ATP
No cakewalk for Carlos
CONTROVERSY over the size of a birthday cake engulfed the Madrid Open on Friday as both Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka celebrated their birthdays.
Organisers gave both cakes – and that’s where the controversy began.
Sabalenka received hers backstage, as she wasn’t playing, but Alcvaraz, who was on court at the Manolo Santana Stadium, received his cake in full view of the fans.
And the cake was twice the size!
Some questioned the gender issue again – but Madrid does pay equal prize money – and Holger Rune received a cake, equal in size to Sabalenka’s, without a murmur of dissent.
Tournament director Feliciano was quick to defend the organisers’ choices, as he also mentioned that Holger Rune got a similar cake.
“I’m surprised by this reaction after this gesture! 1. Carlos had just won his match to reach the final. 2. He was playing on centre court. 3. The tournament is played in Spain, even though it is an international event. PS: I hope Rune wasn’t also upset by his treatment.”
Meanwhile, back to the tennis…
Rafa, who’s Rafa?
Travel Madrid’s metro rail, system and you will soon realise Spain is moving on, ready to embrace their next big tennis talent: Carlos Alcaraz.
Countless adverts run the length of the rail network, all with the face of the world No.2 on them, with barely any sign of Nadal.
The Murcian-born player, 20 on Friday, is now taking over from his idol as Spain’s No.1 star, some say it’s becoming as loud and passionate as Beatlemania. Some.
But Alcaraz just takes it in his stride, seemingly undaunted by all the media hype.
Even when soccer stars from the famed Real Madrid come looking for an autograph as Vinicius Junior, Fede Valverde, Dani Ceballos and Rodrygo did last week.
For the record, he currently has 9 titles to his credit including 1 Grand Slam (US Open), 3 Masters 1000, 3 ATP 500 and 2 ATP 250.
And Rafa? He was hoping to return in Rome next week, but it’s not be and now there is massive question mark over Roland Garros.
STILL in Spain, The Madrid Open has come under fire for using models instead of ball girls and boys.
The models, both men and women, have been used on the tournament’s main court, La Caja Magica Stadium, which played host to Carlos Alcaraz’s 6-4, 7-5 quarter-final win over Karen Khachanov.
IS it all over for Emma Raducanu?
The young Brit announced during the week she would miss both Roland Garros and Wimbledon this year after undergoing surgery on her right hand.
Raducanu will also have procedures on her left hand and her ankle, in a bid to overcome a series of injuries that have plagued her career since she won the US Open in 2021.
Raducanu posted a picture of herself laying in a hospital bed with her fingers protruding from a large bandage.
She is unlikely to return to action until September at the earliest, ruling her out of New York as well.
“It is safe to say the last 10 months have been difficult as I dealt with a recurring injury on a bone of both hands,” Raducanu wrote on social media.
“I tried my best to manage the pain and play through it for most of this year and end of last year by reducing practice load dramatically, missing weeks of training as well as cutting last season short to try [to] heal it. Unfortunately, it’s not enough.”
The 20-year-old will drop out of the world’s top 100 this week, but many are now asking if her career is now almost at an end.
She is now in the sporting version of the last chance saloon, if this series of operations doesn’t see an improved win-loss margin when she does eventually return the court, it could all be over before she is 22.
AMANDA Anisimova has hit back at cruel fans who believe she has the wrong body to succeed in tennis.
One fan sent her a private message after she posted a picture on social media.
It read: “The most unathletic body ever! Narrow shoulders and giant boobs.”
Anisimova replied ‘thank you’ but then added the screenshot to her story with a caption stating: “I don’t know what to think? The amount of people who comment on my body every day on social media … will never understand what the hyper fixation is about. But enjoy your life, I’ll go enjoy mine. Thanks for all the input.”
SERENA Williams certainly made jaws drop in New York during the week when she attended the annual Met Gala and revealed that she and husband Alexis Ohanian were expecting their second child.
Williams, 41, let is slip – or was it planned? – during an interview, showing off her bump and telling everyone baby No.2 was on its way.
Then later joking she might call the new arrival after a Disney character.
“I was thinking about… I don’t know the gender, I don’t know if we’re having a girl or a boy,” Williams said.
“So, I’m thinking about some names and I was like maybe I should do something with my favourite Disney characters because I love Disney and as you know, I’m like their biggest fan.
“So, if it’s a girl, it could be like Maleficent, that’s how you say it? It could be Scar if it’s a boy, love Scar, misunderstood a little bit. What else? Gaston, how could I forget Gaston?
“Ursula, classic, got to love Ursula. Lady Gothel, maybe I can call her Lady Gothel if it’s a girl. So just been through these names. Telling you, I’m onto something.”
Sunday Serve is happy to admit it knows of none of those names.
FORMER world No 276 Baptiste Crepatte has been banned from competing at ATP Tour and ITF-sanctioned tournaments after he was found guilty of match-fixing by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA).
Crepatte has been given a three-year ban for multiple breaches of the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program rules, which “caused significant damage to the sport’s integrity”, according to the ITIA.
The 29-year-old contested the charges, but the independent Anti-Corruption Hearing Officer, Professor Richard McLaren upheld the charges.
IGA Swiatek took aim at the scheduling at the Madrid Open after losing a three-set final to Aryna Sabalenka.
The world No.1 finished her round-of-16 match at 1am and was playing until midnight in the semi-final.
“It’s not fun to play at 1am though but I’m happy anyway that I was able to get past this experience and survive and be in the final,” she said.
“This hour is tricky only because what’s going on after, you know, going to sleep really late and then waking up the next day. But before the match and during, I don’t think it matters. We just have to kind of adjust tactics.”
AND finally …
Tennis reporter Bastien Fachan has had some fun with AI generated paintings that look align with several player’s nicknames.
Fachan posted the images on his Twitter profile in a thread and featured players include Tsitsipas, Sinner Djokovic, Nadal, Shapovalov, Schwartzman, Rune, Ruud, de Minaur, Medvedev and Musetti.
Alexander Zverev cooled the jets of a teenaged tearaway on Tuesday, schooling Spaniard Rafael Jodar 7-6 (3), 6-1, 6-3 to power to his fifth career semi-final at the French Open.
The world No. 3 German finished runner-up in Paris two years ago and is still seeking his first trophy at one of the majors.
Zverev has been a consistent presence at the business end of the event here, figuring iin five of the past six semis.
But the achievement doesn’t amount to much for the seed, who has his eye on the big prize.
“I want to keep going. I don’t really care so much about a semi-final,” he said. “I want to win all the matches in front of me.
“Today was a tough test against a good player – that’s it for now.”
The 29-year-old who becomes the ninth man to play five Paris semi-finals, got away slowly as the 19-year-old Jodar showed his intentions with an early break..
But the seed began turning the tables on his young opponent while trailing 5-2 in the opening set after dropping serve in the eight-minute opening game.
Jodar’s unravelling began as he served for the first set leading 5-4 but was unable to close it out.
From then on, Zverev was in control.
The German won the opener in a tiebreaker and dominated the second to claim that chapter also.
In the third, he broke the fading youngster in the first and last games of the set
before closing out the win with a running forehand down the line on match point.
“He had perfect rhythm in the first set and I didn’t,” the winner said. “I was playing too short and too defensive.
“The ball was also not bouncing as high as it did in (last week’s) heat, I had to flatten out my shots.
“He outplayed me at the beginning of the first, but I managed to come back.
he seemed a bit nervous when he served for (the set).
“I took my chances, it was a good match for me.”
Main photo:- Alexander Zverev in control at Roland Garros – by ATPTour.com
Matteo Berrettini took Italian revenge on Monday against the Argentine who knocked out Jannik Sinner with a 6-3, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (6) fourth-round demolition of Juan Manuel Cerundolo at the French Open.
Former top 10 player Berrettini, now mended after several seasons of intermittent injury absences sent the South American packing in a solid clay display.
The Italian saved three Cerundolo set points in the third-set tiebreaker, with Berrettini claiming a match point on an inside-out forehand, and following up with a serve winner..
“I feel great,” Berrettini said. “I’m happy with the support in a full stadium.
“This is why we train and fight, I’m enjoying the atmosphere with my team and family.”
Fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime booked the last eight as he put out another South American in Canadian-born Chilean AlejandroTabilo 6-3, 7-5, 6-1.
FAA becomes the first Canadian man to complete the set of quarter-finals at all four Grand Slam tournaments.
The 30-year-old Berretini from Rome is competing at Roland Garros for the first time since 2021 when he also reached the last eight here.
The current No. 105 is the lowest-ranked men’s quarter-finalist in Paris since in 2007.
Cobolli lost his first set of the tournament as he ran up against an American with negligible experience on clay, defeating Zach Svajda 6-2, 6-3, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5).
The 10th-seeded Italian’s victory put him into his second Grand Slam and his first in Paris.
“I was a little bit nervous to close the match today,” the winner said. “It means a lot, this tournament, for me.
“Sometimes it’s not easy when you have to close, especially when you are up in the score like I was today.
“But also Zachary played a really good match today after the second set… tennis is like this. At the end, I was happy, and that’s the important thing.”
Svajda came to the major with only one career match win on clay. He began correcting that in the third round by beating Francisco.Cerundolo.
Cobolli cruised through the first two sets but his perfect set record took a dent in the third as Svajda forced a tiebreaker and saved a match point after closing the Italian’s 5-1 lead and forcing a tiebreaker.
It took a tiebreak fourth set to settle the outcome after more than three and a quarter hours.
Alexander Zverev stayed on track for a possible fourth Grand Slam final as the highest seed remaining in the men’s draw at the French Open moved efficiently into the quarter-finals on Sunday.
The German who has finished runner-up at the Australian and US Open plus Roland Garros, defeated qualifying lucky loser Jesper de Jong 7-6 (3), 6-4, 6-1.
With this week’s second-round losses by world No. 1 and top seed Jannik Sinner and 24-time Grand Slam singles champion Novak Djokovic, Zverev could have one of his best chances at lifting a major trophy.
The 29-year-old reached his eighth Roland Garros quarter-final as he beat his Dutch opponent on de Jong’s 26th birthday.
He needed a tiebreak to secure the opening set but picked up momentum before crushing it in the third set to get off court in a relatively quick two and a quarter hours.
“I had some early difficulties but he started well,” the winner said. “But once I found my rhythm I felt comfortable on the court.
“That is important for my game. It’s (his game) is there, I just have to show it on the match court.”
With the recent 10-day heatwave now gone, temperatures dropped into the mid-20s Celsius, which should make for more comfortable conditions.
But Zverev is not so sure: “To be honest, I like the heat, I prefer it. My ball flies a lot faster through the air and opponents struggle a bit more.
“I also spend a lot of time in Florida so I’m used to the heat. But we have to make the best of it, things can change within one day.”
Zverev will bid for the semi-finals in a matchup against Rafael Jodar, the prodigy who won an all-Spanish fourth-rounder 4-6, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 over Pablo Carreno Busta.
The fightback took nearly three and three-quarter hours and put the 19-year-old into his first last-eight spot in only his second Grand Slam appearance.
He has reached the last eight here for a sixth straight year.
Jodar, ranked No. 707 a year ago, is the fifth man this century to reach the quarters in his main draw debut at the event.
The youngster made a 4-1 start in the opening set but soon found himself in a five-set dogfight against a 34-year-old dealing with a shoulder injury.
The winner of a clay title in March has now taken victory in 19 of his last 22 matches.
“He’s young and incredibly talented,” Zverev said of his next opponent. “He came onto the clay scene in two months.
“He will be a difficult challenge but I’ll be ready for it.”
Main photo:- Favourite Alexander Zverev wins third round match – by ATPTour.com
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