ATP
Play the game Novak
ONCE again, Novak Djokovic thinks he is above the law.
Djokovic may well be one of the best mens players we have seen, but he still seems to think he should be exempt from the truckles the rest of the world have lived under for the past two or so years.
Remember, Djokovic remains unvaccinated against the deadly Covid-19 virus that has killed millions around the world.
A decision that saw him deported from Australia last year because he lied about his status on his immigration forms.
That decision, labelled bizarrely political, rather than scientific, was overturned earlier this year by a new Australian government eager to overturn almost everything the previous regime had put in place.
But Djokovic remains barred from entering the USA, where a ban on the unvaxxed remains in place until May 11 at the earliest.
The barrier to entry was recently extended by US authorities because of spike in cases over the winter.
Now the world No.1, still unvaxxed and still refusing to accept what happened around the world, has reportedly applied for a special entry exemption in order to play at Indian Wells and the Miami Open.
Younger brother Djordje Djokovic has told Serbian media that Novak has applied for an exemption and that Djokovic family still seem to think they are above the law and that they should be allowed to travel wherever they want.
“Novak has to get a special permit, considering that the USA still does not allow entry to unvaccinated people, which is simply incredible because the whole world is open and sports events around the world are held with vaccinated and unvaccinated athletes,” the younger Djokovic said.
“Novak has submitted all the required documentation and a request, and the directors of the Indian Wells and Miami tournaments have publicly said Novak is needed at those tournaments and that they want him to come.”
Djokovic has been included on the Indian Wells Open entry list even though he is not allowed to enter the country.
“There are only a few days to go before a decision is made and what remains for us to do is hope for a positive outcome,” he said.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the US has confirmed that foreign travellers who are not vaccinated against Covid-19 are not allowed to enter the country.
When millions have complied to help suppress and control the deadly virus, when many other ‘ordinary’ citizens have been denied entry, why should Djokovic, who still refuses to be vaccinated – be allowed entry?
Some in the media have accused him, or his family, of playing the victim card.
“Yeah this is what gets me as well… We all want body autonomy and free choice. wrote Jon Wertheim on Twitter.
“It’s his choice not to get vaccinated and accept the consequences. Fine. We should respect that….But then stay out of the victimisation lane.”
Californians endured some of the toughest Covid lockdowns during the height of the pandemic, and to allow one person, no matter who they are, exemption, would be the height of hypocrisy.
Sport is not above the law.
THE inability of Djokovic to enter the US will scupper Nick Kyrgios’ dream of playing doubles with the current world No.1.
Kyrgios was hoping got team up with the Serb at Indian Wells next month.
“If Novak is allowed in the USA we are playing doubles at Indian Wells. Y’all ready?”, Kyrgios posted on Instagram recently.
SMASH and grab in Montpelier?
World No. 50 Alexander Bublik thinks so.
Bublik smashed three rackets in the first round of the Open Sud de France on Wednesday, eventually losing to French opponent Gregoire Barrere 4-6, 7-6 (14-12) 6-7 (3-7).
Barrere took the first set 6-4, but Bublik tried to bounce back in the second one. That set went to a tiebreaker and didn’t stop until Bublik came out on top 14-12.
The third tiebreaker, enraged Bublik so much he let fly, smashing a racket five times as the crowd booed.
Broadcaster Sue Thearle then commented that it was good Bublik had other rackets.
Not for long … Bublik walked over to his bench, took out another racket and smashed that as well.
And he wasn’t done yet, picking up a third and hitting it four times.
The 25-year-old grabbed a fourth but that one survived as he went back on the court to finish the match.
STAYING in the south of France, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina admitted he was close to tears after watching his opponent Ugo Humbert suffer a horror fall during their first-round match in Montpellier.
The French wildcard went down at the side of the court during the second set tiebreak after winning the opener and could barely move afterwards, retiring the match when he lost the breaker.
Humbert took the opening set of their match 6-1 as Davidovich Fokina fought back to force a tiebreak in the second set – before the 25-year-old Humbert fell awkwardly chasing down a ball.
Humbert rolled onto the floor and stayed there as Davidovich Fokina rushed over to see if he was OK.
Humbert received treatment and tried to play on but could hardly move, before losing the second set 7-6(2) and retiring.
“I’ve known Ugo since we were kids,” Davidovich Fokina said, before he started to cry.
“I’m going to cry because I was watching him cry. I’ve known him since we were kids, I know him very well and it’s never easy to see a friend like this.
“You know, he just flew on the court and I was like, something’s happened because he was crying and I was like… It’s tough.”
Humbert later said via Instagram that he hadn’t; as was first thought, broken a bone.
WHERE is Reilly Opelka? As the new crop of young American men start to show what they are made of on the ATP tour, there is still no sign of Opelka, struggling with injury.
The American hasn’t played since the Cincinnati Masters last August, where he was beaten by Nick Kyrgios and suffered a hip injury.
Good friend Taylor Fritz last week voiced his concerns.
“It’s awful,” Fritz said. “He started last year really strong. He was playing really good tennis. It sucks.
“It could happen to any of us at any time. You never know when you can be out for 8 months. It’s really sad to see.
“He’s one of my best friends. I look forward to seeing him. Haven’t gotten to spend a ton of time with him because he hasn’t been at tournaments.”
There’s hope that Opelka will return before the clay season begins in May.
A FORMER top 500 doubles player has been banned for life from the game after an investigation by the International Tennis Integrity Agency found him guilty of match fixing.
Younes Rachidi was found guilty of 135 offences – the highest number committed by any player in the history of both the ITIA and its predecessor the TIU.
The 36-year-old Moroccan hasn’t played a competitive match on the Tour since 2017.
In a statement, the ITIA described Rachidi’s breaches as ‘egregious’ and has also fined him $34,000 in addition to the ban.
Mohamed Hassan was also banned for life and fined $12,000 after being found guilty of 29 offences relating to seven matches between 2016 and 2018.
And Houria Boukholda was been banned for two years and fined $10,000 for 15 offences relating to five matches in 2017 and 2018.
Boukholda’s penalty was less as the investigation found he was heavily influenced by Hassan.
AND finally….
Rafael Nadal is known for his use of vibrant colours on court and the upcoming French Open will see the Spanish legend shift his colour focus to blue.
Nadal, who has won 14 of his 22 Grand Slam titles at Roland-Garros, will be sporting a sky blue top for the Paris event, which starts on May 28.
Nadal wore a lemon/lime shirt last year, with a green fern pattern on the front.
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
Roland Garros 2026 Men’s Day 10
Roland Garros 2026 Women’s Day 10
Sabalenka plays lights-out to stop Osaka in Paris
-
Madrid Masters4 weeks agoSabalenka all in on possible RG player boycott
-
ATP4 weeks agoSinner the winner to push on with Rome entry
-
ATP4 weeks agoSinner all-in as Grand Slam boycott pressure grows
-
ATP3 weeks agoDarderi earns Italian upset with defeat of Zverev
-
Brisbane3 weeks agoSabalenka sensation as top seed toppled
-
ATP3 weeks agoAnother Italian victim for Sinner
-
Indian wells3 weeks agoSinner coasts to opening Rome win
-
ATP3 weeks agoSinner storms ahead as skies clear in Rome