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Tsitsipas, with Big Three missing, makes 4th round in Miami
Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece returns to Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia during the Miami Open tennis tournament, Saturday, March 27, 2021, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)MIAMI โ For tennis up-and-comers like Stefanos Tsitsipas, the draw at the Miami Open began to look a lot less daunting even before the tournament began. โItโs a first test to see how it is playing without them,โ Tsitsipas said after his third-round victory Saturday. 2-seeded Tsitsipas is among those with the best chance to take advantage, and he looked the part against Damir Dzumhur, winning 6-1, 6-4. โI created a lot of opportunities with my serve โ I wasnโt rushing at all, finding the right angles and executing it perfectly,โ Tsitsipas said. In women's play, top-ranked Ash Barty and three-time champion Victoria Azarenka advanced to a round of 16 showdown.
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Citing bad back, Rafael Nadal out of Rotterdam tournament
Spain's Rafael Nadal reacts after losing a point against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas during their quarterfinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Andy Brownbill)Rafael Nadal pulled out of next week's hard-court tournament at Rotterdam, Netherlands, because of the bad back that bothered him during the Australian Open. Nadal's withdrawal from the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament was announced Thursday. Instead, third-ranked Daniil Medvedev, the runner-up to Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open, will take the top spot in the seedings. The 34-year-old Spaniard then was able to participate in the year's first Grand Slam tournament, which began Feb. 8.
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223-2: Nadal blows 2-set lead against Tsitsipas in Australia
Spain's Rafael Nadal reacts after winning a point against Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas during their quarterfinal match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Andy Brownbill)MELBOURNE โ Rafael Nadal entered his Australian Open quarterfinal with a 223-1 record when grabbing the first two sets of a Grand Slam match. Neither Tsitsipas nor Medvedev has won a Grand Slam tournament. 1-ranked Novak Djokovic will face 114th-ranked qualifier Aslan Karatsev, who is making his Grand Slam debut. It looked like it could be a repeat of their 2019 semifinal in Australia, when Nadal overwhelmed Tsitsipas and allowed him to win just six games.
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The Latest: Nadal loses to Tsitsipas in 5 at Australian Open
(AP Photo/Hamish Blair)MELBOURNE โ The Latest on Day 10 of the Australian Open (all times local):11:55 p.m.Rafael Nadalโs bid for a menโs-record 21st Grand Slam title has ended with a five-set loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open quarterfinals. He has been pushed to a fifth set by Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open quarterfinals. ___10 p.m.Rafael Nadal's Grand Slam set streak has ended at 35 after he dropped one against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open quarterfinals. The pair were teammates when Russia won the ATP Cup team event on the eve of the Australian Open. Kenin lost to Kaia Kanepi in straight sets in the second round of her title defense at the Australian Open last week.
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Daughter of Bills, Sabres owners into all-US QF in Australia
United States' Jessica Pegula celebrates after defeating Ukraine's Elina Svitolina in their fourth round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Feb. 15, 2021. โIโm just happy Iโm here; she's been playing some good tennis, solidifying herself as a top player.โAdThe 61st-ranked Pegula beat No. โA lot of people were complaining, and I told myself I wasnโt going to complain,โ Brady said. Also on that half of the draw, Rafael Nadal moved closer to a men's-record 21st Grand Slam trophy by overwhelming No. โIโm super excited for her making her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.
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The Latest: Nadal beats Mmoh in straight sets in Melbourne
Spain's Rafael Nadal celebrates after defeating United States' Michael Mmoh during their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)MELBOURNE โ The Latest from the Australian Open (all times local):11:50 p.m.Rafael Nadal shrugged off some heckling from a spectator before beating American qualifier Michael Mmoh 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the second round of the Australian Open. The Australian Open is the first major in a year to allow sizeable crowds with the government allowing up to 50% capacity. Ad___11:20 p.m.Fabio Fognini and Salvatore Caruso clearly still hadnโt had enough of their all-Italian second-round duel at the Australian Open even after four hours and five sets. ___9:30 p.m.Fifth-seeded Elina Svitolina beat 16-year-old Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-3 in the second round of the Australian Open.
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COVID case at Australian Open hotel cancels play at tuneups
An Australian Open courtesy car waits outside the Grand Hyatt hotel in central Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021. All competition at six Australian Open tuneup events scheduled for Thursday was called off after a worker at one of the tournaments' Melbourne quarantine hotels tested positive for COVID-19. The Australian Open is scheduled to begin Monday. Williams won her last major title at the 2017 Australian Open, when she was pregnant with her daughter, Olympia. On the bottom half of the draw, defending Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin rallied from a set and a break down to fend off Jessica Pegula 5-7, 7-5, 6-2.
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The Latest: Women's title fight called off because of virus
The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___A womenโs world middleweight title fight in England has been called off after a trainer tested positive for the coronavirus. The 29-year-old Marshall was scheduled to fight Hannah Rankin on Saturday in Peterborough for the vacant WBO world middleweight title. ___Juventus midfielder Weston McKennie has tested positive for the coronavirus. ___The Canadian round of figure skatingโs Grand Prix has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The five-round Grand Prix season is due to begin with Skate America in Las Vegas from Oct. 23-25 without spectators.
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The Latest: Kerber loses French opener for 2nd straight year
(AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)PARIS โ The Latest from the French Open (all times local):9 p.m.Three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber has lost in the first round of the French Open for the second straight year. The 2009 French Open champion was beaten by Russian countrywoman Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 2-6, 6-1. But the 2016 French Open champion held firm to beat Tamara Zidansek 7-5, 4-6, 8-6. He beat Reilly Opelka 6-4, 6-4, 6-3. The new roof over Court Philippe Chatrier is again proving its worth on Day 2 of the French Open.
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2 more top-10 women -- Svitolina, Bertens -- out of US Open
NEW YORK Two more top-10 women -- Elina Svitolina and Kiki Bertens -- will miss the U.S. Open, joining No. 1-ranked Ash Barty in skipping the Grand Slam tennis tournament during the coronavirus pandemic. The French Open -- where Bertens reached the semifinals in 2016 -- is scheduled to begin Sept. 27. Defending mens champion Rafael Nadal also has said he wont play at the U.S. Open, citing concerns about traveling during the pandemic. The womens circuit returned to action this week in Palermo, Italy; the men are scheduled to begin play later this month.

Serena Williams fined $10,000 for damaging Wimbledon court
(CNN) - Seven-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams has been handed a $10,000 fine for damaging one of the practice courts with her racquet. The American has previously been fined $10,000 at the All England Club for repeatedly smashing her racket on the court during a second-round victory over Christina McHale in 2016. Uruguay's Pablo Cuevas and Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus have also been fined $10,000 for incidents of unsportsmanlike conduct. The 37-year-old Williams is targeting a first Wimbledon title since 2016 and a record-equaling 24th grand slam victory. Williams and her mixed doubles partner Andy Murray are also in second-round action against Fabrice Martin and Raquel Atawo Tuesday.

Serena Williams, Andy Murray win Wimbledon mixed doubles opener
Andy Murray of Great Britain and Serena Williams of The United States celebrate match point during their Mixed Doubles first round match against Andreas Mies of Germany and Alexa Guarachi of Chile during Day six of The Championships -The dream mixed-doubles partnership of Serena Williams and Andy Murray didn't disappoint in their long awaited Wimbledon debut. "Andy and I both love the competition," Williams said earlier Saturday after a singles win over Julia Goerges 6-3 6-4. Murray focusing on doublesBut he still isn't comfortable enough to play singles, instead focusing on doubles. He combined with Feliciano Lopez to lift the title at Queens and then said he would compete in men's doubles at Wimbledon with Herbert. After Murray lightheartedly said he would be keen to partner Williams -- who has won 14 doubles grand slams with older sister Venus -- it eventually happened.