Fourth seeds Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara got off to a fast start at the ABN AMRO Open with a straight-set win against wild cards Petros Tsitsipas and Stefanos Tsitsipas on Monday. The British-Finnish pair converted three of four break points in a 6-3, 6-4 victory, winning 86 per cent of their first-serve points in a comfortable outing.
Until the quarter-finals, Glasspool/Heliovaara are seeking their fourth title as a team and their second of 2023 after winning at the Adelaide International 1 last month. The duo is 8-1 in the youth season. Belgians Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen were also victorious on Day 1 in Rotterdam, beating Dutchmen Tallon Griekspoor and Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 5-7, 10-3 at the ATP 500.
Defending champions Arevalo/Rojer advance in Delray Beach. Top seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Marcelo Arevalo defeated Americans Brandon Holt and Jackson Withrow 6-3, 7-5 on Monday in the first round of the Delray Beach Open.
The Salvadoran-Dutch duo won four titles in 2022, including at Roland Garros and Delray Beach. They already did another this season at the Adelaide International 2. Robert Galloway and John-Patrick Smith also advanced on the ATP 250 with a 6-4, 7-6(6) win against Americans Mackenzie McDonald and Ben Shelton.
Francisco Cabral and Nikola Cacic advanced to the quarterfinals of the Argentina Open by beating Tomislav Brkic and Gonzalo Escobar 6-3, 6-7(4), 10-4. In the other ATP 250 doubles match on Monday, Argentines Sebastián Báez and Facundo Bagnis defeated the wild card duo of Diego Schwartzman and Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-4.
Tsitsipas wants to grow more
Seeded 1 in the tournament, this is Stefanos Tsitsipas’ seventh consecutive appearance in Rotterdam. The first time was against Tsonga. The Greek remembers his beginnings, and also comments on what he currently lives with our companions from Nos.
“I am increasingly attached to this sport, I like it more and more. It’s something I’ve dreamed of for years. You have periods of the year when you don’t feel like playing, when your body is very tense. You suffer from tension because you have to play so many games in a year.
But now I like being on a tennis court.» To stay on top of the ATP Tour, you need to be able to adapt and evolve. With the rise of new stars and the evolution of various styles, the Tour offers many challenges. For Stefanos Tsitsipas, who will star in the first season of the Netflix series Break Point, the desire to excel is constant.
«I really plan to push the limits and try to improve, even during matches. [I am] aggressive, slightly creative. I’m never really satisfied doing the same thing over and over again,» Tsitsipas told ATP Spotlight in 2022. «I try to find new creative ways to perform certain tasks and play in any condition.»
