tennis
Nagal one step away from Barcelona Open main draw
The 136th-ranked Nagal, who is aiming to get into the top-100 on the ATP rankings, will now take on Italy's Thomas Fabbiano for a place in the main draw of the tournament, which is one of the most important events in Spanish tennis. Spaniard Rafael Nadal, the joint Grand Slam record holder with Roger Federer with 20 titles each, has won 11 trophies at the Barcelona Open.
Rutuja-Zeel win doubles, India pull off consolation win against Latvia
Zeel and Rutuja defeated Daniela Vismane and Patricija Spaka in a tough three-setter 6-4, 5-7, 10-2 in the last match on Saturday. After losing the rubber 1-3, India has slipped back to the Asia/Oceania zone. India's tennis ace and winner of six Grand Slam titles in doubles, Sania Mirza, was rested for the match and the team management decided to field Zeel and Rutuja.
Rublev sets up Tsitsipas final in Monaco
The Russian has had a remarkable week at the Masters 1000 event that included a stunning win over 11-time champion Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals, DPA reported. Rublev continued his fine run with a 6-3, 7-5 win over Casper Ruud on Saturday to ensure he will do battle against Tsitsipas in his first final at this level.
Andrey Rublev stuns Rafael Nadal in Monte Carlo; Evans backs up Djokovic win
Nadal went into the meeting with a 73-5 record at the event but Russian Rublev was in inspired form and stunned his Spanish opponent, DPA reported. The 11-time champion looked set to complete a trademark comeback after taking the second set in 74 minutes. But Rublev held firm in the decider to claim a memorable victory after two hours and 33 minutes.
Djokovic falls, Nadal beats Dimitrov at Monte Carlo Masters
World number one Djokovic, playing in his first tournament since winning a ninth Australian Open in February, suffered his first defeat of 2021 on Thursday, DPA reported. Evans, who had never before reached the last eight of a Masters 1000 tournament, won 6-4 7-5 with a performance that belied his relative lack of success on clay.
Sumit Nagal to take on Travaglia in Monte Carlo qualifier
The tournament, headlined by the likes of Spain's Rafael Nadal -- who will open his 2021 clay-court campaign in Monte Carlo -- and Serbia's Novak Djokovic (winner in 2013 & 2015), will also see the likes of Italy's Fabio Fognini, Russian Daniil Medvedev, Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas and Germany's Alexander Zverev competing for the prized trophy in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament.
French Open postponed by a week due to Covid-19
The FFT said that the decision was made in response to France President Emmanuel Macron's announcement last month that a scheduled to progressively get cultural and sporting events in the country back up and running would be set up from mid-May onwards, subject to the improvement of the health situation.
Sania Mirza back in Sports Ministry's TOPS programme
The only Indian female player to win a WTA title, Sania has qualified for the postponed Tokyo Games based on the system of protected ranking. Though the Indian is currently ranked 157th in the world, Sania enjoys a special ranking of No. 9 as she had applied to the WTA for her ranking to be secured when she took a pregnancy break after the China Open in October 2017.
Sumit Nagal crashes out of ATP tournament in Italy
It was a disappointing outing for the Haryana player after a good show in the two qualifying matches, which saw him enter the main draw full of confidence. The 136th-ranked Indian had crushed Frenchman Maxime Janvier 6-2, 6-1 in the second round of qualifiers to set up an opening-round clash with the 28-year-old Slovakian Josef Kovalik, ranked 124th on the ATP.
Djokovic pulls out of Madrid Open: Reports
It was expected that the Serb, fresh from his Australian Open triumph in February, would compete in the clay-court Masters 1000 event, which was called off last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. But the winner of 18 Grand Slam titles, only two behind the joint record holders Switzerland's Roger Federer and Spain's Rafael Nadal with 20 Slam titles each, has decided to skip the tournament from May 2-9 where he is the defending champion.
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