Andy Murray is unsure of the severity of his abdominal injury, but is hopeful it will not affect his preparations for Wimbledon.

The three-time grand slam winner struggled with the issue during Sunday's 6-4 5-7 6-3 defeat to Matteo Berrettini in the Stuttgart Open final.

Murray, who was competing in his first tour-level final on grass since 2016, twice received medical treatment but was able to finish the match.

He played five matches in Germany last week and four matches in Surbiton the week before en route to reaching the semi-finals.

Murray is due to play at Queen's this week before Wimbledon in a fortnight.

While frustrated with the manner in which his bid for a first grass-court singles title in six years ended, Murray says it is understandable that he is struggling physically.

"I felt like I was playing well enough to win and I got myself in a really good position going into the third set so a frustrating end to what was a good week," he said.

"I got some pain in my abdomen when I was serving. It's not something I've had before. I'll need to get it checked when I get home.

"This is the most matches I've played in two weeks since probably 2016. That's a really long time. 

"It's probably normal that I would feel some stuff in my body but I don't really know the severity of it. Hopefully it's all right."

Matteo Berrettini secured his sixth ATP Tour title with a 6-4 5-7 6-3 victory over Andy Murray at the Stuttgart Open.

Berrettini, playing in his first tournament since injury, raced out the blocks to break Murray in just his second service game, before the Scot failed to capitalise on four break points in the following game.

A similar pattern continued for the remainder of the first set, with neither player able to capitalise on break-point opportunities before Berrettini claimed the 1-0 lead with a booming forehand down the line.

That was the first set that Murray had lost in the tournament and he responded by producing a gritty performance in the second.

Berrettini squandered three chances to break at 4-4 before a double fault in the tie-break handed Murray three set points, and the three-time grand slam champion duly obliged to level.

The Italian opened the decider with a break, with Murray requiring a medical timeout for a leg injury, and the world number 10 claimed victory after his opponent had required more treatment.

Berrettini added a second Stuttgart crown to his name, having lifted the title in 2019, while it was his third grass-court success.

The 26-year-old will look to carry that form into Wimbledon, which starts on June 27, while the injury will be of concern to Murray, who was denied his first title since 2019.

Tim van Rijthoven completed an astonishing week at the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships by stunning Daniil Medvedev to claim the title on home soil.

World ranked 205 Van Rijthoven had never won an ATP main draw match before receiving a wild card into this event, in which he has enjoyed a dream week.

The Dutchman beat Felix Auger-Aliassime to progress to a final with Medvedev, who is set to return to world number one on Monday.

But he made light of the gulf in tour experience and ranking by powering to a 6-4 6-1 win.

He dominated the contest on serve, landing 74 per cent of his first serves and winning 84 per cent of his first-serve points. Van Rijthoven also lost just four points on second serve.

By contrast, Medvedev won just 56 per cent of points on his first serve and a paltry 38 per cent on his second, the US Open champion facing 10 break points in the contest.

Van Rijthoven raced into a 5-0 lead in the second set and, though Medvedev saved one match point to avoid a bagel, a fairytale win was sealed in the next game when the Russian could only return a serve into the net to spark jubilation among the home fans.

Stuttgart Open organisers are investigating claims made by Nick Kyrgios that he was racially abused at the tournament.

Kyrgios was defeated in the semi-finals by Andy Murray in straight sets on Saturday, with the former given a penalty by the umpire for smashing his racket and arguing with the crowd.

The Australian took to Instagram afterwards to say he was subjected to racial abuse by a spectator and called a "little black sheep".

"When is this going to stop? Dealing with racial slurs from the crowd?" he wrote.

"I understand that my behaviour isn't the best all the time – but 'you little black sheep', 'shut up and play' – little comments like this are not acceptable.

"When I retaliate to the crowd, I get penalised. This is messed up."

The tournament organisers responded on Sunday with a statement that read: "We stand for creating an inclusive environment for all players, staff members and visitors where discrimination of any kind is not tolerated.

"This attitude is lived by all people involved and responsible. These fundamental values are as important as values like fairness, tolerance and team spirit to us. Thus no discriminating actions by the spectators are accepted.

"We have expressed our regret towards Nick Kyrgios and his team and assured that any kind of discrimination is unacceptable. The incident is currently under investigation."

Roger Federer has reiterated his desire to make an ATP tour comeback in 2023, having not played since defeat at Wimbledon in 2021.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion has been forced to the sidelines following knee surgery last year.

At 40, questions have been posed whether the Swiss star might hang up his racquet after one of the most successful careers of the Open era.

But now, Federer says he intends to make a return next year, having committed to partnering Rafael Nadal at the Laver Cup in London before competing at the Swiss Indoors tournament in his home town of Basel.

"Yes, definitely," he told Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger on his hopes for a return to the ATP tour next year. "How and where, I don't know yet. But that would be the idea.

"I haven't planned more than the Laver Cup and Basel yet. After Basel, the season is over anyway. It's important for me to get fit again so that I can train fully.

"Once I've done that, I can choose how many tournaments I play and where. The Laver Cup is a good start, I don't have to play five matches in six days.

"I will have to be able to do that in Basel. But I'm hopeful, I've come a long way. I'm not far away."

Rafael Nadal's latest grand slam triumph at the French Open is "unbelievable", says Roger Federer, who believes his rival "keeps raising the bar".

The Spaniard cruised through to both a record 14th success on clay at Roland Garros and a record-extending 22nd men's grand slam title with a straight sets demolition of Casper Ruud.

That made it two from two in 2022 for the 36-year-old, leaving him clear of both Federer and Novak Djokovic, who remain on 20 grand slam crowns each.

The former – who has enjoyed a strong sporting rivalry and friendship with Nadal throughout their intertwined careers – however has nothing but praise for his latest achievement.

"I didn't watch the final," Federer told Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger. "I watched the quarter-final [against Djokovic] a bit before I went to sleep.

"In general, it's just unbelievable what Rafa has achieved. The record of Pete Sampras, which I beat, was 14 grand slam titles.

"Now Rafa won the French Open 14 times. That's unbelievable. I was happy for him that he did it again.

"Hats off to Rafa. After the 10th, 11th time, I already thought: 'This can't be.' He keeps raising the bar. It's gigantic."

Federer has been unable to add to his own haul of grand slams, having missed the tail-end of 2021 and start of 2022 through injury as he continues to recover from knee surgery.

The 40-year-old Swiss star acknowledged he has not yet plotted anything more than competing in the Laver Cup and Basel Open in October, stressing he will focus on achieving full fitness rather than setting a return date.

"After Basel, the season is over anyway," he added. "It's important for me to get fit again so that I can train fully. Once I've done that, I can choose how many tournaments I play and where.

"The Laver Cup is a good start, I don't have to play five matches in six days.

"I will have be able to do that in Basel. That's why I have to prepare for it in practice. I'm curious myself what's still to come.

"But I'm hopeful, I've come a long way. I'm not far away. The next three or four months will be extremely important."

On a return to top-class tennis in 2023, Federer said that such a move remained the aim, adding: "Yes, definitely. How and where, I don't know yet. But that would be the idea. Definitely."

Nick Kyrgios said he was racially abused by a spectator during his semi-final with Andy Murray at the Stuttgart Open on Saturday.

Murray won the match 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 to advance to the final, where he will play Matteo Berrettini on Sunday.

However, Kyrgios had greater concerns as he took to Instagram afterwards to say he was called a "little black sheep" by someone in attendance.

"When is this going to stop? Dealing with racial slurs from the crowd?" he wrote.

"I understand that my behaviour isn't the best all the time – but 'you little black sheep', 'shut up and play' – little comments like this are not acceptable. When I retaliate to the crowd, I get penalised. This is messed up."

Meanwhile, Murray's win saw him reach his first tour-level final on grass since 2016.

The three-time major winner upset Stefanos Tsitsipas in the previous round – his first win over a top-five opponent in six years – and followed that up against Kyrgios with another impressive performance.

"A lot of ups and downs, but I kept going and kept working and finally managed to get to another one. I am proud of the effort I have put in," Murray said after securing the win.

He moves up to 47th in the live ATP rankings – the first time he has been in the top 50 since May 2018 – and his clash with Berrettini will be his 70th career final.

"You're always battling yourself as well as the opponent, it's one of the difficult things about individual sports," he added in relation to Kyrgios' frustrations during the game.

"Nick has the potential to be one of the best players in the world, there's absolutely no question about that. But he obviously got very frustrated in the second set and made it a lot easier for me.

"I'm happy to be in the final. I've played well this week and I've got a great opportunity against Matteo tomorrow."

Daniil Medvedev is one match away from winning his first title of 2022 after beating Adrian Mannarino in straight sets to reach the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships final.

Defending champion Mannarino had won eight matches in a row at the ATP 250 event, which was last held in 2019, but he fell 7-5 7-5 to Medvedev in a match lasting a little under two hours.

Top seed Medvedev, whose most recent appearance in a final came at the Australian Open in January, will now face home favourite Tim van Rijthoven on Sunday.

"Adrian plays good, and some games in this match I was like: okay, I can't do anything," said Medvedev, who will reclaim top spot in the ATP rankings next week.

"I had to just continue playing my tennis. He was unbelievable sometimes, missing sometimes, so I just continued my game, and it managed to work today."

Medvedev was far from his best against flat-hitting Mannarino, with the first set featuring five breaks of serve, but the 26-year-old did enough to edge in front.

After wasting a chance to serve out the match in the 10th game of the second set, Medvedev edged a mammoth 11th game and avoided any sort of scare to advance through.

The Russian will next face a different sort of test against Van Rijthoven after the Dutch wildcard stunned second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier on Saturday.

Van Rijthoven, who had not won a match at tour level until his opening-round win over Matthew Ebden, prevailed 6-3 1-6 7-6 (7-5) in a thrilling semi-final.

After sharing the first two sets, Van Rijthoven wasted six break-point opportunities in the decider, but he held his nerve in the tie-break to keep his dream run going.

He is the first Dutchman to reach the final in 's-Hertogenbosch since Raemon Sluiter in 2009.

Andy Murray reached his first tour-level final on grass since 2016 with a straight-sets victory over Nick Kyrgios at the Stuttgart Open on Saturday.

The three-time major winner stunned Stefanos Tsitsipas in the previous round – his first win over a top-five opponent in six years – and followed that up with another fine victory.

Murray, who last contested a final on grass when winning Wimbledon for a second time, prevailed 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 against Kyrgios.

He moves up to 47th in the live ATP rankings – the first time he has been in the top 50 since May 2018 – and will face Matteo Berrettini in what will be his 70th career final.

Aiming to keep alive his hopes of a ninth career title on grass, Murray saved both break points faced in the first set and showed good resolve to edge Kyrgios in the tie-break.

The second set was not as tightly contested, with the 35-year-old showing few signs of fatigue as he twice broke Kyrgios' serve to reach Sunday's final in Germany.

Berrettini had earlier defeated Oscar Otte 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-5) to reach his first tour-level final of an injury-hit season.

The world number 10 fired 18 aces en route to overcoming home favourite Otte in a time of one hour and 48 minutes.

"I am really happy," Berrettini said in his on-court interview. "Arriving at the tournament, that was the goal [to reach the final].

"From thinking about it and actually making it is a big difference. I am happy I am here and have another chance to play another final after months without playing.

"This means this is my level and I have proved once again I am comfortable at this level and on this surface. I really like it here at Stuttgart."

Andy Murray claimed his first win over a top-five opponent since 2016 as he stunned Stefanos Tsitsipas to reach the Stuttgart Open semi-finals.

Murray started his preparations for the grass-court swing with a run to the semi-finals of the challenger at Surbiton.

He knocked off seventh seed Alexander Bublik to reach the last eight in Stuttgart but a meeting with the top seed and world number five represented a much more imposing challenge.

It was one the two-time Wimbledon champion rose to emphatically, winning a first-set tie-break and then claiming the second set in comfortable fashion to cement a 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 win, gaining revenge for his contentious five-set defeat to the Greek at last year's US Open.

Murray's previous win over a top-five opponent came in the ATP Finals six years ago, when he defeated Novak Djokovic in a year that also saw him win Wimbledon.

"I thought I did well. He served unbelievably in the first set," Murray said in his on-court interview.

"I felt like I had very few chances, but when he was creating chances on my serve, I stayed strong.

"I played a really solid tie-break and in the second set, once I was in the rallies, I felt like I was dictating a lot of the points. It was a good performance."

Murray is up to 53rd in the live ATP rankings and is bidding to get back into the top 50 for the first time since 2018. 

Standing between him and a place in the final is Nick Kyrgios, who was 7-6 (7-3) 3-0 up when Marton Fucsovics retired from their quarter-final clash.

Matteo Berrettini beat Lorenzo Sonego in three sets, while Oscar Otte won by walkover against Benjamin Bonzi.

At the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships in 's-Hertogenbosch, Daniil Medvedev saw off Ilya Ivashka 7-6 (10-8) 6-4.

Medvedev, who will soon return to world number one when the ranking points from the French Open come into effect, sees the grass-court season as a chance to cement his grip on that spot.

"I don't have many points to defend on grass and I have some to win, so hopefully I can play well, starting here," said Medvedev. "Every round is points and the higher you get, the more you need to step up."

He will face defending champion Adrian Mannarino in the semi-finals, while second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime is into a last-four clash with home hope Tim van Rijthoven after beating Karen Khachanov. 

Daniil Medvedev started his grass-court season with victory over Gilles Simon in the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, while Hubert Hurkacz and Denis Shapovalov suffered shock defeats in Stuttgart.

Medvedev will replace Novak Djokovic at the top of the rankings next Monday and the Russian could celebrate by claiming a first title of the year in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

The top seed, who will not compete at Wimbledon due to a ban on Russian and Belarusian players, beat Frenchman Simon 7-5 6-4 on Thursday after saving three set points and storming back from 5-2 down in the opener, setting up a quarter-final against lya Ivashka.

Felix Auger-Aliassime, the second seed, defeated Tallon Griekspoor 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-5), but third seed Taylor Fritz was beaten by wildcard Tim van Rijthoven in straight sets.

Alex de Minaur and Jenson Brooksby also made early exits, losing to French duo Adrian Mannarino and Hugo Gaston respectively.

Marton Fucsovics claimed the scalp of third seed Hurkacz to reach the last 16 at the Stuttgart Open, winning 7-5 6-7 (7-) 6-3

Shapovalov also lost his opening of the grass-court season, Oscar Otte getting the better of the fourth seed 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-4)

There was no such trouble for top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat Dominic Stricker 6-3 6-4, and Andy Murray accounted for seventh seed Alexander Bublik in straight sets.

Matteo Berrettini made a winning return in his first match back since hand surgery after defeating Radu Albot at the Stuttgart Open.

The world number 10 was forced to sit out the ATP clay season after undergoing surgery following his withdrawal from Miami.

But the Italian was in fine form upon his return as he saw off Moldovan qualifier Albot with a battling 6-2 4-6 6-3 victory to get his grass-court season underway.

Following his last-four appearance at the Australian Open, Berrettini will be seeking another deep run at Wimbledon this year, after reaching his maiden grand slam final there last summer.

The former world number six will have to wait to discover his quarter-final opponent however, after rain forced a suspension in the match between Lorenzo Sonego and Jan-Lennard Struff. 

Sonego took the opening set in a tie break, with the match to be finished on Thursday.

At the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, Jenson Brooksby likewise saw his match against Hugo Gaston brought to a standstill by overhead conditions, with the American leading 4-2 in the first set.

Andy Murray made a winning start to his ATP grass-court season after a straight-sets victory over Christopher O'Connell at the Stuttgart Open.

The three-time Grand Slam champion, who reached the Surbiton Open semi-finals last week, recovered from a slow start before wrapping up a commanding 6-4 6-3 victory in Stuttgart.

Having missed the French Open to focus his efforts on Wimbledon, Murray lost the opening three games of his clash with the Australian qualifier.

However, the former world number one responded in style, breaking his opponent four times on the way to setting up a last-16 clash with Alexander Bublik.

Bublik, the seventh seed, hit 19 aces and won 36 out of 42 points on his first serve as he overcame Denis Kudla 7-6 (7-3) 7-5.

Nick Kyrgios recorded an impressive 18 aces in his 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 win over Jiri Lehecka, but eighth seed Ugo Humbert was ousted 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 by compatriot Arthur Rinderknech.

Meanwhile, Botic van de Zandschulp and Tommy Paul were among the seeds to fall at the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships.

Sixth seed Van de Zandschulp went down 4-6 6-2 6-1 against Finland’s Emil Ruusuvuori, and seventh seed Paul was beaten 6-7 (7-4) 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-2) by American compatriot Brandon Nakashima.

But there were no such problems for Karen Khachanov. The world number 23 won 28 out of 30 points on his first serve as he downed Alejandro Tabilo 6-3 6-3.

Alexander Zverev is determined to "come back stronger than ever" after undergoing ankle surgery on Tuesday. 

Zverev tore all three lateral ligaments in his right ankle during the second set of his French Open semi-final against Rafael Nadal last week. 

The German is set to miss Wimbledon after his hopes of winning a first grand slam at Roland Garros came to a painful end. 

Zverev is ready to knuckle down with his rehabilitation after going under the knife in his homeland. 

Along with a picture of himself in his hospital bed giving the thumbs up, he posted on Instagram: "We all have our own journey in life. This is part of mine. 

"Next week I'll reach a career-high ranking of number two in the world, but this morning I had to undergo surgery. After further examination in Germany, we received confirmation that all three of the lateral ligaments in my right ankle were torn. 

"To return to competition as quickly as possible, to ensure all the ligaments heal properly, and to reclaim full stability in my ankle, surgery was the best choice. My rehab starts now and I'll do everything to come back stronger than ever! 

"I am continuing to receive so many messages and would like to thank everyone once again for supporting me during such a difficult time." 

Nadal went on to beat Casper Ruud in the final in Paris on Sunday to claim a record-extending 14th French Open title, taking his astonishing tally of grand slam triumphs to 22. 

Lorenzo Sonego eased into the second round of the Stuttgart Open on Monday, while Hugo Gaston enjoyed first-round success at the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships.

Sixth seed Sonego was the headline act on Monday in Stuttgart and made light work of Benoit Paire to win 7-5 6-2.

The Italian will next face Jan-Lennard Struff after the German edged out world number 53 Marcos Giron 7-5 5-7 7-6 (10-8).

"It's my first time here, it's my first tournament on grass and I'm really happy [with] this match," Sonego said after defeating Paire.

"It's never easy to pass from clay to grass, but I enjoy it because if I serve good it is easier for me."

Struff's compatriot Oscar Otte was another first-round winner with straight-sets victory over Daniel Altmaier, while Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi breezed past Feliciano Lopez.

In Rosmalen, poor weather wreaked havoc with the schedule but France's Gaston had little trouble against South Korean Kwon Soon-woo, winning 6-2 6-1 to reach the last 16, and Andreas Seppi battled past Gijs Brouwer in the second round of qualifying.

Seppi will be hoping to make it to the main draw, where world number two Daniil Medvedev is the top seed, with Felix Auger-Aliassime and Taylor Fritz also competing.