World number one Carlos Alcaraz is through to the semi-finals of the Swiss Indoors Basel after easing past Pablo Carreno-Busta in straight sets.

Alcaraz took just under an hour and 40 minutes to overcome his fellow Spaniard and friend 6-3 6-4, getting 67 per cent of his first serves in and winning 77 per cent of those.

Carreno-Busta struggled to keep the US Open champion at bay, facing 12 break points in all, and although he saved nine of them, his defiance was ultimately in vain.

"It is difficult to play against a friend like Pablo," Alcaraz said on-court after his win on Friday. "Every day we go and have dinner, lunch, together. Every week and we train together, so it is difficult to play against him.

"I also support him and want him to win every match. On court, there are no friends. You have to be focused and go for the match and that is what I did."

Alcaraz will face third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the final four after the Canadian defeated Alexander Bublik 6-2 6-3.

The other semi-final will see Roberto Bautista Agut play Holger Rune after the Spaniard beat Stan Wawrinka 7-5 7-6 (7-5) and the Danish teenager defeated Arthur Rinderknech 7-6 (7-0) 6-2.

In Austria, top seed at the Vienna Open Daniil Medvedev beat Jannik Sinner 6-4 6-2 to advance to the last four, where he will play Grigor Dimitrov after the Bulgarian overcame Marcos Giron 6-3 4-6 6-4.

The winner of that contest will face either Denis Shapovalov, who beat Dan Evans 6-3 6-3, or Borna Coric after the Croatian came through against Hubert Hurkacz 6-4 6-7 (2-7) 7-6 (7-5).

Emma Raducanu has pulled out of next month's Billie Jean King Cup, citing a wrist injury.

The former US Open champion had been named as part of Great Britain's team for the tournament, which will take place at Emirates Arena in Glasgow between November 8-13.

Raducanu was selected alongside Harriet Dart, Katie Boulter and Heather Watson, with a fifth member to be added at a later date, and made her Billie Jean King Cup debut in April's qualifier against Czech Republic.

However, after pulling out of the Transylvania Open earlier this month with the same right-wrist issue, the 19-year-old confirmed on Friday she had been told by doctors she will not recover in time.

"It's disappointing to get the news from the doctors that I won't be ready in time, particularly with it being on home soil," Raducanu said.

"I tried to do everything possible to get it ready in time. 

"Since my last tournament I've been working every day on physical training and rehab. I've got confidence in my team-mates and look forward to playing next year."

Great Britain will be one of 12 teams participating in Scotland, and have been drawn in a group with Kazakhstan and Spain.

Stefanos Tsitsipas crashed out of the Vienna Open after losing in a dramatic third-set tie-break against Borna Coric, who claimed his third successive win over the Greek ace.

The second seed was the highest-profile casualty in the Austrian capital on Thursday, as he succumbed to the Croatian once more 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4).

Coric rescued six match points before stunning Tsitsipas at the 2020 US Open, while he also triumphed when they collided in the Cincinnati showpiece in August.

The world number 27's chances of completing a hat-trick of victories appeared bleak at a set and break down, but he rallied to force a decider that went the distance, before holding his nerve for another notable win.

Coric's reward is a quarter-final clash with Hubert Hurkacz, who boosted his chances of qualifying for next month's ATP Finals with a 7-5 4-6 6-3 win over Emil Ruusuvuori.

Daniil Medvedev advanced to the last eight after a 6-3 6-3 victory over home favourite Dominic Thiem. Next up for the top seed is Jannik Sinner after the Italian saw off Francisco Cerundolo 7-5 6-3.

Third seed Andrey Rublev's ATP Finals hopes were dented after a 6-3 6-4 defeat by Grigor Dimitrov, who will play Marcos Giron after the American overcame seventh seed Cameron Norrie in straight sets.

Over in Basel, third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime required just 49 minutes to complete a commanding 6-1 6-0 rout of Miomir Kecmanovic for his 10th straight ATP win.

Meanwhile, Stockholm champion Holger Rune continued his momentum by recording a seventh straight victory after seeing off Ugo Humbert 6-4 6-2.

Sixth seed Roberto Bautista Agut enjoyed a straight-sets win over three-time grand slam champion Andy Murray to set up a clash with home favourite Stan Wawrinka, who outlasted Brandon Nakashima in a deciding set.

Emma Raducanu has been urged to slow down the churn of coaches by her side as Russian Dmitry Tursunov claimed he walked away from the British player because of "red flags".

Tursunov, a former top-20 player and seven-time title winner on the men's tour, said Raducanu needs to listen to "one voice" and see where that takes her, after he became the latest coach to part ways with the former US Open winner.

It emerged in early October that Tursunov had called a halt to working with Raducanu, and he has taken up a role with Swiss player Belinda Bencic instead.

Tursunov told tennismajors.com how "emotionally" he had wanted his trial period with Raducanu to become permanent, insisting he saw rich potential in the 19-year-old, but he suspected there would "be problems later".

Former Davis Cup winner Tursunov did not specify who or what he saw as being a stumbling block to working with Raducanu on a permanent basis.

"I was walking away from Emma regardless of whether there was another [player] available or not," Tursunov said. "We didn't agree on the terms and there were some red flags that just couldn't be ignored."

Raducanu turns 20 in November. As well as Tursunov, in the past 18 months she has worked with Nigel Sears, Andrew Richardson, Torben Beltz and the Lawn Tennis Association's Iain Bates.

Her growing list of former coaches is notable and the focus on that factor could influence those Raducanu wishes to work with in the future.

Tursunov said Raducanu was "minimum a one-year project but... probably a two-and-a-half-year project to be on the safe side", and reasoned that her game remained "very raw".

"It’s going to take some time, but as I said to her and to pretty much everyone on her team: I think you just need to have one voice and just try that for a bit," Tursunov said

He said he "stuck around" after a trial around the US Open and was looking for assurance that, if taken on, he would be given time to work towards long-term goals.

"But of course, with her coaching situation, there's now a thought going through every coach's mind," Tursunov added.

Raducanu has not reached a final since her dazzling Flushing Meadows victory, but Tursunov has no doubt about the talent of a player he describes as "absolutely great" and "hungry to improve".

There have been just four quarter-final runs in the wake of her September 2021 triumph in New York, with Raducanu only converting one into a semi-final appearance

Tursunov, 39, says Raducanu "has a tremendous upside", but he also issued a warning, adding: "The ingredients are very good, but you can still mess it up."

Daniil Medvedev set up a second-round showdown with home favourite Dominic Thiem at the Vienna Open after defeating Nikoloz Basilashvili in straight sets on Wednesday.

The top seed broke early and late in both sets as he cruised through the opening round a 6-2 6-2 winner.

Next up for Medvedev is a clash with former US Open champion Thiem, who beat him in the semi-finals on the way to triumphing at Flushing Meadows two years ago.

Stefanos Tsitsipas overcame local wildcard Dennis Novak 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 as the Greek ace seeks a third final in as many weeks, having lifted the title in Astana and finished as runner-up to Holger Rune in Stockholm.

Jannik Sinner also advanced in straight sets against Cristian Garin, but Taylor Fritz's ATP Finals hopes suffered a blow after the fourth seed was beaten 6-1 4-6 6-3 by Denis Shapovalov.

Over in Basel, world number one Carlos Alcaraz sailed through to his 11th quarter-final of the season after a commanding 6-4 6-2 win over Botic van de Zandschulp.

Meanwhile, Felix Auger-Aliassime recovered from losing the opening set to deny Marc-Andrea Huesler. The third seed claimed a career-best ninth successive ATP Tour victory, as he looks to complete a hat-trick of titles in as many weeks having recently reigned in Florence and Antwerp.

Stockholm champion Rune built on his recent momentum with a 6-2 7-5 success over Alex de Minaur, but Naples winner Lorenzo Musetti was ousted in a deciding set by Albert Ramos-Vinolas. 

Stan Wawrinka rolled back the years for a glorious victory over Casper Ruud at the Swiss Indoors, joining fellow veteran Andy Murray in putting on a show in Basel.

Former world number one Murray pulled off a remarkable win over Russian Roman Safiullin, winning five games in a row from 4-1 behind in the final set.

But that was just a tease for the excitement that followed, as Wawrinka, who like Murray won three grand slam titles in his prime, felled second seed Ruud in straight sets.

The 37-year-old Swiss delighted his home crowd with a 6-4 6-4 victory over this season's French Open and US Open runner-up, serving nine aces as he defied a world ranking of 194th to produce some of his old magic.

Murray has fallen away from the elite ,too, but at 49th in the world he is not far away from rejoining that pack, although defeat looked to be beckoning against Safiullin.

The 35-year-old Scot fist-pumped with relief at recovering the break of serve that Safiullin snatched early in the decider, and Murray hit a service winner on his second match point to seal a 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 6-4 success.

The victory for two-time Wimbledon winner Murray took him to 26 wins this season, the most he has had in a single campaign since pulling off an astounding 78 victories in 2016, the year he won at the All England Club for a second time, landed a second Olympic gold medal and finished top of the rankings.

Murray said of his win: "As the match went on, I started to dictate a few more points and served better."

Quoted on the ATP website, he added: "I changed the way I was returning a little bit, and when I did that, I was able to create a few more opportunities and frustrate him a little bit."

Pablo Carreno Busta scored a 6-2 6-1 win against Argentinian Sebastian Baez, with Alex Molcan, Dominic Stricker and Botic van de Zandschulp also advancing to the last-16 stage.

At the Vienna Open, Murray's fellow British players Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans both went through to the second round, Norrie beating Argentina's Pedro Cachin 3-6 6-2 7-6 (7-1) and Evans fending off Germany's Oscar Otte 6-4 7-6 (7-3).

Canadian left-hander Denis Shapovalov beat Austrian wildcard Jurij Rodionov, but the home crowd had something to celebrate when former US Open champion Dominic Thiem continued his resurgence by eking out a 2-6 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (8-6) victory against American Tommy Paul, saving two match points.

Novak Djokovic expects to find out in the "next few weeks" whether he can participate in next year's Australian Open and says the early signs are positive.

The 21-time grand slam winner was denied the chance to defend his title in Melbourne in January after having his visa revoked because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Due to Australian immigration laws, Djokovic – who was also blocked from taking part in this year's US Open – faced a potential three-year ban from entering the country.

However, with fewer than three months to go until the 2023 edition begins Down Under, Djokovic is still hopeful his ban is waived so he can obtain a visa.

Asked for an update on the situation, the Serbian told Sportal: "When it comes to Australia, there are some positive signs, but unofficially.

"We are communicating through my lawyers in Australia. In fact, they are communicating with the authorities in charge of my case. 

"I hope to have an answer in the next few weeks, whatever that answer might be. I am hoping for a positive one so I have enough time to prepare for the start of the season."

Djokovic has won nine titles at Melbourne Park, which is the most of any male singles player and the most he has won at any of the four majors.

Rafael Nadal won the event this year in Djokovic's absence, and the latter is desperate to get a chance to draw back level on grand slam titles won by competing in Australia.

"I really want to go there. I am over what happened this year and I just want to play tennis, it is what I do best," he said.

"Australia has always been the place where I have played my best tennis, the results speak for themselves, so I am always extra motivated to go there. This time even more so.

"I am waiting for the permission again. It's a good thing they have now opened the borders for the unvaccinated foreigners travelling to Australia. 

"I have that ban, I hope it will be lifted. As I said, it is not in my hands, I hope the people in the Australian government will give a positive answer, that is all."

Carlos Alcaraz reached the last-16 stage of the Swiss Indoors Basel by beating Jack Draper in three sets on Monday.

The number one seed lost the opening set but responded to take the following two and win 3-6 6-2 7-5.

Alcaraz dominated at the net, winning 30 of 39 points to edge out his opponent after more than two hours.

Elsewhere, at the Vienna Open, fourth seed Taylor Fritz overcame Yoshihito Nishioka in another three-set thriller.

Nishioka took the opener, and Fritz was staring down the barrel in a second-set tie-break before trailing by a break in the decider.

However, the American won the final five games to advance 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (9-7) 6-3.

The comeback boosted Fritz's chances of making the ATP Finals, trailing Felix Auger-Aliassime by 315 points in the Race to Turin.

Third seed Andrey Rublev found life far easier as he beat Diego Schwartzman 6-4 6-1.

Jessica Pegula will rise to third in the world rankings after defeating Maria Sakkari 6-2 6-3 in the final of the Guadalajara Open on Sunday.

It is surprisingly only the second singles title of Pegula's career on the WTA Tour, and the 28-year-old's first WTA 1000 title.

Against Sakkari, the American showcased her complete game, controlling the opening set with her serve before using her powerful returning ability to close things out.

In the first set, Pegula converted 10 of her 11 accurate first serves into points, winning 76 per cent of her total service points while facing no break opportunities. She only had two break point opportunities herself, and she took both.

Her success rate on service points dropped to 60 per cent in the second set, but she made up for it with her returns, winning 55 per cent of the points on Sakkari's serve while breaking three times to pull away.

It caps off a remarkable week for Pegula, who collected straight-sets wins over top-50 opponents Victoria Azarenka, Sloane Stephens and Bianca Andreescu in her three matches leading to the final.

While it was the last tournament of the season, both Pegula and Sakkari finished in the top-eight for world ranking points this season and therefore have qualified for the WTA Finals, beginning on October 31.

Lorenzo Musetti planned a pizza celebration after landing his second title of 2022 by seeing off Matteo Berrettini in an all-Italian final at the Napoli Cup.

The 20-year-old, who won his first ATP Tour trophy on clay in Hamburg in July, scored a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 victory over an injury-hampered opponent.

After defying advice from his team to abandon his semi-final on Saturday, Berrettini, bothered by a foot problem, showed up for Sunday's title match and generally moved well but could not prevent Musetti getting his hands on the trophy.

Musetti's win at the hard court event saw him match Berrettini – twice a champion during the grass season –  on two titles this year. 

They are the only Italians with multiple ATP singles titles in 2022, with Musetti now increasingly close to joining compatriots Berrettini and Jannik Sinner inside the top 20.

This win nudges him a place to number 23 in the rankings, a new career-high position, and it made Musetti the ninth player on the men's tour to win a tournament this year without dropping a set at any point.

Speaking in an on-court ATP interview, Musetti said: "It was a really tough first set. Really long and we never broke.

"Matteo is a competitor; even if he was not 100 per cent physically, his capacity to stay until the end, to fight until the end, was a big problem for me to solve.

"Today I think I played not the best tennis, because I think we were both really emotional, really nervous and there was a lot of tension, but in the important moments I played better.

"It's really nice to be here with my family, with the crowd, and it's a really big win for me and an important moment for my career.

"I hope to enjoy and celebrate with great pizza. I will probably enjoy a Pizza Margherita for sure, like Napoletana."

Holger Rune surprised top seed Stefanos Tsitsipas with a straight-sets victory in Sunday's Stockholm Open final to land his second ATP title.

Still just 19, Rune added to his maiden crown in Munich five months ago with a 6-4 6-4 triumph over world number five Tsitsipas in a match lasting 95 minutes.

Tsitsipas, who was seeking a 10th ATP title and a third this season, had not dropped a set in his previous three matches en route to the final.

However, he was broken in the third game of both sets against Rune, who is the second teenager after Carlos Alcaraz to win multiple ATP titles in 2022.

Rune fired 20 winners and saved the only break point he faced – that coming in the sixth game of the second set – on his way to becoming the first Danish champion in this event.

"It was an unbelievable match from my side," Rune said in his on-court interview. "I knew it was going to be difficult, but I just tried to stick to the game plan. 

"I had to play my best tennis today, and it was good that I could find the level. I am super happy. It was very close to perfection. 

"I was making a lot of returns and playing pretty well behind my serve. Stefanos is an amazing player, who always makes it difficult. It was a super fun match to play."

Felix Auger-Aliassime clinched the European Open title by beating Sebastian Korda in straight sets in Antwerp, replicating last week's Firenze Open triumph to maintain his strong run of form.

Auger-Aliassime swept aside J. J. Wolf to emerge victorious in Italy a week ago, and was in control from the start on Sunday as he beat another American to win his third ATP title of the year.

The Canadian seized the initiative when he broke Korda's serve to go 4-2 up in the opener, before saving two break points early in the second set.

Korda failed to conjure up another opportunity to break as Auger-Aliassime wrapped up a routine 6-3 6-4 win by holding to love.

Auger-Aliassime has responded brilliantly to his first-round exit at the Astana Open earlier this month, winning eight consecutive matches – six of them in straight sets.

Meanwhile, the 22-year-old has now won three of his past four ATP Tour finals, failing to drop a set in any of those victories after losing each of his first eight final appearances.

Auger-Aliassime's victory also represented a major boost to his hopes of reaching next month's ATP Finals in Turin, strengthening his grip on the final qualification spot for the tournament.

Simona Halep's former coach Darren Cahill has jumped to the Romanian's defence after the former Wimbledon and French Open champion failed a drug test.

Cahill said Halep's "integrity is faultless" and insisted there was "no chance" she would have deliberately or wittingly taken a banned substance.

It was made public on Friday that 31-year-old Halep tested positive for roxadustat while competing at the US Open in August.

Halep, who has been provisionally suspended, said she felt "confused and betrayed" by the news. She has not explained why, or by whom, she senses a betrayal.

She now risks a ban from tennis and faces a battle to clear her name, which she has said she is determined to achieve.

Cahill was Halep's coach when she landed her first grand slam title at Roland Garros in 2018, and he pointed to his experience of an athlete who was meticulous about checking anything she ingested.

He wrote in a statement posted on Instagram: "Firstly, and most importantly, there is NO chance Simona knowingly or purposely took any substance on the banned list. None. Zero.

"She is an athlete that stressed about anything prescribed to her by a medical professional [which was rarely], or about any supplement that she used or considered. Simona wore out the words 'please double check this, triple check this to make sure it’s legal, safe and permitted. If you are not sure, I'm not taking it.'"

Australian Cahill has also worked with players including Lleyton Hewitt, Ana Ivanovic, Andy Murray and Andre Agassi. He rates Halep as a player and person of the highest order.

When they stopped working together in September 2021, Halep thanked Cahill "for making me a better tennis player and a better person".

Cahill wrote on Sunday: "Simona's integrity is faultless, she respects her peers, she loves the game and she always has her feet firmly planted on the ground as a humble, approachable champion.

"Honesty has always been her greatest strength and her biggest weakness. We would often laugh about the fact that she can't act and can't tell a little white lie.

"She wears her mood on her shoulder for the world to see, for good and for bad. That is Simo. What you see is what you get. She built an amazing career and legacy by doing things the hard way. The right way.

"Due process will now follow to reveal answers to many questions. As Simona said, the hardest match of her life starts now. I believe in her. I always have and can honestly say never more than right now on this particular issue. I stand with Simo."

World number five Jessica Pegula clinched a berth in her second WTA final of the year with a straight-sets victory over Victoria Azarenka at the Guadalajara Open on a rainy Saturday.

Pegula defeated the former world number one Belarussian 7-6 (7-3) 6-1 in one hour and 29 minutes, having fought back from a 4-1 first-set deficit.

The American will need to wait until Sunday to learn her opponent, with rain forcing Maria Sakkari and Marie Bouzkova's semi-final to be suspended and eventually postponed with the Greek leading 7-5.

Pegula's triumph was her 40th win of the season, becoming the 10th American woman to achieve that feat.

The victory also made it four successive Grand Slam winners that Pegula has overcome to reach the final in Guadalajara, knocking off Sloane Stephens, Bianca Andreescu and Elena Rybakina along with Azarenka.

Pegula converted three of eight break points, while Azarenka took her only break point of the match to help her open up the 4-1 first-set lead.

The American proved better on her second serve, while she managed to win 15 of 26 points on Azarenka's second serve.

Sakkari and Bouzkova's semi-final will resume at 1pm local time on Sunday, with the fourth seed leading 7-5 after an epic first set that lasted 84 minutes.

The Greek showed off her grit after fluffing an early 3-1 lead by taking her eighth set point, winning a 22-shot rally - the longest of the first set - to break Bouzkova in the 12th game.

The final is due to commence no earlier than 6pm local time on Sunday, meaning it will be a physical test for the victor.

Matteo Berrettini is set to tackle Davis Cup team-mate Lorenzo Musetti in an all-Italian Napoli Cup final on Sunday after defying advice to pull out with a foot injury.

Former Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini beat American Mackenzie McDonald 3-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 at the hard court event, while Musetti came through 6-3 6-4 against Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic.

Providing Berrettini is healthy to participate in the final, the tournament looks set to deliver a crowd-pleasing trophy match, but it was touch and go whether the Rome native would get through the McDonald match.

"I don't even know how I did it," Berrettini said. "I wasn't feeling very good. I asked for the physio because my foot was hurting. It happened so many times in my career that I had to fight through so many things, not just thinking about the tennis ball."

He added, quoted by the ATP: "I didn't want to retire. My team told me, 'I think you should stop'. But I tried and I found a way."

Berrettini and Musetti have never gone head-to-head before. Berrettini has won two titles this year, both on grass, in Stuttgart and at London's Queen's Club, while 20-year-old Musetti scooped his maiden ATP title on clay in Hamburg.

At the European Open in Antwerp, Sunday's final will see American Sebastian Korda tackle Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, in a battle of two in-form players.

Korda was runner-up last week in Gijon, while Auger-Aliassime took the title in Florence, adding to his Rotterdam triumph from February.

Korda wrestled his way past a recently resurgent Dominic Thiem, scraping a 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-4) victory, before Auger-Aliassime was given a mighty battle by veteran Frenchman Richard Gasquet, winning through in two tight sets, 7-6 (7-2) 7-6 (7-3) his margin.

Like Berrettini and Auger-Aliassime, Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas has a third title of the year in his sights this weekend.

Tsitsipas swept through to the final of the Stockholm Open with a 6-2 6-2 win over Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori, setting up a clash with 19-year-old Danish player Holger Rune.

For Rune, there was no such straightforward path into the final as Alex de Minaur pushed him all the way, with the Australian eventually edged out 4-6 7-6 (7-1) 7-5 after two hours and 50 minutes.