TENNIS Archives - Page 4 of 12

But they endured back-to-back heartache, with their 2024 United Cup final loss to Germany now followed up by a loss to the USA.

Swiatek looked forward to playing against Gauff, but she just fell short in their singles opener, losing 6-4, 6-4.

Taylor Fritz then beat Hubert Hurkacz to secure the trophy, representing the USA’s second United Cup success.

Not only did Swiatek lose to Gauff, she worryingly took a medical time out during the match, having been suffering with a leg injury throughout the tournament.

The Pole has since provided an update, saying in her post-match press conference: “Well, for sure, I wasn’t fresh today, but I’ll be good. So nothing happens.”

CELEB NEWS

2025 Australian Open: When is the draw, who are the top seeds? Will Novak Djokovic, Emma Raducanu play?

The Australian Open gets underway on Sunday, January 12 at Melbourne Park and comes to a conclusion a fortnight later with the women’s final set for Saturday, January 25 and the men’s singles final taking place on Sunday, January 26.

It will be the 113th time that the tournament has taken place while this year’s event is the 57th edition in the Open Era.

This year will also be only the second time in history that the Australian Open starts on a Sunday following the switch last year with opening round matches taking place over three days instead of two.

Qualifying, though, starts on Monday, January 6 with the final round taking place on January 10.

Melbourne Park – situated in the Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct where the Melbourne Cricket Ground and AAMI Park are also housed – has been the venue of the Australian Open since 1988.

Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club – also in Melbourne – hosted the major before that while the likes of Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth as well as Christchurch and Hastings in New Zealand have also played host in the past.

CELEB NEWS

Novak Djokovic Falls to Reilly Opelka in Brisbane: Postpones Quest for 100th Title

The much-anticipated quest for Novak Djokovic’s 100th career title was unexpectedly postponed at the ATP 250 Brisbane International. The Serbian legend’s run came to an abrupt halt in the quarterfinals, falling to Reilly Opelka, whose powerful serve and surprising versatility proved too much for Djokovic to handle.

Opelka’s lethal mix of unyielding service games and sharp baseline solutions left Djokovic visibly frustrated, derailing the 37-year-old’s ideal start to the 2025 season. This loss raises questions about Djokovic’s readiness for the Australian Open, where he will aim to solidify his status as the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) and counter rising stars like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

Djokovic’s Brisbane campaign marked an uncharacteristic stumble as he struggled to find answers against Opelka’s relentless game. Known for his ability to adapt mid-match, Djokovic found himself caught off guard by Opelka’s mix of precision serving and unexpected aggression from the back of the court.

Despite the loss, Djokovic displayed his signature sportsmanship, congratulating Opelka at the net with a heartfelt handshake and later posting on Instagram

CELEB NEWS

Former World No. 1, who topped rankings before Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal, retired at 29: ‘I lost interest’

In the early 1990s, American tennis was all about Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi—two prodigies expected to dominate the sport for years. However, almost unnoticed, their compatriot Jim Courier shocked the tennis world by becoming the first of his generation to claim the No. 1 ATP ranking.

Now 54 and a well-respected sports analyst, Courier’s meteoric rise lasted only a few seasons. By the age of 29, he retired, citing a complete lack of motivation for winning games.

Courier’s talent was evident from a young age. In the late 1980s, he claimed a junior French Open doubles title and won the prestigious Orange Bowl tournament twice (1986 and 1987) in Miami. This success paved the way for him to turn professional in 1988.

At that time, tennis was ruled by legends like Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker, and Stefan Edberg, while icons such as Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe were nearing the end of their careers. But when it came to future stars, all eyes were on Sampras and Agassi, but Courier was about to change that narrative.

CELEB NEWS

John Isner picks the two things he’s really excited for in 2025 as both Novak Djokovic and Coco Gauff get mentions

The 2025 campaign is underway as most of the players competed Down Under this week ahead of the Australian Open in Melbourne.

The United Cup, Brisbane International and Auckland Open are set to crown winners on Sunday leaving just one week before the action at the first Grand Slam of the year

John Isner forgets about pushing Novak Djokovic to five sets commences.

With an interesting year of tennis John Isner, who retired from the sport in 2023, shared what he is most looking forward to seeing unfold in the new season.

As 2025 tennis season gets underway there are plenty of things fans and pundits would like to see take place. Isner has settled into his role as a tennis podcaster and analyst since his retirement following a 16-year career.

CELEB NEWS

Sam Querrey surprised by what’s happened to tennis since Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer both retired

By Issa January 4, 2025

Federer retired from tennis upon the conclusion of the 2022 Laver Cup, in an emotional doubles defeat alongside the Spaniard.

It was just a few more years before Nadal retired from Tennis as the 38-year-old called it a day at the end of the 2024 Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.

With two of the best to ever do it hanging up the racket, questions were asked as to what would happen to the sport, questions that one former ATP star thinks have now been answered.

Speaking on the Nothing Major podcast, former world number 11 Sam Querrey admitted that he has been surprised by tennis’ surge in popularity following the retirements of Nadal and Federer.

“I thought it was going to dip but it hasn’t,” he said.

CELEB NEWS

Top five oldest winners of ATP Finals

The annual ATP Finals is a truly exclusive event with its doors open only to the top eight players based on their ATP ranking every season. It began life as the Masters and was hosted first by Tokyo. The cities of Paris, Barcelona, Boston, Melbourne, Stockholm, and Houston took turns hosting the event before it made the move to Madison Square Garden in New York. The city of New York played host from 1977 to 1989.

In 1990, the Masters was renamed the ATP Tour World Championships and moved to Europe. Frankfurt and Hannover took turns hosting the event until 1999. In 2000, the event went through another rebranding effort, emerging as the Tennis Masters Cup and was held in Lisbon, Sydney, Houston and Shanghai.

The O2 Arena in London took over as the host in 2009, with the event marking its 50th anniversary in 2020. Turin took over as host city in 2021. Stan Smith won the inaugural edition in 1970. Nastase was the first to win multiple titles, followed by John McEnroe, Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Boris Becker and Pete Sampras, who dominated the event until 1999.

CELEB NEWS

Novak Djokovic suffers shock defeat to world No 293 Reilly Opelka in Brisbane International quarter-final

Djokovic, who is due to team up with former British No 1 and old rival Andy Murray as his new coach later this month, was bested in an opening set tie-breaker and then broken in the fourth game of the second – shortly after spurning an opportunity of his own on the Opelka serve

It’s far from ideal preparation for the first Grand Slam of the 2025 season for the record 24-time champion Djokovic, the 37-year-old appearing here in his first tournament since mid-October.

For Opelka, this is unquestionably the biggest win of his career to date. The 27-year-old American has won four ATP 250 tournaments and had a career-high ranking of world No 17 in 2022 before injury troubles have limited him to playing only one match over the past two years.

“He is the greatest tennis player the sport has ever seen,” Opelka said of Djokovic, following his statement win. “It’s difficult being in Novak’s position… he can scout me or his opponents all day long, but the reality is that we have nothing to lose coming in against him.

BOXING

Emma Raducanu posts latest Instagram message after withdrawing from the ASB Classic with injury

The former British number one would have been looking to get back on track as early as possible this time around, with Raducanu having been training well.

But her Australian Open preparations were dealt a huge blow with a back injury, which has ruled her out of the ongoing WTA 250 event in Auckland.

Raducanu managed 34 WTA Tour matches in 2024, with the former world number 10 winning 21 and losing 13.

But her latest setback seemingly hasn’t knocked her spirit, with Raducanu sharing images of her training and life in general on Instagram, writing the caption: “Being grateful for health and channelling into growth.”

CELEB NEWS

Novak Djokovic’s Efforts To Hold The 100th ATP Tour Title Strengthening

JAKARTA – Novak Djokovic’s efforts to win the 100th ATP Tour title strengthened on Thursday, January 2, 2025, when the Serbian player defeated fellow veteran Gael Monfils 6-3 and 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of Brisbane International 2025.

The 37-year-old, who wants to join Roger Federer (103) and Jimmyctions (199) as players who have reached the milestone, advanced in the first set after a break in the fourth game.

Djokovic then advanced again in the second set to extend his winning streak against the French player to 20-0, nearly two decades after their first meeting in the opening round of the 2005 US Open.

“We’ve been playing for years. I’ve known you since I was 15 years old.