GAMEWEEK21 RESULTS

Massive kuddos goes out to our winners this week - Alex De Minaur, Alexander Bublik, Luciano Darderi, Marie Bouzkova and Leylah Fernandez.

 

Alex De Minaur's victory this week in Washington was his 10th title of his career!  Its safe to say, of all his titles, this was easily the most unlikely.  On his way to the final, he played what was thought to be the match of the week in the R16 against Jiri Lehecka (7-6,6-7,6-4).   By the time the final was over, you realized that the Lehecka match was simply an appetizer for the main course against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.  As ADF looked for his maiden ATP Tour Level title, he led the 3rd set 5-2, and had a 30 love spot at 5-3 as he tried to serve it out and then all hell broke loose!!  Nerves got the best of Alejandro as he lost 4 straight points in horrific fashion (he hit multiple double faults and spewed 2 other unforced errors on simple rally balls) to break himself.  You had to wonder if ADF was going to crumble and lose the match 7-5, but instead, Alejandro did everything he could to get the break and win the match in the next service game.  In what felt like a 10 minute service game, ADF generated 3 break chances, but De Minaur somehow managed to hold serve.  In fact, one of the winners that Alex hit on BP/MP down was sooo close that the replay officials showed the mark on shot spot!   ADF did manage to win the service game with the match levelled at 5, but Alex quickly held serve to send the match to a 3rd set tiebreak, and then outplayed him in the breaker.  Now the real question, what do either of these players have left for the Toronto/Cinci Masters Double?!?!?

 

Alexander Bublik's victory this week in Kitzbuhel was his 7th title of his career and 3rd in his past 4 events?!?!?  For a player that's nickname has been Bubbles due to his bizarre n strange play over the years, he's showing some real consistency of late (minus that awful R1 loss at Wimbledon).  Its hard to imagine saying this, but the only question coming into Kitzbuhel was whether or not he was actually going to play.  With the North American Hard Court swing just a week away, was Bublik really going to play back to back clay court events?!?  This type of behaviour is something that you only see from your hardcore clay court specialists, soo most of us expected him to withdraw.  Well not only did Alexander show up, but he dominated as he won the title without losing a set.  He didn't have to play the highest level of competition (Tirante, Shevchenko, Van De Zandschulp and Cazaux), but it still felt rather emphatic as he won back to back clay court events.  Don't look now Alcaraz, but he's coming for your crown!  

 

Luciano Darderi's victory in Umag was his 4th title of his career and 3rd of the season!  Those 3 titles (all on the dirt) put him in some rare air!!  Just like Bublik, Darderi was able to win back to back titles after Wimbledon!  The only set he lost was to the young incredibly talented hometown hopeful, Dino Prizmic.  Otherwise, he beat Tseng, Ugo Carabelli, and Taberner in straights.  I'm curious to see if he can have some success on the hard courts for the rest of the season.  His game looks like it should be able to translate onto the surface, but it hasn't yet (he's 3-18 in the past 2 years on it)

 

Marie Bouzkova's hometown victory in Prague was only her 2nd title in her career!!  She seems like she's had a far better career to have only ever had 1 win coming into this event!  Marie had a far more adventurous run on her way to the title than either Bublik or Darderi, as she was forced to play 3 sets against Ann Li in the QF, and had to come back from 5-3 down (in the 2nd set) in the SF against an incredibly dangerous youngster (Tereza Valentova) and then beat Linda Noskova in 3 sets in the final.  It will be interesting to see if this helps Marie build some confidence and we see it parlay further into some big results in the North American Swing (just a warning, she's always played well in Mexico)

 

Leylah Fernandez's victory in Washington was not only her 4th title of her career but easily her biggest victory.  Leylah had a couple of massive wins on her way to the final (Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina) and then dominated Anna Kalinskaya in just over an hour in the final.  I'll be honest, I still have no idea how she beat Rybakina in the SF, as she was down a set and a break and Elena had multiple opportunities to take a 2 break lead.  Coming into the week, Leylah had a sub 500 win/loss record for the season, so this will be incredibly important for her confidence.  She's got a vicious draw in her hometown event in Montreal, so it will be curious to see if she can keep up this type of result!  She made the final at the US Open just a couple of years ago, so you have to wonder if this new found confidence might help aid in a similarly deep run there! (Personally i think the draw gods will have to help her)

 

In terms of FTL, the week was marred by withdrawals and Round 1 losses.  Its hard to imagine saying this but it felt acceptable if your team only had 2 or 3 of those Round 1 losses!! (Many of our top level managers had 4 of them!!)

 

Meanwhile, the winner of the GW, put up a ridiculous 510.508 points!! Value Picks 📈🤑 (The Commissioner) made many of us look silly as he had all 3 Mens Winners and a Finalist in Prague!  Beyond that, he only had 2 other SemiFinalists (Rybakina and Shelton) lol.  Just think, he could have been better as he had Andrey Rublev lose in Round 1.  He was sooo dominant that he won the week by 46 points and there were only 8 other managers (btw 2 of those managers are involved in the 2nd half Masters group) that were even within a 110 points of him!!!

 

I'd like to offer a huge kuddos to Michael Sommer and Eric Zoberman (Rydal Sponsors Exemption) who finished 2nd (and also won their FTL Cup matchup by dominating one of our admin).  He's also our first place winner for Option 2.  He wasn't as good as the Commissioner, but damn he was still real good as he had 2 winners (De Minaur, Bublik) a finalist (Noskova) and 2 SF's (Rybakina and Shelton).  If Pegs beats Leylah, he might have had a chance (thats a big if tho, as she needed another 50 points lol) to be our our GW winner.  

 

Mohaib (Dr. peRFect), Oli B (The Gravy Dinghies), and elle (hana kumatata) round out our top 5. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CANADA OPEN - DRAWS AND DARK HORSE BREAKDOWN

 

I have attached the Canada Open Main Draw (FTL Version) and the Dark Horse Breakdown.  The Qualifying for the Womens event was completed on Saturday July 26th, and as a result, the Qualifers have been added.  Sadly, a rain delay postponed the final 3 Qualifying Matches in Toronto, so the Qualifying for the Mens event won't be completed until tomorrow morning.  It does appear that the first Main Draw match will take place before the Mens Qualifying is completed, so we the Qualifier placement won't be known for the mens event.

 

Do not forget to select your Dark Horses for both the Mens and Womens events! and just a reminder that the Canadian Open starts playing Round 1 Main Draw Matches on Sunday (July 27th)

 

If you want a copy, click on the link, CANADA OPEN DRAWS Once you do so, click on FILE, and scroll to MAKE A COPY, and call it whatever you want

Good Luck :)

Game Week 20 round up

Game Week 20 proved to be one of the most challenging of the season for Fantasy Tennis League managers, as the traditional post-Grand Slam slump took full effect. With Wimbledon wrapped up just days earlier, the tournament calendar was hit by a wave of withdrawals, as top players took time off to recover. The result? A game week where assembling a full squad of eight was more of a survival exercise than a strategic masterstroke. Some managers were left staring at zero active players in their starting line-up before trades even opened, making this one of the most unpredictable and frustrating weeks of the year.

ATP Gstaad  – Bublik Breaks Through on Clay

 Alexander Bublik claimed his first career clay court title in Gstaad, defeating  Juan Manuel Cerúndolo in the final. Known more for his flair than consistency, Bublik followed up his strong French Open showing with a composed, controlled run in the Swiss Alps. The victory surprised many given his historic discomfort on clay—some even joking it was more unexpected than  Iga Świątek winning on grass! Still, he was unplayable at times and fully deserved the title, adding another layer to his unpredictable but entertaining career.

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WTA Hamburg  – Boisson’s Breakthrough
 Loïs Boisson continued her fairytale 2025 with a maiden WTA title in Hamburg, overcoming  Anna Bondár in a composed final performance. Boisson, who stunned fans with a semifinal run at Roland-Garros as a wildcard, confirmed she’s no flash in the pan. Bondár had pulled off a surprise of her own earlier in the week, knocking out top seed  Ekaterina Alexandrova in the quarters. But Boisson was the player of the week—fearless, confident, and tactically smart. At just 21, she’s becoming one of the breakout stars of the season.

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ATP Båstad  – Darderi Delivers Again
 Luciano Darderi captured his third career ATP title in Båstad, defeating  Jesper de Jong in a quality final. Darderi impressed all week, beating fourth seed  Sebastián Báez in the quarterfinals and top seed  Francisco Cerúndolo in the semis. The Italian’s aggressive baseline game and confident court presence are becoming his trademarks, and this latest title continues his steady rise up the rankings. While de Jong had a strong run himself, Darderi’s level in the final proved a step above, confirming his clay-court credentials.

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WTA Iași  – Begu Reigns at Home
 Irina-Camelia Begu gave the home crowd reason to cheer in Iași, capturing the title with a straight-sets win over  Jil Teichmann in the final. The Romanian veteran played with poise and authority all week, including a hard-fought semifinal win over top-seeded compatriot  Jacqueline Cristian. With so many Romanian players in the draw, a local winner felt likely—but Begu’s calmness under pressure and experience ultimately made the difference. It's a timely title for the 34-year-old, who continues to deliver strong results on home soil.

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ATP Los Cabos  – Shapovalov in Cruise Control
 Denis Shapovalov was unstoppable in Los Cabos, not dropping a single set across four matches on his way to the title. He conceded just 18 games all week and saved his best for the final, where he swept past  Alexander Kovacevic in dominant fashion. Kovacevic had earlier shocked top seed  Andrey Rublev in the semifinals, but had no answers for Shapovalov’s firepower. After several inconsistent seasons, 2025 is shaping up to be a breakthrough year of sorts for the Canadian, who now looks settled in the top 30 and playing with renewed belief.

Here is the final Level 2 table for the game week: 

Congratulations to Nikhil Idnani and his team  nbladeweilder  who topped the level 2 standings this week defeating Violet and her Grass Court Masters into 2nd place in what proved to be another close contest.

Here is the head to head between the two teams.

Both teams ended the week with two winners.   Nikhil had Gstaad winner Bublik and Bastad winner Darderi while Violet had Bublik and Hamburg winner Lois Boisson.  Yastremska was the most valuable player for Nikhil outside of the two champions.

The top of the global league standings was heavily dominated by the 2nd chance teams who were in a better position to field a strong side for this game week and it seemed fitting that Emi's 2nd chance team topped the standings in the global league having so narrowly missed out on Wimbledon. Maybe no prize for this one but definitely bragging rights.  

Here is Emi's team

Here are the season standings after Game Week 20

After Game Week 20

🔢 Rank	🏆 Team Name	👤 Owner	💯 Total Points
1️⃣	ThunderTurkeys	Michael Blomer	9492.935
2️⃣	GOALDIES	Sagar Chowdhry	9469.436
3️⃣	MTL89	Kevin G	9309.924
4️⃣	fc izrodite	Силви Георгиев	9308.997
5️⃣	Nadal’s Forehand	Dragan Josifoski	9261.484
6️⃣	The Umpire Strikes Back	Jamie Edmundson	9222.588
7️⃣	broccoli	Alex	9204.544
8️⃣	Bonehunters	Goran Zadravec	9187.296
9️⃣	NEW CAL ACES 🎾🏖️	Mat Mermoud	9157.120
🔟	Fedex Superstars	Muhammad Aoun Abbas	9133.329

Monthly round up for June

 Here is the monthly standings for the month of June which cover the entire Grass Court swing.

Congratulations to Frank Nokla who's team tops the standings despite some pretty close competition from Rick, Tricia, Tim and Devin.

Here is a breakdown of the top 5 with performances by game week.

Interestingly for a monthly contest, there weren't too many standout game weeks among the top 5.  (Frank's 2nd place in Game week 18 being a notable exception)  but just solid consistency by all the teams involved. However, My Tim will rue that Game Week 18 performance! 

Wimbledon Round up

 Women's singles

The 2025 Wimbledon women’s singles tournament delivered a captivating blend of surprises, comebacks, and a long-awaited triumph. The early rounds were marked by a flurry of upsets as several top seeds made shock exits. Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, and last year’s runner-up Jasmine Paolini all bowed out in the opening stages, blowing the draw wide open and setting the stage for unexpected contenders to shine.

Chief among them was Amanda Anisimova, whose resurgence became one of the feel-good stories of the tournament. After stepping away from tennis in 2023 to address personal challenges, the American returned to the sport earlier this year with renewed focus and gradually climbed the rankings. At Wimbledon, she found her best form, powering through the draw with poise and grit. Her run to the final captivated fans and reminded the tennis world of her immense talent.

Standing in her way, however, was former world number one Iga Świątek. Known for her clay court dominance, Świątek had previously struggled on grass. But with a rare early exit at Roland-Garros this year, she arrived in London fresh and determined. She navigated the fortnight with growing confidence, dropping just one set—surprisingly to Caty McNally in the second round—before peaking in the final.

Though Anisimova fought bravely, the championship match proved a step too far. Świątek dominated from start to finish, showcasing a newly-adapted grass court game built on aggression, precision, and mental strength. Her straight-sets victory secured her first Wimbledon title and a significant milestone in her already illustrious career.

In a year defined by unexpected turns and inspiring narratives, Świątek’s grass-court breakthrough and Anisimova’s heartfelt comeback stood as powerful reminders of resilience, reinvention, and the ever-evolving drama of women's tennis.

Mens singles

The 2025 Wimbledon men’s singles tournament once again spotlighted the defining rivalry of this era: Jannik Sinner vs Carlos Alcaraz. After their five-set epic in the French Open final, the two young stars renewed their rivalry on Centre Court, meeting in a much-anticipated Wimbledon final. While the match didn’t quite match the drama of Roland-Garros, it provided a moment of redemption for Sinner, who had come heartbreakingly close in Paris. This time, the Italian prevailed in four sets, overcoming Alcaraz on a surface where the Spaniard had reigned supreme in recent years.

Sinner’s triumph not only marked his fourth Grand Slam title but also raised a compelling question: can Alcaraz match Sinner’s level on hard courts, just as Sinner has proven capable of challenging him on clay and grass? Their head-to-head continues to thrill, with each encounter adding fuel to one of tennis’s most compelling rivalries.

Novak Djokovic also reminded fans of his enduring greatness, reaching the semifinals at the age of 38. Although he was comfortably beaten by Sinner, the fact that he remains a deep Slam contender is extraordinary. Even Djokovic admitted that time is catching up with him, and that maintaining peak performance over two weeks is increasingly difficult against the likes of Sinner and Alcaraz.

Taylor Fritz also enjoyed an impressive fortnight, arriving in form after winning Eastbourne and surviving a pair of grueling five-set matches en route to the semifinals. Meanwhile, British hopes suffered a blow with the early exit of rising star Jack Draper, who lost to former champion Marin Čilić. However, Cameron Norrie provided a silver lining, bouncing back from a tough season with a run to the quarterfinals, where he was eventually halted by Alcaraz.

Wimbledon 2025 cemented a generational shift—and a rivalry for the ages.

Here is the final global league table for the week.

And what a contest it was!!   The battle went right down to the wire and, as seems to be so often the case with FTL this year, the margin between 1st and 2nd was a veritable baw hair (to use a rather crude Scottish term).   I think its only fair to say a massive congrats to Preston who wins the game week but also to 2nd placed Emi who missed out in the end by 0.428 points!  I mean that's nothing, right?  

Congrats also to Derek, Alex, Craig, Mathew and Rick who all cleared 1000 points in the game week.

Lets take a look at the head to head between Preston and Emi.

The main contest went right down to the wire because Preston had Sinner as Captain and Alcaraz as KP while Emi had it the other way round.  That small difference would ultimately decide the game week. 

Preston had all 4 mens semi finalists plus WTA runner up Anisimova and semi finalist Sablaenka.

Emi had 3 of the 4 mens semi finalists but crucially had Iga in her team which led to a great game week.

Both had the same dark horses in Nakashima and Navarro and both had high scorers on the bench (Shelton, Khachanov, Samsonova)  which could have boosted their totals even further but who was to know that Coco would flop like that?

Well done guys on a terrific week.

Wimbledon also saw the launch of the 2nd half masters where managers were invited to submit a 2nd team which would compete in a specially created league to encompass the 2nd half of the season.

Vladyka takes the honours in the first week of this contest with what in truth was a pretty solid side which he managed to put together with the restriction of a 100m budget.

GW21 - EARLY LOCKOUT!!

There are 2 Main Draw matches that are set to be played tomorrow, July 20th, in Croatia. (nothing i hate more than playing Main Draw matches before Qualifying is completed) 

 

If the first Main Draw match is pushed back, the lockout will be updated accordingly. 

 

Anyways, the website has highlighted this fact all week, but I just wanted to give everyone a reminder of the earlier than normal lockout and help ensure that everyone sets their roster in time for the upcoming lockout.

FTL Cup - Game Week 21

 Hi folks

Just a reminder that the FTL Cup returns in Game Week 21.

Here is the draw

This will be another tough game week to field a strong team for (although not nearly as bad as this one unless we get a raft of withdrawals) However it will be worthwhile checking out your opponent to see how they are likely to set up and see if you can use a trade or two to get an edge.

The Quarter Finals for the FTL Cup are scheduled to be in Game Week 23 (Cincinnati).