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A change of surface, but no change in Daniil Medvedev’s ability to dominate opponents.

The third seed made an electric start to his 2023 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters campaign on Wednesday by defeating the dangerous free-hitting Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-3, 6-2.

Medvedev was dialled in from the start of his first clay-court match of the year. He moved into an early 3-0 lead with the help of some delightful early touches at the net and he stayed typically relentless from the baseline throughout to seal an 89-minute victory on Court Rainier III.

“Every match is a struggle [on clay], but I have had some good matches on clay,” said Medvedev. “I managed to play good against a very strong player on clay. Lorenzo is very strong. Here in Monte-Carlo there are a lot of Italians in the crowd, but a lot of French also, so it was fun to play, and I am happy to beat such a tough opponent.”

The World No. 45 Sonego has the weapons to hurt anyone on Tour on his day, but the wild card struggled to turn vocal support from the Italian fans in the crowd into consistency that could challenge Medvedev. The World No. 5 fended off the only break point he faced and won 90 per cent (27/30) of points behind his first serve to clinch his 25th win in his past 26 tour-level matches.

The player with the most aces in tennis history is Ivo Karlovic from Croatia, who has hit a total of 13,619 aces as of September 2021. Karlovic is known for his big serve and has held the record for most aces in a single season, hitting 1,477 aces in 2017. He surpassed the previous record holder, Goran Ivanisevic, another Croatian player who hit a ...

Jannik Sinner advanced to the third round at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Wednesday when Diego Schwartzman was forced to retire with a shoulder injury.

The Italian, who reached the quarter-finals in Monte-Carlo last year, produced a ruthless performance in his first clay-court appearance of the season. He overpowered the Argentine with his flat groundstrokes and committed just six unforced errors before Schwartzman was forced to retire with Sinner leading 6-0, 3-1 after 38 minutes.

"I could tell from the beggining he was struggling a lot," Sinner said. "On the left side with the pain. I wish him the best and hopefully it is nothing serious."

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Sinner is competing at the Principality at a career-high No. 8 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after advancing to his second ATP Masters 1000 final in Miami earlier this month. The 21-year-old will next face 10th seed Hubert Hurkacz.

Casper Ruud did not have things all his own way on Wednesday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, but he raised his level when needed to earn his fifth consecutive win.

The Norwegian saved one set point at 4-5, 30/40 in the second set and recovered from failing to serve out the match at 6-5 to eventually overcome Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 7-5, 7-6(1) at the clay-court event.

"It is never easy to start at a new tournament and against a player I have lost to before," Ruud said. "Also more recently in Miami this year, which was a tough three-setter. I was a bit sloppy and didn't take my chances. Sometimes it is a little tricky playing someone you recently lost to, like 'Not again', but in this case I was a bit happy because I felt like some unfinished business from the Miami match."

Ruud, who reached the semi-finals in the Principality in 2021, is chasing his first ATP Masters 1000 crown this week. The fourth seed will play Jan-Lennard Struff in the third round after the German upset 14th-seeded Australian Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-2.

After failing to win consecutive matches at any tour-level event at the start of 2023, Ruud enjoyed a confidence-boosting run to his ninth clay-court title in Estoril last week.

Daniil Medvedev has been on fire the past two months, winning titles in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami while also reaching the final at Indian Wells. The secret to his success has been simple.

Dominance in tennis is often thought of as controlling play with a particularly powerful stroke, like Rafael Nadal's forehand or Stan Wawrinka's backhand. But Medvedev, the first-placed player in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, has commanded the action in recent weeks by using another weapon: consistency.

According to statistics provided by Tennis Data Innovations, Medvedev has thrived not on power and spin, but by putting the ball between the lines over and over again. Medvedev has laid down a challenge to his opponents: I will not miss. What will you do to stop me?

During his past five tournaments, only Carlos Alcaraz in the BNP Paribas Open final has managed to break down the Medvedev wall. The 27-year-old has won 24 of his past 25 matches behind jaw-dropping consistency.

Forehands: Medvedev vs. The Field (2023 Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai, Indian Wells & Miami)

The only five players in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters singles draw who have yet to open their campaigns will do so on Wednesday as the second round comes to a close in Monaco.

Sixth seed Holger Rune meets the resurgent Dominic Thiem in the Monaco evening showpiece, while eight seed Taylor Fritz starts his clay-court swing against Stan Wawrinka. Third seed Daniil Medvedev will look to continue his red-hot run on a new surface against Lorenzo Sonego, while Casper Ruud seeks to back up his Estoril title run in his opening match against Botic van de Zandschulp. Seventh seed Jannik Sinner rounds out the openers with his matchup against Diego Schwartzman.

ATPTour.com breaks down the biggest matches from the Day 4 slate in the Principality. Only 16 singles competitors will remain at the conclusion of play.

View Schedule | View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw

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Lacking match play and lacing up for his first clay-court contest of the season, Novak Djokovic wasn't surprised that his first ATP Masters 1000 outing of the year wasn't all smooth sailing.

Playing his first match in five weeks, and his first in Monte-Carlo since last year’s early upset to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, the World No. 1 kicked off his Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title quest with a 7-6(5), 6-2 second-round victory against qualifier Ivan Gakhov. The Serbian has won 16 of 17 matches this year, but still had moments of uncertainty against the left-handed World No. 198.

“Match play is what I need,” Djokovic said in his post-match press conference. “Practice points is something that helps, but nothing helps as [much as] playing an official match. So that's why I'm hoping I can have as many matches as possible this week.

“I'm really glad I overcame the first step, because I hope things will be better and easier from this point onwards.”

Despite being a two-time champion in the Principality and holding 18 tour-level titles on clay, the World No. 1 stated that this time of year always brings a fresh test.

After squaring off on the singles court two weeks ago in Miami, Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune are thriving as first-time partners this week at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The American-Danish duo defeated fourth seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic 6-3, 6-4 on Tuesday in Monaco to advance to the quarter-finals at the ATP Masters 1000 event, backing up their opening win against Italians Simone Bolelli and Lorenzo Musetti on Monday.

Fritz and Rune were dominant on first serve against the Wimbledon finalists from Croatia, winning 87 per cent of points behind their first delivery and saving three of five break points against them. They converted on four of their seven break chances on return to maintain their perfect record as a team, without a set lost in their two matches.

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All four Tuesday doubles matches were decided in straight sets in the Principality, with the French-German team of Fabrice Martin and Andreas Mies also advancing to the quarter-finals with a 6-4, 6-4 win against Diego Schwartzman and Jannik Sinner.

Novak Djokovic enjoyed a special treat Tuesday after winning his opening match at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. The World No. 1 met Formula 1 star George Russell, who was in the stands watching his match.

Russell quickly asked the Serbian how he felt the clash against Ivan Gakhov went.

“It was good. It’s a solid start, but it could always be better,” Djokovic responded. “Perfection is, that level, you’re looking to get better, to improve.”

“What I find so difficult for you guys is especially when you play second or third or fourth, you never know timings,” Russell told Djokovic.

“It’s challenging and today I waited maybe an hour and a half or two hours more than I expected. So then you’re like, ‘Should I be warming up or cooling down’ and that makes you a bit anxious,” Djokovic said.

Stefanos Tsitsipas advanced to the third round at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Tuesday when Benjamin Bonzi was forced to retire with a wrist injury.

The two-time defending champion was savouring his return to the clay courts of Monaco with punishing serves and forehands, but Bonzi was unable to continue beyond 22 minutes, with Tsitsipas leading 4-1 on Court Rainier III.

"A great start out there. A 3-0 lead, I will always take it," Tsitsipas said post-match. "Happy to be back on the terre bateau of Monte-Carlo. It's a very unique location during the year and I'm happy this is the time of the year we get to play on these courts. It brings back very good memories.

"It's very unfortunate what happened out there for my opponent. I wish him the best moving forward."

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Novak Djokovic made a winning return to action on Tuesday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The World No. 1 faced a spirited challenge rom World No. 198 Ivan Gakhov and was in danger of losing the opening set. But Djokovic navigated the big moments well to reach the third round with a 7-6(5), 6-2 win.

"It was probably, if you can call it this way, an ugly tennis win for me today," Djokovic said in his on-court interview. "I haven't played my best, particularly in the first set. And I kind of expected that that was going to happen in a way with swirly conditions, a lot of wind today, changing directions.

"It's different practising and then playing an official match on clay, [where] I guess no two bounces are the same. It's always quite unpredictable what's going to happen. But all in all, I'm just pleased with the way I held my nerves I think in the important moments and I managed to clinch the two-set win."

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Grigor Dimitrov continued his impressive record at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters Tuesday when he overcame #NextGenATP American Ben Shelton 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the second round for the 11th time.

The Bulgarian is a two-time semi-finalist in the Principality and has now earned 21 match wins at the event, his most at any ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

In the first meeting against Shelton, Dimitrov stood close to the baseline to hammer the ball off both wings. The former World No. 3 struck 39 winners and hit an array of angles to force debutant Shelton wide, advancing after two hours and 12 minutes.

"It is one of those matches that I just needed to go through," Dimitrov said. "I played a lot of good tennis. There were a lot of positives to take out of that...I just want to come out and play my game. I am excited. Clay courts have always been an interesting surface for me."

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Alexander Zverev made a winning start to his clay-court season Tuesday when he overcame Alexander Bublik 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The German was competing on the surface for the first time since he retired from his 2022 Roland Garros semi-final clash against Rafael Nadal due to a right ankle injury and he recovered from a slow start to move past Bublik in one hour and 58 minutes.

The 13th seed moved better on Court Rainier III as the first-round match went on. He slide into shots to strike 21 winners, while he committed nine unforced errors to earn his ninth win of the season.

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“It felt awful at times to be honest, but he made me feel awful,” Zverev said. “Tactically he played well, he didn’t let me play my game at all. He didn’t let me have my rhythm and he almost won the match, just a few points here and there.

The past three days have been a whirlwind for World No. 198 Ivan Gakhov, whose Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters journey will become even more surreal on Tuesday when he plays World No. 1 Novak Djokovic.

“[I am] speechless at the moment. Still cannot [believe it]. Even dreaming I think it’s tough to understand what just happened the last couple of days,” Gakhov told ATPTour.com. “No matter points, money, the best reward is to play the greatest of all time tomorrow. That’s the best I could ask for.”

Early Friday, Gakhov did not know he would get into qualifying at the clay-court ATP Masters 1000 event. In fact, the 26-year-old needed several dominoes to fall in his favour just to claim a spot in the draw as an alternate.

Yannick Hanfmann, Alexandre Muller, Roberto Carballes Baena and Quentin Halys were all entered in Monte-Carlo qualifying, but were still competing in other tournaments. Because of that, they were removed from the Monte-Carlo qualifying field, creating room for four alternates: Ilya Ivashka, Joao Sousa, Vit Kopriva and Gakhov.

If any of the four players had lost on Friday before the deadline of 9 p.m. local in Monte-Carlo and decided to still compete, Gakhov would have been out of luck. Instead, he was able to play in ATP Masters 1000 qualifying for the first time.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is back in action Tuesday at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas begins his quest for a three-peat in the Principality.

In Djokovic’s first match since Dubai, the Serbian will meet qualifier Ivan Gakhov. World No. 3 Tsitsipas will meet Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi for a third time in the final match on Court Rainier III. Andrey Rublev, Alexander Zverev, and Hubert Hurkacz are also among those on Tuesday’s packed card.

Here are three second-round matches to watch during Day 3 at the Monte-Carlo Country Club.

View Singles Draw | View Doubles Draw | View Schedule

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Dominic Thiem earned his first win at an ATP Masters 1000 event since 2021 on Monday when he overcame Frenchman Richard Gasquet 6-1, 6-4 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

The Austrian had lost his past five matches at this level, having defeated Marton Fucsovics in Rome in May 2021 prior to his wrist injury. However, the former World No. 3 produced a clean-hitting performance against Gasquet to triumph at an ATP Masters 1000 event again after one hour and 29 minutes.

“At the start I played very well,” Thiem said. “It was good for me that I broke him. I was going ahead the whole match. I am pleased with the performance. Richard is in good form, he already won a tournament this year. It is always tough but at the same time nice to play him because he has such a nice game and is a legend of tennis.”

Thiem moved well throughout the clash and opened his shoulders to strike 18 winners. The wild card now leads Gasquet 3-2 in their ATP Head2Head series, having won their past three meetings.

The 29-year-old enjoyed a run to his first tour-level quarter-final of the season in Estoril last week and will look to back that up in the Principality, where he is making his seventh appearance.

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Petros Tsitsipas won a first-round thriller at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Monday when they clawed past Grigor Dimitrov and Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(3), 6-7(4), 10-5 in the Principality.

The Greek brothers converted both break points they faced, before they raised their level in the Match Tie-break to earn their second win of the season as a team after one hour and 50 minutes.

They will next face Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer, who have enjoyed success as a team on clay, triumphing at Roland Garros last season.

Singles stars Taylor Fritz and Holger Rune advanced, moving past Italians Simone Bolelli and Lorenzo Musetti to set a second-round meeting against fourth seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic.

Andreas Mies and Fabrice Martin saved two match points en route to a 6-3, 4-6, 11-9 victory against Francisco Cerundolo and Daniel Evans, while Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden edged Rafael Matos and David Vega Hernandez 3-6, 6-3, 10-8.

Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki enjoyed a dream week at the Barletta Challenger, where he became the fourth teenage ATP Challenger Tour champion this season.

The 19-year-old, who won the 2019 Wimbledon boys’ singles title, downed Santiago Rodriguez Taverna 6-1, 6-4 in Sunday’s final to win the Open Citta della Disfida.

Mochizuki’s maiden Challenger trophy comes as a great reward to him and his new coach, former World No. 42 Davide Sanguinetti.

“He’s been helping me the last couple months,” Mochizuki said of the Italian. “It’s been really good. I’m getting a lot of confidence in my game as well. I think how he played when he was playing and how I play is a little bit similar. So I think we are a good match.”

Alex de Minaur made an emphatic start to his clay-court season Monday, when he cruised past former World No. 1 Andy Murray 6-1, 6-3 to reach the second round at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters.

Making his third appearance at the ATP Masters 1000 event, the Australian outmanoeuvred Murray on the clay in Monaco, pulling the Scot from corner to corner to triumph after 87 minutes.

With his 13th tour-level win of the season, De Minaur has improved to 3-0 in his ATP Head2Head series against Murray, who was making his first appearance in the Principality since 2017.

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The 14th seed De Minaur, whose best result at an ATP Masters 1000 event was a fourth-round run last year in Indian Wells, will next play Jan-Lennard Struff. The German moved past Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-4, 6-3.