Page 4 - Tennis

Serena Williams not done yet; wins 1st round match of her last US Open

They came from far and wide for Serena no last name required, befitting someone as much an icon as superstar athlete to see her practice and play and, it turned out, win a match at the U.S. Open, turning out in record numbers to fill Arthur Ashe Stadium and shout and applaud and pump their fists right along with her. Serena Williams is not ready to say goodbye just yet. Nor, clearly, are her fans. And she heard them, loud and clear. In her first match at what is expected to be the last U.S. Open and last tournament of her remarkable playing career, even if she insists that she won't quite say so, Williams overcame a shaky start to overpower Danka Kovinic 6-3, 6-3 amid an atmosphere more akin to a festival than a farewell. What memory will stick with her the most from the evening? When I walked out, the reception was really overwhelming. It was loud and I could feel it in my chest. It was a really good feeling, said the owner of six U.S. Open championships and 23 Grand Slam titl

US Open: Caroline Garcia opens with a win; Maria Sakkari registers victory

No.17 seed Caroline Garcia opened her 2022 US Open campaign with a 6-2, 6-4 scoreline while Maria Sakkari survived a scare as she advanced with a three sets victory in early women's singles

US Open: Unseeded Murray advances; Wolf beats Bautista Agut in first upset

Starting as an unseeded contender, British multiple-time Grand Slam winner Andy Murray advanced to the second round at the US Open, beating No. 24-seed Francisco Cerundolo in a first clash

Serena Williams' example: Tennis icon's impact felt in Black America

In 2016, responding to the fatal police shootings of two Black men just a day apart, Serena Williams joined a small chorus of top Black athletes in speaking out. I won't be silent! she vowed. Have we not gone through enough, opened so many doors, impacted billions of lives? Williams asked in a Facebook post in the wake of the back-to-back killings of Philando Castile just outside St. Paul, Minnesota, and Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I realized we must stride on for it's not how far we have come but how much further still we have to go, she wrote. That wasn't the only time Williams would wade into the politically thorny topic. It's an outspokenness for which other Black athletes, from Muhammad Ali to Colin Kaepernick, have paid a steep professional price. After nearly three decades in the public eye, few can match Williams' array of accomplishments, medals and awards. Through it all, the 23-time Grand Slam title winner hasn't let the public forget that she's a Black ..

Retiring Serena Williams believes she will always be involved in tennis

Retiring legend Serena Williams has indicated she "will always have some sort of involvement" in tennis as she prepares for the US Open, in what will be the final Grand Slam of her career

Injured Sania Mirza pulls out of US Open, puts retirement plans on hold

ania had declared that 2022 would be her last season in professional tennis but the six-time Grand Slam champion hinted that the latest developments may change her plans to retire

Djokovic will not play in US Open, indicates his official website

World no. 1 tennis player Novak Djokovic will miss the US Open, scheduled to be played from August 29, according to his official website

Alexander Zverev, 2020 US Open runner-up, to miss event with injury

Alexander Zverev, the 2020 U.S. Open runner-up, will miss the tournament this year while recovering from surgery on his right ankle. Zverev tore ligaments in the ankle during his semifinal match against Rafael Nadal at the French Open in June, and the No. 2-ranked player withdrew from the U.S. Open on Monday. The 25-year-old German was on the verge of his first Grand Slam title two years ago in Flushing Meadows before Dominic Thiem rallied to beat him in a fifth-set tiebreaker. It was the first time a man overcame a 2-0 deficit in the final of the event since Pancho Gonzalez did it against Ted Schroeder in 1949. Zverev won the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo last year and then returned to the U.S. Open semifinals, losing to Novak Djokovic in five sets. American Stefan Kozlov moved into the main draw for the tournament. Main draw play begins next Monday.

US Open winners to get $2.6 mn, total player compensation surpasses $60 mn

The US Open singles champions will receive USD 2.6 million this year, with total player compensation for the Grand Slam tournament surpassing USD 60 million for the first time. A larger portion of that total is being allocated to the earlier rounds, the U.S. Tennis Association said Thursday, following input from the men's and women's tour player councils. Players will receive $80,000 just for making the main draw and $121,000 for reaching the second round. In 2019, the last year before the coronavirus pandemic, the singles champions earned $3.9 million. A first-round loser got $58,000 and a player eliminated in the second round earned $100,000. Players will earn $445,000 for reaching the quarterfinals and $705,000 for being a semifinalist. The runner-up gets $1.3 million. The doubles championship teams will earn $688,000 The $60.1 million total surpasses last year's $57.5 million total, which was already more than the other three Grand Slam tournaments paid this year. Total prize

Madison Keys knocks No.1 Iga Swiatek out of Western & Southern Open

American Madison Keys upset No. 1 Iga Swiatek 6-3, 6-4 to reach the Western & Southern Open quarterfinals. Swiatek, a two-time Grand Slam champion, hasn't gotten past the round of 16 in four tournaments since winning the French Open in June. The win was the 24th-ranked Keys' first in six matches against a top-ranked opponent. She had never won a set against a No. 1 player. After dropping the first set and losing the first five games of the second, Swiatek rallied to win four straight, fighting off one match point before Keys clinched with a forehand winner to the ad court off a shot that clipped the net. Swiatek won her first two matches against Keys, including 6-1, 6-0 this year at Indian Wells. "Obviously, there were a couple of games where I had match point, Keys said in an on-court interview. She beat me pretty badly the last time we played, so I was happy to get the win. Keys is scheduled to next meet Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, who easily advanced with a 6-2, 6-4 win

Simona Halep to withdraw from Western and Southern Open due to leg injury

World No.6 Simona Halep has decided to withdraw from the Western & Southern Open due to a right thigh injury on Wednesday.Halep was set to face Veronika Kudermetova in the second round.Kudermetova received a walkover into the Round of 16 and will face either Paula Badosa or Ajla Tomljanovic.The World No.6 Halep captured her major title in two years last week at the National Bank Open in Toronto, Canada. The win brought Halep back into the Top 10 for the first time in a year. She beat Brazil's Beatriz Haddad Maia in a thrilling three-set final, winning 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.With the US Open less than two weeks away, Halep's leg problem is one of a number of injury clouds affecting players as they head to the final Grand Slam of the season.Earlier, Coco Gauff and Amanda Anisimova were also forced to withdraw from Cincinnati Masters due to ankle injuries.

Serena Williams' legacy: Plenty of wins, plenty of stands on issues

A couple of days before Serena Williams claimed the 22nd of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles at Wimbledon in 2016, she was asked what she makes of it

Serena announces impending retirement, says 'evolving away from tennis'

Serena Williams says she is ready to step away from tennis after winning 23 Grand Slam titles, turning her focus to having another child and her business interests. "I'm turning 41 this month, and something's got to give," Williams wrote in an essay released Tuesday by Vogue magazine. Williams said she does not like the word retirement and prefers to think of this stage of her life as "evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me." Williams is playing this week in Toronto, at a hard-court tournament that leads into the U.S. Open, the year's last Grand Slam event, which begins in New York on Aug. 29. The American has won more Grand Slam singles titles in the professional era than any other woman or man. Only one player, Margaret Court, collected more, 24, although she won a portion of hers in the amateur era.

Hadn't won in so long: Serena Williams earns first win of season in Toronto

She picked up her first victory since the 2021 French Open on Monday, beating Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-3, 6-4 at the women's National Bank Open

Top-ranked Medvedev set to defend title in National Bank Open Montreal

Daniil Medvedev, who competes under a neutral flag, could face Australia's Nick Kyrgios in the second round

Nick Kyrgios wins Citi Open again; Liudmila Samsonova takes women's title

Nick Kyrgios rambled through a lengthy list of people he wanted to thank after ending a- three year title drought by claiming the trophy at the site of his last triumph, the Citi Open.

Kontaveit, Barbora Krejcikova advance to Prague Open 2nd round

Top-seeded Anett Kontaveit of Estonia cruised past Ekaterine Gorgodze 6-0, 6-1 to advance to the second round of the Prague Open on Tuesday

Online petition signed for Novak Djokovic to play in US Open

The 21-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic remains out of contention for the US Open unless there is some substantial change before the tournament starts at the end of August.

Khachanov, Krejcikova win opening matches in Hamburg European Open

Karen Khachanov saved two match points as he won his first-round match at the Hamburg European Open and Barbora Krejcikova won her opener in the women's draw

Williams set to play in WTA 1000 event in Toronto after losing at Wimbledon

After a disappointing run at Wimbledon 2022 where she lost in the first round, former World No 1 Serena Williams is set to play her first North American hard-court event in two years