Round of 16. Kecmanovic def Tsonga

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[vector_icon icon=”fas fa-microphone”] Match Recap from Announcer Andy Taylor, Voice of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open

Miomir Kecmoanovic advances to the Quarterfinals

Hell of win for 20-year-old Kecmanovic, who at this time last year hadn’t won a single ATP Tour match. Back then, he launched the season in Brisbane as the World #131. 12-months later, he now owns 26 Tour-level match victories – including wins over Sascha Zverev and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Not to mention, he reached the Final-4 of the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. What a difference a year makes…

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Miomir Kecmanovic -62- (SRB)| Round-2 Announcer Introduction

Here in Doha for the first time, this 20-year-old ATP NextGen star earned a straight-sets win over Jordan Thompson to reach tonight’s Round of 16 match. Remarkably, last year at this time – he’d never won a single Tour-level match. But over the next 11-months, he won 24 of them – including a stunning upset of World #6 Alexander Zverev in Cincinnati. He reached his first Tour-level Final on the grass in Antalya, won his first main-draw matches at three of the four Majors, reached his first Masters Quarterfinal as a Lucky Loser at Indian Wells, and climbed from World #131 to a career-high ranking of World #47. By season’s end, he earned in a spot in the NextGen ATP Finals – where he reached the Final-4 in his year-end championship debut. From Serbia – This is Miomir Kecmanovic.

▲ R2 — def [3] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga -30- (FRA) | Score: 76(9) 61 ▲ R1 — def Jordan Thompson -63- (AUS) | Score: 64 62 | RECAP

Announcer Corner | Miomir Kecmanovic

Another outstanding talent with Bradenton roots, Miomir is a former Junior World #1. In 2015, he captured the Orange Bowl title, defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the championship match. He graduated to the Challenger circuit in 2017, and has since captured two titles in three Finals. Last season, he shifted his focus to ATP Tour qualifying – and it paid dividends starting week-1. In Brisbane, he won a pair of matches to reach the main draw, then earned his first Tour-level victory over Leonardo Mayer. 23 wins later, he enters the New Year as a top-60 talent – and an automatic main-draw contender at the Majors. His ascent continues.

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[3] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga -30- (FRA) | Round-2 Announcer Introduction

In 2012, he captured his 8th career Singles title right here on this court, defeating Gael Monfils to lift Doha’s falcon for the first time – helping him climb to a career-high ranking of World #5. A Finalist at the Australian Open in 2008, he now owns 18 Singles titles in all, is a 30-time Finalist, a Davis Cup Champion, an Olympic Silver Medalist, and has defeated Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic all when they were ranked World #1. Last season, he returned from injury ranked outside the top-200 – but by season’s end, after capturing two titles, he climbed right back inside the top-30. Competing in his 4th Qatar ExxonMobil Open – From France, this is 2012 Champion, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

▼ R2 — loss Miomir Kecmanovic -62- (SRB) | Score: 67(9) 16 ▲ R1 — Bye

Announcer Corner | Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

In 2018, a torn meniscus ended Jo-Wilfried’s tremendous 10-year run-ranked inside the top-20. Five of those seasons saw him finish in the top-10. In 2011, he reached the championship match of the ATP Finals. And in 2017, he capped the year by lifting France to its 10th Davis Cup title.

But a decade of wear-and-tear took its toll, and in early 2018 Tsonga went under the knife to repair his shredded knee. When he returned in September, Jo had difficulty establishing rhythm, went 1-for-7 and ended the season as the World #239.

But at the start of 2019, Tsonga launched into the season with renewed confidence, reaching the Semifinals in Brisbane. A month later, he captured the title in Montpellier. Over the Summer in Washington D.C., he finally earned a top-10 win – defeating World #8 Karen Khachanov.

After a gutting 5-set loss to Tennys Sandgren at the US Open, Jo refused to get discouraged. He entered the Cassis Challenger in France, and promptly won the title. The following week, he won Metz. He then reached the Semifinals of the Orleans Challenger, delivering a 13-match win streak, crushing Flushing’s stinging disappointment.

By choosing to stay in “match-rhythm” by entering two Challenger events close to home, Jo continued to improve his ranking. After a Quarterfinal top-10 victory over Matteo Berrettini at the Paris Masters, Tsonga found himself back inside the ATP’s top-30 for the first time since surgery. And his ascent continues…