Category: Tennis

Best day ever: Destanee hits with Serena, her inspiration

United States’ Serena Williams, left, talks with Australian player Destanee Aiava during a promotional event on Margaret Court Arena ahead of the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2017. Aiava will be the first player born this century to play in the main draw match at a tennis major.

With an eye on title No. 7, Novak Djokovic comes into Australian Open ‘feeling phenomenal’

Novak Djokovic of Serbia hits a backhand volley during a practice session ahead of the 2017 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 12, 2017 in Melbourne, Australia Novak Djokovic has no pretensions to being a super spy but the number 007 has got the Australian Open champion “pumped” ahead of the year’s first grand slam. The 29-year-old Serbian joined Roy Emerson as the most successful men’s champion at the Australian Open last year when he beat Andy Murray for his sixth title at Melbourne Park.

Fall in rankings has Federer seeded 17th at Australian Open

A long injury layoff and a fall in the rankings have created a tougher draw for 17-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer at the Australian Open Fall in rankings has Federer seeded 17th at Australian Open A long injury layoff and a fall in the rankings have created a tougher draw for 17-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer at the Australian Open Check out this story on USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2jxDXiq Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts during his Qatar Open 2017 final tennis match against Britain’s Andy Murray in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017. MELBOURNE, Australia – A long injury layoff and a fall in the rankings have created a tougher draw for 17-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer at the Australian Open.

Bouchard advances to Sydney quarter-finals

Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard continued her resurgent run heading into the Australian Open with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Dominika Cibulkova on Tuesday to reach the quarter-finals at the Sydney International. Bouchard improved her career record to 4-1 against Cibulkova, who was ranked No.

British qualifier Brydan Klein through to second round in Auckland

British qualifier Brydan Klein is through to the second round of the ASB Classic in Auckland after beating Argentina’s Facundo Bagnis. Australian-born Klein, ranked 324 in the world, looked to be on his way out as he trailed 5-2 in the third set after giving up four match points in the second, but hit back for a 6-1 6-7 7-6 victory against the world number 55. Elsewhere, fifth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas was beaten 6-1 7-5 by Joao Sousa, while Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan battled back from a set down to triumph 4-6 7-6 7-6 against Russian youngster Karen Khachanov.

Maria Sharapova set for professional comeback at Porsche Grand Prix in April

Maria Sharapova will make her professional tennis comeback following her doping ban at the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart in April. The former world number one is serving a 15-month ban after testing positive for cardiac drug meldonium last January and is eligible to compete again on April 26. The Stuttgart tournament is an obvious comeback event given Porsche is one of her main sponsors, b ut it had been thought she would not be able to play because it starts two days before her suspension runs out.

Australian player banned for 7 years for match-fixing

A former Australian Open junior boys’ finalist has been banned from the sport for seven years by the Tennis Integrity Unit after being found guilty of match-fixing offenses at a minor tournament in 2013. Police in New South Wales state charged Nick Lindahl with intentionally losing a tennis match on which friends had placed bets at an ITF futures tournament at Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, in September 2013.

Murray enhances rankings position

Andy Murray has enhanced his position as world No 1 despite losing for the first time in 29 tournament matches at the weekend. Andy Murray was runner-up in Doha but that has still enabled him to improve his hold on the world No 1 spot Murray was beaten for the first time since Kei Nishikori defeated him in the quarter-finals of the US Open in September when Novak Djokovic won Sunday’s Qatar Open final in three sets.

Legends enthralled by Kokkinakis’ body

Tennis: Tanasi Kokkinakis considered calling it quits during his 15-month injury lay off, but now he’s back in the winner’s circle in Brisbane, pairing with Jordan Thompson to claim the men’s doubles final. The Aussie played just one competitive match in 2016 – a loss to Portugal’s Gastao Elias at the Rio Olympics – after injury ravaged his entire year.

Legends enthralled by Kokkinakis’ body

Tennis: Tanasi Kokkinakis considered calling it quits during his 15-month injury lay off, but now he’s back in the winner’s circle in Brisbane, pairing with Jordan Thompson to claim the men’s doubles final. The Aussie played just one competitive match in 2016 – a loss to Portugal’s Gastao Elias at the Rio Olympics – after injury ravaged his entire year.

Wild-card entry Bouchard wins 1st-round match at Sydney

Eugenie Bouchard made the most of her wild-card entry to the Sydney International, beating Zhang Shuai of China 7-6 , 6-2 on Sunday in a first-round match. Bouchard, a 22-year-old former Wimbledon finalist, was beaten in the first round of the Brisbane International last week in her first warmup tournament for the Australian Open, which begins on Jan. 16 and where she was a surprise semifinalist in 2014.

Djokovic beats Murray to successfully defend Qatar title

” Defending champion Novak Djokovic successfully defended his Qatar Open title by beating top-seeded Andy Murray 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 on Saturday. The dramatic match, which showcased the best of men’s tennis for 2 hours, 54 minutes, required Djokovic to need four match points – three in the second set and one in the third – to prevail.

Kristina Mladenovic and Richard Gasquet win Hopman Cup title for France

Kristina Mladenovic and Richard Gasquet clinched France’s second Hopman Cup title, beating Americans Coco Vandeweghe and Jack Sock 4-1, 4-3 in the deciding mixed doubles match in the tournament final on Saturday. Earlier, Vandeweghe beat Mladenovic 6-4, 7-5 after Gasquet saved a match point in the third-set tiebreaker and held on for a 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 win over Sock to give France the early lead in the exhibition tournament.

Mladenovic, Gasquet give France its 2nd Hopman Cup title

Kristina Mladenovic and Richard Gasquet clinched France’s second Hopman Cup title, beating Americans CoCo Vandeweghe and Jack Sock 4-1, 4-3 in the deciding mixed doubles match in the tournament final on Saturday. Earlier, Vandeweghe beat Mladenovic 6-4, 7-5 after Gasquet saved a match point in the third-set tiebreaker and held on for a 6-3, 5-7, 7-6 win over Sock to give France the early lead in the exhibition tournament.

France beat United States to win Hopman Cup

REUTERS: Kristina Mladenovic and Richard Gasquet beat Coco Vandeweghe and Jack Sock of the United States to win France’s second Hopman Cup title in Perth on Saturday. Gasquet, who saved a match point in the third-set tiebreak, gave France the early lead by beating Sock 6-3 5-7 7-6 in a thrilling match lasting two and a half hours.

Dimitrov vs Nishikori in Brisbane; Murray-Djokovic face off in Doha

IMAGE: Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov reacts after winning his match against Canada’s Milos Raonic at the Brisbane International semi-final at the Pat Rafter Arena in Brisbane on Saturday. Photograph: Steve Holland/Reuters ulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov upset top seed and defending champion Milos Raonic of Canada at the Brisbane International on Saturday to set up a title clash against Japan’s Kei Nishikori.

Nishikori Beats Wawrinka, Reaches First Brisbane Final

Kei Nishikori corrected his bad record in Brisbane International semifinals by beating U.S. Open champion Stan Wawrinka 7-6 , 6-3 on Saturday to reach the final for the first time at the season-opening tournament. Wawrinka, who won the Chennai tournament in India in the first week of the season for the three previous years, had treatment on his lower left leg at the end of the first set tiebreaker and twice again in the second set.

Defending champ Djokovic to face top-ranked Murray in final

Defending champion Novak Djokovic survived five match points to beat Fernando Verdasco and set up a final against top-ranked Andy Murray, who had far less trouble winning his semifinal as he recorded a seventh straight victory against Tomas Berdych. On another day of chilly and windy weather Friday, Djokovic prevailed 4-6, 7-6 , 6-3 after the 42nd-ranked Verdasco, a crafty left-hander and former top-10 player, controlled the first two sets until the latter stages of the tiebreaker.

BNP Paribas Open – BNP Paribas Challenge Registration Begins

Registration for the 2017 BNP Paribas Challenge, the singles pre-qualifying event for the BNP Paribas Open, begins today and will run through February 17. The Challenge is slated for February 27 – March 4 at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, with one male and one female participant advancing to the qualifying draw of the 2017 BNP Paribas Open. First through quarterfinal round matches will be best of three sets with a 10-point match tiebreak played for the third set, while semifinal and final matches will be best of three sets.

Raonic beats Nadal, keeps Brisbane title defence on track

Rafael Nadal was up a set and had a break point against defending champion Milos Raonic when he sent a forehand just wide. Raonic made the most of the reprieve, holding serve in that fifth game of the second set and then attacking Nadal’s serve in the eighth to swing the momentum his way in a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 quarterfinal win Friday at the Brisbane International.

Raonic beats Nadal, keeps Brisbane title defense on track

Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts after winning a point in his quarterfinal match against Milos Raonic of Canada at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane, Australia, Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts after winning a point in his quarterfinal match against Milos Raonic of Canada at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane, Australia, Friday, Jan. 6, 2017.

Ana Konjuh, Lauren Davis to meet in Auckland WTA final

Eighth-seeded Ana Konjuh prevented a complete rout of seeded players at the ASB Tennis Classic when she beat 2016 runner-up Julia Goerges 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 on Friday to join American Lauren Davis in the final. Seven seeds had fallen by the time Konjuh took the court for her semifinal against Goerges, who was in hot form after eliminating former world No.

Will Serena Williams Return As the No. 1 Player in 2017?

Serena Williams lost a second-round match at the ASB Classic on Wednesday, but it will only awaken the American superstar to find her form before the Australian Open draw on Jan. 13. After not playing competitive tour tennis since the U.S. Open and all but relinquishing her No. 1 ranking to Angelique Kerber, Serena is putting on her game face.

Classic a reminder of sport’s unpredictability

At the start of this week, no one could have predicted the semifinal lineup that we will have on Friday, with all four players outside the top 40. With two days of the tournament still to play, the top six seeds have gone, including Serena Williams, sister Venus and another former World No 1 Caroline Wozniacki. It’s been a mini-disaster for the organisers, who would have ideally wanted one or two of their big names to be around on Saturday.

Wozniacki beaten in ASB Classic quarterfinals

” The ASB Tennis Classic was shorn of the last of its big-name contenders on Thursday when former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki wasted a match-winning position and lost 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the quarterfinals to Germany’s Julia Goerges. The tournament had boasted the strongest field in its history when four former No.

Roger Federer loses close match to Zverev at Hopman Cup

Roger Federer found himself overmatched _ just _ by a younger and stronger-serving opponent on Wednesday, losing 7-6 , 6-7 , 7-6 to 19-year-old Alexander Zverev of Germany at the Hopman Cup Roger Federer loses close match to Zverev at Hopman Cup Roger Federer found himself overmatched _ just _ by a younger and stronger-serving opponent on Wednesday, losing 7-6 , 6-7 , 7-6 to 19-year-old Alexander Zverev of Germany at the Hopman Cup Check out this story on USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2j39V5R FILE – In this July 8, 2016, file photo, Roger Federer of Switzerland returns to Milos Raonic of Canada during their men’s semifinal singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London.

Frustrated Serena Williams loses in second round at Auckland

Serena Williams lost her second-round match Wednesday at the ASB Classic and the 22-time Grand Slam singles champion didn’t leave quietly Frustrated Serena Williams loses in second round at Auckland Serena Williams lost her second-round match Wednesday at the ASB Classic and the 22-time Grand Slam singles champion didn’t leave quietly Check out this story on USATODAY.com: http://usat.ly/2hQWIzj AUCKLAND, New Zealand – Serena Williams lost her second-round match at the ASB Classic and the 22-time Grand Slam singles champion, frustrated by swirling winds, didn’t leave quietly. “At least I can get out of these conditions,” No.

Hopman Cup 2017: Old man Federer beaten by young gun Zverev in three-set thriller

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