The Telegraph Two of the surprise packages of this clay-court season have been British – initially Dan Evans, who made a deep run in Monte Carlo, and more lately Cameron Norrie, who played his second final in three weeks on Sunday. Unfortunately, Norrie wasn’t able to land a maiden ATP title in Lyon. But then he was up against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has been the dominant force of 2021 outside the slams, and now stands at No 1 in the table of most rankings points gained since January 1. Nevertheless, it had been a hugely creditable effort for Norrie to go this far, especially when you consider that he took out top seed Dominic Thiem on Thursday, and then trounced big-hitting Russian Karen Khachanov in Saturday’s semi-final, losing only two games in the process. Norrie has come to clay late in his career, but it feels like this is developing into his favourite surface. He has one of the heaviest left-handed forehands in the game, loaded with top-spin, and uses it like a miniature version of Rafael Nadal. The result has been a tally of 14 wins and only four losses since he began his European clay-court swing in Barcelona. So while the French Open, which starts next Sunday, has traditionally been a graveyard of British hopes, there are reasons to hope that this year’s event could deliver some more positive results. Norrie’s previous final in Estoril had been a nervewracking affair which he eventually lost on a deciding-set tie-break to the more experienced Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas. Sunday was more straightforward for Tsitsipas, who needed only 69 minutes to hammer home a 6-3, 6-3 victory. It was Tsitsipas’ second title of the clay-court sequence, after he won Monte Carlo in mid-April, taking out Evans in the semi-final along the way. He has become a serious contender to upset the establishment – specifically Nadal and Novak Djokovic – at Roland Garros over the next few weeks. “I felt in good shape from the beginning of the tournament,” said Tsitsipas afterwards. “I am proud of today’s match, I knew it would be a difficult one against Cameron, who has been showing great tennis this week. He has been winning against good players and showing what the left hand can do on clay. “It was not an easy match today. I had to handle the nerves and I am proud of my performance and the way I stayed focused towards my goal.” On this year’s results, meanwhile, both Evans and Norrie stand among the world’s 20 most successful men. Evans is at No 16 and Norrie No 14. The next challenge for them both is to convert that ATP Tour form into a deep run at a major.<doc-sep>Former Tennessee star Nick Senzel Former Tennessee baseball star Nick Senzel is set to be called up this week by the Cincinnati Reds, a source close to the situation told 247Sports on Wednesday. Senzel, a former Knoxville high school star, played three years for the Vols and was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft. The versatile Senzel — who’s now playing center field despite being drafted as a third baseman — entered this season ranked the No. 10 overall prospect by Baseball America and the No. 6 overall prospect by MLB.com. Reds manager David Bell told the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bobby Nightengale earlier this week that he was aware of the hype and the chatter surrounding Senzel’s possible call-up, but that it hadn’t “been decided yet.” "He’s talented,' Bell said. "He’s always hit. When he does reach the Major Leagues, there’s going to be adjustments just like there is for any player. Because of his make-up, we believe it’ll happen for him quick." Senzel likely would have been called up at some point last season, but injuries got in the way. He battled vertigo problems for more than a month and then broke a finger. The typically healthy Senzel suffered another injury setback this spring, when he sprained an ankle sliding into second base and missed the first three week of the regular season. He made his season debut with the Class AAA Louisville Bats last week. Senzel’s injury occurred just three days after he was sent down to minor league camp in a move that was somewhat controversial at the time. Senzel was one of the final cuts in Reds camp, and his agent (Joel Wolfe) told ESPN that the late-spring training cut was a service-time manipulation move. Thanks to MLB’s current collective bargaining agreement, teams can push back a player’s free agent eligibility by a full year if they wait until April 13 to give them their MLB debut. Wolfe said that’s what motivated the Reds to delay Senzel’s call-up, but the Reds denied that accusation. The Reds said Senzel’s lack of time at his new position (center field) was the reason for his spring-training cut, but Nightengale’s reporting seemed to question that. “Senzel impressed coaches and talent evaluators with how smoothly he transitioned to center field,” Nightengale reported. “The Reds cited his lack of innings in the outfield as a reason for his cut, but he showcased his speed and took solid routes to fly balls.” Bell told reporters that he was impressed with Senzel’s confidence gives him an opportunity to adjust to any situation. There isn’t much left for Senzel to prove at the minor-league level. He’s excelled defensively in several positions, and he’s collected a .313 batting average, a .388 on-base percentage, 113 extra-base hits, 132 RBI, 40 stole bases and 151 runs scored in just 238 games. “He believes in himself,” Bell said. “He’s got a seriousness about him. He expects a lot out of himself and he enjoys the competition. I think, from what I saw just in a brief period of time, the better the competition, the better response from him.” If Senzel is called up Friday, he’ll do so at home. The Reds are scheduled to host the San Francisco Giants this weekend at Great American Ballpark. Senzel’s comments to the Enquirer to the offseason mirror those he’s made several times to 247Sports when asked about his inevitable call up to The Show. “I know the amount of work I’ve put in and the stuff I’ve been through to get to this point. I don’t really feel any pressure to perform at all,” Senzel told The Enquirer. “I feel like I’ve done what I’ve needed to do. I’ve put myself in a good position and I just know that I can look back in the mirror and say I’ve done everything I can.”<doc-sep>by Brendan Tuma | Reds Correspondent | Tue, Apr 30th 12:05pm EDT MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports the Reds are contemplating promoting top prospect Nick Senzel to the majors soon. (Jon Heyman on Twitter ) Fantasy Impact: Heyman adds the Reds could make the move when the team returns home on Friday. Senzel, the number two overall pick in the 2016 draft, is expected to handle center field in Cincinnati once he gets the call. The 23-year-old should hit for average right away while also chipping in double digit homers and a handful of steals. He needs to be added in every league.<doc-sep>
The Cincinnati Reds could be calling up top prospect, Nick Senzel, later this week according to MLB Network's Jon Heyman. Per MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo, Senzel is expected to be added to Cincinnati's roster when the team returns home Friday to face the San Francisco Giants, Heyman adds. Senzel, MLB.com's No. 5 overall prospect, will most likely take over as the Reds' everyday center fielder, a position he moved to during spring training after appearing as an infielder (second, third base) for the majority of his baseball career. The Reds reassigned Senzel to minor league camp after he went 12-for-39 (.308) with six doubles, three RBI and four stolen bases in 12 spring training games. After the decision, Senzel's agent, Joel Wolfe, told ESPN's Jeff Passan that the move was "a simply egregious case of service-time manipulation." Reds president Dick Williams responded, telling The Athletic's Trent Rosecrans that the decision was not tied to service time. Senzel was sidelined with a right ankle sprain to start the Triple-A season, but he picked right back up where he left off and is slashing .296/.345/.444 in six games for Triple-A Louisville. The Reds are most likely hoping that a Senzel call-up can help improve their struggling outfield. Senzel, the No 2 overall pick in the 2016 MLB draft, is a pure hitter whose makes consistent hard contact. The Cincinnati outfield combo of Jesse Winker, Scott Schebler, Matt Kemp and Yasiel Puig have put up really lackluster numbers to start the season. Senzel could replace Schebler, who is batting .135 with 26 strikeouts through 27 games. In right, Puig is hitting .200/.228/.368 while Kemp (.200/.210/.283) and Winker (.239/.316/.534) have spilt time at left, both with not much better results. Entering the final day of April, the Reds sit at the bottom of the National League Central with a 12-16 record. Cincinnati will continue its four-game series against the Mets on Tuesday at Citi Field -- fans can stream regionally via fuboTV (Try for free).