Kampala, Uganda | XINHUA | Japanese tennis player and former U.S. Open runner-up Kei Nishikori said Sunday he has contracted COVID-19 and has withdrawn from the Western & Southern Open that starts next week. “I have some unfortunate news,” Nishikori said through social media. “This morning while still in Florida, …
Read More »Federer tops list of world’s highest-paid athletes
New York, United States | AFP | Roger Federer topped the 2020 Forbes magazine list of highest-paid global athletes announced Friday, leading the lineup for the first time with pre-tax earnings of $106.3 million (95.5 million euros). The Swiss tennis legend, a men’s record 20-time Grand Slam singles champion, becomes the …
Read More »Serena ends three-year title drought, gives winnings to bushfire appeal
Auckland, New Zealand | AFP | Serena Williams ended a three-year title drought and donated her winner’s cheque to victims of the Australian bushfires in an emotional WTA Auckland Classic final on Sunday. Williams raised expectations for this month’s Australian Open, where she can equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand …
Read More »Nadal v Federer tickets: 48,000 gone in under 10 minutes!
Johannesburg, South Africa | AFP | South African tennis fans bought 48,000 tickets in under 10 minutes Wednesday for a Cape Town exhibition match next February between world superstars Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. The game at the Cape Town Stadium, built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, is set …
Read More »Record chase can motivate Federer but wins matter most
New York, United States | AFP | Roger Federer takes motivation from shattering records, but winning matters most for the 38-year-old Swiss star as he chases his 21st Grand Slam title at the US Open. Five-time US Open champion Federer stretched his record for Grand Slam Open era quarter-finals appearances …
Read More »Top seeds Djokovic, Barty toppled in Cincy semi-finals
Cincinnati, United States | AFP | World number one Novak Djokovic wilted under pressure from Daniil Medvedev Saturday, falling 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 to the ninth-seeded Russian in the Cincinnati Masters semi-finals. Medvedev’s upset win sent him into a title showdown with another unexpected finalist, 16th-seeded Belgian David Goffin, who defeated France’s …
Read More »Calm before the storm? Halep stands between Serena and Court landmark
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Serena Williams’s place among the legends of tennis is assured but her mission will not be accomplished unless she at least equals Margaret Court’s record haul of 24 Grand Slam singles titles. The 37-year-old American gets a third chance in a year to go …
Read More »Barty seeks to end long Aussie drought with women’s Wimbledon crown
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Ashleigh Barty goes into Wimbledon buoyed, unlike her predecessor Naomi Osaka, by being world number one and with several of her major rivals struggling. The engaging 23-year-old Australian — who emulated compatriot Evonne Goolagong Cawley by becoming number one last weekend — has yet …
Read More »History man Nadal sweeps to ‘incredible’ 12th French Open and 18th Grand Slam title
Paris, France | AFP | Rafael Nadal swept to an historic 12th Roland Garros title and 18th Grand Slam crown on Sunday with a 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 victory over Austria’s Dominic Thiem. The 33-year-old Spaniard becomes the first player, man or woman, to win the same Slam 12 times …
Read More »‘The matches you live for’: Greatest rivals Djokovic, Nadal square off
Melbourne, Australia | AFP | Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will renew the “greatest rivalry” in modern tennis when they collide in a mouth-watering 107th Australian Open final on Sunday. The top two players in the world have 31 Grand Slam titles between them and each can claim another …
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