French Open: Rafael Nadal remains King of Clay as he writes yet more records in win against Dominic Thiem June 9, 2019 How many sporting situations are more difficult than facing Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros? On his beloved clay surface Nadal is both the unstoppable force and the immovable object of the classic paradox. And so Dominic Thiem found yesterday in Paris, going down 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 in just over three hours as the Spaniard [...]
Rafa Nadal’s Roland Garros reign shows no signs of letting up ahead of Roger Federer clash June 6, 2019 If Rafa Nadal is to claim a 12th French Open on Sunday he will first have to beat old foe Roger Federer in Friday’s semi-final, as one of sport’s great rivalries gains yet another chapter. What was once a regular occurrence on the ATP Tour has now become a rare occasion, with the two titans [...]
Johanna Konta reaches French Open final four in style with remodelled clay game June 4, 2019 Sloane Stephens said that her two defeats to Johanna Konta earlier this year were “out of mind” ahead of their quarter-final clash at Roland Garros today. But as Konta raced to a 6-1, 6-4 win in just one hour 11 minutes, it appeared as though they were anything but. This is the first year that [...]
Hong Kong Horse Racing Tips: Smart Rocket can show his speed for Moore and Moreira May 28, 2019 FORMER champion jockey Joao Moreira has been living in the shadows of Zac Purton recently. However, it didn’t stop the Brazilian providing another masterclass of jockeyship at Sha Tin last Sunday when booting home four winners, including two by the narrowest of margins. The ‘Magic Man’ is now on a roll with 69 winners, including [...]
Johanna Konta’s long-awaited first French Open win is British No1’s latest cause for optimism May 27, 2019 It took seven visits to Roland Garros but, finally, Johanna Konta is into the second round of the French Open and entitled to feel cautiously optimistic that her campaign in Paris will not end there. The British No1 – beaten in the first round for the last four years and defeated in qualifying in both [...]
Men’s tennis at a crossroads: The ousting of ATP president Chris Kermode has left the sport in a period of flux March 20, 2019 On the face of things, men’s tennis seems much the same as it always has been. The same players are dominating the grand slams. The same youngsters trying to break through. The same tournaments being contested in the same order as always. But turn your attention away from the courts and the men’s game is [...]
Monica Seles: “I really don’t care about my legacy. I care about the present and being a good person.” March 11, 2019 “I really don’t reflect. I kind of stay in the moment,” says Monica Seles. It seems a remarkable sentiment for someone with such a glorious career to look back on, but then the past is a complicated place for the 45-year-old Tennis Hall of Famer. Even in sport’s vivid canon, few stories can touch that [...]
Kyle Edmund, Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans all on the up and proving there’s life beyond Andy Murray March 3, 2019 For so long the success of Andy Murray was all consuming in British men’s tennis. At his peak the three-time Major winner battled, and prevailed, against some of the sport’s all-time greats. He attracted millions of fans and dominated headlines through his performances and personality. But injury has struck down the Scot, leaving him on [...]
Is Stefanos Tsitsipas’s progress at the Australian Open a sign of a changing of the guard in men’s tennis? January 22, 2019 Men’s tennis has a habit of proclaiming a new era, and the events at the Australian Open over the last week have once again pushed the sport’s favourite topic into the spotlight. Stefanos Tsitsipas’s defeat of Roger Federer on Sunday and his subsequent progression to the semi-finals, where he’ll face another all-time great in Rafael [...]
Is this the end? Andy Murray’s emotional Australian Open defeat by Roberto Bautista Agut leaves tennis fans in limbo January 14, 2019 “If today was my last match, it was a brilliant way to finish.” That was how Andy Murray summed up an epic, gutsy and emotional contest with Roberto Bautista Agut at the Australian Open which left tennis fans in an enthralled yet slightly confused state. In the end Murray lost the five-set, first-round contest 6-4, [...]