sign in sign up
<<
Home , 2011 China Open (tennis), 2013 Australian Open, 2013 Portugal Open, Ashley Fisher, China Open (tennis), David Ferrer

OPEN: PREVIEW & DAY 1 MEDIA NOTES Monday, October 5, 2015

National Center, , China | October 5-11, 2015 Draw: S-32, D-16 | Prize Money: $3,944,715 | Surface: Outdoor Hard

ATP Info: Tournament Info: ATP PR & Marketing: www.ATPWorldTour.com www.chinaopen.com.cn Martin Dagahs: [email protected] @ATPWorldTour Thomas Troxler: [email protected] facebook.com/ATPWorldTour Press Room: +86 1084373991

CHINA OPEN TALKING POINTS

 SPOTLIGHT ON BEIJING: The 2015 features an outstanding field with 10 of the Top 20 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, led by World No. 1 and five-time Beijing champion , No. 2 seed/2011 winner Tomas Berdych, who met in last year’s final. Djokovic won 60 62. The other seeds are: No. 3/’05 champ , No. 4 , No. 5 , No. 6 , No. 7 and No. 8 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Raonic and Goffin are making their debut. Djokovic, Nadal and Berdych are the former champions in the field.

 DAY 1 PREVIEW: There are seven men’s singles matches on Monday’s schedule, which features three seeds: No. 5 Raonic, No, 7 Goffin and No. 8 Tsonga. In addition, the No. 1 player from China, Ze Zhang, is in action on Lotus Court against qualifier . The top two doubles seeds are on the schedule with No. 1/defending champions Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau along with No. 2 and Nenad Zimonjic.

 EMIRATES ATP RACE TO : Seven of the Top 15 players in the Emirates ATP Race to London for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals are in action in Beijing. Top four have qualified. There are four spots remaining to the season finale and 500 points to the champion at stake. Here are the points leaders going into opening day action:

Position Player Points 1-Q Novak Djokovic - Beijing 12,785 2-Q 7,510 3-Q 6,740 4-Q 5,505 5 Tomas Berdych - Beijing 4,000 6 3,770 7 Rafael Nadal – Beijing 3,715 8 David Ferrer – Beijing 3,255 9 2,355 10 2,205 11 John Isner – Beijing 2,180 12 Milos Raonic –Beijing 2,080 13 Marin Cilic 2,055 14 1,920 15 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - Beijing 1,900

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 2 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

 REIGNING CHAMP/WORLD NO. 1: Djokovic returns to the China Open for the sixth time and the five-time champion is looking to maintain his unbeaten record (24-0). He’s only dropped three sets (to left-handers Verdasco twice, Berrer) in 51 sets played. He has won the title in 2009-10, ’12-14. Djokovic comes in with a 63-5 match record (40-4 on hard) on the season with seven titles: , ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Rome, Wimbledon and US Open. This is Djokovic’s first tournament since capturing his 10th title at the US Open on Sept. 13 (d. Federer). This is the 167th week overall he has ranked No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, which is sixth-most. He will surpass No. 5 John McEnroe’s total of 170 on Nov. 2. He will finish No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Rankings for the fourth time in five years (except ’13). Here are the other players to win at least their first 20 matches in a tournament in the last 40 years:

- Rafael Nadal started 31-0 at Roland Garros between 2005 & ‘09. He is now 70-2. - went 26-0 at Birmingham, Alabama between 1974 & 1980. - started 23-0 at between 1982 & ’85, finished 27-3. - John McEnroe started 23-0 at Milan between 1979 & ’89, finished 26-2. - John McEnroe started 22-0 at Sydney Indoor between 1980 &’ 92, finished 22-1.

NOVAK IN CHINA: Djokovic comes into Beijing having won 28 of his last 29 matches in China, winning consecutive titles in Beijing and in 2012-13 and Beijing last year. His 28-match winning streak in China ended last year when he lost to Federer in the semi-finals in Shanghai. Overall, he has won 8 career titles in China (five in Beijing, three in Shanghai). He has never lost in the Beijing Open (24-0) and is 19-3 at the Shanghai Masters (since 2009). The only country in which he’s won more titles is the U.S. (11). Here’s a look at his ATP World Tour titles in China: Tournament (Sets) Final Opponent 2014 Beijing (10-0) d. Tomas Berdych 60 62 2013 Shanghai (10-2) d. Juan Martin del Potro 61 36 76 2013 Beijing (10-1) d. Rafael Nadal 63 64 2012 Shanghai (10-1) d. Andy Murray 57 76 63 2012 Beijing (10-1) d. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 76 62 2010 Bejing (8-0) d. David Ferrer 62 64 2009 Beijing (10-1) d. Marin Cilic 62 76 2008 Tennis Masters Cup (10-3) d. 61 75

 RAFA RETURNS: Nadal is making his third straight appearance in Beijing and fifth overall. Nadal is 14-3 in Beijing, winning the title in his debut in 2005 (d. Coria) and reaching the final in ’13 (l.. to Djokovic), semi-finals in ’09 (l. to Cilic) and quarter-finals last year (l. to Klizan). Nadal has a 45-15 match record on the season, including 14-7 on hard courts and 26-6 on clay. He has won three ATP World Tour titles (Buenos Aires, , Hamburg) and final at ATP Masters 1000 Madrid. His streak of 10 consecutive years with at least one Grand Slam crown came to an end this season. His best Slam results were QFs at Australian Open and Roland Garros

 IVO EYES ACES RECORD – Ivo Karlovic, who is making his fourth tournament appearance in Beijing (1-3), is closing in on the all-time ATP World Tour aces record (since 1991), currently held by countryman Goran Ivanisevic, who hit 10,237 aces in his career. Karlovic comes into Beijing trailing by 35 with 10,202. These figures don’t include matches. Karlovic leads the ATP World Tour this season with 1,207 aces, the fourth year he’s surpassed 1,000 in a campaign. .

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 3 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

FORMER BEIJING CHAMPIONS AND FINALISTS:

YEAR WINNER FINALIST Bold = Denotes those in this year’s draw 2014 Novak Djokovic Tomas Berdych 2013 Novak Djokovic Rafael Nadal

2012 Novak Djokovic Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

2011 Tomas Berdych Marin Cilic 2010 Novak Djokovic David Ferrer

2009 Novak Djokovic Marin Cilic 2008

2007 Fernando Gonzalez 2006 Mario Ancic

2005 Rafael Nadal

2004

FORMER BEIJING DOUBLES CHAMPIONS:

YEAR WINNER YEAR WINNER 2014 Jean-Julien Rojer & Horia Tecau 2013 & Horia Tecau 2008 & 2012 & 2007 & 2011 Michael Llodra & Nenad Zimonjic 2006 Mario Ancic & 2010 Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan 2005 & 2009 Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan 2004 Justin Gimelstob &

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

EMIRATES ATP RANKINGS POINTS AND PRIZE MONEY

W F SF QF R16 R32 SINGLES RANKINGS POINTS 500 300 180 90 45 0 SINGLES PRIZE MONEY ($) 654,725 295,180 139,820 67,470 34,400 18,920 DOUBLES RANKINGS POINTS 500 300 180 90 0 — DOUBLES PRIZE MONEY ($) 193,420 87,270 41,150 19,890 10,210 —

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 4 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

SEEDS TO WATCH THIS WEEK

SINGLES:

SEED PLAYER RECORD BEST FINISH

1. Novak Djokovic (SRB) 24-0 W 2014, ‘13, ‘12, ‘10, ‘09 2. Tomas Berdych (CZE) 11-3 W 2011 3. Rafael Nadal (ESP) 14-3 W 2005 4. David Ferrer (ESP) 6-5 F 2010 5. Milos Raonic (CAN) DEBUT ----- 6. John Isner (USA) 7-3 SF 2010 7. David Goffin (BEL) DEBUT ---- 8. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) 8-4 F 2012

 QUALIFIERS (4):  WILDCARDS (3):  OLDEST: Aljaz Bedene (GBR) Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) Ivo Karlovic – 36 yrs, 7 months (ITA) Di Wu (CHN) Denis Istomin (UZB) Ze Zhang (CHN)  YOUNGEST: (AUS) – 22 yrs, 1 month

 TOP COUNTRY BREAKDOWN: (4), (3), China (2), (2), (2), (2), Italy (2), (2), U.S. (2)

DOUBLES:

SEED PLAYER BEST FINISH 1. Jean-Julien Rojer & Horia Tecau 4-0; W 2014 2. Marcin Matkowski & Nenad Zimonjic TEAM DEBUT 3. Simone Bolelli & TEAM DEBUT 4. & Edouard Roger-Vasselin TEAM DEBUT

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 5 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

DAY 1 FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Order of Play by Court

NATIONAL TENNIS STADIUM

[8]Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) vs Andreas Haider-Maurer (AUT) - First Meeting

Tsonga 2015 FastFacts: W: Metz (d Simon); SF: Roland Garros (l Wawrinka); QF: ATP World Tour Masters 1000 (l Murray); US Open (l Cilic) YTD W-L: 25-12 (13-5 on hard) YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 12 Date of Birth: April 17, 1985 Emirates ATP Ranking: 16 Beijing W-L (Best Result): 8-4 (Runner-up 2012)

• No. 3 Frenchman, who reached China Open final in 2012 (l. to Djokovic), won 12th career title in All- French final at Metz in last tournament on Sept. 27 over No. 10 Simon, becoming winningest player in event history (18 wins) • 30-year-old Frenchman missed 1st 11 weeks with an arm injury before season debut at Miami in March • Started 6-5 prior to reaching Roland Garros SF (d. No. 4 Berdych and No. 5 Nishikori, l. to eventual champ Wawrinka), matching best career result in Paris (also 2013 SF) • Advanced to 2nd US Open QF of career (also 2011), not dropping during event until 5-set loss to Cilic. Fell in Wimbledon 3R (l. to Karlovic) • Before winning Metz, had not played in a final since winning 2014 ATP Masters 1000 (d. Federer)

Haider-Maurer 2015 FastFacts: SF: Rio de Janeiro (l Ferrer); QF(3): Chennai (l Goffin); Casablanca (l Dzumhur); Umag (l Thiem) YTD W-L: 21-23 (8-8 on hard) YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0 Date of Birth: March 22, 1987 Emirates ATP Ranking: 64 Beijing W-L (Best Result): Main draw debut

• No. 2 Austrian (behind Thiem), who is making his China Open debut, reached 2nd ATP World Tour SF of career at Rio de Janeiro (d. Robredo in 2R, l. to No. 9 Ferrer) • Has won 21 tour-level matches this season after posting only 17 total victories from 2011 to 2014 • Achieved career-high ranking of No. 47 on April 20 • Posted 3-0 Davis Cup record for against Sweden in March and in July • Won 9th career ATP Challenger title in August at Meerbusch, GER (d. Berlocq) • Grand Slam results: Australian Open 2R (l. to Isner), Roland Garros 1R (l. to Schwartzman), Wimbledon 1R (l. to Berankis) and US Open 2R (d. Pospisil in 5 sets, l. to No. 1 Djokovic)

Viktor Troicki (SRB) vs Milos Raonic (CAN) Raonic Leads 2-0 12 ATP Masters 1000 Toronto (Canada) Hard R32 Milos Raonic 6-3 6-4 12 Tokyo (Japan) Hard R16 Milos Raonic 3-0 ret

Troicki 2015 FastFacts: W: Sydney (d Kukushkin); F: Stuttgart (l Nadal); SF: London / Queen's Club (l Murray); QF(2): Zagreb (l Garcia-Lopez); Acapulco (l Anderson) YTD W-L: 31-23 (17-12 on hard) YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: February 10, 1986 Emirates ATP Ranking: 24 Beijing W-L (Best Result): 3-3 (2R 2007, ’09, ‘14)

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 6 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

• No. 2 Serb (behind Djokovic) won first all-qualifier final in ATP World Tour history to claim 2nd career title at Sydney (d. Kukushkin) in 2nd week of season • In June, defeated No. 9 Cilic en route to Stuttgart final (l. to No. 10 Nadal). Capped impressive grass- court campaign (10-4) with Wimbledon 4R (l. to Pospisil in 5 sets), matching career-best showing at a Grand Slam (also 2011 Roland Garros, 2012 Wimbledon, 2013 Roland Garros 4R) • Also reached Australian Open 3R, Roland Garros 2R and US Open 3R (l. to Young in 5 sets) • Enters with records of 17-12 on hard, 4-7 on clay, 10-4 on grass and 2-5 vs. Top 10 opponents

Raonic 2015 FastFacts: W: St. Petersburg (d Sousa); F: (l Federer); SF(2): (l Wawrinka); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l Federer); QF(4): Australian Open (l Djokovic); ATP Masters 1000 (l Berdych); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid (l Murray); London / Queen's Club (l Simon) YTD W-L: 31-14 (23-10 on hard) YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 7 Date of Birth: December 27, 1990 Emirates ATP Ranking: 9 Beijing W-L (Best Result): Main draw debut

• No. 1 Canadian, who is making his China Open debut, captured 7th career title at St. Petersburg on Sept. 27 (d. Sousa), snapping title 14-month title drought • Opened campaign at Brisbane with 14th appearance in a final (d. No. 5 Nishikori, l. to No. 2 Federer) • Enjoyed career-best result at Australian Open by reaching QF (l. to No. 1 Djokovic) • Earned 1st win in 6 tries vs. Nadal in ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells QF (l. to No. 2 Federer in SF) • Achieved career-high ranking of No. 4 on May 11 • Withdrew from Roland Garros following right foot surgery on May 13 • Suffered 3R losses to Kyrgios at Wimbledon and F. Lopez at US Open

LOTUS COURT

[7] David Goffin (BEL) vs (ITA) First Meeting

Goffin 2015 FastFacts: F(2): s-Hertogenbosch (l Mahut); Gstaad (l Thiem); SF: Chennai (l Wawrinka); QF(2): (l Kohlschreiber); ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome (l Ferrer) YTD W-L: 32-20 (15-10 on hard) YTD Titles: 0Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: December 7, 1990 Emirates ATP Ranking: 17 Beijing W-L (Best Result): Main draw debut

• Top Belgian in Emirates ATP Rankings has a career-high 32 match wins, including runs to the final at 's-Hertogenbosch (l. to Mahut) and Gstaad (l. to Thiem) • Reached 4R at Wimbledon (l. to No. 4 Wawrinka), matching best result at a Grand Slam (also 2012 Roland Garros 4R) • Advanced to 1st ATP Masters 1000 QF at Rome (l. to No. 8 Ferrer) • Led Belgium to Davis Cup SF by winning deciding rubber in 1R vs. SUI (d. Bossel), adding another victory in QF vs. CAN (d. Peliwo) and sweeping 6 singles sets in SF vs. ARG (d. Delbonis and Schwartzman) • Comes in No. 17 and reached a career-high Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 14 on July 13

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 7 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

Seppi 2015 FastFacts: F: Zagreb (l Garcia-Lopez); Halle (l Federer); SF: Doha (l Berdych); Hamburg (l Nadal) YTD W-L: 25-20 (16-11 on hard) YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: February 21, 1984 Emirates ATP Ranking: 25 Beijing W-L (Best Result): 1-3 (2R 2012)

• No. 1 Italian is playing in his first tournament since reaching 3R at US Open (l. to Djokovic) last month • Started 10-4, highlighted by 1st win in 13 tries against No. 2 Federer in Australian Open 3R • Fell in Australian Open 4R to Kyrgios 8-6 in 5th, matching career-best showing at a Grand Slam (also 2012 Roland Garros, and 2013 Wimbledon 4R) • Runner-Up at Zagreb (l. to Garcia-Lopez) and Halle (d. No. 5 Nishikori, l. to No. 2 Federer) • Other Grand Slam results: Roland Garros 1R (l. to Isner), Wimbledon 3R (l. to No. 3 Murray) • Missed ATP Masters 1000 events at Miami (non-medical), Madrid (hip) and Rome (hip) • Enters with records of 16-11 on hard, 2-5 on clay, 7-4 on grass and 2-6 against Top 10 opponents

[Q] Denis Istomin (UZB) vs [WC] Ze Zhang (CHN) Istomin Leads 2-0 10 CHN vs. UZB AOG I 1st RD (China) Hard RR Denis Istomin 4-6 7-5 6-2 7-5 14 CHN vs. UZB AOGI 2nd Rd. (China) Hard RR Denis Istomin 6-4 4-6 3-6 6-3 6-4

Istomin 2015 FastFacts: W: Nottingham (d Querrey); QF: Montpellier (l Gasquet); Bastad (l Paire); St. Petersburg (l Thiem) YTD W-L: 22-22 (8-13 on hard) YTD Titles: 1/Career Titles: 1 Date of Birth: September 7, 1986 Emirates ATP Ranking: 70 Beijing W-L (Best Result): 0-2 (1R 2010, ‘12)

• No. 1 player from started season 6-14, then went 6-0 at Nottingham en route to his 1st ATP World Tour singles title (d. Querrey), saving a match in QF along the way (d. L. Mayer 76 in 3rd) • Added 3rd career ATP World Tour doubles title at Gstaad w/Bury (d. Marach/Qureshi) • Reached QFs at Montpellier (l. to eventual champ Gasquet), Bastad (l. to eventual champ Paire) and St. Petersburg (l. to Thiem) • Led UZB into Davis Cup World Group Play-off with 3 wins over KOR in July. Went 1-2 in play-off tie last month (l. to USA) • Only Grand Slam win of season came in US Open 1R over Becker (l. to Thiem in 2R)

Zhang 2015 FastFacts: YTD W-L: 2-3 (2-3 on hard) YTD Titles: 0/Career Titles: 0 Date of Birth: July 4, 1990 Emirates ATP Ranking: 219 Beijing W-L (Best Result): 3-3 (QF 2012)

• No. 1 player from China is making his 4th main draw appearance and in 2012, advanced to his 1st and only ATP World Tour quarter-final (d. Wu, No. 14 Gasquet, l. to F. Mayer). In his last showing two years ago, lost to Tomic in 1R • Last week in Beijing, as a lost in 1R (l. to Vesely 63 62) • This season has compiled a 19-14 match record in Challengers, reaching SFs in Launceston in February and back-to-back weeks in Busan and Seoul in May. Also QF in 3 other tournaments • On home soil, reached final at China #10 Futures in July

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 8 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

COURT 3

Fabio Fognini (ITA) vs Martin Klizan (SVK) Fognini Leads 3-2 12 St. Petersburg (Russia) Hard F Martin Klizan 6-2 6-3 13 Eastbourne (Great Britain) Grass R16 Fabio Fognini 6-7(6) 6-2 6-2 13 Umag (Croatia) Clay QF Fabio Fognini 6-4 6-2 13 (Spain) Hard R32 Fabio Fognini 7-5 3-6 6-0 14 Munich () Clay F Martin Klizan 2-6 6-1 6-2

[Q] Aljaz Bedene (GBR) vs Lukas Rosol (CZE) First ATP Meeting Other meetings: 11 Barletta CH (Italy) Clay SF Aljaz Bedene 6-3 7-5 12 Prague CH (Czech Republic) Clay QF Aljaz Bedene 3-6 6-4 6-1

COURT 8

Jack Sock (USA) vs (RUS) First ATP Meeting Other meetings: 12 Champaign CH (U.S.A.) Hard R32 7-6(4) 6-6 ret 13 Savannah CH (U.S.A.) Clay R32 Teymuraz Gabashvili 6-4 6-1

OTHER FIRST ROUND FEDEX ATP HEAD 2 HEADS – In Draw Order

Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs Simone Bolelli (ITA) Djokovic Leads 3-0 08 Australian Open () Hard R64 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-2 6-2 08 ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati (USA)Hard R32 Novak Djokovic 7-6(2) 7-6(2) 09 Halle (Germany) Grass R32 Novak Djokovic 7-5 6-2

John Millman (AUS) vs Tommy Robredo (ESP) Millman Leads 2-0 13 Sydney (Australia) Hard R32 John Millman 6-3 6-4 15 Wimbledon (Great Britain) Grass R128 John Millman 6-2 6-3 6-4

Dominic Thiem (AUT) vs John Isner (USA) Thiem Leads 1-0 15 Nice (France) Clay SF Dominic Thiem 7-6(5) 6-3

David Ferrer (ESP) vs (BRA) Ferrer Leads 6-1 10 Acapulco () Clay R16 David Ferrer 6-4 6-1 10 Barcelona (Spain) Clay QF David Ferrer 6-4 6-0 10 ATP Masters 1000 Shanghai (China)Hard R32 David Ferrer 7-6(7) 6-3 12 ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay R32 Thomaz Bellucci 6-3 6-2 14 Rio de Janeiro () Clay QF David Ferrer 4-6 6-3 6-3 14 Valencia (Spain) Hard QF David Ferrer 6-1 6-2 15 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R128 David Ferrer 6-7(2) 6-2 6-0 6-3

Yen-Hsun Lu (TPE) vs (FRA) Mannarino Leads 3-0 14 Roland Garros (France) Clay R128 Adrian Mannarino 6-2 6-1 6-1 15 Delray Beach (U.S.A.) Hard QF Adrian Mannarino 3-6 6-1 6-1 15 s-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands) Grass R32 Adrian Mannarino 6-4 6-3

China Open Day 1 – Monday, October 5, 2015 Page 9 of 9 www.ATPWorldTour.com

Vasek Pospisil (CAN) vs Victor Estrella Burgos (DOM) First ATP Meeting Other meeting: 10 U.S.A. Futures #5 (U.S.A.) Hard F Victor Estrella Burgos 6-4 6-3

Di Wu (CHN) vs Rafael Nadal (ESP) First Meeting

Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) vs Ivo Karlovic (CRO) Garcia-Lopez Leads 2-1 05 Estoril () Clay R32 Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-3 6-3 07 San Jose (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Ivo Karlovic 6-3 7-6(7) 07 ATP Masters 1000 Miami (USA) Hard R128 Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-7(4) 7-6(5) Other meeting: 12 ATP Masters 1000 Rome Q (Italy) Clay -- Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-4 6-4

Pablo Cuevas (URU) vs Tomas Berdych (CZE) First Meeting