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atpworldtour.com: July 20 2014 Bogota, Colombia - Bernard Tomic took a significant step forward in his comeback campaign on the ATP World Tour, toppling defending champion Ivo Karlovic for the Claro Open Colombia title on Sunday.

Tomic prevailed 7-6(5), 3-6, 7-6(4) in two hours and 13 minutes for his second tour-level title, adding to a 2013 triumph at the Apia Sydney International (d. Anderson). The 21 year old completes a strong week in Bogota, winning consecutive matches for the first time since undergoing double hip surgery in late January.

Tomic overcame a serving barrage from Karlovic, who hammered 39 aces, just five shy of his three-set record set earlier this year in Zagreb. The young Aussie needed four championship points to put away the 6’11” Croat, who refused to be broken when facing a pair at 6-5 in the deciding set, and another in the ensuing tie-break. Tomic would hold his nerve on his fourth, catching a net-charging Karlovic out of position with a perfectly placed low dipping return to his feet.

The former World No. 27 fired 11 aces of his own, winning 79 per cent of first serve points and saving four of five break points faced. Tomic, who receives $120,270 and 250 Emirates ATP Rankings points for his efforts, will break back into the Top 100 with the title. Karlovic, meanwhile, suffered his first defeat in the Colombian capital, ending an eight match losing streak. The 35 year old was seeking to become the oldest tour-level titlist this year and 11th over-30 champion. 

atpworldtour.com: July 20, 2014 Hamburg, Germany - World No. 46 Leonardo Mayer captured his first ATP World Tour title on Sunday as he held his nerve to edge top seed David Ferrer 6-7(3), 6-1, 7-6(4) in the final of the bet-at-home Open in Hamburg.

The Argentine is the fourth first-time singles winner on the ATP World Tour this year, following in the footsteps of Federico Delbonis (Sao Paulo), Roberto Bautista Agut (‘s-Hertogenbosch) and Pablo Cuevas (Bastad). Mayer served for the match at 5-4 in the decider, but was broken back to 30 as Ferrer fought back. Mayer retained his focus for the subsequent tie-break, though, and closed out victory in two hours and 20 minutes. Mayer is enjoying one of the best spells of his career.

Last month, the right-hander advanced to the fourth round at Wimbledon (l. to Dimitrov) and earlier in the season he reached his first ATP World Tour final in Vina del Mar (l. to Fognini). He has a 22-12 match record in 2014. The 32-year-old Ferrer was contesting his 44th tour-level title match and dropped to a 21-23 finals record. The Valencia native had come through his past two matches – against Pablo Andujar and teenage sensation Alexander Zverev - for the loss of just three games, and was bidding to win his second title of the season after victory in Buenos Aires (d. Fognini).

atpworldtour.com July 19, 2014 Bogota, Colombia -  Ivo Karlovic will defend his Claro Open Colombia title on Sunday after overcoming a late surge by Radek Stepanek in the Bogota semi-finals. The 6’11” Croat prevailed 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in one hour and 42 minutes, firing 22 aces and saving five of six break points faced to improve to 8-0 in the Colombian capital.

Stepanek rebounded after dropping the first set, snatching 17 of the first 21 points in the second to race out to a 3-0, 15/40 lead. The Czech would force a decider, but it was Karlovic who would secure the late break to claim victory after a riveting eight-volley exchange at the net on match point. Their most memorable meeting was a thrilling six-hour affair in the 2009 Davis Cup semi-finals, won by Stepanek 16-14 in the fifth set.

Karlovic will face wild card and former World No. 27 Bernard Tomic for the title after the Australian survived a valiant fight by 33-year-old Victor Estrella Burgos 7-6(2), 6-7(5), 7-6(5) after two hours and 46 minutes. Tomic, who will contest his second final of the year and third of his career, is looking to rediscover his top form following double hip surgery in late January. A champion at the Apia International Sydney in 2013 and a finalist there this year (l. to Del Potro), the 21 year old is set to return to the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings.

atpworldtour.com July 19, 2014 Hamburg, Germany - Experience trumped youth on Saturday at the bet-at-home Open in Hamburg as top seed David Ferrer ended German teenager Alexander Zverev’s run with a 6-0, 6-1 victory in the semi-finals.

The 32-year-old Ferrer dismissed his 17-year-old opponent in 56 minutes to advance to his 44th tour-level final. He will face Leonardo Mayer on Sunday as he bids to win his 22nd title.

World No. 285 Zverev was the youngest player ever to compete in the semi-finals of an ATP World Tour 500 tournament, having ousted the likes of fifth seed Mikhail Youzhny and No. 11 Santiago Giraldo. Ferrer bested his local opponent as he converted five of his eight break points and won 74 per cent of his service points.

World No. 46 Leonardo Mayer reached his first ATP World Tour 500 final as he upset seventh-seeded German Philipp Kohlschreiber 7-5, 6-4. The Argentine has not dropped a set in five matches to reach the final.  The 27-year-old Mayer is up to a career-high No. 46 in the Emirates ATP Rankings this week, boosted by a run to the fourth round at Wimbledon last month. The Argentine is looking to win his first ATP World Tour title, having finished runner-up in his maiden final on clay in Vina del Mar in February (l. to Fognini).

atpworldtour.com July 18 2014 Bogota, Colombia - Ivo Karlovic recorded his 250th win on the ATP World Tour as he advanced to his second consecutive semi-final at the Claro Open Colombia Saturday.

The Defending champion defeated Jimmy Wang of Chinese Taipei 6-3, 7-6(6) in 84 minutes. Last year, Karlovic won his fifth title at the tournament's inaugural edition without dropping his serve through 60 service games. Karlovic goes on to face fellow 35-year-old Radek Stepanek, a 6-4, 6-4 winner over hometown favorite Alejandro Gonzalez. The fourth-seeded Stepanek leads 4-1 in the FedEx ATP Head2Head series against the 6'11" Karlovic.

In Saturday’s other semi-final, wild card and former World No. 27 Bernard Tomic will face off against 33 year old upstart Victor Estrella Burgos. Estrella Burgos reached his first tour-level semi with an impressive win over top seed Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-4, denying the World No. 14 a fourth semi-final of the year and third on hard courts.

Tomic advanced to the Bogota semis with an efficient 6-4, 6-4 win over Vasek Pospisil in 70 minutes. The Australian hammered 10 aces, saving the lone break point opportunity conjured by his Canadian opponent. The 21 year old is on the comeback trail following double hip surgery earlier in the year, winning his 10th match of his 2014 campaign. He is eyeing his second final berth in 2014 after advancing as far at the Apia International Sydney (l. to Del Potro)

atpworldtour.com July 18 2014 Hamburg, Germany - Alexander Zverev is living the dream at the bet-at-home Open in Hamburg, and he has no intention of stopping yet. The 17 year old reached the semi-finals of his hometown tournament on Friday as he battled past fellow Hamburg resident Tobias Kamke 0-6, 7-5, 6-3.

The former junior World No. 1 is the first 17 year old to reach the semi-finals of an ATP World Tour event since Marin Cilic lost to Feliciano Lopez in the 2006 Gstaad semi-finals and the youngest ever to reach the semi-finals of an ATP World Tour 500 tournament. Zverev recovered from a slow start against Kamke, winning just six points in the first set, to fight back and beat the No. 83-ranked Kamke in just over two hours. His next challenge will be against top seed David Ferrer.

Ferrer wasted no time booking his semi-final berth, dismissing fellow Spaniard Pablo Andujar 6-0, 6-2 in just 66 minutes. The 32-year-old Ferrer is 15 years older than his semi-final opponent and is bidding to reach his 44th tour-level final. The No. 7-ranked Ferrer is chasing his second ATP World Tour title of the season this week.

World No. 46 Leonardo Mayer reached his second ATP World Tour semi-final of the season as he dismissed Dusan Lajovic 6-1, 7-5 in 75 minutes. The Argentine won 74 per cent of his service points and broke Lajovic three times to claim his 20th win of the season. For a place in the final, Mayer will face seventh-seeded German Philipp Kohlschreiber, who defeated Lukas Rosol 6-4, 6-4 in 77 minutes. 

atpworldtour.com July 16 2014 Hamburg, Germany - Defending champion and No. 2 seed Fabio Fognini was beaten in the second round by qualifier Filip Krajinovic, the World No. 149, placed 134 spots lower than the Italian in the Emirates ATP Rankings, 6-4, 6-1 in 55 minutes. He will meet Dusan Lajovic, who converted both of his break point opportunities to oust No. 15 seed and this year’s Portugal Open winner, Carlos Berlocq, 6-3, 6-4.

German wild card Alexander Zverev, aged 17 years and four months, knocked out fifth seed Mikhail Youzhny, 7-5, 7-5 in two hours for a third-round clash against No. 11 seed Santiago Giraldo. Zverev’s win over the World No. 19 marks the first time a 17 year old has defeated a Top 20 opponent on the ATP World Tour since Richard Gasquet (17) beat No. 11 Nicolas Massu in the Portugal Open first round in April 2004.

Federico Delbonis, the No. 13 seed, who could not convert three championship points in last year’s title match, fell to wild card Tobias Kamke 6-3, 6-4. Kamke next meets fourth seed Alexandr Dolgopolov, who avoided a fourth opening-round exit in Hamburg, after he hit six aces past Jerzy Janowicz in a 6-4, 6-1 win over 72 minutes.

Dustin Brown saved two match points at 5/6 and 6/7 in the third set tie-break to beat ninth seed Fernando Verdasco 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(8) in one hour and 54 minutes. Tenth seed Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, the winner of April's Grand Prix Hassan II, fell to Leonardo Mayer 7-6(1), 7-6(3) in two hours and eight minutes. Lukas Rosol defeated last week’s SkiStar Swedish Open runner-up, No. 14 seed Joao Sousa, 6-2, 6-4.

Seventh seed Philipp Kohlschreiber avoided the exodus, closing out a 7-5, 6-1 win over Portuguese qualifier Gastao Elias 7-5, 6-1 in one hour and 25 minutes. He will play Gilles Simon for a place in the quarter-finals; the 12th-seeded Frenchman made his way safely through when Martin Klizan withdrew prior to their match with a left wrist injury. Meanwhile, Italian Andreas Seppi, the No. 16 seed, recovered to edge former champion Juan Monaco 1-6, 6-0, 7-6(3) in just under two hours.

atpworldtour.com July 15 2014 Hamburg, Germany - Alexander Zverev has become the youngest player to win a match at an ATP World Tour 500-level tournament in more than five years.

German wild card Zverev, aged 17 years and four months, defeated Robin Haase 6-0, 6-2 in 59 minutes for a place in the bet-at-home Open second round in Hamburg on Tuesday.

“Winning my first ATP World Tour match in Hamburg, in front of a home crowd, was special,” said Zverev. “I had the feeling that the crowd was behind me. He played well in the second set, but once I got the break I played better.”

The last 17 year old to win a match in an ATP World Tour 500 event was Grigor Dimitrov, when he beat Tomas Berdych in ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament first round in February 2009. 

atpworldtour.com July 15 2014 Bogota, Colombia - World No. 54 Alejandro Falla made quick work of Japan's Tatsuma Ito as he began his bid for the Claro Open Colombia on Tuesday. The sixth seed and 2013 runner-up (l. to Karlovic) advanced to the second round with a 6-3, 6-2 triumph in 58 minutes.

The Colombian was joined on the day's schedule by two countrymen, Alejandro Gonzalez and Juan Sebastian Cabal. Gonzalez, ranked 74th in the Emirates ATP Rankings, opened his Bogota bid with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Evgeny Donskoy. The sixth seed, who reached his maiden ATP World Tour quarter-final this past April in Houston (l. to Giraldo), next faces Dutchman Thiemo de Bakker, a 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 over qualifier Kevin King.

Wild card Cabal is scheduled to play Australian Sam Groth later on Tuesday. Dudi Sela of Israel also reached the second round with a 6-4, 6-2 sweep of Argentine Facundo Arguello in just under one hour.