Professional Tennis
Juan Martin del Potro’s run at the Sydney International tournament came to an end on Thursday as the defending champion fell to Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin in the semifinals. Kukushkin prevailed in two sets that each went to tiebreakers for a 7-6(5), 7-6(3) victory. The match featured no break points as each player won every single…
Petra Kvitova exacted some revenge on Thursday as the world number four from the Czech Republic beat Bulgaria’s Tsvetana Pironkova 7-5, 6-1 to advance to the Sydney International final. Pironkova had defeated Kvitova at this exact stage last year on her way to the championship, but this time around Kvitova proved to be too much…
World number four Petra Kvitova received a scare from Australian wild card Jarmila Gajdosova, dropping the first set only to recover for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 quarterfinal victory. Kvitova was trailing 4-3 on her serve in the third set when the Czech held, won four straight points on Gajdosova’s serve to break and then held…
The results at the Sydney International and Heineken Open tournaments were not kind to the top seeds of each respective tournament on Wednesday as the day saw a number of surprises. First in Sydney, Juan Martin del Potro continued his comeback season with another victory, coming back from a set down to knock off top-seeded…
The ATP has announced significant efforts to enhance the ATP Challenger Tour, including further increases in prize money. The ATP Challenger Tour comprises approximately 150 tournaments each year and serves as a springboard for players to compete on the ATP World Tour. The increases will take place at the lowest category of tournaments, with minimum…
Argentinean Juan Martin del Potro won his first match since last February, knocking off Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-3, 7-6(4) at the Sydney International on Tuesday. “It was a great moment for me,” said Del Potro, who is the defending champion at this tournament. “I think I played well in my first match after ten months….
World number three Simona Halep has withdrawn from the Sydney International tournament with gastroenteritis, the Romanian announced on Tuesday. “I feel like I cannot play,” said Halep, the tournament’s top seed. “I came here to play all the tournaments, so it’s not good to stop. I didn’t play already for three days. But I have…
Maria Sharapova edged Ana Ivanovic 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-3 to win the Brisbane International on Saturday. The world number two fought back from a set down to upend the Serbian and capture her 34th career title. “I played four good matches against very different types of opponents. Couldn’t have asked for a better preparation,” said Sharapova…
Two days after falling to Venus Williams in the ASB Classic title match, world number eight Caroline Wozniacki retired from her first-round match against Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova at the Sydney International tournament with a wrist injury. “I felt it during one shot,” said Wozniacki, who was trailing 4-6, 1-1 at the time of her retirement. “I…
Roger Federer became the third person in tennis history to record 1,000 career match wins on Sunday, defeating Canadian Milos Raonic 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-4 in the Brisbane International final. He joins Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl as the only players to reach the 1,000-win mark. “Clearly it’s a special day for me, winning a title plus…