Tennis

Karolina Muchova staged a stunning comeback Thursday to upset Ashleigh Barty and storm into the Australian Open semi-finals. Karolina Muchova staged a stunning comeback Thursday to upset Ashleigh Barty and storm into the Australian Open semi-finals, rallying from a set down to shatter the world number one's dreams. The Czech 25th seed looked on her way out after Barty raced through the opening set, but after a medical timeout Muchova returned a different player to win 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena

Rafael Nadal looks to be peaking at the right time after brushing aside Fabio Fognini to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. The second seed came into the tournament with serious concerns over a back problem but revealed after beating Britain’s Cameron Norrie in the third round that it had finally started to improve. Fognini came from two sets down to beat Nadal at the US Open in 2015 but, after failing to convert a lead in the second set, he swiftly succumbed to a 6-3, 6-4,

The Scot, now ranked 125th, lost 6-2, 6-4 to 33-year-old Ukrainian Illya Marchenko, who is ranked 212th, in the hard-court event. Rome: Former world number one Andy Murray, forced to miss the Australian Open by a positive COVID-19 test, lost the final of the Biella Challenger event in Italy on Sunday. The Scot, now ranked 125th, lost 6-2, 6-4 to 33-year-old Ukrainian Illya Marchenko, who is ranked 212th, in the hard-court event. The indoor event in the foothills of the Italian Alps carried a modest overall

Karolina Pliskova said she never got into her comfort zone on Saturday as the sixth seed exited the Australian Open following a 7-5 7-5 third-round defeat by Czech compatriot Karolina Muchova at Rod Laver Arena. Pliskova's frustrations boiled over in the first set as she received a code violation for racket abuse and was then handed a point deduction for smashing another racket in the tunnel between sets. Pliskova told a news conference she had been a little bit surprised at the second

Serena Williams debuted a striking single-legged leotard in her first match in the Australian Open on Monday, paying homage to the Olympic track champion Florence Griffith Joyner, known for her long, colourful fingernails and flamboyant outfits. After wearing the black, red and pink catsuit to dispatch Germany’s Laura Siegemund, Williams credited Nike for coming up with the idea to channel FloJo, as the athlete was popularly known, and spoke of her admiration for the late athlete. “I was inspired by FloJo, who was

With most of the world still living under strict coronavirus restrictions, there is some light relief for tennis fans in the form of a very different Australian Open. The first Grand Slam of the year does take place in Melbourne as planned, although it starts three weeks later than usual on 8 February. Serbia's world number one Novak Djokovic and Spain's Rafael Nadal - who is aiming to win a 21st major title and move clear of Roger Federer - lead the men's

More than 500 tennis players and officials were ordered into isolation in the Australian city of Melbourne on Thursday as authorities reintroduced coronavirus restrictions after a worker at a quarantine hotel tested positive for the virus. The city reimposed an order for masks indoors and a limit on gatherings of 15 people after the state's run of 28 days with no new local cases came to an end. Melbourne, Australia's second-biggest city, is preparing to host the Australian Open tennis tournament from Monday

Barty will play American Shelby Rogers in the quarterfinals of the Yarra Valley Classic and could potentially face Serena Williams in the semifinals. Williams was playing Tsvetana Pironkova in a night match on Margaret Court Arena. Ash Barty looked like the world No. 1 in the first set, then struggled the rest of the way against No. 52-ranked Marie Bouzkova before completing a 6-0, 4-6, 6-3 win in an Australian Open tuneup tournament on Wednesday. In the third set, the 2019 French Open

Rafa Nadal brushed aside questions about the Australian Open quarantine on Sunday and said it was time to get down to the business of playing tennis and entertaining fans around the world. The 34-year-old, who secured his 20th Grand Slam title at last year’s delayed French Open, completed his two weeks of isolation in Adelaide on Friday before playing an exhibition match and then heading to Melbourne. “When we arrived here, we have this quarantine. But I think that’s over. It’s the moment

Spain’s tennis player was diagnosed with early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma and went through chemotherapy. Former world number six female tennis player Carla Suarez Navarro says she dreams of a return to competitive action following cancer treatment and this year’s postponed Tokyo Olympics would be the perfect stage to call time on her career. Spaniard Suarez Navarro said in September she was diagnosed with early-stage Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer, and would need to go through six months of chemotherapy.

Preparation for this year's Australian Open has been unlike anything these professional tennis players have previously experienced. Some have been through a "hard quarantine" and unable to leave their hotel rooms at all for 14 days, while others have been allowed out to practice for limited hours during the day. However, there is one element of the upcoming tournament, set to begin on February 8, that will at least give the players some sense of normalcy.For the first time at a grand slam

Daily crowds of between 25,000 and 30,000 will be allowed to watch the Australian Open, organisers said Saturday in a big boost to the season's opening Grand Slam. Aggressive restrictions on incoming travel have helped keep the coronavirus largely at bay in Australia, making it one of the few places in the world where fans can still attend sports events in significant numbers. Victoria state's Sports Minister Martin Pakula said it equated to some 390,000 spectators across the two-week spectacle -- around half

Rafael Nadal said "we all try to help each other" amid Covid restrictions ahead of Australian Open, but some need "to make public everything they do to help others." Rafael Nadal has taken an apparent swipe at Novak Djokovic over his requests for quarantined players preparing for the Australian Open, saying not everyone felt the need to "advertise" how they were trying to help. The Serbian world number one issued a list of suggestions to Tennis Australia last week on behalf of 72

Leander Paes, 47, said he skipped the Australian Open as he is apprehensive of playing in a bio-bubble but is looking ahead to the French Open. Indian tennis icon Leander Paes on Monday said he is eyeing a French Open comeback this year in his quest to make a record eighth appearance at the Olympics in Tokyo. Paes, 47, said he skipped the Australian Open as he is apprehensive of playing in a bio-bubble but is looking ahead to the French Open. Playing sport in a bio-bubble is

Three more people linked to the Australian Open have tested positive for COVID-19 in Melbourne, increasing to 10 those associated with the Grand Slam tennis tournament which begins Feb. 8. Victoria state Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville confirmed the new cases had been detected on Wednesday, adding that authorities are "very confident" one of the cases is a tennis player who is shedding the virus and is not infectious. The player is already in hard lockdown as they were on board a flight

BBC A Spanish tennis player who was among many Australian Open competitors to complain about quarantine rules has revealed she has coronavirus. Paula Badosa said she had felt unwell with symptoms before testing positive for the virus in Melbourne on Thursday. Badosa is believed to be the fourth competitor to test positive in hotel quarantine, but is the first to identify herself publicly. On Friday, she said "sorry guys", adding quarantine rules were "pivotal". "Please, don't get me wrong. Health will always comes

Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka and Polish striker Robert Lewandowski have been named the AIPS Best Athletes of 2020. Bayern Munich won the AIPS Best Team of 2020 after breaking a plethora of records en route to winning five trophies. This is the result of a poll by the International Sport Press Association (AIPS), where a panel of 422 journalists from 116 countries voted for the Champions of 2020.  It is the first time that Lewandowski and Osaka are winning the prestigious accolade which

World number one Novak Djokovic cruised into the semi-finals of the ATP and WTA Western & Southern Open on Wednesday while Japan's Naomi Osaka withdrew to protest the shooting of a black man by police in Wisconsin. Djokovic, who launches his bid for a fourth US Open title and 18th Grand Slam crown on Monday, needed only 62 minutes to rout Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff 6-3, 6-1. The 33-year-old Serbian, who seeks a fourth US Open title and 18th Grand Slam crown, advanced to a Thursday semi-final against Spain's Roberto

Marie Bouzkova expected some adjustment to her first tennis tournament in nearly six months. First was the matter of shedding rust from the layoff caused by the coronavirus shutdown. The Czech Republic player also had to get her mind around the inaugural Top Seed Open and a significantly subdued competitive atmosphere without spectators and a sprinkling of officials around center court. “The beginning felt like practice because my coach was clapping at some point,” said Bouzkova, who quickly adapted to upset No. 3

Novak Djokovic’s stubborn stance to hold an exhibition tournament draws flak after four, including two players, get infected with Covid-19. Croatian tennis player Borna Coric confirmed he has tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday, a day after Grigor Dimitrov’s positive test led to the cancellation of the Adria Tour final in Zadar. Further announcements are expected as national news agencies have quoted the head of Zadar’s local crisis response team, Sime Vickovic, saying that four tennis players and two coaches tested positive. The