- Sven Tennis • Day 10 • Recovery and Travel Day
- Ymer, Alcaraz Qualify for Australian Open Tennis Main Draw, Join Veterans Stakhovsky and Tomic
- Andy Murray Hit By Covid Ahead Of Australian Open Tennis
- De Minaur Triumphs In Antalya, Hurkacz Holds Off Korda For Delray Beach Tennis
- Sven Tennis • Day 9 • 3rd Round At The Australian Open Tennis Qualifiers
- Bernie Tomic, Dustin Brown, Taro Daniel, and Viktor Troicki Part of Final Round at Australian Open Tennis Qualifying
- Updated Tennis Draws, Results And Order Of Play For Jan. 13th • Antalya Open and Delray Beach
- Updated Draws And Order Of Play For Australian Open Qualifying
- Tennis News • Ricky’s Preview and Pick for the Antalya Final: De Minaur vs. Bublik
- Sven Tennis • Day 8 • Match Day 2 From The Australian Open In Doha
- Tennis Injury Update From Kirsten Flipkens
- Updated Tennis Draws, Results, And Order Of Play For Jan. 12th • Antalya Open and Delray Beach
- Updated Draws And Order Of Play For Australian Open Qualifying
- Sven Tennis – Day 7 – Laundry Day And Covid Test From The Australian Open In Doha
- Tennis • Denis Kudla Gets A Positive Covid-19 Test Result During Match, Keeps Playing And Wins In Australian Open Qualifying
Tennis • 10sBalls News • Benoit Paire Wins A Comeback In Dubai, Tsitsipas Also Advances
- Updated: February 25, 2020

By Ricky Dimon
Marin Cilic saw four match points come and go while losing to Benoit Paire 2-6, 7-5, 7-6(1) in round one of the Dubai Duty Free tennis Championships on Tuesday afternoon. Cilic led 6-2, 5-3 and soon got a look at two match points on his own serve at 5-4 in the second. Paire saved the first, after which the 2014 U.S. Open champion double-faulted on the second. Although the world No. 21 went on to force a third set, Cilic eventually had two more match points with Paire serving at 5-6. At 30-40, Paire fought one off with a controversial ace.
The serve appeared to be out, as it was called, but Hawkeye overturned it and gave the point to Paire for deuce. After the Frenchman managed to hold, Cilic collapsed in the decisive tiebreaker. It finally ended in appropriate fashion at the two-hour and 32-minute mark, with Cilic double-faulting down match point at 1-6.
“Normally when it’s one set, 5-3, I normally tank,” admitted Paire, who took a picture of the mark in question following the match’s conclusion.

Next up for Paire is compatriot Richard Gasquet, a straight-set winner over Lloyd Harris on Monday.
Also advancing to the Dubai second round on Tuesday were Stefanos Tsitsipas, Benoit Paire, Filip Krajinovic, Dan Evans, Pierre-Hugues Herbert, Jan-Lennard Struff, and Alexander Bublik. Struff scored an especially impressive upset of 2018 Dubai winner Roberto Bautista Agut. Tsitsipas eased past Pablo Carreno Busta and will next meet Bublik for the second time in two weeks.
”I’m happy that I got two-set victories for a very long time,” said Tsitsipas, who did not drop a single set en route to last week’s Marseille title.. “I’m not spending extra hours out on the court, which for sure is going to help me.”
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.

🎾🎾🎾