Black Tennis Pros

First ATP 500 quarterfinals!

And a change of kit 🇧🇷@felixtennis #RioOpen pic.twitter.com/t5VTaxp4at

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 21, 2019

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World No. 1 Naomi Osaka at 2019 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

The Australian and US Open champion, 21, was beaten 6-3 6-3 by France's Kristina Mladenovic in the Dubai Tennis Championships second round.

It was her first match since since splitting with Sascha Bajin last week.

Asked if she could block out reaction to the news she said, "I couldn't. This match is the result of that."

"I'm pretty sure as time goes on you guys will stop talking about it. For now, it's like the biggest tennis news, I guess.

"It's a little bit hard because I feel like people are staring at me, and not like in a good way."

"For sure there's no one that really thinks losing is fun," Osaka said during the Japanese portion of her press conference. "But for me, I've always been taught that when you lose, you learn more than when you win. I try to take that as really important advice because I think it is true."

Osaka, who had a bye in the first round, lost in 66 minutes in round two against a player who had not won a match this year before this tournament.

Despite the loss, Osaka will head to Indian Wells with the No.1 ranking intact as she prepares for another career milestone: defending a title for the first time in her career.

"I'm not really sure [how I'll feel] because I've never been a defending champion," Osaka said. "Hopefully I remember all the good times that I've had there, somehow start feeling better about myself.

"But I can't really say until I get there."

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The WTA salutes African American pioneers in women’s tennis. #BlackHistoryMonth pic.twitter.com/lr6Tb0ZLmT

— WTA (@WTA) February 19, 2019

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Back to making history...@SerenaWilliams continues to build on her record over active WTA players. pic.twitter.com/GaZW2e0AlN

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) February 19, 2019

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Reigning 2018 Delray Beach Open champion Frances Tiafoe was halted at the start of his title defense by Great Britain's Daniel Evans, 3-6, 7-6, 7-5.

Tiafoe went into the tournament stating, “I don’t feel any pressure this year, either. It’s kind of just another event I want to do well in. That’s where my head is right now. Obviously I gave myself a pretty good start [to the year], so there’s no real pressure,” Tiafoe said. “I’m just trying to get some momentum going for these next couple of weeks.”

Trick shot tennis down @DelrayBeachOpen 😱

Brought to you by Frances Tiafoe and Dan Evans. pic.twitter.com/ehuyaRpmt7

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 19, 2019

Andrey Rublev recovered from a set down to defeat three-time former champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Tuesday at the Open 13 Provence.

Tsonga, who lifted the title in Marseille in 2009, 2013 and 2017, drops to 11-4 this season. After missing seven months of the 2018 ATP Tour season following left knee surgery, the 33-year-old Frenchman has impressed throughout this year. Earlier this month, Tsonga lifted his 17th ATP Tour title in Montpellier (d. Herbert) and reached the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament quarter-finals (l. to Medvedev).

"I won the first set 6-2, then I was broken at the beginning of the second set. [Andrey] was very aggressive. I had some tough moments with my serve. He played better in the end," said Tsonga. "I feel that I played a lot of matches in a row and back-to-back tournaments. I have to get used to it again."

Patience pays 👌

Andrey Rublev earns his first career victory against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 2-6 6-4 6-2 to reach the second round @Open13. pic.twitter.com/ZpcQicb24B

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) February 19, 2019

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Eighteen-year-old Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime at the 2019 Rio Open

RIO DE JANEIRO — Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime cruised to a 6-2, 6-3 upset of second-seed Fabio Fognini on Tuesday at the Rio Open tennis tournament.

Fognini, ranked No. 16 in the world, is the highest ranked player to lose to the 104th-ranked Canadian teen. It's Auger-Aliassime's second win over a top-20 opponent after he defeated then No. 18 Lucas Pouille in the opening round of last year's Rogers Cup in Toronto.

Auger-Aliassime, a wild-card in Rio, is expected to move into the top-100 after the tournament. He will next face Chile's Christian Garin, ranked 91 in the world, in the second round.

Showing veteran poise, Auger-Aliassime fended off all five break points he faced while converting three of the five break point presented to him by his Italian opponent. The Canadian's return game was also strong, as he limited Fognini to one ace, and held the veteran to converting on 60 per cent of first serve points and just 45 per cent of second serve points.

Auger-Aliassime's matchup with Fognini was a potential Davis Cup preview. Canada is in a group with Italy and the United States to open the Davis Cup finals, which will be held November in Madrid.

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