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Daniil Medvedev returns to action this week at the Abierto de Tenis Mifel in Los Cabos, where the tournament debutant knows he needs to hit the ground running.

Medvedev is the No. 1 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, but he is under pressure for top spot. Entering the week, he leads World No. 2 Alexander Zverev by just 775 points. The 26-year-old will also be defending 1,000 points next week in Canada at the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers.

“For sure I’m watching [the battle for No. 1] a little bit,” Medvedev told ATPTour.com. “Depends also the moment because I know at the end of the year, unless I try to win every tournament that is left, it’s probably going to be Rafa [Nadal] for [year-end No. 1]. But at the same time, I can keep it for quite a long time I feel like if I play good here in the [North American hard-court swing].”

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This will be Medvedev’s 11th week at World No. 1, and he is currently in the midst of his second stint atop men’s tennis’ mountain. But Medvedev is currently sixth in the Pepperstone ATP Race To Turin, which means five players have earned more points than him this season and could threaten for World No. 1 as the year continues.

Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios did double duty in doubles Sunday to win the Atlanta Open.

The Australians, who are known as the “Special Ks”, won their semi-final and final in the span of seven hours to emerge victorious at the ATP 250. After battling past Americans Rajeev Ram and Jack Sock earlier in the day, they defeated fellow Aussies Jason Kubler and John Peers 7-6(4), 7-5 to lift the trophy.

"Obviously Atlanta is a special place. Won the singles title here [in 2016] and now the doubles. Crowd's amazing and it was a new experience playing two matches in one day as well for a title," Kyrgios said. "Me and Kokky were pretty resilient and obviously no singles this week, but confidence is at an all-time high in doubles."

Kokkinakis and Kyrgios, who triumphed at the Australian Open together at the beginning of the season, are now 13-2 as a team in 2022. They combined for 15 aces in the final and saved all four break points they faced against Kubler and Peers to claim the crown.

"Stoked to have won the Atlanta doubles title with Nick. It's always a pleasure playing with him. Second title for the year and I think we're getting better. It's been a great week here, a good way to start off the [American] summer in Atlanta for the US Open and hopefully we can keep it rolling.

It’s a long way from the hallowed lawns of Wimbledon to the qualifying rounds of the ATP Challenger Tour stop in Winnipeg, Canada. But after three knee surgeries and almost two years away from the world of professional tennis, Kyle Edmund is just happy to be back on court, anywhere, anytime.

This week the former World No. 14 Brit will play his first tour-level singles match since October 2020 in Vienna, when he suits up at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C.

“It’s extremely rewarding to be back,” the 27-year-old said. “There were long periods when I couldn’t see when I would be back. There were times when there was no progression, no improvement. But I was willing to exhaust all avenues to get back. I didn’t pick up a racquet for five or six months. I just wanted to play tennis.”

Edmund eased his way back into tour life by playing mixed doubles at Wimbledon in June. He said that being back around his peers and getting a feel again for the environment of pro tennis was a blessing.

“I needed it, it had been such a long time,” Edmund said of his return at the All England Club. “To get a feel for it again, the match-day preparation and to feel those nerves again.

Alex de Minaur is back in the winners’ circle in Atlanta.

Three years after triumphing at the Atlanta Open for the first time, the Australian defeated American Jenson Brooksby 6-3, 6-3 on Sunday to lift the trophy at the ATP 250 for the second time. It is the 23-year-old’s first triumph since last June in Eastbourne and his sixth ATP Tour title overall.

It was not an easy week for De Minaur, who rallied from a set down in the quarter-finals and the semi-finals. But the Australian always persevered when under pressure to win a second title at a tournament for the first time.

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The championship match provided a clash between two of the ATP Tour’s best defenders, both of whom are known for their flat groundstrokes and gritty play. However, it was De Minaur’s offence that proved critical as he clawed past the home favourite after one hour and 31 minutes.

It may have been a long time coming, but Jannik Sinner has an ATP Tour title in 2022.

The Italian prevailed in a heavyweight #NextGenATP championship match clash against Carlos Alcaraz 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-1 victory at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag on Sunday.

Sinner has been one of the most consistent players on Tour this season and had reached six tour-level quarter-finals in 2022 prior to the clay-court ATP 250 event this week in Umag. The second seed had to be at his resilient best against Alcaraz, especially after the Spaniard had clinched a tight opening set in a tie-break. Yet the Italian began to dictate the baseline exchanges and saved nine from nine break points to complete a two-hour, 26-minute victory.

“I am obviously very happy,” said Sinner after the match. “I have [had] a tough year until now, I had some unfortunate moments, but we worked every time to play better, to be a better player, to be a better person. So, I’m very happy to be finally lifting a trophy this year, but I know that I still have a lot of things to improve… It’s all about the process.”

The win was Sinner's second against Alcaraz in four weeks, after the Italian was a four-set winner in the pair's fourth-round clash at Wimbledon.

All of this week's action will be on North American hard courts with an ATP 500 event in Washington and an ATP 250 in Los Cabos.

Andrey Rublev is the top seed at the Citi Open, where other players include 2019 champion Nick Kyrgios and former World No. 1 Andy Murray. Daniil Medvedev, the current No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, returns to action at the Abierto de Tenis Mifel. ATPTour.com looks at what you should watch at each event.

View Draws: Washington | Los Cabos

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN WASHINGTON
1) Rublev Top Seed: The top seed in the United States' capital, Rublev will try to claim his fourth ATP Tour title of the season. The 24-year-old, who has already triumphed in Marseille, Dubai and Belgrade this year, is no stranger to Washington. Rublev advanced to the semi-finals at the ATP 500 in 2018 as a 20-year-old. He will try to improve his 32-11 season record when he faces #NextGenATP Briton Jack Draper or American wild card Stefan Kozlov in the first round.

Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini saved two matchs point on serve at 5-6 in the second set of Saturday's Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag final — but the Italian heroics were just getting started after their 13th break-point save.

The top seeds trailed Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara 0/6 in the second-set tie-break, but stormed back with a miraculous eight straight points for force a Match Tie-break. The Italians stretched that run to 12 points to open up a 4/0 lead in the decider en route to a scarcely believable 5-7, 7-6(6), 10-7 victory.

"This is maybe the craziest match ever," Bolelli said after winning his second Umag title with Fognini. "We were down 0/6 in the second tie-break. We were just playing. The guys missed some [shots] but we played good. We tried to stay focussed in the Match Tie-break.

"Tennis is like this; doubles is crazy sometimes. But I am very happy for this victory and my second title here in Umag with Fabio."

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Alex de Minaur battled back from a set down for his second consecutive match on Friday at the Atlanta Open to reach his second final at the ATP 250 event. The third seed dominated the final two sets in a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 victory against Ilya Ivashka, repeating the formula he used in his quarter-final win against Adrian Mannarino one day prior.

"I just found a way to get through," De Minaur said. "It wasn't an ideal start but these things happen. You adapt, you move on and try to do the best that you can."

The Aussie let an 0-3 lead slip early in the match, with Ivashka surging to the opening set after a lengthy rain delay at 5-5. De Minaur then fought off two break points to open the second set as he began to reassert himself with his steady baseline game. He again erased a pair of break points to start the deciding set before his pressure told.

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De Minaur broke serve on five of seven chances, doing his damage with a 62 per cent win rate on second-serve return points.

Andy Murray’s campaign to help the children of war-ravaged Ukraine was boosted Saturday when Citi Open Chairman Mark Ein pledged to match the Scot’s prize money donation from next week’s ATP 500 tournament in Washington, D.C. A winner of 46 tour-level titles, Murray also took the opportunity to speak about Ukraine with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who visited the Rock Creek Park Tennis Center.

Murray, a father of four and ambassador for Unicef U.K., has been donating 100 per cent of his prize money since the beginning of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in March, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine. That amounts to more than US$300,000 in donations and he has pledged to keep doing so throughout the end of the season.

“That really inspired us and we’re announcing today that whatever Andy makes here and donates to UNICEF, we're going to match it,” Ein said. “We're also going to create a fan portal called Match Ukraine, where fans can get involved. They can give by the match. They can be part of Andy's journey. In fact, we'll extend it through the year. People can be part of Andy's mission here to make a real difference in something in the world that's horrible and really deserves all of our support.”

Murray could earn another $342,800 should he win next week’s tournament, which would then be matched by the Mark and Sally Ein Foundation and the Citi Open.

Murray, a 14-time ATP Masters 1000 champion, told reporters Saturday that as the war dragged on, it was important to keep driving awareness and fundraising efforts, and thanked Ein and the Citi Open for the matching donation for his efforts next week.

Four weeks after their four-set Wimbledon showdown, #NextGenATP stars Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz will meet again in Sunday's final at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag. Sinner set up the showdown with a 6-1, 6-3 win against qualifier Franco Agamenone on Saturday evening, after Alcaraz won a three-setter against Giulio Zeppieri.

The championship match will be the third ATP Head2Head meeting between Umag's top seeds, with the Spaniard winning their first encounter last November at the Rolex Paris Masters. The pair also met on the ATP Challenger Tour in 2019, when Alcaraz claimed a three-set win on the clay of Alicante.

"The final is very tough. Everyone was expecting that [matchup]." Sinner said in his on-court interview. "Today I played quite well. Also Carlos is playing well. I'll try to play some good tennis. I have to raise my level if I want to win, so I will try to prepare in the best possible way."

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In the semi-final, Sinner raced to a 5-0 lead in the opening set, saving an early break point as he used his baseline superiority to build the advantage against his countryman. He used a four-game run from 1-2 in the second set to move to the brink of victory before Agamenone claimed his first break of the match to extend the contest. Undeterred, Sinner closed out the victory with his fifth break.  

After opening his Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag campaign with a pair of comfortable straight-sets wins, Carlos Alcaraz’s title defence was given a stern test on Saturday evening at the ATP 250 event in Croatia.

The top seed prevailed 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in an absorbing #NextGenATP battle against Giulio Zeppieri to reach a Tour-leading sixth final of 2022. Alcaraz overcame a nasty roll of his right ankle in the second set before triumphing in a dramatic decider as Zeppieri struggled with cramp soon after reeling off three games in a row to level at 3-3.

“It’s amazing to be in a final here again,” said Alcaraz in his on-court interview. “I enjoy playing here in Umag and I’m really happy with the win today.”

“At the moment it is good," said Alcaraz. "I don’t feel too much right now. Let’s see tonight or tomorrow morning, but I am going to say I will be ready for the final.

“It would be amazing in my 100th match to get the win, and of course it is amazing to be No. 4 on Monday. It’s something great for me, but right now I am just focussed on the final.”

Former junior World No. 1 Wu Yibing reached a career-high of No. 174 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings this week behind his second straight ATP Challenger Tour title. But the 22-year-old from China has his sights set on the Top 100, with one eye on a particular number.

“The highest-ranked Chinese player ever is No. 136,” he said in an exclusive interview with ATPTour.com, alluding to Zhang Zhizhen. “I think I have a pretty good chance to break it this year. I’m going to trust myself and have a high standard.”

It’s an ambitious goal for the six-footer, who played exclusively on a domestic circuit in China in 2020-21 after recovering from elbow surgery. But Wu is already the Chinese No. 1, having passed Zhang earlier this month. In 2020, Wu had a piece of bone removed from his elbow. (“It sounds terrifying, but I made it,” he says.)

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Wu and the 25-year-old Zhang are both in the Top 200, with the 17-year-old Shang Juncheng and 20-year-old Yunchaokete Bu representing China inside the Top 400. 

Despite facing a home favourite riding a wave of momentum, Roberto Bautista Agut showed all his class at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel on Saturday.

The third seed ended #NextGenATP Filip Misolic’s dream run at the clay-court ATP 250 event in Austria with a 6-2, 6-2 championship match victory to lift his 11th ATP Tour title.

“I enjoyed the final, I think I managed the pressure very well,” said Bautista Agut after the match. “I knew I was a little bit the favourite today, but he had so many good wins this tournament and I knew it was going to be difficult. I played a very good match.”

The 20-year-old Misolic had earlier kept his cool to reach the final in his first tour-level event by edging Yannick Hanfmann after the pair’s rain-delayed semi-final clash resumed with the Austrian leading 1/0 in the third-set tie-break. Upon returning to court for the championship match, however, Misolic had no answer to Bautista Agut’s consistent ballstriking as the Spaniard triumphed in one hour and 33 minutes.

“I want to congratulate Roberto,” said Misolic, whose exploits this week in his homeland have lifted him 70 spots to No. 135 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. “I have watched you on television [before] and to play here against you in the final is an honour for me.”

Pedro Martinez and Lorenzo Sonego may have done things the hard way this week at the Generali Open, but the unseeded duo’s nerves held to the very end as they lifted a first ATP Tour title together in Kitzbühel.

Martinez and Sonego defeated top seeds Tim Puetz and Michael Venus 5-7, 6-4, 10-8 in a dramatic championship match in Austria, their second Match Tie-break victory of the week. Martinez and Sonego’s other two victories at the clay-court ATP 250 event each required two tie-break sets.

“I’m really happy because I played with a friend and that is really nice,” said Sonego. “I expected nothing from my doubles, but I really enjoyed every moment on court with Pedro. He played so well, and we could do something good in the future.”

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Sonego and Martinez led 4-1 early in the Austrian Alps, but Puetz and Venus showed their experience to roar back to claim the first set and place their unseeded opponents under pressure. Yet Martinez and Sonego held firm for a one-hour, 58-minute victory having saved six from eight break points they faced.

Spurred on by strong Italian support on Friday at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag, top seeds Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini advanced to the final at the ATP 250 event.

The Italians earned a 6-0, 7-6(5) win against Francisco Cabral and Tomislav Brkic to reach their fourth tour-level final of the season. Seeking their seventh title as a team, Bolelli/Fognini saved all six break points against them while converting on three of seven break chances.

The 2022 Sydney and Bastad champions will face Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara in the final after the British/Finnish pair knocked off second seeds Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez 6-1, 5-7, 10-8. The second seeds are bidding for their third title as a team and second this season (Hamburg).

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Kitzbühel Final Set
Both semi-finals at the Generali Open required two tie-break sets. Top seeds Tim Puetz and Michael Venus earned a 7-6(6), 7-6(0) win against third seeds Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, while Pedro Martinez and Lorenzo Sonego were 7-6(9), 7-6(2) winners against Robin Haase and Philipp Oswald.

Filip Misolic's fairytale run towards a maiden ATP Tour final was put on a tantalizing hold by rain after a dramatic day at the Generali Open in Kitzbühel.

The #NextGenATP Austrian played the best part of six sets in front of a raucous home crowd on Friday, engineering two remarkable comebacks to move to within six points of the final in his first tour-level tournament at the clay-court ATP 250 event.

The wild card led Yannick Hanfmann 6-2, 2-6, 6-6 (1/0) when heavy rain brought play to a close just as the deciding-set tie-break started in the Austrian Alps. Misolic had trailed 2020 finalist Hanfmann 1-4 in the third set before rallying, and the pair will return on Saturday to complete their first ATP Head2Head meeting.

The winner is then set to face Roberto Bautista Agut in the championship match, after the third seed defeated Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-3, 7-6(3) to reach his third tour-level final of the year.

Misolic had begun the day with a tense 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 win against Dusan Lajovic in a quarter-final clash delayed from Thursday due to rain. The home favourite recovered a 2-6, 3-5 deficit to upset the former World No. 23, with his exciting brand of shotmaking frequently bringing the passionate home crowd to their feet.

After beginning his Atlanta Open campaign with an evening win against countryman James Duckworth, Aussie Alex de Minaur played his first match under the hot Georgia sun in Friday's quarter-finals.

The second seed outlasted French qualifier Adrian Mannarino 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 to book his fourth semi-final showing of the 2022 season. 

"It's not called Hotlanta for nothing, that's for sure," De Minaur said post-match. "It's definitely a hot one today. I had to absolutely battle, but jeez it feels good to get on top in these types of matches.

"Very proud of myself, very proud of my attitude. I didn't give in and managed to fight until the end. I'm happy to live another day."

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Carlos Alcaraz continued his maiden ATP Tour title defense in style on Friday at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag, where he powered past Facundo Bagnis 6-0, 6-4 to reach his seventh semi-final of the season.

Having started the week at a career-high of No. 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, the 19-year-old has moved onto the heels of World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. He will move past the Greek with a win against Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri in Saturday's semi-finals.

"It means a lot to be able to [reach] the No. 4 ranking, to have a chance to do it," Alcaraz said post-match. "It's amazing for me. I think I'm playing really well. I feel really comfortable playing here, a lot of confidence right now."

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The Spaniard overwhelmed Bagnis as he won the first eight games of the contest before the Argentine got on the board with a battling hold. The World No. 120 worked his way into the match from there, getting to 30/30 in Alcaraz's final three service games and creating his lone break point as the Spaniard served out the match.

Despite some spectacular performances in 2022, Jannik Sinner had been yet to reach a semi-final on the ATP Tour this year. On Friday, at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag, the #NextGenATP Italian set that record straight.

The second seed overcame a stiff test from Roberto Carballes Baena to prevail 6-4, 7-6(5) and reach the last four at the clay-court ATP 250 event. Sinner held his nerve in the second-set tie-break after failing to serve out for victory at 6-5 against the admirably persistent World No. 86 Carballes Baena.

“I’m very happy, obviously,” said Sinner after his quarter-final win, which improved his match record for the year to 33-9. “I’ve won many matches, but I think I’ve had some unfortunate moments this year. But here I am, the first semi-final of the year, and hopefully I can show some good tennis also in the next round.”

Friday’s matchup with Carballes Baena was Sinner’s seventh quarter-final of the year. His two-hour, 18-minute win moved the Italian within two wins of his sixth ATP Tour title, and his first since Antwerp last October.

Although he has not yet lifted a trophy in 2022, the 20-year-old Sinner has been a consistent performer this season. He reached the last eight at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, as well as at the ATP Masters 1000 events in Miami, Monte Carlo and Rome.

When it comes to the ability to produce his best consistently over a long career on the ATP Tour, there aren’t many who have matched Fernando Verdasco.

The former World No. 7 and seven-time ATP Tour titlist has recorded 558 tour-level match wins across 19 seasons, but such success did not come easy for the Spaniard. Verdasco's relentlessness on the training court was crucial to honing his game early in his career, and he went on to develop one of the most feared weapons in modern tennis ⁠— his high-powered lefty forehand.

Now having joined TopCourt, Verdasco channels all his experience to show fans how they can develop their game with dedication and commitment to some key drills, some of which the Spaniard has been practising since he was just a kid in Madrid with a dream of becoming a pro. He also discusses how he handled one of the most disappointing losses of his career ⁠— his five-hour, 10-minute five-set defeat to Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals of the 2009 Australian Open ⁠— to ensure it shaped his career for the better.

Technique: Stand-out serving has underpinned Verdasco’s success. The lefty reveals the key technical requirements for his booming serve out wide, explaining how to iron out common technical issues to ensure your delivery is accurate, precise, and consistent.

Drills: In his drills “Cross Line Drops” and “Rhythm Drops”, Verdasco demonstrates how to build up rhythm on your groundstrokes. The drills are not only designed to boost the power of your shots, but also aim to develop variety by stressing the importance of mixing up the speed, spin, and height of each ball.