{"id":484405,"date":"2026-02-22T20:16:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T20:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/484405\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T20:16:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T20:16:09","slug":"scouting-report-alexander-zverev-leads-acapulco-jack-draper-returns-in-dubai-atp-tour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/484405\/","title":{"rendered":"Scouting Report: Alexander Zverev leads Acapulco, Jack Draper returns in Dubai | ATP Tour"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>        Scouting Report<br \/>\n    Scouting Report: Zverev leads Acapulco, Draper returns in Dubai, Cerundolo headlines Santiago<\/p>\n<p>An executive summary of what every fan should know about the coming week\n<\/p>\n<p>February 22, 2026<\/p>\n<p>            <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/scouting-report-acapulco-dubai-santiago--16x9.jpg\" alt=\"Alexander Zverev, Jack Draper and Francisco Cerundolo are in action this week on the ATP Tour.\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Peter Staples\/ATP Tour<\/p>\n<p>        Alexander Zverev, Jack Draper and Francisco Cerundolo are in action this week on the ATP Tour.<br \/>\n        By ATP Staff<\/p>\n<p>The ATP Tour season continues across three continents and two surfaces this week. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/alexander-zverev\/z355\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Alexander Zverev<\/a> leads the field at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/acapulco\/807\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC<\/a> in Acapulco, while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/felix-auger-aliassime\/ag37\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Felix Auger-Aliassime<\/a> is the top seed at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/dubai\/495\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/jack-draper\/d0co\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jack Draper<\/a> returns to the Tour at the ATP 500 hard-court event.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/francisco-cerundolo\/c0au\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Francisco Cerundolo<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/luciano-darderi\/d0fj\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Luciano Darderi<\/a> headline the draw on clay at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/santiago\/8996\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">BCI Seguros Chile Open<\/a> in Santiago.<\/p>\n<p>ATPTour.com breaks down five things to watch at each event.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/news\/atp-number-one-club\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767418027_359_atp-no-1-club-banner-article.jpg\" alt=\"\u201cATP\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN ACAPULCO<br \/>1) Former champion Zverev: The No. 4 player in the PIF ATP Rankings Zverev is the top seed at the ATP 500 hard-court event in Acapulco. The German lifted the trophy at the tournament in 2021 and is chasing his first title of the year. The 28-year-old opens against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/corentin-moutet\/mw02\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Corentin Moutet<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>2) De Minaur on a roll: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/alex-de-minaur\/dh58\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Alex de Minaur<\/a> arrives in Mexico off the back of a title run at the ATP 500 event in Rotterdam earlier this month. The Australian has fond memories in Acapulco, having won the trophy in his past two appearances in 2023 and 2024. The 27-year-old starts this week\u2019s quest against a qualifier.<\/p>\n<p>3) Ruud &amp; Davidovich Fokina complete Top 4 seeds: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/casper-ruud\/rh16\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Casper Ruud<\/a> returned to the Tour in Delray Beach last week (QF) after the birth of his first daughter. The third-seeded Norwegian reached the final in Acapulco in 2024. Fourth seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/alejandro-davidovich-fokina\/dh50\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Alejandro Davidovich Fokina<\/a> will hope this is the week that he finally earns his first tour-level title. The Spaniard lost in the championship match at the event last year to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/tomas-machac\/m0fh\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Tomas Machac<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>4) Monfils, Jodar &amp; Pacheco Mendez receive wild cards:\u00a0Gael Monfils is returning to Acapulco for the first time since he advanced to the final in 2009. The Frenchman is chasing his first win of 2026. #NextGenATP Spaniard <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/rafael-jodar\/j0dz\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Rafael Jodar<\/a> has earned tour-level victories at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/australian-open\/580\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Australian Open<\/a> and in Delray Beach this year and the 19-year-old Spaniard will hope to push closer to the Top 100 this week. Mexico\u2019s Rodrigo Pacheco Mendez, 20, advanced to the quarter-finals in Acapulco last season. He begins against fifth seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/flavio-cobolli\/c0e9\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Flavio Cobolli<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>5) Harrison\/Skupski lead doubles draw: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/christian-harrison\/hb05\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Christian Harrison<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/neal-skupski\/sl22\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Neal Skupski<\/a> enjoyed the perfect start to the year at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/australian-open\/580\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Australian Open<\/a>, where they clinched their first major as a team. The American-British team is the top seed in Acapulco. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/hugo-nys\/n670\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Hugo Nys<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/edouard-roger-vasselin\/r613\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Edouard Roger-Vasselin<\/a> are seeded second.<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/apps?utm_source=atp&amp;utm_medium=article&amp;utm_campaign=app_banner\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/news\/-\/media\/&#10;a888346995e24e4da5e94a23e5765cf1.ashx\" alt=\"The Official App Of Tennis | Download ATP WTA Live App\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN DUBAI<br \/>1) Auger-Aliassime top seed: The Canadian has won eight of his past nine matches, according to the Infosys ATP Win\/Loss Index, lifting the trophy in Montpellier and advancing to the final in Rotterdam. Auger-Aliassime reached the final in Dubai last season, losing to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/stefanos-tsitsipas\/te51\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Stefanos Tsitsipas<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>2) Can Bublik clinch second title of 2026? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/alexander-bublik\/bk92\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Alexander Bublik<\/a> won the title in Hong Kong and broke the Top 10 for the first time in the opening week of the 2026 season. The 28-year-old has fond memories in Dubai, reaching the final in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>You May Also Like: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/news\/dubai-2026-draw-preview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">What is the Dubai tennis draw? <\/a><\/p>\n<p>3) Draper returns: Draper is set to compete at an ATP Tour event for the first time this year. The British lefty, who played one match at the Davis Cup Qualifiers earlier in February, has not competed in a singles event since the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/tournaments\/us-open\/560\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">US Open<\/a> in August due to a left arm injury. Draper is making his debut in Dubai and is the fourth seed.<\/p>\n<p>4) Fils &amp; Mensik in form: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/arthur-fils\/f0f1\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Arthur Fils<\/a> continued his own comeback in Doha, where he lost to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/carlos-alcaraz\/a0e2\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Carlos Alcaraz<\/a> in the final. The Frenchman returned to Tour in Montpellier at the start of February following a long-term back injury. He opens against eighth seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/jiri-lehecka\/l0bv\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jiri Lehecka<\/a>. Sixth seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/jakub-mensik\/m0ni\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Jakub Mensik<\/a> defeated Jannik Sinner and then lost to Fils in the Doha semi-finals but will hope to build on that run in Dubai, where he begins against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/hubert-hurkacz\/hb71\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Hubert Hurkacz<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>5) Former champions compete: In a competitive field, defending champion Tsitsipas, 2024 titlist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/ugo-humbert\/hh26\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Ugo Humbert<\/a>, 2023 winner <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/daniil-medvedev\/mm58\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Daniil Medvedev<\/a>, 2022 victor <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/andrey-rublev\/re44\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Andrey Rublev<\/a> and 2016 champ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/stan-wawrinka\/w367\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Stan Wawrinka<\/a> compete. Humbert faces Tsitsipas in the first round and the Frenchman takes a 3-1 Lexus ATP Head2Head series lead in against the Greek.<\/p>\n<p>FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN SANTIAGO<br \/>1) Cerundolo headlines: Top 20 star <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/francisco-cerundolo\/c0au\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Francisco Cerundolo<\/a> will chase his second title of the &#8216;Golden Swing&#8217; in Santiago. The 27-year-old triumphed in Buenos Aires earlier in February and now competes at the ATP 250 clay-court event in Chile.<\/p>\n<p>2) Former champ Baez: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/sebastian-baez\/b0bi\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sebastian Baez<\/a> has often found his best level on the South American clay in the past, winning four trophies. A winner in Santiago in 2024, the Argentine will hope to bounce back from a first-round exit in Rio de Janeiro.<\/p>\n<p>3) Tabilo leads home hopes: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/alejandro-tabilo\/te30\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Alejandro Tabilo<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/tomas-barrios-vera\/bs86\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Tomas Barrios Vera<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/cristian-garin\/gd64\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Cristian Garin<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/nicolas-jarry\/j551\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Nicolas Jarry<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/matias-soto\/s0ek\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Matias Soto<\/a> are the five Chilean stars in the draw. Eighth seed Tabilo meets Barrios Vera in the first round. Jarry won the title in Santiago in 2023, while Garin triumphed on home soil in 2021. Soto, 26, is making his main draw debut.<\/p>\n<p>4) Darderi, Berrettini threats: Second seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/luciano-darderi\/d0fj\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Luciano Darderi<\/a> and sixth seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/matteo-berrettini\/bk40\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Matteo Berrettini<\/a> have won a combined 10 tour-level clay-court titles. Darderi, a four-time champ, advanced to the quarter-finals in Santiago in 2024. Berrettini is making his debut at the ATP 250.<\/p>\n<p>5) Gonzalez\/Molteni top seeds in doubles: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/maximo-gonzalez\/g585\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Maximo Gonzalez<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.atptour.com\/en\/players\/andres-molteni\/me56\/overview\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Andres Molteni<\/a> are the top seeds in the doubles draw. The Argentines are seeking their first title as a team since Barcelona in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Scouting Report Scouting Report: Zverev leads Acapulco, Draper returns in Dubai, Cerundolo headlines Santiago An executive summary of&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":484406,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[72],"tags":[99,428],"class_list":["post-484405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tennis","tag-sports","tag-tennis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=484405"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484405\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/484406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=484405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=484405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=484405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}