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A lover of Japanese food, Nick Kyrgios cleansed his palate of a disappointing US Open quarter-final loss with a stellar start at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

The Aussie saved a break point in his opening service game, then ran away with a 6-3, 6-1 victory against Chun-Hsin Tseng in Tokyo's Ariake Colosseum. After navigating that early hold, Kyrgios dropped only four further service points, finishing with an 86 per cent win rate (25/29) behind his first delivery.

"I played really solid," the fifth seed assessed. "I came out a bit slow, but I don't play many matches so it's hard to just get straight back into that competitive flow. But as soon as I held the first game I kind of found my form again and played really well."

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Kyrgios said he struggled to breathe early in the match as he adjusted to the humidity and different air compared to Sydney. But the conditions also speed up the court, which suits his big-hitting game.

Lucky loser David Goffin made the most of his second chance at the Astana Open on Tuesday, upsetting World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz 7-5, 6-3 to earn the biggest win of his season.

The Belgian squandered two match points in his final-qualifying match against #NextGenATP Italian Luca Nardi on Sunday, but entered the draw as a lucky loser. With the pressure off, the former World No. 7 Goffin rolled back the years as he outplayed Alcaraz to reach the second round after one hour and 46 minutes.

"I always believe that I have the level to cause some trouble against those guys," Goffin said. "Of course it has not been my best period, I haven't been playing really well in the past few tournaments, but I always believe and practise and you never know.

"When you play against the World No. 1 on a big stage, big crowd, the fire inside gives you so much power to play your best tennis because you don't have any choice. You have to fight and give your best and that was the case today. I always believed I had it and I am happy you can still it there."

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Stefanos Tsitsipas started his quest for a third tour-level title of the season in style Tuesday, cruising past Kazakhstan wild card Mikhail Kukushkin 6-3, 6-4 to reach the second round at the Astana Open.

The third seed, who is making his debut at the ATP 500 event, overpowered Kukushkin as he quickly found his range on the hard courts in Astana. He stepped inside the baseline to strike his forehand through the court and looked comfortable at the net, closing out points efficiently to advance after 83 minutes.

Tsitsipas has now earned 50 tour-level wins this year, lifting titles in Monte Carlo and Mallorca. The Greek has also improved his ATP Head2Head series against the 34-year-old to 4-0 and will next meet Italian qualifier Luca Nardi after the #NextGenATP star defeated qualifier Alexander Shevchenko 7-6(4), 6-2.

In earlier action, Karen Khachanov made a winning return to Tour when he defeated American Maxime Cressy 6-4, 7-6(3).

The World No. 18 was competing for the first time since he reached the semi-finals at the US Open last month, but showed little sign of rustiness to triumph after one hour and 31 minutes. Khachanov will face Marin Cilic or Oscar Otte in the second round.

The third time was the charm for Borna Coric in Tokyo. In one of the marquee matchups in the opening round, the ninth seed defeated Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-4, 7-6(4) on Monday to earn his first win at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

The Croatian would have been pleased to avoid one of the ATP record nine Japanese players in the draw in his first round — Coric lost to home favourite Kei Nishikori (2015) and Taro Daniel (2019) in his previous two Tokyo appearances, both in three sets.

"I was hoping that I'm not going to play a Japanese player this time," he said with a smile post-match. But Australia's Kokkinakis provided strong opposition in a two-hour match that saw just a single break of serve.

"I do feel tired a little bit, to be honest," Coric added. "It was a very tough match, it was very hot out there. I was sweating a lot. Also towards the end I think we had a 30-ball rally. It was just very tight, also stressful, so I'm just happy to be through."

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Fresh off clinching his first ATP Tour title last month in San Diego, Brandon Nakashima continued his winning ways on Monday in his debut at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

The American, whose father is of Japanese descent, defeated Japanese wild card Shintaro Mochizuki 6-3, 6-2 in the first round at the Tokyo ATP 500 event.

"It's my first time in Japan so I'm still learning a lot about it, but it's very exciting. It's beautiful so far," Nakashima said in his post-match interview. "My dad's side of the family is Japanese. That's where I get my last name from. Any time I get to learn more about my background I'm super excited, so I'm happy to be here.

"The atmosphere is really amazing. I feel right at home."

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Adrian Mannarino will sleep well Sunday night on the eve of the Astana Open. He’s one of those tennis players who chooses not to dwell on what lies directly ahead.

“I don’t want to talk about the draw or who I’m facing or whatever because I’m not looking,” the 34-year-old said at the beginning of a Sunday interview. “The quality of the tournament? I don’t know anything.”

Given the formidable ATP 500 field gathered in Kazakhstan, it’s probably just as well Mannarino doesn’t know that he’ll be facing three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka in the tournament’s very first match (12 noon, local time) on centre court at the National Tennis Centre.

Yes, at the moment, you actually know more than he does. Mannarino is coming off a first-round loss in Tel Aviv, where he was the seventh seed, to fellow Frenchman Constant Lestienne. The good news? He beat Wawrinka in the only match they ever played in the second round of the 2015 Miami Open presented by Itau – prevailing in a pair of taut tie-breaks.

This is one of six first-round singles matches, featuring three seeded players, that will unfold Monday.

Rajeev Ram made history on Monday when he became the oldest first-time World No. 1 in Pepperstone ATP Doubles Rankings history. The American climbed from World No. 2, swapping places with partner Joe Salisbury of Great Britain.

“It’s pretty amazing. I’ve obviously had quite a long career, which I’m grateful for. But it’s been over the past three or four years with Joe that it’s really felt like we’ve been at the top of the game and been contending for all the major titles,” Ram told ATPTour.com. “It’s a lot of hard work that a lot of people put in, not just me, to get me to this point.”

The 38-year-old has been World No. 2 since 4 April, and he climbed to World No. 1 when Salisbury dropped 250 points he earned from capturing the San Diego Open title last season with Neal Skupski. Ram positioned himself to earn the achievement when he partnered Salisbury to their second consecutive US Open title last month.

Although Ram “used to shy away” from record-related talk, he appreciates making the top of the men's doubles mountain aged 38. The previous-oldest first-time World No. 1 was the first doubles World No. 1: Bob Hewitt, who was 36 in 1976.

“I certainly appreciate that now because I feel like it shows the fact that you can wait long. As long as you’re resilient [and] persistent, things can happen, even much later,” Ram said. “Everyone is on their own path and maybe it’s even a little bit sweeter if it takes a little bit longer.”

Karen Khachanov was 21 years old and ranked No. 48 in the world when the 2018 season began. The first signs that he was carving a new trajectory came early in Marseille, where he defeated Tomas Berdych and Lucas Pouille – both Top 20 players – on the way to his second career title. Stellar results followed – he made the fourth round at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon and was a semi-finalist in Toronto.

The big leap came in the fall, when he won the titles in Moscow and, almost inexplicably, the regular-season finale in Paris. His last three victories came against No. 5-ranked Alexander Zverev, No. 8 Dominic Thiem and, in the final, No. 2 Novak Djokovic. Khachanov, the first unseeded player to win an ATP Masters 1000 since David Nalbandian 11 years earlier, won 46 matches that season, was the first alternate at the year-end Nitto ATP Finals in London and finished the year ranked No. 11.

How on earth did that happen?

“To be honest with you,” Khachanov said Saturday from the Astana Open, “I don’t know. Sometimes, things happen that you cannot predict. I had a great run at the end of 2018. Because with one result you can make it into the Top 10.”

And while Khachanov rose to a career-high No. 8 early the following year, in the four seasons since that breakthrough – with the exception of a silver medal in singles at the Olympics played in Tokyo a year ago – he has never regained those giddy heights. But there are signs that when he plays American Maxime Cressy in a first-round match at the Kazakhstan National Tennis Centre you might see him starting to again approach that level.

Marc-Andrea Huesler completed a dream week on Sunday in Bulgaria, where he defeated Holger Rune in the Sofia Open final to lift his first ATP Tour trophy.

ATPTour.com caught up with the Swiss lefty to discuss his big breakthrough, following in Roger Federer's footsteps, his interests off the court and more.

You’re currently No. 95 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and you’re going to jump up to a career-high No. 64 on Monday. How happy are you with your game at the moment?
Yes, really [happy]. I always feel like the ranking is a bit behind what the actual level is as a player. But I’m really happy with the way I’ve developed this year. I started the year outside of the Top 100, I was ranked 170, 180. Now I’ve made this step, it’s a big step, lots of points I had to make this year.

I’m really happy with the way I’ve been developing my game now throughout the season on all the surfaces. I’ve had good experiences on clay and hard courts, on grass as well. That’s something that I’m really looking forward to, that I can actually adapt my game depending where I play. It’s very positive for the future.

How would you describe yourself as a player and how would you describe yourself off the court?
Something that goes for both [is] I’m relatively calm. I’m not a loud guy. On the court I’m basically very calm I’d say and at least that’s what I’m trying to show on the outside, because I just want to have enough time and enough clarity in my head to figure out what’s going on on the court at the moment. As a player, I’m definitely aggressive. I have an aggressive game style. Basically it’s hard to put me in a box because that’s what I want to be. I want to be unpredictable. I want to surprise my opponent with my decision-making.

Two Grand Slam-winning teams headline the doubles draw at the 2022 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships.

Australian Open champions Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios lead the way as the top seeds, followed by Wimbledon winners Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell. The Australian teams met in January in the Australian Open final, and will need three more wins each to book a rematch in the Tokyo final.

The Tokyo event is the seventh this season for Kokkinakis and Kyrgios as a team. The ‘Special Ks’ will open against Japanese wild cards Yoshihito Nishioka and Kaichi Uchida in the draw’s top half as they seek their third title of 2022.

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Alex de Minuar and Frances Tiafoe are also in the top half and loom as potential semi-final opponents for Kokkinakis and Kyrgios. Teaming for just the second time, the duo will face Mackenzie McDonald and Marcelo Melo in the first round.

Frances Tiafoe returns to Tokyo on the back of the biggest month of his tennis career, as he followed a run to the US Open semi-finals with two memorable Laver Cup wins — a doubles victory against Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Swiss’ final professional match, and an event-clinching triumph for Team World against Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The 24-year-old’s star is growing brighter as he enters the Land of The Rising Sun, with the American set to compete at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships for the third time, including a qualifying appearance in 2017. Tiafoe also earned his first Olympic wins, one each in singles and doubles, at Tokyo’s Ariake Tennis Park last July.

“It’s been a crazy month. I’ve been getting a lot of attention as of late,” Tiafoe said, discussing his recent success at a pre-tournament press conference.

“I’m just trying to keep the main thing the main thing. I’m super curious to see where I can take this tennis thing. I’ve got a lot to give to the game. I think me doing well is great for the sport.”

Tiafoe has enjoyed the perks of his heightened fame, including two VIP trips to see his hometown Washington Wizards play the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors just outside Tokyo.

Just over a month from now the world’s Top-8 21-and-under players will compete at the coveted Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals. Held in Milan, Italy, players dream of using the tournament as a launching pad for their career and this year is proving to be a close battle on who will qualify.

Just under 150 points separate 10th and 20th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan, leaving the margins slim as players dash to collect the maximum points in the coming weeks. ATPTour.com looks at five Challenger Tour players to watch in October as they strengthen their hopes of being in Milan.

Ben Shelton (USA)
The lefty has been building upon his NCAA singles title in May, reaching four semi-finals of the five Challenger Tour events in which he has competed. Shelton, 19, finished runner-up at the ATP Challenger 80 events this summer in Rome, Georgia and Chicago, Illinois.

In July, the teenager cruised to victory for his maiden Tour-level win in Atlanta, defeating Ramkumar Ramanthan before pushing countryman John Isner to a third-set tie-break. Shelton was given a wild card into the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he upset then-World No. 5 Casper Ruud in straight sets.

Boasting a 14-5 Challenger match record in 2022, Shelton is due to play the next two weeks at the ATP Challenger 80 tournaments in California: Tiburon and Fairfield. The American is 16th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan.

In his most recent previous media availability, a “devastated” Nick Kyrgios rued a missed opportunity in the US Open quarter-finals. After a fourth-round victory against then-World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev, the Aussie lost a five-setter to Karen Khachanov in New York.

“It was heart-breaking, obviously,” Kyrgios said in a pre-tournament press conference at the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships. “At the US Open I had so much expectation after I beat Medvedev. The draw kind of opened up and I just didn't take advantage of it.”

But the defeat did little to affect the hunger of this year’s Wimbledon finalist and Washington champion, who enters Tokyo as the World No. 20.

“It kind of added a bit of fuel to me,” the 27-year-old said. “I’ve been working hard ever since I lost to Khachanov. I went back home, had a couple of days off then got straight back out on the court.”

As the lone returning champion or finalist in this week’s singles draw, the 2016 Tokyo titlist is eager to get back to winning ways at the ATP 500 event.

Spanish history was made on Monday when this week’s Pepperstone ATP Rankings were released.

With Carlos Alcaraz already at World No. 1, Rafael Nadal climbed past Casper Ruud to World No. 2, making this the first week the top two players are from the same country since 7 August 2000 when Americans Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras were Nos. 1 and 2, respectively.

“It means a lot to be part of the Spanish history,” Alcaraz said ahead of his first-round match at the Astana Open. “For me, to have two players at the top is crazy.”

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It is the first time a country other than the United States has had the top two players in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Novak Djokovic took an important step last week in his bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals when he picked up 250 valuable points by winning the Tel Aviv Watergen Open title.

As a current-year Grand Slam champion, Djokovic will secure a berth at the eight-man season finale from 13-20 November provided he remains in the Top 20 of Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin. That scenario would see Djokovic qualify along with the Top 7 players in the Race after the Rolex Paris Masters on 6 November.

Currently 15th in the Live Race, Djokovic improved his chances of earning a place in the season finale for the 15th time. The 35-year-old increased his buffer inside the Top 20 by winning his 89th title. This year’s Wimbledon champion, who will look to tie Roger Federer with six season finale titles should he qualify, is 565 points ahead of 21st-placed Denis Shapovalov. The Serb began last week with just a 360-point buffer over the-then 21st-placed Alex de Minaur.

View Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin Standings

The five-time Nitto ATP Finals titlist has another opportunity this week to add points to his total at the Astana Open, an ATP 500. He will play Chilean Cristian Garin in the first round.

#NextGenATP star Juan Manuel Cerundolo was among a trio of players to earn their first ATP Challenger Tour titles of the season Sunday. The 20-year-old triumphed on home soil in Buenos Aires to join Frenchman Gregoire Barrere (Orleans) and Italian Marco Cecchinato in collecting their first trophies of the season.

In front of an energetic Argentine crowd, Cerundolo defeated countryman Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-4, 2-6, 7-5 in the final to triumph at the Challenger de Buenos Aires to claim his fourth Challenger Tour title.

Following his breakthrough season in 2021, when Cerundolo collected a trio of Challenger titles and won the ATP 250 event in Cordoba, the lefty has battled leg and hip injuries in 2022 that have forced him to take time off. This week, the 20-year-old returned to the winners' circle, dropping just one set all week. The title lifts Cerundolo to 19th in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Milan.

[ATP APP]

“I am relieved. I feel that all the months of recovery have paid off,” Cerundolo said. “I did not expect to reach this level so soon. My goal is to maintain the level I had in this tournament. I am feeling very good, today I was able to run everywhere.

Carlos Alcaraz, still only 18, was a portrait of poise in winning his first ATP Masters 1000 title in Miami back in March. But when they handed him the phone and he heard Spain’s King Felipe VI, with some congratulatory words, he lost his composure and fell apart.

A few months later, three days after his 19th birthday, the muscular Spaniard had a monumental run in Madrid. He defeated countryman and idol, No. 4-ranked Rafael Nadal, in the quarter-finals, No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals and No. 3 Alexander Zverev in the final – for his second Masters 1000 trophy. Afterward, King Felipe shook his hand and posed for photos with the still ill-at-ease youngster.

After winning the US Open, becoming the youngest man to win a major since Nadal’s first title at Roland Garros in 2005, the freshly minted No. 1 player in the world was the guest of the King at Zarzuela Palace on the outskirts of Madrid. This time, Alcaraz looked and felt more comfortable. Indeed, he seems to be growing into his role as the reigning monarch in men’s tennis.

“It was amazing,” Alcaraz said Sunday in an interview with ATP Media at the Astana Open. “Everybody wants to meet the King of Spain. “It’s crazy when you enter, [seeing] all the people working. It’s a lot.

“Dreaming all these years, I’m probably in a movie.”

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic had smiles on their faces Monday in Astana and it had nothing to do winning a tennis match.

The pair visited a center for autistic children in Kazakhstan’s capital city, a day after fellow ATP stars Daniil Medvedev and Felix Auger-Aliassime stopped by. They presented gifts to children at ‘Asyl Miras’ and in turn received a present or two of their own, including paintings from the kids.

“They gave me a gift as well so I was smiling when they gave it to me,” said Alcaraz, who sits atop the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after winning the US Open last month. “I’m so happy to live these things, to see the kids happy. And that’s the most important thing.”

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‘Asyl Miras’ is a project from Bulat Utemuratov’s foundation. The president of the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation has opened 11 such centres in the country, and he joined Medvedev and Auger-Aliassime on Sunday.

In the first doubles match of the 2022 Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships, fourth seeds Daniel Evans and John Peers made a winning start against Sweden's Andre Gorannson and Japan’s Ben McLachlan on Monday.

In a 6-2, 7-6(5) victory, Evans and Peers converted on three of five break points and won five consecutive games from 2-2 in the opening set to take control of the match in Rakuten Mobile Arena, Tokyo’s second stadium.

The British-Australian pair dropped serve on the only break point they faced to fall behind 2-3 in the second, but delivered an instant response to draw level on a deciding point. From 3/4 down in the tie-break, they closed out the match by winning four of its final five points. Peers has enjoyed previous success in Tokyo, reaching the 2013 final with Jamie Murray.

The fourth seeds will next face either Alex de Minaur and Frances Tiafoe or Mackenzie McDonald and Marcelo Melo.

[ATP APP]

Hubert Hurkacz continued his quest to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals on Monday when he moved past Francisco Cerundolo 6-2, 7-6(2) at the Astana Open.

The Pole looked in control throughout the 82-minute first-round clash against Argentine Cerundolo, firing 11 aces and saving the one break point he faced to set up a second-round meeting against Alexander Bublik or Tallon Griekspoor.

Hurkacz is currently ninth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, just 20 points behind eighth-placed Alexander Zverev, who has been sidelined since Roland Garros due to injury. The 25-year-old made his debut at the prestigious end-of-year event in Turin last season and will be hoping to boost his qualification chances with a deep run in Kazakhstan.

Watch Monday Astana Highlights:

Roberto Bautista Agut made a winning start on debut in Astana, upsetting eighth-seeded Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-6(6).