Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic won against third seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria at Vienna with a thrilling performance, defeating his opponent 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3. The match lasted a gruelling two hours and 31 minutes. With this win, Machac now looks forward to the Erste Bank Open quarter-finals.
Having made 21 unforced errors during his play, Dimitrov might not now qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. Currently, he ranks 10th in the race to get one of the eight spots for the said competition.
Machac will face Jack Draper of Great Britain in the quarter-finals. Draper, the No.7 seed at the moment, defeated Luciano Darderi of Italy 7-5, 6-1.
In similar news, Russia’s Karen Khachanov won against Brandon Nakashima 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. Czech qualifier Jakub Mensik beat Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia 6-3, 7-6 (7). No.2 seed Alex de Minaur of Australia has moved up, too. He was leading the match 7-6 (2), 3-1 when his opponent, Italy’s Flavio Cobolli, retired.
Winning his first ATP 500-level title, No. 7 seed Jack Draper defeated Karen Khachanov 6-4, 7-5 in the final match of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, Austria.
In a social media post, the athlete expressed: “ATP 500 🏆…Thank you @erstebankopen for an incredible week 😀 #2”
In the second set of the game, Draper was behind as Khachanov rallied to win five straight plays to overcome a 4-0 lead. However, Draper regained control of the match by tying it to 5-5, breaking his opponent’s serve in the 11th game, and coming back from a 15-40 position in the 12th game.
Furthermore, Draper struck 30 winners to Khachanov’s 16, in addition to being exemplary on the net where he also won 14 of 16 points to Khacanov’s 8 of 14.
Twenty-two-year-old Draper’s prior victory on the tour was at Stuttgart, Germany, last June. His opponent, Khachanov, was hoping for his second championship this month after his victory in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Bulgarian player and World No. 17 Grigor Dimitrov was visibly emotional following a thrilling final match at the Rolex Paris Masters. Dimitrov, seated on a bench, partially covered his face with a white towel, exposing only his tearful eyes.
And upon realizing the state that Dimitrov was in, his big-time rival and friend Novak Djokovic abruptly stopped his interview in the middle and rushed over to him to console and embrace him.
It was a beautiful display of sportsmanship between the two tennis veterans, who had come a long way since their professional tennis debut in the early 2000s (2003 for Djokovic and 2008 for Dimitrov).
In an interview, Grigor clarified that those were tears of happiness and that he didn’t want anyone to interpret his feelings negatively.
“Those are happy tears. I don’t want to have them as something negative. I’m human, after all. At the end of the day, I think just the buildup, not only of the last two weeks, the last months of hard work and the big trip in China, everything has been kind of snowballing day after day, match after match,” Dimitrov said as per the ATP tour.
Dimitrov had fought valiantly in the Rolex Paris Masters Final. But even after losing to Djokovic in straight sets of 6-4,6-3, Dimitrov had nothing but kind words to say about the Serb in the awarding ceremony.
“ Honestly I’m so grateful. Novak congrats. I don’t know what to say man. I’m running out of words. Honestly congrats for another amazing week to you and your team. My team, my guys, we’ve had a blast. Thank you to everyone in the box. It’s been an amazing journey this year. Completing another year on such a high note. I’m very pleased with that,” Dimitrov said.
Dimitrov also expressed his gratitude towards the crowd, saying, “Getting to the final means more than what you guys could imagine. It wouldn’t have been possible without you guys.”
Djokovic, in turn, acknowledged Dimitrov’s remarkable performance during the week and expressed his congratulations, “Grigor, sorry about the outcome today. It’s never easy to lose in a final. I want to encourage you to stay tough & keep going. You played some of the greatest tennis I’ve seen you play this week & the last few months. Keep going. Congrats to your team & your family.”
Following his impressive performance in Paris, Dimitrov is set to climb three spots to 14 in Monday’s Pepperstone ATP Rankings, his highest ranking since dropping out of the top 10 in November 2018.
As Daniil Medvedev plunged into the Erste Bank Open, no one expected him to top Spanish world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in one category: most 2023 match victories.
But here he is, on the verge of winning the ATP 500 tour in Vienna, with 64 victories under his belt and officially overtaking Alcaraz’s record. Although the race is far from over, as there are still several tournaments left in the calendar year, it is still a fantastic achievement for the Russian.
September records: Medvedev Tops
The Spanish player was highly commended by the ATP Tour last month for having improved and achieved the highest number of victories in the current season’s tournaments. With 58 victories, Alcaraz held the lead in the ATP Tour, as indicated by Infosys’ ATP Stats. Medvedev, on the other hand, is the only other ATP Tour player to have achieved more than 50 victories.
Erste Bank Open
Medvedev downed several formidable players in the Vienna Open, outlasting up- and coming- French teen player Arthur Fils, World No. 17 Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, Russian-American Karen Khachanov, and finally Greek phenom Stefanos Tsitsipas.
And it was after the semi-final showdown with Tsitsipas that The Tennis Letter announced that Medvedev had secured his 64th win, his personal best, and snatched the title for the most 2023 match victories from Alcaraz.
On X, they wrote, “Medvedev d. Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4 7-6. Daniil takes out his favorite nemesis & gets his 64th win of the season. He passes Carlos Alcaraz for the most match wins in 2023. ✅9th final of 2023✅8th hardcourt final of 2023. A Hardcourt God.”
Medvedev d. Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4 7-6
Daniil takes out his favorite nemesis & gets his 64th win of the season.
He passes Carlos Alcaraz for the most match wins in 2023.
Medvedev kept his level of play at an even keel and appeared to be in control for long periods of the ATP 500 match, setting the momentum of most of the proceedings behind the baseline. The match lasted for an hour and 44 minutes, and Medvedev made just ust 10 unforced errors as he saved all three break points to reach the Vienna final with 6-4 7-6.
Medvedev addressed his prospective opponents in the final, saying that he has faced Jannik three times this year, which may be a record for him, as well as Andrey once.
“They’ve had an amazing year. Jannik is finishing really strong. I want to see how their match goes. It’s good conditions for both of them to play good tennis. Then I will prepare for the winner,” Medvedev said in a statement.
Daniil Medvedev on facing Sinner or Rublev in Vienna Final:
“I played both of them in the finals this year. Jannik 3 times, which is maybe a record for me. Andrey once. They’ve had an amazing year. Jannik is finishing really strong. I want to see how their match goes. It’s good… pic.twitter.com/zw1CIoWecQ
MELBOURNE: An ailing Novak Djokovic said Saturday every moment counted now that he was in the “last stage” of his career, after battling past Grigor Dimitrov and into the Australian Open last 16.
The Serb came through a titanic 77-minute first set before taming the Bulgarian 7-6 (9/7), 6-3, 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena, needing treatment twice on his troublesome hamstring.
He will face home hope Alex de Minaur for a place in the quarter-finals after the 22nd seed defeated Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi in three sets.
Djokovic’s gutsy win inched him nearer to a 10th Australian Open title and record-tying 22 Grand Slam crowns.
Winning once again in Melbourne would also return him to world number one for the first time since June.
Now 35, Djokovic said he was savouring each tournament more.
“Every season counts I guess now, when you come to the last stage, the last quarter, of your career,” he said.
“Obviously you start appreciating and valuing each tournament more because you might not have a lot left in the tank.
“I’ve been truly fortunate to do what I love, I love the sport, I love competing. It’s been almost 20 years now of professional sport. I can’t be more grateful than I am.”
Victory put Djokovic into the last 16 for a 15th time but he was made to work for it, especially with his left hamstring troubling him.
“It kind of always starts well in last few matches, including this one, and then some movement happens and then it gets worse,” he said.
“Pills kick in, some hot cream and stuff. That works for a little bit, then it doesn’t, then works again. It’s really a rollercoaster, honestly.
“I’ll take it match by match. I don’t know what awaits, but I do hope and I have faith for the best.”
Djokovic aggravated his hamstring during his run to a 92nd title at the Adelaide International this month and has been struggling with it since.
– Djokovic agitated –
Djokovic came into the match without his usual off-day practice session to give his leg as much time as possible to recover.
With his left thigh heavily strapped, the Serb broke immediately and consolidated to take an early grip on the first set.
He was cruising but appeared to feel the injury when moving for a shot at 5-3. He managed to earn three set points, which were saved, but was then broken when serving for the set at 5-4.
Agitated, he complained to the umpire about being given a time violation and was then forced to save two set points, before an epic tiebreak.
He eventually got over the line on his fifth set point after some intense tennis.
Djokovic took a medical timeout at the changeover and returned to dial up the pressure and take a break before comfortably seeing out the second set.
With Dimitrov flagging, he turned the screws further by breaking twice early in set three.
Despite a mid-set wobble when the Bulgarian clawed back and then more treatment on his leg, Djokovic battled to the finish line.
De Minaur, who is aiming for a first quarter-final at Melbourne Park, now awaits Djokovic after a 7-6 (7/0), 6-2, 6-1 victory.
“These are the matches you want to be playing,” said the Australian.
Alexander Zverev victorious at the Paris Masters, Daniil Medvedev lost
Alexander Zverev easily defeated Tallon Griekspoor -6(2), 6-3 at the start of his Paris Masters campaign.
Third seed Zverev was in excellent form, hitting 19 winners, committing only nine unforced errors, and completing 86% of his first serves. After winning the match, the athlete declared: “One of the fastest courts I’ve ever played on. I had to find my rhythm in the beginning but was happy to come through in the end.”
Meanwhile, Daniil Medvedev, the fourth seed from Russia, lost to Alexei Popyrin 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(4).
Australia’s Popyrin survived a second-set breakdown to secure a spot in the next round, while former US Open winner Medvedev was unable to advance. Medvedev pulled out in a controversy at the same event last season after making an offensive gesture to the fans.
American athletes Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton were also eliminated from the tournament. Fifth seed Fritz was defeated 7-6(6), 4-6, 6-4 by Jack Draper of Britain in a close match, while Shelton was defeated 6-3, 7-6(4) by Arthur Cazaux, the Frenchman who entered the event after top player Jannik Sinner withdrew due to a virus.
