Medvedev reaches ATP Finals semifinals, Sinner impresses

Associated PressNov 16, 2021, 4:41 PM EST

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TURIN, Italy — Defending champion Daniil Medvedev clinched his place in the ATP Finals semifinals after beating 2018 champ Alexander Zverev to make it two wins out of two in Turin.

Late entrant Jannik Sinner could join him after storming past Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets in the evening match, just hours after replacing Italian compatriot Matteo Berrettini in the tournament.

Medvedev, who won the U.S. Open in September for his first Grand Slam title, took just over 2 1/2 hours to beat Zverev 6-3, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (6) and move level with the German on a tour-leading 56 wins after a tense tiebreaker in the decisive set.

“Definitely one of the matches to remember,” Medvedev said. “When you win 8-6 in the tiebreak in the third, it was 4-2 for him so I was like OK, he serves a few aces it’s done. I made it 6-4 and I was like OK, that’s my moment now. It’s back to 6-6 … Just an amazing feeling. Not actually much to say about the match, just amazing.”

Medvedev leads Red Group and was assured of his place in the final four after Berrettini pulled out of the tournament. Berrettini retired against Zverev on Sunday with an abdominal injury and although he trained Tuesday he could not recover in time and was replaced by Sinner – the first alternate.

Helped by fast conditions inside the Pala Alpitour, Medvedev served 14 aces and Zverev 18.

Medvedev was in a fight from the start, fending off three break points in his opening two service games but also breaking Zverev to take a 3-0 lead. The world No. 2 went on to win the opening set with a delightful backhand down the line.

Victory looked in good time in the second set as Medvedev dropped only two points in his first five service games. But Zverev held on and saved three break points to force the tiebreaker which the German won.

In the deciding set, Medvedev had to save a break point to prevent Zverev from serving for the match, and he won the tiebreaker on his third match point when Zverev netted a backhand.

Medvedev will face Sinner in the final group match and despite having played a match less than his rivals, the young Italian can still reach the final four.

The 20-year-old Sinner showed no signs of nerves as he won 6-2, 6-2, breaking his opponent’s serve twice in each set and sealing the result when Hurkacz sent a forehand long – much to the delight of the passionate home crowd.

Instead of signing his name on a TV camera lens as most winners do, Sinner wrote: “Matteo sei un idolo” (Matteo you’re an idol).

“I’m playing this tournament for Matteo,” an emotional Sinner said in his on-court interview after the match.

Sinner later revealed he only found out he was definitely replacing Berrettini four hours before the scheduled start of the match.

“Everything happened really quickly, honestly,” Sinner said. “Around 5 p.m. I found out I would be playing. Matteo sent me a message saying ‘go warm-up, good luck and enjoy yourself.’ He’s an incredible person, apart from being a great player.”

At French Open, Francisco Cerundolo is mad at chair umpire over Holger Rune’s double-bounce

Associated PressJun 5, 2023, 8:49 PM EDT

Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

PARIS – Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina was devastated about losing his French Open fourth-round match to Holger Rune of Denmark in a fifth-set tiebreaker Monday. He also was mad at chair umpire Kader Nouni for missing a double-bounce of the ball on a point that was awarded to Rune early in his 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) victory.

They were tied at a set apiece and on serve at 2-1 for the No. 6-seeded Rune early in the third at Court Suzanne Lenglen when the point of contention happened. Cerundolo, who was serving at deuce, hit a forehand that skidded low at the baseline and quickly bounced a second time – which normally would have meant that the point was his.

But Rune went ahead and got his racket on the ball, sending it back over the net. At about the same time, No. 23 seed Cerundolo was saying “sorry” to apologize for the odd way his forehand made the ball skim across the clay. Nouni was not immediately aware of the double-bounce, thought the ball was still in play and called Cerundolo for hindrance for talking during a point. That meant Rune got the point, and when he won the next one, too, he had a service break.

“It was unbelievable, because it was a clear double-bounce. I was mad at the umpire because he has to see it,” Cerundolo said. “It’s his fault.”

In tennis, electronic line-calling is used at many tournaments to make line calls, but replays are not used to check things like double-bounces or whether a point should be lost because a player touches the net, which is not allowed.

And while Cerundolo put the onus on the official, he also thought Rune could have ceded the point because of the double-bounce.

“For sure, I wish he would have done that, because it was a big moment,” Cerundolo said.

Rune, who moved into a matchup against No. 4 Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals, said he saw a replay after the following point, and “saw it was a double bounce. But the point already happened, and he called the score. So I felt sorry.”

But, Rune added: “This is tennis. This is sports. Some umpires, they make mistakes. Some for me; some for him. That’s life.”

Gael Monfils withdraws from French Open with wrist injury

Associated PressJun 1, 2023, 11:34 AM EDT

Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

PARIS — A thrilling five-set victory took a toll on Gael Monfils, whose withdrawal from the French Open handed No. 6 Holger Rune a walkover to the third round.

The 36-year-old Frenchman said he has a strained left wrist and can’t continue.

He battled Sebastian Baez for nearly four hours on Court Philippe Chatrier before beating the Argentine 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 in a first-round match that ended at 12:18 a.m. local time.

The victory was Monfils’ first at tour level this year, as the veteran was coming back from heel surgery.

“Actually, physically, I’m quite fine. But I had the problem with my wrist that I cannot solve,” he said. “The doctor say was not good to play with that type of injury. Yesterday was actually very risky, and then today definitely say I should stop.”

Monfils reached the semifinals at the French Open in 2008 and made it to the quarterfinals on three other occasions.