Estoril Open 2019, Portugal, ATP 250

[britbox]

DATE: April 29 - May 5 2019
SURFACE: Clay
PRIZE MONEY: €524,340
FIELD SIZE: 28
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Joao Sousa

Seeds

1 TSITSIPAS, Stefanos
2 FOGNINI, Fabio
3 MONFILS, Gael
4 GOFFIN, David
5 LAJOVIC, Dusan
6 DE MINAUR, Alex
7 CARRENO BUSTA, Pablo
8 TIAFOE, Frances

About Estoril

Estoril is a town and a former civil parish in the municipality of Cascais, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Cascais e Estoril.

Estoril is a popular tourist destination for Europeans. It's also a popular venue for motorsports and was once one of the venues on the Formula One calendar.

Tourism Video



Estoril Trivia

Estoril is one of the most expensive places to live in Portugal

There are remains of Roman villas in the parish that push back the history of the region to the first millennium.

Estoril's solid fortifications are a testament to the innumerable attacks by Spanish, French and English pirates and privateers.

Miklós Horthy, the regent of Hungary (lived and died in exile at Estoril after World War 2)

Estoril is popularly recognized for the Casino Estoril, widely regarded as Europe's largest casino.

 

[britbox]

The Draw

 

[mrzz]

Cascais, where Estoril is, is where you can find the fantastic "Boca do Inferno" (Hell's Mouth), one or to miles further west (down the estuary) from where most pictures above are taken.

View from the "Boca":

https://images.app.goo.gl/kKr4WUkXrigv7UZZA

The Boca itself:

https://images.app.goo.gl/oSGhJ5F33STazoWc8

Going further west you get to the "Cabo da Roca", the most western extreme of Europe. A remarkable sunset.

 

[herios]

Cuevas, who made an effort which made no sense, to come here from Budapest with no break, and play in qualifications, failed in the QR2.
He lost to an Italian with a pretty name:Salvatore Caruso.

 

[isabelle]

La Monf's return + the Fog back after his MC's triumph...something interesting in Estoril

 

[Moxie]

Cuevas, who made an effort which made no sense, to come here from Budapest with no break, and play in qualifications, failed in the QR2.
He lost to an Italian with a pretty name:Salvatore Caruso.

And yet, he rises from the dead in the form of LL, and today will play, you guessed it: the prettily named Salvatore Caruso. That happened last week in Barcelona. Granollers beat Jarry in Q, then Jarry got the LL, beat him and made the QFs.

 

[herios]

And yet, he rises from the dead in the form of LL, and today will play, you guessed it: the prettily named Salvatore Caruso. That happened last week in Barcelona. Granollers beat Jarry in Q, then Jarry got the LL, beat him and made the QFs.

And guess who won that rematch, Cuevas.

 

[Moxie]

And guess who won that rematch, Cuevas.

This one was more predictable, but I love a guy who embraces a 2nd chance.

 

[JesuslookslikeBorg]

no fog..withdrew. so its LL v LL in 2nd rd.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

no fog..withdrew. so its LL v LL in 2nd rd.

I guess one of them will become UL finally.

 

[herios]

A new Spanish player makes some noise here.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina won back to back matches against Fritz and Chardy.
These might not be the best clay courts players, but are ranked about 100 places higher. Davidovich is ranked 167.

 

[mrzz]

A new Spanish player makes some noise here.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina won back to back matches against Fritz and Chardy.
These might not be the best clay courts players, but are ranked about 100 places higher. Davidovich is ranked 167.

You mean this one?

 

[Moxie]

no fog..withdrew. so its LL v LL in 2nd rd.

Looks like the Fabulous One is keeping his powder dry for the big tournaments.

 

[herios]

You mean this one?

View attachment 2075
View attachment 2074

Yup

 

[kskate2]

Estoril is pretty. Someplace I haven't been yet in my travels. Must put it on the list.

 

[mrzz]

Tiafoe x Nishioka was a two gentlemen's match:

-- Please win this match, sir.
-- No, no. Thank you very much, but only after you, sir.
-- Absolutely not. I insist. Please win this match.
-- Thank you my dear friend, but I make a point in you winning this lovely match, please.
-- No, no, you win it. It would a pleasure to watch, sir. It would be an absolute honor.
-- Oh, no! I won it, but it was an accident, I swear! I am so sorry!

Nishioka raced to a 6x2 2x0 lead. I had him in my draw, checked the score while working and thought "good, this one is in the bag". Half an hour later I checked again: 6x2 4x6 2x4. "What?"

Then I turned on some stream, cursing and wishing poor Nishioka was eaten alive by carnivore ants. When the feed started, the guy was cursing himself so badly that I felt bad for him. He was missing everything in sight, bad positioning on the court, throwing his racquet, etc. Then Tiafoe is serving for the match, has two match points at 5x4. And he goes on to lose the next 9 points! Some extremely ugly misses in between. The 9 point streak leads him to serve again now at 5x6, 0-15. Now it is Nishioka's turn to return the favor, four straight errors (one forced, I guess), and we are in a TB.

Nishioka has the first mini-break, but looses his two serve points and gets behind 2x3. Then Tiafoe loses his two serve points and gets behind 3x4. Then Nishioka finally makes a point in his serve to get a 5x3 lead. He is still serving. Long rally... I tought to myself "match point, who ever wins this point wins the match". The ball comes back and forth... Nishioka pulls the trigger: out. Seconds later, it is 7x5 Tiafoe.

Tennis is so freaking crazy that some times you hate it, hate yourself and the world all around you, either when you play like sh!t, or even when you see someone else doing it. Last night I played like that (for my level), and now I see two pros doing that. I don't know if I am happy or mad about it...

 

[Moxie]

Are there carnivorous ants? In any case, good on Frances! And once again, the LL has made the QFs two weeks in a row. But this time it's Cuevas, and I think he'll end Frances's run on clay. Defending champ Sousa taken down by Goffin, but that's no shock.

 

[isabelle]

A new Spanish player makes some noise here.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina won back to back matches against Fritz and Chardy.
These might not be the best clay courts players, but are ranked about 100 places higher. Davidovich is ranked 167.

he'll meet La Monf in quarter

 

[kskate2]

Are there carnivorous ants?

There are in Empire of the Ants

 

[Moxie]

That is excellent, @kskate2! ("Now in Blu-Ray". Must have been a lot of demand for that.)

Tsitsipas into the SFs.