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The German city of Düsseldorf will host an ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament in the week before Roland Garros after leading promoter Ion Tiriac and the recently retired player Rainer Schuettler joined forces to acquire the tournament membership. The Power Horse Cup, to be staged at the Rochusclub, will be held Sunday May 19 to Saturday May 25.

Pan-European broadcaster Eurosport will be the official domestic and international media partner for a minimum of three years and will televise matches daily during the clay-court event. It is the first time that Eurosport will be the host broadcaster of an ATP World Tour tournament. Live HD coverage will be available on Eurosport and Eurosport2 in 59 countries and the partnership also gives Eurosport digital rights to all matches.

Power Horse Cup Tournament Director Dietloff von Arnim said: “We’re glad the great tradition of ATP tournaments in Düsseldorf can be continued with the staging of the 2013 Power Horse Cup… We’re also proud that we’ve gained Eurosport as the host broadcaster. It guarantees excellent coverage for fans and sponsors alike – not only in Germany but in the whole of Europe.”

Former World No. 5 and Australian Open finalist Schuettler said: “For me, it is great to come from the tennis playing side to now getting involved in tournament organisation. Dietloff von Arnim will organise the event, so we have great experience in this partnership. I am looking forward in the years to come to build a great event there.”

© Bongarts/Getty ImagesRoger Federer improved to 37-4 in Halle on Thursday.

Five-time Gerry Weber Open championRoger Federer opened his title campaign on Thursday, defeating Florian Mayer 6-4, 7-5 to begin his grass-court season in Halle.

The second-seeded Federer hit 11 aces, won 76 per cent of his service points and converted two of his six break point chances to remain undefeated in four matches against Mayer.

“I’m very happy with the way things went today. I obviously knew playing against Mayer in the first round was going to be tricky,” Federer said. “He’s in the Top 30 and has been to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon. And I’ve played him here on grass before, so I know how tough he can be.

“But I felt I was focussed, was moving well and bascially, didn’t have any letdowns on my serve. I was able to create a few more chances than he did. I’m through with my first victory on grass this year and I hope it’s not my last.”

Federer was playing his first match since falling to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Roland Garros semi-finals. Federer has won four titles this season, in Rotterdam (d. del Potro), Dubai (d. Murray), Indian Wells (d. Isner) and Madrid (d. Berdych).

The 30-year-old Swiss, who signed a lifetime contract with the ATP World Tour 250 grass-court tournament in Halle, has a 37-4 event record, and is looking to collect his first trophy at the tournament since triumphing in 2008 over Philipp Kohlschreiber.

In the quarter-finals, Federer will clash with big-serving Milos Raonic. Federer has won both of their meetings this season in three sets, edging the Canadian in Indian Wells and Madrid.

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Wild card Tommy Haas beat Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4 to avenge his second-round loss to the Spaniard at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. The 33-year-old home favourite won 60 per cent of his second serve return points to break Granollers once in each set.

“He’s a very tricky player. He’s No. 22 in the world so you know what you’re going to get,” said Haas. “I played him recently in Indian Wells, where I lost a tough three setter, so I was seeking revenge. I knew I had to play some of my best tennis and I think this was one of my best matches throughout the whole year. I’m really pleased to have beaten him today.”

Haas is bidding to win his first title since lifting the Halle trophy three years ago after upsetting Novak Djokovic in the final. The 33 year old will look to equal his best season run (Munich semi-finals) when he takes on third seed and 2007 champion Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals.

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal made his grass-court season singles debut at the Gerry Weber OpenThursday, easing past Lukas Lacko 7-5, 6-1 to claim his first victory at the event.

“At the beginning, it was more difficult to return. I tried to put more balls inside, trying to return with a bit of slice. That put me into a bit more of a rhythm,” said Nadal. “In the second set, I played with [fewer] mistakes, which is the most important thing. I’m happy. Every match here is very dangerous after playing on clay for two and a half months. Tomorrow will be another tough match.”

Nadal, returning to Halle for the first time in seven years after a first-round exit to Alexander Waske in 2005, won eight of the final nine games against Lacko to prevail in 76 minutes, improving to 4-0 against the Slovakian.

The 26-year-old Nadal is riding a 13-match win streak, having defeated top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and Roland Garros. Nadal’s triumph over Djokovic on Monday saw the Spaniard clinch a record-breaking seventh trophy on Parisian clay.

“I’m very happy to be in Halle after a long time without coming here,” Nadal said. “For me, it’s always special to be back in a place where I haven’t been in quite for a while.”

In the quarter-finals, Nadal will clash with reigning champion Philipp Kohlschreiber. The eighth-seeded German defeated Lukasz Kubot 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-3, winning 77 per cent of his service points and firing 11 aces. He broke Kubot four times to lock up the victory in two hours and four minutes.

“I could have won the first set but he took his chances. I also think that he didn’t play on the same level in the second and third set,” assessed Kohlschreiber. “He gave me an early break in the second which encouraged me. I always had the feeling that I was a hint better than he was. But that’s just a feeling. Sometimes you lose the first set and still think you are the better player. Fortunately, the feeling I had turned out to be true. As I said, I think he didn’t keep up his level.”

For the seventh time in eight appearances at the ATP World Tour 250 grass-court event in Halle, where he holds a 21-6 record, Kohlschreiber is through to the last eight. This year, he captured the title in Munich (d. Cilic) and reached the semi-finals in Auckland (l. to Rochus) and Montpellier (l. to Berdych).

Rain wreaked more havoc at the Open de Nice Côte d’Azur on Monday, with no matches played at the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tournament. With heavy rain disrupting play on Sunday, so far only one main draw match has started, with Xavier Malisse currently leading Yen-Hsun Lu 7-5, 1-0.

Twelve first-round matches are on the schedule for Tuesday, including fifth seed Bernard Tomic, sixth seed Robin Haase, seventh seed Denis Istomin and eighth seed Fabio Fognini.

The top two doubles seeds also open their campaigns as No. 1 Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan face Australians Bernard Tomic and Matthew Ebden, and No. 2 Rohan Bopanna and David Marrero challenge Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey.

Top-seeded Argentine Juan Martin del Potro successfully defended his Estoril Open title on Sunday with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over second seed and 2007 runner-upRichard Gasquet of France in 88 minutes. It was the first No. 1 seed versus No. 2 seed final in four years (Federer-Davydenko) at the Estadio Nacional. The final

Del Potro became the third player in the 23-year-old history of the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tournament to win back-to-back titles. He joined Spaniard Albert Montanes (2009-10), who he beat in this year’s quarter-finals, and former World No. 1 Thomas Muster (1995-96).

The 23-year-old Tandil native earned €71,900 in prize money and 250 South African Airways ATP Ranking points, while Gasquet went home with €37,860 and 150 points. It was del Potro’s 11th tour-level title (11-5 lifetime and 4-0 on clay).

“I felt I played well really well today,” said del Potro. “I felt it was my best match of the week, so I am very glad for that to get another title in Estoril.

“I play really aggressive all the time and I felt really confident on my forehand. I grew in confidence every game. It is important for me. I played my best to beat Gasquet.

“I am getting closer and closer to my best form. I have worked really hard at home and now I have another important tournament next week to improve further. If I play as well as I did today over the coming days, I will be happy.”

Del Potro, who beat Gasquet in the Open 13 quarter-finals at Marseille in February, broke his opponent to love in the opening game. Gasquet came under further pressure at 1-3, when del Potro’s power from the baseline forced one break point opportunity at 30/40. Gasquet saved it by charging the net for a forehand volley winner.

While del Potro experienced few problems in holding serve, the reverse was true for Gasquet. At 2-4, the Frenchman saved two break points, but del Potro’s consistency in long baseline rallies continued to force Gasquet into several errors. Del Potro regularly had Gasquet striking his groundstrokes from three yards behind the baseline.

The World No. 12 sealed the set with a love hold in 54 minutes. In four service games he’d lost seven points on serve.  Gasquet had lost 20 of his service points.

Del Potro broke in the first game of the second set, converting his third break point chance with a forehand winner down the line into space. He took a 4-1 lead, with yet another powerful forehand winner and went onto record his fourth straight win in five minutes over Gasquet. It was del Potro’s 27th match win of 2012 (27-6 record).

Del Potro dropped 22 games in four matches en route to the title. He held serve 33 of 35 games and won 15 of 34 return games during the week.

The 25-year-old Gasquet dropped to 6-9 in ATP World Tour finals (2-5 on clay). He finished runner-up to Novak Djokovic in the 2007 Estoril Openfinal.

“He played very well, he’s very powerful, has a great a service, a great forehand and backhand,” said Gasquet. “He deserved this win. He played better than me. He’s very tall and has a good second serve and was hitting the ball very well. He was the better player today.

“It’s always disappointing to lose a final. [In the others finals I have lost] I lost five times to Djokovic, [Roger] Federer, now del Potro. They were better than me.

“It’s good for me to reach a final. It was a good tournament to prepare for the clay season. I get confidence from this tournament.”

By ATP Staff

by ATP Staff

Fourth seed Philipp Kohlschreiber captured his second title at the BMW Openon Sunday, defeating No. 3 seed Marin Cilic 7-6(8), 6-3 in Munich.

Kohlschreiber saved seven of the eight break points he faced, including all four against his serve in the second set, to seal the final victory in one hour and 49 minutes. He secured his fifth win in eight meetings with Cilic to lift his first trophy of the season.

“I think we had a tight and great first set. I was a little more lucky in the important moments,” Kohlschreiber reflected to ATPWorldTour.com. “Maybe that was the key to the whole match. I had a good start in the second set, making a break and I held it until the end.”

The German improved to a 17-6 record at the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court tournament, adding to his triumph over Mikhail Youzhny in 2007. He is now 4-2 in title matches, and became the first two-time German winner at the event. In addition to winning € 71,900 in prize money, Kohlschreiber takes home a brand new white BMW Z4 sDrive28i and two business class tickets to South Africa courtesy of South African Airways.

“It’s tough to find the words when you win your home tournament,” said Kohlschreiber. “The win at the BMW Open in 2007 gave me a great start in my career. Now, in the later stages of my career, it’s an amazing feeling to win in front of my home fans.”

Cilic finished runner-up for the second time, having lost to Youzhny in the 2010 final. He was bidding to win his first clay-court crown in three finals, and fell to an overall final record of 6-7.

“I didn’t find a rhythm like I had in the days before. I think that had an impact during the match,” Cilic said. “I had four or five set points in the first set. I felt the whole time I was trying to catch him. Today’s conditions were pretty heavy, so I needed to find a good balance with everything. It’s unfortunate losing in the final for the second time, but I’m happy with the week. I’m going to put this final behind me and look forward to Madrid.”

Second seed Andreas Seppi dismissed first-time ATP World Tour finalistBenoit Paire 6-3, 6-2 at the Serbia Open 2012 Sunday to win his first title of the year in Belgrade.

“I think my play was really solid this week,” Seppi assessed. “Maybe yesterday, the first set was under my expectations, but the rest was very good, so I can be very happy about this victory.”

Seppi won 67 per cent of his second serve return points to break the Frenchman five times, wrapping up the final victory in 71 minutes.

“I was stressed and tired today,” Paire said. “It’s disappointing that I couldn’t win any easy games with my serve after leading 3-1 in the first set. My first serve percentage was very low and that’s why he was able to attack all the time.
 
“I only had hard matches against tough players this week. I’m not used to playing so many hard matches against great players in a row. It was a great week for me but of course I’m disappointed that I couldn’t do better in my first final. I have my birthday in two days and this would have been the perfect gift.”

The Italian improved to a 2-1 record in title matches, adding to his triumph at the AEGON International in Eastbourne (d. Tipsarevic) last year. He is 7-2 on clay this season.

“My goal is to be back into the Top 30. My highest ranking is 27,” said Seppi. “At the beginning of the year, I said I wanted to try and get back there. I’m a little closer now. I’ll just try to do it match by match and see if I can manage it by the end of the year.”

The 96th-ranked Paire was bidding to become the lowest-ranked player to lift an ATP World Tour trophy in 2012, as well as the first player this season to capture his maiden tour-level title. He had defeated three seeded players en route to the final.

“I’m looking forward to the coming weeks,” said Paire. “I have no points to defend in the next three months and that makes it very interesting. I saw this week that I can beat great players and I hope that I can continue like this.”

By ATP Staff

by ATP Staff

Top seeds Frantisek Cermakand Filip Polasek lifted their first team trophy of the season Sunday, defeating Xavier Malisse and Dick Norman 6-4, 7-5 in the BMW Open final in Munich.

“The conditions were very tough. It was raining since the first point until the last one,” Polasek told ATPWorldTour.com. “We were laughing because last year, we won the Belgrade tournament the same week and it was exactly the same conditions. We won it as well. There were a lot of similarities, so we were very happy to finish it in two sets.”

The Czech/Slovak duo won 78 per cent of their first serve points and converted three of their eight break point opportunities against the Belgians to claim victory in 77 minutes.

“I feel good. It’s an unbelievable feeling,” Cermak said. “This is the first tournament I won since my daughter was born, so I’m very happy.”

Cermak and Polasek improved to a 4-4 final record, winning their first title since triumphing in Moscow last year.

“We lost a couple first rounds recently, so we’re happy we made a strong result here,” said Polasek. “We’re looking forward to the next two Masters 1000 events.”

Malisse and Norman were aiming to win their first trophy together since winning the Aircel Chennai Open in 2007. Malisse dropped to 7-3 in title matches while Norman fell to 4-3.

In Belgrade, third seeds Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram rallied pastMartin Emmrich and Andreas Siljestrom 4-6, 6-2, 10-6 to win the Serbia Open 2012 crown, their clay-court success since joining forces in 1998.

“As you grow up, you get more experience on clay. It’s not our favourite surface, but I think we’re playing top tennis on it,” said Erlich. “We’re getting better and better. The last two weeks, we’ve played very good. We still have a few tournaments ahead of us, so maybe it will be our favourite by the end of the year.”

Erlich and Ram won all six of their first serve points in the deciding Match Tie-break to clinch their 15th team title in one hour and 32 minutes.

“We’re very happy to get our first title of the season,” Ram said. “It’s our first clay-court title together on clay, so that’s a relief to finish a tough week by winning the title. We’re climbing slowly and slowly back to the top to where we want to be.”

The Israeli pair improved to a 233-154 career match record together, celebrating their first title since finishing in the winners’ circle at theWinston-Salem Open last August.

Emmrich was appearing in his first ATP World Tour final. Siljestrom was bidding to win his first trophy in his second championship match after a runner-up showing on home soil at the SkiStar Swedish Open with the now-retired Simon Aspelin in 2011.

Third seed Marin Cilic reached his first final of the season Saturday at theBMW Open, defeating wild card Tommy Haas 6-3, 6-4 in Munich.

Cilic won 89 per cent of his service points and broke the German once in each set to take their semi-final clash in 75 minutes, evening their FedEx ATP Head 2 Head record to 1-1.

“It was my best match of the week,” Cilic declared to ATPWorldTour.com. “I played and served extremely well. I believe he didn’t reach deuce on my serve. I waited for my chances on return. Tommy played really well this week and I went into the match with thoughts of that. It made good preparation for everything.”

The 23-year-old Croat is through to his second final at the ATP World Tour 250 clay-court event, after a runner-up finish to Mikhail Youzhny in 2010. Cilic is aiming to lift his first clay-court trophy in three attempts and holds a 6-6 final record overall. His last triumph came at the St. Petersburg Open in October last year (d. Tipsarevic).

“I’ve always played well here and have enjoyed the atmosphere,” said Cilic. “This week, there have been some really warm days, which has suited my game. I’m playing well and feeling good, so hopefully I’m going to continue to play like this.”

In the final, Cilic will square off against 2007 titlist Philipp Kohlschreiber. The third seed topped No. 2 seed Feliciano Lopez 6-2, 6-7(4), 6-4 in two hours and 19 minutes.

The German saved all five break points he faced and converted three of his 13 break point opportunities to defeat Lopez for the second time in five meetings.

Kohlschreiber will contest his sixth final (3-2 record) and is aiming to lift his first trophy since triumphing on home soil last June at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle (d. Petzschner).

BY ATP STAFF