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Thanasi Kokkinakis served up a treat for the home fans at the Adelaide International 2 on Wednesday, when the Australian downed top seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals at the ATP 250 event.

Kokkinakis held off a mid-match resurgence from Rublev to notch the third Top 10 victory of his career in one hour, 57 minutes. The Australian, who lifted an ATP 250 trophy in Adelaide in 2022, now has an 11-2 tour-level record in his hometown across 2022 and 2023 — no other player has won more matches there in that timeframe.

“I’ve had my best memories on this court,” said Kokkinakis in his on-court interview. “Last year was an incredible feeling. It’s something that you dream of as a kid, and to play in front of you guys in this atmosphere, it’s incredible.”

Kokkinakis took advantage of an error-strewn first-set display from Rublev to move ahead in the pair’s first tour-level meeting. Despite the top seed battling back to claim the second set, Kokkinakis remained largely dominant behind his serve as he fired 17 aces and won 86 per cent (38/44) of points behind his first delivery to blunt Rublev’s powerful return game.

“It’s a big part of my game,” said Kokkinakis. “If I’m serving well, I feel like I have a chance to beat a lot of guys. Especially when the new balls came, I tried to take a little bit of pace off my serve and really try and land it, hit the spot. Fortunately, there were a few unreturnables.”

Cameron Norrie maintained his unbeaten start to the 2023 season on Wednesday at the ASB Classic in Auckland, where the second-seeded Briton fended off a stiff second-round challenge from Czech rising star Jiri Lehecka to reach the quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-7(4), 6-3 victory.

The persistent stop-start rain that has affected the schedule this week in the New Zealand capital was again a factor in Wednesday’s play, and Norrie found himself in a second-round battle after 2022 Next Gen ATP Finals runner-up Lehecka produced a strong second-set tie-break to force a deciding set in a match featuring several interruptions and eventually a move indoors due to the weather.

“It was nice to get it out of the way,” said Norrie, who is now 4-0 for 2023, after his two-hour, 45-minute win at the ATP 250 event. “It’s tough on the concentration... I had a lot of chances in that second set. In the bigger moments he was playing better than me and taking the points to me. I think I wanted to up my energy and in that third set I really came out strong.”

SO close, SO good! ?@jirilehecka | @cam_norrie | @ASB_Classic | #ASBClassic pic.twitter.com/tVj9VAMUMt

As well as navigating the tough conditions, Norrie was delighted to come through his opening match in the country where he lived from the age of two to 16.

Italy's Matteo Arnaldi enjoyed a taste of big-stage tennis at the Next Gen ATP Finals last season, and the 21-year-old is on the brink of another milestone moment after advancing to the final round of Australian Open qualifying. With a 5-7, 7-5, 6-4 win against home favourite Alex Bolt on Wednesday, the 22nd seed moved within one victory of his Grand Slam debut.

Arnaldi is making his third attempt to qualify for a major after falling one match short at the US Open last season. He will face another Australian next in Max Purcell, who won the 2022 Australian Open doubles title with countryman Matthew Ebden.

The 24-year-old Purcell — who was the beneficiary of a retirement from second seed Marco Cecchinato his first qualifying match — was a 6-4, 7-5 winner against Damir Dzumhur on Wednesday. He is seeking his second main-draw singles appearance at his home Slam after his debut in 2020.

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American Brandon Holt is bidding to qualify for his second consecutive major after winning three three-setters to earn his place in the US Open main draw. The 24-year-old, a former college star at the University of Souther California, defeated Gastao Elias 6-2, 7-6(5) on Wednesday to set up a final-round matchup against Marco Trungelliti. 

Defending champion Rafael Nadal returns to the Australian Open as its top seed as he bids for a record-extending 23rd Grand Slam men's singles title. But nine-time champion Novak Djokovic is hot on his heels and will hope to draw level with Nadal on 22 major crowns. The Serbian is preparing for his first competitive action at Melbourne Park since winning the 2021 title.

While world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz will miss out with a right-leg injury, Daniil Medvedev carries unfinished business into the year's first Grand Slam after being turned back in each of the past two finals. Casper Ruud is slated to be the No. 2 seed as he targets his third final in four majors, with two-time semi-finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas just behind him as the No. 3 seed.

Nadal, Ruud, Tsitsipas and Djokovic all have an opportunity to leave Melbourne atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Here's all you need to know about the Australian Open: when is the draw, what is the schedule, where to watch, who has won, how to buy tickets and more.

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After reaching three ATP Tour quarter-finals last season, Jack Draper advanced to his first of 2023 with a 6-4 6-4 win against Tommy Paul Wednesday at the Adelaide International 2.

The Briton's win against the eighth-seeded American atoned for his loss to eighth seed Karen Khachanov last week in Adelaide — with a potential rematch on the cards, if Khachanov can defeat Marc-Andrea Huesler later in the day.

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Well established as a strong server with his 6-foot-4 frame, Draper has excelled on return this week. After breaking four times in his opening victory against Lorenzo Sonego, he converted on three of five break chances against Paul, who was playing in his first event of the new season.

Broken just once, Draper fired 10 aces and won 88 per cent of his first-serve point in the win.

Before the Adelaide International 1 final, multiple photos of a young Sebastian Korda with Novak Djokovic went viral. Ahead of the match, former World No. 1 Djokovic had high praise for the 22-year-old American.

“[He is] one of the players that has kind of the cleanest striking technique that you can see on the Tour. I mean, he's so talented. Everything seems very flawless with him. Just effortless, not flawless,” Djokovic said. “The way he plays, the way he moves on the court, just beautiful-looking tennis. Going to try to make it ugly tomorrow.”

Djokovic added that it is not a matter of if, but when Korda will crack the Top 10 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. The World No. 31 took notice of the Serbian’s kind words.

“I saw that he wanted to make my game ugly,” Korda told ATPTour.com, cracking a laugh. “It’s funny, it’s awesome to hear those great words from him and I’ve gotten a lot of great words from Nadal and him. It’s really kind of inspiring to just keep pushing forward knowing I’m doing the right things and just keep believing in myself and [knowing that] I’m on the right path.”

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Robin Haase was laying in bed at his Adelaide hotel on Tuesday afternoon, waiting to head to Memorial Drive for a 2:15 p.m. lunch before a 4:30 p.m. practice ahead of an evening doubles match at the Adelaide International 2.

That was when the Dutchman received a big surprise. The ATP tour manager on site called to ask the 35-year-old if he could make it to the venue by 2 p.m. to take a lucky loser spot in the singles draw. On Monday, he had lost in the final round of qualifying to Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight sets.

By the moment Haase looked at the time, he had four minutes.

“I was [the] second lucky loser [on the day’s list] and so of course there was actually no chance to get in because everyone is here. If by any chance there was someone, then it would be one and I was second. So I was lucky that he couldn’t play,” Haase told ATPTour.com. “And then I had to rush. It’s four minutes before the match…

“I was speed-walking and I forgot my accreditation so I [saw] the security guard while I was running. He said, ‘Hey, you need to get scanned’, and I was like, ‘Yeah just follow me, I’ve got to go on court.’ I told him [to] get security. It was kind of funny.”

Tommy Paul made two quarter-finals in Adelaide last year. Will the American advance even further this week?

The World No. 35 won his first match of the season Tuesday, when he defeated Australian lucky loser Christopher O’Connell 6-4, 7-5 to reach the second round of the Adelaide International 2.

“First match of the season is always a little tough and everyone has nerves going into the first match, so I was happy to go out and play the way that I did,” Paul said. “I didn’t really do too much wrong and I served well.”

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Paul faced just one break point, which he saved, and won 81 per cent of his service points in the match.

NextGen ATP semi-finalist Dominik Stricker has advanced to the second round of Australian Open qualifying for the second consecutive year after defeating German veteran Cedrik-Marcel Stebe 6-3, 6-4 at Melbourne Park Tuesday.

The 20-year-old, who fell to Australian veteran Matthew Ebden in the second round of AO qualifying last year, is yet to reach the final round of qualifying at a major. Stricker came up big in pressure moments, converting five of his break point chances and saving six of the eight break points on his own serve.

It was a mixed day for young Italian players. Francesco Passaro, 22, defeated 37-year-old Czech Lukas Rosol and 21-year-old Mattia Bellucci enjoyed a 6-3, 6-4 win over Chinese Taipei's Wu Tung-Lin.

Rome's Giulio Zeppieri, 21, also advanced Tuesday, defeating Santiago Rodriguez Taverna 6-4, 6-3.

But Italian Luca Nardi, who is expected to contend for a berth at this year's Next Gen ATP Finals, had a disappointing debut in the Australian Open qualifying, falling 6-3, 6-1 to American Ernesto Escobedo.

Casper Ruud’s determination to never stop improving has helped him become the most successful male player in the history of Norwegian tennis.

Yet despite winning nine ATP Tour titles, reaching two Grand Slam finals and climbing as high as No. 2 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, the 23-year-old remains one of the most grounded personalities in the game.

As Netflix’s new documentary series Break Point takes a behind-the-scenes look at Ruud’s 2022 season, ATPTour.com lays out five things to know about the ice-cool Norwegian.

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1) Like Father, Like Son
Both Ruud and his father Christian Ruud are considered trailblazers for Norwegian tennis. The former World No. 39 Christian was the highest-ranked Norwegian in Pepperstone ATP Rankings history until Casper stormed past that benchmark in 2020. Casper has gone on to reach a career-high ranking of No. 2 and in 2022 reached the final at both Roland Garros and the US Open. He happily attributes some of that success to Christian, who is his long-time coach.

Morgan Riddle, the girlfriend of Netflix Break Point star Taylor Fritz, has taken the tennis world by storm since she began dating the American in 2020. Riddle has helped bring the sport to the masses through her social media channels, especially TikTok.

What people might not know is that she has no background in tennis at all.

“I didn’t know a thing. Literally not a thing. I knew who Federer was. I didn’t even know who Nadal was. That’s not a joke,” Riddle told ATPTour.com. “I literally didn’t know anything about it. But I know a lot now. I would consider myself a tennis expert at this point, I really would.”

Riddle is from Minnesota where she grew up with another sport: hockey.

“My whole family plays hockey. My sister played college hockey, my dad played college hockey,” Riddle said. “It was very different going to tennis matches from that. Hockey games you show up in boots and a sweatshirt and you drink beer. It’s a very different atmosphere than tennis is.”

Matteo Berrettini enjoyed a season of highs and lows in 2022, from triumphing at Queen's Club and Stuttgart to dealing with injuries. The powerful Italian was one of the players who will be featured on Netflix's Break Point, which premieres on 13 January.

ATPTour.com caught up with the Italian about the experience of filming for the show, his interesting Netflix-viewing habits and more.

What was most surprising about the whole Netflix experience?
I think I had done a lot of marketing stuff, but I never got so intimate. Guys filming in your room or in the locker room talking to your team, having dinner with your family, getting to know my deepest connections and relationships. I think that’s something I’d never experienced.

At the beginning I was kind of like, ‘Should I do this? This is my private life.’ But then in order to make it special and the best [it could be], it was needed. I actually loved it because everybody around me really liked it and it was nice. 

What did it take to be able to open up for the cameras and show all that?
I think one thing is being private and [another] thing is showing what you want, certain stuff in your personal life. I personally like to be private and not say too much about myself, for example on my socials. But at the same time if you have a show like that that can show the people who I am in that way without filters, I think it’s something nice.

New to the game of tennis? Our Tennis Explained series will quickly bring you up to speed with all you need to know to fully enjoy the sport. This primer will provides an overview of the ATP Tour.

How To Tour

How many tournaments are there around the world?
The 2023 ATP Tour calendar includes more than 60 events in nearly 30 countries. 

How do players decide which tournaments to enter?
Far far from a carefree jaunt around the globe, a number of factors go into a player’s schedule on the ATP Tour.

The first consideration is whether a player’s Pepperstone ATP Ranking will earn them a place in either the main draw or the tournament’s qualifying draw. Other factors include Pepperstone ATP Rankings points and prize money on offer. With all things being relatively equal, players can then choose their  destination based on which city they would prefer to play in.

Learn more about the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in the next section.

New to the game of tennis? Our Tennis Explained series will quickly bring you up to speed with all you need to know to fully enjoy the sport. This installment covers some entertainment (both on and off court), fashion and more.

How To Entertain

What is a tweener?
The holy grail of hot shots, a tweener is a circus shot hit between the legs, usually with a player’s back to the net. They’re not quite as rare as you might think, as they do have a tactical benefit in particular situations — when a player is sprinting back from the net to track down a lob, a tweener can be the best option.

During the 2022 ATP Tour season, Carlos Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas hit consecutive tweeners as both chased down lobs in Miami, making for one of the points of the season.

What is an underarm serve?
While the standard tennis serve is struck with the hitting arm at full stretch above a player’s head, some like to mix it up with the cheeky underarm serve. This changeup tactic, where a player quickly drops the ball and bunts it over the net, has seen more play in recent years as returners have begun to stand far back behind the baseline to return powerful serves.

As long as the ball does not bounce after it is tossed — or in the case of the underarm serve, dropped — it is a legal serve.

Netflix on 13 January will release the first five episodes of its new behind-the-scenes tennis series, Break Point. Before the launch, ATPTour.com looks at all you need to know about the show, which closely follows stars of the ATP Tour and the Hologic WTA Tour.

What is Break Point?

Break Point is an upcoming tennis series on Netflix that takes fans behind the scenes of life on the ATP Tour and the Hologic WTA Tour during the 2022 season.

The series will follow players during their highs — including historic runs at the world’s biggest tournaments — and lows, including career-threatening injuries and emotional heartbreak.

Will all the Break Point episodes be released at once?

The first five episodes of Break Point will be released on 13 January, just before the start of the Australian Open. Five more episodes will be released in June.

How many total episodes will there be in the first season of Netflix’s Break Point?

The first season of Netflix’s Break Point will feature 10 episodes, spanning from the beginning of the season in Australia to the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

New to the game of tennis? Our Tennis Explained series will quickly bring you up to speed with all you need to know to fully enjoy the sport. We start here with the basics of the game itself.

How To Score

How is a game scored within a match?
Don’t be alarmed when, after one point, a player leads 15/0. It’s not as big a lead as it sounds!

Within a match, each individual game is played first to four points, win by two. But rather than counting points as 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, the scoring system uses Love, 15, 30, 40, Game.

The server’s score is always first. For example, if the server has won two points and the returner has earned one, the score would be 30/15.

If both players are tied at 40/40, the score is called “deuce”, and a player must win two points in a row to claim the game. The player who wins the “deuce” point earns the “advantage”, and then has an opportunity to win the next point and close out the game — or lose it and face another deuce.

The highly anticipated new tennis series on Netflix, Break Point, premieres on 13 January. 

Before the world gets an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look at the sport, ATPTour.com spoke to executive producer James Gay-Rees and showrunner Kari Lia about what it took to produce the series, how it compares to F1: Drive To Survive, what surprised the crew about how filming unfolded and more.

How much goes into a big task like this?
Kari: It’s an incredible amount of work. ‘Drive To Survive’ has been such a success for Box to Box, but we knew this was going to be very different. Tennis is a different kind of game, there’s so many more matches. In the end, we probably filmed too much in the beginning because we were so excited to get a sense of how these tournaments feel, how can we convey what it’s like to be there, what’s it like to feel live tennis…

It took us months of learning what are really the pivotal moments, the moments you don’t want to miss. Some tournaments we would have only two or three cameras and we would try to film specific people. At the Grand Slams, it was different. We would have four or five cameras every day and we had people we wanted to follow, win or lose. 

It took us a while to hone in on how we wanted to do it but the crucial thing was making the experience and making it feel like something you’ve never felt before. In the end, I think we had five times as much footage as they had for ‘Drive To Survive’, but we very carefully learned how to work with that footage. It took a lot of work.

French qualifier Gregoire Barrere survived an ace deluge from two-time champion John Isner and a move indoors due to Cyclone Hale to move into the second round of the ASB Classic in Auckland Wednesday. The World No. 88 survived 28 aces from sixth-seeded Isner to advance 6-7(3), 7-6(5), 6-3.

Avenging a four-set loss to Isner in the second round of Roland Garros last year, Barrere cracked a clean cross-court service return winner off an aggressive Isner second serve in the eighth game of the third set to claim the only break of serve in the match.

Barrere notched just his fourth win in 23 outings against Top 50 opposition. He has never beaten a Top 50 player outdoors, but didn't need to today after matches were moved indoors due to torrential rain. Barrere was solid on his own serve, winning 84 per cent of first serves and 69 per cent of second serves. He did not face a break point.

The 28-year-old will next face countryman Constant Lestienne.

Isner, who already holds the record for most aces since records began in 1991, is now just 12 aces away from becoming the first man to reach 14,000 aces at ATP Tour and Grand Slam events.

For 14 years, New Zealand was home to Cameron Norrie.

The 27-year-old lived in the country from the age of two to 16 before he moved to England and then the United States to study at Texas Christian University. This week, the World No. 14 is back in New Zealand, making his third main draw appearance at the ASB Classic in Auckland.

It has been some journey for second seed Norrie, who has fond memories of attending the ATP 250 as a teenager.

“It is pretty crazy playing here,” Norrie told ATPTour.com. “I was actually in the car with [Fabio] Fognini coming back from the practice courts today and I have a photo with him from 2011. He was 23 years old and I was even younger than that. I remember coming here as a fan and watching all the players and even hitting with John [Isner] this morning and I have a photo with him as well from 2008.

“I remember watching him in 2008, so it was pretty crazy for me to be a fan and to be one of those kids out there watching and then to be suddenly playing here. I’ve played well here before. I made the final in 2019, my first-ever final, so it's pretty special to be back here. Especially kind of playing a bit better, playing at the level I am.”

After experiencing several highs and lows in 2022, Argentine Juan Manuel Cerundolo got off to a fast start this year on home soil at the season-opening Tigre Challenger.

The 21-year-old recently battled leg and hip injuries which forced him to take time off. When the lefty was able to play tournaments consistently in the latter part of 2022, he made a sudden impact as he triumphed at the Buenos Aires and Coquimbo Challengers. Cerundolo, who has won 19 of his past 22 matches, picked up right where he finished the previous season.

Cerundolo, seeded first, rallied from a set down in Sunday’s final to defeat Bolivian Murkel Dellien 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 and claim the Challenger Aysa de Tigre-1.

Juan Manuel Cerundolo is crowned champion at the 2023 Tigre-1 Challenger. Credit: Asociación Argentina de Tenis

“I feel really good about this week,” Cerundolo said. “I think I had an amazing level, and tried to play offensive. The final was super tough coming from a set down, but I managed to turn it over. I’m really happy.”