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Daniil Medvedev captured his first clay-court trophy and sixth ATP Masters 1000 crown on Sunday at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, where he defeated 20-year-old Holger Rune 7-5, 7-5.

After the start of the final was delayed by one hour and 40 minutes due to rain, the 27-year-old came out and produced a consistent, clean-hitting display. He sat deep behind the baseline and absorbed pressure on the red clay in Rome and twice rallied from a break down in the second set against the seventh seed Rune, who was aiming to win his second Masters 1000 title.

Medvedev had never won a match in three previous appearances in Rome before this season. He produced some of his best clay-court tennis in the Italian capital, though, also defeating 2017 champion Alexander Zverev and 2022 finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.

"I always want to believe in myself and I always want to win the biggest tournaments in the world," said Medvedev, who dropped just one set en route to the title. "But at the same time, I didn't think I could win a Masters 1000 on clay in my career because usually I hated it, I hated playing on it. I didn't feel good on it and nothing was working.

"Before this tournament already in Madrid and Monte-Carlo I wasn't feeling too bad. I thought, 'OK, let's continue'. Then when I came here I felt so good in practice and I told my coach, 'I don't know what is happening but I am feeling amazing, so let's see how it goes'. But then you have to play the toughest opponents in the world to try to make it. I am really happy I managed to do it and to prove to myself and everyone else that I am capable of doing it."

Twenty-five years on from claiming the coveted college ‘triple crown’, U.S. Davis Cup captain Bob Bryan remembers his three years playing college ball with twin brother Mike Bryan at Stanford as “literally the most fun we've ever had in tennis”.

The greatest doubles team in tennis history is on hand at the USTA National Campus in Lake Nona, Florida this week for the NCAA Championships, where they will be inducted into the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall Of Fame.

“Playing for the pride of the programme and playing for our brothers, there was nothing like it,” said Bob, who won the NCAA Singles and Doubles (w/Mike) titles in 1998, and helped Stanford to the teams trophy, a feat that has been matched just once since (Matias Boeker, University of Georgia, 2001). “Just the passion and enthusiasm we felt every time we stepped on the court was on another level.”

In Stanford’s astonishing 1998 season, the team lost a combined three individual points. “I challenge any other team to pull that off,” Bob said. “By the stats our ’98 Stanford team is the greatest in history.”

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Marco Cecchinato found his groove against the lively lefty serve of Ben Shelton on Sunday at the Gonet Geneva Open, where the Italian downed the #NextGenATP American 7-5, 2-6, 6-2 at the ATP 250.

Taking on one of the ATP Tour’s brightest young talents for the first time, Cecchinato converted four of his 11 break points in the first-round encounter. He rallied from 3-5 to take the first set and dominated the third to clinch a two-hour, two-minute triumph.

Cecchinato also reached the second round in Geneva in 2021 and 2022. The World No. 83 will attempt to reach the quarter-finals for the first time in four appearances when he takes on home favourite Marc-Andrea Huesler or Wu Yibing next in Switzerland.

The 30-year-old Cecchinato, who has lifted all three of his ATP Tour titles on clay, is now 10-6 for the year. He has won a match at every tournament he has played in 2023. With Sunday’s triumph against Shelton, Cecchinato improved his record in ATP Tour opening rounds this year to 7-0.

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The men’s singles final between Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia has started after a one-hour, 40-minute suspension due to rain. The championship match was due to commence at 4 p.m. at the Foro Italico, but did not begin until 5:40 p.m.

Medvedev is playing for his sixth ATP Masters 1000 crown and first on clay, while Rune is chasing his second title at this level. Medvedev has defeated seeds Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the final. Rune, who is making his debut in Rome, earned Top 5 wins against Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud earlier this week.

Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski captured their first ATP Masters 1000 title as a team on Sunday when they defeated Dutchman Robin Haase and Botic van de Zandschulp 7-5, 6-1 at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia.

The Monegasque-Polish tandem were dominant all week on the clay in Rome, not dropping a set en route to their second tour-level trophy together.

In an entertaining final, Nys and Zielinski were strong on serve, winning 91 per cent (30/33) of points behind their first delivery. They also did not face a break point and converted three of theirs to triumph after 66 minutes.

“It is super special,” Zielinski said. “It is the first time for Hugo and I playing at the Foro Italico and it is a magical event and magical venue. We have trained without playing here for so many years, and now we are here playing for the first time. We tried to enjoy it from the first match and here we are as winners. I can’t really put into words what it means to us.”

With their victory, Nys and Zielinski have climbed seven spots to first in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings. Earlier this season, they reached the final at the Australian Open together.

Holger Rune has quickly become a Top 10 titan.

With his win against World No. 4 Casper Ruud in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia semi-finals Saturday, the Dane is now 8-3 against Top 10 opponents in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings since the start of the Rolex Paris Masters six-and-a-half months ago.

The 19-year-old went 5-0 against Top 10 players during his historic Paris-Bercy run and has won his past seven matches against Top 5 opponents (7-1 overall). He has defeated World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Ruud en route to the final in Rome, where he will face World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev for the crown.

Record vs. Top 10 (Active Players)

Player	Top 10 Record	Winning %
1) Novak Djokovic	243-109	69%

Third seed Daniil Medvedev and seventh seed Holger Rune have taken contrasting paths to Sunday’s Internazionali BNL d’Italia final (4pm CET/10am ET).

A self-proclaimed “hard court specialist”, Medvedev has often spoken tongue-in-cheek about his game on clay. He arrived in Rome without having won a match in three previous appearances in the Italian capital.

Now Medvedev finds himself one victory from his sixth ATP Masters 1000 crown and first on clay. A win on Sunday will lift him past Novak Djokovic to World No. 2 in Monday’s Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Rune, who is competing in the Rome main draw for the first time, has enjoyed a rapid breakthrough into the Top 10. The Dane, a four-time tour-level champion, reached the final on the Monte-Carlo red clay last month before capturing the Munich title.

Can the heavy-hitting Rune go one step further to capture his second ATP Masters 1000 crown? He looks to improve upon his stunning 7-1 record against Top-5 opponents, which includes wins this week over World No. 1 Djokovic in the quarter-finals and World No. 4 Casper Ruud in the semi-finals.

Ugo Humbert and Dominik Koepfer converted their hot runs on the ATP Challenger Tour into lifting trophies at this week’s Challenger 175 events in Bordeaux and Turin.

The Frenchman Humbert dropped just one set all week en route to capturing his second consecutive Challenger 175 title in southern France. The 24-year-old defeated Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(3), 6-4 in Saturday’s final at the BNP Paribas Primrose.

In front of a packed stadium, Humbert played with aggression from the baseline, using his forehand to dictate play, while also incorporating deft drop shots for variety. The lefty was dangerous on serve all week in Bordeaux, including Saturday, when he dropped just five points off his first delivery.

When Humbert has competed at Challenger Tour events this year, he’s been a dominant force, tallying a 14-2 Challenger-match record. Earlier this month, the Metz native triumphed at the Cagliari Challenger 175 event, where he fended off two match points in his quarter-final against Taro Daniel to stay alive.

Ugo Humbert in action Saturday at the Bordeaux Challenger. Credit: Jared Wickerham

Casper Ruud will have to wait for his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title after he lost against Holger Rune in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia semi-finals on Saturday. The Norwegian was happy with his performances in Rome, though, where he earned his best Masters 1000 result of the season.

“Yeah, good feelings overall,” Ruud said. “It was a pity today that I wasn't able to close out the match, but that's how it goes. A couple of days ago I could have lost in the third round. I mean, I was very happy to be in the semis. I played some good matches, got some good wins. Hopefully I can build on this further.

“There are two more tournaments on clay now before the grass comes up for me - Geneva and Roland Garros - where last year I have some of the best memories of the year. I hope that I can sort of awaken those memories again and keep building and be strong and fit and ready for Roland Garros.”

The Norwegian, who advanced to the championship match at the clay-court major last year, arrived in Rome off the back of a modest season by his standards. He looked close to his best in the Italian capital, rising nine spots to 15th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin.

Ruud led Rune by a set-and-a-break in their semi-final clash on Saturday before the Dane turned it around. The 24-year-old was frustrated he was unable to close out and reach his second ATP Masters 1000 final (Miami 2022).

Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas’ semi-final clash at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia has been interrupted by rain in Rome with the pair level at 4-4 in the first set.

A rapid start by the third-seeded Medvedev saw him notch a break in the opening game of Saturday's blockbuster last-four encounter, but Tsitsipas produced a huge forehand winner to convert his first break point of the match in the eighth game.

Just moments later the persistent drizzle in the Italian capital grew heavier, prompting Chair Umpire Mohamed Lahyani to suspend play at the ATP Masters 1000 event.

Medvedev had not won a match in three attempts in Rome prior to this year, but the 27-year-old lost just one set in four matches en route to the semi-finals. Tsitsipas is appearing in his third Rome semi-final and is chasing consecutive championship match appearances at the Foro Italico. Whoever prevails will take on Holger Rune in Sunday's final. The seventh seed earlier defeated Casper Ruud 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-2.

Holger Rune moved to within one win of capturing his second ATP Masters 1000 title on Saturday, when he earned a comeback victory against Casper Ruud at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia.

In a tight clash, the Dane rallied from a break down in the second set to overcame the fourth seed Ruud 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-2 and earn his 27th win of the season.

Rune, who is making his debut in Rome, defeated Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals. He backed up that standout win with a clean hitting performance against Ruud to improve to 1-4 in their ATP Head2Head series. The 20-year-old struck his groundstrokes with power and showed deft touch at times, outfoxing Ruud in a series of cat-and-mouse exchanges to advance after two hours and 41 minutes.

"I had nothing to lose in the second [set], so I just told myself to play freely and enjoy it as I thought it would be my last set here," Rune said. "I told myself to play aggressively and enjoy it and I did it and that was the key to comeback."

The Dane has enjoyed a strong clay-court season. He reached the final in Monte-Carlo before he clinched the crown in Munich, and he holds a 13-2 record on the surface for the year. With his victory against Ruud, Rune has climbed one spot to No. 6 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. If he wins the title on Sunday, he could jump to No. 5.

The European clay-court season continues on the ATP Tour, with ATP 250 events taking place this week at the Gonet Geneva Open and Open Parc Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes Lyon.

Two-time winner Casper Ruud leads the field on the clay in Geneva, while 2022 champion Cameron Norrie competes in Lyon. ATPTour.com looks at five things to watch at each event.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN GENEVA

Two-Time Defending Champ Ruud: Ruud will aim to become the first player in tournament history to capture three consecutive titles when he takes to court in Geneva. The Norwegian clinched his 10th tour-level trophy, his ninth on clay, earlier this season in Estoril before he advanced to the semi-finals in Rome, where he is still alive.

The second Grand Slam of the season will see the world's best players compete at Roland Garros, with Carlos Alcaraz, 22-time major champion Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and last year's finalist Casper Ruud among those in action.

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

When is Roland Garros?

Roland Garros 2023 will be held from 28 May-11 June. The clay-court Grand Slam tournament, established in 1891, will take place at the Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France. The tournament director is Amelie Mauresmo.

Who is playing at Roland Garros 2023?

Roland Garros will feature stars like Djokovic, Alcaraz, Medvedev, Ruud, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublev.

When is the draw for Roland Garros?

The Roland Garros singles draw will be made on Thursday 25 May at 2 p.m. local time
The Roland Garros doubles draw will be made on Sunday 28 May at 12 p.m. local time

What is the schedule for Roland Garros?

* Qualifying: Monday, 22 May–Friday, 26 May. Monday-Wednesday at 10 a.m., Thursday & Friday at 11 a.m.
* Main Draw: Sunday, 28 May–Sunday, 11 June. Matches on Court Philippe-Chatrier will start at 11 a.m. or 12 p.m. depending on the day. 11 a.m. start on all other courts. Night session (one singles match): Sunday 28 May not before 7 p.m. Monday 29 May–Wednesday 7 June not before 8:30 p.m.
* Doubles Final: Saturday, 10 June, starting following the women’s singles final.
* Singles Final: Sunday 11 June, not before 3 p.m.
*View On Official Website

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 What is the prize money and points for Roland Garros?

The prize money for Roland Garros is €49,600,000.

SINGLES
Winner: €2,300,000 / 2,000 points
Finalist: €1,150,000 / 1,200 points
Semi-finalist: €630,000 / 720 points
Quarter-finalist: €400,000 / 360 points
Round of 16: €240,000 / 180 points
Round of 32: €142,000 / 90 points
Round of 64: €97,000 / 45 points
Round of 128: €69,000 / 10 points

Jenson Brooksby underwent arthroscopic right wrist surgery on Thursday to repair his tendon subsheath. It is the same surgery he underwent on his left wrist in March.

The American has not competed since the Australian Open and is unsure when he will return to the court. However, he is excited to come back better.

“I underwent a successful arthroscopic right wrist surgery this morning to fix my dislocated tendon,” Brooksby wrote on Instagram. “Thank you to Dr. Shin and his team at Kerlan Jobe for their care and guidance. My left wrist has been responding well and rehab is going ?”

Brooksby’s right wrist tendon was between 70 and 80 per cent dislocated compared to his left wrist tendon, which was 100 per cent dislocated. The 22-year-old tried to avoid the second surgery by resting and rehabbing, but the discomfort was too much to overcome. Dr. Steven Shin performed both surgeries.

Ugo Humbert and Tomas Martin Etcheverry will contest for the ATP Challenger Tour 175 crown in Bordeaux, France after they each advanced in straight sets Friday.

The 24-year-old Humbert continued his form by winning an all-French semi-final against Richard Gasquet 6-0, 6-2 at the BNP Paribas Primrose. Humbert hammered any ball that his countryman left in the middle of the court, while also showing deft feel on numerous drop shots.

Despite getting broken in the opening game of the second set, the World No. 50 Humbert quickly regrouped to oust Gasquet in one hour, 16 minutes. Humbert, who beat another tour veteran, Stan Wawrinka, in the quarter-finals, delivered a strong-serving performance Friday, winning 75 per cent of first-serve points, compared to Gasquet’s 40 per cent.

When Humbert has competed at Challenger Tour events this year, he’s been a dominant force, tallying a 13-2 Challenger-match record. Earlier this month, the Metz native triumphed at the Cagliari Challenger, where he fended off two match points in his quarter-final against Taro Daniel to stay alive.

Back-to-back 175 finals!@HumbertUgo knocks out fellow Frenchman Gasquet 6-0, 6-2 to reach the Saturday title match.#ATPChallenger pic.twitter.com/jhkfAMWWBp

Hugo Nys and Jan Zielinski reached their first ATP Masters 1000 final as a team on Friday when they moved past Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-3, 7-5 at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia.

The Monegasque-Polish tandem were dominant on serve throughout the 84-minute clash on centre court, winning 93 per cent (27/29) of their first-serve points and saving all three break points they faced to advance.

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Nys and Zielinski are yet to drop a set in Rome, having also defeated third seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek. They will play for their first title of the season against Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski or Robin Haase and Botic van de Zandschulp.

Nys and Zielinski are currently fourth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings and could rise to top spot if they win the title. Earlier this season, they advanced to the Australian Open final, losing against Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler.

Is this the week Casper Ruud or Holger Rune win their first clay-court ATP Masters 1000 title?

The Norwegian and Dane will meet at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia on Saturday in the first Masters 1000 all-Scandinavian semi-final since Jonas Bjorkman defeated Thomas Enqvist in Paris in 1997.

Ruud arrived in Rome having had a modest season by his standards. The fourth seed lifted his 10th trophy in Estoril but struggled at Masters 1000 events, failing to advance beyond the third round in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo or Madrid. The 24-year-old has looked back to his best on the clay in Rome, though, where he has earned victories against Arthur Rinderknech, Alexander Bublik, Laslo Djere and Francisco Cerundolo to reach the semi-finals in the Italian capital for the third consecutive time.

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"Tennis is a strange sport, as we all can tell. And I think I've really lived through it the last 12 months or so, some of my best moments of my career and some tougher losses in the past couple of months," Ruud said following his quarter-final win. "But here we are back in Rome and I feel great. I know that I've had success in Italy before in my career, here [I made] two times [the] semi-finals, Turin last year was amazing for me... It's something in the food maybe, I don't know."

Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas will renew their long-running rivalry when they meet for a place in the Internazionali BNL d'Italia final on Saturday.

Medvedev and Tsitsipas arrived in Rome last week having had contrasting fortunes at the clay-court event. Medvedev had never won a match in three previous appearances in the Italian capital, while Tsitsipas held a 10-5 record, advancing to the championship match last year.

The third seed Medvedev has found his best level in the Italian capital this fortnight, though, defeating Alexander Zverev en route to his second ATP Masters 1000 clay-court semi-final (Monte-Carlo 2019). The 27-year-old has enjoyed a standout season, earning a Tour-leading 37 wins, with 18 coming at ATP Masters 1000 events. Medvedev, who is currently first in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, has captured five ATP Masters 1000 titles, more than semi-finalists Tsitsipas (2), Rune (1) and Ruud (0) combined.

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The third seed has never clinched a tour-level crown on clay, though, and downplayed his chances of winning his fifth trophy of the season in Rome when asked by a journalist following his quarter-final win against German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann.

Stefanos Tsitsipas earned a commanding 6-3, 6-4 win over Borna Coric at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Thursday evening to set a blockbuster semi-final against third seed Daniil Medvedev. 

"He's been playing well and I'm playing [well] also," Tsitsipas said on court of his upcoming match against Medvedev. "I feel good on court, regardless if it's a night session or a day session and I really hope to bring the best out of me against him. I feel like he's playing better than the years before."

Tsitsipas is now 13-3 this clay-court season and he has earned all four of his victories at the Foro Italico in straight sets. The 2022 Rome finalist saved three of the four break points he faced against Coric to advance after one hour and 36 minutes.

Coric has long been a tough opponent for Tsitsipas. Entering Thursday’s clash, the Croatian had won three of their five ATP Head2Head meetings and one of Tsitsipas’ victories came by first-set retirement.

They met last year in the final of the Western & Southern Open, a match Coric won in straight sets. But Tsitsipas earned his ATP Masters 1000 revenge in Rome, where he was sharp throughout his triumph.

The top two seeds at this week’s ATP Challenger Tour 175 event in Turin, Italy are safely into the semi-finals, including World No. 40 Sebastian Baez.

The 22-year-old Argentine, seeded first, overcame a second-set slump Thursday to move past Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 at the Piemonte Open Intesa Sanpaolo.

Rain forced the match to be halted for 50 minutes midway through a lengthy second game that featured seven deuce points. Throughout the two-hour, 27-minute contest, Baez displayed smooth court coverage and didn’t face a break point in the decider to defeat the 23-year-old.

The Buenos Aires native Baez and the Brazilian Seyboth Wild were competing in doubles together this week. The duo defeated Sander Arends and Petros Tsitsipas in the opening round, before giving a walkover Thursday to Andrey Golubev and Denys Molchanov.

Oh No No No No ?#ATPChallenger | @sebaabaez7 pic.twitter.com/218s6VRY4p