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Greek to face ninth seed Isner or Moldovan Albot

#NextGenATP Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas arrived at the All England Club this year without a match win at Wimbledon. But with a comprehensive 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 victory over Italian Thomas Fabbiano on Friday, the 19-year-old made history.

Tsitsipas is the first Greek man in the Open Era to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam, and just the fourth all-time from his country to do so. The teenager was already the first Greek man to advance to the third round of a major since Nicholas Kalogeropoulos at Wimbledon 49 years ago.

It is the continuation of a history-making campaign for Tsitsipas, who was No. 192 in the ATP Rankings one year ago. The World No. 35 reached his maiden ATP World Tour final at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell in April (l. to Nadal) when he was 18, becoming the first Greek to battle to a tour-level final since Kalogeropoulos at Des Moines in 1973.

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Even after becoming the first Greek to crack the Top 100 last October thanks to a trip to the European Open semi-finals, Tsitsipas finished 2017 with just four tour-level wins. He has earned 22 in 2018 alone, and will now face ninth seed John Isner or Moldovan Radu Albot for a spot in the quarter-finals. Tsitsipas lost to Isner at last year's Rolex Shanghai Masters in their only FedEx ATP Head2Head series meeting, but he defeated Albot earlier this campaign at the BNP Paribas Open.

The No. 31 seed was broken in the first game of the match by the qualifier. But he did not let that bother him, breaking eight times in the match and winning 56 per cent of return points.

Tsitsipas using a Facebook fundraiser to support a friend who lost his home
#NextGenATP Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas is trying to raise money to support his friend and fellow tennis player, along with many others who have suffered due to wildfires in the Attica region of Greece. The wildfires have caused more than 80 deaths over the past few days.

“Many people lost their lives. Many families were affected. It was a very rough day for the nation and all the citizens of the country,” Tsitsipas said in a YouTube video. “I happen to have a friend (Alex) with whom I used to play when I was younger in Greece. We used to play in the same tournaments. He’s currently in the hospital in a very bad condition. He lost his home. The fire reached his house, and he’s been through really tough times. It’s a disaster.”

Tsitsipas began a Facebook fundraiser, which has raised more than £1,500 thus far. It is an issue that hits close to home for the 19-year-old, and not just because the tragedy is occurring in his country and has affected people whom he knows.


“I remember 10 years ago it was me and my family, we were coming back home from a trip that we made in France,” Tsitsipas. “I remember looking out of the airplane’s window before we landed, and I remember seeing the whole region of Attica and Athens in flames, and I never felt my scared in my life, looking outside that window. You could see the terror in my eyes. I was terrified.”

While Tsitsipas’ plane landed safely that day, the memories have inspired him to try to help others.

“All I want to do is contribute to my society, to my country, to my people,” Tsitsipas said. “I’m please asking you for some help and some compassion. It is not for me, it is for the people.”

Americans Tiafoe and Paul also advance in Washington
Denis Shapovalov and Stefanos Tsitsipas are through to the third round of the Citi Open after battling back from the brink to keep their rain-delayed Washington campaigns alive on Wednesday. Ninth seed Shapovalov, in third place in the ATP Race to Milan, recovered from 1-4 down in the third set to deny 22-year-old Russian Daniil Medvedev 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.

The 19-year-old Canadian, contesting his first match since a second-round Wimbledon exit, fired 15 aces to Medvedev’s two and claimed 41 of 47 points on his first serve. The win sets up a third-round encounter with seventh seed Kei Nishikori.

ATP Race To Milan

Tsitsipas, in second place in the ATP Race to Milan, teetered even closer to defeat as he fought off two match points against American Jared Donaldson to prevail 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. Donaldson had broken to serve for the match at 5-4 in the third set, only to concede the final three games to the Greek. Tsitsipas will meet Australian James Duckworth in the third round.

"It was a tough match. Jared is a fighter and gave me a really hard time," Tsitsipas said. "In certain moments I was a little more patient, had a clear mind of what I was doing and managed to stay in the rally, play aggressive, play deep enough to get my opportunities. My return was super important today. Jared is a huge server and my return was the thing that gave me the win."

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No. 13 seed Frances Tiafoe won an all-#NextGenATP clash against Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz 6-2, 6-4. Tiafoe, in fourth place in the ATP Race to Milan, struck 10 aces and saved four of five break points. He will next meet third seed David Goffin for a place in the quarter-finals.

#NextGenATP American wild card Tommy Paul survived Australian qualifier Alex Bolt 3-6, 7-6(0), 6-2 in a first-round match held over due to rain. On double duty, the 21-year-old World No. 256 is currently locked in an all-#NextGenATP third-round clash with Andrey Rublev. The 20-year-old Russian is currently No. 8 in the ATP Race To Milan.

Earlier, inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals champion Hyeon Chung also advanced. The South Korean rebounded to deny Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis 6-7(2), 6-4, 6-3 and will meet either American No. 11 seed Steve Johnson or #NextGenATP Australian Alex de Minaur.

Rublev also through to the last eight
The #NextGenATP is alive and well in Washington, D.C.

Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas led the charge on Thursday evening at the Citi Open, defeating Aussie James Duckworth 6-3, 6-4 in 66 minutes to reach his sixth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season. Prior to 2018, Tsitsipas had just four tour-level wins. With his victory against the 26-year-old, he now has 24 in this campaign alone.


The 19-year-old finished 2017 at No. 91 in the ATP Rankings. But thanks to his breakout efforts, he is projected to crack the Top 30 on Monday, regardless of results for the rest of the week. Tsitsipas will face a stiff challenge as he attempts to make the semi-finals in the nation's capital, as 2017 Nitto Finals runner-up and third seed David Goffin awaits. The pair has split their two FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, with Tsitsipas earning his first Top 10 win last year in Antwerp against the Belgian.

Russian Andrey Rublev, who is playing in his third tournament back from a three-month hiatus due to a stress fracture in his lower back, won two matches on Thursday. After finishing off his victory against American Tommy Paul, he later beat another American, Noah Rubin, 6-3, 6-2 in 67 minutes.

Rublev just one of his three matches in Umag and Gstaad, but is showing good form in his Washington, D.C. debut. The 20-year-old will now face the winner of sixth seed Lucas Pouille and American Denis Kudla. The Russian is currently in eighth in the ATP Race To Milan, one point behind Spaniard Jaume Munar for the seventh automatic qualifying spot into the Next Gen ATP Finals, which will take place from 6-10 November in Milan.

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Did You Know?
Tsitsipas will attempt to earn his fourth Top 10 win against Goffin. On top of his victory against the Belgian last year, the Greek beat Dominic Thiem in Barcelona and Kevin Anderson in Estoril

Could this be the week that #NextGenATP Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas breaks through to win his first ATP World Tour title? So far, the 19-year-old is looking in great form in Washington, D.C.

Tsitsipas defeated 2017 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up David Goffin 6-3, 6-4 on Friday to reach the Citi Open semi-finals, where he will face the winner of top seed Alexander Zverev and seventh seed Kei Nishikori.

The teenager has not dropped a set since saving two match points in his second-round victory against 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier Jared Donaldson. Against Goffin, Tsitsipas showed a confident aggression, taking the points to the World No. 11. The Belgian made an uncharacteristic number of unforced errors in his one-hour, 14-minute loss. The Greek saved all three break points he faced in the match, an impressive feat given that Goffin entered the week third on the ATP World Tour this season in return games won at 32 per cent, according to Infosys ATP Scores & Stats.

Tsitsipas' rise continues, as he is projected to crack the Top 30 of the ATP Rankings for the first time on Monday, climbing to at least No. 27. If he wins his semi-final, the Athens-native will become the highest-ranked teenager, passing Canadian Denis Shapovalov. And if he captures his maiden tour-level title, Tsitsipas will move into the Top 20.

It's a notable achievement, considering Tsitsipas began the 2018 season with just four tour-level wins. This week one year ago, he was World No. 164. Tsitsipas has yet to play Zverev or Nishikori.

Did You Know?

Tsitsipas is now 6-7 against Top 20 opponents this season. He will attempt to reach his second ATP World Tour final, after losing in the Barcelona championship match against Rafael Nadal.