Former champions Stanislas Wawrinka and Rafael Nadal gave Australian Open organisers a massive boost on Tuesday when they both said they were looking forward to next week's season opening Grand Slam after battling long-term injuries.
Tennis showman Gael Monfils bowed out of his 20th and final Australian Open on Tuesday with a mix of pain and regret as he fell to an injury-hampered 6-7(3), 7-5, 6-4, 7-5 defeat in the first round to local qualifier Dane Sweeny.
Victoria Azarenka reached her first grand slam final with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 victory over defending champion Kim Clijsters at the Australian Open on Thursday.
A thrilling seventh game had both players scrambling in long rallies as the momentum shifted back and forth until Gauff fired a backhand winner and screamed in triumph.
Nishikori is the latest high-profile men's player to pull out of the season's first Grand Slam following the withdrawal of Briton Andy Murray on Saturday.
'She wants to come back in 2018 and defend her title and she's in training now'
Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka will join Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic in playing a pre-Australian Open warm-up exhibition
Serena Williams thrashed Russia's Dinara Safina 6-0, 6-3 on Saturday to win the Australian Open title and reclaim the world number one ranking. The American raced to victory in just 59 minutes to capture her fourth singles title at Melbourne Park, after her previous wins in 2003, 2005 and 2007, and her 10th Grand Slam overall.
Diksha Dagar achieved her first top-5 finish of the season at the Australian Women's Classic, while Kelsey Bennett secured her maiden Ladies European Tour title.
The 19-year-old, who is ranked 34th in the WTA Tour rankings, occupies the last seeded place.
Bopanna was forced into searching for a new partner after Joao Sousa was unable to travel to Australia on time after testing COVID-19 positive.
If Williams is indeed 20 weeks into her term, that would mean she was approximately two months pregnant when she captured her record 23rd Grand Slam tournament singles title at the Australian Open in January.
The former Australian Open champion said he is as hungry as ever to claim the tournament for the fifth time later this month.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Lleyton Hewitt has flagged his retirement after a record 20th campaign at his home Australian Open next year.
Yuki Bhambri and Michael Venus were knocked out of the Miami Open in the first round after a close defeat to John-Patrick Smith and Sander Arends.
US President Donald Trump and other top officials were evacuated unharmed from the annual dinner of the White House Correspondents' Association after a man armed with multiple weapons fired shots outside the hotel ballroom.
Sania Mirza booked a berth in the women's singles main draw of the Australian Open with an easy straight sets victory over Canada's Stephanie Dubois, in Melbourne on Sunday.
Tennis Australia announced on Tuesday that the world No. 6 had pulled out because of a back problem.
India ace Lakshya Sen made a fine start to the new season, advancing to the men's singles second round with a hard-fought win over Jia Heng Jason Teh of Singapore at the Malaysia Open Super 750 badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke is weighing exercising his discretionary powers to revoke Djokovic's visa
Australian Open organisers increased prize money for the early losers at the opening Grand Slam of the season to record levels on Thursday, a move which is likely to quell player unrest and end talk of a strike.
Aryna Sabalenka likes the idea of 'rage rooms' at tournaments where players can vent their frustrations away from the cameras, though the World No. 1 said there would be nothing left to destroy after she uses it.
Rafter, who turns 31 on Sunday, is not planning a comeback to the professional circuit.
Novak Djokovic is finally set to return to action next week after six months out with an elbow injury and will then decide whether to take part in the Jan 15-28 Australian Open.
Former Australian cricketer David Warner has been charged with drink driving after allegedly being caught over the legal limit in Sydney. He is due to appear in court in May.
Paes and Raja dispatched the pair of Nikoloz Basilashvili and Andreas Haider-Maurer 6-2, 6-3 in their opening round.
Prize money row rumbling behind scenes at Melbourne Park
Images from Wednesday's men's and women's singles matches at the Australia Open in Melbourne.
Last year's Australian Open runner-up Jo-Wilfried Tsonga could miss next week's tournament after a back injury forced him out of the Sydney International on Thursday.
Forty-seven players and their entourages have to isolate for two weeks in their hotel rooms in Melbourne and are no longer able to leave them to train after infections were reported on two chartered flights carrying them to Melbourne.
Former world No. 4 Jelena Dokic has won a direct wildcard entry into next month's Australian Open by winning a qualifying tournament in Melbourne on Sunday. Dokic, who came from a set down to beat Queensland junior Monica Wejnert 6-7, 7-5, 6-3 will now attempt to qualify for lead-up tournaments in Brisbane and Hobart in the New Year.
Roger Federer beat Rafael Nadal 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 in the Australian Open final on Sunday to win his 18th Grand Slam singles title.
The Australian Open men's singles final offers a rematch of the dramatic 2021 French Open final, in which Djokovic came back from two sets down to snatch the title and leave Greek Tsitsipas heartbroken.
World No 9 Lucie Safarova will miss this month's Australian Open as she has yet to regain full fitness following a bacterial infection last year, the Czech said on Friday.
Despite former world No 1 Serena Williams not being in action for almost a year, British No 1 Johanna Konta still views Williams as the player to beat at the Australian Open in 2018.
World No. 3 Iga Swiatek has ended her coaching partnership with Wim Fissette, she said on Monday, following a disappointing start to the season that culminated in a shock early exit at the Miami Open.
WTA stars including Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff react to a proposal to introduce best-of-five-set matches for women from the quarter-finals at Grand Slams.
