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Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic clinched their fifth tour-level grass-court title as a team on Sunday when they moved past Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz at the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart.

The second seeds produced a strong serving performance at the ATP 250 event, winning 86 per cent (31/36) of points behind their first delivery to defeat the Germans 7-6(2), 6-3.

“It feels really good,” said Mektic. “We’ve been having a really rough year compared to the previous two so this feels really good. Really something that we needed, I think.”

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The Croatians have now captured 16 tour-level trophies as a team and two this season, also clinching the crown in Auckland in January. Pavic, 29, also triumphed in Stuttgart in 2022 with Hubert Hurkacz, while it is Mektic’s first success at the tournament.

Some of the world’s best players are in action this week at the only ATP 500 events featured on grass: Halle and London, where play will run from 19-25 June.

Top seed Carlos Alcaraz headlines the draw at the Cinch Championships, where the Spaniard is making his event debut. Matteo Berrettini will look to maintain his unbeaten record at Queen’s Club after lifting the trophy the past two years. Daniil Medvedev leads the field in Halle, where he reached the championship match last year. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Nick Kyrgios are also among the field in Germany.

ATPTour.com looks ahead at five things to watch at each event.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH AT QUEEN’S CLUB

Despite playing his first tournament in 20 months, Kei Nishikori has produced a high level this week to reach the final at the ATP Challenger 75 event in Palmas del Mar, Puerto Rico.

The former World No. 4 defeated Brazilian Gustavo Heide 6-4, 6-2 Saturday to advance to the Caribbean Open championship match. Nishikori broke Heide’s serve at 4-5 in the opening set to gain an advantage on the 21-year-old, who was playing in his first Challenger semi-final.

Nishikori, 33, continued to absorb the qualifier's heavy hitting, playing with consistency and depth to frustrate Heide and advance after one hour, 26 minutes. The Japanese star dropped just one point behind his first delivery in the second set.

The 12-time tour-level titlist will next meet American Michael Zheng in the final after the teenager moved past Kazakh Beibit Zhukayev 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) in a rain-disrupted semi-final.

This week marks Nishikori's return to competition after extended time off due to injuries. After undergoing arthroscopic left hip surgery last year, Nishikori is playing his first event since the BNP Paribas Open in October 2021.

Zizou Bergs is aiming to defend his title this week at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Ilkley, but this time around the Belgian will not have to face his coach Ruben Bemelmans, whom he defeated en route to the ‘biggest title of his career’ one year ago.

The 24-year-old Bergs started working with former World No. 84 Bemelmans just three weeks before they were standing across the net from each other at the Ilkley Trophy last season. Ahead of the tournament, Bergs was enjoying dinner with his team when Bemelmans checked his phone and saw the Ilkley Challenger qualifying draw for the first time.

“He started laughing super hard and I was like, 'Don't say we play each other first round!’” Bergs recalled to ATPTour.com. “It's actually quite funny. It was crazy, we looked at the draws, first round of qualies against each other. He was there as my coach but also as a player. We started working part-time around the time of Roland Garros.”

The next day, then-ranked No. 207 Bergs defeated Bemelmans 7-6(5), 6-4 at the grass-court event and later advanced to the main draw. He did not stop there.

Bergs went on a dream title run and saved a championship point to down Jack Sock in the final.

Andy Murray continued his red-hot grass court form on Saturday when he advanced to the final at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Nottingham.

The former World No. 1 moved past Nuno Borges 6-3, 6-2 at the Rothesay Open to earn his ninth consecutive win on the surface. Last week, Murray became the oldest grass-court champion in Challenger history (since 1978) when he triumphed at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy.

The 36-year-old will chase his third Challenger Tour title of the year on Sunday when he meets Arthur Cazaux in the final. The #NextGenATP Frenchman defeated DominikKoepfer 7-5, 6-2 in Saturday’s other semi-final at the Challenger Tour 125 event.

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In a dominant performance against Portugal’s Borges, Murray struck the ball cleanly on return, breaking four times to advance after 74 minutes. The Scot is up four spots to No. 40 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings as he continues his quest to be seeded at Wimbledon next month.

Tallon Griekspoor rode a wave of home support to the championship match Saturday at the Libema Open, where the Dutchman claimed an impressive 6-4, 7-5 semi-final win against Emil Ruusuvuori.

The sixth seed claimed a solitary break in each set to hold off the hard-hitting World No. 42 Ruusuvuori and reach his second ATP Tour final. Griekspoor broke the Finn’s serve in the opening game of the match and saved all four break points he faced from then on to wrap an 89-minute triumph and advance to play Jordan Thompson for the trophy at the grass-court ATP 250.

“Once again [it was an] unbelievable atmosphere in a packed stadium,” said Griekspoor in his on-court interview. “[There is] nothing better to play in front of. I started off well, got the break in the first game which is always nice. It took some pressure off my own games.

“I thought he picked up his game at the beginning of the second set. I tried to focus on my own games and tried to sneak the break at 5-5. A really good service game to end and once again really happy with my performance.”

Griekspoor’s victory ensured there would be a Dutchman in the ‘s-Hertogenbosch final for the second consecutive year. His countryman Tim van Rijthoven upset Daniil Medvedev to claim the title a year ago, and Griekspoor admitted that he has the opportunity to fulfil a long-held ambition when he steps on court to face Thompson on Sunday.

The draw for the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle has delivered a host of intriguing first-round encounters, not least a second ATP Head2Head meeting between Felix Auger-Aliassime and Dominic Thiem.

Thiem defeated Auger-Aliassime in straight sets at the 2020 US Open three years ago and the Austrian wild card will hope for a repeat result when he competes on grass for the first time since 2021 at the ATP 500. Thiem and the fifth-seeded Auger-Aliassime, who reached the semi-finals at Halle’s OWL ARENA last year, are in the same quarter of the draw as second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who opens his campaign against Gregoire Barrere.

Fourth seed Jannik Sinner is also in the bottom half of the draw in Germany. The Italian will make his Halle debut against Richard Gasquet, with the winner set to take on whoever prevails in a big-hitting battle between Nick Kyrgios and Lorenzo Sonego.

Headlining the Halle field is Daniil Medvedev, who reached the championship match in 2022. The top seed looks to bounce back from early defeat in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last week in a first-round match against a qualifier. Should Medvedev reach the quarter-finals, he could face home favourite and two-time finalist Alexander Zverev, who takes on Roberto Bautista Agut in his opening match.

Hubert Hurkacz delivered one of the performances of the 2022 grass season to down Medvedev in last year’s final in Halle. The Pole defends his crown as the sixth seed, and he will hope to make a fast start against a qualifier. Andrey Rublev is a potential quarter-final opponent for Hurkacz: The third seed is chasing his first tour-level title on grass at the OWL Arena, where he faces a tough opening test against the fast-rising Chinese star Wu Yibing.

World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz will face a qualifier on his debut at the Cinch Championships and could face two-time defending champion Matteo Berrettini in the third round at the ATP 500, following Saturday's draw.

The 20-year-old Spaniard has lifted 10 tour-level titles in his career and risen to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. However, he has only previous played two tour-level events on grass, with his best result on the surface a run to the fourth round at Wimbledon last year.

The top seed headlines the draw in London, where he will face Jiri Lehecka or Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round if he wins his opening match. Fourth seed Frances Tiafoe, who starts against Botic van de Zandschulp, is a potential semi-final opponent for Alcaraz. The American Tiafoe competes in the Stuttgart final on Sunday before arriving in London.

In the bottom half, record five-time champion Andy Murray opens his campaign against Australian Alex de Minaur, who beat the 36-year-old in Monte-Carlo earlier this season. The former World No. 1 Murray could meet Diego Schwartzman in the second round and third seed Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals.

Murray has made a strong start to his grass season, winning an ATP Challenger Tour event in Surbiton, before advancing to the semi-finals in Nottingham, where he competes on Saturday.

Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski captured their first tour-level title of the season together on Saturday at the Libema Open, where they defeated Gonzalo Escobar and Aleksandr Nedovyesov 7-6(1), 6-2.

The top seeds clinched seven tour-level trophies in 2022, but were made to wait for further title success this year, losing finals in Indian Wells and Barcelona.

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However, they returned to the winners’ circle once again with a dominant display in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, not facing a break point in the championship match to triumph after 84 minutes.

Koolhof and Skupski have consolidated second place in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Team Rankings with victory at the ATP 250 grass-court event. They will also return to joint No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings on Monday.

Frances Tiafoe advanced to his seventh tour-level final and first on grass on Saturday when he battled past Hungarian qualifier Marton Fucsovics 6-3, 7-6(11) at the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart.

The American, who did not face a break point in the match, saved six set points in an epic second-set tie-break to book his spot in the championship match after one hour and 37 minutes.

The third seed Tiafoe is chasing his third tour-level title and second of the season this week, having triumphed on clay in Houston in April.

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Tiafoe is making his debut in Stuttgart, with his best result on grass prior to this week runs to the quarter-finals at The Queen's Club in 2018 and 2021. The 25-year-old is up one place to No. 11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings and will break the Top 10 for the first time if he wins the trophy in Germany.

Three-time major champion Andy Murray has won 13 of his past 14 Challenger-level matches, including title runs in Aix-en-Provence and last week in Surbiton. The Scot will look to maintain his form Saturday at the Rothesay Open, where he will face third seed Nuno Borges in the semi-finals.

It will be top seed Murray’s first encounter with the Portuguese No. 1, who won the biggest title of his career earlier this season at the Challenger 175 event in Phoenix. Murray and Borges will battle not before 2 p.m. local time Saturday. 

In the bottom half of the Nottingham Challenger draw, #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Cazaux will meet fifth seed Dominik Koepfer in the last four. The German Koepfer has reached four Challenger finals this year, including his triumph at last month’s Challenger 175 event in Turin, Italy.

Fans can live stream Saturday’s semi-finals in Nottingham by visiting Challenger TV, where all ATP Challenger Tour matches are free to watch live and on demand.

For App Users
To watch Challenger TV on the ATP WTA Live App, navigate to the screen you see when you open the app. On the purple navigation bar at the bottom of the screen, click the "More" button on the far right. The second option down will be "Challenger TV", where you can select any match from any ATP Challenger Tour event that day.

Netflix’s hit tennis docuseries, Break Point, is set to return on 21 June.

With unprecedented behind-the-scenes access with some of the best players on the ATP Tour and the Hologic WTA Tour, the show follows the likes of Nick Kyrgios, Iga Swiatek and more around the world as they try to shine under the spotlight.

The first five episodes of the series were released in January. Before the second half of the season is released, learn more about Netflix’s Break Point.

[BREAK POINT]

Who are the players featured in Season 1, Part 2 of Netflix’s Break Point?

The players featured in the next five episodes of Break Point are Taylor Fritz, Nick Kyrgios, Ons Jabeur, Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, Frances Tiafoe, Ajla Tomljanovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Other players included are Felix Auger-Aliassime, Matteo Berrettini, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Maria Sakkari.

Andy Murray passed a stern test from #NextGenATP Swiss Dominic Stricker on Friday to reach the semi-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour 125 event in Nottingham.

The Scot is yet to drop a set this week after defeating Stricker 7-6(2), 7-5 in the Rothesay Open quarter-finals. Murray lost just one point behind his first serve in the opening set to gain an advantage on the 20-year-old. Despite trailing 1-3 in the second set, Murray fought back and earned a decisive break in the 11th game before closing out the match in one hour, 48 minutes.

"Really, really tight match today against one of the best young players in the world," Murray said in his on-court interview. "He has a really good game, huge shots from the back of the court but also really nice touch up at the net.

"I thought in the first-set tie-break I played really well, came up with some really good passing shots to get me that tie-break. In the second set, I think when I broke back immediately when he went 3-1 up, I think it gave me the momentum back and I felt like I was creating a lot of chances. That's the best I've played across the last two weeks in terms of how I hit the ball and that was really positive."

The three-time major champion has won 13 of his past 14 Challenger-level matches, including title runs in Aix-en-Provence and last week in Surbiton. The 36-year-old will next face Nuno Borges, who cruised past Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro 6-4, 6-4. Borges earned his biggest career title earlier this season, when he triumphed at the premiere Challenger 175 event in Phoenix.

The Terra Wortmann Open is one of eight grass-court events on the calendar. Among those in action this year at the ATP 500 will be Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner, and Nick Kyrgios.

Here's what you need to know ahead of the German tournament, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year:

When is the Terra Wortmann Open?

The ATP 500 event will be held from 19-25 June. The grass-court tournament, established in 1993, will take place at the OWL Arena in Halle, Germany. The tournament director is Ralf Weber.

Who is playing at the Terra Wortmann Open?

Alexander Zverev, Casper Ruud, Andrey Rublev, Medvedev, Tsitsipas, Sinner, and Kyrgios are among the field in Germany.

When is the draw for the Terra Wortmann Open?

The Terra Wortmann Open singles draw will be made on Saturday, 17 June at 1 p.m.

What is the schedule for the Terra Wortmann Open?

* Qualifying: Saturday, 17 June – Sunday, 18 June at 11 a.m.
* Main Draw: Monday, 19 June – Friday, 23 June, starting at Noon. Saturday, 24 June play begins at 2 p.m.
* Doubles Final: Sunday, 25 June, starting after the singles final.
* Singles Final: Sunday, 25 June, start time 2 p.m.
*View On Official Website

What is the prize money and points for the Terra Wortmann Open?

The prize money for the Terra Wortmann Open is €2,195,175 and the Total Financial Commitment is €2,345,130.

SINGLES
Winner: €410,515 / 500 points
Finalist: €220,880 / 300 points
Semi-finalist: €117,715 / 180 points
Quarter-finalist: €60,145 / 90 points
Round of 16: €32,105 / 45 points
Round of 32: €17,120 / 0 points

DOUBLES (£ per team)
Winner: €134,840 / 500 points
Finalist: €71,910 / 300 points
Semi-finalist: €36,380 / 180 points
Quarter-finalist: €18,190 / 90 points
Round of 16: €9,420 / 0 points

In his first tour-level grass tournament, Australian Rinky Hijikata is making a splash this week at the Libema Open. The 22-year-old advanced to his maiden tour-level semi-final Friday after defeating Mackenzie McDonald 5-7, 6-3, 6-1.

Hijikata, who received a lucky loser spot into the main draw, has rallied from a set down in each of his three matches this week in 's-Hertogenbosch to reach the last four. Despite the lack of pro experience on grass, Hijikata has fond memories playing on the surface.

“We used to have a 12s Nationals every year in Australia, it was in Mildura. That was actually the first national title I won,” Hijikata told ATPTour.com last week at the Surbiton Challenger. “It was the under 12s and it was on grass. I have some good memories playing on this surface.

“I’m pretty comfortable on the grass. I think it’s my favourite surface, maybe either this or hard court. I really love playing on it and I think being Australian, we are pretty used to playing on the grass and all our games usually suit it pretty well. I think a lot of Aussies are manufactured in a way where their game kind of suits grass.”

A two-time ATP Challenger Tour champion, Hijikata’s next opponent will be a familiar foe, countryman Jordan Thompson, who defeated him last week at the grass-court Surbiton Challenger. The 29-year-old Thompson will be aiming for a second appearance in the ‘s-Hertogenbosch title match (also 2019).

Emil Ruusuvuori earned his first ATP Head2Head win in six tries against Jannik Sinner on Friday at the Libema Open to advance to his maiden grass-court semi-final. The 24-year-old Finn did not lose a first-serve point (29/29) or face a break point in a 6-3, 6-4 victory.

The victory improved Ruusuvuori to 8-6 on grass in his career, with his previous best result on the surface a quarter-final run last year as a qualifier at The Queen's Club. Prior to this week in 's-Hertogenbosch, he had reached the quarter-finals at just one event this season across all surfaces: the Miami ATP Masters 1000 (l. to Sinner).

"It was a great performance overall. He's a hell of a player," Ruusuvuori said of his quarter-final win. "Before this I'm 0-5 against him head-to-head. It's a difficult match always to go after him, but I just gave my everything and today I was playing very well and able to get the win, so I'm very happy."

Ruusuvuori's third Top 10 win saw him advance to his first ATP Tour semi-final since last October in Stockholm.

[BREAK POINT]

Austin Krajicek is loving life as a major champion and the new No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings. The American, who celebrated his 33rd birthday on Friday, won his first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros on Saturday, teaming with Ivan Dodig for his 10th tour-level crown.

Returning home to the United States as World No. 1 for the first time, the American had the honour of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on Wednesday at a Texas Rangers baseball game. Though he plays tennis lefty, Krajicek threw with his right hand as he donned the home team's jersey and fired a strike over the plate.

First-base coach and former professional player Corey Ragsdale caught the pitch and delivered the ball back to Krajicek as the two shared an embrace on the field. It proved to be an auspicious start for the home team, with the Rangers going on to defeat the visiting Los Angeles Angels 6-3.

A former NCAA doubles champion at Texas A&M, Krajicek was born in Tampa, Florida, but now lives in Allen, Texas, about an hour's drive from the Rangers' ballpark.

Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski continued their quest for their first title of the season Friday when they reached the final at the Libema Open.

The top seeds, who clinched the crown at the ATP 250 event in 's-Hertogenbosch last year, defeated Maxime Cressy and Fabrice Martin 6-2, 6-2. They will face Alex de Minaur and Jordan Thompson or Gonzalo Escobar and Aleksandr Nedovyesov in the title match.

Mektic/Pavic Advance In Stuttgart
Croatains Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic moved to within one win of clinching their second title of the season on Friday when they beat Alexander Erler and Lucas Miedler 6-3, 6-3 at the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart.

The second seeds lifted the trophy in Auckland earlier this season and will aim to capture their 16th title as a team when they meet Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden or Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz in the final.

Frances Tiafoe advanced to his maiden tour-level semi-final on grass Friday when he moved past Italian Lorenzo Musetti 6-7(6), 7-6(4), 6-2 at the BOSS OPEN in Stuttgart.

In an entertaining clash at the ATP 250, Tiafoe recovered from squandering three set points in the first set, holding his nerve in the second set before racing clear in the decider. The American was aggressive off short balls throughout the two-hour, 42-minute clash, firing 45 winners to level his ATP Head2Head series against the 21-year-old at 2-2.

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With his 25th win of the season, Tiafoe set a semi-final meeting against countryman Taylor Fritz or Hungarian qualifier Marton Fucsovics. The third seed Tiafoe is chasing his third tour-level title and second of the season this week, having triumphed on clay in Houston in April.

Tiafoe is making his debut in Stuttgart, with his best result on grass prior to this week runs to the quarter-finals at The Queen's Club in 2018 and 2021. The 25-year-old is up one place to No. 11 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings and will break the Top 10 for the first time if he wins the trophy in Germany.

The Cinch Championships at The Queen’s Club is a historic grass-court tournament in London that has seen previous champions such as Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Murray.

Here's what you need to know ahead of the tournament in the UK capital:

When is the Cinch Championships?

The ATP 500 event will be held from 19-25 June. The grass-court tournament, established in 1969, will take place at The Queen’s Club in London, UK. The tournament director is Luiz Procopio Carvalho.

Who is playing at the Cinch Championships?

Carlos Alcaraz will make his Queen’s Club debut while Matteo Berrettini aims for a third consecutive title at the ATP 500. Andy Murray, Holger Rune, and Taylor Fritz are also among the field.

When is the draw for the Cinch Championships?

The Cinch Championships singles draw will be made on Saturday 17 June at a time to be confirmed.

What is the schedule for the Cinch Championships?

* Qualifying: Saturday, 17 June – Sunday, 18 June at 11 a.m.
* Main Draw: Monday, 19 June – Friday, 23 June, starting at Noon. Saturday, 24 June play begins at 1 p.m.
* Doubles Final: Sunday, 25 June, starting after the singles final.
* Singles Final: Sunday, 25 June, start time 1:30 p.m..
*View On Official Website

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

What is the prize money and points for the Cinch Championships?

The prize money for the Cinch Championships is €2,195,175 and the Total Financial Commitment is €2,345,130.

SINGLES
Winner: €410,515 / 500 points
Finalist: €220,880 / 300 points
Semi-finalist: €117,715 / 180 points
Quarter-finalist: €60,145 / 90 points
Round of 16: €32,105 / 45 points
Round of 32: €17,120 / 0 points