San Jose qualifying strong; NorCal Challengers canceled

Former world No. 1 Samantha Stosur warms up for her first-round
match in the 2013 Bank of the West Classic at Stanford. Photo by
Paul Bauman

   The qualifying field in next month's Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose, Calif., announced today, features ex-world No. 1 Samantha Stosur, three other former top-10 players and 2021 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Ajla Tomljanovic.

   Joining Australians Stosur and Tomljanovic (pronounced Tom-yon-o-vich) are France's Caroline Garcia (No. 4 in 2018), Southern Californian CoCo Vandeweghe (No. 9 in 2018) and France's Kristina Mladenovic (No. 10 in 2017).

   Vandeweghe reached the final of the Bank of the West Classic at Stanford in 2012 and 2017. The tournament moved to San Jose under new sponsorship in 2018. 

   Heading the Mubadala qualifying field is No. 45 Donna Vekic, a Croat who reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals and San Jose semifinals in 2019. Last year's Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic was canceled because of the pandemic.

   The 2021 qualifying field also includes 19-year-old American Amanda Anisimova, a French Open semifinalist in 2019. Anisimova won her first professional title at 15 in the 2017 (last) Sacramento, Calif., Challenger, beating Tomljanovic by walkover.

   Qualifying is scheduled for July 31-Aug. 1 at San Jose State University, followed by the main draw Aug. 2-8. Tickets are available at mubadalasvc.com as the tournament celebrates the 50th year of women's tour tennis in the San Francisco Bay Area.

   The main draw features 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin, 2017 U.S. Open winner and Fresno, Calif. product Sloane Stephens and 2017 U.S. Open runner-up and Stanford champion Madison Keys. Kenin won Northern California Challengers as a teenager in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

   WTA Tour in Gdynia, Poland— Kateryna Kozlova, 27, of Ukraine defeated Katie Volynets, a 19-year-old wild card from Walnut Creek in the San Francisco Bay Area, 7-6 (3), 6-2 in the first round of the clay-court tournament.

   Volynets recently made her Wimbledon main-draw debut as a qualifier, losing to 30-year-old Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania in the first round. 

   Challengers — The Aptos and Tiburon men's Challengers — normally held in August and September, respectively —  in NorCal have been canceled for the second consecutive year.

   "We were in a holding pattern (because of COVID)," Aptos tournament director Rick Kepler said. "When it was time to decide, it was too iffy.

   "I feel like we made a good decision with all the mask stuff now in California. Now we're kind of looking like geniuses."

   In its 32nd year in 2019, Aptos was the longest-running men's Challenger in the United States. The tournament probably will return in 2022, Kepler said.

   According to the Tiburon Challenger's Facebook page: "The requirements mandated by the ATP Challenger Circuit in order to meet the stringent COVID protocols has (sic) created too big an operational and financial roadblock for the (Tiburon Peninsula) Club to undertake hosting the event this year. ... We have already begun preparing for the 2022 Tiburon Challenger."

   NorCal Challengers still scheduled this year are the $60,000 Berkeley women (Sept. 27-Oct. 3), $25,000 Redding women (Oct. 4-10) and $100,000 Fairfield men (Oct. 11-17).

   ATP Tour — In the opening round of doubles on hardcourts in Los Cabos, wild cards and Bay Area natives Mackenzie McDonald and Sam Querrey beat unseeded Nathaniel Lammons and Jackson Withrow 6-1, 6-4 in an all-American matchup.

   Jovic takes break — Jovana (Jaksic) Jovic, a 27-year-old Serb living in Sacramento, Calif., is taking the rest of the year off and teaching tennis.

   "I needed a break," said the 323rd-ranked Jovic, whose last tournament was in March.

   Jovic has struggled with back problems since reaching a career-high No. 102 in 2014.

   USTA Pro Circuit — No. 6 seed William Griffith and unseeded Ethan Quinn of Fresno, Calif., won their first-round qualifying matches in straight sets on hardcourts in the $15,000 Edwardsville (Ill.)  Futures. Quinn, 17, is ranked first nationally in the boys 18s. 

Johnson wins Aptos again, this time without late father

Top-seeded Steve Johnson beat fourth-seeded Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 7-6 (4)
today to win the $81,240 Nordic Naturals Challenger in Aptos, Calif. Johnson
also won the title in 2012, six weeks after he turned pro. Photo by Paul Bauman

   APTOS, Calif. – It was practically a lifetime ago that Stevie Johnson won the Challenger singles title at the Seascape Sports Club for the first time.
   In 2012, he had been a professional for only six weeks after completing one of the most decorated careers in NCAA history at USC.
   Since then, Johnson has risen as high as No. 21 in the world, won four singles titles on the ATP World Tour, compiled a 5-3 record in Davis Cup singles and doubles, won an Olympic bronze medal in doubles and earned almost $6 million in prize money.

Steve Johnson, whose father/mentor died of a heart attack at 58 in 2017, says
a prayer before the final. " ... I don't know if I was meant to be a pro by myself,"
Johnson said. "I love the game of tennis, but sometimes I wish my partner
in crime was with me." Photo by Paul Bauman

   The biggest change, however, is that Johnson's beloved father is no longer with him. Steve Johnson, a tennis coach, died of a heart attack at 58 in May 2017. Three weeks later, Stevie captured the hearts of fans worldwide when he broke down on television after his second-round win in the French Open.
   Stevie has said his father "taught me pretty much everything I know."
   Before and after beating Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 7-6 (4) today to win the $81,240 Nordic Naturals Challenger, Johnson went through his usual rituals. Beforehand, he walked to the back of the court, squatted briefly while facing the wall and said a prayer. Afterward, he crossed himself, gazed at the sky and pumped his fist.

   "I've done that for a long time," Johnson said. "It's just a bit more meaning the last couple of years. He was here when I won in 2012, so I like to look up and see him up there, but that's the way life goes sometimes."

Steve Johnson's lethal forehand helped him beat Dominik
Koepfer in their first career meeting. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Johnson, who wears a cross necklace, has tumbled from No. 33 at the beginning of the year to No. 93. He will rise to No. 79 on Monday.
   "Mentally, it's just been hard to do it week in, week out," said Johnson, 29, of Redondo Beach in the Los Angeles area. "I don't know if I was meant to be a pro by myself. I love the game of tennis, but sometimes I wish my partner in crime was with me."
   The top-seeded Johnson, who didn't lose a set in his five matches during the week, collected $10,800 – pocket change for him – in his first Challenger since March 2018 and second since 2014.
   The fourth-seeded Koepfer, a 25-year-old left-hander from Germany now based in Tampa, Fla., received $6,360 after playing in the singles final of a Northern California Challenger for the second consecutive year. The Tulane graduate lost to Jason Jung, a Los Angeles-area native who plays for Taiwan, 7-6 in the third set indoors in San Francisco in February 2018.
   Johnson and Koepfer met for the first time on a gorgeous, 70-degree (21.1 Celsius) day in the 32-year-old tournament, the longest-running men's Challenger in the United States.
   Johnson, 6-foot-2 (1.88 meters), triumphed with his booming serve, lethal forehand and consistent slice backhand. He pounded 10 aces, committed only one double fault and won 85 percent of the points (29 of 34) on his first serve.
   "I served well when it mattered," Johnson said. "My serve has been an issue all year. This week, it was great on Day 1, not so good on Days 2 and 3, great on Day 4 and good when it needed to be today."

Dominik Koepfer, 25, will rise to a career-high No. 113.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   Koepfer, who has surprising power at 5-foot-11 (1.80 meters), had three aces and four double faults and won 68 percent of the points (28 of 41) on his first serve.

   Like everyone, Koepfer targeted Johnson's backhand during rallies.
   "That was the game plan, to approach to his backhand," said Koepfer, who will rise nine spots to a career-high No. 113. "He doesn't have a great two-handed backhand, but it's not a nice ball to hit off his slice. It stays low every time. You've got to be patient. I thought I did a pretty good job with it. It just wasn't enough.
   "He doesn't give you a lot of free points. Obviously, if you hit it to his forehand, he has you on the run. That's the danger playing him."
   Johnson raced to a 3-0 lead (one service break) in the first set against an admittedly nervous Koepfer, who won his first Challenger singles title in June on grass in Ilkey, England, before Koepfer rallied to even the set at 4-4. After Johnson held serve, he broke for the set on a spectacular forehand cross-court passing shot with Koepfer at the net.
   Both players held serve throughout the second set, although Koepfer saved a championship point while serving at 5-6 with an overhead smash.
   Johnson led 4-2 in the tiebreaker, but Koepfer leveled at 4-4 with a cross-court backhand winner after Johnson missed his first serve.
   After Johnson made a tremendous lunging backhand volley winner to lead 5-4, Koepfer sprayed a swinging forehand volley to give Johnson his second championship point. He capitalized with a runaround forehand passing shot set up by – what else? – an inside-out forehand to the opposite corner.
   "At 6-5 (in the third set), I thought I played a pretty bad match point," Johnson said. "I played really passively, didn't try to win. That's kind of the way my year has been.
   "I was thinking about that, so when I got to the 6-4 point (in the tiebreaker), I was playing to win. I was going to try to hit as many forehands as possible and go for it. That's the way I've got to play, and it paid off."

Left to right, top-seeded Marcelo Arevalo and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela
beat unseeded Max Schnur and Nathan Pasha for the doubles title. Photo by
Paul Bauman

   In the doubles final, top-seeded Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela of Mexico beat unseeded Nathan Pasha of Atlanta and Max Schnur of New York 5-7, 6-3 [10-8] to share $4,650.
   Pasha and Schnur, who split $2,700, played in the tournament only because third-seeded Leander Paes of India and Max Purcell of Australia withdrew after Paes strained a calf muscle.
   Paes, 46, has won 18 major titles, eight in men's doubles and 10 in mixed doubles with a career Grand Slam in each event.
   Here are the complete Aptos singles and doubles draws.

Johnson back in Aptos final; Koepfer ends foe's streak

Steve Johnson has dropped from a career-high No. 21
in 2016 to No. 93, but he said that's deceiving. Photo
by Paul Bauman

   APTOS, Calif. – What today's Nordic Naturals Challenger semifinals lacked in drama, they made up for with significance.
   Steve Johnson returned to the final at the Seascape Sports Club after seven years, and Dominik Koepfer ended Ernesto Escobedo's winning streak at 10 matches.
   As fog rolled in from the nearby Pacific Ocean, the fourth-seeded Koepfer beat the unseeded Escobedo 6-4, 6-3 to improve to 2-1 in their head-to-head series, and the second-seeded Johnson dispatched sixth-seeded Egor Gerasimov 6-2, 6-1 in 55 minutes in their first career meeting.
   Johnson, the 2012 Aptos champion and a longtime regular on the ATP World Tour, is playing in his first Challenger since March 2018 and second since 2014.
   Koepfer will play in the final of a Northern California Challenger for the second straight year. He lost to Jason Jung, a Los Angeles-area native who plays for Taiwan, 7-6 in the third set indoors in San Francisco in early 2018.
   Neither Johnson nor Koepfer has lost a set in four matches this week. They will meet for the first time on Sunday after the noon doubles final, in which top-seeded Marcelo Arevelo of El Salvador and Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela of Mexico will play unseeded Nathan Pasha of Atlanta and Max Schnur of New York.

Dominik Koepfer ended Ernesto Escobedo's winning streak
at 10 matches. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Johnson and Koepfer wouldn't seem to have much in common. Johnson is four years older at 29 and three inches (7.6 centimeters) taller at 6-foot-2 (1.88 meters). Johnson, a right-hander, is a lifelong Southern Californian. Koepfer is a German left-hander based in Tampa, Fla.
   Both, however, are ex-college stars. Johnson had one of the most decorated careers in NCAA history, ending his stay at USC in 2012 with four NCAA team titles, NCAA singles crowns in his last two years and a 72-match winning streak in singles. He plans to finish his degree in human performance after retiring from tennis.
   Koepfer, a two-time All-American at Tulane in New Orleans, was ranked No. 1 nationally for most of his senior year in 2016. He graduated with a degree in finance.
  Johnson did not face a break point against Gerasimov, a 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Belarusian who ousted defending champion Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round, and converted four of six break-point opportunities.
   "I thought I capitalized on break points well," said Johnson, who reached the third round at Wimbledon last month. "I served much better today than in the last two rounds. Whenever you can take care of business on your serve, it's always a plus."

Egor Gerasimov, who ousted defending champion Than-
asi Kokkinakis in the second round, fell to Steve Johnson
in 55 minutes. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Johnson, who would have had to qualify in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Montreal this week, was candid when asked if it was tough to play a Challenger after competing at the top level of men's tennis for so many years.

   "I'd be lying if I said no," he said. "I'd rather be in Montreal and Cincinnati (next week), but I won here, and everyone here has treated me incredibly well over the years (2011-13). It's California, so it's kind of close to home. I've had a lot of luck here, so I'd like to get one more here tomorrow. Anytime you enter a tournament and come out the winner, that's the goal."
   Johnson, a Davis Cup veteran and an Olympic bronze medalist in doubles with Jack Sock in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, has dropped from a career-high No. 21 in 2016 to No. 93. He was devastated when his father, mentor and confidant, also Steve, died of a heart attack at 58 in May 2017. Steve Jr. was hospitalized with exhaustion that summer, and anxiety attacks have led him to consult a psychologist when he's at home in Redondo Beach in the Los Angeles area. Still, he began the year at No. 33.
   "Tennis hasn't been easy the last couple of years with everything that's gone on, but I'm doing my best to put my best foot forward every day," Johnson said. "If you look at this year, if I could change (fewer) than 10 points, I think I'm top 30 in the world. I lost six matches 7-6 in the third, I think (actually four, including last week to former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov in Los Cabos), and four other matches where I had match points. It's been a bummer of a year from that standpoint, but you can't hang your head and feel sorry for yourself. You've got to get better and go out and try to win."

Ernesto Escobedo won a Challenger in Granby, Quebec,
two weeks ago and was coming off two tough matches
in Aptos. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Koepfer won his first Challenger singles title in June, on grass in Ilkey, England, and advanced to the second round at Wimbledon last month as a wild card in his Grand Slam main-draw debut. He will achieve a career-high ranking of at least No. 113 on Monday.
   Despite – or perhaps because of – Escobedo's winning streak, Koepfer said he had an edge in the matchup of hard hitters. Whereas Koepfer was fresh, Escobedo won a Challenger in Granby, Quebec, two weeks ago and was coming off two tough matches in Aptos. He saved two match points in a 7-6 (2), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (12) victory over fifth-seeded Bjorn Fratangelo that lasted 2 hours, 47 minutes on Thursday and outlasted top-seeded Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 on Friday.
   "Yeah, for sure," said Koepfer, who won the last four games of the match. "(Escobedo) was struggling a little bit, especially toward the end of the second set. You could see he wasn't as physical anymore. He couldn't go after his serve as much. It always helps playing quicker matches in early rounds to be fresh when it counts in the semis and finals."
   Escobedo, a 23-year-old resident of West Covina in the Los Angeles area, hedged when asked if his previous two matches took a toll on him against Koepfer.

   "Maybe in a way, but at the same time, I still had to prepare myself for this match," said Escobedo, ranked No. 214 after reaching a career-high No. 67 in 2017. "It's been a long two weeks. I went through the whole summer and won a Challenger. It kind of did (take a toll), but it's not an excuse."

Bernardo Saraiva, a former University of
San Francisco standout, lost in the doubles
semifinals. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Escobedo had his left thigh taped after the first set and re-taped after he broke serve to lead 2-1 in the second set.
   "I pulled a quad a little bit," said Escobedo, who clinched the U.S. Open Wild Card Challenge with his victory over Fratangelo to earn a main-draw berth in the year's last Grand Slam tournament. "It's nothing major. I just need some rest, and I'll be fine for the Open. I felt it a little bit this morning."
   Pasha and Schnur are playing in the tournament only because third-seeded Leander Paes of India and Max Purcell of Australia withdrew after Paes strained a calf muscle.
   Paes, 46, has won 18 major titles, eight in men's doubles and 10 in mixed doubles with a career Grand Slam in each event.
   Pasha and Schnur – who starred at the University of Georgia and Columbia, respectively – beat unseeded Evan Hoyt of Great Britain and Bernardo Saraiva, a former University of San Francisco standout from Portugal, 6-3, 6-4.
   Saraiva, 26, attended Albany High School in the East Bay as a senior when his father, Antonio, was a visiting scholar for a year at Cal as a professor of anthropology and geography.
   Bernardo is based in San Francisco and Lisbon. He said the cities have "a lot of similarities – the hills, the cable cars, the bridge. The weather is better in Lisbon, and San Francisco is quite more expensive," Saraiva added with a laugh.
   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Sunday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Escobedo ousts top seed Dzumhur in Aptos quarters

Ernesto Escobedo, serving in Aptos last year, extended his winning
streak to 10 matches. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Resurgent Ernesto Escobedo of West Covina in the Los Angeles area outlasted top-seeded Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 today in the quarterfinals of the $81,240 Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club in Aptos, Calif.
   The unseeded Escobedo, ranked No. 214 after climbing to a career-high No. 67 in 2017, broke serve in the last game when Dzumhur sprayed a forehand.
   Escobedo, a hard hitter who began working with former top-20 player Jan-Michael Gambill in March, extended his winning streak to 10 matches. He won an $81,240 tournament in Granby, Quebec, two weeks ago for his first Challenger title in three years.
   Both Escobedo, 23, and Dzumhur, 27, saved match points and won third-set tiebreakers on Thursday. Escobedo, with his dramatic victory over fifth-seeded Bjorn Fratangelo, earned a main-draw berth in the last Grand Slam tournament of the year by winning the U.S. Open Wild Card Challenge.
   Dzumhur also has plunged in the rankings, from a career-high No. 23 in July 2018 to No. 109. But he has reached two quarterfinals on the ATP World Tour this year, stunning then-No. 12 Stefanos Tsitsipas indoors in Rotterdam in February and three-time Grand Slam singles champion Stan Wawrinka on clay in Geneva.
   Escobedo will face his fourth seed in the tournament when he meets No. 4 Dominik Koepfer, a 25-year-old left-hander from Germany, on Saturday after an 11 a.m. doubles semifinal.
   Koepfer, ranked No. 122, beat seventh-seeded Marcos Giron of Thousand Oaks in the Los Angeles area 6-1, 6-4.
   Koepfer, who graduated from Tulane in New Orleans, had an outstanding grass-court season in England. He reached the quarterfinals and won $165,571 Challengers in Nottingham and Ilkey, respectively, and advanced to the second round at Wimbledon.
   Escobedo and Koepfer have split two career matches. Escobedo prevailed 6-1, 2-6, 7-5 on an indoor hardcourt in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017, and Koepfer won 6-1, 7-5 on an outdoor hardcourt in Houston last year.
   After the Koepfer-Escobedo match, second-seeded Steve Johnson, 29, of Redondo Beach in the Los Angeles region will face sixth-seeded Egor Gerasimov, 26, of Belarus for the first time.
   Johnson, the 2012 Aptos champion, is playing in his first Challenger since March 2018 and second since 2014. He downed 10th-seeded Go Soeda, 34, of Japan 6-3, 7-6 (4).
   Johnson has tumbled from a career-high No. 21 in 2016 to No. 93, but he reached the third round at Wimbledon last month. Soeda won the Tiburon (Calif.) Challenger 10 years ago and advanced to the Aptos semifinals in 2014.
   The 146th-ranked Gerasimov, who ousted defending champion Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round, dispatched third-seeded Taro Daniel, the local favorite from Japan, 6-3, 6-4.
   Daniel was born in New York to an American father, Paul, and Japanese mother, Yasue. The family moved to Japan when Taro was an infant and to Spain when he was 14. Paul Daniel grew up in Santa Cruz, near Aptos.
   The 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Gerasimov won his sixth career Challenger singles title in Recanati, Italy, on hardcourts in early July and last year reached two quarterfinals on the ATP Tour, in Los Cabos and Moscow. He defeated three top-60 players, including then-No. 28 Sam Querrey in Los Cabos, en route to the quarters in those tournaments.

Daniel, Dzumhur, Escobedo survive Aptos thrillers

Ernesto Escobedo, shown in 2018, saved two match
points in a 7-6 (2), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (12) win over fellow
American Bjorn Fratangelo to reach the quarterfinals
in Aptos, Calif., for the second consecutive year.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   Three consecutive matches on Center Court.
   Three straight matches decided by third-set tiebreakers.
   Three matches in a row in which the winner saved match points.
   Each match longer and more dramatic than the last.
   It might have been the wildest day in the 32-year history of the Nordic Naturals Challenger, the longest-running men's tournament at that level in the United States, in Aptos, Calif.
   Or, for that matter, in any tournament.
   Surviving the marathons on Thursday at the Seascape Sports Club were, in order, third seed and local favorite Taro Daniel of Japan, top-seeded Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and unseeded Ernesto Escobedo of West Covina in the Los Angeles area.
   Daniel escaped two match points and edged Michael Redlicki, a 6-foot-8 (2.03-meter) left-hander originally from Chicago, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (3) in 2 hours, 18 minutes to reach the Aptos quarterfinals for the first time since 2015.
   Daniel, 26, has an unusual background, to say the least. He was born in New York to an American father, Paul, and Japanese mother, Yasue. The family moved from New York to Japan when Taro was an infant and to Spain when he was 14. Paul Daniel grew up in Santa Cruz, near Aptos.
   Then Dzumhur saved three match points and nipped Lukas Lacko of Slovakia 6-7 (6), 6-3, 7-6 (9) in a 2-hour, 20-minute battle of former top-50 players. Dzumhur converted his second match point.
   Finally, Escobedo survived two match points in a 7-6 (2), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (12) triumph over countryman Bjorn Fratangelo in 2 hours, 47 minutes to reach the Aptos quarterfinals for the second consecutive year. Fratangelo saved six match points before succumbing. There were no service breaks in the match.
   Order was restored in the featured night match as second seed and 2012 Aptos champion Steve Johnson of Redondo Beach in the Los Angeles region defeated British left-hander Liam Broady, the 2017 runner-up as a qualifier, 7-5, 6-1.
   Today's quarterfinal matchups (with rankings in parentheses) are Dzumhur (109) against Escobedo (214), fourth-seeded Dominik Koepfer (122) of Germany versus seventh-seeded Marcos Giron (157) of Thousand Oaks in the L.A. region, Daniel (119) against sixth-seeded Egor Gerasimov (146) of Belarus, and Johnson (93) versus 10th-seeded Go Soeda (173) of Japan.
   Five quarterfinalists – Dzumhur, Johnson, Daniel, Soeda and Escobedo – have cracked the top 100 in the world. Johnson and Dzumhur have reached the top 25, and Soeda has broken into the top 50.
   Here are the Aptos singles and doubles draws and Friday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Gerasimov ousts defending champ Kokkinakis in Aptos

Defending champion Thanasi Kokkinakis, who shocked
Roger Federer last year, lost to Egor Gerasimov 7-6 (2),
6-4 today in the second round of the Nordic Naturals
Challenger in Aptos, Calif. 2018 photo by Paul Bauman

   Sixth-seeded Egor Gerasimov of Belarus beat defending champion Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia 7-6 (2), 6-4 today in the second round of the $81,240 Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club in Aptos, Calif.
   The 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Gerasimov, 26, saved both break points against him and converted his only one against the 6-foot-4 (1.93-meter) Kokkinakis, 23.
   Gerasimov reached two quarterfinals on the ATP Tour, in Los Cabos and Moscow, last year. He defeated three top-60 players in the process, including then-No. 28 Sam Querrey in Los Cabos.
   Kokkinakis, whose promising career has been derailed by injuries, shocked Roger Federer in the second round in Miami in March 2018. He is ranked No. 171 after climbing as high as No. 69 at 19 years old in 2015.
   Gerasimov, ranked No. 146, is scheduled to face 12th-seeded Emilio Gomez, an Ecuadorian ranked No. 169, on Thursday for a quarterfinal berth. They will meet for the first time.
   Top-seeded Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Keegan Smith, a 6-foot-7 (2.01-meter) qualifier from San Diego, 6-4, 6-4. Smith won the NCAA doubles title as a UCLA sophomore with Maxime Cressy last May in Orlando, Fla.
   The 5-foot-9 (1.75-meter) Dzumhur, who has plunged from a career-high No. 23 last July to No. 109, will meet unseeded Lukas Lacko of Slovakia.
   The 31-year-old Lacko, down from a career-high No. 44 in 2013 to No. 227, topped 6-foot-7 American Christopher Eubanks, an Aptos semifinalist last year, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5).
   Dzumhur and Lacko have split two career matches.
   Fifth-seeded Bjorn Fratangelo of Orlando beat Italy's Jannik Sinner, who won last week's $54,160 tournament in Lexington, Ky., 7-6 (6), 6-3. Fratangelo won the $100,000 Fairfield (Calif.) Challenger last October and reached the Aptos semifinals in 2015 and 2016.
   Second-seeded Steve Johnson of Redondo Beach in the Los Angeles area dismissed Roberto Quiroz of Ecuador 6-1, 6-2 in 48 minutes. Johnson, the 2012 Aptos champion, has tumbled from a career-high No. 21 in 2016 to No. 93.
   Johnson will meet unseeded Liam Broady, a left-hander from Great Britain. Broady, the 2017 Aptos runner-up, beat 14th-seeded Ramkumar Ramanathan of India 7-6 (2), 6-4.
   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Thursday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Kenin upsets No. 1 Barty; Ahn earns U.S. Open berth

Sofia Kenin, shown en route to the Berkeley title last
year, earned her first victory over a top-five player.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   Sofia Kenin continued her meteoric rise today.
   The 20-year-old American, who won Northern California Challengers in three consecutive years, ousted top-ranked Ashleigh Barty of Australia 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 in the second round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto.
   Kenin, ranked 29th, had been 0-3 against top-five players and 0-3 against Barty, who was playing in her first tournament since reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon. She won the French Open in June for her first Grand Slam singles title.
   Kenin captured the title in Sacramento in 2016, Stockton in 2017 and Berkeley in 2018. She will play the winner of Wednesday's match between former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka and 19-year-old rising star Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine on Thursday.
  Marie Bouzkova, a 21-year-old Czech qualifier, stunned seventh-seeded Sloane Stephens, a 26-year-old Fresno product, 6-2, 7-5. Stephens is ranked eighth and Bouzkova 91st.
   Tatjana Maria, a 32-year-old qualifier and mother from Germany, eliminated China's Zheng Saisai, who won last week's Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose, in the first round.
   Ahn in U.S. Open – Kristie Ahn, a 27-year-old Stanford graduate from Englewood Cliffs, N.J., earned a wild card in the U.S. Open by reaching the quarterfinals of last week's Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose as a qualifier.
   Ahn, ranked No. 138, will make her second appearance in the main draw of the U.S. Open. She qualified at age 16 in 2008 and lost in the first round to Dinara Safina of Russia in the first round. Safina was ranked seventh at the time and reached No. 1 the following year.
   USTA Pro Circuit – Here are the updated singles and doubles draws and Wednesday's schedule in the Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club in Aptos, Calif. Live streaming is available.

Kokkinakis ends title drought, Harris streak

Fourth-seeded Thanasi Kokkinakis, serving in the
first round on Tuesday, beat unseeded Lloyd Harris
6-2, 6-3 today to win the $100,000 Nordic Naturals
Challenger in Aptos, Calif. Photo by Paul Bauman

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   It's only a Challenger title, but Thanasi Kokkinakis will take it.
   Kokkinakis, who was on his way to stardom three years ago before injuries derailed his career, dominated Lloyd Harris 6-2, 6-3 in 67 minutes today to win the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club in Aptos, Calif.
   It was Kokkinakis' first title since he won the 85,000 euro ($96,781) Bordeaux Challenger on clay as a qualifier in May 2015. The following month, he reached a career-high No. 69 in the world at age 19.
   Later that year, the right-hander hurt his right shoulder lifting weights -- not to improve his tennis but to look better in Nike's new sleeveless shirts -- and had surgery. Because of that and numerous other injuries, he played only one match in 2016 and seven tournaments last year.
   Kokkinakis reached his first ATP final last August in Los Cabos but lost to promising American Taylor Fritz 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5) in the first round there last week. That dropped Kokkinakis' ranking 104 places to No. 268. He will rise to No. 201 on Monday.
   Before losing to Kokkinakis in Saturday's semifinals, top-seeded Thomas Fabbiano of Italy predicted the 22-year-old Australian, who stunned Roger Federer in the second round at Miami in March, eventually will crack the top 10.
   Kokkinakis, seeded fourth, emphatically ended the unseeded Harris' winning streak at nine matches. Harris, who won his first Challenger title last week in a $75,000 tournament in Lexington, Ky., lost no more than four games in a set during his streak.
   Kokkinakis dropped only one set during the week. He trailed eighth-seeded Prajnesh Gunneswaran of India by a set and an early service break before prevailing 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 on Friday night in the quarterfinals.
   Against Harris, the 6-foot-4 (1.93-meter) Kokkinakis had 12 aces and one double fault, lost only one point on his first serve (26 of 27) and did not face a break point.
   The 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Harris finished with six aces and six double faults, and won only 8 of 27 points on his second serve (30 percent).
   Harris, appearing tight, lost his serve in the opening game when he netted a forehand putaway and for 1-4 on a double fault. Both players held serve for 3-3 in the second set before Kokkinakis broke twice on unforced errors.
   Harris, 21, of South Africa will crack the top 150 for the first time at No. 145. He was ranked No. 221 at the beginning of July.
   Kokkinakis also won the doubles title with countryman Matt Reid. Unseeded, they nipped top-seeded Jonny O'Mara and Joe Salisbury of Great Britain 6-2, 4-6 [10-8].
   Kokkinakis became the first player to sweep the Aptos singles and doubles crowns since Chris Guccione of Australia in 2009 and the fourth in the tournament's 31-year history.
   Past competitors in the Aptos Challenger, the oldest in the United States, include International Tennis Hall of Famers Patrick Rafter and Michael Chang and future Hall of Famers Andy Murray, Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan. The Bryan twins played at Stanford in 1997 and 1998, winning the NCAA doubles title as sophomores.
   Kokkinakis collected $14,400 for the singles title and $3,100 for the doubles crown. Harris, who lost in the first round of doubles, pocketed $8,480 for reaching the singles final.
   Both Kokkinakis and Harris are scheduled to play in next week's $100,000 Vancouver Challenger. Kokkinakis drew second seed and countryman Jordan Thompson, ranked No. 100, and Harris will play a qualifier to be determined.
   Here are the complete Aptos singles and doubles draws.

Kokkinakis, Harris to meet for 100K Aptos title

Fourth-seeded Thanasi Kokkinakis, shown Tuesday, beat
top-seeded Thomas Fabbiano 7-5, 6-1 today in the semi-
finals in Aptos, Calif. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Thanasi Kokkinakis, who beat Roger Federer in March, and red-hot Lloyd Harris will meet for the first time Sunday in the final of the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger.
   The fourth-seeded Kokkinakis, a 22-year-old Australian, beat top-seeded Thomas Fabbiano, 29, of Italy 7-5, 6-1 today at the Seascape Sports Club.
   Harris, a 21-year-old South African, dismissed 6-foot-7 (2.01-meter) Christopher Eubanks, 22, of Atlanta 6-2, 6-2 in only 46 minutes in a matchup of unseeded players.
   Harris' four matches in the tournament have averaged 55 minutes. His longest one, a 6-2, 6-2 decision over Liam Broady in the quarterfinals, lasted 64 minutes.
   Harris, who won his first Challenger title last week in a $75,000 tournament in Lexington, Ky., extended his winning streak to nine matches. He has not lost more than four games in any of them.
   Kokkinakis, 6-foot-4 (1.93 meters), is rebounding from multiple injuries. He had 11 aces and three double faults against the 5-foot-8 (1.73-meter) Fabbiano, ranked No. 105 after reaching a career-high No. 70 last September. Kokkinakis converted all four of his break points and saved six of seven against him.
   "He started playing really well, and I immediately felt I needed to raise my level and be a bit more switched-on," said Kokkinakis, who has plunged from a career-high No. 69 in June 2015 to No. 268. "I couldn't really sustain that at the start, but then I started to find my way into the match. I started to serve a lot better and played really well toward the end."
   Harris, 6-foot-5 (1.96 meters) finished with eight aces and one double fault. He won 73 percent of the points on both his first serve (22 of 30) and second delivery (11 of 15).
   "Really good performance once again," said Harris, ranked a career-high No. 161. "I felt I played tremendously well the whole match. I think I retrieved so many serves that he didn't expect. I was making him play every single point and really found my range to get the balls nice and deep and made it difficult for him to attack and play his game."
   Eubanks had no aces after hammering 10 in his 6-4, 7-6 (6) semifinal victory over former top-70 players Ernesto Escobedo. Eubanks, ranked No. 236, flexed his right wrist late in today's match.
   WTA tour -- No. 3 seed Sloane Stephens, a 25-year-old Fresno product, beat No. 5 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-3 6-3 to reach the Rogers Cup final in Montreal.
   Stephens, now based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., will meet No. 1 seed Simona Halep in a rematch of the French Open final in June. Halep won that match 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 for her first Grand Slam title after going 0-3 in major finals.
   Halep advanced to the Montreal final with a 6-4, 6-1 victory over No. 15 seed Ashleigh Barty of Australia.
   Stephens won her only Grand Slam singles title in last year's U.S. Open, beating countrywoman and close friend Madison Keys.
   ITF Pro Circuit -- Unseeded Kristie Ahn, a 26-year-old Stanford graduate, topped fellow American Jessica Pegula 6-7 (3), 7-6 (7), 6-4 in the semifinals of the Koser Jewelers $60,000 Tennis Challenge in Landisville, Pa.
   Ahn will play third-seeded Madison Brengle, a 28-year-old American who beat Priscilla Hon of Australia 7-5, 7-5.

Harris extends win streak with another rout in Aptos

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   APTOS, Calif. -- Liam Broady accomplished an impressive feat today.
   He kept Lloyd Harris on the court for more than an hour.
   Not much more, and Broady still lost, but he has plenty of company lately.
   In a matchup of unseeded players, Harris rolled past Broady 6-2, 6-2 in 64 minutes today to reach the semifinals of the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger on a gorgeous, 64-degree (17.8 Celsuis) day at the Seascape Sports Club.
   Harris, a 21-year-old South African, dispatched third-seeded Quentin Halys of France 6-4, 6-2 in 59 minutes in the first round and Joris De Loore of Belgium 6-2, 6-0 in 52 minutes in the second round.
   "I'm happy to keep the matches short and keep my body fresh for every round to come," said Harris, 6-foot-5 (1.96 meters) and only 176 pounds (80 kilograms).
   Harris, who won his first Challenger title last week in a $75,000 tournament in Lexington, Ky., extended his winning streak to eight matches. He has not lost more than four games in a set in any of them.
   "I've really just been focused on tennis and to keep on working and improving my game," Harris explained. "Every day I've just been practicing and trying to improve, and that's been the key for me."
   Harris soared 47 places to a career-high No. 161 with the Lexington title in Monday's updated rankings. That would have given him the fourth seed in Aptos, but the singles draw was held on Saturday based on last week's rankings.
   Harris had 10 aces and no double faults against Broady, a 24-year-old left-hander who reached last year's Aptos final as a qualifier. Harris won 83 percent of the points on his first serve (29 of 35) and 60 percent on his second delivery (6 of 10), and escaped both break points against him.
   "I felt I played tremendously well today," Harris crowed. "I came out of the starting blocks very (well) again and just kept that level up throughout the match. I felt I really served well, was defending well, attacking well, coming forward well -- all around a good performance."
   Harris turned pro three years ago out of high school.
   "I was never really interested in the college route," he said.
   In contrast, Harris' 32-year-old countryman, Kevin Anderson, starred at the University of Illinois for three seasons (2005-07). The 6-foot-8 (2.03-meter) Anderson has reached two of the last four Grand Slam singles finals, losing to Rafael Nadal in last year's U.S. Open and to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon last month.
   "We touch base here and there and send texts back and forth," Harris said of Anderson. "When I'm in the bigger tournaments and I get to see him, we'll talk. I wouldn't say I know him very well."
   Asked whether Anderson has been a mentor to him, Harris said with a laugh: "It's hard to say. His results definitely have been a positive influence on me and the country."
   Harris will play 6-foot-7 (2.01-meter) Christopher Eubanks, who beat former top-70 player Ernesto Escobedo 6-4, 7-6 (6) in a hard-hitting battle of unseeded 22-year-old Americans.
   As he did against second-seeded Michael Mmoh in the second round, Eubanks frustrated Escobedo with his booming serve. Eubanks had 10 aces and two double faults and did not face a break point. He won 75 percent of the points on his first serve (36 of 48) and a whopping 74 percent on his second delivery (14 of 19).
   "I think I served well at critical times," said the 236th-ranked Eubanks, who turned pro last fall after his junior year at Georgia Tech in his hometown of Atlanta. "I think I did a good job of keeping my composure when I was under pressure a little bit on my service games. Anytime you play a match and don't get broken, it's usually a pretty good day. I was very pleased with how I served and how I played overall."
   Eubanks and Harris will meet for the first time in Saturday's second semifinal at about 3 p.m.
   "Eubanks has a massive game and can play anyone off the court," Harris said. "It's going to be a really tough match, but I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be a great challenge for me."
   Finally.
   In the top half of the draw, Fabbiano, one of the smallest players in men's pro tennis at 5-foot-8 (1.73 meters) and 152 pounds (69 kilograms), won 6-2, 6-2 for the second consecutive match. This time, he outclassed U.S. wild card Martin Redlicki, a 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) left-hander, in one hour.
   "The key was the same as (Thursday against countryman Stefano Napolitano)," said Fabbiano, who's ranked No. 105 after reaching a career-high No. 70 last September. "Good return, put the ball in -- he's a good server -- then do my shots. It was not that difficult today, but I had to be focused from the first to last point."
   Redlicki, a two-time NCAA doubles champion who graduated from UCLA in June, said he was most impressed by Fabbiano's "rally ball -- his regular, normal ball has that much more bite, it's that much heavier -- his ability to open the court, and his first ball. I would hit what I felt were some pretty decent returns off his serve, and he would just be able to take it and hit a winner off the first ball, which is something I wasn't expecting off the return I was hitting. I guess that's the next level I'm working for.
   "It was a really good learning experience, a good eye-opener. Lots to build on, lots to work on, a lot to look forward to."
   Fabbiano, who stunned Stan Wawrinka to reach the third round at Wimbledon last month, will face either fourth-seeded Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia for the first time on Saturday not before 1 p.m. 
   Kokkinakis, who shocked Roger Federer in the second round in Miami in March, topped eighth-seeded Prajnesh Gunneswaran of India 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 after trailing by an early service break in the second set. Gunneswaran, a 28-year-old left-hander, double-faulted for the only break in the third set to trail 2-4.
   The 6-foot-4 (1.93-meter) Kokkinakis, who's rebounding from multiple injuries, has plummeted from a career-high No. 69 three years ago at age 19 to No. 268. But Fabbiano predicted Kokkinakis eventually will reach the top 10.
   "He's solid, big serve," Fabbiano said. "He's doing the right things. He's still young, so he can get his body even better than now. He will be on top in the next few years, for sure. He's a next-generation guy."
   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Saturday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Fabbiano routs countryman during Italian renaissance

No. 1 seed Thomas Fabbiano dominated
fellow Italian and friend Stefano Napoli-
tano 6-2, 6-2 Thursday to reach the quar-
terfinals of the $100,000 Nordic Naturals
Challenger in Aptos, Calif. Photo by
Paul Bauman

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   APTOS, Calif. — You don't have to be Brad Gilbert to figure out the three countries with the most men in the top 200.
   The United States has 19, and Spain and France are next with 17 each.
   But No. 4 might come as a surprise. That's long-slumbering Italy with 13, ahead of Germany and Argentina with 12 each.
   Two Italians in the club met for the first time on Thursday night in the second round of the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club, and it wasn't close. Thomas Fabbiano, seeded first at No. 105, routed No. 194 Stefano Napolitano 6-2, 6-2 in one hour to reach the quarterfinals as fog rolled in from the nearby Pacific Ocean.
   The Italian renaissance began when Francesca Schiavone became the first Italian woman to win a Grand Slam singles title in the 2010 French Open. Schiavone and Sara Errani were the runners-up at Roland Garros the following two years, respectively.
   Errani and Roberta Vinci completed a career Grand Slam in women's doubles in 2014, and Fabio Fognini and Simone Bolelli won the Australian Open men's doubles title in 2015.
   Vinci pulled off one of the biggest upsets in sports history when she ended Serena Williams' bid for the first calendar-year Grand Slam since Steffi Graf's in 1988 in the semifinals of the 2015 U.S. Open. Vinci then lost to 33-year-old Flavia Pennetta in the first all-Italian Grand Slam final in the Open era.
   Fognini, 31, leads the current crop of Italian men at No. 14 in the world. Only 5-foot-10 (1.78 meters), he won his third title of the year, eighth of his career and first on hard courts last week in Los Cabos, shocking top-seeded Juan Martin del Potro in the final.
   Fognini and Pennetta married in June 2016.
   Also, Marco Cecchinato reached the semifinals of the French Open in June, ousting Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals.

Stefano Napolitano fell behind 4-0 in each
set against Thomas Fabbiano. Photo by
Paul Bauman

   Fabbiano stunned Stan Wawrinka, a three-time Grand Slam singles champion rebounding from knee surgery, to reach the third round at Wimbledon last month before losing to 19-year-old Greek sensation Stefanos Tsitsipas.
   Napolitano advanced to the final of last week's $75,000 Lexington (Ky.) Challenger, falling to Lloyd Harris of South Africa.
   On the women's side, Camila Giorgi gained her first Grand Slam quarterfinal last month at Wimbledon before losing to Williams.
   "We are many, we have good coaches, we are positive people," Fabbiano said of Italy's success. "Now we are waiting for the top 10, for the big name to get in the top 10.
   "Schiavone helps the women (with her success). Now with (Andreas) Seppi, Fognini, we are trying to do the same career (as) them. They are bringing us the new level. We are hoping there are new players coming in the next few years."
   Cecchinato and Errani, however, have been embroiled in controversy.
   In 2016, the Italian Tennis Federation suspended Cecchinato for 18 months and fined him 40,000 euros ($43,900) for fixing two matches and using confidential information for gambling, but he successfully appealed.
   Errani said she was "disgusted" that her two-month doping suspension recently was increased to 10 months. She argued that she had accidentally ingested her mother's breast cancer medicine at a family meal.
   Fabbiano and Napolitano, aside from being Italian, are opposites in many ways. Fabbiano is 29, one of the smallest men in pro tennis at 5-foot-8 (1.73 meters) and 152 pounds (69 kilograms), and swarthy. Napolitano is 23, prototypically tall at 6-foot-5 (1.96 meters) and movie star handsome.
   "(We are) very good friends," said Fabbiano, who lives five hours by car from Napolitano. "We know each other since many years. (On) the court, we try to win, but outside the court we have dinner together, which is not usual with tennis players. But it's nice to spend time with good friends on the tour."

Wild card Martin Redlicki overpowered qualifier
Marcos Giron in a matchup of former NCAA
champions from UCLA. Photo by Paul Bauman

  Even though Italians grow up on clay, Fabbiano prefers outdoor hard courts.
   "So this is my season, actually," cracked Fabbiano, who also advanced to the third round of last year's U.S. Open. "That's my weapon you saw today. I like to play on hard courts — no more bad bounce."
   The sets against Napolitano were almost identical. Fabbiano broke serve in the first and third games to lead 4-0, and both players held serve the rest of the way.
   Fabbiano, playing in Aptos for the first time this year, won 86 percent of the points on his first serve (19 of 22) and survived all three break points against him.
   "I was more solid than him, less mistake, high intensity," said Fabbiano, who reached a career-high No. 70 last September. "It was not difficult match. There were many mistake from his side, but I was very solid. I did my thing in the best way, and I bring the win from my side."
   In addition to his speed and superb groundstrokes, Fabbiano has an outstanding return of serve.
   "It was actually a good key," added Fabbiano, who won 62 percent of the points on Napolitano's second serve (13 of 21). "When he put the first serve in, he made good points, but with the second serve, I put all my aggression on his game, and he fell from the first game."
   Fabbiano will play Martin Redlicki, a 22-year-old wild card from Boca Raton, Fla., today not before 1 p.m. The 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) left-hander overpowered 5-foot-11 (1.80-meter) Marcos Giron, a 25-year-old qualifier from Thousand Oaks in the Los Angeles area, 6-3, 6-4 in a matchup of former NCAA champions from UCLA to reach his second Challenger quarterfinal.

Marcos Giron fell to Martin Redlicki 6-3, 6-4 in the second
 round in Aptos, Calif. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Redlicki, who was born and raised in the Chicago area, captured the NCAA doubles title as a sophomore in 2016 with Mackenzie McDonald, a San Francisco Bay Area product, and this year with Evan Zhu. Giron won the NCAA singles crown in 2014.
   Today at 11 a.m., Harris will meet Liam Broady of Great Britain. Although both players are unseeded, it's an intriguing matchup.
   The 6-foot-5 (1.96-meter) Harris, 21, whipped Joris De Loore of Belgium 6-2, 6-0 in 52 minutes to extend his winning streak to seven matches. He dispatched third-seeded Quentin Halys of France 6-4, 6-2 in 59 minutes in the first round.
   Broady, last year's runner-up in Aptos as a qualifier, defeated seventh seed and countryman Jay Clarke 7-6 (3), 6-4 to ensure that an unseeded player will reach the final.
   Broady, a 24-year-old left-hander, came to Aptos with an eight-match losing streak. Clarke, 20, won his first Challenger title two weeks ago in Binghamton, N.Y.
   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Friday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Hoop dreams gone, Eubanks ousts No. 2 seed in Aptos

Christopher Eubanks eyes a backhand volley
while warming up to play No. 2 seed Michael
Mmoh on Wednesday. Photo by Paul Bauman

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   APTOS, Calif. — U.S. men's tennis has waited a long time for a player like this.
   Christopher Eubanks, a 6-foot-7 (2.01-meter) African-American, is the type of athlete who typically goes to the NBA.
   "I love basketball," Eubanks admitted Wednesday. "If I could have a second life, I definitely would be a very serious basketball player, but things just didn't work out that way. My dad felt tennis was going to be the best career path for me, and reluctantly I went along with it. I think he made the right decision."
   Eubanks, a 22-year-old lifelong Atlanta resident, continued his rapid rise with a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over another African-American, second-seeded Michael Mmoh, in the second round of the $100,000 Nordic Naturals Challenger at the Seascape Sports Club.
   Eubanks likely is the tallest African-American pro player ever. Chip Hooper, a San Francisco Bay Area product who peaked at No. 17 in the world in 1982, comes close at 6-foot-6 (1.98 meters).
   But Hooper, who weighed 210 pounds (95 kilograms), was pure power. Eubanks, only 180 pounds (82 kg.) with Manute Bol-like arms and legs, has plenty of that and can move, although there's room for improvement.
   Eubanks converted his sixth match point against Mmoh, the 20-year-old son of Nigerian former pro Tony Mmoh, with an inside-out forehand on the alley line. Mmoh briefly questioned the call.
   Mmoh — "the most athletic player you'll ever see on a tennis court," according to friend and fellow U.S. hopeful Reilly Opelka — was almost helpless against Eubanks' booming serve on a typically brisk night in this seaside resort. Eubanks finished with seven aces and four double faults, won 88 percent of the points on his first serve (43 of 49) and escaped the only break point against him.

Michael Mmoh, warming up on Wednesday, lost to Christopher
Eubanks for the first time in four matches. Photo by Paul Bauman  

   The 236th-ranked Eubanks, who also displayed a punishing forehand and one-handed backhand, recorded his first victory over the 135th-ranked Mmoh in four career matches.
   "A lot of our matches tend to be a little bit like (tonight's) — (my) offense versus (his) defense," Eubanks said. "On the other occasions, Mike just played too good. I might have let some moments go when we played in the past, but he plays how he plays. He's a fighter; he's a competitor. He made me come up with the goods, and I couldn't do it before. Today I did a good job of staying consistent, playing very dominant first point to last."
   Also Wednesday, 20-year-old Frances Tiafoe upset Milos Raonic to reach the third round of the Rogers Cup in Toronto, and Evan King and Nathan Pasha advanced to the doubles quarterfinals in the Nordic Naturals Challenger. Tiafoe, who will crack the top 40 for the first time on Monday, King and Pasha are African-American.
   It appears African-Americans are making progress in men's professional tennis.
    "Absolutely," Eubanks asserted. "I've said it before: The more kids are able to see it and believe it, the more you'll see — I don't want to say a rush — but more African-American boys and girls introduced to the sport. If I hadn't had guys from the south side of Atlanta who were high-level tennis players, honestly I wouldn't have believed it was possible.
   "I feel like it's a visual thing. Kids will be whatever they see and believe is possible. The more Frances Tiafoe, Michael Mmoh, Donald Young and hopefully myself can get out there and show kids this life is possible — it just takes work, a little luck and a lot of resources — if you devote your time and you find the right people around you, it's definitely a possible career path."

No. 8 seed Prajnesh Gunneswaran of India narrowly avoided an
upset by young American JC Aragone in a 2-hour, 30-minute
slugfest. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Eubanks will meet unseeded Ernesto Escobedo, also 22, in Friday's quarterfinals. Escobedo, who has plummeted from a career-high No. 67 in July 2017 to No. 188, topped qualifier Aleksandar Vukic of Australia 7-6 (6), 7-6 (1).
   In the other half of the draw, fourth-seeded Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia will meet eighth-seeded Prajnesh Gunneswaran of India.
   Kokkinakis, who stunned Roger Federer in the second round at Miami in March, wore down Kaichi Uchida of Japan 7-5, 6-0.
   Gunneswaran, a 28-year-old left-hander, was fortunate to outlast 5-foot-10 (1.78-meter) JC Aragone, 23, of Yorba Linda in the Los Angeles area, 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in a 2-hour, 30-minute slugfest. Aragone, who helped Virginia win the NCAA title in all three of his years there, double-faulted while holding a match point at 5-4 in the second set and on break point in that game.
   Eubanks began playing at 2.
   "I have an older brother (Mark Jr.) who played, and when I came along (12 years later), my dad put me in the sport with him," Eubanks said.
   Eubanks' father prohibited him from playing on his high school basketball team.
   "I took advanced courses in high school," Eubanks explained. "I'd tell my dad that I would stay after school for tutoring, and I would go to tutoring for about 10 minutes, then I would scrimmage with the basketball team.

   "The basketball coach told me I had a spot on the team if I wanted it. I told my dad eagerly, 'Coach Rogers said I could play on the team.' Sternly he looked me in the face and said, 'No.' That was the extent of my basketball dreams."

JC Aragone was brilliant from the baseline against Prajnesh
Gunneswaran but double-faulted while holding a match point
and on break point in that game. Photo by Paul Bauman

   Eubanks has been mentored by Atlanta products Donald Young, who reached a career-high No. 38 in 2012, and Jarmere Jenkins, the 2013 NCAA singles runner-up and doubles champion from Virginia with Mac Styslinger and now Serena Williams' hitting partner.

   "Traveling with Donald Young kind of opened my eyes to see what professional tennis was like," said Eubanks, who has the one thing the former prodigy lacks — size. "If it hadn't been for him, I wouldn't have known how to go about playing Challengers or preparation or how to be diligent in practice every day.
   "He allowed me to travel with him to the French Open, Wimbledon, U.S. Open and a few other tournaments. I said, 'Wow, this is what professional tennis is; this is what I really want to do.' 

   Eubanks played at Georgia Tech in Atlanta for three years, earning Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year honors in his last two (2016 and 2017). He reached the quarterfinals of his hometown tournament on the ATP World Tour last summer, defeating top U.S. prospects Taylor Fritz and Jared Donaldson, and turned pro last October.
   Eubanks' first and only Challenger title, in Leon, Mexico, at an elevation of 5,955 feet (1,815 meters) in April, was particularly satisfying.
   "I made the final (the previous week) in Guadalajara (at an elevation of 5,138 feet or 1,566 meters) and lost 7-6 in the third," Eubanks recalled. "I left that tournament feeling like I was at rock bottom to go to Leon. I ended up winning that tournament 7-6 in the third in the final, so to go from as low as I felt like I could — because I honestly didn't know if I was good enough to get back to a Challenger final anytime soon — to not only get back but to win it in the same fashion I lost the first one was pretty cool."

   It isn't difficult to identify Eubanks' biggest strength.
   "Definitely my serve," he proclaimed. "I think my match today definitely revolved around my serve. If I don't serve well, I definitely don't win this match."
   Eubanks is working on "getting stronger. Movement is a big thing. Getting out of the corners is a thing I tend to struggle with a little bit right now. I'm hoping as I continue to grow I will get stronger and work a little more diligently on the return and the movement out of the corners.
   "Those are two areas I'm really focusing on. I think I can be a much better player. And always continuing to get the serve as good as possible. The better the serve can be, the higher my trajectory is."
   Eubanks is making his second appearance in Aptos. He played the 2016 tournament on Young's recommendation.

   "Young said, 'I won my first Challenger title in Aptos (in 2007). You'll love it there,' " Eubanks said. "I lost 6-2, 6-1 to Eric Quigley in the first round and was on the next flight home. Now I know what (Young) meant."   

   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Thursday's schedule. Live streaming is available.

Kokkinakis continues comeback after beating Federer

Thanasi Kokkinakis called himself "an idiot" for lifting weights to look better.
He hurt his shoulder and needed surgery. Photo by Paul Bauman

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   APTOS, Calif. — Beating Roger Federer is a pretty good indication that you're back from injuries.
   Thanasi Kokkinakis stunned Federer 7-6 in the third set in the second round at Miami in March as a qualifier.
   "It was a bit of a reward for all the setbacks and hard work I've had, so hopefully I can get a few more of those," Kokkinakis, seeded fourth in the $100,000 Nordic Nationals Challenger, said after overpowering fellow Australian Max Purcell 6-2, 6-2 in 56 minutes today in the first round at the Seascape Sports Club.
   As usual, though, Kokkinakis' euphoria didn't last long. 
   In his next tournament, the Monte-Carlo Masters in April, Kokkinakis chased a deep ball from Russian Karen Khachanov and stumbled on a sponsor sign. Kokkinakis completed the match, losing 7-5, 6-4, but sat out more than a month with a small fracture in his left kneecap and a deep bone bruise.

Illya Marchenko, a former top-50 player from Ukraine, fell
to 0-8 since returning in May from shoulder surgery.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   It was the latest in a long line of injuries for Kokkinakis over the past 2 1/2 years, causing him to consider retirement. Name a part of the anatomy, and he likely has had a problem there: shoulder, groin, chest, abdomen, elbow and ankle.
   Kokkinakis' right shoulder injury was the most serious. He had surgery in December 2015 and played only one match in 2016. Other injuries limited him to seven tournaments last year, from May through August.
   "It's been pretty s--- — I'm not going to lie," said the 22-year-old Kokkinakis, a 6-foot-4 (1.93-meter) right-hander. "I've hated it. But that's a part of sport. Some people get more (injuries) than others, but it's just something you have to try to deal with. I'm on the comeback trail now, and I'm trying to get a few matches. That's why I'm trying to play a few Challengers. Hopefully, I can do well and get my ranking back up where it should be."
   Kokkinakis has tumbled from a career-high No. 69 at age 19 to No. 268. He plunged 104 places on Monday after losing to U.S. prospect Taylor Fritz 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5) in the first round in Los Cabos last week. Kokkinakis reached his first ATP final there last year, losing to San Francisco native Sam Querrey.
   Kokkinakis blames himself for his shoulder injury.
   "I'm an idiot," Kokkinakis told 20FOUR, a sports social media site. "Looking back, it was probably my biggest regret. The back end of 2015, I started lifting weights (because) I heard Nike was bringing out sleeveless tops. So I was like, 'All right, I've got to bulk up a little bit.' Terrible idea. Never do bench press. And then yeah, my shoulder's screwed.
   "I remember I came back home — I was in a taxi — and I went to hand the driver a credit card, and I couldn't lift my arm above here. I had a couple of cortisones. I was like, 'No, I'm screwed.'
   "So I knew I was going to have surgery, which was pretty shattering."

Liam Broady, last year's runner-up in Aptos as a qual-
ifier, snapped his losing streak at nine matches.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   Kokkinakis' surgeon told him he could start hitting in three to four months, news.com.au reported. But after completing a 12-week rehabilitation program, Kokkinakis learned otherwise.
   "I picked up a racket, hit a serve, and it felt like my shoulder just disclocated again," he said. "I was like, 'Oh, I can't handle this.' I piffed (threw) my racket over to the other side. I smashed it. I was crying."
   Goodbye 2016 French Open and Wimbledon. While Kokkinakis was preparing for the U.S. Open, misfortune struck again.
   "I hit a high forehand, and I tear my pec," he said. "And I was like, 'Oh man, I'm so over this.' "
   Illya Marchenko, 30, is trying to rebound from his own shoulder operation. The former top-50 player from Ukraine lost to seventh-seeded Jay Clarke of Great Britain 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 today to fall to 0-8 since returning in May.
    "My confidence is not there," sighed Marchenko, who has plunged from a career-high No. 49 in 2016 to No. 337. "During the important points, I'm shaking all the time. It's a long process."
   Clarke, who won his first Challenger title two weeks ago in Binghamton, N.Y., will meet countryman Liam Broady on Thursday. Broady, last year's runner-up in Aptos as a qualifier, ended his losing streak at nine matches with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Marc Polmans of Australia.

Lloyd Harris, who won his first Challenger title
last week in Lexington, Ky., needed only 59 min-
utes to beat No. 3 seed Quentin Halys. Photo by
Paul Bauman  

   Two seeds lost today, both in less than an hour.

   No. 3 Quentin Halys of France fell to Lloyd Harris, a 21-year-old South African who won his first Challenger title last week in Lexington, Ky., 6-4, 6-2 in 59 minutes. Halys reached the final of the $100,000 Fairfield Challenger in Northern California in 2016.
   Also, No. 5 Kevin King of Atlanta bowed out to qualifier Aleksandar Vukic of Australia 6-1, 6-3 in 55 minutes.
   In the featured night match, top-seeded Thomas Fabbiano of Italy topped promising Miomar Kecmanovic, an 18-year-old Serb based in Bradenton, Fla., 6-4, 7-6 (0).
   Kecmanovic, the No. 1 junior in the world in 2016, reached the final of the $100,000 San Francisco Challenger indoors in February. Aptos, situated on the Pacific Ocean, is 82 miles (132 kilometers) south of San Francisco.
   Fabbiano, only 5-foot-8 (1.73 meters) and 152 pounds (69 kilograms), advanced to the third round at Wimbledon as a qualifier last month and at last year's U.S. Open. He will face countryman Stefano Napolitano, the Lexington runner-up who defeated 24-year-old San Jose product Dennis Novikov 6-4, 6-3.
   Here are the updated Aptos singles and doubles draws and Wednesday's schedule. Live streaming is available.