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The End Game: Tennis Insights

The End Game: Tennis Insights

October 22nd - 28th Tennis Recap

Emmanuel Okosun & Courtside Tennis
October 29, 2023

You have my attention.

As a student of the game, I’m always eager to hear your thoughts on certain issues. If you could pick only one player aside from Novak Djokovic of course, who would you say has had the best 2023 among these players? comment by replying to this email!

Daniil Medvedev
Jannik Sinner
Carlos Alcaraz
Andrey Rublev
Ben Shelton

New Video‼

With many stars looking to make a comeback in 2024, we dropped a NEW video on one of the very best in the game, Naomi Osaka. What really happened to her? Find out our hot take because no one is literally talking about what actually went wrong.

What Happened Last Week?

Vienna Open (500)

Jannik Sinner won his 4th title of the year after defeating Daniil Medvedev in Vienna in 3 sets. The final lasted over 3 grueling hours and it was far from easy for the Italian. It’s back-to-back final wins against Daniil Medvedev and we can all confirm at this point that Sinner knows how to beat the Russian now. Loving this new rivalry?

Basel Open (500)

The love story continues. Felix Auger Aliassime successfully defended his title after beating Hubert Hurkacz in the final in Basel. Down and out the whole season, the Canadian sprung out of nowhere to reach his first final of the year and claim the title in Basel and he’s beginning to look more like the player that he was in 2022.

WTA Elite trophy

Beatriz Haddad Maia won the title after beating Qinwen Zheng in the final in Zhuhai. It’s the biggest title of the Brazilian’s career and a great end to a long season.

Ranking Update: The Biggest Movers Of The Week

There are no significant changes in the top 20. However, Hubert Hurkacz continues to close the gap between him and the top 10. The ranking might see a little shake up after the Paris Masters with Holger Rune defending 1000 points.

Hurkacz missed a golden opportunity to qualify for the ATP finals in Turin after losing to FAA in the Basel Open final. With Andrey Rublev already a confirmed presence, 3 spots remain up for grabs.

On the women’s side, it’s Beatriz Haddad Maia who is set to jump 8 positions up to number 11 after claiming 645 points in Zhuhai to win the WTA Elite trophy.

But what tournaments do we have coming up?

Major Tournament Updates

WTA Finals (29 October – 5 November)

We have already seen a lot of drama leading up to the tournament in Cancun. Late court construction (tweet) didn’t give players much time to practice but as it stands, the draw has been announced and it’s quite interesting to see Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Jessica Pegula, and Maria Sakkari all in one group while Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, Ons Jabeur, and Markéta Vondroušová make up the other group. Who do you see coming out of the group stage?

Paris Masters 1000 (30 October – 5 November)

The Paris Masters Draw is out and we have all the big names ready to have a go. Novak Djokovic will be aiming for his 7th title at the event after enjoying a long break while Carlos Alcaraz will be looking to spoil the party despite his injury concerns. Meanwhile, the remaining Turin hopefuls will be looking to make deep runs to boost their chances of qualifying for the ATP finals.

Other Tournaments

After the Paris Masters, two more 250 events will take place in Metz, France and Sofia, Bulgaria from 05/11/2023 to 11/11/2023 before the Nitto ATP finals.

Watch Out for This Guy

Felix Auger Aliassime: After taking out the big guns en route to his title defense in Basel, we might be in for more surprises. Do you see FAA going far in Paris?

Off The Court

Jenson Brooksby suspended

Former American world no. 33 Jenson Brooksby has been suspended for 18 months after he was alleged to have missed three doping tests. You can find more details in this tweet.

BREAKING:
Jenson Brooksby has been suspended for 18 months.
He’s ineligible until January, 2025.
An independent tribunal came to the conclusion that he committed ‘3 whereabouts failures in a 12-month period’
Jenson will file an appeal:
“l’m very disappointed to learn that… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter)
10:34 PM • Oct 24, 2023

Goran Ivanisevic On Nadal

Novak Djokovic’s coach, Ivanisevic, has shared his thoughts on Rafael Nadal's eventual comeback and is convinced that the Spaniard will be dangerous and could continue his rivalry with Novak Djokovic for another year. Do you see that happening?

Matteo Berrettini Ends his Season

The Italian has split with his coach of 13 years (tweet) and put an end to a rather disappointing season. Hopefully, he’ll come back stronger in 2024.

Matteo Berrettini has split with his coach of 13 years, Vincenzo Santopadre.
"I found myself in your ‘tennis embrace’ not knowing what I wanted to do in life. You turned my dreams into reality, keeping me connected to the moments we shared day by day… Without you, there would… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter)
2:01 PM • Oct 28, 2023

Trivia Of The Week

Ben Shelton’s title win in Tokyo last week saw him break into the Top 15 to join three other American men (Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe). It is the first time since 1997 that 4 Americans made the Top 15. Back in 1997, it was Pete Sampras, Michael Chang, Andre Agassi, Todd Martin, and Jim Courier who found themselves in the Top 15. Stepping things up a little bit?