RICKY DIMON REPORTS – NICK KYRGIOS ANNOUNCES BB&T ATLANTA TENNIS OPEN TITLE DEFENSE, JACK SOCK, AND DONALD YOUNG JR.

Written by: on 6th March 2017
Estoril Open Tennis Tournament
RICKY DIMON REPORTS - NICK KYRGIOS ANNOUNCES BB&T ATLANTA TENNIS OPEN TITLE DEFENSE, JACK SOCK, AND DONALD YOUNG JR.

epa05283483 Nick Kyrgios of Australia in action against Borna Coric of Croatia during their quarter final match for the Estoril Open tennis tournament in Estoril, Portugal, 29 April 2016. EPA/JOSE SENA GOULAO  |

Atlanta may be the United States’ capital of postseason collapses by its sports franchises, but it is also the capital of tennis. And its annual ATP tournament, the BB&T Atlanta Open, got a boost to its eighth year when Nick Kyrgios announced on Monday that he is making a return trip to defend his 2016 title.

 

“I’m looking forward returning to Atlanta to start my U.S. summer and defend the BB&T Atlanta Open title,” the 21-year-old Australian commented. “Last year the crowds were great and it was probably the best week I’ve had on and off the court in a long time. It was just rewarding that I played well.”

 

Tournament director Eddie Gonzalez also announced that America’s top player–and Kyrgios’ good friend–Jack Sock is returning to the event. Sock, who has already captured two titles this season in Auckland and Delray Beach, has one semifinal finish (2014) in four previous appearances in Atlanta.

 

“Obviously I’ll be trying to build on the past success I’ve had at the BB&T Atlanta Open, and I’ll be looking forward to seeing a lot of familiar faces in July at Atlantic Station,” Sock said. “It’s going to be a strong U.S. Open Series event to start the summer and I’ll have to be at my best to win.”

 

Kyrgios was not exactly at his best the entire way last year, but he battled to three-set wins over Fernando Verdasco and Yoshihito Nishioka in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, before edging John Isner 7-6(3), 7-6(4) in the final. Isner was the three-time defending champion.

 

Although there is only a men’s tournament in Atlanta, two of the WTA Tour’s best will also be showcased at Atlantic Station. Gonzalez also announced on Monday that Venus Williams and Genie Bouchard will play an exhibition match on Sunday night prior to the start of main-draw action on Monday, July 24.

 

“Atlanta has such a rich sports and tennis tradition and it’s been over 10 years since I’ve had a chance to play a match there,” Williams noted. “I’m looking forward to hopefully playing in front of a big crowd and that is also an enthusiastic tennis audience.”

 

“Our 2017 BB&T Atlanta Open will be our biggest and best to date by providing a mix of marquee established players along with the rising stars of tennis,” Gonzalez assured. “It will be interesting to see how Nick goes about his title defense, and whether Jack Sock can get closer to cracking the ATP top 10. Equally exciting is having the great American champion Venus Williams make her first trip to Atlanta in almost 15 years. She’s an inspiration to tennis fans and players around the world. Genie Bouchard is the perfect opponent for Venus, and Atlanta tennis fans will enjoy the professional brand of women’s tennis.”

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.

 

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