Zeballos Defeats Juan Martin del Potro at the Miami Masters

Posted on March 26, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Horacio Zeballos has dashed one tennis champion’s comeback dreams…

The 30-year-old Argentine tennis player defeated Juan Martin del Potro in the second round of the Miami Masters.

Zeballos did not originally have a spot in the main draw. But when Roger Federer withdrew from the event with a stomach virus, Zeballos was given a chance to play Del Potro on the show court in Florida.

Del Potro, a former US Open champion, started as favorite but he failed to create a single break point as Zeballos ran out a 6-4 6-4 winner.

Zeballos, looking for his first tour-level win of the year, made good on his opportunity by serving smartly and avoiding del Potro’s fearsome forehand. The left-handed Zeballos fired six aces and made 77 per cent of first serves, most of which were directed to del Potro’s backhand. He only dropped nine points on serve and did not face a break point in the 81-minute encounter.

“He played well,” said del Potro of his opponent. “He’s a lefty, he can play to my backhand easier than anyone else. He played very smart.”

Zeballos’ opponent in the third round will be Fernando Verdasco, who scored his first win in three ATP Head2Head meetings with Jeremy Chardy, 6-4, 6-4.

Verdasco Earns Hard-Fought Win Against Rafael Nadal at the Miami Open

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Make that two in a row for Fernando Verdasco…

The 31-year-old Spanish tennis player defeated former World No. 1 and fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal in the third round of the Miami Open 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Verdasco, seeded 29th, lost the first 13 times he played Nadal but has now beaten him twice in a row. The other victory came in 2012 in Madrid.

Nadal, who was seeded second, has never won the tournament in 11 appearances. It’s the only event he hasn’t won in so many attempts.

Nadal converted only three of 12 break-point chances and committed 40 unforced errors, with just 18 winners.

Nadal dealt with several health issues in 2014 and said that while he’s fully recovered, he hasn’t regained his confidence.

“It’s a question of being relaxed enough to play well,” the 14-time Grand Slam champion said. “I’m still playing with too much nerves for a lot of moments, in important moments, still playing a little bit anxious in those moments.

“But I’m going to fix it — I don’t know if in one week, in six months, or in one year, but I’m going to do it.”

Verdasco next faces Argentina’s Juan Monaco in the fourth round.

Verdasco Claims Kooyong Classic Title

Posted on January 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Fernando Verdasco has earned his first title on 2015…

Alexandr Dolgopolov retired from the Kooyong Classic in Melbourne on Friday with a right knee injury, handing the 31-year-old Spanish tennis player the title at the exhibition tournament.

Dolgopolov lost the opening set 7-6 (3) before calling for medical staff because of the injury, then saying he couldn’t continue on with the match.

Dolgopolov said the injury felt the same as the one he sustained in July playing in Hamburg, Germany, which required surgery and 10 weeks off the ATP Tour.

“When I was warming up and playing the first set, it was fine, and the last few games I started feeling something strange in the knee and it started to get worse,” he said. “I’m not sure I’ll be playing in the Open because it feels quite the same like I did before the surgery. My physio is saying 99 percent (the) meniscus that I injured before.”

Andújar Defeats Fernando Verdasco to Reach the Swiss Open Final

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Pablo Andújar could soon have a third ATP title…

The 28-year-old Spanish tennis player has advanced to the Swiss Open men’s final.

Andújar, unseeded in the tournament and ranked No. 71, beat fourth-seeded Fernando Verdasco 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-1 in an all-Spain semifinal at the clay-court Roy Emerson Arena.

Andújar wasted a winning chance in the second set when, two points from victory at 5-3, he sent down back-to-back double faults.

However, he dominated the decider with three service breaks.

He’ll face Argentina’s Juan Monaco in Sunday’s final.

Monaco rallied from losing the first three games to win 6-3, 7-6 (4) against seventh-seeded Robin Haase of the Netherlands.

Monaco, now 105th-ranked two years after peaking at No. 10, will seek his ninth career title Sunday.

Cuevas Loses Only Three Games in the Swedish Open Final to Claim His First-Ever ATP Title

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a memorable first for Pablo Cuevas…

The 28-year-old Uruguayan tenista took down Portugal’s João Sousa in the Swedish Open final on Sunday at the Bastad Tennis Stadium to claim his first ATP tournament title.

Cuevas, who beat sixth-seeded Jérémy Chardy and third-seeded Fernando Verdasco en route to the final, defeated the fifth-seeded Sousa in straight sets, 6-2, 6-1.

Cuevas, who has fought a serious knee injury for the past three years, was ranked No. 111 going into the tournament.

He’ll now move up to No. 61 in the ATP rankings following his stellar performance at the Swedish Open, losing only one set in five matches.

Berlocq Defeats David Ferrer to Reach Swedish Open Semifinals

Posted on July 12, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Carlos Berlocq has taken down the No. 1 seed…

The 31-year-old Argentine tenista and defending champion upset top-seeded David Ferrer in a 6-3, 6-3 victory at the Swedish Open quarterfinals on Friday.

Berlocq, the seventh-seed who happened to win his first ATP world tour at this tournament in Bastad last year, defeated Ferrer in 85 minutes.

Third-seeded Fernando Verdasco reached the semifinals with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta.

On Saturday, the 30-year-old Verdasco faces 111th-ranked Pablo Cuevasof Uruguay, who beat Reno Olivo of Argentina 6-2, 6-4.

In the other semifinal, Berlocq faces fifth-seeded Joao Sousa of Portugal, who ousted Serbian Dusan Lajovic 6-4, 6-4.

Bautista Agut Defeats Benjamin Becker to Claim First Ever ATP Title

Posted on June 22, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a hard-fought first ATP title for Roberto Bautista Agut…

The 26-year-old Spanish tennis player mounted an impressive rally to claim his maiden World Tour crown on Saturday, beating Benjamin Becker in the Topshelf Open final.

Bautista Agut captured his first title with a 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-4 victory, overcoming 13 aces and a 32-minute first set in favor of his German counterpart.

One of the ATP World Tour’s rising stars in 2014, the Spaniard has soared from World No. 73 in the ATP rankings at the beginning of the year to a new career-high of No. 23 with his title in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

Bautista Agut, the tournament’s third-seed becomes the second first-time champion this year after Federico Delbonis won in Sao Paulo. He was competing in just his second final, having previously fallen in the 2013 Aircel Chennai Open title match to Janko Tipsarevic.

Becker raced to a 4-1 lead in the first set behind a pair of early breaks. Bautista Agut was unable to counter Becker’s pace and guile in the baseline rallies as the German veteran needed just 32 minutes to take the opener.

Bautista Agut’s game would gain traction as the match progressed, however, and he would snatch the second set in a tiebreaker and surge to an early lead in the third set behind a break in the fifth game. As Becker pressed for a break back, Bautista Agut held steady, and he would hold on for the title in exactly two hours.

He’s the fifth different Spanish winner this year, withRafael Nadal, David Ferrer, Guillermo Garcia-Lopezand Fernando Verdasco also bringing home trophies to the Iberian nation. He’s also the second different Spaniard to triumph in Den Bosch after Ferrer prevailed in 2008 and 2012.

“It took me a while to recover from a very long match yesterday and I was getting better and better after the first set,” said Bautista Agut, who earns $77,350 and 250 ATP rankings points with the win.

“I was more focused and started to feel better physically. I was trying to not think too much and play my game point by point. It was the same nervousness as every match. I played calm and aggressive in the last game. I had to celebrate hard (after match point) and enjoy the moment.”

Nadal Leads a Strong Spanish Charge at This Year’s Wimbledon

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

Rafael Nadal is ready to kick some grass at the All England Club… And, he’s leading a strong charge of seeded Latino players competing at Wimbledon.

Despite winning his ninth French Open title and maintaining his World No. 1 ranking, the 28-year-old Spanish tennis superstar has been seeded No. 2 at this year’s Grand Slam tournament.

Nadal was relegated to the No. 2 spot when his French Open final foe Novak Djokovic, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, was given the top seeding by the All England Club ahead of him. Tournament officials take a player’s grass-court record into account when assigning the men’s seedings.

Defending men’s champion Andy Murray, who last year became the first British player to win the Wimbledon men’s title since 1936, was bumped up two spots above his world ranking to No. 3.

Seven-time champion Roger Federer is No. 4, while Australian Open winner Stan Wawrinka is down two spots from his world ranking at No. 5.

But Nadal isn’t the only Hispanic tenista earning a seed at this year’s event…

In all, there are nine Latinos among the 32 seeded players – all hailing from Spain – including David Ferrer at No. 7, Fernando Verdasco at No. 18 and Feliciano Lopez at No. 19.

Here’s the complete list of seeds (with their world ranking in parenthesis):

Men

1. Novak Djokovic, Serbia (2)
2. Rafael Nadal, Spain (1)
3. Andy Murray, Britain (5)
4. Roger Federer, Switzerland (4)
5. Stan Wawrinka, Switzerland (3)
6. Tomas Berdych, Czech Republic (6)
7. David Ferrer, Spain (7)
8. Milos Raonic, Canada (9)
9. John Isner, United States (11)
10. Kei Nishikori, Japan (12)
11. Grigor Dimitrov, Bulgaria (13)
12. Ernests Gulbis, Latvia (10)
13. Richard Gasquet, France (14)
14. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, France (17)
15. Jerzy Janowicz, Poland (24)
16. Fabio Fognini, Italy (15)
17. Mikhail Youzhny, Russia (16)
18. Fernando Verdasco, Spain (23)
19. Feliciano Lopez, Spain (25)
20. Kevin Anderson, South Africa (18)
21. Alexandr Dolgopolov, Ukraine, (19)
22. Philipp Kohlschreiber, Germany (27)
23. Tommy Robredo, Spain (22)
24. Gael Monfils, France (21)
25. Nicolas Almagro, Spain (26)
26. Andreas Seppi, Italy (34)
27. Marin Cilic, Croatia (29)
28. Roberto Bautista Agut, Spain (28)
29. Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Spain (31)
30. Ivo Karlovic, Croatia (33)
31. Marcel Ganollers, Spain, (30)
32. Dmitry Tursunov, Russia (32)

Berlocq Upsets No. 1 Seed Tomas Berdych in the Portugal Open Men’s Final

Posted on May 4, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a two-one punch for Carlos Berlocq…

Following his defeat of No. 2 seed Miles Raonic earlier in the tournament, the 31-year-old Argentine professional tennis player pulled off another upset, beating No. 1 seed Tomas Berdych in the Portugal Open men’s final.

After losing the first set, Berlocq stormed back to beat the Czech player, ranked No. 6 in the world, 0-6, 7-5, 6-1.

It’s the second career title for Berlocq, ranked No. 62 in the world. He won his first title in 2013 at the Swedish Open, defeating Spain’s Fernando Verdasco in the final.

Verdasco Beats Nicolas Almagro to Win the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Tom Castaneda

It’s “sweet No. 6” for Fernando Verdasco…

The 30-year-old Spanish tennis player, currently ranked No. 29 in the world, beat his fellow countryman Nicolas Almagro in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6 (4), to win the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship on Sunday.

The victory marks Verdasco’s sixth ATP World Tour singles title and his first singles since April 2010.

With the win, Verdasco ends a six-match losing streak in tournament finals.

He also reached the doubles final and had been on the court six hours longer than Almagro going into the final.

“I’m so tired I don’t know if I can talk so much,” said Verdasco, seeded fourth in the Houston, Texas-based tournament..

Almagro had a walkover in the semifinals when American Sam Querrey pulled out due to a back injury.

Almagro, he tournament’s third-seed reached set point five times against Verdasco’s serve in the ninth game of second set, but couldn’t convert. He also up a mini-break in the tiebreaker before Verdasco rallied.

It’s the second second-place finish in the tournament for Almagro, who lost to John Isner last year.

To date, Almagro has won four of his six singles titles on clay.

“You are never happy when you lose a final,” Almagro said. “I had my chances. But I credit Fernando.”

On Saturday night in the doubles final, twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan beat Verdasco and David Marrero 4-6, 6-4, 11-9.

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