Looking for Tennis and Racket Sports International News?

Shang Juncheng made history on Monday at Wimbledon, where he became the first Chinese man in the Open Era to win a match at The Championships. Watching on were his parents Wu Na and Shang Yi, who both know what it takes to compete at the highest level in sport.

Shang’s mother Wu Na was a world champion in table tennis, winning a bronze medal at the 1995 World Tennis Championships in women’s doubles and a gold medal in mixed doubles in 1997. Shang’s father played professional football as a midfielder, spending the majority of his career with Beijing Guoan and earning two international caps for China in 2000. 

“They have always played their own sports with me since I was a kid," Shang told ATPTour.com at Wimbledon. "I played a lot of football with my dad and some table tennis with mum and then also we would go and have fun with other sports as well, so I think that we're a pretty sporty family. We have always liked to be active and competitive, so I think that sets a good tone as an athlete when you're really young, learning how to compete.

“My grandparents have shown me some footage of my parents playing sport as well. My parents don't like to brag about how they were doing before. But they were great athletes, I believe. And results-wise, they were for sure.”

#NextGenATP Shang would spend many afternoons playing football in the park with his dad when he was young. However, the Chinese lefty admitted that trying to make the grade in tennis was always the No. 1 goal.

Andrey Rublev is making his fifth appearance at Wimbledon, where last year he reached the quarter-finals, his best result at the season's third major.

Ahead of the grass-court Slam, ATPTour.com sat down with the No. 6 player in the PIF ATP Rankings to discuss his earliest Wimbledon memories and a fun — but scary — hobby he indulged in last year during the tournament.

What is your first memory of watching Wimbledon?
For sure my first experience was watching on TV. I was a kid, not travelling to see any tournaments, so I could only watch tennis on TV. I don’t remember which match was exactly my first ever, but first everything starts with TV and as I became older, I started to understand more about tennis, follow more players and little by little, you get to know the tournaments and the results.

I remember listening to the radio on if Rafa won his match at Wimbledon or how the situation [went].

When did you first play at Wimbledon and what were your first impressions?
Juniors in 2014. At that time, when I was playing juniors, every Slam was something unbelievable because other junior tournaments cannot compare. They have only the club, organisers from the tournament and the players. You don’t really have spectators. You play these junior tournaments with only your coach watching. Maybe some tournaments try to bring spectators, but it’s not the same.

Wimbledon, officially known as The Championships, Wimbledon, is the oldest and one of the most prestigious tennis tournaments in the world. Here's a comprehensive overview of its history: Origins and Early Years 1877: The First Championship The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club (founded in 1868) hosted the first Wimbledon Championship.Only o...

Play has resumed on all courts at Wimbledon after Tuesday's schedule was interrupted by rain in London.

Day 2 action at the grass-court major began at 11 a.m. local time (BST), before the rain forced 10 men’s singles matches being held on uncovered courts to be suspended at approximately 12:15 p.m. The players returned to the SW19 grass shortly before 1:30 p.m, however, with seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz aiming to escape some early trouble on No. 3 Court. The Pole resumed his clash with Radu Albot trailing 5-7, 1-1.

Despite the weather, the action began at 1:30 p.m. on Centre Court and 1 p.m. on No. 1 Court, with both stadiums fitted with a retractable roof.

Seven-time Wimbledon champion and No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings Novak Djokovic will take on Vit Kopriva in the second match on Centre Court, before home favourite Jack Draper meets Elias Ymer. On No. 1 Court, fourth seed Alexander Zverev vs. Roberto Carballes Baena is the second match on.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

For some time, Matteo Berrettini was the leading man in Italian tennis. The 28-year-old became just the fourth Italian to crack the Top 10 in the PIF ATP Rankings in 2019 and then in 2021 he reached his maiden major final at Wimbledon, taking the first set against Novak Djokovic before falling.

While Berrettini was making his mark at the top of the Tour, a gangly, curly red-haired teen named Jannik Sinner was at the start of his ascent. In the same year that Berrettini cracked the Top 10, Sinner made his debut at the US Open before he won the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF that November.

Sinner then rose into the Top 10 for the first time in July 2022, two weeks after Berrettini dropped out. He arrives at Wimbledon this week as the World No. 1 and the Australian Open champion, having firmly taken the Italian baton from Berrettini.

Sinner and Berrettini will now go face-to-face in a blockbuster second-round clash at Wimbledon on Wednesday, when the 22-year-old will be the favourite given their recent trajectories.

Speaking ahead of the clash, Berrettini reflects fondly on the first time he hit with Sinner.

Andy Murray has withdrawn from singles at The Championships. The Scot remains in the doubles draw with brother Jamie Murray.

After exiting the cinch Championships at Queen's Club, Murray underwent an operation on his back, which he said "wasn't insignificant". The former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings has been working hard to try to compete in both singles and doubles at Wimbledon, but will now turn his attention to doubles.

Murray owns a 61-13 singles record at SW19. He has lifted the trophy twice, in 2013 becoming the first British men's singles champion at the tournament since Fred Perry in 1936.

This will be Murray's third appearance in the Wimbledon doubles draw. In 2005 he partnered David Sherwood and in 2019 he competed alongside Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Murray will be replaced in the singles draw by David Goffin, who will take on Tomas Machac in the first round.

Tomas Machac’s first-round clash against Andy Murray is one of the most-anticipated matches of The Championships. The encounter has plenty to live up to after their match-of-the-year candidate from the Miami third round in March.

The pair battled for a gruelling three hours and 28 minutes, making the occasion the third-longest best-of-three Miami men’s singles match on record. It was not just a long clash, but a dramatic one.

After rallying from 2-5 down in the final set, Murray rolled his ankle and was in agony. He returned to the court and managed to lead in the tie-break before losing despite suffering a full rupture of his ATFL and a near full thickness rupture of his CFL. Machac said it was “for sure the toughest match of my career”.

Now they will meet again on one of the biggest stages of the sport: Centre Court at SW19.

“It’s a first round at a Grand Slam. But it's a special kind of occasion that we will play on Centre Court with the local guy maybe at the end of the career, playing good tennis,” Machac told ATPTour.com. “So this occasion is something special, I would say. But normally it's a first round for me. It's different, but I'm thinking like it's a normal match on the big stage.”

Jannik Sinner faced a tough challenge in the first round of The Championships, but remained calm to defeat German Yannick Hanfmann 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 on Monday and set a second-round blockbuster against 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini.

Top-seeded Sinner appeared in full control after two sets, but Hanfmann significantly reduced his mistakes to work his way into the match. Ultimately, the 22-year-old Sinner’s power and poise were too much for the former University of Southern California star in the two-hour, 58-minute encounter.

Despite dropping the third set, Sinner said that he was happy with his strong recovery, adding that he was delighted to be making his Grand Slam debut as the World No. 1 at The All England Club.

"When you go a break down immediately it's tough to recover but how I reacted in the fourth set was very positive and ending the match in a very positive way hopefully can help me to start the next round,” the Italian said.

"It's a huge privilege and honour to be in the position that I am and there is no better place than here to play my first Grand Slam as a World No. 1. It's an amazing feeling, but every match starts at zero, zero and every opponent wants to win, as I do.”

Christopher Eubanks enjoyed the biggest moment of his career last year at Wimbledon, where he earned a series of impressive wins to reach his first major quarter-final.

The American, who upset Stefanos Tsitsipas en route, reflects on one of the greatest moments of his career, remembers his early Wimbledon memories watching Andy Roddick and his love for the traditions at the grass-court major.

What is your first memory of watching Wimbledon?
My first memory was probably 'Breakfast at Wimbledon'. Wimbledon is a pretty good Slam for waking up as a kid on the East Coast at six or seven a.m. and kind of getting to see the opening with ESPN and seeing the final on NBC as a kid. Those are my first memories and then with matches, that legendary final between Federer and Nadal in 08. I also remember two of Roddick's finals. I remember watching it as an American thinking, ‘Oh man, an American could win Wimbledon. He played Federer in the finals and wasn't able to, but still incredible matches.

So those finals and Rafa against Roger were probably two of the memories that stick out. But overall just kind of the joy of the summer waking up early and the excitement of seeing those first matches on and watching them bounce around from court to court is a memory I'll always remember.

What were your thoughts about the aura of the venue when you first arrived?
I had played qualifying about three or four times and I had heard a few players say once you make main draw, it feels a little bit different when you get on site, so I didn't really know what to expect. And then getting here last year and to experience it all for the first time as a player was truly remarkable. To just see how well manicured everything is. There's not a piece of grass out of place, everybody is so orderly, they're so respectful, so nice, things just kind of move like clockwork here. It was definitely a kind of surreal moment to say, ‘Oh wow, I'm here from a player standpoint’. It was truly special.

When play began Monday at The Championships, no Chinese man in the Open Era had ever reached the second round. Shang Juncheng and Zhang Zhizhen wasted little time changing that.

Both Chinese stars advanced to the second round at Wimbledon with straight-sets victories on courts located right next to one another. Shang first defeated qualifier Cristian Garin 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 and Zhang then eliminated another qualifier Maxime Janvier 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-2.

“It's exciting. I think we're all excited to win at the biggest stage, especially here in Wimbledon,” Shang told ATPTour.com. “[It is the] first time me playing in the main draw, getting a win here. Also Z was just I think minutes behind. It's really good that both of us are in the second round. Hopefully we can do more.”

Zhang began his match on Court 5 after Shang started his encounter on Court 6. Fans were able to watch history made on both courts.

“When I stepped on the court I just saw he was next to me. And also during the match I knew what was going on on the other side," Zhang said. "It's just right there. Actually when we were tossing the coin I was watching the other side. I was watching the score and then when we were playing I still can see some scores. Also when the fans were screaming, I didn't know what was going on in the point, but in the end [I heard] they were screaming.”

Daniil Medvedev returned to his Wimbledon ‘happy place’ in style on Monday afternoon.

The fifth seed dispatched Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in his first-round match at the grass-court major, where he is aiming to better his semi-final run from 2023. Medvedev converted four of eight break points he earned against the No. 88-ranked Kovacevic to maintain his perfect record on the All England Club’s No. 1 Court.

“It was a great match, to be honest,” said Medvedev. “The first match is never easy and there were moments in the match when it was not as easy as the score would suggest. So I’m really happy with my level and I’ve still never lost on Court 1, so hopefully I can play a lot more matches on this court.”

Business mode ?

A straightforward victory for @DaniilMedwed 6-3 6-4 6-2 against Kovacevic!@Wimbledon | #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/G1d1nouvIn

The 20-time tour-level champion Medvedev is now 6-0 in first-round matches at Wimbledon, but it was his other perfect SW19 record he was more eager to discuss in his post-match interview.

Defending Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz was pushed by Estonian qualifier Mark Lajal on Monday, but found a way through in straight sets to ensure his title defence started in perfect fashion at The Championships.

The 21-year-old withstood a free-hitting, aggressive performance from Lajal to record a 7-6(3), 7-5, 6-2 victory at the grass-court major.

"He surprised me a little bit because I had not seen him play too much," Alcaraz said. "He is very young, he is my age. I am sure I am going to see him on the Tour and play him more often. I am really happy to get through and get my first win on Centre Court this year."

Roaring on Centre Court ?@carlosalcaraz downs Lajal 7-6(3) 7-5 6-2 to continue his title defence!@Wimbledon | #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/UWY0Zg4bbh

Opening play on Centre Court as the defending champion, Alcaraz looked comfortable for large periods in an environment in which he holds fond memories. The Spaniard toppled Novak Djokovic in five sets in the championship match last year to win his first Wimbledon title and looked in relaxed spirits when walking onto court for his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Lajal.

Jannik Sinner, who enters Wimbledon as the top seed at a major for the first time, has an opportunity to extend his lead as the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings.

The Italian begins the grass-court major with a 2,010-point lead over No. 2 Novak Djokovic in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. That gives the 22-year-old a cushion in the No. 1 battle.

Should Djokovic win his eighth title at SW19, he still would not pass Sinner for the No. 1 spot regardless of the top seed’s performance. Even if this year’s Australian Open champion falls in the first round, he will leave London as World No. 1.

PIF ATP Live Rankings entering Wimbledon

One year ago, Sinner both entered and exited The Championships as World No. 8. Now he has an opportunity to strengthen his No. 1 position. 

Argentine Federico Agustin Gomez tossed his racquet in relief and raised his hands over his head. The 27-year-old had just won his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title as a qualifier in Milan.

Agustin Gomez won seven matches in as many days at the Aspria Tennis Cup, where he became the oldest first-time winner this season on the ATP Challenger Tour. A former standout at the University of Louisville, Agustin Gomez downed Romanian Filip Cristian Jianu 6-3, 6-4 in Saturday's final.

"I certainly didn’t expect to win the tournament: obviously you want to do things well, but it was also the first week with my new coach [Cesar Chiappari],” said Agustin Gomez, up 60 spots to a career-high No. 224 in the PIF ATP Rankings. “We decided to think about one match at a time, improving the details match after match."

In other ATP Challenger Tour action, Ecuadorian Alvaro Guillen Meza did not drop a set all week to win the Ibague Open in Colombia. The 21-year-old went one step further than last week’s finalist finish at the Santa Cruz de la Sierra Challenger, racing past Argentine Facundo Mena 6-0, 6-4 in the final.

Guillen Meza, who has won nine of past 10 Challenger-level matches, moved 19 places to a career-high World No. 240 following his title run. The Guayaquil native is a two-time ATP Challenger Tour champion, having won in Lima last August.

Is 2024 the year Casper Ruud gets to grips with the Wimbledon grass?

The eighth-seeded Norwegian on Monday made a rapid start to his latest campaign at the London major with a 7-6(2), 6-4, 6-4 triumph against qualifier Alex Bolt. Ruud delivered a rock-solid display on the All England Club’s No. 3 Court, wrapping just his third victory in five main-draw appearances in two hours and 13 minutes.

“I feel good. It’s nice to stand here now as the winner of the match,” said Ruud, who needed six match points to see off the No. 235 in the PIF ATP Rankings after a tough final two games of their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash. “It could have been 5-5 or even 6-5 to him, so two tricky games to end, but I’m happy to win one of them and close the match.

“It’s great to be back at Wimbledon, and every win I can get here is good for my confidence and my career.”

This from @CasperRuud98 ?@Wimbledon | #wimbledon pic.twitter.com/Gh1c1Jczwx

Tennis workouts are essential for improving your overall performance on the court. They help in developing strength, agility, endurance, and flexibility. Here are some effective tennis workouts that cover various aspects of fitness required for the sport: 1. Warm-Up ExercisesDynamic StretchesArm Circles: Perform small to large circles with your arm...

Alejandro Tabilo made Chilean history on Saturday with his victory at the Mallorca Championships presented by Waterdrop. In doing so, he jumped to a career-high in the PIF ATP Rankings.

ATPTour.com looks at the movers in the PIF ATP Rankings as of Monday, 1 July.

No. 19 Alejandro Tabilo, +5 (Career High)
Tabilo became the first Chilean to win a tour-level grass-court event in the Open Era by downing Sebastian Ofner in straight sets in the Mallorca championship match. The 27-year-old lifted his second title of both the 2024 season and his career to rise five spots to a career-high World No. 19. With his countryman Nicolas Jarry one spot below him at No. 20, it marks the first time since 2005 that two Chileans are inside the Top 20.

No. 45 Sebastian Ofner, +9
Despite championship-match defeat, Austria’s Ofner also hit a milestone in Mallorca by reaching his maiden ATP Tour final at the ATP 250. The big-serving right-hander dropped just two sets en route to the title match, and he has risen back into the Top 50 for the first time since early June as a result.

No. 68 Max Purcell, +26
Another player lining up for his maiden tour-level final on Saturday was Max Purcell. The Australian marched to the Rothesay International championship match as a qualifier, securing four of his six victories on the Eastbourne grass in straight sets. Top seed Taylor Fritz proved too strong in the final, but Purcell nonetheless surges 26 spots to No. 68 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Estonian Mark Lajal was in a car on his way to site Friday, the day after he qualified for Wimbledon. The 21-year-old was enjoying the ride with his mother, coach and the driver, when he received a shock.

“My friend was looking at the live draw when they were picking the [players] and I remember they called, 'Carlos Alcaraz will play'... and it was like, 'Number 122, Mark Lajal',” he told ATPTour.com. “We all started screaming, everyone screamed in our car. I got scared because they started screaming and then it was, 'Oh my, I'm playing Carlos'.”

The No. 262 player in the PIF ATP Rankings will enjoy a memorable welcome to major main draw action. In his first three attempts to qualify for a Grand Slam tournament, Lajal lost in the first round. Now not only has he qualified, but the Estonian will open the event on Centre Court against the defending champion.

“I don't know if it really has sunk in yet because it's incredible. Once I qualified, obviously, it's a big thing to qualify for me and one of my goals this year was to qualify for a Grand Slam,” Lajal said. “For my first time, I wanted to play someone big, have a big first match. But for some reason, Carlos never crossed my mind. So when I saw Carlos, I was like, ‘Oh my God, I'm playing Carlos’.

“Then my friend told me, ‘You know, you're going to be opening Centre Court’. I was like, ‘Wait, that's true!’ That's tradition. So for me, that's just unbelievable. I'm going to be playing against Carlos on Centre Court as my first match. I don't know if it's sunk in yet. But I'm quite excited, honestly.”

Andy Murray revealed in a press conference Sunday details of his recovery from recent back surgery and explained that he is still pushing to be ready to compete in one final Wimbledon.

“It’s been obviously a tough 10 days or so since Queen's. Obviously had the operation on the back, which wasn't insignificant. Just been trying to do everything that I can to try and get ready to start the tournament here,” Murray said. “I don't know if that's going to be enough. I've been practising for the past few days. I played a set today. It went pretty well, but I still don't have 100 per cent sort of feeling and sensation in my leg yet.

“It's getting better every single day. Like I said a few days ago, I want to give it every single chance that I can to get there.”

The former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings explained that he will probably make a decision Monday evening regarding his participation in the tournament. The Scot added that there have been positive signs.

“I have no back pain, which is obviously really good. But the nature of the problem that I had was I had quite a large cyst, which was squashing, compressing my nerves, which then obviously lost not all, but a lot of control in my right leg,” Murray said. “That is getting better. But it's kind of like if you sleep on your arm funny, you wake up and you've got a dead arm. It's kind of like that feeling. But it goes on for a lot longer because the nerve has been kind of squashed and a little bit damaged for a number of days. How long that takes to regain its full sort of function again is impossible to say. For some people it takes months; for some people it's weeks.”

Czech stars Tomas Berdych and Jiri Lehecka have made their mark at Wimbledon over the years, with the former reaching the final in 2010 and the latter enjoying a breakout run to the fourth round last year.

Now, 18-year-old #NextGenATP star Jakub Mensik is hoping to be the next man from his country to shine at The Championships this week when he makes his tournament debut.

“I have spoken to Tomas and Jiri before a little about grass. I watched Tomas on TV playing here when I was young, watching him in the final I think in 2010. It was an early memory and an amazing performance,” Mensik told ATPTour.com. “Then Jiri [Lehecka], who I know well, was playing really well here last year and with this game style, it's obvious that he can play really well here. I have a pretty similar style to Tomas and Jiri and now for me to be here is something special.

“I have showed to myself in the past weeks after my first events on grass that I can play also on this surface, so that's great and I'm looking forward to it and I think I can follow [their success].”

The 13-time tour-level titlist Berdych earned victories against Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic en route to the final in 2010, while he also reached the semi-finals in 2016 and 2017. After retiring in 2019, Berdych started coaching 22-year-old Lehecka, but his charge is missing this year’s event due to injury.