Tokyo Olympics: How quiet rebel Naomi Osaka is changing Japan
Naomi Osaka’s relationship with Japan has not always been easy, but change rarely is. How the face of the Games is changing the host nation.
Naomi Osaka’s relationship with Japan has not always been easy, but change rarely is. How the face of the Games is changing the host nation.
Eighth seed Kevin Anderson rallied from a set down against the resurgent Jack Sock on Thursday to reach his first semi-final of the year at the Hall of Fame Open in Newport.
Former World No. 5 Anderson fired 20 aces and won 88 per cent (42/48) of his first serve points as he fought his way into a tour-level semi-final for the first time since Vienna last October (ret. vs. Rublev).
“I was up against a really, really good player. Jack has had a couple of tough years, but his level is way above his ranking,” Anderson said. “I really had to dig deep, it was a very physical match and conditions were much warmer today. I thought I did a good job, battling hard and fighting for every point. Fortunately, I was able to figure out a way to come through in the end.”
Sock, who was contesting his first tour-level quarter-final since 2018 in Paris-Bercy, grabbed the first set after saving a set point. Sock and Anderson traded service breaks early on, and they stayed level as the South African applied the scoreline pressure. Sock outlasted Anderson from the baseline at 5-4 to send them into a tie-break, where he claimed the set after Anderson netted a backhand.
Anderson raised his level in the second set, using his booming serve to great effect as he kept the points short and looked for serve-and-volley winners. The eighth seed won five of the first six games to race out to a double break lead. In the third set, he attacked his opponent’s second serve, winning 12 of 14 points behind Sock’s second delivery. After breaking to love at 4-3, Anderson served out the victory in two hours and 35 minutes.
[WATCH LIVE 1]He will next face Alexander Bublik for the first time, after the top seed raced past Jason Jung to win 6-2, 6-4 in 76 minutes.
Bublik is into his third semi-final of the year after amassing a personal-best 26 wins on the season. The Kazakh player saved the only break point he faced and won 85 per cent (22/26) of first serve points en route to victory, which he sealed with his 14th ace of the match.
“There are a lot of positives: staying confident throughout the entire match, and staying focused against such a tricky opponent. He runs around a lot and plays very solid,” Bublik said. “I tried to keep my nerves together and served well, which definitely helps.”
Bublik, who reached his first ATP Tour final here in Newport in 2019, is seeking his first tour-level title after starting the year with a run to the championship match in Antalya (l. to De Minaur).
Dutch tandem Sander Arends and David Pel overcame second seeds Andre Goransson and Frederik Nielsen 6-2, 6-2 to reach their second tour-level semi-final (Open 13 Provence in Marseille) of the season.
They won 74 per cent (20/27) of their first-service points. They will next face third seeds Pablo Cuevas and Fabrice Martin after they fought past Filip Bergevi and Markus Eriksson 6-3, 3-6, 10-6.
Albano Olivetti and Andre Begemann also sprung a surprise on a day of upsets, as they fought back to topple top seeds Andres Molteni and Andrea Vavassori 3-6, 6-4, 10-3 and reach the semi-finals. The German-French duo hit five aces to record victory in 84 minutes.
Elsewhere, at the Hamburg European Open, Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov defeated Ariel Behar and Gonzalo Escobar 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semi-final. Golubev enjoyed a run to the final at Roland Garros last month with Alexander Bublik
[WATCH LIVE 1]They will next play Michael Venus and Tim Puetz after the second seeds received a walkover against Filip Krajinovic and Dusan Lajovic. James Cerretani and Hans Hach Verdugo also advanced with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Croatians Ivan Sabanov and Matej Sabanov.
At the Hall of Fame Open in Newport, Joao Sousa and Jordan Thompson advanced to the semi-finals with a 6-3, 7-6(5) victory over Japanese pair Yoshihito Nishioka and Yasutaka Uchiyama.
Washington, D.C. fans will celebrate the return of the Citi Open in full voice next month after Thursday’s announcement that the tournament will be held at 100 per cent fan capacity.
After last year’s event was cancelled due to the pandemic, MDE Sports took great delight in also announcing that the tournament would pay full prizemoney. The ATP 500 tennis tournament will be held 31 July-8 August at Rock Creek Park Tennis Center. The announcement comes after the National Park Service (NPS), which manages Rock Creek Park, issued updated guidelines to enable full capacity for Citi Open Fans.
“We are thrilled to be able to invite fans back to Rock Creek Park at full capacity,” said Mark Ein, Citi Open chairman and CEO of MDE Tennis. “This is an exciting development, not just for tennis fans, but the whole DC community. We are grateful to the National Park Service for their long partnership with the event and enabling full capacity for the 2021 Citi Open.”
The development has also enabled organisers to restore full tournament prize money. In order to hold the event at the initial 50 per cent fan capacity limit, players agreed to a 40 per cent pay reduction. With all fan restrictions lifted and before any additional tickets are sold, MDE Sports increased the total 2021 Citi Open prize money by $750,000, returning the tournament purse to pre-pandemic levels.
“We are especially pleased to be able to pay the players full prize money after a difficult period of time for many on tour,” added Ein. “It is all something we never thought possible just a few months ago. To do this and welcome back fans without any restrictions is a testament to the resilience of this city and our community. We can’t wait to see the faces and hear the roar of full crowds once again. It will be a very special moment in the history of this great tournament.”
“To see this event bounce back from challenges of the last year and announce full prize money for 2021 is fantastic news,” said ATP Chairman Andrea Gaudenzi. “It sends a positive message of recovery for our entire sport. We would like to recognise Mark Ein and the Citi Open team for the hard work and ambition that made this possible.”
The news follows the recent announcement that Rafael Nadal will begin his bid to win a record-setting 21st Grand Slam at the 2021 Citi Open in his Washington debut. With fan attendance originally restricted to 50 per cent capacity, tickets were already substantially sold out before the announcement of Nadal’s commitment. The news topped 1.2 billion media impressions worldwide and has led to overwhelming demand for tickets to see the Spaniard win his 89th ATP title at the historic US Open Series event in DC’s Rock Creek Park.
The tournament’s waitlist for tickets exceeded 6,800 names before fan restrictions were lifted Thursday morning. The revised capacity guidelines have allowed tournament officials to release approximately 3,000 additional daily seats to meet the unprecedented demand at the box office for the event. These tickets will be made available first to fans currently on, or who join, the waitlist on a full tournament basis. To provide greater accessibility, the tournament has reserved a small number of individual session tickets that will be available for sale next week.
In addition to Nadal, the 2021 Citi Open will also feature a star-studded player field comprised of two Top 10, six Top 20, and 11 Top 30 players, including recent Wimbledon semi-finalists Hubert Hurkacz and new world No. 10 Denis Shapovalov, Wimbledon quarter-finalists Felix Auger-Aliassime and Karen Khachanov, and defending 2019 Citi Open champion Nick Kyrgios, as well as US Olympic team stars Coco Gauff, Jennifer Brady, and Jessica Pegula, who will headline the inaugural Citi Open Women’s Invitational.
Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic confirms he will compete at this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has confirmed he will participate at this month’s Tokyo Olympics as he looks to continue his dominant season in Asia.
Posting on Twitter, the Serbian star said: “Cannot disappoint my little friend Koujiro. I booked my flight for Tokyo and will proudly be joining #TeamSerbia for the Olympics.
“I am very proud to pack for Tokyo and join our national team in the fight for the brightest medals on the Olympic arenas. For me, the game for Serbia has always been a special joy and motivation and I will do my best to make us all happy! Let’s go.”
Cannot disappoint my little friend Koujirou. I booked my flight for Tokyo and will proudly be joining #TeamSerbia for the Olympics. ?? pic.twitter.com/23TmSdvc4x
— Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) July 15, 2021
The 34-year-old has won the year’s first three majors at the Australian Open (d. Medvedev), Roland Garros (d. Tsitsipas) and Wimbledon (d. Berrettini), keeping alive a historic opportunity to become the first man to ever to complete a golden Grand Slam. (WTA Tour legend Steffi Graf won a gold medal and all four majors in 1988.)
By winning his sixth Wimbledon title last Sunday, Djokovic joined Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal with 20 Grand Slam singles titles.
Djokovic, who became the first singles player to qualify for the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals this month, claimed a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics (d. Blake).
Second seed Pablo Carreno Busta began his quest for a second ATP Tour title of the season by moving past countryman Carlos Taberner 7-5, 6-3 at the Hamburg European Open on Thursday.
The Spaniard, who lifted the trophy at the AnyTech365 Andalucia Open in Marbella (d. Munar) in April, broke Taberner’s serve five times to advance in one hour and 46 minutes.
”I knew that it was very important at the beginning of the match because it was his fourth match here and it was my first one, so it can be difficult,” Carreno Busta said. “I was very focused on my game, I tried to be aggressive all the time.
”Carlos then started to play more aggressive from 1-4 and hit more winners, so I continued fighting and I am happy as it is important [to get through] the first match.”
Carreno Busta suffered a surprise first-round defeat at Wimbledon to Sam Querrey in June. However, he bounced back on his return and has now recorded 14 wins on clay this year.
The World No. 13 made a strong start as he raced 4-1 ahead against Taberner, playing consistent and composed tennis from the baseline to dictate. While the Spanish qualifier managed to break and then draw level at 4-4, Carreno Busta regained his focus and committed just five unforced errors in the set to move ahead.
Taberner began the second set well and broke as he fired an array of forehand winners past Carreno Busta. However, the second seed crucially saved a break point to stay in touch at 1-2 and then reeled off four straight games as he effectively stepped into the court to dominate. He closed out victory on serve when Taberner pushed a return wide.
Carreno Busta will next face fifth seed Dusan Lajovic after the Serbian booked his spot in a second quarter-final of the season by overcoming qualifier Alex Molcan 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-3. Lajovic, who also reached the last eight on home soil at the Belgrade Open (l. Martin) in May, won 66 per cent (54/82) of his first-service points to advance in two hours and 57 minutes.
[WATCH LIVE 1]Argentine Federico Delbonis improved to 6-2 in his ATP Head2Head Series against fourth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas with a 6-3, 7-6(4) victory. The 30-year-old notched his best-ever Grand Slam result with a run to the fourth round at Roland Garros last month. He will next play eighth seed Benoit Paire or Peruvian Juan Pablo Varillas.
Third seed Nikoloz Basilashvili received a walkover against Argentine Sebastian Baez and will next face Laslo Djere.
Los Angeles-based Czech fashion photographer Radka Leitmeritz turned her lens to the grass courts in Halle for a series of behind-the-scenes portraits featuring ATP Tour players at the NOVENTI OPEN.
Leitmeritz, whose work has previously featured in the pages and covers of international fashion magazines including Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, L’Officiel and Elle, followed top seed Andrey Rublev as he navigated the draw to reach his first grass-court final. Along the way, she snapped portraits of the Russian player in private moments on the practice court, player dining and hotel room.
Her keen lens also caught Karen Khachanov and Sebastian Korda behind the scenes, home favourite Jan-Lennard Struff in training, and captured doubles players including Michael Venus and Tim Puetz, and more.
Click through the gallery above to view all the player portraits and see more #ShotByRadka moments in Halle.
Top seed Casper Ruud began his Nordea Open campaign in style as he eased past wild card Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune 6-0, 6-2, on Thursday to reach the quarter-finals in Bastad.
The Norwegian hit six aces and did not drop a point (11/11) on his first serve in the opening set to claim victory in 66 minutes. He will next face either home favourite Elias Ymer or Henri Laaksonen.
“I am very happy today. It is a surface I have had the most success of my career, it is great to be back here in Bastad,” Ruud said. “The tournament is so nice as always. There is a bit of extra pressure [being the top seed]. In a match like this against a fellow Scandinavian younger player, it is even more.
“I think I was very professional in my mindset today. I played a match without any errors really from the first to the last point. It is a nice feeling being the top seed but also pressure. I felt great crowd support, it is nice to feel that energy.”
Ruud has now claimed 18 clay-court wins this season, having clinched the Geneva Gonet Open title (d. Shapovalov) in May and enjoyed a run to the semi-finals at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters (l. to Rublev) and the Mutua Madrid Open (l. to Berrettini).
The 22-year-old dominated from the start, racing ahead as he overpowered Rune with his heavy groundstrokes, pushing the 18-year-old back behind the baseline. After sealing the set in 24 minutes, Ruud was then tested for the first time at the start of the second set as the Dane began to play with greater freedom.
Rune struck the ball with more aggression, but could not convert either break point as Ruud reeled off a seventh straight game. The World No. 211 did hold to get onto the scoreboard in the fourth game of the second set, but struggled to build on this as Ruud raced to the finish line.
Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena also advanced as he upset third seed Fabio Fognini 6-3, 1-6, 6-4 to reach his third tour-level quarter-final of the season in Bastad.
[WATCH LIVE 1]The World No. 97, who also reached the last eight at the Chile Dove Men+Care Opena and the Belgrade Open, defeating Gael Monfils en route, broke the Italian four times to secure victory in two hours and six minutes.
Carballes Baena will next face Slovakian Norbert Gombos, who improved to 3-0 in his ATP Head2Head Series against eighth seed Emil Ruusuvuori with a 6-2, 6-4 victory. Gombos won 85 per cent (33/39) of his first-service points and was not broken as he reached his fourth quarter-final of the year.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber is the latest tennis player to pull out of this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.