ATPGuy.com : Miami Open

Monday, April 7, 2025

Jakub Mensik wins first career title at Miami Open

(Credit: Geoff Burke)

At this year's Miami Open, 19 year old Jakub Mensik out of the Czech Republic defeated his idol Novak Djokovic 7-6, 7-6 in the final to win his first career ATP Tour title. As a result, Mensik has now climbed to No. 23 in the world. Going into the tournament, Mensik was ranked No. 54 in the world, making him the lowest ranked player to ever win the Miami Open.

MATCH STATS: Jakub Mensik vs. Novak Djokovic-March 30th, Miami Open

When looking at the stats from the match, what really stands out is the fact that Mensik was able to perform slightly better on his serve than Djokovic. Mensik had a serve rating of 302 while Djokovic had serve rating of 300. Both guys won 77% of their first serves though Djokovic (76%) had a higher percentage than Mensik (67%). However, Mensik (54%) won more of his second serves than Djokovic (50%) while also out-acing Djokovic 14-7. In a match that goes to a tiebreaker in each set, whichever guy does better on their serve will have an edge.

Mensik's best grand slam performances have been at the Australian Open (2025) and the US Open (2023 & 2024) in which he reached the 3rd round. He's obviously starting to find his footing and get more comfortable playing on the biggest stages the sport has to offer. To win his first career title at an ATP 1000 event is big time. It's a kind of amazing he doesn't have an ATP 500 or ATP 250 title under his belt, but if he's going to pick a place to win his first title, the Miami Open isn't a bad place to do it at all.

What will be interesting to see is whether or not Mensik is able to build on this title and make more noise at the grand slams later this year. He's never played the French Open, so it's hard to know how well he'll play there, though Czech players are often solid on the clay. And then at Wimbledon he has a 1st round exit in 2024. If he is going to break through to reach the 4th round or quarterfinals at a grand slam, the US Open and Australian Open seem like the most likely places for that to happen given they are played on hard court. That said, he seemed to kinda come out of nowhere to win the Miami Open, so who knows what he'll do on the clay or grass later this year.

Regardless, I think it's safe to say that Jakub Mensik has put himself on the map with his Miami Open title. He's just 19 years old and every year is getting better. It'll be fun to see where his career goes from here and whether or not this is the first of many big titles that he wins.

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Friday, March 14, 2025

Alexander Zverev blows an opportunity at Indian Wells

(Credit: Jay Calderon/The Desert Sun)

This week, Alexander Zverev had a disappointing outing at Indian Wells, losing to Tallon Griekspoor in the 2nd round by a final score of 4-6, 7-6, 7-6. Zverev came in as the No. 2 player in the world and the No. 1 seed in the tournament due to world No.1 Jannik Sinner serving a suspension for doping. Zverev was my pick to win the tournament and so to see him flame out in the 2nd round is pretty disappointing. Granted, Griekspoor is ranked No. 43 in the world and made a nice run to the quarterfinals, but still. If you are Zverev you need to have a strong showing at Indian Wells and at least make the semifinals.

In truth, this tournament was Zverev's to lose and he blew a massive opportunity to win his first Indian Wells title and 8th ATP 1000 title overall. Had he won this tournament, that would have really helped him as he looks to close the gap with Sinner in his quest to being No. 1 in the world. And further, Zverev is still in search of his first career grand slam title. A title at Indian Wells would have done a lot for his confidence in that department as well and would have been seen as a legit stepping stone towards that goal.

Looking at his match against Griekspoor specifically, what really hurt Zverev was going 5/14 on break point opportunities. He had plenty of changes to break Griekspoor's serve and failed to do so. Credit to Griekspoor for fending off those breakpoints, but at the same time Zverev had so many chances to win this match and advance. That has to haunt Zverev more than anything.

Fortunately for Zverev, the Miami Open starts next week, right after Indian Wells. That will give him a chance to redeem himself at another ATP 1000 event. How the Miami Open goes for Zverev will be really telling and a strong test of his mental resolve. I look forward to seeing how he performs.