The History of Men's Tennis (Open Era)

…2023…

The European clay-court season begins in Portugal every year since 1990. Casper Ruud, who was the runner-up in four big tournaments last year (two majors included), began this season in poor form (5-6 record). However, after a few hardcourt disappointments, he reminded himself that he belongs to the Top 5 best players on clay and collected his 10th title, all of which were at the “250” level. “I felt great. My entire stay was great, with the fans, great stadium, great atmosphere on this court,” said the Norwegian. “The stadium was full every time I played, so thank you to everyone who was here today and throughout the week.”
Terrible weather plagued the event in Texas, with three days of constant rain. Second-round matches and quarterfinals were played on Saturday, with semifinals and the final held on Sunday. Frances Tiafoe responded very well to the demanding task of winning four matches within two days. The top-seeded American did not drop a set but was close to losing it in the final, as he trailed 3:5 in the second-set tie-break. Tiafoe and Tommy Paul are striving to follow in the footsteps of their fellow American Taylor Fritz, who is currently ranked in the Top 10. Here is a comparison of the rankings of these three players at the same period of the season now [11-18-10] and exactly two years ago [67-53-30]. The progress is visible, but it’s unlikely that all three of them will be in the Top 10 at the same time. However, Tiafoe and Paul seem to be on their way to achieving that at different points in 2023. Tiafoe said, “I don’t know you that well, but I know you real well after today. It was an absolute war and an unbelievable final. I hope you guys in the crowd all enjoyed it because that’s what it’s about.”
In Morocco, the draw was not impressive, with no Top 20 player, and the top-seeded Italian, Lorenzo Musetti, is out of form this year. The 30-year-old Roberto Carballés Baena [82], a player with a clearly negative win/loss ratio, took advantage of it and claimed his second title being four points away from defeat in the final. He celebrated the success lying on his back, just like five years ago in Quito, where he won his maiden title (Tiafoe also waited five years for his second title). French Alexandre Müller, the beaten finalist, becomes a new Top 100 player. Six weeks ago he showed up positively for the first time at the ATP Tour level, advancing to the Doha quarterfinal. Historically he’s the fourth “miller” inside the Top 100 following Afrikaner Gary Muller (retired 1995), German Lars BurgsMüller (retired 2007) and Gilles Müller of Luxembourg (retired 2018).

…1993…

Andrei Medvedev, the teenage revelation from Ukraine, in Catalonia (“Torneo Godó”), claimed his second title within two weeks. This time the assignment was more demanding: in the third round, he faced a player he had defeated in the final of the previous week, followed by a match against legend Ivan Lendl, who was 14 years his senior. Medvedev then faced one of the best clay-courters, Thomas Muster, and finally Sergi Bruguera, who was determined to win the home title after suffering two five-set defeats to Dutch players in the Davis Cup two weeks before on the same “Real Club” court. The Ukrainian withstood a double set point at 1-1 in sets against Bruguera, in convincing style. It’s worth noting that Medvedev’s former junior teammate from the Soviet Union, Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov [253], reached his first quarterfinal after being recognized for his talent and awarded a “wild card”. Kafelnikov shocked Michael Stich in the third round, and it was revealed that he would become one of Stich’s toughest opponents in the future.
Japan. For the second time in his career, the 21-year-old Pete Sampras entered an event with a possibility of becoming the best player in the world. Just like during Indian Wells ’93, his destiny was correlated with Jim Courier‘s result. Courier suffered a sensational defeat to big-serving Jonathan Stark [77] in the third round, which meant that Sampras needed to advance to the semifinals to overtake him. “This is a great achievement, and I’m sure that it will sink in later. I’m going to be the same guy out on court. I’ve got a match to play tomorrow, and that’s what I’m going to think about,” said Sampras after his quarterfinal 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 victory over David Wheaton, with both players winning the same amount of points (86). Sampras played the semifinal and final in a relaxed mode, displaying superb tennis that defined the entire 90s. It was clear that if he continued to play like this, he would be the best in the world for a few years, and that prediction became a reality.

…Finals 2023…

Estoril (ATP 250, clay outdoors)
(1)🇳🇴Casper Ruud d. (6)🇷🇸Miomir Kecmanović 6-2, 7-6(3)
Houston (ATP 250, maroon clay outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Frances Tiafoe d. (8)🇦🇷Tomás M. Etcheverry 7-6(1), 7-6(6)
Marrakech (ATP 250, clay outdoors)
🇪🇸Roberto Carballés Baena d. 🇫🇷Alexandre Müller 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-2

…Finals 1993…

Barcelona ($750K, clay outdoors)
(9)🇺🇦Andrei Medvedev d. (7)🇪🇸Sergi Bruguera 6-7(7), 6-3, 7-5, 6-4
Tokyo ($915K, hard outdoors)
(2)🇺🇸Pete Sampras d. (7)🇺🇸Brad Gilbert 6-2, 6-2, 6-2

…2023…

Although the courts at Indian Wells are considered as the slowest hardcourts and those in Miami as the fastest (alongisde Dubai), only one replacement in the semifinals comparing these two US events of the “Sunshine Double” – Karen Khachanov replaced Frances Tiafoe. The tall Russian [16] won his biggest title 4.5 years ago (Paris ’18), two years ago became a Silver medallist at the Olympics, but I’d argue he’s been in the form of his life in the past six months, reaching three semifinals of big events (US Open, Aussie Open, Miami). He became the only man to steal a set from Daniil Medvedev [5], who is also in top form, but one level (at least) above Khachanov. Medvedev was fortunate with the draw in the fortnight, advancing to the semifinals facing opponents akin to Challengers. Christopher Eubans [119, qualifier], a two-meter skinny American, whom Medvedev defeated in the quarterfinal, had never entered the Top 100 before. “I haven’t won’t such a big title in probably a year and a half,” Medvedev said after his final victory over Jannik Sinner, who reached the Miami final for the second time in his career. “At the end I was quite shaky. Not even tight, because I’m not scared to win. But still the hands get a little shaky so the serve is a little bit tougher. I managed to get myself together and close the match.” In the 38-year-old history of the event, had never spectators witnessed as many tie-breaks as this March (48). The first Saturday was really crazy: there were two matches with the scoreline 6-7, 7-6, 7-6, and what’s more intriguing, they were won after saving match points in two different sets, by Quentin Halys & Hubert Hurkacz, players of divergent levels, nonetheless both not known for winning dramatic matches with high frequency. Especially Hurkacz’s (10/12, 9/7, 8/6) over Thanasi Kokkinakis was really impressive, it lasted 3 hours 30 minutes (the longest 2-1 match this year). The Pole trailed 4:6 in two consecutive tie-breaks having wasted six set points in the first set! He arguably has the best serve among players at the top of the game, and recently plays more tie-breaks than anyone else. The defending champion, Carlos Alcaraz lost in the semifinal 7-6, 4-6, 2-6 to Sinner squandering two mini-match points (two weeks earlier in the IW semifinal, Alcaraz beat Sinner 7-6, 6-3, so he was five points away to repeat the scoreline). Similarly to the Rio final a few weeks ago, Alcaraz suffered cramps in the 3rd set. This should be noted, but not be worrisome in terms of his further development, at least for the time being. He was sidelined for a few months, and it seems this young body couldn’t cope with the amazingly energetic tennis he tries to propose week-by-week. I assume he won’t have similar problems for the rest of the season. I expect him to claim two out of the four biggest titles on clay this year.

…1993…

The first round of the 82nd edition of the Davis Cup occurred five days after the Key Biscayne final. Five ties were played indoors (four on carpet, clay in Vienna). Czechia for the first time under a new name (Czech Republic then) taking legacy of Czechoslovakia. At the time there were three Czechs in the Top 100 while the highest ranked Slovak (Karol Kučera) was no. 235. Slovaks will make their Davis Cup debut in 1994. The most dramatic tie, featuring a miraculous outcome, took place in Barcelona where Spain was shocked by the Netherlands (its first advancement to the quarterfinals). Mark Koevermans [155] displayed a heroic effort in the deciding rubber; he trailed 0-2 against one of the best clay-courters, soon-to-be the double French Open champion Sergi Bruguera [16], yet somehow he was able to play a transcendental tennis, and won 3-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 after thrilling 4 hours 32 minutes under the floodlights, trailing 2:4 in the decider. Sometimes it’s a matter of synergy, the Dutchman knew how to play against Bruguera, he defeated him for the 6th time in their eighth meetings (all on clay, including on the same court a year before at the Olympics). It’s the last main-level singles win in Koevermans’ career, later that year he retired due to physical problems at the age of 25 (continued in 1994 only in doubles). “I was so tired that I couldn’t even pick myself up anymore”, said a very happy Koevermans. “I had no energy left to encourage me. But I often watched the reactions of the players in the stands and they gave me that extra energy. In the fourth set I felt the whole atmosphere that there was a surprise in the air hung. At a certain point you get into a trance and you are lived.” Before Koevermans enjoyed the most amazing emotions of his career becoming a national hero, Paul Haarhuis had done a lot, defeating in five sets Bruguera and Carlos Costa, also erasing a two-sets-to-love deficit against the latter, withstanding a double match point in the fourth set tie-break. The loss of the United States (defending champion) to Australia could be considered as a sensation, but the Americans travelled over the Pacific Ocean without any of their four best players. What’s more bizarre, the team captain Tom Gorman decided to appoint David Wheaton and Brad Gilbert, the players who were conflicted since their famous quarrel at the Grand Slam Cup ’90. “It’s nice, certainly, to win the last match – but they won the war,” said Wheaton, who participated in his first and last Davis Cup tie. Thanks to him, the Americans avoided a first 0-5 Davis Cup loss since 1973 (also against Australia). The 1992 runner-up, Switzerland, suffered a defeat too. The Swiss team competing with their two best players, couldn’t deal with a specific Indian grass. Jakob Hlasek completely disappointed, quickly losing his both singles rubbers.

First round (host first)
Australia – USA 4-1, Italy – Brazil 5-0, Austria – France 1-4, India – Switzerland 3-2
Spain – Netherlands 2-3, Sweden – Cuba 5-0, Russia – Germany 1-4, Denmark – Czechia 1-4

The first European clay-court event (Estoril) of the season was won by Andrei Medvedev. The 19-year-old Ukrainian had a tough match in the second round against Francisco Roig – one of the closest people of Rafael Nadal, who was 7 at the time. Magnus Larsson lost his first deciding tie-break, having won 12 in a row (!) at the main-level. He was a victim of Karel Nováček, who advanced to his fourth final of 1993, in three different conditions (hard, carpet, clay)… The first leg of the Asian tour (four weeks: 2 Japan, 1 China, 1 Korea) brought a sensational defeat of Jim Courier in the semifinal to Amos Mansdorf. “Rankings are important to everybody, but it is more important to win tournaments and major titles,” Courier said about his tightening rivalry with Pete Sampras. “Pete deserves to be number one and I’m just thinking about what I’m going to do in a tournament.” Michael Chang claimed his 11th title, but already in the first round he was struggling against a young German of the Czech origin David Prinosil, trailing *3:4 in the 3rd set… Marcos Ondruska was in a form of his life, so an all-South African meeting of him against Wayne Ferreira could be anticipated by the local fans in the Durban semifinal. Instead of Ondruska, other Afrikaner, 22-year-old Grant Stafford [161] faced Ferreira, and stunned him, reaching the first of his three ATP finals (each on a different surface) not having played an ATP quarterfinal before. Aaron Krickstein who won the title, was playing his second tournament after an 8-month injury (broken bone in left foot).

…Finals 2023…

Miami (Masters 1000, hard outdoors) –  week 12/13
(4)🇷🇺Daniil Medvedev d. (10)🇮🇹Jannik Sinner 7-5, 6-3

…Finals 1993…

Davis Cup | first round | – week 12
Estoril ($500K, clay outdoors) – week 13
(5)🇺🇦Andrei Medvedev d. (4)🇨🇿Karel Nováček 6-4, 6-2
Osaka ($475K, hard outdoors)
(2)🇺🇸Michael Chang d. (5)🇮🇱Amos Mansdorf 6-4, 6-4
Durban ($275K, hard outdoors)
(5)🇺🇸Aaron Krickstein d. (WC)🇿🇦Grant Stafford 6-2, 7-6(7)

Top 10 after the first quarter of the year:
1993: Courier – Sampras – Edberg – Becker – Korda – Ivanisevic – Agassi – Lendl – Chang – Stich
2023: Djokovic – Alcaraz – Tsitsipas – D.Medvedev – Ruud – Rublev – Auger – Rune – Sinner – Fritz

…2023…

This year the “Sunshine Double” without two legends: Rafael Nadal (recovers from injury) & Novak Đoković (vaccination status). Nadal, last year’s Indian Wells runner-up, is out of the Top 10 in the newest ranking for the first time in 18 years (912 weeks)! Carlos Alcaraz took advantage of Đoković’s absence and came back to No. 1. He has surpassed 100 matches won at the main-level (one match fewer to do this needed only John McEnroe, 1979). In the windy & cloudy final, the teenage sensation overpowered Daniil Medvedev, who was on a 19-match winning streak playing four events week-by-week (previously so efficient within a month was Goran Ivanišević in 1996… title-runner.up-title-title). “It means a lot to me. To recover the No. 1 [ranking] is crazy for me,” Alcaraz said after the final. “But especially to lift the trophy here for me means a lot… I love this tournament. I really enjoy my time here and of course I felt the love from the people from day one. For me, it’s amazing to complete these 10 days like this.” Alcaraz didn’t drop a set en route to the title, the toughest match he had in the semifinal when faced a set point against Jannik Sinner (saved it with a combination dropshot-volley, FH side both shots). Félix Auger-Aliassime notched a rare feat withstanding a triple match point at two junctions of his fourth round encounter with Tommy Paul. The Canadian trailed *5:6 (0/40) in the decider, later on *3:6 in the tie-break before winning 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (three of six m.p. he saved with unreturned serves; Paul had a relatively good position to convert his second m.p.). Good period for the Chilean tennis lately; Nicolás Jarry recently won a title in Santiago, he couldn’t play at Indian Wells, but his compatriots (Cristian Garín & Alejandro Tabilo) – as qualifiers – advanced to the fourth round. Matteo Berrettini suffers a crisis; the tall Italian was a Top 10er for three years, after the Australian Open he dropped outside the Top 20 and it doesn’t seem he would return where he was: at Indian Wells he lost his opening match, and decided to take part in a Challenger in Phoenix (his first event at this level in four years) where he was beaten again by a player ranked outside the Top 100 (this time in the quarterfinal). Gaël Monfils [210] unsuccessfully came back to the tour after a 7-month hiatus (foot injury), he turns 37 this year, tough to expect he might be dangerous again.

…1993…

After the “Sunshine Double” Pete Sampras maintained status quo from a situation three weeks earlier. Before Indian Wells ’93 he had a chance to become No. 1, but lost in the third round while Jim Courier claimed the title. At Key Biscayne (the only two-week event outside Slams then) the roles were reversed: Courier was sensationally ousted in the fourth round while Sampras finished as a champion. The new-comer Marcos Ondruska continued his impressive run in the US events; the young South African almost advanced to the final having eliminated two top players (Chang, Stich) – in the 172-minute semifinal he squandered a double break advantage, then led 5:4 on serve in the deciding tie-break, but ultimately succumbed to MaliVai Washington 6-2, 4-6, 6-7(5). Ondruska seemed to be on his way to become a Top 20 player at least, but it was basically the finish of his development at the age of 20, and to the end of his career nine years later he would not win three straight matches at this level (in Florida he almost won six). It was a unique event for Boris Becker. The German who as struggling with an injury in February, arrived in Florida, but in the second round he got a walkover, whereas in the third round he was unable to play because his injury renewed & withdrew, so he received a check ($8,400) not hitting a ball while four other players, earned the same amount of money for playing five matches (three qualifiers and a lucky loser). Vincent Spadea [524, WC], the Orange Bowl ’92 champion, began his very long career at the main-level with a first round win over Andrés Gómez, on the verge of retirement then. Andre Agassi, similarly to Indian Wells, disappointed, but he began the event in impressive style: in his first two matches he had a streak of 19 games won in a row (!) once he withstood a double set point vs Aaron Krickstein. “I’ve always had the shots,” Agassi said after that win. “My game has been good enough to do better than what I’ve done. The one part I needed to spend energy on was my mental approach and discipline and concentration level and commitment to the sport. And that’s what I’ve really been working on.” People were speculating that it’d be his season, but he needed to wait another two years to fulfill his tremendous potential.
During two weeks of Key Biscayne, two minor tournaments were played on two different surfaces. Aragon, in the semifinal Karel Novacek [17] avenged a Rotterdam defeat to Anders Järryd two weeks before, and collected his 12th title, not playing even once at 5-all in five matches which was quite unusual given the fast surface… Björn Borg [762] lost his penultimate match in Spain, leaving a good impression against the best Portuguese of the 90s, João Cunha Silva [113].
The defending champion Guillermo Pérez-Roldán claimed his last title, in Morocco. The Argentine [44] who built his career almost entirely on clay-court events, was one of the most successful teenagers in the late 80s (peaked in 1988 reaching the final in Rome), but at the age of 24 he already reached his physical limitations (right wrist). In Casablanca, just like a year before, he began his season. The beaten finalist, local favorite, 22-year-old Younes el Aynaoui [243], played just his fifth main-level event (third in Casablanca). El Aynaoui gained self-confidence upon that final and several good results at the Challenger circuit, helped him to make a transition to the ATP Tour in the second half of the year.

…Finals 2023…

Indian Wells (Masters 1000, hard outdoors) – week 10/11
(1)🇪🇸Carlos Alcaraz d. (5)🇷🇺Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-2

Phoenix (Challenger 175; hard outdoors) – week 11
(alt.)🇵🇹Nuno Borges vs. (q)🇷🇺Alexander Shevchenko 4-6, 6-2, 6-1

…Finals 1993…

Key Biscayne ($1.400M, hard outdoors) – week 10/11
(2)🇺🇸Pete Sampras d. (14)🇺🇸MaliVai Washington 6-3, 6-2
Saragossa ($175K, carpet indoors) – week 10
(1)🇨🇿Karel Nováček d. (4)🇸🇪Jonas Svensson 3-6, 6-2, 6-1
Casablanca ($175K, clay outdoors) – week 11
(3)🇦🇷Guillermo Pérez-Roldán d. (WC)🇲🇦Younes el Aynaoui 6-4, 6-3

The past four weeks I’ve worked a lot to improve Time-Line on my website, I created it in 2011 and neglected updating two years later… clicking on the link you can read about the most important players & occurrences of the Open Era in chronological order, and use another links to read what interesting happened in particular decades year by year

…2023…

Comeback of four players of the broader elite (by this I mean current/former Top 10ers to play major semifinals at least) who didn’t participate in any tournament since Australian Open: Novak Đoković & Karen Khachanov [Dubai], Casper Ruud & Matteo Berrettini [Acapulco]. The Serb has now 378 weeks spent as the No. 1 surpassing Steffi Graff‘s record. He was the only off those four guys who could be moderately happy with his performance after the break, even though his 20-match winning streak is snapped, by Daniil Medvedev who claimed his third title within three weeks (!) becoming the first man to win back-to-back Arabian finals (since Doha was moved from January to February two years ago). It’s the third year running a Russian player triumphs in Dubai (Aslan Karatsev in 2021). Trivia: Maxime Cressy established a new record for double faults in a three set match (25); as many as four ‘lucky losers’ entered the event which is unique (none of them advanced to the second round though); defending champion Andrey Rublev survived 2R withstanding a quintuple match point in the 2nd set tie-break, he has won three MP-down matches this year; 39-year-old Tunisian Malek Jaziri [444, WC] played his last professional match, one of a few Arabs in the Top 50, played a lone ATP final (Istanbul ’18), but the biggest success he achieved in Dubai earlier that year, advancing to the semifinal, having eliminated the top seed in 1R.
Two heroes of the “Golden Swing” (Carlos Alcaraz, Cameron Norrie) were too tired to play a third consecutive Latin week after nine matches on clay in South America. They withdrew from Acapulco, pretty special event in the calendar in which almost all matches are played under the floodlights because the weather is punishing. During the day-time the temperature is above 30 degrees, in the evening when it drops (~25°C), the humidity (~90%) makes life very difficult on the court. It was especially visible in the semifinals: Tommy Paul vs Taylor Fritz, an intriguing battle “who is the best US player?”, created a new record of the event for the longest match (3 hours 25 minutes); both were suffering cramps in the decider (Fritz even vomited before the deciding tie-break). In the second semifinal, cramps also attacked Holger Rune, quite surprisingly already after the second set of his match against Alex de Minaur [22], so the new Danish star actually played the entire set barely walking to his chair during change of ends (he served a few times underhand). De Minaur has collected his biggest title to date; he generated the most energy for the weekend, the first two rounds helped him a lot to do it because his opponents were like guys taken out of the Futures circuit, ranked 1244 and 842. I’ve noticed this year that De Minaur improved his serve, he’s able to hit ~210 kph on a regular basis.
Nicolás Jarry [87] was a Top 40 player in 2019, then something bad happened to him; he suffered a 9-match losing streak,  Covid-19 came afterwards (overlapping his 10-month suspension for taking illegal substances)… he significantly dropped in the ranking, and needed to rebuild his career participating in the Challenger events over two years. He seems to be back to his 2019 form this year; last week he was two games away from a sensational win over Alcaraz in Brazil (semifinal; thanks to this got “special exempt”), this week in his native Chile he managed to go through to his fourth ATP final which he won being two points away from a straight set loss (three points away in the semifinal which he began with 1-6, 0:2). The last stage of the “Latin February”, featured only one Top20er, Lorenzo Musetti, who is out of form this year.

…1993…

California… The first Mercedes Super 9 event of the season. The 56 draw (it’ll be increased to 64 in 2000, and to 96 four years later, prolonging the event to two weeks) which means the top 8 seeds had ‘bye’ in the first round. Three Top 10 players of 1992 withdrew (Becker, Lendl, Krajicek). It was the first event when Pete Sampras could advance to No. 1. He entered the event with an injury (strained ligaments in his right foot) and was ousted already in the third round by an unorthodox Alexander Volkov [22]. “If I would have come here and not (practiced) like I wanted, I would have pulled out. But I was able to play on it and I think it was the right move.” said Sampras about his first attempt to reach the pinnacle of the tennis world. Jim Courier responded well to his challenger, capturing the IW title for the second time (previously two years earlier). The red-haired American dropped just one set during the week, despite facing five demanding opponents; in the quarterfinal against fellow red-haired guy Marc Rosset, avenging defeats at the Olympics and Davis Cup a year before… The luck finally abandoned Michael Stich. Between October ’92 and March ’93 he won as many as nine matches (including Hopman Cup) being five points away from defeat or closer, not losing once as he put himself in a similar position to leave the court as the winner. The magic disappeared in the 2R against Fabrice Santoro, whom Stich had barely defeated two months earlier in Australia. Stich was within two points to notch his fifth MP-down victory in a short period of time as he’d saved 5 match points trailing *4:5 in the 3rd set to get 5-all in the deciding tie-break. Santoro ultimately prevailed 3-6, 7-6, 7-6 withstanding four match points in the second set tie-break.
Russian serve-and-volleyer, Andrei Olhovskiy [87], associated with the Challenger circuit for a few years, entered the year 1993 for the first time as a regular ATP Tour player, and claimed his maiden title in Denmark. The circumstances were favorable, he saved a lot of energy thanks to two Swedes (one of them retired after only six games, the other one gave him a walkover in the semifinal).

…Finals 2023…

Acapulco (ATP 500, hard outdoors)
 (8)🇦🇺Alex de Minaur d. (7)🇺🇸Tommy Paul 3-6, 6-4, 6-1
Dubai (ATP 500, hard outdoors)
(3)🇷🇺Daniil Medvedev d. (2)🇷🇺Andrey Rublev 6-2, 6-2
Santiago (ATP 250, clay outdoors)
(SE)🇨🇱Nicolás Jarry d. 🇦🇷Tomás M. Etcheverry 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 6-2

🇫🇷Sensationally long 3-set “tie-break” matches indoors occurred in the Pau final (Challenger 125): in an all-French duel, 18-year-old Luca van Assche defeated Ugo Humbert 7-6, 4-6, 7-6 after 3 hours 56 minutes, saving a double match point in the deciding tie-break (total points: 141-139)

…Finals 1993…

Indian Wells ($1.400M, hard outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Jim Courier d. (14)🇿🇦Wayne Ferreira 6-3, 6-3, 6-1
Copenhagen ($175K, carpet indoors)
🇷🇺Andrey Olhovskiy d. (5)🇸🇪Nicklas Kulti 7-5, 3-6, 6-2

…2023…

The 31st edition of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. The event moved from January to February two years ago and it was a good decision because players may spend two consecutive weeks in the Arabian Peninsula, in the proximity of the Persian Gulf. Because of that, generally better players come to Doha instead of Rio where the status (more money & points) is theoretically higher… Andy Murray [70], the best player in the world of 2016, has rediscovered his tremendous mental strength this year after a few years with decent ratio of tight matches. Early this year, he won two marathons in Australia; arguably his fighting spirit was more emphasised in Qatar where he faced the upcoming defeat in three matches (saved 3 match points in 1R, five match points in SF, in 2R he was two points away from defeat… all against players ~10 years his junior). “I think when you’re in better shape, when you start to fatigue, it helps you make better decisions. If you’re struggling quite a bit physically towards the end of matches and in those important moments, it makes you maybe try and shorten the points, or play a different way, which doesn’t give you the best chance of wining. I feel like that improvement physically has helped in those moments.” In the Saturday final he hadn’t enough energy to produce another comeback, but fought bravely again, had a break point for 4-all in the opener and led 4:3* in the 2nd set. Daniil Medvedev [8], who collected his second title within two weeks (on two continents), has improved his H2H record to 6:0 vs Félix Auger-Aliassime. Among the best players born in the 90s/00s, it’s the most one-sided rivalry thus far. The Russian has extremely stable baseline game and exploits shaky backhand of the four years younger Canadian.
Higher status of the event in Brazil comparing to two previous “Golden Swing” events in Argentina, 32 draw instead of 28, the same names among top seeded players though, so it wasn’t shocking that 3 out of 4 semifinalists were the same in Buenos Aires and Rio. Appearance in both semifinals of Bernabe Zapata Miralles [63] is a bit surprising. The 26-year-old grunting Spaniard, who hits the ball with a lot of spin, admittedly played the 4th round at French Open a year before, but prior to this season he had never reached an ATP semifinal; until Covid-19 he was a Challenger player. In a repeat of last week’s Buenos final (first Sunday-to-Sunday finals of the same players since 2016), Cameron Norrie [13] was better than Carlos Alcaraz this time, actually better physically prepared to compete nine matches on clay within two weeks. The Brit came back from *0:3 (0/30) in 2nd (courageous overhead from the baseline) and 0:2* (15/30) in 3rd set, to finish the night session 2-hour 40-minute battle with an ace DTT. Impressive achievement, but the young Spaniard was struggling with his right thigh in the decider, he was trying to shorten the points, and almost succeeded – three points away as he led 5:4. If Alcaraz had won the final (equaling Novak Đoković‘s 6980 points), it’d have been a unique situation with two Nos. 1 simultaneously. Norrie is the first man this year to play three ATP finals… [915] Thomaz Bellucci‘s farewell in 1R. The best Brazilian of the previous decade, who had lost a status of the main-level player in 2018, is some sort of an underachiever. When he was in his early 20s, a few French Open quarterfinals could be expected for him, yet he never surpassed the 4th round in Paris, nonetheless he finishes his career with two proud memories: semifinal in Madrid ’11 & quarterfinal in Rio (Olympics ’16) where ten thousand local fans supported him. In both cases he was stopped by the legends of the game (Đoković & Nadal respectively) being a better player for 1.5 sets.
The South of France… Hubert Hurkacz [11] was the main favorite after Jannik Sinner‘s withdrawal. The big-serving Pole didn’t disappoint, but he struggled a lot in the quarterfinal. He faced a match point against Mikael Ymer in the 3rd set tie-break on second serve, then the best Swede (of the Ethiopian origin) sent his backhand long. “Wild card” Arthur Fils confirmed that his semifinal in other southern French city (Montpellier) a few weeks ago, it wasn’t a fluke. The teenage Frenchman has played two Challenger finals this year, his total record is 15-3, he moves from no. 252 to 104 within two months, so certainly he’s the man to watch this year. He’ll be soon the youngest Top 100 player which means he will not need “wild cards” in several ATP tournaments (he has played his last three events thanks to this special card).

…1993…

Withdrawal of two great indoor players (Boris Becker & Ivan Lendl) opened the draw for unpredictable outcomes in the Netherlands, nonetheless it was exceptionally tough to expect that “wild card” Anders Järryd would finish the week with the highest prize. The 31-year-old Järryd [156], one of the best players of the mid 80s, was more associated with doubles in the early 90s; admittedly he played one final in each of two previous seasons, but both in Copenhagen, an ATP event one level below Rotterdam. Carpet was his favorite surface though, and that week his return skills were superior to the good serving opponents. Especially his 6-3, 6-4 quarterfinal win over Goran Ivanišević shocked spectators. Järryd had defeated the Croat after a similar scoreline, but five years earlier when they both were in completely different stages of their careers. “I really needed to get a win like this again,” the Swede said. “The last time I won a tournament was in 1990 in Vienna. This is a big tournament. Getting to the final and winning it meant I had to beat four seeded players. That’s telling something about the standard of my game at the moment.”
Arizona… Michael Chang pulled out, and Andre Agassi was the main favorite to the title. Agassi began his campaign with a double bagel over a tall serve-and-volleyer Sandon Stolle, and continued his dominance until the 2nd set final against Marcos Ondruska. The 20-year-old South African of Czechoslovakian origin (Ondruška) was enjoying tennis of his life in the first quarter of that season on the US courts: San Francisco (QF), Scottsdale (final) and Key Biscayne (SF) – these three events allowed him to make a jump from no. 73 to 27 (career-high). In the following year he was degraded to Challengers and stayed there to the end of his career with occasional ATP Tour flirts.
The 33-year-old Andrés Gómez [183], former French Open champion, reminded he wasn’t done yet, playing a tight match in the first round against the top seed in Mexico (inaugural edition, the event moved from Mexico City to Acapulco in 2001). The Ecuadorian was returning to the tour after a 7-month break, but another tournaments didn’t help him to improve his ranking. The local favorite, Oliver Fernández [197], talented junior, reached his first and last ATP semifinal. He was a big hope for the Mexican tennis after many years since Raul Ramirez‘s retirement. Fernández was unable to enter the Top 100 though, and after a serious injury in 1994 he decided to quit at a young age.

…Finals 2023…

Rio de Janeiro (ATP 500, clay outdoors)
(2)🇬🇧Cameron Norrie d. (1)🇪🇸Carlos Alcaraz 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
Doha (ATP 250, hard outdoors)
(3)🇷🇺Daniil Medvedev d. (WC)🇬🇧Andy Murray 6-4, 6-4
Marseille (ATP 250, hard indoors)
(1)🇵🇱Hubert Hurkacz d. 🇫🇷Benjamin Bonzi 6-3, 7-6(4)

…Finals 1993…

Rotterdam ($575K, carpet indoors)
(WC)🇸🇪Anders Järryd d. (7)🇨🇿Karel Nováček 6-3, 7-5
Scottsdale ($275K, hard outdoors)
(2)🇺🇸Andre Agassi d. 🇿🇦Marcos Ondruska 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
Mexico City ($275K, clay outdoors)
(2)🇦🇹Thomas Muster d. (1)🇪🇸Carlos Costa 6-2, 6-4

…2023…

Very strong field in Rotterdam… Jannik Sinner [14] was unseeded, and it created a unique situation that in 2R two players met, who presumably finish several years together in the Top 10 this decade: Sinner, with surprising ease, avenged four straight defeats to Stefanos Tsitsipas – the Greek has a decent chance to become No. 1 in the world in April (especially if Novak Đoković is forced to skip the Indian Wells/Miami combo). Daniil Medvedev [11] captured the title easily, he admittedly dropped two sets, but all ten required sets he won having big advantage over his opponents… The revival of Dutch tennis is noticeable, for the first time since 2003 two Dutchmen advanced to the Rotterdam quarterfinals (both ‘wild cards’). There were years in the 90s with 4-5 players from the Netherlands in the Top 100, in the previous decade Robin Haase was hanging alone in it, and currently there are two Top 50 blondes, wearing caps everywhere, with bizarre surnames: Botic van de Zandschulp (“of the sand shell”) and Tallon Griekspoor (“Greek track”, semifinalist this week). Two other guys who may advance to the Top 100 soon: Tim van Rijthoven and Gijs Brouwer (quarter-finalist this week).
Carlos Alcaraz [2] returned to action after a 3.5-month break in Buenos Aires. He wasn’t rusty since the first points, lost a set in his opening round, against a clay-court specialist who played his best tennis at the final stages of that set. The runner-up Cameron Norrie [12, first player to lose two finals this year; drops to 4-9 in finals] surprised me choosing the Golden Swing, but I think it’s a consequence of the Davis Cup – Britain played as a guest in Colombia, and Norrie apparently decided to stay in South America for a month. “I felt very comfortable playing the final,” Alcaraz said post-match. “I knew that it was going to be really difficult. I started really focused on what I had to do at the beginning, my game, my level. This is the level that I have to play in finals.” I suspect the shortest Top 100 player, 30-year-old Diego Schwartzman [32] is done after four years in the Top 20. The Argentine has won just 1 of his last 11 matches, fighting for every point for so many years finally takes its toll. Playing in front of the local crowd it was a very good opportunity to reverse the unfavourable fate, yet he was destroyed in both Argentinian events by inferior opponents.
Florida… Matija Pecotić [784], the 33-year-old Croat who wasn’t known even as a Challenger player, became the second oldest player to win a maiden ATP match. He went through the qualifying event and stunned in the first round Jack Sock who has been struggling with injuries since 2018 and plays sporadically. The title captured the main favorite Taylor Fritz [7] who has been playing tie-breaks with fantastic efficiency lately, 12-1 record (16-1 including a December Exhibition in Saudi Arabia). At Delray Beach, Fritz added another two tie-breaks. “The fans especially, the turnout was incredible and it makes me really proud to be an American playing at a home event, with many people in the stands.” said Fritz after the final in which he wasted a match point in the 2nd set. Thanks to this title, he has secured No. 5 in the world next Monday.

…1993…

Michael Stich [11], the Stuttgart titlist, was extremely lucky that he survived the second round match: he was trailing 4:5* (15/40) in the 3rd set against the Olympic gold medalist Marc Rosset. The Swiss player, known for his unconventional behavior, decided to finish the match with an ace and committed two double faults in a row risking his second serves! Stich was also lucky that two top seeded players, his potential opponents in back-to-back matches, withdrew during the event: Petr Korda (upset stomach) and Boris Becker (fever). Especially avoiding Becker was very beneficial because at the time German fans loved Becker instead of Stich (it’d slightly change at the end of the season) and one week before Becker destroyed Stich in Milan. In the final the local umpire (Peter Richter of Stuttgart) helped Stich a bit. Richard Krajicek fired an apparent ace saving the first match point, but the linesman called it out. Richter didn’t intervene. On Krajicek’s second serve Stich played a perfect forehand passing-shot. One year before they played similarly tight match in the Australian Open quarterfinal. Then triumphed Krajicek, he also won their third and last five-setter, another Stuttgart final (in 1995). “I would have been happy with much less money because I’ve been waiting for an ATP victory for a long time,” said Stich, commenting a big winner prize in the second richest ATP event of the season (only “Masters” offered more that year). At 5-all in the decider against Krajicek, Stich withstood two mini-match points with volleys.
Pennsylvania… Derrick Rostagno [91] could increase his level facing top players, and he benefited from Jim Courier‘s tiredness after exceptionally demanding previous week in Memphis. Rostagno stunned the No. 1 in the world in straight sets, snapping his 12-match winning streak, and it was an important moment of the season because Pete Sampras reaching the semifinal that week, began to chase his one year older compatriot. The doubles specialist Mark Woodforde [44] captured his 4th and the biggest singles title. He took advantage of Ivan Lendl‘s retirement in the 62-minute final. Lendl lost the first point of the 10th game (thanks to that Woodforde edged 40-39 in total points) and decided to quit… he suffered a pulled muscle on his left side just below the rib cage. Woodforde almost avoided playing a match point also against Rostagno in the semifinal because an angry American slammed a ball towards the umpire, he could be disqualified, but only got a penalty point. Their shake-hand was very awkward, similar to the one I observed after the Delreay Beach ’23 quarterfinal between Mackenzie McDonald & Michael Mmoh.

…Finals 2023…

Rotterdam (ATP 500, hard indoors)
(6)🇷🇺Daniil Medvedev d. 🇮🇹Jannik Sinner 5-7, 6-2, 6-2
Delray Beach (ATP 250, hard outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Taylor Fritz d. (4)🇷🇸Miomir Kecmanović 6-0, 5-7, 6-2
Buenos Aires (ATP 250, clay outdoors)
(1)🇪🇸Carlos Alcaraz d. (2)🇬🇧Cameron Norrie 6-3, 7-5

…Finals 1993…

Stuttgart ($2,125M, carpet indoors)
(6)🇩🇪Michael Stich d. (5)🇳🇱Richard Krajicek 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(4), 3-6, 7-5
Philadelphia ($575K, hard indoors)
🇦🇺Mark Woodforde d. (4)🇺🇸Ivan Lendl 5-4 ret.

...2023…

When I looked at the draws in Dallas & Cordoba, I thought that all-American and all-Argentinian finals were probable. In Texas 15 of 28 players were Americans, in Cordoba 10 of 28 were Argentinians – the two top seeds were local players in both events. In Cordoba indeed – the final was an all-Argentinian affair, but in Dallas the 23-year-old Wu Yibing [97] spoiled the party. In his last two matches, Wu trailed 6-7, 4:5 (0/30) against the local players, but found his way to victory not showing many emotions. In the almost three-hour final against John Isner [39], he saved four match points in total; one in the 2nd set, and another three in the deciding tie-break (Isner had the ball in play on each occasion, one of those MPs he should have won with a volley). I was wondering for many years how it was possible that such a huge, rich country like China, having ATP events since 1996, couldn’t produce at least one Top 100 player. Now China has two guys in the Top 100 and Wu’s potential is much bigger than that. His baseline game is impressive, I especially like his cross-court forehand, he’s able to accelerate the ball effortlessly. Last year he became the first Chinese to win a Grand Slam match in the Open Era, now he becomes the first one to claim an ATP title (no Chinese before him even played a semifinal). He’s some sort of a late-bloomer because he couldn’t play tennis for two and a half years (due to elbow, lower back, shoulder and wrist injuries) after successful junior career.
It’s a rarity to claim an ATP title with only three wins, that’s the case of Jannik Sinner [17] – the Italian had ‘bye’ first, then received a walkover in 2R, another three matches he won quite easily in the southern French city. The France-born US representative, Maxime Cressy [51] is the only current Top 100 serve-and-volleyer, but his style is unique, actually incomparable with anyone from the past. The almost two-meter-tall player hits 1st and 2nd serves with similar power which oscillates around 180-210 kph. Double digit of double faults in his three-set matches is calculated into his style. Arthur Fils [163] reached the semifinal in his second ATP appearance. The 18-year-old Frenchman (first player born in 2004 to win an ATP match) defeated two very experienced players, he’s certainly a man to watch. The defending champion Alexander Bublik [50] has lost nine straight matches. Facing a match point in the deciding 3rd set tie-break, he was so frustrated that devastated three racquets at the change of ends.
Sebastian Baez [47], the titlist in Cordoba, prior to the event had won just 1 out of his last 18 matches! He’s the second shortest player (170 cm) in the Top 100, his chances outside clay are limited, yet his shorter compatriot Diego Schwartzman (168 cm) found his way to be dangerous on faster surfaces too. The beaten finalist, 30-year-old Federico Coria has just played 2 ATP finals, his ten years older brother Guillermo Coria, had played the first two ATP finals already as a teenager… It’s been 22nd year of the Golden Swing, a series of clay-court events held in Latin America; in 2001 the first mini-tour led through Vina del Mar (Chile), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Costa do Sauipe (Brazil) & Acapulco (Mexico); this year players from Cordoba move to Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) & Santiago (Chile).

…1993…

In his first years on the tour, Sergi Bruguera [17] was associated almost entirely with clay-courts, in Milano he reached his first final outside clay; it was a prognostic of things to come, he improved his serve and strengthened ground-strokes, it’d help him to win two major titles soon. In the first round he barely survived, but another three matches won against very good indoor players. He had no chance in the final though, facing the best indoor player at the time. For Boris Becker [4] it was his third consecutive title indoors (he finished the 1992 season with two titles), in retrospect I know it was the end of his reign on the faster surfaces, nevertheless, he had still three good years ahead.
Very similar prize money in Memphis, but the draw consisted of 48 players as opposed to 32 in Milan. Jim Courier [1] didn’t belong to the most efficient players when he and his rivals were close to victory, but that week in Tennessee, fresh after clinching his second Aussie Open title, he was a mental giant from the third round onwards. First, in 3R he withstood a match point on serve, then in QF a match point on return (against a big-serving opponent), in the semifinal he was two games away from defeat, and in the final a few points away in two consecutive sets. During the 2-hour 43-minute final against his peer Todd Martin [96, first ATP final], Courier squandered five match points at 5:4*, but stayed composed (a year before he lost a final in Brussels wasting good chances in three sets leading 2-0!). “I think the win against Agassi just made me feel like I could compete at the highest level and win,” Martin said, after his breakthrough tournament. “I’ve come close, but I never won against the best players in the world.” Courier explained that his tormented route to the title was caused by the change of sleep patterns following his comeback to the United States from Australia. In two matches he collected fewer points, and he won as many points as his opponent in the semifinal. The first of three cases in the 90s when the champion was one point away from defeat in two matches.

…Finals 2023…

Montpellier (ATP 250, hard indoors)
(2)🇮🇹Jannik Sinner d. 🇺🇸Maxime Cressy 7-6(3), 6-3
Dallas (ATP 250, hard indoors)
🇨🇳Wu Yibing d. (5)🇺🇸John Isner 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 7-6(12) – 4 m.p.
Cordoba (ATP 250, clay outdoors)
(4)🇦🇷Sebastian Baez d. (6)🇦🇷Federico Coria 6-1, 3-6, 6-3

…Finals 1993…

Milan ($675K, carpet indoors)
(2)🇩🇪Boris Becker d. 🇪🇸Sergi Bruguera 6-3, 6-3
Memphis ($655K, hard indoors)
(1)🇺🇸Jim Courier d. 🇺🇸Todd Martin 5-7, 7-6(4), 7-6(4)

…2023…

The 111th edition of the Davis Cup. This team competition lost its prestige five years ago (Croatia d. France in the final). Between 1981 and 2018 everything was clear: World Group consisted of 16 teams and the knockout system throughout the season, at least three rubbers were required to win each tie, all vital matches in the “best of five” format. Unfortunately, it’s been a mess since 2019 (the competition was not held in 2020 due to Covid-19); each year the new structure is differentiated by nuances, all rubbers are played in the “best of three” format though. In the first four editions with the new structure, the ties have been composed of three rubbers maximum in the season-ending event (18 teams divided into six groups of the first two editions, 16 teams in another two), the entrance to the ending event it’s a slight comeback to the tradition, yet the initial ties are played within two days not three like before (singles matches separated by doubles) following the Australian Open. Something that traditionally was called the ‘First Round of World Group’, currently is called the ‘Qualifying Round’ – 24 teams are gathered to emerge twelve teams who join four seeded teams (last year’s finalists and two teams with “wild cards”) in the so-called ‘Finals’ played at two levels (September – groups & November – knockout stage). In the new structure, dead fifth or third rubbers are not played. I don’t like the new structure at all…
In the most interesting tie (Trier), Germany lost to Switzerland. There was the only opportunity during the weekend, to see two Grand Slam finalists (& Olympic medalists) facing each other, albeit neither of them is in a form reminding their best years; Alexander Zverev outplayed Stan Wawrinka [135], but ultimately the Swiss team prevailed trailing 1:2 after doubles. Credit to the 37-year-old Wawrinka, who played six sets on Saturday (in the decisive rubber he defeated a debutant, Daniel Altmaier, a player who reminds Wawrinka, especially by the backhand technique). Wawrinka is the most experienced active Davis Cup player – he made his debut in 2004 losing a dead rubber vs Romania. I’d say that the only surprising outcome came from Espoo – Finland has only one representative in the Top 100 while Argentina has six, however, the team captain Guillermo Coria didn’t find in his team a player who would defeat Emil Ruusuvuori [43] – the only man to get 2.5 points during the weekend. Korea’s victory over Belgium in Seoul may also be perceived as a sensation, but Korea’s best Soon-Woo Kwon plays well lately, and two points from him could be anticipated; paradoxically he lost to a weaker Belgian, and Korea as the only team this weekend, came back from a 0:2 deficit after day one. “I tried to show my strengths as much as I could and tried to frustrate my opponent,” said Seong-Chan Hong [237] after the decisive match he won with a beautiful backhand lob. “As soon as I started, I thought it was working well today. The atmosphere was good before the game. Of course, I was very nervous, but I was also very excited. After the match point, I thought I showed it.” Borna Gojo [121] significantly helped Croatia to beat Austria. The almost 25-year-old player finds another gear when he represents his country; his main-level record it is a modest 11-11, and as many as nine wins come from team competitions (Davis Cup & United Cup)… Two ties were played on clay outdoors (Colombia, Chile – both South American countries), others indoors, albeit Portugal chose clay instead of hard, in vain, Portuguese leader João Sousa [84] lost both singles matches and painfully drops outside the Top 100 because a year before at the same time he claimed the Pune title.

Qualifiers (host first):
Croatia – Austria 3-1, Hungary – France 2-3, Uzbekistan – USA 0-4, Germany – Switzerland 2-3,
Colombia – Britain 1-3, Norway – Serbia 0-4, Chile – Kazakhstan 3-1, South Korea – Belgium 3-2,
Sweden – Bosnia 3-1, Netherlands – Slovakia 4-0, Finland – Argentina 3-1, Portugal – Czechia 1-3

…1993…

The year 1993 marked the inception of ATP tennis in the Persian Gulf. In the first week of the year, the first edition took place in Doha (Qatar), and one month later – the first edition was in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Despite twofold bigger prize money, Dubai didn’t draw similar attention in its inaugural event in comparison to the neighboring Qatar – in Doha arrived three Top 5 players while top-seeded in Dubai was Alexander Volkov, ranked no. 17. The final was eventually played on Monday afternoon (too strong wind & rain on Sunday) with Karel Nováček [23] defeating Fabrice Santoro [39], who became a regular Dubai visitor, making twelve appearances, eventually got his name etched on the Silver Dhow trophy in 2002, beating Younes El Aynaoui in a dramatic final (the Moroccan also participated in the first edition and would play there nine more times being the crowd favorite as a native Arabian speaker).
Marc Rosset [44], who skipped Australian Open, en route to his fourth title (Marseille), had the toughest match in the opening round as he ousted in an all-tie-break three-set battle Stephane Simian, the left-handed Frenchman, one of a few players wearing eye-glasses. It was the first of five matches of this kind in 1993. Quite unusual that among five players defeated by Rosset, four were left-handers (all operating with one-handed backhands).
The 40-year-old Jimmy Connors [90] played the last semifinal of his extraordinary career in California. Connors had to retire because of a bone spur in his right foot facing Brad Gilbert [25]. There was 6-1, 1-4 for the nine years younger American, so fans of Jimbo could believe he’d reach his first final since 1989. In the final Gilbert miraculously avoided a straight-sets defeat to Andre Agassi [9] who entered the season in February for the sixth year in a row. He would do the same the following year, and it might be considered an important aspect of his longevity – while the majority of players had only one month of a break between seasons, in Agassi’s case it was two months which accumulate additional seven months of rest when he reached 25. Björn Borg [776] was finally able to win a set. The 36-year-old Swede, an 11-time Grand Slam champion, came back to the tour in Monte Carlo ’91 and since then he suffered nine 0-2 defeats on the ATP tour. It was the last professional event when two legends of the game, the best players of the 70s, Borg & Connors entered the same draw…

…Finals 1993…

Dubai (1M $, hard outdoors)
(3)🇨🇿Karel Nováček d. (8,WC)🇫🇷Fabrice Santoro 6-4, 7-5
Marseille (500K $, carpet indoors)
(6)🇨🇭Marc Rosset d. (8)🇳🇱Jan Siemerink 6-2, 7-6(1)
San Francisco (275K $, hard indoors)
(1)🇺🇸Andre Agassi d. (2)🇺🇸Brad Gilbert 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-2

…2023…

An unusual Slam that gathered high-ranked players born in three different decades. Two arguably best players in history born in the 80s, Rafael Nadal [2] and Novak Đoković [5], at the beginning of the new season seem to be in completely different places in terms of expectations. Đoković still looks fresh and is almost unbeaten lately, while Nadal has been struggling with injuries since Wimbledon ’22. The Spaniard was sensationally eliminated in the second round by Mackenzie McDonald [65] whom had humiliated in their only previous meeting at Roland Garros. It’s tough to believe that Nadal would be easily expected to win the French Open again, for the 15th time, but he reinvented himself so many times during clay-court seasons after the poor finish of indoor seasons that everything is actually possible. The Nadal/Đoković’s greatest active rival, rather not considered a title favorite wherever he plays since 2017, Andy Murray [66], displayed one more time his amazing fighting spirit outlasting in very dramatic night session five-setters, two players nine years his junior! Especially his second round match against Thanasi Kokkinakis [159] will be remembered. It lasted 5 hours 45 minutes, ending at 4.05 am. Murray was two points away to lose in three and five sets (in the deciding set of the first round against seeded Matteo Berrettini, he saved a match point which he should have lost because the Italian netted an easy backhand pass).
Despite Carlos Alcaraz‘s absence, three players born in the 21st Century could be expected in the quarterfinals for the first time as far as majors are concerned. Among those three who advanced, there were two revelations: Jiří Lehečka [71] and Ben Shelton [89]. Their path was different though: Lehečka defeated three seeds, while Shelton didn’t face a seeded player even in the lost quarterfinal, nonetheless, it’s tough to believe Shelton wouldn’t play in the last eight at majors again… There were many unexpected results, but the conclusion was more than obvious. Stefanos Tsitsipas finally advanced to the final in Melbourne (three semifinals lost before) playing cards of the crowd favorite, but in the end-match, he faced Đoković, whose successes in the event are incomparable with anyone else. The 35-year-old Serb began the fortnight by signalizing problems with left hamstring. Some people were accusing him of exaggeration, but I have to admit he didn’t look perfectly fit in the first three rounds… in the “sweet sixteen” he destroyed the last Aussie – Alex de Minaur, and his movement in the last four matches was perfect. He was also hitting powerful second serves & forehands with staggering consistency. It’s astonishing how easily he defeated ~10 years younger opponents in the second week. The scoreline of his final is more balanced than its progress – Tsitsipas, in tie-break sets, never led with a comfortable cushion. The 10th Aussie Open for the Serb, it’s rather not the end of his reign in Melbourne, he is hungry and dedicated to consume more glory…
Three potentially seeded players withdrew: Alcaraz [1], Marin Čilić & Nick Kyrgios. Among players with skills to enter the second week, also Gaël Monfils & Reilly Opelka didn’t make trips to Australia. The Frenchman hasn’t played since August ’22 (dropped from no. 20 to 209 within five months!), he’s 36, and it’s plausible he would shortly join his countrymen (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga & Gilles Simon) who finished their careers last year… Andrey Rublev [6] has equalled Tommy Robredo‘s infamous record of seven Slam quarterfinal defeats not reaching the semifinals. This time Rublev shouldn’t be sad because in the fourth round, he won a match he should have lost twice: trailed *2:5 in the decider against Holger Rune (the first Dane in the Aussie Open 4th round since 1993) and 0:5 in the super tie-break. Rublev’s quarterfinal chances against Đoković were illusory, he knew it. Trivia: the third player born in the 21st Century to play a quarterfinal, American Sebastian Korda, defeated in the third round the two-time runner-up Daniil Medvedev. Thirty years ago there was also a 3rd round meeting between Korda & Medvedev. Then, Petr (Sebastian’s father) representing the newly formatted Czechia, ousted Andrei of Ukraine – not related to Daniil of Russia – in four sets.  The last few months and this year’s Aussie Open in particular, bring rejuvenation of the American tennis; there are 10 US players in the Top 50 now, the most since 1995. The situation isn’t totally comparable because the current best US player (Taylor Fritz) is arguably at the level of a 5th best American 28 years ago.

…1993…

The sixth edition at Flinders Park. Two top players, coincidentally the Wimbledon finalists at the time, withdrew (Goran Ivanišević – left foot, Andre Agassi – bronchitis), but finally played Pete Sampras, who had missed the event in the previous two seasons. The American was among the favorites for the title but lost in the semifinal quite an unfortunate match to Stefan Edberg in straight sets having built a big lead in sets 1 and 3. In the final, just like a year before, Jim Courier outplayed Edberg in four sets, that time a bit easier, actually crashing the Swede in the opening two sets. Courier confirmed his status as the best player in the world, it seemed he’d rule the 90s – it didn’t happen though… The event marked the beginning of the end of 33-year-old Ivan Lendl – the best player of the 80s lost his 1R match (it didn’t happen to him at Slams since Wimbledon ’81!). Another two seasons clearly showed that the Czech (American citizenship), couldn’t be a threat in the “best of five” format anymore. Generally from the fourth round onwards, it was a disappointing event with many one-sided encounters. There was only one thrilling match in the second week, as Brett Steven [71] upset the local fans, overcoming Richard Fromberg [78] in a night session battle on Centre Court after 4 hours 36 minutes (the longest match in that edition) saving two match points. Steven’s career-best result; the same experience for two American qualifiers, who sensationally advanced to the fourth round: good doubles player Kelly Jones [447] & unknown Chris Garner [220], who never entered the Top 100 – he enjoyed a super beneficial draw facing three players outside the Top 100. No one could expect then that the 19-year-old Kenneth Carlsen (major debutant) would play his first and last match in the “sweet sixteen”. Carlsen [73], the best Dane of the 90s, didn’t emulate that result in his other 45 attempts!

…Final 2023…

AUSTRALIAN OPEN (34.8M A$, hard outdoors/indoors)
(4)🇷🇸Novak Đoković d. (3)🇬🇷Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6(4), 7-6(5)

…Final 1993…

AUSTRALIAN OPEN (1.9M $, hard outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Jim Courier d. (2)🇸🇪Stefan Edberg 6-2, 6-1, 2-6, 7-5

…2023…

New South Wales… A similar story to the one of 2003 when the best Korean of the 00s, Hyung-Taik Lee [85] stunned Juan Carlos Ferrero [4] in the Sydney final as a qualifier. This time, Lee’s compatriot Soon-Woo Kwon [lucky loser, 84] edged Ferrero’s compatriot – Roberto Bautista Agut [18]. “Since being beaten in [qualifying], I told myself I’ve got nothing to lose, and then I came all the way to the finals,” said Kwon, the 10th “lucky loser” champion at the main level since 1978. “And why not? I put every energy into it, and that worked.” Quite intriguing that Kwon overcame Tomáš Macháč [115, second-best Czech currently] in the first round – the Czech player had defeated Kwon in their qualifying meeting. In the final, Kwon came back from a break point down at 0:2 in the decider against 34-year-old Bautista [26].
The big surprise in Auckland. I considered Richard Gasquet [67] as a finished player already a few years ago, I thought that he’d sting only in French “250” events indoors; meanwhile, the 36-year-old Frenchman claimed his 16th title (the first one in almost five years) outside Europe, under the antipodes scorching sun, producing one of the best comebacks of his career in the final – he trailed *0:3 (0/40) in the 3rd set against one of the fittest guys on the tour, a local favorite to some degree (Cameron Norrie was representing New Zealand until 2013 when as an 18-year-old boy he switched his allegiance to Great Britain). Gasquet took advantage of several things during the week: super easy draw in 1R, quite good in the next two rounds, in the semifinal he didn’t have to enter the court (Lestienne’s walkover), and the temperature was a bit lower than usual in Auckland.
Generally, it was a great week for French tennis which suffers a big crisis lately: Constant Lestienne [65] reached the semifinal while Quentin Halys [64] advanced to the quarterfinals and was defeated second straight week 6-7, 6-7. Very good results for the second-tier French guys, new ATP faces, especially for Lestienne. It’s worth mentioning that he needed nine years to finally enter the Top 100 – it occurred last year in August thanks to good results in hardcourt Challengers (Spain, France). The 30-year-old man from Paris will play his first major event next week in Australia!

…1993…

Pete Sampras [3] successfully began his campaign to become not only the best player of 1993, but also the best one in the 90s. The 21-year-old American dropped the inaugural set (to 18-year-old Andrei Medvedev, 23 – the highest-ranked unseeded player), then he went through the Sydney event effortlessly, winning five matches within five days (nonetheless he had to save a set point in the final against Thomas Muster, 18) wearing a baseball cap which was unusual to him. “I’m playing pretty well, (but) I’m pretty tired right now,” he stated after the final referring to high temperatures.
The second week running in Indonesia, this time with a superstar Michael Chang [6], who loved Asian events and decided to make a trip to the resurrected Jakarta Open (not held in the years 1975-92). The Chinese American dropped a set only in the final, it was his 10th title, Sampras claimed his 13th – these two prodigies, along with Andre Agassi, were at the same level more or less then: each of them had won one major. Chang will be distanced by Sampras & Agassi soon. Fourth best US player of that generation – Jim Courier – won a six-man lucrative exhibition (180K $) in Adelaide; after two easy group wins, Courier defeated 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 Petr Korda in the final to collect the winner-take-all 100,000 prize money. “Petr has a lot of talent,” Courier said, referring to their French Open 1992 final. “No one gets to the final of a Grand Slam without being able to win it. He is a threat anywhere.” They face each other two weeks later in the Aussie Open quarterfinal, and Courier destroys Korda 6-1, 6-0, 6-4.

…Finals 2023…

Adelaide-2 (ATP 250, hard semi-outdoors)
(LL)🇰🇷Soon-Woo Kwon d. (4)🇪🇸Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(4)
Auckland (ATP 250, hard outdoors)
🇫🇷Richard Gasquet d. (1)🇬🇧Cameron Norrie 4-6, 6-4, 6-4

…Finals 1993…

Sydney (275K $, hard outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Pete Sampras d. (7)🇦🇹Thomas Muster 7-6(7), 6-1
Jakarta (275K $, hard outdoors)
(1)🇺🇸Michael Chang d. (8)🇩🇪Carl-Uwe Steeb 2-6, 6-2, 6-1
Auckland (157K $, hard outdoors)
(2)🇷🇺Alexander Volkov d. (1)🇺🇸MaliVai Washington 7-6(2), 6-4