Tennis

Djokovic this week doubled down on his decision to stay unvaccinated. The No. 1-ranked tennis player said he would skip the French Open, Wimbledon and other tournaments if he was required to get a coronavirus vaccine to compete. Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic received a warm welcome in Dubai, where he visited the world’s fair following the global drama around his decision to remain unvaccinated. After being twice detained and deported from Australia ahead of the year’s first Grand Slam Tournament last month,

Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Manika Batra on Friday welcomed the Delhi High Court's order that effectively suspended the Table Tennis Federation of India following her petition, saying ill-treatment from TTFI forced her to take the legal route. Manika, who recently broke into the top-50 of world rankings, had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court after she was not included in the team for the Asian Championships. TTFI had excluded her as she did not attend the national camp before the event "I've

MELBOURNE: France's Kristina Mladenovic and Croatian Ivan Dodig swept to a 6-3 6-4 victory against local duo Jaimee Fourlis and Jason Kubler to claim the Australian Open mixed doubles crown at Melbourne Park on Friday. Playing under a closed roof on Rod Laver Arena, Mladenovic and Dodig got off to a solid start, securing a vital break at 4-3 before closing out the set after some big serving from the Frenchwoman. The Australian wildcard pairing were broken again early in the second set

World number one Ash Barty and defending champion Naomi Osaka could set up a tantalising fourth-round showdown at the Australian Open with victories at Melbourne Park on Friday. Barty, whose stunning form has seen her drop just three games so far, takes on 30th seed Camila Giorgi in the third round, while Osaka faces Amanda Anisimova, who won the Melbourne Summer Set 2 tournament in the lead-up. Barty and Osaka have both won twice against each other but have not met in over

India's tennis star Sania Mirza has announced her retirement plans from the professional tennis world. She will bid farewell to her illustrious career at the end of this 2022 tennis season. Sania Mirza was knocked out of the Australian Open 2022 women's doubles events in the first-round match, at Melbourne on Wednesday. She made the announcement about her retirement after her opening-round loss. “I’ve decided this will be my last season. I’m taking it week by week, not sure if I can last

Ash Barty showed a good host can lift spirits at the most subdued of parties as she thumped Lesia Tsurenko 6-0 6-1 in a blistering start at the Australian Open on Monday to reach the second round. With the deportation of men's champion Novak Djokovic leaving a massive hole at Melbourne Park and a major COVID-19 outbreak gripping the city, Barty's twilight clinic at Rod Laver Arena gave the tournament a much-needed boost. Djokovic was heading back to his native Serbia on Monday,

Do you hear the phrase ‘top seed’ and immediately think of agriculture? If so, then this guide is for you. Note: If that's not you — i.e. if you're someone who already follows tennis — did you know that Andrey Rublev outplayed Andy Murray at the recently concluded Mubadala World Tennis Championship to emerge as the MWTC victor? Rafael Nadal played, too, but he succumbed to Andy Murray in the semi-finals and to Denis Shapovalov in the 3rd place play-offs. Head on over

Australia vowed on Friday to enforce its Covid-19 vaccine border rules "rigorously" as a decision loomed on the deportation of unvaccinated tennis superstar Novak Djokovic. Australia vowed on Friday to enforce its Covid-19 vaccine border rules "rigorously" as a decision loomed on the deportation of unvaccinated tennis superstar Novak Djokovic. The Serbian world number one is looking to secure a 10th title at the Australian Open, which gets underway on Monday -- as well as a record 21st Grand Slam. Prime Minister Scott

Coco Gauff battled to a 6-3 5-7 6-3 win over unseeded Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk at the Adelaide International 2 WTA tournament on Wednesday to join four other Americans in the quarter-finals. Madison Keys, Alison Riske, Madison Brengle and Lauren Davis also won their respective matches in the round of 16 earlier in the day to book their spots in the quarter-finals which will take place on Thursday. Gauff, who pushed world number one Ash Barty before losing their second-round meeting in the Adelaide

Tennis star Novak Djokovic released a long statement on Wednesday, with details on why he was not in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19 in December and saying his agent made a mistake in filling out his Australian travel declaration. The statement came as Australia's Immigration Minister Alex Hawke was considering whether to cancel the world no.1 tennis player's visa ahead of the Australian Open, which starts on Jan. 17, amid controversy over whether he was eligible for a medical exemption from the

Felix Auger-Aliassime defeated world No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on Thursday to propel Canada into the semifinals of the ATP Cup in Germany. Russia, behind world No. 2 Daniil Medvedev, nabbed the final semifinal spot in a defeat of Italy. Auger-Aliassime's win followed that of teammate Denis Shapovalov, who defeated Jan-Lennard Struff 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-3. The two singles wins secured the victory, while Russia needed to rely on its doubles play to advance. Jannik Sinner defeated Roman Safiullin

Australia said Thursday it had cancelled the entry visa of Novak Djokovic, opening the way to his detention and removal in a dramatic reversal for the tennis world number one. The Serb had landed in Melbourne the previous evening, after celebrating on social media that he had a medical exemption to play in the tournament without proof he was fully vaccinated against Covid-19. The vaccine exemption, granted by the Australian Open organisers after his application had been cleared by two medical panels, sparked

The two-time Grand Slam champion said she spent the time with family and worked on her game in a bid to win her first Australian Open later this month. World number one Ashleigh Barty said Monday that she will need to be patient as she returns to competitive action this week for the first time since the US Open in September. Barty is celebrating 102 consecutive weeks at the top of the women's game but after falling in the third round at Flushing

Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the Serbia team for the ATP Cup in Sydney, event organisers said on Wednesday, raising further doubts over whether the world number one will defend his Australian Open title next month. There has been intense speculation over Djokovic's participation in both events, with the 34-year-old, who is opposed to COVID-19 vaccinations, repeatedly declining to say if he has been inoculated against the virus. Organisers of the Australian Open, which starts on Jan. 17, have stipulated that all

Former world number one Andy Murray eased past Rafa Nadal 6-3 7-5 in the Spaniard's comeback match at the World Tennis Championship exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi on Friday to set up a summit clash with Russia's Andrey Rublev. More than five years on from their last meeting, both players made impressive starts but the Scot's superior match practice told as he saved a break point in the third game of the match and then broke himself to easily claim the first set.

Novak Djokovic dominated the men's game once again and a new star in Emma Raducanu exploded onto the scene at the U.S. Open, but the sport finished 2021 in a stand-off with China over the safety of former doubles number one Peng Shuai. Djokovic started the year by winning a record ninth Australian Open title and by the time the season reached the final of the fourth and last major of the year at the U.S. Open, the Serbian was standing on the

Canada's former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu said on Monday she will not take part in next month's Australian Open as she recovers from two seasons disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Canada's former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu said on Monday she will not take part in next month's Australian Open as she recovers from two seasons disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The 21-year-old world number 46, who missed multiple tournaments this season after contracting coronavirus in April, said she planned to use

Russia took an unassailable 2-0 lead over Croatia in the Davis Cup final in Madrid on Sunday to secure their third title and first in 15 years. Reigning U.S. Open champion Daniil Medvedev claimed the deciding second point by defeating Marin Cilic 7-6(7) 6-2 after compatriot Andrey Rublev beat Borna Gojo 6-4 7-6(5). Source: Reuters / Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Jan Harvey

World number one Novak Djokovic overpowered Dennis Novak after Dusan Lajovic battled past Gerald Melzer and Serbia went on to a 3-0 win in their opener against Group F hosts Austria in the Davis Cup Finals in Innsbruck on Friday. Djokovic, aiming to guide Serbia to their first title since 2010 and second overall, made light work of his opponent as he dropped just six points on serve and did not face a break point while claiming a 6-3 6-2 victory in under

Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut has been ruled out of the Davis Cup after suffering an abdominal injury in training and will be replaced by Albert Ramos, the Spanish tennis federation said. World number 19 Bautista Agut, who helped Spain clinch the 2019 title against Canada in the inaugural edition of the revamped event, was the highest-ranked singles player in the team. Ramos, 33, will join Pablo Carreno Busta, Feliciano Lopez, Marcel Granollers and 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz, who will be making his Davis Cup