The attention of tennis fans around the world is focused on Seoul. The ATP Seoul Open Challenger 125 will be held from the 24th (Mon) to the 30th (Sun) at the Olympic Tennis Stadium in Seoul Olympic Park.
Korean tennis stars Jung Hyun and Kwon Soon-woo, as well as foreign players familiar to tennis fans, are moving to Seoul. Let’s take a look at James Duckworth, the ‘human tumbleweed’, and John Millman, the ‘Milmania’.
Duckworth (31, Australia) is called a ‘human tumbler’. Entering his 13th year as a pro this year, the reason why he is not familiar with domestic fans is that he has only spent half of his playing career on actual tours. The problem was the injury.
Every time he climbed up, injuries caught his ankle. He underwent 9 surgeries, including 2 elbow surgeries, 3 foot surgeries, 3 shoulder surgeries, and 1 hip surgery. But with his will and fortitude, he always got back on his court. That’s why he is a ‘human tumbleweed’.
He continued to gain experience in Futures and Challenger competitions and entered the 300th, 200th, and 100th every two years from 2011, showing that he is a growing player.
Last year, I digested the season without injury and showed my skills to the fullest. He has won every Grand Slam, including the round of 32 at Wimbledon. In particular, at the ATP 250 Astana Open, he reached the final for the first time in his career, but was defeated by Kwon Soon-woo and stayed in second place.
Although he underwent surgery and rehabilitation due to an injury earlier this year, he recently finished runner-up in the Challenger tournament, raising expectations for his performance in this tournament.
The 33-year-old veteran Millman (Australia) is an unforgettable player for ‘tennis emperor’ Roger Federer (Switzerland). He faced off a total of 4 times and caught one of the gears. With a surprise victory over Federer in the round of 16 at the 2018 US Open, he reached the quarterfinals of a major for the first time in his career. That year, he enjoyed the joy of a career high, rising to No. 33 in the world rankings. Then, he met Federer again at the Australian Open in 2020 and played a thrilling match, but unfortunately lost.
Millman, who has entered the 15th year of his tour career, is currently evaluated as a seasoned player who has fallen outside the top 100, but is ready to show off his skills at any time. 스포츠토토
He is famous for his unique records. He served a double bagel to Richard Berankis (Lithuania) at the 2016 Rio Olympics and remains the only player in Olympic history to win without conceding a single game.
He also has the warmth of serving drinks to the fans after the game. Every tournament held in their country is called ‘Milmania’, and the reason why fans flock to it is because of their warm personality.
On the other hand, ‘ATP Seoul Open Challenger 125’ will start the singles round of 32 tournament from the 24th and the doubles round of 16 tournament from the 26th. The finals will be held on the last day of the tournament. It will be broadcast live on Genie TV (No. 125), LG U+ (No. 131), D’Live (No. 236), YouTube channel, and Naver Sports through the sports channel STN Sports.