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Holger Rune withdrew from the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag due to a lower back injury on Friday, the tournament announced.

“Unfortunately I won't be able to play at the Croatia Open this year, as I have issues with my lower back, an injury that prevented me from performing at my usual level this week,” Rune said. “Starting from Monday, I will undergo the necessary treatments and then take some rest."

The 20-year-old Rune, who boasts a 37-13 season record, earned his fourth tour-level title this year in Munich. He was also a finalist at the ATP Masters 1000 clay-court events in Monte-Carlo and Rome.

A quarter-finalist at Wimbledon, Rune is aiming to make his Nitto ATP Finals debut this season. The Dane is seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin.

Miomir Kecmanovic rallied back from the brink on Friday to reach the semi-finals at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, where he overcame Belgian qualifier Zizou Bergs 6-4, 3-6, 7-5.

The second-seeded Serbian trailed Bergs 1-4 and 3-5 in the third set, but showed his grit and quality during the latter stages of the third set to turn the match around and seal victory on his fourth match point after two hours and 16 minutes.

“It did not really looked good at 1-4 down and 3-5, but I kept believing and thought I would be able to turn it around and luckily I managed to do that today,” Kecmanovic said in his on-court interview.

Kecmanovic, who is the highest seed left in the draw after top seed Roberto Bautista Agut lost on Thursday, is into his fourth tour-level semi-final of the season. The 23-year-old is chasing his second tour-level title and first of the year and will next meet Juan Pablo Varillas or Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

Lorenzo Musetti earned a comeback victory on Friday to reach his second tour-level semi-final of the season at the Nordea Open. The Italian moved past Austrian qualifier Filip Misolic 4-6, 6-1, 6-2.

Competing on the clay at the ATP 250 event in Bastad, Musetti improved as the match went on, moving freely and demonstrating great touch to pull Misolic around the court throughout the two-hour and six-minute clash.

Musetti, who survived a three-set scare in his first-round match against countryman Matteo Arnaldi, now holds a 14-9 record on clay this year, with his best result a run to the semi-finals at the ATP 500 in Barcelona.

The third seed is chasing his third tour-level title and first of the season in Bastad. He will continue his quest against top seed Casper Ruud or Sebastian Ofner.

It was looking like a welcome short day at the office for Adrian Mannarino, who led Jordan Thompson 6-0, 5-2 on a hot Thursday at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open. The second-seeded Frenchman still picked up the win in the end, but he had to battle through three sets and nearly three hours for a 6-0, 6-7(4), 6-2 result on the Newport grass.

"I was just trying to stay focussed, to play every point like I should do, not getting upset from the scenario of the second set and trying to stay consistent," Mannarino said in his on-court interview, adding that he felt he "choked" in the second set.

"But it was not easy. I was up so far in the score, and then Jordan started to play really well. He was not missing any more and in the beginning of the third set he had the [momentum]. So it was tough to stay in the match, but I did it very well."

[ATP APP]

Thompson, who is teaming with Mannarino in doubles this week, won four straight games to turn the tide in set two, capped with a battling service hold that spanned nine deuces at 5-5.

The busiest quarter on the 2023 ATP calendar began with the European clay-court swing and concluded last week at Wimbledon. With half of the year in the books, the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin is beginning to take shape, with Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev leading the chase for the Nitto ATP Finals.

Before the North American hard court swing takes center stage next month in Toronto and Cincinnati, ATPTour.com looks back at the best of Q2.

[ATP APP]

No. 1 Alcaraz Wins Wimbledon Crown
Alcaraz began and concluded the second quarter in supreme style, bookending the period with trophies and coming out the other side atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

For the second straight year, Alcaraz completed a Spanish double in Barcelona and at the ATP Masters 1000 in Madrid, losing just two sets in 11 wins. A shock early exit in Rome — shortly after his 20th birthday — was followed by a semi-final run at Roland Garros, which ended at the hands of Djokovic as the Spaniard struggled with cramp.

Denis Shapovalov and WTA player Mirjam Bjorklund gave Tennis United a whole new meaning on Thursday when they announced their engagement on social media.

The pair posted photos of Shapovalov getting down on one knee in Bastad, Sweden. Bjorklund, who is inside the Top 150 of the WTA Rankings, is Swedish.

Several stars quickly congratulated the happy couple, including Sloane Stephens, Wu Yibing, Alex Corretja and Monica Puig.

Shapovalov and Bjorklund did not know each other well in the juniors, but began dating in 2019. 

Argentine Pedro Cachin reached his first tour-level quarter-final of the season on Thursday at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, where he defeated top seed Roberto Bautista Agut 7-6(4), 7-6(3).

The 28-year-old rallied from a break down in the first set to earn his third Top 30 win of the year after two hours and 13 minutes. Cachin is into his first tour-level quarter-final since Cordoba in 2019 and will next meet Jaume Munar. The Spaniard defeated home favourite Stan Wawrinka 7-6(3), 6-1 to improve to 6-0 against Swiss players on Tour.

Earlier, Albert Ramos-Vinolas continued his impressive record against Lorenzo Sonego when he downed the World No. 42 Italian 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 to improve to 3-0 in the pair's Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

With his victory, the Spaniard earned his first win against a Top 50 opponent since October 2022, when he beat then-World No. 23 Lorenzo Musetti in Vienna. Ramos-Vinolas held a 0-6 record against Top 50 players prior to Thursday.

The 35-year-old has tasted success at the ATP 250 clay-court event before, winning the trophy in 2019 before he advanced to the semi-finals last year. He will meet Juan Pablo Varillas in the quarter-finals after the Peruvian defeated Argentine qualifier Facundo Bagnis 6-2, 6-1.

Former Nordea Open champion Casper Ruud began his quest for an 11th tour-level title in style on Thursday when he cruised past Alexander Shevchenko 6-2, 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals in Bastad.

The top seed was in control throughout the 79-minute clash at the ATP 250 clay-court event, hitting his heavy topspin backhand with precision to outlast the World No. 96 in baseline exchanges.

"I am very happy to win. It was tough here for me last year, losing in my first match, so to get a win is good, in front of a Scandinavian crowd," Ruud said in his on-court interview. "It was very difficult with the wind today, conditions were a bit challenging but I was able to do good enough."

[ATP APP]

Ruud now holds an 18-6 record on clay this season and will next face Austrian Sebastian Ofner after the 27-year-old defeated Spaniard Bernabe Zapata Miralles 4-6, 6-4, 6-4.

This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es.

Among Carlos Alcaraz’s vast array of sporting weapons, there is one that is invisible to the TV cameras. It is a virtue that may go unnoticed by the fans as they witness his progress through a life dedicated to tennis, and one that has enabled him to enjoy a rapid rise on the tour, putting him a cut above the rest at just 20 years of age.

Carlos absorbs the admiration of the masses with an extraordinary ability to learn, channelling every experience into his own personal growth.

The Murcia native is the new Wimbledon champion, the holder of one of the most prestigious trophies in all of sport, and with barely any experience on grass courts. He has won two of the first 10 Grand Slams in which he’s played, and has already achieved more than most do in their entire careers. Already at the pinnacle of tennis, he is the youngest player ever to climb to the top of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

While the man of the moment attempts to comprehend his historic achievement, his physio and rehab specialist Juanjo Moreno, who is largely responsible for Alcaraz’s fitness, spoke to ATPTour.com about the current World No. 1’s strengths.

Top seed Tommy Paul opened his campaign at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open on Wednesday with a 6-4, 6-2 win against Ethan Quinn, claiming victory in a matchup of Americans coached by Brad Stine.

Quinn, the reigning NCAA singles champion, picked up a win in his ATP Tour debut this week but was turned back by Paul on centre court at the Newport ATP 250.

A former Georgia Bulldog, Quinn began his professional career last week on the ATP Challenger Tour. He has worked with Stine since he was six or seven years old, and the coach often uses Paul as an aspirational example in his work with Quinn.

On Wednesday, Paul gave Quinn a lesson himself on the Rhode Island grass courts. The World No. 14 converted on five of 11 break points to advance to the quarter-finals. He navigated a topsy-turvy start to the second set that featured five consecutive breaks, ultimately winning the final four games of the match.

With the win, Paul improved to 13-3 against fellow Americans since the start of 2022 (8-1 in 2023). He also improved to 19-0 in tour-level matches against players ranked outside of Top 150.

Italian Lorenzo Musetti did not have things all his own way against countryman Matteo Arnaldi at the Nordea Open on Wednesday, but he found a way to reach his seventh tour-level quarter-final of the season.

Competing on the clay at the ATP 250 in Bastad, the third seed Musetti overcame a mid-match dip to advance past Arnaldi 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(6) in two hours and 38 minutes. The 21-year-old recovered from squandering a break advantage in the third set, converting his seventh match point to advance to his fifth quarter-final on clay this year.

Musetti, who had never been beyond the first round in his two previous appearances in Bastad, now leads Arnaldi 2-0 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series. Chasing his first tour-level title of the season, the World No. 16 will next meet Filip Misolic. The Austrian qualifier beat Slovakian qualifier Jozef Kovalik 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4.

[ATP APP]

In other action, defending champion Francisco Cerundolo defeated #NextGenATP Frenchman Luca Van Assche 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals. The fourth-seed, currently No. 21 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, has now earned 30 tour-level wins this season. The Argentine will next meet Federico Coria or Swede Leo Borg.

Several #NextGenATP stars have continued to make their moves in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race, with maiden tour-level titles, breakthrough wins and career-high rankings the story of the second quarter of the 2023 season.

Frenchman Arthur Fils lifted his maiden tour-level trophy on home soil in Lyon, while Ben Shelton earned his first tour-level wins on clay and grass. Dominic Stricker, Hamad Medjedovic and Alex Michelsen have all tasted success, clinching crowns at ATP Challenger Tour events.

NextGenATPFinals.com looks at some of the most notable #NextGenATP accomplishments of the second quarter of the season.

[ATP APP]

Fils & Shelton Continue To Set Pace
Frenchman Fils, who is aiming to make his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals, is currently fourth (693 points) in the Live Next Gen Race. The 19-year-old enjoyed impressive results on the European clay, advancing through qualifying to reach the second round at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome before he captured his maiden tour-level title in Lyon. Having started the season outside the Top 250, Fils’ results lifted him to a career-high No. 58 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in June.

#NextGenATP Serbian Hamad Medjedovic moved past former World No. 3 Dominic Thiem 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 on Wednesday at the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad to reach his maiden tour-level quarter-final.

The 20-year-old was aggressive throughout the two-hour, 15-minute encounter, forcing Thiem into forehand errors with his weight and depth of shot at the ATP 250 clay-court event.

With his third tour-level win of the season, Medjedovic has climbed two spots to eighth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race. The Serbian, who is aiming to make his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals, will next face fourth seed Yannick Hanfmann or Daniel Altmaier.

[ATP APP]

Thiem has tasted success in Gstaad before, lifting the trophy in 2015. He leaves Switzerland holding an 8-16 record on the season, with his best result quarter-final runs in Estoril and Munich.

A semi-finalist at last season’s Next Gen ATP Finals, Dominic Stricker has boosted his hopes of returning to the 21-and-under event this year after he earned his major maiden win at Wimbledon.

The 20-year-old Swiss has climbed one place to seventh (371 points) in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race after defeating Australian Alexei Popyrin at SW19, before he fell against 10th seed Frances Tiafoe.

Stricker is looking to move further this week when he competes on home soil at the ATP 250 in Gstaad. The lefty defeated fellow #NextGenATP star Arthur Fils (693 points) in the first round.

American Alex Michelsen has also climbed after winning his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in Chicago. The 18-year-old, who is aiming to make his debut at the Next Gen ATP Finals, is 11th in the Live Next Gen Race (286 points). Michelsen is in action at the ATP 250 tournament on grass in Newport this week. He defeated big-serving American Maxime Cressy in three sets in his opening match to earn his first tour-level win.

The 20-year-old American Ben Shelton (645 points) and 19-year-old Frenchman Luca Van Assche (487 points) are fifth and sixth, respectively, and remain on course to qualify for the 21-and-under event. Van Assche is in action at the ATP 250 in Bastad, where he advanced to the second round.

Dutchman Gijs Brouwer was born in Houston, where his parents lived for 10 years. His father, Idso, worked for companies in the American city. But Idso and his wife, Jolanda, decided to move home to the Netherlands just a couple of months after Gijs was born.

From a bustling city, they moved to Hoogkarspel, where they lived in a house on a canal.

“Very small, very local. Not a lot of people dreaming big things,” Brouwer told ATPTour.com. “Just people kind of small-minded, living in their little village.”

Brouwer does not fit that description. The 27-year-old is travelling around the world competing against the best tennis players in the world.

His journey in the sport began when he would watch the Australian Open on television as a child. His parents did not have a tennis background, but enjoyed watching the sport, and Brouwer caught on. The lefty told his parents he wanted to try playing tennis, so they took him to a local tennis club.

Australian James Duckworth is competing this week at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open in Newport, where he will play #NextGenATP American Alex Michelsen for a place in the quarter-finals.

ATPTour.com caught up with the 31-year-old to learn about the Australian off the court and find out what Roger Federer does when he sees Duckworth.

[BREAK POINT]

If you could have dinner with any three people who would they be and why?
My favourite golfer is Jordan Spieth. I've been following him closely the last few years so maybe him. Have got to go with an NFL player, so I'll go [with] Josh Allen. And then Andrew Johns, a rugby league player.

If you could switch places with anyone for a day, who would it be?
I was just in Chicago last week. It would have been pretty cool to be Michael Jordan there when he was in his prime.

Sweden's Leo Borg picked the perfect venue to claim his first ATP Tour match win Tuesday, triumphing on home soil at the Nordea Open in Bastad.

Borg, the 20-year-old son of 11-time Grand Slam winner Bjorn Borg, defeated countryman Elias Ymer 7-6(5), 6-3 after saving two of the three break points he faced.

"I have worked so hard for this for so many years and today was the day I got the result," Borg said. "I'm very happy with my performance today and how mentally strong I was. Elias and I have a good relationship and overall it was good tennis."

The six-foot right-hander, who did not even have a match win at ATP Challenger Tour level (0-13 career) before this week, will next play Argentine Federico Coria.

The World No. 437 was playing just his third tour-level event and had competed exclusively at the ATP Challenger and ITF Men’s World Tennis Tour level this year before this week.

#NextGenATP American Alex Michelsen earned his first ATP Tour win in style Tuesday in Newport.

The 18-year-old, who claimed his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title on Sunday in Chicago, upset defending champion Maxime Cressy 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-5 to reach the second round of the Infosys Hall of Fame Open.

“I knew he was going to go out there and bomb serves," Michelsen said. "When I was down break point at 3-4 [in the final set] I got a little worried, but I came up with a good serve and just kind of found a way today."

[ATP APP]

Michelsen arrived in Newport in the early hours of Monday morning after his breakthrough triumph the day before, when he won two matches to lift the trophy. The Chicago victory helped him climb 60 spots to a career-high No. 190 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Alexander Zverev was made to work for a winning return to clay Tuesday at the Nordea Open in Bastad. The fifth-seeded German held his nerve for a 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 first-round triumph against Alex Molcan at the clay-court ATP 250.

Competing on clay for the first time since his run to the Roland Garros semi-finals in June, Zverev stayed alert to fend off a Molcan comeback in the deciding set of the pair’s second Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting. The 19-time tour-level titlist Zverev, who defeated Molcan in straight sets in the second round of his Roland Garros run, failed to serve out the match at 5-3 in Bastad but notched a decisive break in the 12th game to wrap a two-hour, 25-minute victory.

“Obviously it’s the first clay-court match back after the grass-court season and it’s never easy,” said Zverev. “He’s an opponent that plays extremely well and at the end of the day I’m happy to be through to the second round. That’s the most important thing.”

Now 27-17 for the year, Zverev will take on Thiago Monteiro next as he chases his first ATP Tour crown since returning to action at the start of the year after a long-term ankle injury. The 26-year-old Zverev reached the semi-finals on his only previous appearance in 2015 in Bastad, where this year he arrived off the back a 5-2 grass-court season.

[ATP APP]

The morning after winning Wimbledon, Carlos Alcaraz’s telephone is still ringing off the hook. Messages continue to flood in on WhatsApp, Instagram and Twitter; everyone from Serena Williams to Will Smith, Fernando Alonso, Michael Phelps, Naomi Osaka, Ben Stiller and Sebastián Yatra, have sent their congratulations to the new champ.

However, there is one message that stands out from the rest; that of 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal, one of the 20-year-old’s heroes.

“Congratulations on the win!”, the Mallorcan wrote to the new Wimbledon champion. “Enjoy it because these moments are magical and unique,” added the Spanish star, who also sent Alcaraz a message before the final to wish him luck for his clash with Djokovic.

Enhorabuena @carlosalcaraz . Nos has dado una alegría inmensa hoy y seguro que nuestro pionero en el tenis español, Manolo Santana, también ha estado animando allá dónde esté como de Wimbledon al que hoy te has unido.
Un abrazo muy fuerte y a disfrutar del momento ¡¡¡Campeón!!!… pic.twitter.com/y0j2GowX3O

This is the new reality of the World No. 1, and it is one that will continue to grow with every new conquest. On Sunday, during the final against Djokovic, Brad Pitt, Emma Watson, Rachel Weiss, Daniel Craig, James Norton and King Felipe VI of Spain were among the spectators on Centre Court, enjoying the title match.