving very good. I was very happy with the tie-break. Today was a tough match against a great friend. We have known each other since we were nine, so it was a little bit tough and I am happy with the win. I came onto the court with the mindset that I can win. The first set was tough, he was playing very good and defending so well, running very fast. I kept my focus and I am really happy with the win”, said Fils. 

Fils set up a final clash against Hamad Medjedovic, who advanced to the championships match, when Dominic Stricker was forced to withdraw in the second set due to a back injury in the semifinal. 

Medjedovic was leading 4-3 (7-5) 2-1 when Stricker walked to the net and ended the match. 

Medjedovic hit 12 winners to 3 unforced errors. The Serbian player won three matches in the round-robin group. 

Medjedovic won 93% of his first serve points in the first set. Stricker did not drop a point on his first serve. Medjedovic earned his only mini-break to seal the tie-break 7-5. 

Medjedovic earned an early break in the third game of the second set to take a 2-1 lead before Stricker retired from the match. 

Medjedovic reached two semifinals in Gstaad and Astana. He is coached by Viktor Troicki. Stricker advanced to the semifinals at the 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. 

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