Latest news with #Masters1
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Injured Ruud criticises 'rat race' ATP points system
Norway's Casper Ruud has criticised the ATP's ranking system by describing it as "like a rat race" which forces players to compete with injuries. Ruud, a two-time runner-up at the French Open, suffered a second-round exit on Wednesday, losing 2-6 6-4 6-1 6-0 to Portugal's Nuno Borges. The seventh seed won the first set comfortably, but struggled towards the end of the match with a knee injury that he has been carrying since April. "It's been with me actually the whole clay season on and off," he said. "As we know, it's a hectic clay season, and I decided to kind of push through it doing some anti-inflammatory pills and painkillers to try to get rid of it, which has helped to a certain degree but not enough. "I will have some more time now to let it heal and rest for a long time." Ruud said it is difficult to take time off on the ATP Tour to allow an injury to heal. "It's kind of like a rat race when it comes to the rankings as well," he said. "You feel you're obligated to play with certain rules that the ATP have set up with the mandatory events." BBC Sport have approached the ATP for comment. The ATP and the women's WTA Tour have mandatory requirements, meaning players must appear at a set number of tournaments each season. The top-ranked ATP players are required to participate in eight of the nine mandatory Masters 1,000 events each year, with Monte Carlo the only exception. Ruud missed Monte Carlo - the first big clay-court event of the season - but he played at the Italian Open in Rome after winning his first ATP Masters title in Madrid. The world number eight also feared that he would miss out on defending ranking points, which are used to decide where a player is seeded and whether or not they can gain direct entry into a tournament. "You feel like you lose a lot if you don't show up and play, both economically, point-wise, ranking-wise and opportunity-wise," Ruud added. "It's a questionable system because on one hand you don't want to show up injured, and you maybe give the spot to another one." Live scores, results and order of play Get tennis news sent straight to your phone
LeMonde
26-05-2025
- Sport
- LeMonde
French Open: Richard Gasquet does not regret retiring: 'I gave everything to try to be the best'
Will he go down the line? Cross-court? With a drop shot? Or maybe even a lob? Bets are on as to which shot will produce Richard Gasquet's final backhand winner. At 38, the Frenchman was preparing to play at the French Open for the last tournament of a career spanning nearly a quarter of a century. In the first round, on Monday, May 26, he was set to face his young compatriot Térence Atmane, ranked 121 st in the world, before a possible second round against Italian world No. 1 Jannik Sinner. Tennis fans will miss admiring his elegant one-handed backhand. As for Gasquet himself, he felt he had fulfilled his duty. "I could have done better in certain matches, but I gave everything to try to be the best." Speaking in April during the Monte-Carlo tournament, the native of Béziers, southern France, offered a clear assessment: He "came up against opponents stronger than myself." As a contemporary of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic, Gasquet had a front-row seat to the dominance of the trio who together have won 66 Grand Slam titles. Whenever he approached the summit, he was soundly beaten by one of these powerhouses. His three Grand Slam semifinal appearances as well as his three Masters 1,000 finals all ended in defeat against the Big Three.
LeMonde
22-05-2025
- Sport
- LeMonde
French Open 2025: What to know before the draw
Some players have already arrived at Roland-Garros and have been intensifying their practice sessions on the Parisian clay. Others are taking advantage of one last warm-up tournament to fine-tune their game before the main event. But every competitor at the French Open, which officially begins on Sunday, May 25, will have their eyes on the Orangerie d'Auteuil in Paris, where the draw will take place on Thursday at 2 pm. Two names stand out in both the women's and men's draws Reigning French Open champion and winner of the Monte-Carlo and Rome Masters 1,000 tournaments, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz seems well positioned to defend his title if he is able to limit the inconsistency that slowed him at the start of the season. His main rival is undoubtedly world number one, Italian Jannik Sinner. Although Sinner served a three-month suspension after testing positive for an anabolic steroid in two anti-doping controls, he immediately reminded everyone why he is the player to beat by reaching the final in Rome on his return. "I think Alcaraz is going to be monstrous and Sinner even stronger than in Rome," said French former tennis player Fabrice Santoro, commentator for Amazon Prime Video. In the women's draw, Iga Swiatek could have been considered the overwhelming favorite. Winner of the last three French Open tournaments, she seemed right at home in Paris. But the Polish star has not won a single tournament since her last triumph at Roland-Garros and has surrendered her world number one ranking to Aryna Sabalenka. While the powerful Belarusian shines above all on hard courts – she won the last five Grand Slam finals played on that surface – she seems to be getting better and better on clay. With Swiatek's drop to fifth in the WTA rankings, both players could end up in the same quarter of the draw. The moment for long shots Behind the favorites, there are plenty of challengers, each with their own weaknesses. Norwegian Casper Ruud won the Madrid tournament, but was then soundly defeated (6-0, 6-1) by Sinner in Rome. Denmark's Holger Rune could boast about being the only player to beat Alcaraz on clay in 2025, but he has failed to build on that success since. As for world number three, German Alexander Zverev, and 24-time Grand Slam champion, Serbian Novak Djokovic, they are both far from their best form. The surprise could come from Italian Lorenzo Musetti or Britain's Jack Draper, who have both racked up many wins in recent weeks. In the women's draw, the favorites seem to have less of an advantage over the chasing pack, led by Coco Gauff (ranked second). The American has just played in two consecutive finals, in Madrid and Rome, establishing herself as a serious title contender, as is Italian Jasmine Paolini, who triumphed in Rome a year after reaching the Roland-Garros final. China's Zheng Qinwen will also be closely watched, as she has a particular affinity for the clay in Roland-Garros, where she won Olympic gold in singles at the Paris 2024 Games. French tennis is banking on the men With only one representative in the top 100 – Varvara Gracheva, ranked 68 th – French women's tennis looked to be facing a tough year. "Expectations are low for them, to say the least," observed former world number 61 Camille Pin. The French delegation could consider it a success if any of its players reached the 3 rd round, especially since their usual standard-bearer, Caroline Garcia, has barely played any matches in eight months due to a combination of a planned break and physical issues. On the men's side, there is room for hope. Arthur Fils (ranked 14 th) has reached a new level this season and could legitimately aim to make it through to the second week. The problem: Fils has always stumbled at Roland-Garros and has yet to win a match there. He will not have to shoulder all the expectations alone, thanks to Ugo Humbert – who is not at his best on clay but was a finalist at Bercy on indoor courts in November 2024 – Corentin Moutet, who reached the round of 16 at Roland-Garros in 2024, and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. At 38, Gaël Monfils, whose career has been hampered by physical issues, remains one to watch, as he always dazzles when he steps onto the court.
Times
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
Furious Jack Draper falls just short after fightback in Madrid Open final
Jack Draper missed out on a second Masters 1,000 title of the season, losing 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 against Casper Ruud in the Madrid Open final. Nevertheless, the new world No5 can leave Spain in fine spirits after continuing a golden year on the surface where Britons suffer most. Having fashioned his rise into the top ten on his favoured hard courts, the 23-year-old's present ranking is because of his victories on the clay courts of Europe. Short of a grand-slam, a 1,000-level triumph on clay is perhaps the longest-odds achievement for a player from these isles, and he fell just short. Draper was No40 in the world when he won his first ATP title on grass in Stuttgart last June, and then raced through to
New York Times
04-04-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Taylor Fritz misses Monte Carlo Masters with injury as draw separates Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz
Taylor Fritz, America's World No. 4, has withdrawn from the Monte Carlo Masters because of an ongoing abdominal injury. 'I aggravated an abdominal injury during my semifinal match in Miami, and I will not be able to recover in time to compete in Nimes this week,' Fritz said in a statement ahead of the event. Nimes, France, is the venue for the latest Ultimate Tennis Showdown (U.T.S.) exhibition, in which Fritz was replaced by Tomas Macháč. Advertisement Missing Monte Carlo, a Masters 1,000 event one rung below the Grand Slams, is much more significant. It follows Fritz's withdrawing from Acapulco in February with the same injury, which has been affecting his right oblique muscle. After losing to eventual champion Jakub Menšík in the Miami Open semifinal, Fritz said that the injury had gotten worse in his quarterfinal match against Matteo Berrettini. 'End of the second set, I felt like I reinjured that thing that I've been dealing with,' he said. World No. 22 Hubert Hurkacz also withdrew from Monte Carlo on Friday, as he recovers from the lower back injury that forced him out of Miami. Both he and Fritz are entered for the BMW Open in Munich, which starts the week after next. The Monte Carlo main draw gets under way Sunday, with Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz placed in opposite halves of the draw. Djokovic is in the same half as defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas and world No. 2 Alexander Zverev, with Alcaraz alongside Indian Wells champion Jack Draper in his half. (Top photo of Taylor Fritz: Al Bello / Getty Images)
