February 27, 2017

David Goffin, ranked 10 ATP, had a sensational opening debut in the Mextenis facilities against Stephane Robert (FRA) and came out triumphant with partials 6-1 and 6-2 in a 54-minute match.

The 26-year-old player will face the winner of the duel between Kyle Edmund and Sam Querrey during the second rounds. Goffin took advantage of Robert’s (80 ATP) 35%-effective first serve. This is not Goffin’s first time participating in the Mexican tournament, in 2014 David contended and lost during the second phase of the qualification rounds against Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis. This time around Goffin, not only made it to the main draw, he has moved on to 2R and has a big chance to keep on advancing. 

Simultaneously 28-year-old Adrian Mannarino (65 ATP) took out American Taylor Fritz with a three set victory 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 and is moving on to the second rounds. Fritz fought as hard as he could but at the end he was not able to raise his points gifting Mannarino with an opportunity to raise his overall tournament scores since he hasn’t been able to surpass the first instance in either the Australian Open, Sofia, Memphis or Delray Beach. Goffin will face either Kyle Edmund or Sam Querrey for his first Acapulco quarter-final match.

February 27, 2017

Andrea Petkovic from Germany is fulfilling her role as favorite by winning the duel against Jaime Loeb although her opponent didn’t go down without a fight against the 8^th seed. Petkovic took over after three sets in 99 minutes with partials 2-6, 6-1 and 6-3.

The German player had a few problems with her service during the first set which explains why Loep was ahead during the first partial. Andrea barely attained 45% effectiveness in her first serve but raised her percentages to 71% forcing the set by leveling the partials. At the end Loeb was not able to keep up and scored four aces, three double faults and 50% effectiveness in her first serve while Petkovic had two direct serves, 9 double faults and 57% first serve effectiveness.

Andrea will come face to face against Pauline Parmentier from france during the second rounds. Parmentier overcame Nicole Gibbs (USA) in a heart-racing dispute that took place in the first Court of the Princess Mundo Imperial Hotel facilities where both players gave the best of each other in an encounter that lasted more than three hours and resulted in partials 7-5, 6-7(6) and 6-2. The duel was a great display of Pauline’s excellent physical condition.

In a debut match that took place in the Grand Stand Caliente.Mx in Acapulco, former number 1 world junior Borna Coric from Croatia found no rival in Mexican Lucas Gomez and advanced to the tournament’s second round after a two-set victory where he made a display of great skill and proved why he is considered one of the Next Gen great promises after imposing himself by double 6-1 scores. Although the Mexican player had a good a big crowd cheering for him he wasn’t able to retort.

With a total of 5 breaks and making display of an effective service, 20-year-old Coric was over by 91% points on his first serve leaving Gomez without a small chance to bounce back and avoid the fall.

Now Borna (68 ATP) is waiting for his 2R rival: the outcome of the Cilic-Dolgopolov face-off.

On the other hand, Mexican tennis player Lucas grieves the moment Mexican tennis is going through, “(I) have to watch out for even the most smallest details and work on them during training. It is slower and more humid than normal (court conditions), matches are longer as well as points so when one is not in your favor it tilts the balance to one side a lot quicker. […] Mexican tennis is going through a crisis and it has to do not just with the players, it is a cultural matter, the Federation and those who are behind it. If the sport comes through it will do so thanks to private initiative. Unlike Spain, Czech Republic, Argentina and other countries, Mexico does not have a national school but we could learn from other countries and implement such systems here”, shared 21-year-old Gomez.

February 27, 2017

Kristina Mladenovic had a successful opening debut in Acapulco. 23-year-old Mladenovic, and tournament’s second seed, imposed herself over American player Varyara Lepchenko who wasn’t able to find a way to come back her rival’s attacks, 6-2 and 6-3.

Maldenovic arrived to the AMT2017 facilities motivated after conquering her first WTA title in Strasbourg; it only took her 35 minutes to snatch the first set in a match that was in her pocket from the beginning.

Under the intense sun in the Mextenis stadium, Mladenovic took control over Lepchenko who gave in under the pressure and her opponent’s moves. The match lasted 75 minutes and Kristina moved to the second round after having her first ever face-off with the French contestant that had a 8-4 record while Varyara held a 4-4 record.

Meanwhile in the fourth court, Louisa Chirico from the United States was defeated by fellow American Shelby Rogers with a 2-6, 2-6 score. Rogers will be measured next against the winner of the Lucic-Baroni and Bencic dispute that will take place Tuesday February 28^th.

Carrying the insignia of Olympic champion is no easy task, to be able to conquer a title that can only be attained every 4 years can change any player’s life and Monica Puig knows and treasures this well. After acing Rio 2016 Puig’s life gave a 180-degree spin. The Puerto Rican player encountered new obligations she wasn’t accustomed to but she made her way through them.

“It was a hard transition, at that time I didn’t know how to deal with such pressures and such that came along with winning the gold. At this moment I feel confident and feel prepared to keep on competing and playing my best”, shared the Boricua, “it was a drastic change and my team and I learned from the moment our hits and mistakes so now we’re working on maintaining this game like I did in Doha and Dubai which were great tournaments”.

When in Doha Puig, made it to semifinals and fell against Danish Caroline Wozniacki and when in Dubai she only reached 3R defeated by Angelique Kerber.

Up until now her best result so far, in addition to the Olympic gold, is the Strasbourg title and, although she didn’t come out victorious, the final round in Sydney last year was a great performance. This year she is back in Acapulco for the third time, where she is more than welcomed back by fans that expect to see her again after Puig’s performance last year where she was cut short during the second round.

Monica has her heart set on the title “success, to me, is to play knowing that I’m giving out my best, and to learn from every play, not so much for the result, because as long as I’m always doing my best that what will lead me to success which is being a better player and the rest will follow”.

Puig’s life has being full of lessons, perhaps the most important one is to be patient, “I understand now that I have to be patient because good opportunities come within time; I will not always win every contest and that the “best player” title will not necessarily be mine forever, but one must be very assertive and keep training day after day to reach your goals. Knowing all this gives me peace of mind”. After working so much on such virtue serenity and patience is a quality the medalist values greatly “I like those who are calm, that know how to have fun, how to handle life’s stress; there’s nothing better than a person who smiles and spreads happiness. You never know, you might brighten someone who is having a depressing day with a smile and that is always important, to brighten your days”.

The player from Puerto Rico is enjoying the moment and has a mission in mind: “I’d like to be an inspiration for young people, a role model for them to see that if you work hard daily you can accomplish anything you desire”.

Monica is getting ready for her opening tournament match against 2011 France Open finalist Francesca Schiavone from Italy and will give her absolute best to snatch the Acapulco title along with Mexican fans’ hearts.

Yoshihito Nishioka amazed the public by qualifying to the main draw at the Acapulco Open after taking down  German Tobias Kamke first and Memphis Open champ Ryan Harrison next with partials 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. This is Nishioka’s (86 ATP) first main draw since being eliminated during the same phase in previous tournaments: the Australian, Memphis and Delray Beach Open.    

Next Generation player Taylor Fritz had a fabulous comeback after taken aback during the first set and won 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 against Australian Jordan Thompson. Meanwhile Frances Tiafoe from USA imposed himself after a great battle against Molavia native Radu Albot with scores 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Fourth qualifier is USA player Stefan Kozlov that defeated fellow national Jared Donaldson 7-5 and 6-3.

In the meantime WTA player and first seed Jennifer Brady (USA) left co-national Asia Muhammad behind with a 6-1 and 6-3 score. Simultaneously, Fiona Ferro took German Tatjana Maria down by 6-4 and 6-3. Second fellow American to Brady, Jamie Loeb had no problem defeating by 6-4 and 6-0 over Marina Erakovic from New Zeland. Bethanie Mattek-Sand (USA) coiled Colombian Mariana Duque-Mariño 6-0 and 6-1. Last American to make it to the main draw is player Taylor Townsend who won over counterpart Sachia Vickery after a difficult 7-6 and 7-5 and is moving on to 1R along with Chloe Paquet (FRA) who defeated Paraguayan Veronica Cepede Royg with partials 7-5 and 6-3. 

** Both players will be making their tournament debut

Two of the most expected players of the 2017 Acapulco Open, Novak Djokovic and Juan Martín del Potro, raised the excitement amongst tennis fans in Acapulco. After a surprise confirmation of his attendance to the XXIV edition of the tournament, Djokovic arrived this Sunday in a private flight and had his first trainment in the main court in Mextenis.

According to the main draw, the No. 2 world ranked player will kick off the first round against 27 year old, Slovanian, Martin Klizan (ATP 65), more than a month after his unexpected elimination at the Australian Open, and his last match during the first rounds of the Cup Davis against Rusia where he worked particularly hard to win due to Daniil Medvev’s exit, Nole returns with a strong will to regain confidence and continue to score points to maintain his fight for the ATP and snatch the main position from Andy Murray.

On the other hand, Juan Martín del Potro is playing his second tournament of the 2017 season in Acapulco where he hadn’t been able to participate due to previous injuries. In past days, the Argentinian player played in the Delray Beach ATP 250 where he reached the semifinals and lost to Canadian Milos Raonic.

Three victories in the Florida tournament have given Delpo enough self-confidence to aspire to a good result in this year’s AMT (Acapulco Open). 

In addition to entertaining, the Acapulco Open also fulfills fans’ dreams.

During today’s afternoon fans got to be very close to their idol Rafael Nadal after finding out he was going to give a press meeting with a small selection of press. The crowd curiously swirled around and got their cameras, mobile phones and oversized tennis balls out and took position as they quickly knew that Nadal would be present hunting for a precious autograph or selfie.

As soon as Rafa arrived the screams and calls of fans filled the atmosphere. The 2^nd seed gave a smile to his followers and proceeded to answer his interviewers’ questions going through the different tables arranged for such purpose. Those hunting for autographs would closely and avidly wait for Nadal to finish the current interview and move to the next table to snatch a picture with their mobile device. 

Minutes later, the appearance of Eugenie Bouchard caused frenzy among the present fans. Dressed in a white T-shirt, neon orange and yellow shorts, and same colored tennis shoes, the Canadian player gave her best smile for the media. Eugenie, who recently posed for Sports Illustrated, was sought after by fans, which patiently waited for Bouchard to complete her activities and do as they did with Nadal.

When Rafa finished his round the crowd surrounded him immediately, but few were the ones who achieved the coveted prize since the Main Stadium was ready for the Spaniard’s afternoon training session.

Meanwhile, Cilic and Bouchard held a photo shoot at the beach. The fans began to disperse as they watched them go towards the their photo session…

Acapulco Open fans are excitedly looking forward to a highly possible final match between Serbian player Novak Djokovic and Spanish player Rafael Nadal after the draw ceremony of the 2017 Acapulco Open sponsored by Telcel and HSBC. Nole (2 ATP) is the first seed while Rafael (6 ATP) is the second seed after Canadian player Milos Raonic’s (4 ATP) last minute drop out.

Djokovic will kick off the Acapulco tournament with a match against Martin Klizan from Slovakia (65 ATP) and if he comes out triumphant from such game he will face another great favorite: Argentinian Juan Martín del Potro (42 ATP) next. During Quarter-finals there is a high probability of a clash between Nick Kyrgios (16 ATP) who is playing against Dudi Sela beforehand, and a semi final against David Goffin (10-ATP) whose first opponent in this tournament will be Frenchman Stephane Robert (80 ATP).

Nadal’s first match will be demanding for he will be measured against German Mischa Zverev (33 ATP). The two players have played against each other once during the second found of the Brisbane tournament this year and Nadal came out victorious. For his second duel he will be measured against the winner of the Paolo Lorenzi-Yen Hsun Lu match, and later either to the delray Beach champion Jack Sock or Spaniard Feliciano Lopez.

Former Acapulco Open champion and this year’s fourth seeded Austrian player Dominic Thiem will collide first against French player Gilles Simon.

David Goffin, who witnessed the draw ceremony spoke, “it is a very intense main draw but I’ll do my best. Every game will be tough but I know it will be a good tournament for me and all of the players… I’ll have to play game by game”.  Goffin was part of the Acapulco Open in 2014 and was ranked 107 ATP at that time so he had to win his pass to the main draw after playing qualification rounds and then lost against Latvian tennis player Ernests Gulbis.

Another first face-off with high expectations is the clash between the third seeded and 7 world ranked Marin Cilic and Ukrainian Alxandr Dolgopolov that hold a 1-1 H2H, although their most recent match was in 2012 during the Umag tournament were Cilic came out triumphant. Mexican tennis player Lucas Gomez, who received a wild card, is playing against Croatian Borna Coric in his first match.

For the women’s main draw,  Australian Open finalist and Acapulco Open’s first s seed Mirjana Lucid-Baroni will face Belinda Bencic while sixth seeded, Canadian Eugénie Bouchard will begin her journey with a face-off against Croatian Ajla Tomljanovic. On the other hand, Rio 2016 Olympic Champion Monica Puig from Puerto Rico will face Italian Francesca Schiavone while Renata Zarazúa (WC) will face Belgian Kirsten Flipkens (74 WTA).

Raúl Zurutuza, head of the tournament, is overjoyed about this year’s main draw since it is the best in the Mexican Open’s history. “This speaks about how this tournament is becoming more and more important to the players. We are ready to enjoy a great event”. 

Memphis’ champion plays during qualification rounds in Acapulco

Febru 25, 2017. Acapulco, Guerrero

With a two set win, American Player Ryan Harrison kicked of Qualies rounds for the 2017 Mexican Open sponsored by Telcel. Harrison (former champion of the Memphis ATP 250 and the Dallas Challenger) won by 6-3 and 6-3 over Australian player Matthew Ebden in the Caliente.MX Grand Stand.

Ranked 43 ATP, the Shreveport born player had summed up 11 consecutive wins after being eliminated during second rounds in the Aussie Open against Czech Tomas Berdych. 

During the Memphis finals Harrison triumphed over Nikoloz Basilashvilli from Georgia, to win his first ATP tour title. Meanwhile, in the Dallas Challenger he won over co-patriot Taylor Fritz.

This is the third time Harrison plays during qualification rounds; during the 2015 Abierto Mexicano de Tenis (Mexican Open) he surprised everyone when he made it all the way to semifinal rounds but fell defeated against Spaniard David Ferrer, a year later he unexpectedly triumphed over Croatian Marin Cilic but fell against Ukranian Ilya Marchenko.

During his second game during qualies looking to snatch a place in Acapulco’s Tournament main draw Harrison will face Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka who defeated German Tobias Kamke by 6-4 and 6-2.

Men’s 1^st Qualification Round

Ryan Harrison (EEUU) 6-3, 6-3 Matthew Edben (Australia)
Yoshihito Nishioka (Japan) 6-4, 6-2 Tobias Kamke (Germany)
Jordan Thompson (Australia) 6-1, 6-2 Alan Rubio (Mexico)
Stefan Kozlov (USA) 6-2, 6-2 Hyeon Chung (Korea)
Jared Donaldson (USA) 6-4, 6-3 Manuel Sánchez (Mexico)
Frances Tiafoe (USA) 6-3 Kevin Carpenter (Mexico)
Radu Albot (Moldavia) 5-7, 6-0, 6-2 Santiago Giraldo (Colombia)
Taylor Fritz (USA) 7-6, 6-1 Konstantin Kravchuk (Russia)

Women’s 1^st Qualification Round

Jennifer Brady (USA) 6-0, 6-3 Emma Reyes (México)
Marina Erakovic (NZL) 6-2, 6-2 Giovanna Manifacio (México)
Marie Bouzkova (Czech Republic) 6-1, 7-5 Asia Muhammad (USA)
Tatjana Maria (Germany) 6-3, 6-1 Nadia Podoroska (Argentina)
Fiona Ferro (France) 3-6, 7-5, 7-5 Samantha Crawford (USA)
Jamie Loeb (USA) 6-2, 6-2 Jacqueline Cako (USA)
Verónica Cepede Royg (Paraguay) 6-1, 6-2 Victoria Rodríguez (Mexico)
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (EEUU) 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 Giuliana Olmos (Mexico)
Sachia Vickery (USA) 6-0, 4-6, 6-1 Deniz Khazaniuk (Israel)
Mariana Duque-Mariño (Colombia) 6-1, 6-4 Francoise Abanda (Canada)
Taylor Townsend (USA) 6-1, 6-4 Catalina Pella (Argentina)
Chloe Paquet (France) 7-6, 6-3 Elitsa Kostova (Bulgaria)