The Eastern Bloc crumbled at the Sony Ericsson Open on Sunday with Russia’s world No. 2 Dinara Safina among a trio of top 10 women suffering third-round upsets.
Seventh seed Ana Ivanovic of Serbia and Russian sixth seed Vera Zvonareva also endured surprise elimination, but it was business as usual for the top ranked men with Roger Federer, Andy Roddick and Novak Djokovic all jaunting through.
Safina lost 6-1 6-4 to unseeded Australian Samantha Stosur and described the rain-interrupted encounter as a “disaster.”
PHOTO: AFP
“It was just bad match for me. It was just a disaster match,” a stern-faced Safina said.
“I started to play a little bit better at 6-1, 3-0 but I had put the game in her hands and it was too late,” the second seed added, blaming fatigue for her form.
“It’s very disappointing. That’s what I’m playing for,” Safina said. “I want to be there. Suddenly I go to the court and I don’t even fight for it. It’s just bad behavior from my side. Champions, they don’t do this. It’s a good punishment for me. I have to get smarter.”
PHOTO: AP
Stosur, ranked world No. 42, was to next face France’s Amelie Mauresmo, an impressive three-sets victor over Italian Flavia Pennetta.
“It’s a great feeling to beat a top-10 player again,” Stosur said. “I came close a few times. Today I got over the line and I’m just really pleased. I knew I could do it. It was just a matter of when it was going to happen.”
Hungarian Agnes Szavay, No. 25, beat Ivanovic 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 in another rain-affected match.
Ivanovic’s exit completed a bad weekend for Serbia after her compatriot Jelena Jankovic was knocked out in the second round by Argentine Gisela Dulko.
“I hardly did anything well today. I was trying to come in, and I was volleying pretty well at times, but I was really disappointed. I couldn’t really hold my serve,” Ivanovic said.
Zvonareva went out to Li Na of China 6-4, 3-6, 6-2.
While Serbs and Russians fell, the US’ Williams sisters marched on.
Venus beat battling German Anna-Lena Groenefeld 7-5, 6-3 while world No. 1 Serena gave up a game fewer on her way to a 7-5, 6-2 victory over China’s Peng Shuai.
In the men’s event, Roddick survived a grueling first set tiebreak against Russian Dmitry Tursunov, which he won 11-9, before going on to ease through the second set 6-2.
World No. 2 Federer enjoyed a routine 6-4, 6-1 win over German Nicolas Kiefer but will face a surprise opponent in the fourth round after 15th-ranked Spaniard Tommy Robredo lost 7-5, 6-3 to qualifier Taylor Dent of the US. Dent’s career looked finished in 2007 after he spent most of the year in a cast with a back injury.
Third-seeded Serbian Djokovic gave some satisfaction to his country with a comfortable 6-4, 6-1 win over Paul-Henri Mathieu of France.
It was a poor day for Russia — and the Safin family — with Dinara’s brother Marat losing to Frenchman Gael Monfils 5-7 7-5 7-6 in the day’s most exciting game.
Monfils, who will now play Roddick, came back from a 2-5 deficit in the third set and then saved two match points in the third.
The New Taipei Kings claimed the inaugural Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL) championship on Sunday, defeating the Kaohsiung FamilyMart Aquas 108-89 in the final. Playing at home, the Kings pulled ahead with Jeremy Lin’s (林書豪) clutch three-pointers, securing their victory over the Aquas in the TPBL final. The Kings came out strong in the first quarter, dominating to build a 35-18 lead. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 61-38. In the third quarter, the Aquas narrowed the deficit to 12 points, but Lin stepped up, sinking several tough three- pointers to extend the lead. In the final quarter, the Kings pushed the
In an unlikely Ethiopian outpost of one the most French of pastimes, four men are leaning over their petanque balls, arguing over who is winning. Petanque, the bowling game also known as boules, is more readily associated with French village squares where locals launch metal balls at a jack while enjoying an afternoon drink, but for decades, it has also been a beloved pastime for members of a club near the iconic Meskel Square in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. It was founded in the early 20th century to cater to French railway workers, who built a line connecting Addis Ababa
SEMI-FINAL SWEEP: Taiwanese are to take up all four berths in the men’s doubles semi-finals, while three Taiwanese women’s doubles pairings secured spots Taiwan’s badminton ace Chou Tien-chen stayed hot as he secured a semi-final berth in the men’s singles at the US Open at Council Bluffs, Iowa, on Friday. Chou entered the Super 300 tournament as the top seed and breezed past Victor Lai of Canada 21-19, 21-8 in 37 minutes, advancing to the semi-finals for the second straight tournament. Earlier this month, the 35-year-old veteran finished runner-up at the Indonesia Open, becoming the oldest male shuttler to reach a Super 1000-level final. He was set to face Ayush Shetty of India last night after press time for a spot in the final. Meanwhile, 22-year-old Taiwanese
Spain are the favorites to win the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025, but star player Aitana Bonmati’s illness ahead of the tournament raises another question mark around a side which, despite their obvious quality, are not unstoppable. Having claimed the last two Ballon d’Or awards, Barcelona midfielder Bonmati is the game’s biggest star at present, so her absence in the final days before the start of Euro 2025 is a major setback. The 27-year-old came down with a fever in training last week, and was subsequently hospitalized and diagnosed with viral meningitis. Bonmati was discharged on Sunday and joined up with
RSS