DIEMA XTRA SOFIA OPEN: DAY 5 MEDIA NOTES Friday, 9 February 2018 Arena Armeec Sofia - Sofia, Bulgaria 5-11 February 2018 Draw: S-28, D-16 Prize Money: 501,345 Surface: Indoor Hard ATP World Tour Info Tournament Info ATP PR & Marketing ATPWorldTour.com Sofiaopen.bg/en Martin Dagahs: mdagahs@atpworldtour.com Twitter: @ATPWorldTour @sofiaopentennis Press Room: media@sofiaopen.bg Facebook: @ATPWorldTour facebook.com/sofiaopentennis/ TV & Radio: TennisTV.com WAWRINKA AND TROICKI TO MEET FOR NINTH TIME IN QUARTER-FINALS No. 1 seed and three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland will meet a familiar foe in the quarter-finals of the Diema Xtra Sofia Open on Friday, when he faces off against 2016 runner-up and No. 6 seed Viktor Troicki of Serbia. Wawrinka and Troicki have met eight times on the ATP World Tour dating back to 2009, and the Swiss player has emerged victorious on each of those occasions. Nevertheless, Troicki has had solid results in all three years of the Diema Xtra Sofia Open, backing up his 2016 final with quarter-final appearances last year and this year. Both players had stern tests in the second round, as Wawrinka had to come back from a set down against qualifier Martin Klizan, while Troicki needed a final-set tiebreak to defeat Denis Istomin. Another semi-final spot is on the line when No. 3 seed Gilles Muller of Luxembourg plays Romanian Marius Copil in the first match of the day. Last year, Copil became the first Romanian player to finish in the Top 100 since 2013, after spending nearly seven years consistently ranked between No. 101 and No. 300. Copil finds himself in his sixth career quarter-final on the ATP Tour, but has yet to reach a semi-final. Standing in his way is Muller, who broke through in 2017 in a big way, winning his first two singles titles after going 0-5 in his first five finals, and reaching a career-high ranking of No. 21. Muller required a third-set tiebreak to overcome Andreas Seppi in the second round. Two qualifiers have also advanced to the final eight. Mirza Basic of Bosnia and Herzegovina has now made the quarter-finals or better in his last three ATP World Tour 250 events (Moscow last year, and Doha and Sofia this year), each time as a qualifier. He will take on German Maximilian Marterer, who has gone 4-1 at Tour level this year after starting his career 0-14, and has now made his first ATP World Tour quarter-final. The other qualifier left standing, Slovakia s Jozef Kovalik, is into his third career quarter-final, having saved a match point in the second round against countryman Lukas Lacko. Kovalik will meet former World No. 8 Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus. Baghdatis notched his first Top 25 win in 20 months when he eliminated No. 2 seed Adrian Mannarino in the second round. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: FRIDAY QUARTER-FINAL SINGLES MATCHES CENTER COURT Marius Copil (ROU) vs [3] Gilles Muller (LUX) Muller Leads 1-0 15 s-hertogenbosch (Netherlands) Grass QF Gilles Muller 7-6(4) 6-1 Other Meetings 10 Eckental CH (Germany) Carpet R16 Gilles Muller 7-6(3) 7-6(3) 13 Quimper CH (France) Hard R16 Marius Copil 5-7 6-4 6-4 Copil Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 4-2 Date of Birth: 17 October 1990 (27) ATP Ranking: 93 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 3-1 (2018 Quarter-finals)
Day 5 Friday, 9 February 2018 Page 2 of 4 Tournament Note: Beat 5th seed Haase and Kavcic to reach 1st ATP World Tour QF since Metz in September 2017. Went 2-0 in Davis Cup matches last week vs. Luxembourg. Suffered 1R losses at Pune (l. to Djere) and Australian Open (l. to Simon). Last year, advanced to Challenger Tour finals at Kaohsiung, TPE (l. to Donskoy) and Bratislava, SVK (l. to Lacko). Broke into Top 100 of ATP Rankings on 15 May 2017 and reached career-high No. 74 on 16 October 2017. Muller Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (2): Sydney (l. Paire), Sofia YTD W-L: 4-3 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 9 May 1983 (34) ATP Ranking: 28 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 6-2 (2016 Semi-finals) Tournament Note: Hit 23 aces in 2R en route to defeating Seppi 4-6 7-6 7-6 in 2hr 33 min; reached semi-finals in 2016 and quarter-finals in 2017, losing to Bautista Agut both times. Improved to 15-7 in 5-setters at Australian Open (d. Jaziri, l. to Carreno Busta in 3R). In 1st tournament of career as defending champion, fell in Sydney QF (l. to Paire). Lost to Chung in Doha 1R. Last year, saved 1 MP in Sydney 1R vs Dolgopolov en route to 1st ATP World Tour title (d. Evans in 6th final). Also in 2017, beat Karlovic, 38, for 2nd title at s-hertogenbosch: oldest ATP final since 1977 Hong Kong. At 2017 Wimbledon, got best career win over No. 2 Nadal 15-13 in 5th after 4h48m to reach 2nd Grand Slam QF (l. to Cilic in 5 sets). Ended 22-match losing streak vs Top 5 opponents. Saved 2 MPs in 2R to beat Rosol 9-7 in 5th. [Q] Jozef Kovalik (SVK) vs Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) First Meeting Kovalik Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 2-0 Date of Birth: 4 November 1992 (25) ATP Ranking: 187 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-0 (2018 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Into 3rd ATP World Tour QF of career after saving 1 match point in 2R to defeat Lacko. Lost in 2R of qualifying at both Australian Open (l. to McDonald) and Brisbane (l. to Escobedo). In 2017, earned biggest win of career over No. 6 Cilic to reach 2nd ATP QF at Chennai as Q (l. to Medvedev). Also last year, reached ATP Challenger Tour finals in Rome, ITA (l. to Cecchinato) and Lima, PER (l. to G. Melzer). Achieved career-high No. 109 in ATP Rankings on 9 January 2017. Baghdatis Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 3-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 4 Date of Birth: 17 June 1985 (32) ATP Ranking: 123 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-0 (2018 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Def. No.25 Mannarino in 2R for 1st Top 25 win since 1R of Halle in June 2016 (d. No. 8 Berdych). Last direct acceptance into Australian Open, where he reached 2R (d. Bhambri, l. to Rublev). Fell to No. 123 in ATP Rankings on 15 January -- lowest ranking since No. 132 on 2 June 2014. Last year, suffered 6th straight loss in a final at Chengdu (ret vs Istomin). Still seeking 1st title since 2010 Sydney. Also in 2017, advanced to SFs at Auckland (l. to Sousa) and Antalya (ret. vs Sugita). 2006 Australian Open runner-up (l. to No. 1 Federer); peaked at career high of World No. 8 on 21 August 2006.
Day 5 Friday, 9 February 2018 Page 3 of 4 [1] Stan Wawrinka (SUI) vs [6] Viktor Troicki (SRB) Wawrinka Leads 8-0 09 ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay R64 Stan Wawrinka 6-2 6-3 10 Belgrade (Serbia) Clay QF Stan Wawrinka 7-5 6-7(3) 7-6(6) 15 ATP Masters 1000 Shanghai (China) Hard R32 Stan Wawrinka 7-6(3) 6-3 15 ATP Masters 1000 Paris (France) Hard R16 Stan Wawrinka 6-4 7-5 16 Roland Garros (France) Clay R16 Stan Wawrinka 7-6(5) 6-7(7) 6-3 6-2 16 St. Petersburg (Russia) Hard QF Stan Wawrinka 7-5 6-2 17 Brisbane (Australia) Hard R16 Stan Wawrinka 7-6(5) 6-4 17 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R32 Stan Wawrinka 3-6 6-2 6-2 7-6(7) Wawrinka Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 2-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 16 Date of Birth: 28 March 1985 (32) ATP Ranking: 15 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: After 1R bye, was pushed to a deciding set for the 3rd time in three meetings vs. [Q] Klizan in 2R. Returned following 2 left knee surgeries in August and reached Australian Open 2R (d. Berankis, l. to Sandgren). Last year, suffered 1st loss in 4th Grand Slam final appearance at Roland Garros (l. to Nadal). Beat Murray in 2017 Roland Garros SF after 4h34m. Now 4-4 vs. World No. 1 at Grand Slams and 0-16 elsewhere. In 2017, won 3rd-set TBs vs. Nishioka & Thiem en route to 4th ATP Masters 1000 final at Indian Wells (l. Federer). 16 career titles include 3 Grand Slams (2014 Australian Open, 2015 Roland Garros, 2016 US Open) and 1 ATP Masters 1000 (2014 Monte Carlo). Reached career-high ranking of No. 3 for first time on 27 January 2014, after Australian Open triumph. Troicki Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 3-3 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: 10 February 1986 (31) ATP Ranking: 67 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 7-2 (2016 Finalist) Tournament Note: 2016 runner-up needed 4 match points in a final-set tiebreak to overcome Istomin in 2R. Earned 6th win from 2 sets down and 6th straight victory in a 5-setter at Australian Open (d. Bolt, l. to Kyrgios in 2R). Lost 3-setters in 1R at Doha (l. to Berrettini) and Sydney (l. to Dolgopolov). Advanced to Sydney doubles final in team debut w/struff (d. Rojer/Tecau, l. to Kubot/Melo). Last year, clinched Serbia s 4-1 Davis Cup wins over Russia in 1R (d. Khachanov in 4h30m after saving 1 MP, w/zimonjic d. Kravchuk/Kuznetsov) and Spain in QF (d. Carreno Busta, w/zimonjic d. Carreno Busta/M. Lopez). Obtained career-high ranking of No. 12 on 6 June 2011. [Q] Mirza Basic (BIH) vs Maximilian Marterer (GER) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meetings 13 Halle Q (Germany) Grass Q2 Mirza Basic 7-6(4) 6-3 17 Budapest Q (Hungary) Clay Q1 Maximilian Marterer 6-2 6-2 Basic Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (2): Doha (l. Pella), Sofia YTD W-L: 4-1 Date of Birth: 12 July 1991 (26) ATP Ranking: 129 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 3-1 (2018 Quarter-finals)
Day 5 Friday, 9 February 2018 Page 4 of 4 Tournament Note: After 2R win over No. 4 seed Kohlschreiber, has made QF or better in last three ATP World Tour 250 events (SF Moscow 2017, QF Doha 2018, QF+ Sofia 2018), each time as a qualifier. Lost in 1R of Australian Open qualifying to A. Gonzalez. Reached 2nd ATP World Tour QF at Doha as Q (def. F. Lopez, l. to Pella). Last year, advanced to 1st ATP World Tour QF and SF at Moscow as Q (l. to eventual champion Dzumhur). Also in 2017, captured 2nd ATP Challenger Tour title at Guadalajara, MEX (d. Shapovalov). Marterer Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sofia YTD W-L: 4-1 Date of Birth: 15 June 1995 (22) ATP Ranking: 82 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-1 (2018 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Into first ATP quarter-final of career with straight-set wins over Jaziri and No. 7 seed Sousa. Ended 0-14 start to career by reaching Australian Open 3R (d. Stebe and Verdasco, l. to Sandgren). Dropped 1st 2 matches of 2018 in Doha Q (l. to Berrettini) and Canberra, AUS Challenger (l. to Seppi). Currently at career-high ranking of No. 82, first achieved 29 January. In 2017, did not drop a set en route to Challenger titles at Banja Luka, BIH (d. Taberner) and Monterrey, MEX (d. Klahn). Last year, also won Eckental, GER Challenger title (d. Janowicz) and reached Cherbourg, FRA Challenger final (l. to Bourgue).
DIEMA XTRA SOFIA OPEN: DAY 4 MEDIA NOTES Thursday, 8 February 2018 Arena Armeec Sofia - Sofia, Bulgaria 5-11 February 2018 Draw: S-28, D-16 Prize Money: 501,345 Surface: Indoor Hard ATP World Tour Info Tournament Info ATP PR & Marketing ATPWorldTour.com Sofiaopen.bg/en Martin Dagahs: mdagahs@atpworldtour.com Twitter: @ATPWorldTour @sofiaopentennis Press Room: media@sofiaopen.bg Facebook: @ATPWorldTour facebook.com/sofiaopentennis/ TV & Radio: TennisTV.com WAWRINKA MAKES SOFIA DEBUT ON DAY 4 No. 1 seed and three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland will make his first appearance at the Diema Xtra Sofia Open, as six matches will be played to complete the second round on Thursday. Wawrinka will square off against Slovakian qualifier Martin Klizan in the final singles match on Center Court. Despite having to contest the qualifying this year, Klizan has had success in both previous editions of the event, reaching the semi-finals in 2016 and the quarter-finals last year. The former Top 25 player has an 0-2 win/loss record against the top seed, but Klizan pushed Wawrinka to a deciding set in both of their previous meetings, including a five-set battle in the first round of the Australian Open in 2017. No. 2 seed Adrian Mannarino of France and No. 3 seed Gilles Muller of Luxembourg also kick off their campaigns on Thursday after first-round byes. Mannarino will take on former Top 10 player Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus. The Frenchman made two ATP World Tour singles finals last year, but is still looking for his first title, and is currently the highest-ranked player who has not yet claimed one. Muller had been in a similar position, going 0-5 in his first five finals before winning two titles last year. Muller faces off against Italian Andreas Seppi in the second round, for their seventh career Tour-level meeting, dating back to the Davis Cup in 2007. 2016 runner-up Viktor Troicki of Serbia, the No. 6 seed, will play Uzbekistan s Denis Istomin to round out the singles matches on Center Court. Troicki and Istomin have split their two previous meetings on the ATP World Tour. Meanwhile, on Court 1, No. 7 seed Joao Sousa of Portugal will battle German Maximilian Marterer, and Romania s Marius Copil takes on Blaz Kavcic of Slovenia, as more quarter-final spots are on the line. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: THURSDAY SECOND-ROUND SINGLES MATCHES CENTER COURT Andreas Seppi (ITA) vs [3] Gilles Muller (LUX) Series Tied 3-3 07 ITA v. LUX EAGI 1st Rd PO (Italy) Hard RR Andreas Seppi 6-1 6-1 6-4 11 Basel (Switzerland) Hard R32 Andreas Seppi 7-6(4) 6-7(5) 6-2 12 Belgrade (Serbia) Clay QF Andreas Seppi 6-4 6-3 16 Rotterdam (Netherlands) Hard R32 Gilles Muller 4-6 7-6(2) 6-4 17 ATP Masters 1000 Miami (U.S.A.) Hard R64 Gilles Muller 7-6(3) 7-6(1) 17 s-hertogenbosch (Netherlands) Grass R16 Gilles Muller 7-6(5) 6-4 Other Meeting 11 Bergamo CH (Italy) Hard F Andreas Seppi 3-6 6-3 6-4 Seppi Summary: YTD W-L: 4-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: 21 February 1984 (33) ATP Ranking: 77 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 3-2 (2016 Quarter-finals)
Day 4 Thursday, 8 February 2018 Page 2 of 4 Tournament Note: Beat Youzhny 1R; advanced to QF in 2016 (l. to Klizan) and 2nd round last year (l. to Darcis). Reached Australian Open 4R for 4th time (d. Karlovic 97 in 5th, l. to Edmund). Fell to 0-6 in Grand Slam 4R overall. Entered Australian Open after capturing Canberra, AUS Challenger title (d. Fucsovics). In 1st event of year, lost to Basic in 2R of Doha qualifying. In 2017, reached Antalya SF, Moscow QF, and Australian Open 4R. Peaked at career-high ranking of No. 18 on 28 January 2013. Muller Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sydney (l. Paire) YTD W-L: 3-3 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 9 May 1983 (34) ATP Ranking: 28 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 5-2 (2016 Semi-finals) Tournament Note: Reached semi-finals in 2016 and quarter-finals in 2017, losing to Bautista Agut both times. Improved to 15-7 in 5-setters at Australian Open (d. Jaziri, l. to Carreno Busta in 3R). In 1st tournament of career as defending champion, fell in Sydney QF (l. to Paire). Lost to Chung in Doha 1R. Last year, saved 1 MP in Sydney 1R vs Dolgopolov en route to 1st ATP World Tour title (d. Evans in 6th final). Also in 2017, beat Karlovic, 38, for 2nd title at s-hertogenbosch: oldest ATP final since 1977 Hong Kong. At 2017 Wimbledon, got best career win over No. 2 Nadal 15-13 in 5th after 4h48m to reach 2nd Grand Slam QF (l. to Cilic in 5 sets). Ended 22-match losing streak vs Top 5 opponents. Saved 2 MPs in 2R to beat Rosol 9-7 in 5th. Denis Istomin (UZB) vs [6] Viktor Troicki (SRB) Series Tied 1-1 10 New Haven (U.S.A.) Hard SF Denis Istomin 7-6(10) 3-6 6-2 11 Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) Hard R16 Viktor Troicki 6-1 6-4 Other Meeting 07 Moscow Q (Russia) Hard Q-FR Viktor Troicki 6-4 6-3 Istomin Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Brisbane (l. Harrison) YTD W-L: 4-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 7 September 1986 (31) ATP Ranking: 74 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round) Tournament Note: In 1R, defeated the youngest person in the draw (WC Adrian Andreev, aged 16 years, 8 months). Made 37th straight Grand Slam main draw appearance at Australian Open (l. to Edmund in 2R). Advanced to Brisbane QF (d. Dzumhur and Donaldson, ret. vs. Harrison due to left hip strain). Last year, captured 2nd ATP World Tour title at Chengdu (d. Baghdatis 32 ret.). In 2017, as World No. 117, upset 6-time champion Djokovic, from 2-sets-to-1 down, in Aus. Open 2R after 4h48m. Reached career-high ranking of No. 33 on 13 August 2012. Troicki Summary: YTD W-L: 2-3 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: 10 February 1986 (31) ATP Ranking: 67 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 6-2 (2016 Finalist) Tournament Note: Beat qualifier Gulbis in 1R; reached final in inaugural edition (l. to Bautista Agut 36 46). Earned 6th win from 2 sets down and 6th straight victory in a 5-setter at Australian Open (d. Bolt, l. to Kyrgios in 2R). Lost 3-setters in 1R at Doha (l. to Berrettini) and Sydney (l. to Dolgopolov). Advanced to Sydney doubles final in team debut w/struff (d. Rojer/Tecau, l. to Kubot/Melo). Obtained career-high ranking of No. 12 on 6 June 2011.
Day 4 Thursday, 8 February 2018 Page 3 of 4 Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) vs [2] Adrian Mannarino (FRA) Series Tied 1-1 14 Stockholm (Sweden) Hard R32 Adrian Mannarino 2-6 6-2 6-4 17 Auckland (New Zealand) Hard R32 Marcos Baghdatis 6-4 6-4 Baghdatis Summary: YTD W-L: 2-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 4 Date of Birth: 17 June 1985 (32) ATP Ranking: 123 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round) Tournament Note: In tournament debut, ousted [LL] Caruso in 1R. Last direct acceptance into Australian Open, where he reached 2R (d. Bhambri, l. to Rublev). Fell to No. 123 in ATP Rankings on 15 January -- lowest ranking since No. 132 on 2 June 2014. Last year, suffered 6th straight loss in a final at Chengdu (ret vs Istomin). Still seeking 1st title since 2010 Sydney. Also in 2017, advanced to SFs at Auckland (l. to Sousa) and Antalya (ret. vs Sugita). 2006 Australian Open runner-up (l. to No. 1 Federer); peaked at career high of World No. 8 on 21 August 2006. Mannarino Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Sydney (l. Fognini) YTD W-L: 5-3 Date of Birth: 29 June 1988 (29) ATP Ranking: 25 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-2 (2016 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Lost to eventual champion Bautista Agut in 2016 QF; lost 1R last year to Basilashvili 6-7 6-7. Currently highest-ranked player (No. 25) without a singles title. This is his career-high ranking. Started season with QF result in Sydney (l. to Fognini). Advanced to Australian Open 3R for 1st time in 9th appearance, falling to 0-6 lifetime vs. Thiem. Last year, earned biggest win of career over No. 5 Cilic to reach biggest final of career at Tokyo (l. to Goffin). Finished 2017 season on a 25-13 stretch that began on June 25 with run to Antalya final (l. to Sugita). [1] Stan Wawrinka (SUI) vs [Q] Martin Klizan (SVK) Wawrinka Leads 2-0 10 Casablanca (Morocco) Clay R16 Stan Wawrinka 6-4 0-6 6-4 17 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R128 Stan Wawrinka 4-6 6-4 7-5 4-6 6-4 Wawrinka Summary: YTD W-L: 1-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 16 Date of Birth: 28 March 1985 (32) ATP Ranking: 15 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Tournament Note: Making Sofia debut after 1r bye, in only second event of 2018. Returned following 2 left knee surgeries in August and reached Australian Open 2R (d. Berankis, l. to Sandgren). Last year, suffered 1st loss in 4th Grand Slam final appearance at Roland Garros (l. to Nadal). Beat Murray in 2017 Roland Garros SF after 4h34m. Now 4-4 vs. World No. 1 at Grand Slams and 0-16 elsewhere. In 2017, won 3rd-set TBs vs. Nishioka & Thiem en route to 4th ATP Masters 1000 final at Indian Wells (l. Federer). 16 career titles include 3 Grand Slams (2014 Australian Open, 2015 Roland Garros, 2016 US Open) and 1 ATP Masters 1000 (2014 Monte Carlo). Reached career-high ranking of No. 3 for first time on 27 January 2014, after Australian Open triumph. Klizan Summary: YTD W-L: 1-0 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 5 Date of Birth: 11 July 1989 (28) ATP Ranking: 147 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 6-2 (2016 Semi-finalist)
Day 4 Thursday, 8 February 2018 Page 4 of 4 Tournament Note: Ousted 19-year-old WC Donski in 1R; made at least the quarter-finals in both 2016 (l. to Troicki in SF) and 2017 (l. to Basilashvili in QF). Played first singles matches of 2018 last week at Challenger Tour event in Quimper, FRA (lost 2R to Lamasine). Currently ranked No. 147 lowest ranking since No. 154 on 9 May 2011. Last year was the first season without winning an ATP World Tour singles title since 2013. In 2017, made QFs at Sofia (l. Basilashvili), Rotterdam (l. Berdych), Budapest (l. Pouille), and Munich (l. Chung). Career-high singles ranking of No. 24 on 27 April 2015. COURT 1 Maximilian Marterer (GER) vs [7] Joao Sousa (POR) First Meeting Marterer Summary: YTD W-L: 3-1 Date of Birth: 15 June 1995 (22) ATP Ranking: 82 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-1 (2018 2nd Round) Sousa Summary: YTD W-L: 3-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 30 March 1989 (28) ATP Ranking: 68 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round) Marius Copil (ROU) vs Blaz Kavcic (SLO) Kavcic Leads 1-0 13 Bastad (Sweden) Clay R32 Blaz Kavcic 6-4 6-1 Copil Summary: YTD W-L: 3-2 Date of Birth: 17 October 1990 (27) ATP Ranking: 93 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-1 (2016, 2018 2nd Round) Kavcic Summary: YTD W-L: 1-2 Date of Birth: 5 March 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 111 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round)
DIEMA XTRA SOFIA OPEN: DAY 3 MEDIA NOTES Wednesday, 7 February 2018 Arena Armeec Sofia - Sofia, Bulgaria 5-11 February 2018 Draw: S-28, D-16 Prize Money: 501,345 Surface: Indoor Hard ATP World Tour Info Tournament Info ATP PR & Marketing ATPWorldTour.com Sofiaopen.bg/en Martin Dagahs: mdagahs@atpworldtour.com Twitter: @ATPWorldTour @sofiaopentennis Press Room: media@sofiaopen.bg Facebook: @ATPWorldTour facebook.com/sofiaopentennis/ TV & Radio: TennisTV.com HAASE HOPES FOR GOOD FORM TO CONTINUE IN SOFIA No. 5 seed Robin Haase of the Netherlands opens play on Center Court at the Diema Xtra Sofia Open on Wednesday, when he squares off against Romanian Marius Copil in their first head-to-head meeting. Haase finished 2017 in the Top 50 for the third time in his career, and he has started the 2018 season with strong showings in Pune (quarter-finals) and Auckland (semi-finals). Following that match, two former Top 20 players will battle for a second-round spot, as former World No. 8 Mikhail Youzhny of Russia plays Italy s Andreas Seppi. 35-year-old Youzhny and 33-year-old Seppi are familiar foes, having played six times previously, dating back to 2006, with Youzhny holding a 5-1 edge in their rivalry. Another former Top 10 player, Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus, will meet Kazakhstan s Mikhail Kukushkin in a first-round encounter, as both players attempt to pick up a win in their respective Sofia debuts. This is the first Tour-level meeting between the 2006 Australian Open finalist and the Kazakh No. 1, although Baghdatis did claim the 2014 Aptos, CA, USA Challenger title via a final-round victory over Kukushkin. In other opening-round tilts, Laslo Djere of Serbia meets Slovenia s Blaz Kavcic, and German Maximilian Marterer will play Malek Jaziri from Tunisia, all of whom are looking for their first main draw victories in Sofia. At the end of the day, the second round will kick off on Center Court when No. 4 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany faces off against Bosnian qualifier Mirza Basic. Kohlschreiber went winless in January (0-2) and will attempt to pick up a victory after a first-round bye. Basic, however, has made the quarter-finals or better at the last two ATP World Tour 250 events he has contested (2017 Moscow and 2018 Doha). Another second-round match will feature Slovak No. 1 Lukas Lacko taking on his compatriot Jozef Kovalik, the fifth-ranked player in their nation. Lacko upset No. 8 seed Evgeny Donskoy in the first round. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: WEDNESDAY SINGLES MATCHES CENTER COURT 1R: [5] Robin Haase (NED) vs Marius Copil (ROU) First Meeting Haase Summary: 2018 Highlights: SF (1): Auckland (l. Bautista Agut); QF (1): Pune (l. Paire) YTD W-L: 5-5 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 6 April 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 42 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-2 (2017 2nd Round) Tournament Note: Reached 2nd round in 2017 (l. to 2016 finalist Troicki). Saved 2 MPs vs. Ruud en route to Auckland SF (l. to eventual champion Bautista Agut). Defeated Kavcic and Jarry to reach Pune QF (l. to Paire). Suffered 8th Australian Open 1R loss in last 9 years (l. to Sonego). Captured 3rd ATP World Tour doubles title at Pune with countryman Middelkoop (d. Herbert/Simon). In 2017, made 1st ATP Masters 1000 SF at Montreal (l. to Federer). Last year, earned biggest win of career over No. 4 A. Zverev to reach ATP Masters 1000 Paris 3R (l. to del Potro).
Day 3 Wednesday, 7 February 2018 Page 2 of 4 Copil Summary: YTD W-L: 2-2 Date of Birth: 17 October 1990 (27) ATP Ranking: 93 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-1 (2016 2nd Round) Tournament Note: Advanced to 2016 2nd round as qualifier (def. Chung 1R, l. to Mannarino). Went 2-0 in Davis Cup matches last week vs. Luxembourg. Suffered 1R losses at Pune (l. to Djere) and Australian Open (l. to Simon). Last year, advanced to Challenger Tour finals at Kaohsiung, TPE (l. to Donskoy) and Bratislava, SVK (l. to Lacko). Broke into Top 100 of ATP Rankings on 15 May 2017 and reached career-high No. 74 on 16 October 2017. 1R: Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) vs Andreas Seppi (ITA) Youzhny Leads 5-1 06 ATP Masters 1000 Rome (Italy) Clay R64 Mikhail Youzhny 6-2 7-6(7) 08 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R64 Mikhail Youzhny 4-6 7-5 6-3 7-6(4) 08 ATP Masters 1000 Canada (Canada) Hard R64 Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(1) 6-2 09 Marseille (France) Hard R16 Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(2) 6-3 14 ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay R64 Andreas Seppi 6-3 7-6(4) 14 ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Mikhail Youzhny 6-3 6-4 Youzhny Summary: YTD W-L: 0-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 10 Date of Birth: 25 June 1982 (35) ATP Ranking: 92 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-1 (2017 2nd Round) Tournament Note: Made 2nd round last year on tournament debut (l. to Muller). Started season with 7th Australian Open 1R loss of career (l. to Cuevas). Snapped 6-match losing streak at 2017 US Open (l. to Federer in 2R after leading 2 sets to 1). Now 0-17 vs Federer. In 2017, advanced to Chennai QF (d. Myneni and Olivo, l. to Bautista Agut after leading 62 41). Last year, captured back-to-back ATP Challenger Tour titles at Ningbo, CHN and Ho Chi Minh City, VIE. Reached career-high ranking of World No. 8 on 28 January 2008. Seppi Summary: YTD W-L: 3-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: 21 February 1984 (33) ATP Ranking: 77 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-2 (2016 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Advanced to QF in 2016 (l. to Klizan) and 2nd round last year (l. to Darcis). Reached Australian Open 4R for 4th time (d. Karlovic 97 in 5th, l. to Edmund). Fell to 0-6 in Grand Slam 4R overall. Entered Australian Open after capturing Canberra, AUS Challenger title (d. Fucsovics). In 1st event of year, lost to Basic in 2R of Doha qualifying. In 2017, reached Antalya SF, Moscow QF, and Australian Open 4R. Peaked at career-high ranking of No. 18 on 28 January 2013. 1R: Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) vs Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 14 Aptos CH (U.S.A.) Hard F Marcos Baghdatis 7-6(7) 6-4 Baghdatis Summary: YTD W-L: 1-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 4 Date of Birth: 17 June 1985 (32) ATP Ranking: 123 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut)
Day 3 Wednesday, 7 February 2018 Page 3 of 4 Last direct acceptance into Australian Open, where he reached 2R (d. Bhambri, l. to Rublev). Fell to No. 123 in ATP Rankings on 15 January -- lowest ranking since No. 132 on 2 June 2014. Last year, suffered 6th straight loss in a final at Chengdu (ret vs Istomin). Still seeking 1st title since 2010 Sydney. Also in 2017, advanced to SFs at Auckland (l. to Sousa) and Antalya (ret vs Sugita). 2006 Australian Open runner-up (l. to Federer), peaked at career high of World No. 8 on 21 August 2006. Kukushkin Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Pune (l. Anderson) YTD W-L: 3-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 1 Date of Birth: 26 December 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 73 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Defeated Albot and Djere to reach Pune QF (l. to Anderson). Suffered 7th Australian Open 1R loss in 8 appearances (l. to Gojowczyk). Retired in Canberra, AUS Challenger 1R vs. Beale due to illness. Last year, advanced to 1st ATP World Tour SF since 2015 Sydney at Memphis (d. Johnson, l. to Basilashvili). Also in 2017, qualified at US Open and reached 3R for 3rd time (d. Ferrer in 1R, l. to Pouille). 2R: [4] Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) vs [Q] Mirza Basic (BIH) First Meeting Kohlschreiber Summary: YTD W-L: 0-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 8 Date of Birth: 16 October 1983 (34) ATP Ranking: 35 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-1 (2016 Quarter-finals) Tournament Note: Lost to eventual runner-up Troicki in 2016 QF; did not play in Sofia last year. Suffered 1R losses at Sydney (l. to eventual champion Medvedev) and Australian Open (l. to Nishioka). Last year, captured 2nd Kitzbuhel and 8th ATP World Tour title overall (d. Fognini and Sousa). In 2017, claimed 30+ wins for 11th straight year -- 4th-longest streak among active players (Nadal 14, Berdych 13, Djokovic 12). Earned 400th win of career on 11 March in ATP Masters 1000 Indian Wells 2R (d. Dolgopolov, l. to Wawrinka in 3R). Basic Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Doha (l. Pella) YTD W-L: 3-1 Date of Birth: 12 July 1991 (26) ATP Ranking: 129 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 2-1 (2016, 2018 2nd Round) Tournament Note: Successfully qualified in Sofia for the second time (also in 2016, l. to Garcia-Lopez in 2R); defeated lucky loser F. Mayer in 1R in one hour. Lost in 1R of Australian Open qualifying to A. Gonzalez. Reached 2nd ATP World Tour QF at Doha as Q (def. F. Lopez, l. to Pella). Last year, advanced to 1st ATP World Tour QF and SF at Moscow as Q (l. to eventual champion Dzumhur). Also in 2017, captured 2nd ATP Challenger Tour title at Guadalajara, MEX (d. Shapovalov). Career-high ranking of No. 16 obtained on 30 July 2012. COURT 1 1R: Laslo Djere (SRB) vs Blaz Kavcic (SLO) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 17 Shenzhen CH (China) Hard R32 Blaz Kavcic 6-3 6-1
Day 3 Wednesday, 7 February 2018 Page 4 of 4 Djere Summary: YTD W-L: 1-3 Date of Birth: 2 June 1995 (22) ATP Ranking: 88 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Main draw debut) Kavcic Summary: YTD W-L: 0-2 Date of Birth: 5 March 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 111 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) 1R: Maximilian Marterer (GER) vs Malek Jaziri (TUN) First Meeting Marterer Summary: YTD W-L: 2-1 Date of Birth: 15 June 1995 (22) ATP Ranking: 82 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-1 (2017, 2018 1st Round) Jaziri Summary: YTD W-L: 3-2 Date of Birth: 20 January 1984 (34) ATP Ranking: 110 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-1 (2016, 2018 1st Round) 2R: Lukas Lacko (SVK) vs [Q] Jozef Kovalik (SVK) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 17 Bratislava CH (Slovakia) Hard R32 Lukas Lacko 6-4 6-4 Lacko Summary: YTD W-L: 3-2 Date of Birth: 3 November 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 96 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round) Kovalik Summary: YTD W-L: 1-0 Date of Birth: 4 November 1992 (25) ATP Ranking: 187 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-0 (2018 2nd Round)
DIEMA XTRA SOFIA OPEN: DAY 2 MEDIA NOTES Tuesday, 6 February 2018 Arena Armeec Sofia - Sofia, Bulgaria 5-11 February 2018 Draw: S-28, D-16 Prize Money: 501,345 Surface: Indoor Hard ATP World Tour Info Tournament Info ATP PR & Marketing ATPWorldTour.com Sofiaopen.bg/en Martin Dagahs: mdagahs@atpworldtour.com Twitter: @ATPWorldTour @sofiaopentennis Press Room: media@sofiaopen.bg Facebook: @ATPWorldTour facebook.com/sofiaopentennis/ TV & Radio: TennisTV.com BULGARIAN TEENAGERS MAKE ATP MAIN DRAW DEBUTS IN SOFIA Five first-round singles matches will take place at the Diema Xtra Sofia Open on Tuesday. Two of the matches feature Bulgarian wild cards who will contest the first ATP World Tour main draw matches of their careers. 19-year-old Alexander Donski will be up first, as he faces off against qualifier Martin Klizan of Slovakia. Donski has never played a singles match at an ATP World Tour event, in a main draw or in qualifying, and he starts with a stern test, as former World No. 24 Klizan has made the quarter-finals or better in both prior editions of the Sofia event. After that match, 16-year-old Adrian Andreev will take on Uzbekistan s Denis Istomin, another player who has appeared in the Top 40 of the ATP singles rankings. Andreev has previous experience at this event, falling in the first round of last year s qualifying to Maximilian Marterer. In the first match on Center Court, Ukraine s Sergiy Stakhovsky will play Bosnian qualifier Mirza Basic. Stakhovsky opens his campaign to win a fifth career ATP World Tour singles title against Basic, who has made the quarter-finals or better in two of his last three Tour-level events (2017 Moscow semi-finals and 2018 Doha quarter-finals), both times as a qualifier. Meanwhile, on Court 1, Slovakian qualifier Jozef Kovalik will meet Radu Albot of Moldova, in their first Tour-level matchup after five prior meetings below Tour main draw level. The Center Court schedule ends with an encounter between two players who have previously reached the top dozen of the ATP rankings, when former World No. 10 Ernests Gulbis of Latvia will play 2016 Diema Xtra Sofia Open runner-up Viktor Troicki. Gulbis survived a 2-hour-and-49-minute match with Italian Lorenzo Sonego in the first round of qualifying, ultimately prevailing in three tiebreak sets, 6-7(5), 7-6(2), 7-6(2). Former World No. 12 Troicki will have to avenge a 6-1, 6-1 loss to Gulbis in their only previous meeting, at the 2013 ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome, if the Serb wants to advance to the second round. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: TUESDAY FIRST-ROUND SINGLES MATCHES CENTER COURT Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) vs [Q] Mirza Basic (BIH) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 14 Ortisei CH (Italy) Hard R16 Mirza Basic 3-6 7-6(4) 6-4 Stakhovsky Summary: YTD W-L: 1-1 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 4 Date of Birth: 6 January 1986 (32) ATP Ranking: 116 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-1 (2016 First Round) Tournament Note: In only prior appearance, lost to eventual quarter-finalist Kohlschreiber in 1R in 2016. Went 1-1 in Davis Cup against Sweden last weekend (def. E. Ymer, l. to M. Ymer). Lost in 1R of Australian Open qualifying to Bachinger after leading 6-4 5-2. In 2017, captured 6th ATP Challenger Tour singles title at Portoroz, SLO (d. Berrettini) Reached career-high ranking of No. 31 on 27 September 2010. 2 of 4 career singles titles have come on indoor hard (2008 Zagreb and 2009 St. Petersburg).
Day 2 Tuesday, 6 February 2018 Page 2 of 4 Basic Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Doha (l. Pella) YTD W-L: 2-1 Date of Birth: 12 July 1991 (26) ATP Ranking: 129 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-1 (2016 2nd Round) Tournament Note: Successfully qualified in Sofia for the second time (also in 2016, l. to Garcia-Lopez in 2R). Lost in 1R of Australian Open qualifying to A. Gonzalez. Reached 2nd ATP World Tour QF at Doha as Q (def. F. Lopez, l. to Pella). Last year, advanced to 1st ATP World Tour QF and SF at Moscow as Q (l. to eventual champion Dzumhur). Also in 2017, captured 2nd ATP Challenger Tour title at Guadalajara, MEX (d. Shapovalov). [Q] Martin Klizan (SVK) vs [WC] Alexander Donski (BUL) First Meeting Klizan Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 5 Date of Birth: 11 July 1989 (28) ATP Ranking: 147 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 5-2 (2016 Semi-finalist) Tournament Note: Made at least the quarter-finals in both 2016 (l. to Troicki in SF) and 2017 (l. to Basilashvili in QF). Played first singles matches of 2018 last week at Challenger Tour event in Quimper, FRA (lost 2R to Lamasine). Currently ranked No. 147 lowest ranking since No. 154 on 9 May 2011. Last year was the first season without winning an ATP World Tour singles title since 2013. In 2017, made QFs at Sofia (l. Basilashvili), Rotterdam (l. Berdych), Budapest (l. Pouille), and Munich (l. Chung). Career-high singles ranking of No. 24 on 27 April 2015. Donski Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 Date of Birth: 1 August 1998 (19) ATP Ranking: 1529 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Tournament Note: Playing first career match at ATP World Tour event (including both main draw and qualifying). Currently at career-high ranking of No. 1529. Playing first singles match of 2018. [WC] Adrian Andreev (BUL) vs Denis Istomin (UZB) First Meeting Andreev Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 Date of Birth: 12 May 2001 (16) ATP Ranking: N/A Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Main draw debut) Tournament Note: At age 15, lost in 1R of qualifying last year to then-no. 172 Marterer. Making ATP World Tour main draw debut. Played first match at ATP World Tour event in the qualifying of Metz in 2016 (l. Q-1R to No. 152 Berrer).
Day 2 Tuesday, 6 February 2018 Page 3 of 4 Istomin Summary: 2018 Highlights: QF (1): Brisbane (l. Harrison) YTD W-L: 3-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 7 September 1986 (31) ATP Ranking: 74 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Tournament Note: On his Sofia debut, playing the youngest person in the draw (Andreev, aged 16 years, 8 months). Made 37th straight Grand Slam main draw appearance at Australian Open (l. to Edmund in 2R). Advanced to Brisbane QF (d. Dzumhur and Donaldson, ret. vs. Harrison due to left hip strain). Last year, captured 2nd ATP World Tour title at Chengdu (d. Baghdatis 32 ret.). In 2017, as World No. 117, upset 6-time champion Djokovic, from 2-sets-to-1 down, in Aus. Open 2R after 4h48m. Reached career-high ranking of No. 33 on 13 August 2012. [Q] Ernests Gulbis (LAT) vs [6] Viktor Troicki (SRB) Gulbis Leads 1-0 13 ATP Masters 1000 Rome (Italy) Clay R32 Ernests Gulbis 6-1 6-1 Gulbis Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 6 Date of Birth: 30 August 1988 (29) ATP Ranking: 199 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Tournament Note: Won qualifying 1R over Sonego 67(5) 76(2) 76(2); beat No.1 seed F. Mayer in 2 sets to qualify. One win and two losses on the Challenger Tour this year. In 2017, earned 1st tour-level wins since 2016 Roland Garros to reach Wimbledon 3R (d. del Potro in 2R). Then-No. 589 became lowest-ranked player in Wimbledon 3R since unranked Kiefer in 2007 (l. Djokovic). Later in the year, advanced to 1st ATP World Tour QF since 2015 Vienna at Gstaad (d. Lorenzi, l. to Fognini). Broke Top 10 at No. 10 on 9 June 2014 after advancing to maiden Grand Slam SF at Roland Garros. Troicki Summary: YTD W-L: 1-3 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 3 Date of Birth: 10 February 1986 (31) ATP Ranking: 67 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 5-2 (2016 Finalist) Tournament Note: Reached final in inaugural edition (l. to Bautista Agut 36 46). Earned 6th win from 2 sets down and 6th straight victory in a 5-setter at Australian Open (d. Bolt, l. to Kyrgios in 2R). Lost 3-setters in 1R at Doha (l. to Berrettini) and Sydney (l. to Dolgopolov). Advanced to Sydney doubles final in team debut w/struff (d. Rojer/Tecau, l. to Kubot/Melo). Obtained career-high ranking of No. 12 on 6 June 2011. COURT 1 [Q] Jozef Kovalik (SVK) vs Radu Albot (MDA) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meetings 11 Turkey F13 (Turkey) Hard SF Radu Albot 3-6 6-4 7-6(6) 13 Oberstaufen CH (Germany) Clay R16 Radu Albot 6-7(5) 7-5 7-6(5) 14 Meerbusch CH (Germany) Clay R16 Jozef Kovalik 2-6 6-2 6-0 14 Helsinki CH (Finland) Hard R32 Jozef Kovalik 4-6 6-4 6-4 16 Wimbledon Q (Great Britain) Grass Q-FR Radu Albot 4-6 7-6(0) 6-1 6-3
Day 2 Tuesday, 6 February 2018 Page 4 of 4 Kovalik Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 Date of Birth: 4 November 1992 (25) ATP Ranking: 187 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Albot Summary: YTD W-L: 0-3 Date of Birth: 11 November 1989 (28) ATP Ranking: 89 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 1-1 (2017 2nd Round)
DIEMA XTRA SOFIA OPEN: PREVIEW & DAY 1 MEDIA NOTES Monday, 5 February 2018 Arena Armeec Sofia - Sofia, Bulgaria 5-11 February 2018 Draw: S-28, D-16 Prize Money: 501,345 Surface: Indoor Hard ATP World Tour Info Tournament Info ATP PR & Marketing ATPWorldTour.com Sofiaopen.bg/en Martin Dagahs: mdagahs@atpworldtour.com Twitter: @ATPWorldTour @sofiaopentennis Press Room: media@sofiaopen.bg Facebook: @ATPWorldTour facebook.com/sofiaopentennis/ TV & Radio: TennisTV.com 10 THINGS TO WATCH IN SOFIA 1) Wawrinka Leads Field: Stan Wawrinka makes his Sofia debut and is the top seed in the thirdyear tournament on the ATP World Tour. The other seeds with 1R byes are Adrian Mannarino, Gilles Muller and Philipp Kohlschreiber. Three of the four (except Mannarino) won at least one ATP World Tour title last season. 2) Stan Top Seed: Wawrinka is playing in his second tournament of the season after falling in the 2R to Sandgren at the Australian Open. The 32-year-old Swiss native underwent left knee surgery last August and he finished in the Top 10 for the fifth straight year at No. 9. After his early exit Down Under, he fell out of the Top 10 at No. 15 for the first time since May 20, 2013. Wawrinka has 16 career titles, winning at least one title the past five years. 3) Mannarino Eyes Maiden Title: The No. 3 Frenchman in the ATP Rankings, No. 25 Mannarino, is playing in Sofia for the third straight year. The four-time ATP World Tour finalist is the highestranked player without a career ATP title. Last year he was runner-up in Antalya and Tokyo. 4) Muller Back Again: No. 3 seed Muller is making his third straight appearance in Sofia after reaching the SFs in his 2016 debut and the QFs last season. Last season Muller became the first Luxembourg player to earn an ATP World Tour title, winning in Sydney and s-hertogenbosch. 5) Kohli Looks For First Win: After opening the season with his first winless (0-2) month in his career No. 4 seed Kohlschreiber looks to get back on track in Sofia where he was a quarter-finalist in 2016. He has eight career ATP World Tour titles in 17 finals with his lone indoor final in 2009 Metz. 6) Dutchman Off to Good Start: No. 5 seed Robin Haase began the first two weeks of the season with a QF in Pune and SF in Auckland (l. to eventual champion Bautista Agut). The No. 1 Dutchman finished a year-end best No. 42 in the 2017 ATP Rankings, his third Top 50 season. 7) Troicki Success in Sofia: No. 6 seed Viktor Trocki has a 5-2 record in Sofia, reaching the final in the inaugural tournament two years ago and the QFs last year. Troicki turns 32 on Feb. 10, which is the day of the semi-finals. Troicki won last year s doubles title (w/zimonjic). 8) Marterer on the Move: Maximilian Marterer came into this season with an 0-14 career record on the ATP World Tour. But the German left-hander broke the winless streak by reaching the 3R at the Australian Open (l. to Sandgren). Last season, he finished in the Top 100 for the first time at No. 90. 9) Local Wild Cards: The three wild cards are Bulgarians trying to win their first ATP World Tour match. No. 2 Bulgarian Dimitar Kuzmanov is joined by Alexander Donski and Adrian Andreev. Kuzmanov has six Davis Cup wins while his countrymen have never played in an ATP tourney. 10) Doubles Draw: The top seeds are Marcin Matkowski and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi who reached the QFs at the Australian Open along with No. 2 seeds Nikola Mektic and Alexander Peya. The No. 3 seeds are Nicholas Monroe and John-Patrick Smith and No. 4 Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop, who teamed together to win Pune in the opening week of the season.
Day 1 Monday, 5 February 2018 Page 2 of 4 WHO TO WATCH THIS WEEK SINGLES SEED PLAYER W-L BEST TOURNAMENT FINISH 1 Stan Wawrinka (SUI) 0-0 Debut 2 Adrian Mannarino (FRA) 2-2 2016 Quarter-finalist 3 Gilles Muller (LUX) 5-2 2016 Semi-finalist 4 Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 2-1 2016 Quarter-finalist 5 Robin Haase (NED) 0-1 2017 2nd Round 6 Viktor Troicki (SRB) 5-2 2016 Finalist 7 Joao Sousa (POR) 0-0 Debut 8 Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) 0-1 2016 1st Round QUALIFIERS (4) TBD Monday OLDEST PLAYER Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) 35 years, 7 months WILD CARDS (3) Adrian Andreev (BUL) Alexander Donski (BUL) Dimitar Kuzmanov (BUL) YOUNGEST PLAYER Adrian Andreev (BUL) 16 years, 8 months TOP COUNTRY BREAKDOWN Bulgaria 3, Germany 2, Russia 2, Serbia 2 DOUBLES SEED TEAM W-L BEST TOURNAMENT FINISH 1 Marcin Matkowski (POL) 0-1 2017 1st Round Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (PAK) 0-1 2017 1st Round 2 Nikola Mektic (CRO) 0-0 Debut Alexander Peya (AUT) 3-2 2017 Semi-finalist 3 Nicholas Monroe (USA) 0-0 Debut John-Patrick Smith (AUS) 0-0 Debut 4 Robin Haase (NED) 2-2 2016 Semi-finalist Matwe Middelkoop (NED) 4-1 2016 Champion ATP RANKING POINTS AND PRIZE MONEY Diema Xtra Sofia Open W F SF QF R16 R32 Singles Ranking Points 250 150 90 45 20 0 Singles Prize Money ( ) 89,435 47,105 25,515 14,535 8,565 5,075 Doubles Ranking Points 250 150 90 45 0 --- Doubles Prize Money ( ) 27,170 14,280 7,740 4,430 2,590 ---
Day 1 Monday, 5 February 2018 Page 3 of 4 PAST FINALISTS SINGLES YEAR CHAMPION FINALIST SCORE 2017 Grigor Dimitrov David Goffin 7-5 6-4 2016 Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) Viktor Troicki (SRB) 6-3 6-4 BOLD: Player in 2018 Diema Xtra Sofia Open singles draw. DOUBLES YEAR CHAMPION FINALIST SCORE 2017 Viktor Troicki/Nenad Zimonjic Mikhail Elgin/Andrey Kuznetsov 6-4 6-4 2016 Wesley Koolhof/Matwe Middelkoop Philipp Oswald/Adil Shamasdin 5-7 7-6(9) [10-6] BOLD: Player in 2018 Diema Xtra Sofia Open doubles draw. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: MONDAY S FIRST-ROUND SINGLES MATCHES CENTER COURT [8] Evgeny Donskoy (RUS) vs Lukas Lacko (SVK) Lacko Leads 1-0 14 Shenzhen (China) Hard R32 Lukas Lacko 6-1 7-6(4) Other Meetings 09 Russia F1 (Russia) Carpet QF Lukas Lacko 6-4 6-4 09 Russia F2 (Russia) Carpet R32 Lukas Lacko 7-5 6-4 17 Kaohsiung CH (Taiwan) Hard QF Evgeny Donskoy 6-2 6-4 Donskoy Summary: YTD W-L: 1-3 Date of Birth: 9 May 1990 (27) ATP Ranking: 71 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-1 (2016 1st Round) Tournament Note: Only previous match in Sofia was a straight-set loss to Adrian Mannarino in the 1st round in 2016. Advanced to Australian Open 2R (d. F. Mayer, l. to Fognini). Suffered 1R losses at Doha (l. to Thiem) and Sydney as Q (l. to Mannarino). In 2017, earned biggest win of career over No. 10 Federer 36 76(7) 76(5) in 2R after saving 3 MPs and trailing 5-2 in 2nd-set TB, 5-2 in 3rd set and 5-1 in 3rd-set TB (l. to Pouille in QF). Also won 10th and 11th Challenger titles last year, at Zhuhai, CHN (d. Fabbiano) and Kaohsiung, TPE (d. Copil). Lacko Summary: YTD W-L: 2-2 Date of Birth: 3 November 1987 (30) ATP Ranking: 96 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut)
Day 1 Monday, 5 February 2018 Page 4 of 4 Tournament Note: Most recent ATP quarter-final was at Atlanta in July of last year. Upset 2016 semi-finalist Raonic to reach Australian Open 2R (l. to Kicker). Also advanced to Auckland 2R as LL (d. Tsitsipas, l. to Haase). Withdrew from Pune due to virus. Ended 2017 season with back-to-back Challenger titles at Bratislava, SVK (d. Copil) and Brescia, ITA (d. Grigelis). [WC] Dimitar Kuzmanov (BUL) vs [7] Joao Sousa (POR) First Meeting Kuzmanov Summary: YTD W-L: 0-0 Date of Birth: 28 July 1993 (24) ATP Ranking: 340 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-2 (2016, 2017 1st Round) Tournament Note: Only main draw ATP matches have come at Sofia (l. Berankis 1R in 2016, l. Haase 1R in 2017). 9-1 on Futures circuit this year, with one title and one final (both in Antalya, Turkey). Career 6-4 win-loss record in Davis Cup. Sousa Summary: YTD W-L: 2-2 YTD Titles: 0 / Career Titles: 2 Date of Birth: 30 March 1989 (28) ATP Ranking: 68 Sofia W-L (Best Result): 0-0 (Debut) Tournament Note: Both career singles titles have come on indoor hard (2013 Kuala Lumpur and 2015 Valencia). Improved to 5-5 in 5-setters by beating Brown in Australian Open 1R (l. to eventual finalist Cilic in 2R). Also advanced to 2R at Auckland (l. to Ferrer). Fell to 2-7 in ATP finals with 2017 runner-up finishes at Auckland (l. to Sock) and Kitzbuehel (l. to Kohlschreiber). Suffered 6-match losing streak from April 18 to May 29 and 5-match losing streak from August 16 to September 19. FEDEX ATP HEAD2HEADS: REMAINING FIRST-ROUND SINGLES MATCHES [WC] Adrian Andreev (BUL) vs Denis Istomin (UZB) Maximilian Marterer (GER) vs Malek Jaziri (TUN) First Meeting First Meeting [5] Robin Haase (NED) vs Marius Copil (ROU) First Meeting Laslo Djere (SRB) vs Blaz Kavcic (SLO) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 17 Shenzhen CH (China) Hard R32 Blaz Kavcic 6-3 6-1 Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) vs Andreas Seppi (ITA) Youzhny Leads 5-1 06 ATP Masters 1000 Rome (Italy) Clay R64 Mikhail Youzhny 6-2 7-6(7) 08 Australian Open (Australia) Hard R64 Mikhail Youzhny 4-6 7-5 6-3 7-6(4) 08 ATP Masters 1000 Canada (Canada) Hard R64 Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(1) 6-2 09 Marseille (France) Hard R16 Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(2) 6-3 14 ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Clay R64 Andreas Seppi 6-3 7-6(4) 14 ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati (U.S.A.) Hard R32 Mikhail Youzhny 6-3 6-4 Marcos Baghdatis (CYP) vs Mikhail Kukushkin (KAZ) First Tour-Level Meeting Other Meeting 14 Aptos CH (U.S.A.) Hard F Marcos Baghdatis 7-6(7) 6-4 *Does not include matches with qualifiers (TBD Monday)