Tag: Novak Djokovic

Legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar recently compared star batter Virat Kohli with tennis legends Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer.

Kohli, during the second innings of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar series against Australia, etched his name in the history books as he struck his 30th century in the format, going past legendary Sir Don Bradman‘s tally of Test hundreds.

Kohli walked out to bat on the third day carrying the weight of four single-digit scores in his last five innings and a 16-month century drought. He last scored a century during the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 semi-final against New Zealand.

However, he displayed a masterclass in strokeplay, marking his return to form with an unbeaten knock of 100 runs off 143 balls, laced with eight boundaries and two sixes.

His innings propelled India to a commanding position before skipper Jasprit Bumrah declared with a staggering 533-run lead. In response, Australia crumbled to 238 all out in the final session on day four.

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Sunil Gavaskar praised Kohli for his brilliance and compared his recent struggles with Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic’s occasional slumps.

“I said in commentary that Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal, they are title winners. But when they lose in the semi-finals of any tournament, people say that they are not in form. If anybody else makes it to the semis, they are praised,” Gavaskar said on Star Sports.

“Similarly, with Virat Kohli, because everybody is so used to him scoring so many hundreds quite regularly in international cricket. And when he doesn’t score a century, even if he is getting 70-80, which a lot of players will be happy to get, people say he is not scoring runs and is out of form.

“But then again, Indian fans, they’re greedy fans. They’re not going to be happy with their idol scoring only 60-70s. They want their icons, their idols, to score hundreds, and that is the reason there was this little talk about, ‘Oh, he hasn’t got a hundred since July 2023.’ July 2023 is just about a year ago.”

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World number one Jannik Sinner defeated 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 on Sunday to win the Shanghai Masters.

Sinner took a crucial break in the fourth game of the second set to defeat the Serb in 1hr 37min and deny him a 100th career singles title.

“He was just too good today, too strong, too fast,” said Djokovic after the match.

Sinner saluted his opponent as a “legend” who kept playing “incredible tennis… year after year”.

In a nod to former Djokovic rival Roger Federer, who was watching from the stands, the 23-year-old joked: “There are legends everywhere, I just try to keep up a little bit.”

Facing off before an impassioned crowd, neither player blinked in the first set, unable to break the other’s serve.

In the tiebreak Sinner quickly took control, breaking Djokovic’s serve on the first point and going 5-1 up.

The Serb steadied himself but then netted a volley to bring up set point at 6-3. Sinner failed to convert initially but didn’t miss the second time behind serve.

The next key moment came in the fourth game of the second set when Sinner was up 40-15 on Djokovic’s serve.

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Djokovic saved one break point with a fiery ace, but couldn’t stop a superb forehand down the line from Sinner that saw him pull ahead.

All that remained was for the Italian to hold his nerve, hitting an ace to finish the match and claim the title.

Sinner’s triumph caps off a formidable year, in which he has won two Grand Slams and retained the top spot in the rankings since June.

But it is also a year that has seen him embroiled in controversy after he twice tested positive for a banned steroid in March.

In August, the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) accepted Sinner’s explanation that the drug entered his system unintentionally when his physiotherapist used a spray containing it to treat a cut, and then provided massage and sports therapy to the player.

But last month the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said it would appeal the decision to clear him of wrongdoing and was seeking a ban of up to two years.

That news came as Sinner was contesting the China Open, where he lost in the final to Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, who was also watching from the stands on Sunday.

He admitted coming into the Shanghai tournament that he was “not in a situation where I feel comfortable in it”.

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Novak Djokovic battled through “an incredible fight” with Taylor Fritz on Saturday, shrugging off physical discomfort to set up a Shanghai Masters final with world number one Jannik Sinner where he will look to secure his 100th career title.

Novak Djokovic saw off Fritz 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) after Sinner had beaten Tomas Machac 6-4, 7-5, ensuring in the process that he will finish the year at the top of the rankings.

“It feels like destiny to fight for a 100th title here in a place where I’ve had great success in the past, where I have tremendous support,” said four-time Shanghai champion Djokovic.

Only Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) have previously broken through the 100-title barrier in the men’s game.

“I won’t be a favourite on the court, but hopefully I’ll be able to come out physically fresh enough to challenge him for what may be a long match,” added Djokovic of Sunday’s final.

“I have to expect probably the toughest encounter of the tournament, and I have to be ready for it.”

Jannik Sinner said playing Novak Djokovic would make the final “even more special”.

“It’s going to be a very tough one, it’s one of the biggest challenges we have in our sport,” he said.

Djokovic has now beaten the United States’ Fritz at each of their 10 encounters.

The Serb broke the 26-year-old US Open finalist in the fifth game to win the first set in 38 minutes.

But the second set lasted twice as long, and was a much more tense affair, as the players sent each other scrambling across the court in a series of thrilling rallies.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion called it an “incredible fight”.

“He could have easily won the second set… In the tiebreak it was really anyone’s game, (but) I feel like I was never giving up,” Djokovic said.

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In the second set, after an almost 13-minute fifth game eventually held by Fritz, Djokovic bent over in exhaustion, breathing heavily.

The world number seven missed a good chance in the eighth game when he failed to convert a break point, with Djokovic recovering to hold.

“I just never really came up with what I needed to come up with in a lot of big moments and the big points,” said the American.

Novak Djokovic came from 3-5 down in the tiebreak to level and then win after three unforced errors from Fritz.

The 37-year-old, who has been wearing a brace on his right knee and has been having trouble with his left one too, had to take a medical time-out for his left leg towards the end of the second set.

However, he said after the match none of the issues were serious.

After physio, “I could move freely and run and sprint, which is good news”, he said.

“I guess at this age you kind of have to expect that each match something different happens physically.”

The 23-year-old Sinner has been top of the world rankings since June and after his ruthless semi-final victory will stay there until at least the end of the season, the first Italian to do so.

“It was only a dream just to become number one… Now finishing (the year there) is also a different feeling,” the Italian said.

“It’s a good feeling. I’m very happy to achieve this. It was an amazing season for me and it’s not finished yet,” he said, adding that for now he was “focused on tomorrow”.

Sinner’s meeting with Machac got off to an electric start when the Czech broke in the first game of their semi-final.

The 33rd-ranked Machac was looking to repeat his giant-slaying of Thursday, when he knocked out world number two Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets.

But two-time Grand Slam champion Sinner kept his cool to break back in the fourth, then claimed the tenth game to clinch the set.

In the second set neither was able to break serve until the 12th game, when the Italian hit a winner to book his place in Sunday’s final.

“It was very tough… he is playing with so much confidence and he can hit a ball really hard, and is serving very well,” said Sinner.

“I tried to stay there mentally… I’m very happy about how I’m fighting at the moment.”

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Novak Djokovic told old rival Rafael Nadal that his “legacy will live forever” after the Spanish great announced his retirement from tennis on Thursday.

“Your tenacity, dedication, fighting spirit is going to be taught for decades. Your legacy will live forever,” 24-time Grand Slam title winner and fellow former world number one Djokovic wrote on Instagram.

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal clashed 60 times in their careers with the Serb edging their rivalry 31-29.

They met for the first time at the French Open in 2006 when Nadal triumphed while Djokovic won their last clash, also on the courts of Roland Garros, at the Paris Olympics this year.

“Rafa, one post is not enough to express the respect I have for you and what you have done for our sport. You have inspired millions of children to start playing tennis and I think that’s probably the greatest achievement anyone can wish for,” added Djokovic of Nadal, a 22-time major winner.

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Rafael Nadal will play his last tournament at the Davis Cup finals in Malaga in November.

“Only you know what you had to endure to become an icon of tennis and sport in general. Thank you for pushing me to the very limit so many times in our rivalry that has impacted me the most as a player,” added Djokovic.

“Your passion for representing Spain has always been remarkable. I wish you the best possible farewell in Malaga with the Davis Cup team of Spain. I will be there in person to pay respect to your stellar career.”

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Novak Djokovic said it took time to “get the rust off” as he fought through two tiebreaks to make his way into the third round of the Shanghai Masters on Saturday. 

The Serbian beat American Alex Michelsen in a thrilling two-set match that finished 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (11/9).

Meanwhile, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz showed why they were top in the world as they raced through to the next stage with confident straight-set wins.

Sinner dispatched Japan’s Taro Daniel 6-1, 6-4, while Alcaraz made short work of China’s Shang Juncheng, winning 6-2, 6-2.

Four-time Shanghai champion Djokovic did not have it quite so easy against 43rd-ranked Michelsen.

Introduced as the “Greatest Of All Time” as he walked onto the court, he received a rapturous welcome from the packed stadium.

But Michelsen started the first set strongly, breaking Djokovic early and going 1-4 up –- to the displeasure of the crowd, fully behind the 37-year-old former world number one.

To their delight, the Serbian levelled, and then hit his stride in the tiebreak, winning it 7-3.

The reverse happened in the second set when it was 20-year-old Michelsen’s turn to catch up to take it to the tiebreak.

Novak Djokovic admitted to being “surprised” by Michelsen.

“It took me a little bit of time to get the rust off and to start feeling better on the court,” he said.

“I was very glad to keep calm when it mattered in both tiebreaks.”

The crowd, already in a frenzy after Novak Djokovic spoke Mandarin at the end of the match, went wild as he showed off a new trick — attempting a sentence in the Shanghainese vernacular.

World number one Sinner has said he is not in a “comfortable” situation thanks to a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appeal against a decision by tennis authorities to clear him of wrongdoing after he twice tested positive for a steroid in March.

His recent blistering winning streak was broken by Alcaraz in the China Open final on Wednesday.

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But there was no tiredness on display from either player on Saturday, with 23-year-old Sinner looking completely unruffled in the first set against the 93rd-ranked Daniel.

Daniel fell behind again in the second set and despite rallying halfway through to gently test Sinner, the Italian kept his cool, ending the set 6-4.

Sinner will face Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry on Sunday.

“It will be a tough one tomorrow, very physical, because me and Tomas know each other quite well now,” he said.

Earlier, arch-rival Alcaraz also looked comfortable throughout, breaking in the first game, with teenager Shang unable to make much headway against the world number two.

Despite their enthusiasm for Shang, the crowd could not resist Alcaraz’s charm.

At the Spaniard’s encouragement, they broke into loud cheers when he won a particularly exciting rally in which he hit a tricky backwards shot to keep the point alive.

“I just had one practice then was straight into this match, so to be able to show this level in the first match, I’m just really proud,” 21-year-old Alcaraz said after the match.

He will next face another Chinese player, wildcard Wu Yibing.

There were no surprises either for the tournament’s second seed Alexander Zverev, who won 6-4, 6-2 against Italy’s Mattia Bellucci.

“Everything is ok when you win… I was very uncertain of my level before this tournament started,” the German said, referencing recent health problems that saw him miss the China Open.

The tournament lost its second top-ten player on Saturday, as Andrey Rublev fell to 19-year-old Czech Jakub Mensik.

The Russian, a finalist at last year’s Shanghai Masters, roared in jubilation after winning a tiebreaker to take the first set.

But 65th-ranked Mensik broke Rublev in the first game of the second set, and again in the fifth to draw even.

The Czech then came from behind in the third to beat the world number six for the second time this year, with a final score of 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 6-3.

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Novak Djokovic’s latest bid for a record 25th Grand Slam title crashed to a halt on Friday as 28th-ranked Alexei Popyrin knocked the defending champion out of the US Open third round.

One day after third seed Carlos Alcaraz slumped to a shock defeat against 74th-ranked Botic van de Zandschulp, 25-year-old Popyrin robbed the tournament of another superstar with a 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 victory.

Alexei Popyrin handed Novak Djokovic his earliest US Open exit in 18 years and his earliest Grand Slam exit since he fell in the second round of the Australian Open in 2017 — which was also the last year the Serbian great failed to claim a single Grand Slam title.

Although he won the Olympic gold he had long coveted at the Paris Games, an uneven season that included knee surgery saw Djokovic come up empty in the majors.

He had beaten Popyrin in three prior encounters, including at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year.

But a career-high 14 double faults — 49 unforced errors total — were too much for Djokovic to overcome.

“It was just an awful match for me,” Djokovic said. “I mean, I tried so many things, and sometimes that’s an issue … you move away from the basics that work. You lose the foundation. You lose the movement, the timing, the rhythm, the tempo, everything, whether it’s a serve or any other shot.”

Popyrin, coming off the biggest title of his career at the Montreal Masters, saved five break points in the sixth game of the match, swinging fearlessly to seize the first two sets.

Djokovic gave himself some breathing room with an early break in the third. Popyrin clawed back only for Djokovic to break him twice more, the Serbian taking full advantage of Popyrin’s mounting errors.

But the Aussie responded in a tense fourth set, saving break points in the second game before breaking again for a 3-2 lead.

He stayed patient as Djokovic saved three break points and when the Serbian double faulted to gift him another Popyrin capitalized with a blistering forehand winner and let out a massive roar.

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Novak Djokovic delivered four double faults in dropping his serve to trail 5-2. He won the next two games, but Popyrin claimed the match with a love game.

“I was waiting for him to kind of step up,” Popyrin said.

“I didn’t want to be one of those moments where Novak kind of stepped up and came back from two sets to love down. It was kind of extra motivation for me not to do that and to win that fourth set.”

Popyrin will next face Frances Tiafoe, who beat fellow American Ben Shelton 4-6, 7-5, 6-7 (5/7), 6-4, 6-3 in a pulsating afternoon contest on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Tiafoe avenged a quarter-final loss to Shelton in New York last year, withstanding 23 aces with a brilliant return display that saw him muster 21 break points and convert five.

Defending women’s champion Coco Gauff survived late-match drama in a 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory over Elina Svitolina.

Gauff’s third-set surge had carried her to triple match point at 5-2, but she delivered a pair of double faults and Svitolina saved another with a blazing backhand on the way to a break.

But Gauff broke Svitolina at love in the next game to lock up the win.

Gauff next faces fellow American Emma Navarro, who upset her in the fourth round at Wimbledon. Navarro beat Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.

All the drama on Ashe Stadium meant second-seeded Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka didn’t get underway on the cavernous court that seats nearly 24,000 until eight minutes past midnight — the latest start to a match in US Open history by eight minutes.

She took it in stride, and after a slow start wrapped up a 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova at 1:48am.

Men’s fourth seed Alexander Zverev started earlier but labored later on Louis Armstrong Stadium, where he beat Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry 5-7, 7-5, 6-1, 6-3 in a match that ended at 2:35am — the second latest US Open finish ever.

World number six Andrey Rublev of Russia beat Czech Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 and eighth-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud rallied from two sets down to beat 19-year-old Shang Juncheng of China 6-7 (1/7), 3-6, 6-0, 6-3, 6-1.

Seventh-seeded Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen of China, who rallied from a set down in each of her first two matches, dispatched Germany’s Jule Niemeier 6-2, 6-1.

Zheng next faces Croatian Donna Vekic in a rematch of the Paris Olympics gold medal match.

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Defending champion Novak Djokovic racked up his 90th win at the US Open on Wednesday by defeating Serb compatriot Laslo Djere who retired in the third set of their second-round clash.

Djokovic, a four-time champion at the tournament and seeking a record 25th Grand Slam title, was leading 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 when Djere called it quits.

The world 109, who pushed his countryman to five sets in New York last year, had required a medical time-out to treat an injury just before dropping the second set.

The 37-year-old Djokovic had himself required a visit from the trainer for what appeared to be a side strain after sealing the first set.

World number two Djokovic is now the only man to have won 90 matches at all four Grand Slams.

“It’s not what we want to see when there’s a retirement. Laslo had an injury which took him off the tour for some time and he’s been struggling to come back,” said Djokovic.

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“He’s such a good player in these conditions and the second set should have been his, he was 4-2 up.

“I don’t know if (my) winning the second set probably put more burden on him.”

Djokovic will next meet Australia’s Alexei Popyrin who he defeated at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year with both matches going to four sets.

Popyrin is in a rich vein of form having won the prestigious Montreal Masters on the eve of the US Open.

“He’s getting closer and closer and knocking on the door,” said Djokovic of the world number 28 who has made the last 32 in New York for a third time.

“We always knew he had the big serve but now he is more consistent, making fewer errors than he used to. He’s pumped and playing some good tennis.”

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Novak Djokovic began his campaign to win a record 25th Grand Slam title with a straight-sets win over Radu Albot at the US Open on Monday.

The four-time champion, playing for the first time since claiming Olympic gold two weeks ago, defeated the Moldovan qualifier 6-2, 6-2, 6-4.

Djokovic, seeking his 25th Grand Slam title and his first since his victory at Flushing Meadows last year, wasn’t his sharpest self.

But he was more than a match for 138th-ranked Albot, breaking the Moldovan six times on the way to a 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 victory.

He notched a men’s record 78th match win on Arthur Ashe Stadium, where he said the “electric” energy of the night session was unlike any other.

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“The night sessions here are best in the world,” said Novak Djokovic, who capped the action on a day that drew a record 74,641 spectators according to the US Tennis Association.

That included a day-session crowd of 42,886 and a record-setting night-session crowd of 31,775.

“There’s an incredible energy, and with the new rule this year that the crowd can move around, there are a lot of things happening,” the four-time champion said.

Seeded second behind Jannik Sinner, Djokovic is vying to become the first man to repeat in New York since Roger Federer won five straight US Opens from 2004-2008.

He’s coming off an emotional triumph at the Paris Olympics, but Djokovic has yet to capture a Grand Slam title this year.

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Novak Djokovic, fired up by his emotional Olympic Games triumph, targets new Grand Slam records at the US Open from Monday as title rival Jannik Sinner arrives in New York dogged by questions over two positive drug tests.

Defending champion Djokovic can become the oldest Open era champion at the tournament if he secures a fifth title, a record he would share with Jimmy Connors, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer.

The 37-year-old would also move to 25 Grand Slam triumphs, taking him clear of the 24 he currently shares with Margaret Court.

The final major of the year comes at a critical time for Djokovic.

This year he was succeeded as Australian Open champion by Sinner who also relieved him of his world number one ranking.

Carlos Alcaraz took his French Open title with the Spanish crowd-pleaser then swept Djokovic off the court in a one-sided Wimbledon final.

However, Djokovic, returned to the clay courts of Roland Garros to stun Alcaraz in the Olympic final.

His tearful victory in Paris allowed him to become only the fifth player to complete a career Golden Slam of all four majors and Olympic gold.

The victory also silenced the increasing number of doubters who had written off the Serb as a spent force in a new era where Sinner, 23, and 21-year-old Alcaraz are steadily moving centre stage.

Novak Djokovic, who underwent surgery on his right knee in June, described his Olympic victory as his “biggest sporting success”.

It was also the 99th title of his professional career.

“At the age of 37 and facing a 21-year-old who is probably the best player in the world right now, winning Roland Garros and Wimbledon back-to-back, I can say that this is probably the biggest sporting success I have ever had,” insisted Djokovic.

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Sinner arrives at the final Slam of the season having captured the Cincinnati Masters title.

However, that triumph was quickly overshadowed when it emerged he had been cleared of any wrongdoing after twice testing positive for a banned substance earlier in the season.

Sinner tested positive for clostebol, an anabolic agent prohibited at all times by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

But he escaped a lengthy ban after officials accepted his explanation that the substance had entered his system as a result of contamination from a support team member.

“I will now put this challenging and deeply unfortunate period behind me,” said Sinner.

The green light for him to continue playing was blasted as “ridiculous” by Australian player Nick Kyrgios.

Alcaraz, who won his first major at the US Open in 2022, was badly bruised by his defeat to Djokovic in the Olympic final.

He broke down in tears on court before admitting he felt he had “let Spain down”.

His build-up to New York wasn’t helped by a second-round exit in Cincinnati to Gael Monfils in a match which saw the usually composed Alcaraz smash his racquet on the court.

He described the defeat as the “worst match” of his career.

In the women’s singles at the US Open, Coco Gauff is the defending champion but the 20-year-old has endured a worrying dip in form in recent weeks.

A stormy exit from the Olympics in the third round was followed by early losses in Toronto and Cincinnati.

No woman has successfully defended her US Open title since Serena Williams in 2014.

Five-time major winner and world number one Iga Swiatek, the 2022 champion in New York, made the Cincinnati semi-finals where she was defeated by Aryna Sabalenka.

Sabalenka, the Australian Open champion, was runner-up to Gauff at the US Open last year, losing from a set up in the final.

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Serbia is set to build a museum dedicated to Novak Djokovic after the tennis great clinched a gold medal at the Paris Olympics 2024.

“We had the first discussions about the construction of the Novak Djokovic museum, which is expected to become another attraction for the city,” Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said Tuesday.

Djokovic has long enjoyed the status of a living legend in Serbia, where the Belgrade native and winner of 24 Grand Slam titles ran a tennis academy for years and frequently attends sporting events and meets with officials.

“Palma de Mallorca has a museum dedicated to Rafael Nadal. We will strive to showcase what Djokovic has done for our country in accordance with his merits and at the same time attract tourists,” Vucic added.

Vucic said he hoped the museum would be finished before Belgrade hosts the World Expo in 2027.

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The announcement comes just days after Djokovic won a gold medal at the Paris Games on Sunday after defeating Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/2) in what was likely to be his final shot at Olympic glory.

The victory allowed him to join Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Steffi Graf and the watching Serena Williams as the only players to win all four Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic singles gold.

Djokovic also became the oldest singles champion since tennis returned to the Olympics in 1988 and shattered Alcaraz’s bid to add gold to the French Open and Wimbledon titles he has already pocketed this summer.

Back in Serbia, people gathered in main squares across the country where they waved flags and sang patriotic songs to celebrate Djokovic’s victory.

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