Defending champions Djokovic, Gauff advance at steamy US Open

Update Defending champions Djokovic, Gauff advance at steamy US Open
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Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns a shot against Laslo Djere of Serbia during their Men's Singles Second Round match at in New York City on August 28, 2024. (Getty Images/AFP)
Update Defending champions Djokovic, Gauff advance at steamy US Open
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Laslo Djere returns a shot against Novak Djokovic during their match on August 28, 2024 in New York City. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Updated 29 August 2024
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Defending champions Djokovic, Gauff advance at steamy US Open

Defending champions Djokovic, Gauff advance at steamy US Open
  • Djokovic and Gauff missed the worst conditions of a steamy day that saw tournament organizers invoke the extreme weather rule
  • Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, runner-up to Gauff last year, didn’t have to take advantage, polishing off Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-3, 6-1 in an hour

NEW YORK: Defending champion Novak Djokovic reached the third round of the US Open on Wednesday as Laslo Djere retired in the third set, but said he’ll have to do better to win a fifth title on the hard courts of New York.

Djokovic was up 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 when Djere pulled the plug on a gritty encounter that saw both men summon the physio to Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“It’s not what we want to see,” Djokovic said. “He’s such a good player in these conditions and the second set should have been his, he was 4-2 up.

“I don’t know if (my) winning the second set probably put more burden on him.”

Djokovic notched his 90th US Open match victory, becoming the first man to win 90 at all four Grand Slams.

But it was a battle until the minute Djere called it quits.

Djokovic grabbed the first break of the match to take the first set 6-4 after a tense hour then sought treatment for trouble on his right side.

Djere, the only player to take a set off Djokovic at last year’s US Open, gained the first break of the second set and with a 4-2 lead had two more break points that he couldn’t convert.

But Djokovic won the next six games, Djere receiving treatment on his abdomen before Djokovic closed out the second.

“Overall it was a big fight —  over two hours for two sets,” Djokovic said.

“I served awful. So playing without the serve, you have to grind, you have to run. I had to rely on my baseline game.”

The Serbian superstar, coming off an emotional Paris Olympics triumph, next faces Australian Alexei Popyrin, who he beat at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year.

Women’s defending champion Coco Gauff overcame her own struggles on serve to beat 37-year-old Tatjana Maria 6-4, 6-0.

It was an uneven performance from 20-year-old Gauff, who has endured an erratic season since capturing her maiden major in New York.

She put just 44 percent of her first serves in play and had nine double faults, but the 99th-ranked Maria couldn’t capitalize and Gauff won the last seven games to seal the win.

“I think I played well overall,” Gauff said. “I think if I could have served better that first set would have been a lot easier.”

Djokovic and Gauff missed the worst conditions of a steamy day that saw tournament organizers invoke the extreme weather rule allowing mid-match breaks.

Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, runner-up to Gauff last year, didn’t have to take advantage, polishing off Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-3, 6-1 in an hour.

“I told myself you have to stay focused from the first point to the last point and make sure you’re not going to stay here a crazy number of hours,” Sabalenka said.

Fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany advanced with a 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 victory over France’s Alexandre Muller.

“I am happy to be done in three sets, to have some rest as it is very hot and tough conditions,” said Zverev, who said he felt fine but “was at some point very wet.”

Zverev next faces Argentina’s Tomas Etcheverry, whose efforts to stay hydrated backfired during his 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 victory over compatriot Francisco Cerundolo.

“You had to hydrate well, try to take as many salts and hydrates as possible and I overdid it, that’s why I ended up vomiting,” said Etcheverry, who fired 23 aces to finally seal the win after more than four hours.

“It’s dangerous not only for the players, but also for the public,” he added.

Sixth-seeded Russian Andrey Rublev and Czech Jiri Lehecka both battled through five sets to line up a third-round meeting.

Rublev, a four-time US Open quarterfinalist, beat France’s Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 while Lehecka out-lasted American Mitchell Krueger 6-7 (5/7), 0-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

Rublev also called medical staff after drinking so much water he felt like he had “a baby” in his stomach.

Elsewhere, seventh-seeded Paris Olympics gold medalist Zheng Qinwen had to go the distance, rallying from a set down for the second straight match to beat Russian Erika Andreeva 6-7 (3/7), 6-1, 6-2.

But eighth-seeded Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova became the biggest upset victim of the tournament so far, bounced 6-4, 7-5 by Romanian qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse.


Zhang Shuai ‘feels like Nadal’ after making more Beijing history

Zhang Shuai ‘feels like Nadal’ after making more Beijing history
Updated 29 September 2024
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Zhang Shuai ‘feels like Nadal’ after making more Beijing history

Zhang Shuai ‘feels like Nadal’ after making more Beijing history
  • Zhang Shuai had not won a singles match in more than 600 days when she arrived at the prestigious WTA 1000 event in Beijing last week

BEIJING: Zhang Shuai said she “felt like Rafa Nadal” after the home player ranked 595th powered into the last 16 to extend her historic China Open run on Sunday.

The 35-year-old wildcard had not won a singles match in more than 600 days when she arrived at the prestigious WTA 1000 event in Beijing last week.

Her run of 24 straight defeats was the longest such barren spell on tour since Madeleine Pegel lost her first 29 matches in 1968-1972.

Shuai, a two-time Grand Slam singles quarter-finalist who has been plagued by injuries, has now won three matches in a row after a 6-2, 6-3 defeat of Belgium’s Greet Minnen.

Shuai, who faced Minnen as the lowest-ranked player to reach the China Open third round in the tournament’s history, faces Poland’s 23rd seed Magdalena Frech next.

“I had a long, long, long time not getting this feeling,” said the former top-25 player Shuai, who has won two Grand Slam doubles titles.

“When I play my best I can win a lot of matches, I know that ... I just want to keep it simple, keep going and keep winning.”

Shuai snapped her losing run on Wednesday when she beat 65th-ranked American McCartney Kessler 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/1).

She then stunned US Open semifinalist Emma Navarro 6-4, 6-2 to reach round three and a meeting with 94th-ranked Minnen.

Shuai was on course for a third win in a row when she took the first set and went up a break in the second, only to relinquish the advantage immediately when the 27-year-old Minnen broke back.

As the match ticked past the hour mark, Shuai emerged from a gripping seventh game to break once more for 4-3, then held for 5-3 to put the next round within reach.

Shuai hails from Tianjin, near to Beijing, and said she felt very much at home on the hard courts of the Chinese capital.

So at home in fact that she compared herself jokingly to the Spanish great Nadal on his favorite surface of the French Open.

“When I am on the court I feel so like Rafa Nadal on Court Philippe-Chatrier,” she laughed

“When you’re losing, maybe everybody wants to play against you ... Now nobody wants to play against you.”

Meanwhile, four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz said Sunday that the steroid case involving Jannik Sinner was “not good” for tennis but sympathized with the world No. 1.

The World Anti-Doping Agency on Saturday said it had appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing last month.

WADA is seeking a ban of up to two years after the Italian twice tested positive for traces of the banned substance clostebol in March.

The International Tennis Integrity Agency subsequently accepted Sinner’s explanation that the drug entered his system when his physiotherapist used a spray containing it to treat a cut, then provided massage and sports therapy to the player.

Alcaraz, the Spanish world No. 3, said at the China Open: “I think for tennis it’s not really good, not really a good sign for tennis in general.”

There has been skepticism among some players about Sinner’s explanation for why he failed the two tests, but Alcaraz took a more sympathetic stance.

“It is difficult for him. I know everyone is talking about it, the news is talking about it,” he said, having reached the last eight in Beijing.


Nadal, Alcaraz and Sinner in Davis Cup finals teams

Nadal, Alcaraz and Sinner in Davis Cup finals teams
Updated 24 September 2024
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Nadal, Alcaraz and Sinner in Davis Cup finals teams

Nadal, Alcaraz and Sinner in Davis Cup finals teams
  • French Open and Wimbledon winner Alcaraz will be Spain’s key figure as they bid to win the competition dubbed the World Cup of tennis for the first time since 2019
  • US Open and Australian Open champion Sinner is part of Italy’s squad for the finals, which start on Nov. 19

BARCELONA: Spain named 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz in a five-man Davis Cup team on Monday, while Italian world No. 1 Jannik Sinner will also compete in the final eight in Malaga.

Nadal, 38, pulled out of the US Open and Laver Cup in recent months and has only taken part in one of the last seven Grand Slams because of injury and fitness struggles.

French Open and Wimbledon winner Alcaraz will be Spain’s key figure as they bid to win the competition dubbed the World Cup of tennis for the first time since 2019, starting with a clash against the Netherlands.

Alcaraz inspired Team Europe to Laver Cup victory over Team World last weekend in Berlin.

US Open and Australian Open champion Sinner is part of Italy’s squad for the finals, which start on Nov. 19.

The 23-year-old was crucial as Italy triumphed last year, beating Serbian superstar Novak Djokovic twice in one day, first in singles and then in doubles, in the semifinals.

Italy, who face Argentina in their quarterfinal clash, beat Australia in the 2023 final to win the competition for the first time since 1976.


‘Impossible’: Alcaraz shoots down Federer comparisons after Laver Cup win

‘Impossible’: Alcaraz shoots down Federer comparisons after Laver Cup win
Updated 23 September 2024
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‘Impossible’: Alcaraz shoots down Federer comparisons after Laver Cup win

‘Impossible’: Alcaraz shoots down Federer comparisons after Laver Cup win
  • The 21-year-old Spaniard, playing in the tournament for the first time, beat American Taylor Fritz 6-2, 7-5 to win the tournament in Berlin

BERLIN: Carlos Alcaraz shot down comparisons with 20-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer moments after his victory over Taylor Fritz won the Laver Cup for Team Europe on Sunday.
The 21-year-old Spaniard, playing in the tournament for the first time, beat American Taylor Fritz 6-2, 7-5 to win the tournament in Berlin.
Team Europe had lost the past two events and needed a come-from-behind victory from local player Alexander Zverev against Frances Tiafoe, 6-7(5/7), 7-5, 10-5, to send the tournament to the final match between Alcaraz and Fritz.
After his win, the four-time Grand Slam winner was compared to peak Federer, but Alcaraz said such a comparison was “impossible.”
“I’m too far away from that level,” he said. “I hope I’ll reach it one day, but it’s really impossible.”
Alcaraz, who won the French Open and Wimbledon this season, had not played the event before.
“It’s great. We can feel proud, all of us. I’m really happy. All of us did a pretty good job over the days. It’s been a top one,” the Spaniard added.
“We almost lost, but Sasha (Zverev) came with some really good tennis and gave me a chance to win the Laver Cup.”
The world number three won Sunday’s opening match, a doubles clash alongside Casper Ruud, 6-2, 7-6 (8/6), to help put his side on course to lift the Laver Cup for the fifth time.
Alcaraz said he found it more difficult to watch matches with his Team Europe colleagues than to actually take to the court, saying “the nerves were killing us.”
“It’s really difficult to watch the matches from outside. I was trying to stay away a bit, watching on TV in the locker-room, trying to support from there.
“The nerves were there.”


Haddad Maia roars back to beat Kasatkina in final

Haddad Maia roars back to beat Kasatkina in final
Updated 22 September 2024
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Haddad Maia roars back to beat Kasatkina in final

Haddad Maia roars back to beat Kasatkina in final
  • No. 3 seed Haddad Maia lost the opening set but turned the tide in the second, before going on to close out the match in a gutsy performance

SEOUL: Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia won the fourth title of her career with a furious fightback to beat Russian top seed Daria Kasatkina 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 in Sunday’s Korea Open final.

No. 3 seed Haddad Maia lost the opening set in just 26 minutes but turned the tide in the second, before going on to close out the match in a gutsy performance in Seoul.

It was the world No. 17’s first title since June 2022. “I know that tennis changes everything very fast,” said Haddad Maia.

“I was competing better at the end of the second set and then my tennis appeared. I finished in the way that I wanted and I think I deserved this win.”

Kasatkina, ranked 13, has now lost four of her five finals this year. She said “losing in the final can feel worse than losing in the first round.”

“It’s tough, especially being up in the final, but she definitely raised the level after the first set,” said Kasatkina. “The match was pretty good but then she was better in the third set.”

Neither player had dropped a set on their way to the Seoul decider and both played two matches on Saturday, after heavy rain wiped out the previous day’s play.

Kasatkina won her quarter-final after opponent Emma Raducanu retired injured after the first set.

Kasatkina broke Haddad Maia twice on the way to winning the first set.

She broke her opponent again in the first game of the second set and held serve, before Haddad Maia began to threaten for the first time in the match.

The momentum shifted when the 28-year-old Haddad Maia broke back midway through the second set and then took the lead for the first time.

The Brazilian argued a call with the umpire but kept her cool to take the second set.

“I was just trying to play every point,” she said. “I was improving and I think that was the key, to be calm and just play tennis.”

Haddad Maia went a break up in the third and stayed ahead as Kasatkina began to crumble.

Haddad Maia broke again and closed out the final when Kasatkina hit a return long.

“I feel stronger, I feel that I’m very competitive now,” said Haddad Maia.

“I’m in a good moment, ready for the next week. I feel that I’m doing very good things, working hard.

“Let’s see what the end of the season brings to me,” she added.

The Korea Open was being played as a WTA 500 tournament for the first time.

It was hit by a string of last-minute withdrawals including world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, US Open runner-up Jessica Pegula and former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.


Tunisia's Jabeur to miss rest of year with injury

Tunisia's Jabeur to miss rest of year with injury
Updated 16 September 2024
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Tunisia's Jabeur to miss rest of year with injury

Tunisia's Jabeur to miss rest of year with injury
  • Jabeur missed the recent US Open due to the injury

PARIS: Ons Jabeur will miss the rest of the 2024 WTA season with a shoulder injury, the Tunisian announced on Monday.
The three-time Grand Slam runner-up has struggled for form and fitness this year, slipping to 22nd in the world rankings.
Jabeur missed the recent US Open due to the injury and has not played since a heavy defeat by Naomi Osaka in Toronto in early August.
“This year has been extremely hard for me and as athletes, we know that recovery is part of the journey,” she said on social media.
“Due to my ongoing shoulder injury, my medical team and I’ve made the difficult decision to step off the tennis circuit for the rest of the season.”
The 30-year-old said she would be back on court for the start of the 2025 campaign in Australia.