Top-ranked Swiatek is into Australian Open 2nd round, beats former champion Kenin

Iga Swiatek of Poland Sofia plays a forehand return to Sofia Kenin of the US during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championships at Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia. (AP)
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Updated 16 January 2024
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Top-ranked Swiatek is into Australian Open 2nd round, beats former champion Kenin

  • The Polish player is trying to win her fifth Grand Slam title but her first in Melbourne
  • In men’s results, 11th-seeded Casper Ruud beat Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 and Cameron Norrie defeated Juan Pablo Varillas 6-4, 6-4, 6-2

MELBOURNE: Top-ranked Iga Swiatek survived an early test of her Australian Open title hopes when she beat former champion Sofia Kenin 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the first round on Tuesday.

Kenin, the winner in 2020, served for the first set at 5-4 but could not close it out and Swiatek took it in the tiebreaker. The No. 1 seed then broke Kenin in the fifth game of the second set and held on to clinch victory.

“Really happy,” said Swiatek, who hit 30 winners. “It wasn’t easy to find my rhythm. I felt a little bit off and Sofia did everything to keep it that way, huge respect to her. I managed to get my level up in the second set.”

The Polish player is trying to win her fifth Grand Slam title but her first in Melbourne.

Earlier, Sloane Stephens picked up her first win at the Australian Open since 2019 when she beat wild-card entry Olivia Gadecki 6-3, 6-1. The 30-year-old American, who won the US Open in 2017, won five straight games from 2-0 down in the opening set and eased through the second to clinch victory in just under an hour.

“Pleased with the way I played,” said Stephens, who reached the semifinals of the event in 2013 but who has lost in the first round in seven of her past eight visits to Melbourne. “I’ve been working a lot on making the opponents play. I think that’s something I had got away from. Pleased with the win.”

Daria Kasatkina, who is seeded 14th and next plays Stephens, beat Peyton Stearns 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.

In men’s results, 11th-seeded Casper Ruud beat Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 and Cameron Norrie defeated Juan Pablo Varillas 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

Men’s second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz began his title bid later Tuesday. Alcaraz, last year’s Wimbledon winner, played Richard Gasquet in the last match of the night session on Rod Laver Arena.


Jannik Sinner all set for Rome Open after doping ban

Updated 06 May 2025
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Jannik Sinner all set for Rome Open after doping ban

  • Sinner was welcomed back to action on Monday by thousands of fans who watched his first training session at the tournament on center court at the Foro Italico
  • Sinner: I’m very happy, happy to be back here. It has been a very long, long three months

MILAN: Jannik Sinner is the star of the show at the upcoming Rome Open as the world No. 1 and Italian tennis hero gears up for his return to the courts after a contested doping ban.

Away from the game since agreeing a suspension with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in February, Sinner was welcomed back to action on Monday by thousands of fans who watched his first training session at the tournament on center court at the Foro Italico.

Such is the interest in Sinner, who has become a national hero in Italy since rising to the top of the men’s game, that Sky Sport broadcast the practice match with world No. 38 Jiri Lehecka live on television.

All eyes will be on the 23-year-old as he hasn’t swung a racket since retaining his Australian Open title in January, a victory which took his Grand Slam tally to three.

“I’m very happy, happy to be back here. It has been a very long, long three months,” Sinner told reporters in a packed conference room inside the center court.

Fans in Rome have waited two years to see Sinner play their clay court tournament after he missed last year’s edition, won by Alexander Zverev, with injury.

It is on a surface which is not his favorite and his rustiness was clear to see on Monday.

Only one of Sinner’s 19 titles has come on clay, in Umag back in 2022, the same year as his best result in Rome, a quarter-final exit at the hands of beaten finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.

However he does have some time before he finally takes to the court, his status as the top-ranked player on the men’s tour allowing him a bye into the second round which starts on Friday.

Sinner has been fortunate that none of his rivals took advantage of his enforced pause, with second-ranked Zverev still almost 2,000 points behind the man who beat him in the Australian Open final.

Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz is yet to arrive in Rome after withdrawing from the Madrid Open while Novak Djokovic will have to wait a bit longer for his 100th ATP title after deciding to sit out a tournament he has won six times.

Sinner is eyeing a run at the French Open, the second Slam of the season which follows the Rome tournament.

“My objective is Roland Garros, I’m here to see what level I’m at,” said Sinner.

“I’m not here to beat whoever, but to get past the second round and then see what happens.”

Sinner’s rise to the top of the game in 2024, when he won eight titles including his first two Slams and the ATP Finals, was dogged by the controversy which followed his two positive tests for traces of clostebol in March last year.

He said last month he hit “rock bottom” at the most recent Australian Open, saying he felt like other players “looked at me differently.”

Sinner was aggrieved as he feels he did nothing wrong, and WADA said explicitly he “did not intend to cheat,” accepting he was contaminated by his physiotherapist using a spray containing the banned substance to treat a cut before providing a massage.

Regardless, he also had to accept the three-month ban offered by WADA, rather than risk being forced out of tennis for two years just as he became the dominant force in men’s tennis.

“I didn’t want to do it in the beginning. It was a bit not easy for me to accept it because I know what really happened,” said Sinner.

“But sometimes you have to choose the best in a very bad moment. And that’s what we did. It’s all over now, so I’m happy to play again.”


Ruud beats Draper in Madrid Open final to win his first Masters 1000 title

Updated 05 May 2025
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Ruud beats Draper in Madrid Open final to win his first Masters 1000 title

  • The 15th-ranked Ruud will return to the top 10 thanks to his campaign in Madrid, reaching No. 7 in the rankings on Monday
  • The 13-time tour champion is the first Norwegian to lift a Masters 1000 trophy since the series was introduced in 1990, according to the ATP

MADRID: Casper Ruud became the first Norwegian to win a Masters 1000 title after beating Jack Draper 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in the Madrid Open final on Sunday.

The former second-ranked Ruud rallied from 5-3 down in the first set and sealed the victory after capitalizing on his lone break at 2-2 in the third.

The 26-year-old Ruud yelled and thrust both arms into the air after clinching the win on his first match point on the Caja Magica clay court.

“It’s been a long time coming,” Ruud said. “(This was) one of the really big goals I dreamed about when I was young, so it’s an incredible feeling to accomplish it. Also the way I did it today, it was a great match. I knew Jack had been playing unbelievable all year, and especially in this tournament, so I knew that if I didn’t bring my A-plus game, I was going to be whooped around the court.”

The 15th-ranked Ruud will return to the top 10 thanks to his campaign in Madrid, reaching No. 7 in the rankings on Monday.

“Luckily, I played really well,” Ruud said. “Jack has become such an incredible player, on any surface now ... This is a really big boost for me, and I would like to keep it going.”

The 13-time tour champion is the first Norwegian to lift a Masters 1000 trophy since the series was introduced in 1990, according to the ATP. It was Ruud’s third such final after losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas in Monte Carlo last year and to Carlo Alcaraz in Miami in 2022.

Ruud has more titles (12) on clay than any other player since the start of 2020, according to the ATP.

Draper won at Indian Wells in March. After his quarterfinal victory in Madrid, he secured a top-five debut in the rankings.

Draper said Ruud was “braver” than him in the key moments on Sunday.

“You deserve this,” he said. “You’ve obviously put in so much hard work and constantly had very good years on the tour ... This sport is brutal, but I think this loss is going to make me better, so I’ll keep trying.”

The tournament in Madrid was disrupted early last week because of a major blackout that brought Spain and Portugal to a standstill on Monday, prompting the postponement of 22 matches in total.

Ruud had needed to take a couple of painkillers during his semifinal win over Francisco Cerundolo after feeling a rib ailment during his warmup, but there were no signs of any injury on Sunday.

Draper, who like Ruud had not lost a set on his way to the final, served for the first set at 5-4 but couldn’t finish it. The 23-year-old British player was visibly upset, and kept talking to himself and to his staff for a while during the changeover.

The men’s side of the draw lost most of its top players early. Home-crowd favorite Carlos Alcaraz had to withdraw from the tournament because of an injury, and Novak Djokovic lost to Matteo Arnaldi in his opening match.

Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka defeated Coco Gauff in the women’s final on Saturday.


Sabalenka eases past Kostyuk into Madrid Open semis

Updated 01 May 2025
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Sabalenka eases past Kostyuk into Madrid Open semis

MADRID: Last year’s runner-up Aryna Sabalenka survived a gritty Marta Kostyuk and an untimely rain interruption to complete a 7-6(7/4), 7-6(9/7) win over the Ukrainian and reach the Madrid Open semifinals for a fourth time on Wednesday.
The top-seeded Sabalenka needed 84 minutes to take the opening set before securing the win in cold, breezy conditions.
Kostyuk saved a match point and broke to take the second set into a tiebreak. At 5-4 in the breaker, it started to rain and play was halted briefly to close the roof of the Manolo Santana stadium.
Upon resumption of play, Sabalenka saved three set points and eked out the win, her third over her rival in as many meetings.
“Honestly, that was a battle and conditions were incredibly tough. It wasn’t about tennis, it was about the way you handled your emotions,” said the Belarusian world number one, who hit 48 unforced errors.
“I think I did really well and I’m super proud I was able to handle myself in such a difficult situation.”
Sabalenka next takes on another Ukrainian in the form of Elina Svitolina, who extended her winning streak to 11 consecutive matches with a swift 6-2, 6-1 rout of Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima in just 52 minutes.
A champion in Rouen last week, Svitolina is undefeated on clay this season and is the first Ukrainian woman to reach the semifinals in Madrid.
The 30-year-old has won her last 22 consecutive sets on the red dirt.
Svitolina has a three-year-old daughter, is running a foundation that has taken over the responsibilities of the Ukrainian national tennis team both financially and from a managerial side, and is on an incredible run that will see her re-enter the top 15 in the rankings.
“I have a lot on my plate, but I draw energy and motivation from my people,” said the former world number three.
“When I go back to Ukraine, I just get so much energy from all the people that are right now over there having a tough time. I’m just trying to keep it up and bring some wins for Ukraine.”
Earlier in the day, Iga Swiatek kept her Madrid Open title defense alive, as she avenged her Australian Open defeat to Madison Keys with a 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 win against the American in the quarter-finals.
The second seed will next square off with Coco Gauff, who beat 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva for the third time in as many meetings, 7-5, 6-1.
Searching for her first title of the season, the second-seeded Swiatek recovered from a poor opening set to improve her clean record on clay against Keys to 4-0 and reach a third consecutive Madrid semifinal.
Keys knocked out the Pole on her way to a maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne three months ago and seemed to have cracked the Swiatek code when she handed her a bagel in the first set on Wednesday.
But Swiatek, who was contesting a 17th consecutive quarter-final on clay, cut down on her errors and struck back to book a last-four clash with Gauff.
On court in the Arantxa Sanchez stadium, Gauff saved two set points while receiving at 4-5 before seizing a one-set lead after 63 minutes of play against Andreeva.
Gauff cruised in the second set to dismiss the seventh-seeded Russian and reach her first semifinal of the year — outside of the mixed team United Cup event.
The fourth-seeded American gave herself a 9/10 grade for her performance, adding: “I think I played really well and stayed composed, even when facing those set points.”
In ATP action, Novak Djokovic’s conqueror Matteo Arnaldi earned multiple top-20 wins in one event for the first time by knocking out 16th-seeded Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 7-5 to move into the Madrid quarter-finals.
The Italian world number 44 will take on Jack Draper, who reached his first Masters 1000 quarter-final on clay with a 6-2, 6-2 result against world number 12 Tommy Paul.
Lucky loser Gabriel Diallo saved three match points to claim the biggest win of his career over world number 16 Grigor Dimitrov 5-7, 7-6(9/7), 6-4 and reach the quarter-finals.


Sinner considered walking away from tennis during doping controversy

Updated 30 April 2025
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Sinner considered walking away from tennis during doping controversy

  • Sinner accepted a three-month ban in February after a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency
  • “I didn’t feel comfortable and then I said, maybe after Australia, a little bit of free time, in the sense where I take a little break it will do me good,” he said

ROME: World number one Jannik Sinner, who is about to return to action after a three-month doping ban, thought about walking away from tennis even while successfully defending his Australian Open title, but is coming back with a new mentality.
Sinner accepted a three-month ban in February after a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency, who had appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against an independent tribunal’s decision in August to clear him.
The Italian had tested positive for anabolic agent clostebol which Sinner said entered his system from a member of his support team through massages and sports therapy.
Sinner won the Australian Open in January, with the WADA case hanging over him, and was asked during an interview with Italian broadcaster RAI on Tuesday whether he had ever considered giving up tennis.
“Yes, yes. I remember before the Australian Open this year, I was not in a very happy moment because there was still that case of doping,” Sinner said.
“I didn’t feel really comfortable in the locker room, where I ate. It was a bit like some players looked at me differently and I didn’t like it at all. And there I said it’s heavy to live tennis in this way.
“I didn’t feel comfortable and then I said, maybe after Australia, a little bit of free time, in the sense where I take a little break it will do me good.”
Sinner was then forced into a break by the ban, but is now back in training for the upcoming Italian Open next month.
“Slowly, I’m getting back into the rhythm of real training with a goal in front of me,” Sinner said.
“Sometimes it goes very well, sometimes there is a drop and I don’t know why, so I will certainly be very happy to return to the court.
“Especially in Rome, it is a special tournament for me, but I certainly enter with a slightly different mentality. I miss the competition. I am certainly very happy that this phase is now over and we are ready to start again.”
Sinner’s settlement brought plenty of criticism from both current and former players, with Serena Williams saying she would have been banned for 20 years and had her Grand Slam titles taken away had she tested positive in a similar fashion.
“I mean, I don’t even want to answer. Everyone is free to say what they want, everyone can judge, but that’s okay,” Sinner said.
“It’s important to me that I know how that happened, but above all also of what I went through and it was very difficult.
“I don’t wish it on anyone to really pass as innocent something like that because it wasn’t easy, but we are in a world where everyone can say what they want, so it’s okay.”


Djokovic’s Rome pullout a worrying sign, says Courier

Updated 30 April 2025
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Djokovic’s Rome pullout a worrying sign, says Courier

  • The Serb was expected to jumpstart his clay campaign in Rome before returning to Paris, where he won Olympic gold last year

LONDON: Novak Djokovic’s shock withdrawal from next week’s Italian Open should be a huge worry for the 24-times Grand Slam champion’s fans as he heads to the French Open without winning a match on clay this season, former Roland Garros winner Jim Courier said.

Djokovic, who turns 38 three days before the year’s second Grand Slam begins on May 25, has been woefully out of form and was comprehensively beaten in his opening matches at Masters tournaments in Monte Carlo and Madrid this month.

The Serb was expected to jumpstart his clay campaign in Rome before returning to Paris, where he won Olympic gold last year, but on Tuesday he said he was skipping the Masters 1000 event, without providing a reason.

“That’s troubling. It’s worrying for me as a Novak fan,” Courier, who won back-to-back Roland Garros titles in 1991 and 1992, said on the Tennis Channel.

The American added that Rome would have been the perfect venue for Djokovic to find his rhythm as it had similar conditions to Paris without the challenge of playing at altitude in Madrid.

“If you’re going to play one between Madrid and Rome (then) Rome would be the one you would want to play to get ready for Roland Garros,” he said.

Djokovic, who is chasing a 100th tour-level title and first since his ATP Finals triumph in 2023, said after his loss in Madrid that he was trying to come to terms with a “new reality” in tennis where he is just “trying to win a match or two.”

“I don’t know what to make of it, but I don’t like the way it feels in the gut,” Courier added.

“It’s a very strange thing to announce a pullout now, well in advance of it, and we’ll see what it all means when we get to Roland Garros.”