Carlos Alcaraz to Face Novak Djokovic in Group Stage of the Davis Cup Finals

The budding rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will be renewed in the group stage of the Davis Cup finals next month.

The 20-year-old Spanish tennis player and Djokovic were included in the teams announced this week by Spain and Serbia, respectively, for the competition that will be played on September 12-17 in Valencia, Spain.

Carlos AlcarazAlcaraz defeated Djokovic in the Wimbledon final in July. The Spaniard is No. 1 in the world, with Djokovic sitting at No. 2.

Spain and Serbia have been drawn in the same group along with the Czech Republic and South Korea. Group stage matches will also be played in Bologna, Italy; Manchester, England; and Split, Croatia.

The top two teams in each of the four groups will advance to the finals in Malaga, Spain, in November.

Alcaraz will lead a Spain team that will include Alejandro Davidovich FokinaRoberto Bautista Agut and Marcel Granollers.

Djokovic’s Serbia will also have Laslo DjereMiomir KecmanovicDusan Lajovic and Hamad Medjedovic.

Nine of the current top 20 players in the world have been called up for their national teams — Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti for Italy, Frances Tiafoe and Tommy Paul for the United States, Alex de Minaur for Australia, Cameron Norrie for Britain and Borna Coric for Croatia.

Andy Murray will also play for Britain, which faces Australia, France and Switzerland in Manchester. The Swiss will count on Stan Wawrinka, while France will have Adrian Mannarino and Nicolas Mahut.

Leo Borg, son of 11-time Grand Slam champion Bjorn Borg, was included in Sweden’s team that will face Canada, Italy and Chile in Bologna.

Mackenzie McDonaldAustin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram were also included in the American team that will play against the Netherlands, Finland and host Croatia in Split.

Nicolas Jarry Defeats Grigor Dimitrov to Win Geneva Open Title

Nicolas Jarry is celebrating a big win…

The 27-year-old Chilean professional tennis player, unseeded in the tournament, defeated Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (1), 6-1 on Saturday to win the Geneva Open final and is poised to rise to his best ranking in a career that was stalled by a doping case.

Nicolas Jarry, The former No. 3-ranked Dimitrov was seeking his first title since the 2017 ATP Tour Finals, which lifted him to that career-best ranking.

 

Instead, the 54th-ranked Jarry eased to his second title this season, converting his first match point when Dimitrov could not return a powerful serve to his backhand.

Jarry celebrated by crossing the court to where his family was watching and passed his racket up to his infant son.

In Jarry’s standout week in Geneva, he beat current or former top-10 players on three straight days — two-time defending champion Casper RuudAlexander Zverev and Dimitrov.

It was Jarry’s third career ATP title, all of them coming at clay-court events in the lowest 250-level.

“It’s been a great year after a very tough couple of years. I’m very happy for that,” said Jarry, who was runner-up at Geneva in 2019 against Zverev.

Jarry is now set to rise above the career-high No. 38-ranking he reached in 2019 before a failed doping test interrupted his career.

He completed an 11-month suspension in 2020 after he tested positive for two banned substances, including an anabolic steroid, at the Davis Cup finals. The International Tennis Federation accepted that Jarry was not at significant fault for ingesting a tainted vitamin supplement made in Brazil.

Dimitrov was playing in his first final since February 2018 when he lost to Roger Federer at Rotterdam.

“It’s been a while since I’ve done one of those,” the 33rd-ranked Dimitrov said when collecting his runner-up trophy. “It’s been a bumpy road but I’m very grateful to be back here and to be part of the final.”

The Geneva Open is the last warmup event on clay before the French Open starts Sunday.

At Roland Garros, Jarry will face 160th-ranked Hugo Dellien of Bolivia in the first round. The winner could then face 16th-seeded American Tommy Paul.

Dimitrov is seeded No. 28 in Paris and will first play 147th-ranked Timofey Skatov of Kazakhstan.

Colombia’s Daniel Elahi Galan Upsets John Isner in Davis Cup Play

Daniel Elahi Galan is celebrating a massive upset…

The 25-year-old Colombian tennis player, ranked No. 111 in the world, defeated American John Isner 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (5) on Sunday in Davis Cup Finals play.

Daniel Elahi Galan While the Colombian team missed out on advancing to the quarterfinals, Galan and his compatriots can take pride in knowing they eliminated the record 32-time champion Americans from the competition after Americans Reilly Opelka and Jack Sock retired from the decisive doubles match while trailing 3-0 in the opening set against the accomplished Colombian pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah.

U.S. captain Mardy Fish hinted at a lack of passion within his team after the record 32-time champion Americans were eliminated from the Davis Cup Finals with a lopsided loss to host Italy and the humbling defeat by Colombia on Sunday.

“You can see the passion for Davis Cup, playing for their country,” Fish said of Colombia. “It’s infectious for them … These guys are giving fist pumps every other point. It’s impressive, and it’s something that I hope, as a captain, to strive for and get our players to do.”

Italy won the group, Colombia placed second and the U.S. finished last in Group E.

Meanwhile, Russia with second-ranked Daniil Medvedev beat Spain 2-1 in a result that eliminated the defending champion and allowed Serbia with top-ranked Novak Djokovic to advance as the second-best runner-up.

Russia, which is being called RTF (Russian Tennis Federation) for the event amid an ongoing doping suspension in international sport, will face Sweden, the best runner-up, in the quarterfinals.

The other quarterfinals: Italy vs. Croatia, Britain vs. Germany, and Serbia vs. Kazakhstan.

Played in three cities, each matchup on indoor hard courts is a best-of-three series featuring two singles and one doubles match. The six group winners plus the two second-place teams with the best records based on sets and games advanced to the quarterfinals.

The semifinals and final will be played in Madrid.

Carlos Moya Nominated for International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022

Carlos Moya is one step closer to reaching tennis elite status…

The 45-year-old Spanish former world No. 1 tennis player is one of the new nominees on the International Tennis Hall of Fame ballot for the class of 2022.

Carlos Moya

Moya, the French Open singles champion in 1998, is joined by fellow Grand Slam title winners Ana IvanovicFlavia Pennetta and Cara Black, who join holdovers Lisa Raymond and Juan Carlos Ferrero.

The Hall announced the candidates on Thursday. The half-dozen nominees all are in the player category; there is no one in the contributor or wheelchair categories, which only come every four years.

In addition to his Grand Slam title and former No. 1 ranking, Moya was part of his country’s successful Davis Cup team in 2004. He has been Rafael Nadal‘s primary coach since 2016,

Ivanovic won the 2008 French Open singles championship and reached No. 1 in the rankings. Pennetta was the 2015 US Open singles champion and made it to No. 1 in doubles. Black collected 10 major trophies in doubles or mixed doubles and was ranked No. 1 in doubles.

Raymond and Ferrero were first nominated for the class of 2021; players are eligible for three years before being dropped from the ballot. She won 11 Grand Slam trophies in doubles or mixed doubles and reached No. 1; he was the 2003 French Open singles champ and got to No. 1.

Fan voting begins Friday at vote.tennisfame.com and ends on Oct. 31. The top three finishers will receive bonus percentage points for their total count. Balloting by journalists, historians and members of the Hall of Fame will happen in the coming months.

The inductees will be announced early next year. The Hall ceremony is scheduled for July 16.

Pablo Carreño Busta Upsets World No. 1 Novak Djokovic to Claim Bronze Medal at Tokyo Games

2020 Tokyo Games

Pablo Carreño Busta has proven his medal

The 30-year-old Spanish professional tennis player bounced back from a disappointing semifinal defeat by upsetting top-seed Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-3 to claim the bronze medal on Saturday at the 2020 Tokyo Games.

Pablo Carreño Busta

Carreño Busta, the sixth seed, who defeated World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev on the way to the bronze medal match, played aggressively throughout against Djokovic, striking the ball with great power on his groundstrokes. After squandering a match point at 6/5 in the second set tie-break, he raised his level in the third set to record victory in two hours and 49 minutes.

“I won [the] Davis Cup, and I’ve gone far in other tournaments, but winning an Olympic medal is indescribable,” Carreño Busta told ITFtennis.com. “I’ve felt the support from Spain, my family and people around me, and have received fond messages from those who saw me lose yesterday. I want to share this medal with all of them.”

Pablo Carreño Busta

Carreno Busta was making his Olympics debut this week and came into the event full of confidence having captured his first ATP 500 trophy at the Hamburg European Open earlier this month. The Spaniard also lifted the Andalucia Open title in Marbella on home soil in April.

Shakira Gives Epic Performance at the Davis Cup Finals

Shakira has aced her latest performance…

The 42-year-old Colombian superstar, who’ll be performing at the Super Bowl Halftime Show alongside Jennifer Lopez, delivered an epic performance on Sunday at the Davis Cup Finals closing ceremony in Madrid.

Shakira

Shakira kicked off her three-song medley with “She Wolf,” joining an all-female dance group to further prove that her hips don’t lie. Her on-point dance moves then transitioned to the feel-good “Tutu” melody, where she was joined by Colombian singer Camilo and Puerto Rican Latin Grammy winner Pedro Capó for the first-ever live performance of “Tutu (Remix).” Shak’s nearly 10-minute set came to an end with her party-starting dance track “Dare (La La La)” for which she once again flaunted her killer dance moves on stage.  

“So fun to perform today!!!” she later expressed on Instagram. “Thanks to the wonderful team that worked so hard and made this performance happen today!”

The Davis Cup is a tournament between national teams in men’s tennis. Spain won the 2019 title, defeating Canada in the final 2-0. 

Rafael Nadal Leads Spain to Davis Cup Title Over Canada

Rafael Nadalhas helped Spain win big…

The 33-year-old Spanish tennis star, ranked No. 1 in the world, risked injury by playing eight matches — five singles, three doubles — in six days at the Davis Cup Finals, the new World Cup of tennis.

Rafael Nadal

Nadal won all of them, leading Spain to its sixth Davis Cup title after a 2-0 win over first-time finalist Canada on Sunday.

But in Nadal’s view, the only hero for Spain was grieving teammate Roberto Bautista Agut. He sent Spain on its way to victory by winning the first singles match on Sunday, three days after the death of his father.

“I’ve won the eight matches but the person who was vital in this Davis Cup was Roberto,” Nadal said. “For me, what he did was something almost inhuman. I don’t know how to explain it. It will be an example for the rest of my life. He had to leave, then his dad died, then he came back and practiced with us yesterday, and today he was ready again to play at a very high level. It was something incredible.”

Spain Davis Cup

Before Nadal defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 7-6 (7) to clinch the title — Spain’s first since also winning at home in 2011 — Bautista Agut had given Spain a 1-0 lead by beating Felix Auger-Aliassime7-6 (3), 6-3.

Bautista Agut pointed his finger to the sky after winning the final point in his match, and was in tears while speaking briefly to the crowd, which chanted his name. And he was the Spanish player lifting the cup in the title celebrations.

Bautista Agut’s father died on Thursday — a day after his son had defeated Nikola Mektic of Croatia — with his health deteriorating quickly after an illness that stemmed from a 2016 accident.

Bautista Agut, No. 9 in the world, played as teammates Pablo Carreno Busta and Marcel Granollers nursed injuries entering the final.

As for Nadal, he considered himself lucky to be able to play all matches.

“It’s true that I held up, but we know that playing so many matches in this [hard-court] surface is risky for me, something can happen at any time,” Nadal said. “That’s how it’s been in the past, but luckily I held up.”

Spain’s Granollers and Feliciano Lopezhad been scheduled to face Shapovalov and Vasek Pospisilin the now-canceled doubles match, although Nadal was likely to play if the title had been at stake. Nadal played in the decisive doubles on Friday and Saturday.

Voted the tournament’s best player, Nadal sealed the title with his 29th straight Davis Cup singles win, igniting the home crowd’s celebrations.

Tournament organizer and Barcelona soccer star Gerard Pique, his wife Shakira — who performed in the closing ceremony — and Spanish King Felipe VI were among those celebrating Spain’s triumph.

Spain’s other Davis Cup titles were in 2000, ’04, ’08, ’09 and ’11.

The new Davis Cup Finals is the result of a 25-year partnership between the International Tennis Federation and the Kosmos group co-founded by Pique.

Conchita Martínez Among International Tennis Hall of Fame Nominees

Conchita Martínez may be earning a spot in the Tennis Hall of Fame.

The 46-year-old Spanish former tennis player, the first Spanish player to win the women’s singles title at Wimbledon, has landed on the eight-player ballot for next year’s induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.

Conchita Martínez 

Martínez is eligible for enshrinement in the player category next year, as announced by the ITHOF.

“This is an exciting year for the International Tennis Hall of Fame election process, with a broad-ranging group of candidates and our first ever Fan Vote. The eight candidates on the ballot come from seven nations, and have achieved tremendous results on tennis’ biggest stages – winning Grand Slam titles and Olympic medals, and topping the world rankings,” stated ITHF President Stan Smith, who also serves as Chairman of the Enshrinee Nominating Committee.

“They’ve also each had massive impact on the sport in their home nations as trailblazers, Olympic and Fed and Davis Cup Champions, first-time Slam winners from their countries, and great ambassadors for tennis. Each has done much for the sport and I hope we’ll see their many fans turn out to vote online to support their Hall of Fame candidacy.”

In a 15-year career on the WTA Tour, Martínez won 33 singles titles and 13 doubles titles. She was the 1994 Wimbledon champion, defeating nine-time champion Martina Navratilova in the final.

She was also a finalist at the Australian Open and French Open.

Martínez reached a career high of world No. 2 and spent 190 weeks ranked inside the world’s Top 5. In addition, she was a key member of five championship Fed Cup teams and a three-time Olympic medalist in doubles.

But Martinez isn’t the only Latin player on the ballot…

Sergi Bruguera is one of the men to make the cut.

The 47-year-old Spanish former tennis player won consecutive men’s singles titles at the French Open in 1993 and 1994, a silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in men’s singles and reached a career-high ranking of 3 in August 1994.

Bruguera has been selected to captain the Spain Davis Cup team in 2018

Candidates on the ballot for International Tennis Hall of Fame induction are selected from nominations submitted by the general public and tennis community. The ITHF Enshrinee Nominating Committee, which meets annually in June, then reviews all nominations and determines the ballot. The committee is comprised of 23 individuals from around the world with expertise in various areas of the sport.

The ITHF Voting Group, which consists of tennis media and Hall of Famers, then casts their votes. To be inducted, an affirmative vote of 75 percent of returned ballots is required. Votes are tallied by an independent accounting firm.

New for 2019, the International Tennis Hall of Fame has introduced a fan vote component to the process. From Aug. 27 through Oct. 7, fans around the world are able to participate in the Hall of Fame election process by voting online at vote.tennisfame.com. The top three vote getters in the Fan Vote will receive bonus percentage points added onto their result from the committee to determine their ultimate final result.

The candidate with the highest result in the Fan Vote will receive three additional percentage points, while second and third places will receive two and one additional percentage points respectively.

The results of fan voting will be announced at the conclusion of the voting period in early October. The overall results and the complete Class of 2019 will be announced in January at the Australian Open. The 2019 Induction Ceremony will be hosted on July 20, 2019.

Carreno Busta Defeats Nikola Mektic to Send Spain Into Davis Cup Quarterfinals

Pablo Carreno Busta has helped keep Spain alive in Davis Cup play…

The 25-year-old Spanish tennis player defeated Nikola Mektic 7-6 (4), 6-1, 6-4 as Spain edged depleted Croatia to reach the quarterfinals on Sunday with a 3-2 victory.

Pablo Carreno Busta

Earlier Sunday, Roberto Bautista Agut defeated Croatia’s Franko Skugor 6-1, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (6) to put Spain level at 2-2 and send the match into the deciding rubber.
Croatia won the doubles on Saturday for a surprise 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series.

Croatia, last year’s World Group runner-up, played with a reserve lineup as it missed its four top players — Marin Cilic, Ivo Karlovic, Borna Coric and Ivan Dodig.

Spain was without Rafael Nadal.

Spain will play Serbia in the quarterfinals which completed its 4-1 rout of Russia on Sunday.

Lopez to Replace Rafael Nadal for Spain’s Next Davis Cup Series

Feliciano Lopez is ready to rumble…

The 35-year-old Spanish tennis player will replace Rafael Nadal on Spain’s Davis Cup team.

Feliciano Lopez

Nadal decided to take time off after his Australian Open final loss to Roger Federer.

The Spanish tennis federation said Nadal has been dropped from Spain’s Davis Cup team because of fatigue following his five-set loss to Federer in Sunday’s final.

Lopez will now fill in for Nadal at next weekend’s best-of-five series at Croatia in the first round of the World Group.

The federation said the decision was made after a recommendation by doctor Angel Ruiz Cotorro, who said Nadal’s recovery time would be too short. He said it was taken into consideration that Nadal played a significant number of matches after a four-month layoff because of a wrist injury.

“Rafa’s wear and tear in the last month was very significant,” Spain captain Conchita Martinez said. “He needs to recover from his recent efforts and certainly will be with us again in the next rounds.”

The 14-time Grand Slam champion is expected to return to action in Rotterdam from Feb. 13-19.

Nadal, ranked No. 6 in the world, helped Spain defeat India last year to secure its return to the World Group, although he missed his singles match because of the lingering wrist injury.

The other Spanish players to face Croatia are Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno Busta and Marc Lopez.