Call it Doha Part 2. Dubai got underway earlier today with virtually the same draw as the just-finished Doha event won by Petra Kvitova over Garbine Muguruza.

The Top 6 seeds from Doha are back in the same slot this week in Dubai. Elina Svitolina, Karolina Pliskova, Aryna Sabalenka, Kvitova, Kiki Bertens and Belinda Bencic headline the last women’s event in the Middle East.

While several did withdraw from the swing …

Diego Schwartzman finally won his first career title in his home country of Argentina on Sunday cruising past qualifier Francisco Cerundolo 6-1, 6-2.

“It was an emotional week. Very different because in the other weeks you don’t have all your family and friends with you, the people who never see you on court,” said Schwartzman who didn’t lose a set all week. “Having these moments, sharing this with them and …

Ahead of his return to tennis after 14 months, Roger Federer heaped praise on his rivals for what they have done the last few years in the sport.

Combined, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have won 10 of the last 11 Grand Slam events.

Nadal is now even with Federer at 20 all-time Slams while Djokovic is now with two. And Federer is impressed instead of being concerned his records will …

The big news is tennis is the return of Roger Federer. The Swiss, who has been off the tour for 14 months, will be back on the court this week in Doha for the ATP 500.

Federer, now 39, is not lowering his long-term expectations despite his age and his time off. The Swiss says there is more to come.

“I just feel like the story is not over yet,” Federer said …

Andrey Rublev continued to make his case he belongs among the best in tennis. The 23-year-old won his 20th match at the ATP 500 level taking down Martin Fucsovics 7-6(4), 6-4 to win the indoor title in Rotterdam, his 8th career crown.

“I feel happy. It has been a really great week,” said Rublev. “It has been a great past year and a half. We will see if I can keep …

Clara Tauson announced her arrival on the WTA Tour Sunday capturing her first tile defeating fellow qualifier Viktorija Golubic 6-4, 6-1 in the Lyon final.

“I think I’ve been really solid, especially after the first set, I’ve come out good in every single match,” Tauson said. “I just kept my game going. It’s been a weird week like that, normally I have some fall-outs, but I haven’t had any of those …

Two of the hottest ATP players met in the Rotterdam semifinals today and Andrey Rublev came out ahead of Stefanos Tsitsipas on the slow indoor court 6-3, 7-6(2).

“I am happy with my performance. I am happy that I am in a final,” Rublev said. “I won some great matches. Everything is going well. I just want to keep working, keep trying to improve and we will see what is going …

Petra Kvitova notched her second career Doha title Saturday blowing past Garbine Muguruza 6-2, 6-1 in just 66 minutes.

The Czech lefty has now won her last five against Muguruza. Just two days before her 31st birthday, Kvitova picks up her 28th career title in her 38th final (28-10 record in finals!). She won Doha in 2018 when she also beat Muguruza in that final.

“That year it was very tiring. …

Two of the top players of 2021 will collide in the semifinals Saturday in Rotterdam. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev will butt heads for a sixth time in their young rivalry after each won tough 3-set quarterfinals.

The World No. 6 Tsitsipas needed over 2 hours, 45 minutes to put away Karen Khachanov in a grueling 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 which saw the Greek fight from 3-1 down in the third to …

On semifinal day in Doha, only one match was played. Garbine Muguruza was to square off against Victoria Azarenka but a back injury prevented the 2-time Doha champion from taking the court.

“Unfortunately, the pain in my back that I experienced during yesterday’s match has not gone away enough in order for me to be able to compete tonight,” Azarenka said in a statement. “I have loved being back here in …

Former multi-Slams winners Victoria Azarenka and Garbine Muguruza advanced to a Friday semifinal showdown in Doha.

Azarenka, a 2-time Doha champion, ousted top seed Elina Svitolina 6-2, 6-4. She’s now 4-0 against the Ukrainian.

“I really just tried to focus on what I could do, and not think about anything else, and try to find solutions and use every opportunity I had to play,” Azarenka said.

“I just tried to play point by …

In the marquee match of the day in Rotterdam, World No. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas survived a spirited fight from Hubert Hurkacz to prevail 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 to reach the the quarterfinals.

The Greek, who made the semifinals at the Australian Open, missed two earlier match points in the third only to serve it out at 6-5 for his eighth win in nine matches in 2021.

“Hubert is a very tough competitor. We …

In the one of the better matches of 2021, Garbine Muguruza took down defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in a second round thriller in Doha 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3.

The former No. 1 Muguruza jumped out 4-0 before securing the first. In the second, the Spaniard came from a break down to serve for the match at 6-5, but was unable to finish the job.

Muguruza again came from a break down in the …

The upsets came hot and heavy Wednesday at the indoor event in Rotterdam.

A final appearance would give Daniil Medvedev the No. 2 ranking by the Russian fell way short getting bounced by Dusan Lajovic 7-6(4), 6-4.

Medvedev was playing his first match since losing to Lajovic’s countryman Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final. He had won 20 straight matches going in to the Melbourne title match. He’s now dropped five …

The ATP announced today that prize money levels at the lower tier 250 and 500 tournaments will be at 80% and 60%, respectively, from their previous totals. That’s above the 50% mark set when the pandemic hit.

The tour is partly funding the approximate $5.2M total by tapping into the year-end bonus pool, which is awarded to top players, and redistributing it to the smaller events to help the lower-ranked players.

In …