What's on this Week?

What’s on in the ATP World this week?

Last week we were treated to a Novak Djokovic masterclass in the Shanghai Masters, but tennis (virtually) never takes a break, so what’s on this week?

John Isner by Charlie Cowins is licensed under CC BY 2.0

There are still points to be gained in the chase to be involved in the Tour Finals in London, five spots have already been filled, but with Juan Martin Del Potro’s injury, there are now four spots still to be played for.

European Open, Antwerp – Masters 250 Event

Kyle Edmund, Diego Schwartzman, Milos Raonic, and Richard Gasquet are the top four seeds in this Masters 250 event in Antwerp. Each of the top four seeds had first-round byes, but first-round matches are well underway.

Noticeable wins included a 6-4 7-6 win for 70^th ranked Feliciano Lopez over world number 45, Frances Tiafoe of the USA. 37-year-old Lopez is proving that age is no barrier as he continues to pick up victories in big tournaments. 

Other first-round winners included Vasek Pospisil, Mackenzie McDonald, and Jiri Vesely.

British fans will have a great interest in this tournament as Kyle Edmund seeks his first ATP title, while 23 year-old Cameron Norrie faces Marcel Granollers of Spain in the first round. Norrie is now well established as a top 100 player and will be looking to cause some upsets in Belgium.

VTB Kremlin Cup, Moscow – Masters 250 Event

Number two seed Daniil Medvedev will be looking to claim his fourth title of the year in front of his home fans. Medvedev started the year ranked 65 in the world and has worked his way up to number 21, so will want to continue his progress with a strong finish to 2018.

He is joined by fellow Russian, and number 3 seed Karen Khachanov, and Italian number one seed Marco Cecchinato. Cecchinato has had an excellent year, starting out the season ranked 109 in the world and now finds himself just inside the top 20 at number 19.

French Davis Cup coach Yannick Noah will be keeping a keen eye on the action with Adrian Mannarino, Benoit Paire, and Pierre-Hugues Herbert all taking part. France takes on Croatia in the Davis Cup final next month, with a number of French players vying for singles spots.

Check out our Davis Cup preview here!

Intrum Stockholm Open, Stockholm – Masters 250 Event

Over in Sweden, there are four top 20 players in action. John Isner is currently 10^th in the race to compete in the Tour Finals in London, 1 place away from qualification (given Del Potro’s injury). Isner will be looking for a strong result in Stockholm to catch Nishikori who is just 70 points ahead of him whilst keeping distance between himself and the chasing pack.

Other big names on show this week are Italian, Fabio Fognini and 20-year-old Greek, Stefanos Tsitsipas, both are super talented players who are well worth a watch.

One of the stand out performers in Shanghai, Matthew Ebden was not able to replicate his form this week, suffering a 6-4 6-2 defeat to Fernando Verdasco in the first round. Ebden recorded victories over Frances Tiafoe, Dominic Thiem and Peter Gojowczyk in making a surprise run to the quarter-finals in Shanghai before losing to eventual finalist Borna Coric.

We’re looking out for an explosive semi-final between Fognini and Tsitsipas if all goes to plan in this one!

There may not be a tournament with the prestige of a Masters 1000 event on this week, but there is still plenty of tennis, and plenty of big names to watch. The Tour Finals are not far away and those in contention will be eager to pick up all the points they can get.