While the world’s attention was largely focused on the Paris Olympics, the ATP Tour continued to deliver exciting tennis action across three separate tournaments this week. Three champions showed incredible resilience and skill to win the title and gain important points. Here’s a quick rundown of the champions and their impressive victories.
Winners Of The Week
Yoshihito Nishioka
Yoshihito Nishioka beat the #4 seed, Jordan Thompson, in three sets to win the final edition of the Atlanta Open. Nishioka is the first unseeded winner of the Atlanta Open since Robby Ginepri in 2009. Nishioka was below the top 100 a month ago, but with this championship, he has climbed back into the Top 50. The Japanese played some inspired tennis all week and beat two seeded players in the semifinals and finals to win his third ATP title. This was his first title outside of Asia. Nishioka was down a set in the final and saved 1o out of 11 breakpoints behind his serve. His serving has been clutch all week.
It has been a tough year for Nishioka and this title will give him a lot of confidence. This is his favourite time of the year and he always peaks around this time. Nishioka is a fighter and works hard for every single point. He has won all his titles on hard courts and will be one to look out for the rest of the season.
Francisco Cerundolo
Francisco Cerundolo played a fantastic match against the in-from Lorenzo Musetti to win the title in Umag. It was a great final with both players playing at a high level. Musetti served for the match in the third set but Cerundolo played a great return game to break back. The Argentinian played at a great level all week and the forehand was a big weapon for him, especially against Andrey Rublev. Cerundolo has stumbled so many times in deciding moments so it was impressive how locked in he was and how willing he was to adjust tactics when he’d usually fall back into his comfort zone. This should give him lots of confidence in closing out matches in the future.
This was the third ATP tour title for Cerundolo and the second on clay. He had a great run at the French Open and nearly took out Novak Djokovic. His best level is borderline Top 10 on clay and he can be a serious threat at the Paris Olympics.
Matteo Berrettini
Matteo Berrettini wins his 10th consecutive match to win his 10th ATP tour title. He beat Hugo Gaston in straight sets in the final of Kitzbuhel. Back-to-back title for Berrettini after his triumph in Gstaad. Gaston gave his all but it was not enough as he had to fight for all his points while Berrettini’s serve helped him get cheap points. The altitude conditions complement the Italian’s game perfectly as it’s much harder to return his big serve. This is proving to be the best year of Berrettini’s career despite missing the early parts of the season. This is his third title which is the most he has won in a year. 10 matches in a row without dropping a set is a big achievement and he is back in the Top 40.
With six titles on clay and four on grass, he’s a natural surface specialist. Clay and grass both amplify the strengths in his game and minimie the weaknesses in different ways. On clay, Berrettini’s spinny forehand is amplified and he has more time to run around the backhand, which minimizes the weakness on that side. On grass, Berrettini’s serve is amplified and the effectiveness of his backhand slice minimizes the weakness he usually has on his backhand side. However, his results haven’t been great on hard courts but with him being healthy and confident, he can have a good American hard court swing.
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
