In Geneva, Switzerland, the ATP-250 tournament has kicked off with Kazakhstani tennis player Alexander Shevchenko (ATP No. 61) playing a first-round match in the singles category.
In the opening game, the Kazakhstani defeated Hungarian player Fabian Marozsan (ATP No. 41) with a score of 6:4, 7:6. Shevchenko now leads in their head-to-head encounters (2:0).
The match lasted for 1 hour and 32 minutes. During this time, Alexander served six aces, committed one double fault, and converted two out of four break points.
In the next round, Shevchenko will face Emil Ruusuvuori (ATP No. 66, Finland), who defeated Marcos Giron (USA) with a score of 6:3, 6:3.
It is worth noting that the 24-time Grand Slam champion, Novak Djokovic, will also compete in the clay court tournament in Geneva. The world's top-ranked player will begin his campaign from the second round, where he could potentially face another seasoned player, Andy Murray (UK), for the first time in seven years, provided Murray advances past German player Yannick Hanfmann in the first round.
Djokovic and Murray have not faced each other in official matches for seven years. In the final of Doha 2017, the Serbian emerged victorious (6:3, 5:7, 6:4). Two years ago, they were supposed to meet at the Madrid Masters, but Murray withdrew before the 1/8 final match. Overall, Djokovic holds a clear advantage in their head-to-head record, leading 25-11.
If Djokovic reaches the quarterfinals, he could potentially meet Tallon Griekspoor (Netherlands) as his opponent. In the semifinals, his possible challenger could be Taylor Fritz (USA), and in the final, it could be Casper Ruud (Norway) or Ben Shelton (USA).
So why did Djokovic decide to participate in Geneva? Ahead of the French Open, Djokovic seems to be in need of more match practice, hence his last-minute entry into the Swiss competition. At the Rome Masters last week, Djokovic only reached the third round, where he suffered a surprising defeat to Chilean player Alejandro Tabilo. Notably, Djokovic lost in Rome after an unpleasant incident involving a bottle hitting him on the head.
Furthermore, Djokovic is determined not to relinquish the title of the world's top-ranked player to Jannik Sinner (Italy). Initially, the scenario was as follows: if Sinner withdrew from the French Open, Djokovic would need to reach the final to retain his top spot. Subtracting last year's tournament points, Djokovic would have 7860 points, while Sinner would have 8725. A semifinal appearance at the French Open awards 800 points, and reaching the final grants 1300 points. Therefore, Djokovic would need to reach at least the semifinals under these circumstances.
The situation changes if Djokovic wins in Geneva and earns 250 points. This would reduce the live-ranking gap between him and Sinner to 615 points before the French Open. In this case, if Djokovic secures the Geneva title, reaching the semifinals at Roland Garros would be sufficient for him to remain the world number one after the Paris tournament, provided Sinner does not participate in the clay major.
Many experts were surprised by Djokovic's decision to compete in Geneva.
"I am very surprised that two top players – Djokovic and Ruud – will play in an ATP-250 tournament a week before the French Open. In a Grand Slam tournament, with a five-set format, it is crucial to ensure that energy levels are at their peak. It seems that they feel the need for more matches. Djokovic obviously believes he needs to play a few more matches. Personally, I don't think he needs to play more. It's surprising but it shows that the guys are looking for more competition," said former world No. 4, Tim Henman.
Earlier, Kazakhstani tennis player Beibit Zhukayev failed to advance past the qualifying rounds of the French Open 2024.
