A summary of Friday's action at the US Open.
Images from Day 9 of the 2021 US Open in New York on Wednesday.
Not since Stan Wawrinka's 2016 US Open triumph has a Grand Slam been won by someone other than the 'Big Three', winners of the last 13 major titles.
Even though Carlos Alcaraz recently dethroned him from the top of the world rankings, Novak Djokovic is still considered the man to beat and still has the power to turn opponents into nervous wrecks.
All players who want a visa to compete in the Australian Open will need to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, the country's immigration minister said on Wednesday, putting Novak Djokovic's title defence and Grand Slam record bid in doubt.
On Sunday the Ukrainian Tennis Federation urged the sport's governing body the International Tennis Federation (ITF) to immediately expel Russia and Belarus from the organisation and ban Russia from team and individual tournaments. Also, athletes from Ukraine and other nations have called on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to suspend Russia and Belarus and ban their athletes from events immediately.
Images from the men's singles fourth round matches at the Australian Open, on Sunday.
With each passing year questions are inevitably asked about whether Nadal's vice-like hold on the French Open will be loosened. Each time, the answer has been an emphatic NO.
Sweden and Novak Djokovic's Serbia took the two best runners-up spots and a place in the last eight by virtue of their better match win-loss records among the second placed sides throughout the group stages.
Alcaraz outlasts Hurkacz, Ruud stunned at Canadian Open
Djokovic has never failed to win the tournament after making the semi-finals and he will be heavily favoured to claim a record-extending ninth title at his favourite Slam on Sunday.
Men's governing body ATP on Monday unveiled a revised system for calculating world rankings when the season resumes in August following a five-month suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Traditionally the ATP rankings operates on a formula of 18 best results over 52 weeks but will now cover a 22-month period from March 2019 through December 2020.
Raonic advances, Sock ousted in Rogers Cup
A summary of Tuesday's action at the US Open.
Italian seventh seed Jannik Sinner beat Tommy Paul to set up a Canadian Open final clash with Australia's Alex De Minaur
World number five Alexander Zverev continued his poor recent form as he crashed out of the Italian Open in the second round while Serena Williams had to pull out of the women's draw with a recurring knee injury.
Spain's Rafael Nadal was at his dominant best against Pablo Carreno Busta on Saturday, brushing aside his compatriot 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 to move into the fourth round at the Australian Open. Images from Day 6 of the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Saturday.
Not that cash will be the motivator for world number one Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev and debutants Andrey Rublev and Diego Schwartzman when the tournament's 50th edition starts on Sunday.
'I am realistic, don't get me wrong, I know how difficult it is at this age right now to do another surgery and try it, but look, I want to be healthy and I'll go through the rehab process I think also with the goal while I am still active which I think is going to help me during this long period of time.'
It was Roger Federer's fastest defeat since losing to Franco Squillari in 54 minutes in Sydney in 2003.
Novak Djokovic won a record-equalling 20th Grand Slam title by after winning this year's Wimbledon drawing level with long-time rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Holger Rune crashed out to Yoshihito Nishioka in the ATP 250 Adelaide International 1 first round.
Kristina Mladenovic had complained saying she felt like she was being treated like a prisoner after she was placed inside a 'bubble within a bubble' despite 'thirty negative tests'.
India's Nagal draws world No 128 Bradley Klahn in opener.
Let battle commence, says Djokovic ahead of Nadal showdown
The Serbian top seed won a fourth successive title at the All England Club to take his overall Grand Slam tally to 21.
Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz beat Norway's Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6(1), 6-3 in the men's singles final at the US Open on Sunday to win his maiden Grand Slam title and rise to world number one for the first time.
Australia eased ahead of Bosnia 2-0 as John Millman thumped Damir Dzumhur 6-3, 6-2 while Alex de Minaur overcame Mirza Basic 6-3, 7-6(0), before Millman revealed the team's larger goal under captain Lleyton Hewitt.
Images from Day 5 of the 2021 US Open in New York on Friday.
Novak Djokovic reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open on Wednesday after Kei Nishikori retired hurt when trailing 6-1, 4-1 in their quarter-final.
'These guys, they can do everything I did on a return, except they have even a little more coverage'
The future arrived late but after some old-fashioned glitches, two Russian trailblazers fired the first shots in what could be a revolution in tennis at the Next Gen ATP Finals on Tuesday.
Earning a dream Grand Slam debut for himself, Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal set up a US Open first round clash against the legendary Roger Federer, one of the greatest players of all-time, on Monday.
Rafael Nadal shrugged off his derailed bid for the Grand Slam record with a pledge to keep "fighting" but the Spaniard leaves the Australian Open with familiar regrets after bowing out to a rising talent on Wednesday.
Play at the Australian Open continued amid the lockdown, but fans were banned through Wednesday. Thousands were forced to leave mid-matches before midnight on Friday.
The unseeded Indo-Canadian combine beat the Romanian-Dutch pairing of Tecau and Rojer 6-2, 3-6, 10-7 in a quarters
Nadal meets the 'new Nick' Kyrgios in fourth-round blockbuster
Images from Day 4 of the Australian Open in Melbourne on Thursday
Derara Hurisa wasn't the favourite for Tata Mumbai Marathon 2020 but the Ethiopian upset the odds to win in a course record of 2:08:09 in Mumbai on Sunday. Hurisa was rewarded with his biggest ever pay day, a US$45,000 winners cheque and a US$15,000 course record bonus. The amount he picked up on Sunday for his stunning win was more than he had pocketed across his entire career. In addition, the race was won with a pair of borrowed racing shoes. "I misplaced my shoes while travelling from Addis Ababa to Mumbai earlier in the week. So I borrowed some shoes from my friend Abraham Girma (who also ran the Tata Mumbai Marathon). So I only tried them on for the first time yesterday," Hurisa revealed after the race. In a thrilling finish to the 17th edition of TMM, three men approached the last kilometre together, but Hurisa went through the gears as the trio passed that check point and he pulled away from his compatriots Ayele Abshero and Birhanu Teshome. Abshero and Teshome finished second and third respectively in a time of 2:08:20 and 2:08:26, both coming inside the previous course record of 2:08:35. Prior to Sunday, 22-year-old Hurisa's most notable achievement was winning the silver medal in the African Cross Country Championships U20 race four years ago. This was Hurisa's second international win, the other being a low-key half marathon in Turkey in 2017. The men's race started at a pace which indicated a course record was on the cards, and the weather was several degrees cooler. A large group of 18 men, including pacemakers, sped through the 10km marker in 30.01, 20km in 1:00:35 and hit the halfway mark in 1:03:52. However, as the second half of the race progressed, the runners started to regularly drop off the back of the leading pack with the leaders passing 30km in 1:30:52 although eight men still remained in contention at 35km. As the runners passed the 36km marker, Teshome put his head down and started pumping his arms, attempting to almost sprint away from his rivals. It was a short-lived surge but it had the effect of splintering what remained of the pack. With four kilometres left, Hurisa, Abshero and Teshome still had Uganda's 2013 Mumbai Marathon winner Jackson Kiprop for company and their Ethiopian compatriot Abera Kuma, after going through a bad patch, was back in contention. First Abera and then Kiprop broke off with three kilometres to go, but the Ethiopian trio stayed together, testing each other, until Harisa made his decisive move. Kenya's defending champion Cosmas Lagat had much earlier dropped out injured at around 14 kilometres. In the women's race, Amane Beriso stormed back after a 15-month injury-induced absence from competition to win the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2020 in a time of 2:24:51. Despite being 38 seconds adrift of race leader Kenya's Rodah Jepkorir at the 30km checkpoint, with Ethiopia's defending champion Worknesh Alemu drifting back off the lead and shortly to drop out, over the next kilometre Beriso reeled in Jepkorir and then overhauled the 2019 winner of the Gold Coast and Buenos Aires Marathons. Once out on her own, Beriso was never challenged and, despite looking extremely tired over the final few kilometres, she came home more than two minutes clear of Jepkorir who crossed the line second in 2:27:14 with Ethiopia's marathon debutante Haven Hailu third in 2:28:56. "I was nervous to start because I had spent so long without racing, but I started to feel confident at about 31 kilometres and I was certain I could win from about 36 kilometres," said Beriso. "With a kilometre to go, my (male) pacemaker Sylvester Kiptoo was pointing at his watch and was telling me I could still get the course record but I was tired. I tried but I couldn't do it," she added. Nevertheless, Beriso will go into the record books as the second fastest woman in Mumbai Marathon's history, despite finishing 18 seconds outside the 2014 course record of Kenya's Valentine Kipketer. Results: Men 1. Derara Hurisa (ETH) 2:08:09 2. Ayele Abshero (ETH) 2:08:20 3. Birhanu Teshome (ETH) 2:08:26 4. Jackson Kiprop (UGA) 2:08:41 5. Abdi Ali (BRN) 2:08:56 Women 1. Amane Beriso (ETH) 2:24:51 2. Rodah Jepkorir (KEN) 2:27:14 3. Haven Hailu (ETH) 2:28:55 4. Fetale Dejene (ETH) 2:30:11 5. Maeregu Hayelom (ETH) 2:31:26. Srinu Bugatha, Sudha Singh win Indian Elite category Army man Srinu Bugatha and defending champion Sudha Singh won the Indian Elite athlete men and womens category respectively in the 17th edition of the Tata Mumbai Marathon held on Sunday. Arjuna Awardee Sudha Singh clinched the title with a timing of 2:45:30s. "My aim was for a hat-trick this year. The route was also good. I attained my best timings last year but the climate was humid and hot, whereas the weather was more suitable this time. My overall experience was good. I want to thank my coach Bijendra Singh," Sudha said on her performance. Overall Sudha stood 10th in the Marathon, which was won by Ethiopian Amane Beriso, clocking 2:24:51. First time full marathon runner and Army man, Srinu Bugatha finished first among Indian runners by clocking 2:18:44. "I am thankful to my pacers for their help. I am happy but I feel I would have clocked a better timing than this. My pace dropped at the last kilometre and I couldn't make a proper recovery from that. Regardless, I am looking forward to performing better in my upcoming marathons," he said. Srinu's overall ranking stood at 13th, with a gap of 10:35 seconds between him and Derara Hurisa, the winner of the International Elite Full Marathon. Sher Singh, who was participating for the first time in the Tata Mumbai Marathon, finished second clocking a timing of 2:24:00. Sher said, "I started the race with Srinu Bugatha and kept my pace along with him steadily till 35km after which I slowed down. The route was good but the weather was quite humid." Durga Bahadur Budha, also from the Army, finished third with a timing of 2:24:03 among Indian runners. "At present, I'm not practicing for marathons regularly. Mostly the only form of training I do is my army training. Also, an injurykept me away from the marathon scene last year. So, I am personally happy with my timings," Durga said. Among Indian runners, Jyoti Gawate emerged runner-up clocking a timing of 2:49:14, while Shyamali Singh from West Bengal attained the 3rdposition in the Indian Elite women category with a timing of 2:58:44. Sudha Singh and Jyoti Gawate ran together till the 30km mark, post which Sudha took the lead. Meanwhile, in the women's elite half marathon, Parul Chaudhary finished winner, breaking the course record by clocking 1:15:37. Aarti Patil and Monika Athare secured 2ndand 3rd position with timings of 1:18:03 and 1:18:33 respectively. Chaudhary pocketed an additional Rs 1.50 lakh bonus amount as course record jackpot. In the men's elite half marathon, Tirtha Pun emerged winner, finishing the race in 1:05:39s. Securing the runner-up position, Man Singh clocked the timing of 1:06:06, while Balliappa AB finished third with the timing of 1:07:11s. Mumbai Marathon: 64-year-old runner dies of heart attack A 64-year-old man died after suffering a heart attack while running in the Tata Mumbai Marathon 2020 on Sunday morning, officials said. Gajendra Manjalkar, a of Nalasopara from the neighbouring Palghar district, who had been participating in the marathon for last four years, came to Mumbai to participate in the latest edition of the run on Sunday. He collapsed while running the marathon a police official said. He was later taken to Bombay Hospital in south Mumbai where doctors declared him brought dead, he said. Talking to PTI, Dr Gautam Bhansali, consultant physician at Bombay Hospital, said 10 to 12 people were brought to the hospital with various complaints, including dehydration. "Manjalkar was declared dead on arrival. He died due to a heart attack," Bhansali said. The body was sent to GT Hospital for a postmortem, he added. "An accidental death report has been registered at Marine Drive police station. Further probe is underway," Deputy Commissioner of Police Pranay Ashok told PTI. Besides, a runner, Sanjay Bafna (51), was undergoing treatment for brain stroke, while angioplasty was performed on another participant, identified as Himanshu Thakkar (47), at the Bombay Hospital, Bhansali said, adding that both of them were currently recuperating. Over 55,000 runners participated in the 17th edition of Tata Mumbai Marathon on Sunday.
A couple of months ago, the 35-year-old Spaniard was worried that he might never return to the court again.