PRE-SHOW | ERC BARUN CZECH RALLY ZIN 2026

 

QUALIFYING | ERC BARUN CZECH RALLY ZIN 2026

 

FORMER WIMBLEDON WINNER'S BAN SLAMMED AS 'COMPLETELY INSANE' BY WTA STAR

 

Marketa Vondrousova with inset of Eva Lys

Marketa Vondrousova has been hit with a lengthy ban from tennis following her refusal to submit a sample during an out-of-competition test, but one of her fellow WTA players has come to her defence.

2023 Wimbledon winner Vondrousova has not competed since the Adelaide International in January and the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) dropped a bombshell in April when it announced that she had been charged after she denied a doping control officer entry to her home to conduct the test.

The case went to a hearing and a tribunal has now found her guilty and handed down a long suspension as the starting point for a sanction when a player refuses a test is the same as if they had tested positive.

The 26-year-old Vondrousova, who peaked at No 6 in the WTA Rankings, will miss the next four years of action and her suspension will only end on 21 June 2030.

Fellow tennis star Eva Lys was one of the first to react as she offered her support to the Czech star, writing on social media: “This is COMPLETELY insane. Sending so much love to Marketa…”

Under international anti-doping regulations, players have to submit their whereabouts for an hour each day so that officials can conduct anti-doping tests.

An official arrived at her home in the Czech Republic last December to get a sample, but Vondrousova refused to allow the officer in stating she feared for her safety.

Tennis News

Following the announcement, the 26-year-old posted a message on social media to give her side of events, writing: “It is very tough for me to talk about this, but I want to be transparent with you about my mental health.

“The recent doping control incident happened because I reached a breaking point after months of physical and mental stress.

“For a long time, I’ve been dealing with injury, constant pressure, and ongoing sleep issues that left me feeling exhausted and fragile.

“It slowly wore me down more than I probably realised at the time. And on top of that, years of hateful messages and threats have affected how safe I feel in my own space.

“When someone rang my door late at night without properly identifying themselves or following protocol – I reacted as a person who felt scared.

“In that moment, it was about feeling safe, not about avoiding anything. Experts confirmed I suffered an Acute Stress Reaction (F43.0) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder (F41.1).

“In that moment, fear clouded my judgement and I just could not process the situation rationally. After what happened to Petra [Kvitova], we don’t take strangers at our door lightly.”

Although her charge didn’t come with an automatic suspension, Vondrousova has not competed in recent months with the case going to a tribunal.

Vondrousova stated her case at the hearing, saying stress and poor mental health had affected her decision-making, in addition to concerns for her safety.

But the tribunal concluded that the evidence offered “no compelling justification” for the test refusal.

International Tennis Integrity Agency CEO, Karen Moorhouse said: “We understand that the testing process is uncomfortable, and acknowledge that it is an additional burden for players whose jobs already come with a high level of pressure and scrutiny, but it is essential to protect fair competition.

“Safety and welfare of players and our testers is really important to us. Our testers are well-trained, professional, and the gender of our testing witness always matches the player. They carry ID at all times, and players are able to verify their identity in other ways if they are ever unsure.”

She added: “Unpredictable testing is an essential tool to protect clean sport.

“The independent tribunal ultimately supported that principle. This case is an important reminder that players can be tested at any time, in any place, and that refusal comes with significant risk.”

Vondrousova is free to appeal the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas), but she is yet to make a statement following the announcement by the ITIA.

- Shahida Jacobs

MARC MARQUEZ WINS THE CZECH MOTOGP GRAND PRIX 2026

 

GROUP A STANDINGS | FIFA WORLD CUP 2026

 

WORLD CUP PERFORMANCES

 

VENUS WILLIAMS BOWS OUT OF US OPEN AS STREAMLINED ALCARAZ SAILS THROUGH

USA's Venus Williams waves at supporters after losing against Czech Republic's Karolina Muchova at the end of their women's singles first round tennis match on day two of the US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City

Image: Kena Betancur / AFP

Venus Williams battled bravely before bowing out of the US Open on her return to Grand Slam tennis on Monday as Spanish ace Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the second round with a dominant opening win.

The second full day of action in New York saw all eyes turn to the Arthur Ashe Stadium's night session, where the 45-year-old Williams lost in three sets to 11th seed Karolina Muchova.

Williams only returned to competitive tennis in July following a 16-month absence from the sport and had been granted a wild card into the main draw at Flushing Meadows.

But hopes of a fairytale run -- 28 years after her debut in the tournament -- ended in a 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 loss to Muchova, who was not even born when Williams turned professional in 1994.

"I didn't win today but I'm very proud of the way I played," Williams, the US Open champion in 2000 and 2001, said.

"I don't think I've ever had a crowd on my side like that. I knew people around the world and around the United States were really rooting for me, and that felt great."

With the American exiting, 2022 men's champion Alcaraz took centre-stage in the late game in his first round tie against unseeded American Reilly Opelka.

The Spaniard arrived for the game sporting a striking new hairstyle -- a severe crew cut -- and he duly chopped down the 6ft 11in Opelka with a blistering 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 victory in 2hr 5min.

"Today was a really difficult one," Alcaraz said. "Reilly is a great, tough player. I couldn't get the rhythm that I wanted to get but I'm just really happy with what I did today. I did a great performance today."

Alcaraz is chasing a second US Open title following his maiden Grand Slam victory at the tournament three years ago.

Australian Open winner Madison Keys became the highest-ranked player to exit so far, the sixth seed losing to Mexico's Renata Zarazua 6-7 (10/12), 7-6 (7/3), 7-5.

"Today was the first time in a while where my nerves really got the better of me and it kind of became a little bit paralyzing," home hope Keys said.

"I was just slow, I wasn't seeing things the way that I wanted to, which I feel like resulted in a lot of bad decisions and lazy footwork."

Kvitova farewell

Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova bundled out rising Canadian star Victoria Mboko, defeating the teenager 6-3, 6-2.

Belgian 19th seed Elise Mertens ousted wild card Alyssa Ahn 6-1, 6-0 while Ukrainian 30th seed Dayana Yastremska exited in a 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 loss to Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova brought the curtain down on her career after a 6-1, 6-0 defeat to France's Diane Parry.

The 35-year-old Czech had already announced her intention to retire after the US Open, but was nonetheless overcome with emotion as she said farewell to the sport, breaking down in tears as she addressed fans afterwards.

"I hoped I would put on a better show today," Kvitova said. "It was tough to know it could be my last match, and emotionally it was very tough as well."

Qualifier Coleman Wong became the first man from Hong Kong to record a victory in a Grand Slam singles event in the Open era with a 6-4, 7-5, 7-6 (7/4) defeat of US player Aleksandar Kovacevic.

It was the latest in a series of breakthrough results by young Asian players at this year's US Open.

Alexandra Eala of the Philippines -- who trains with Wong at Rafael Nadal's academy in Spain -- and Indonesia's Janice Tjen both won their first-round matches in the main draw.

British fifth seed Jack Draper needed four sets to get past Argentina's Federico Gomez, 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (7/9), 6-2.

Other seeds to advance included Norway's Casper Ruud, the 12th seed, who downed Austria's Sebastian Ofner 6-1, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5).

US 17th seed Frances Tiafoe beat Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka 6-3, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3.

- AFP

MOTOGP: BAGNAIA ON POLE POSITION AT BRNO

Francesco Bagnaia in Parc fermé after his pole position at Brno. Photo courtesy Dorna.

© 2025, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc. By Mathilde Gasnier.

Francesco Bagnaia earned pole position during MotoGP World Championship qualifying on Saturday at Automotodrom Brno, in Czech Republic. Riding his Lenovo Ducati Desmosedici GP25, the two-time World Champion broke Marc Marquez’s All-Time Lap Record of 1:53.145 he set in FP2 with a time of 1:52.303 around the 3.36-mile (5.40 km) circuit during Qualifying Two (Q2) on Saturday.

His teammate, Marc Marquez was the best of the rest with a 1:52.522, and Fabio Quartararo claimed the third and final spot on the front row with a 1:52.608 on his Monster Energy Yamaha YZR-M1.

Row-two qualifiers included Aprilia Racing’s Marco Bezzecchi (1:52.644), Joan Mir on his Honda HRC Castrol RC213V (1:52.763) and Raul Fernandez on his Trackhouse RS-GP (1:52.796).

Reigning MotoGP champion Jorge Martín made a strong return in Brno, working his way into Q2 before ultimately finishing 12th on his Aprilia RS-GP25.

Bagnaia bags Brno pole from Q1 as Marc Marquez crashes. Pecco pockets his first pole of 2025 to beat the #93 in Q2, as Quartararo earns P3 with Martin 12th on the grid. 

Q1 to pole position equals a great morning’s work for Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) as the double MotoGP World Champion claims his first pole of 2025, and late drama unfolds for his teammate Marc Marquez. Despite the final time attack lap Turn 13 crash, the championship leader will launch from P2 on the grid as the factory Ducati duo are joined on the front row by Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP).

Alex Marquez (BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP), the rider second in the standings, is forced to settle for the third row launch in the Tissot Sprint and Grand Prix, as reigning World Champion Jorge Martin (Aprilia Racing) gets set to line up in P12 after his first qualifying outing since April.

Q1 – Bagnaia and Raul Fernandez through, Di Giannantonio misses out

All eyes were on 2022 and 2023 MotoGP World Champion Bagnaia in Q1, and it wasn’t a smooth sailing opening stint for the Italian. Pecco pitted after sitting up and out of his second flying lap while he was P6, with Fabio Di Giannantonio (Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team) and Maverick Viñales’ replacement Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Tech3) occupying P1 and P2 as things stood.

A better lap was landed by Pecco on his second run though. A 1:52.715 saw the Italian go 0.4s clear of Di Giannantonio, before Alex Rins (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) climbed to P2. Not for long though. The impressive Espargaro jumped back into the top two before Di Giannantonio went 0.184s off Pecco – but that wasn’t enough. Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) powered his way to P2 to go 0.060s away from Bagnaia, so the pressure was on Di Giannantonio in the closing stages.

Did the Italian have a reply? He improved his time, but Di Giannantonio stayed P3. Fernandez’s very solid lap was good enough to knock the VR46 star out of qualifying, as Bagnaia and Trackhouse’s Spaniard strolled into Q2.

Q2 – LATE DRAMA SEES PECCO POCKET POLE

The first benchmark lap was set by Marc Marquez and it was a 1:52.522, with Quartararo slotting into an early P2 to sit 0.093s away from the #93. Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) and Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) placed themselves in P3 and P4, with the returning Martin P10 after his opening effort in Q2.

Having not yet set a lap, Bagnaia was on a charge with five minutes to go. The #63 was 0.119s under Marc Marquez’s time through split two, 0.133s under through split three, and over the line, Pecco pocketed provisional pole by 0.219s.

Now, what did Marc Marquez, Quartararo and the others have in response? Well Bezzecchi, after running into the gravel at Turn 1, was down as he started his next flying lap, which was very costly for Bezzecchi because his front row hopes were gone. And with the yellow flags still waving, a lot of laps were scrubbed off with two minutes to go.

Fernandez’s wasn’t though. The #25 rose to P5 from P12, which shoved Alex Marquez down to P7 as one time attack lap remained for Bagnaia, Marc Marquez, Quartararo, Alex Marquez and Acosta, who were all on track together and fighting for prime position.

Marc Marquez led the freight train and through Sector 1, he lit up the timing screens. The gap was 0.245s through the third split as pole position looked guaranteed – until it wasn’t. Marc Marquez was down at Turn 13 and it was in the same place where Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) had crashed seconds before, as the penultimate corner caught out Friday’s fastest duo. 

So with that late drama, pole position went the way of Marc Marquez’s teammate Pecco. A first of the year for the #63, as the championship leader had to settle for P2, with Quartararo earning P3.

TOP 12 ON THE CZECH GP GRID

Bezzecchi’s crash, in the end, didn’t cost him a place as the Aprilia ride spearheads Row 2, with Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) securing his best qualifying result of the season with P5. The 2020 World Champion has Fernandez alongside him in P6, that’s his best Saturday morning result of the campaign too, as Acosta fronts Row 3 in P7.

Alex Marquez has work to do from P8 if he’s to stop Marc Marquez from extending his championship lead, with Zarco completing that third row in ninth. P10 went to Jack Miller (Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP), 11th belongs to Enea Bastianini (Red Bull KTM Tech3), while reigning World Champion Martin starts from P12 in his first Grand Prix since Qatar.

COMING UP: BRNO’S TISSOT SPRINT

Bagnaia on pole, Marc Marquez P2, Quartararo leading the fight to the Ducatis, Alex Marquez needing a great launch, and what can Martin muster up? Plenty of questions, and we’ll get the answers late this afternoon at 15:00 local time. Tune in.

 

RUGBY 🏉 WOMEN'S STANDINGS

 

JESSICA PEGULA OUSTS NO.1 SWIATEK TO REACH US OPEN SEMIS

Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AP

NEW YORK -- Jessica Pegula pulled off a major upset of Iga Swiatek at the US Open, beating the No. 1-ranked woman 6-2, 6-4 on Wednesday night to win a Grand Slam quarterfinal for the first time on her seventh try.

"There have been so many freaking times, and I just kept losing," Pegula told the crowd. "I know everyone keeps asking me about it, but I was like, 'I don't know what else to do. I just need to get there again and, like, win the match.' So thank God I was able to do it. And finally -- finally! -- I can say, 'Semifinalist.'"

Her win guarantees the US Open will feature multiple American men and women in the semifinal round, the first time that has happened since 2003 (Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick; Lindsay Davenport and Jennifer Capriati).

The No. 6-seeded Pegula, a 30-year-old American, has won 14 of her past 15 matches and will make her debut appearance in the semifinals of a Slam on Thursday against unseeded Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic.

Both Muchova and Pegula have yet to drop a set, the first time that has been done by multiple women at this stage of the tournament since 2014 (there were three that year: Serena Williams, Peng Shuai and Ekaterina Makarova).

"I know she has a lot of experience going deep in Slams," Pegula said about Muchova, whom she defeated at the Cincinnati Open last month. "I'll worry about that, maybe, when I wake up in the morning."

The other women's match Thursday also will feature an American making her major semifinal debut, No. 13 Emma Navarro, against No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka, who has won the past two Australian Open titles. Sabalenka lost to Coco Gauff in the 2023 final in New York; Navarro ended Gauff's title defense in the fourth round.

There are also two Americans in the men's semifinals, but they'll face each other: No. 12 Taylor Fritz takes on No. 20 Frances Tiafoe on Friday.

The lopsided nature of Pegula's win was surprising, but she believed this day would come.

"I knew I could do it. I just had to go out and execute my game and not get frustrated," she said. "Luckily I felt like I was able to take advantage of some things she wasn't doing well very early and then was able to kind of ride that momentum throughout the match."

Swiatek served poorly in the first set and her forehand was a real problem, with 22 of her 41 unforced errors coming on that side. Pegula made only 22 unforced errors in all and used terrific defense to keep forcing Swiatek to hit an extra shot.

Pegula repeatedly did what seemed nearly impossible lately against Swiatek, who counts the 2022 US Open among her five Grand Slam titles and has led the WTA rankings for most of the past 2½ years: break her serve.

Entering Wednesday, Swiatek had lost only a pair of service games across four matches in the tournament, both in the first round -- and she didn't even face a single break point in any of her most recent three contests.

But Pegula, whose parents own the NFL's Buffalo Bills and NHL's Buffalo Sabres, didn't have much trouble in that department, especially at the outset, breaking in each of Swiatek's initial two service games, which both ended with double-faults, and three of the first six.

It helped that Swiatek was unable to properly calibrate her first serves early, putting just 2 of 12 -- 16.7% -- in play at the start and only 36% for the opening set.

Even as the games kept going in her favor, Pegula didn't show much perceptible emotion, whether grabbing a 4-0 lead just 21 minutes in or taking up that set, which was greeted with a slight shake of her left fist as she walked to her sideline seat.

Swiatek didn't hide her thoughts that well. She smacked her racket against the top of the net. She slapped her right thigh after a forehand flew wide to get broken yet again and trail 4-3 in the second set. Fifteen minutes later, it was over.

"It's never easy to play against Jess," Swiatek said. "She has a tricky ball because it's pretty low and pretty flat. I just made too many mistakes."

Pegula entered the day as the only player inside the WTA's top 10 who hadn't reached a major semifinal; 0-6 in her career in Slam quarterfinals, she was one loss shy of the worst major quarterfinal record by any woman in the Open era, shared by three players (0-7).

During that 0-6 rut, two of her exits came against Swiatek, and one was against another No. 1 player, Ash Barty.

Pegula was asked about that record in this round during her postmatch interview on court after winning her fourth-round match. And again in the news conference that followed. And again during a TV interview before stepping out into Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday.

If that all weighed on Pegula, she didn't let it show.

ESPN Stats & Information and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

- 

IGA SWIATEK HIT BY BALL,

 

AP

Iga Swiatek dropped to her knees on the court and clutched at her midsection after getting hit by a ball during a point in the Paris Olympics singles quarterfinals Wednesday, but it was her opponent, Danielle Collins of the United States, who stopped playing later in the third set.

Swiatek was leading 6-2, 1-6, 4-1 when Collins retired from the match after taking a medical timeout then getting another visit from a trainer.

Collins, a 30-year-old who was the runner-up at the 2022 Australian Open and has announced she will retire from elite-level tennis after this season, said she cramped and went into convulsions because of dehydration and exhaustion after competing in heat that reached 97 degrees Fahrenheit on Tuesday.

She blamed Olympic organizers for not having insulated water bottles, for the water not being cool enough and for not "prioritizing the health of the athletes."

"It's incredibly disappointing because you work so hard your whole life to make it to the Olympics, and this is my first and my last Olympics, and something like not having adequate water on court. That's really frustrating and it's really sad," Collins said.

In the opening game of the final set, with Collins serving at deuce, she directed a backhand down the middle of the court. Swiatek was up at the net and unable to get out of the way of the shot.

Swiatek looked stunned as she let go of her white racket and stopped down on the red clay at Court Suzanne Lenglen. Collins -- who asked, "Iga, are you OK?" -- walked around the net to check on Swiatek, and chair umpire Damien Dumusois climbed out of his perch to see how the world's No. 1 player was.

"I could not breathe for a moment. It hurt for a bit," Swiatek said. "But with the adrenaline that you have on court, you don't feel as much as you should."

Swiatek eventually rose and nodded to indicate she could continue.

Three points later, Collins pushed a forehand long and Swiatek had a break. Soon, she would break again to lead 3-0 in that set, and Collins left the court for a medical timeout that delayed the action for about five minutes. When they resumed, it quickly became 4-0, before Collins took a game. But then she conceded the match.

In the semifinals, Swiatek will face Zheng Qinwen, who ended the stellar career of Germany's Angelique Kerber in a titanic tussle that ended 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (6).

Zheng failed to convert three successive match points in the third set as Kerber clung on grimly in stifling heat but eventually prevailed, collapsing to the red clay in disbelief as Kerber's last shot struck the net.

Kerber, a three-time Grand Slam champion, announced last week she would retire after the Olympics.

"I've achieved everything I dreamt of," Kerber said. "I was No. 1, won Grand Slams, won a [silver] medal in Rio, so what more could you want in the end?"

Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic bowed out with a 6-4, 6-2 loss to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova. Schmiedlova has now eliminated both women who played in the final at the All England Club 2½ weeks ago. She defeated Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini in the third round Tuesday and now is the first tennis semifinalist from Slovakia at a Summer Games since 1988.

Krejcikova was seeded ninth in Paris and has fared well on the clay courts at Roland Garros, which hosts the French Open and is being used for tennis at these Olympics. Her first Grand Slam singles championship came at the French Open in 2021, when she also won the doubles title.

But with the heat at 90 degrees Fahrenheit and the air thick with humidity, Krejcikova looked listless down the stretch against Schmiedlova, a 29-year-old who is ranked 67th and owns one fourth-round appearance at a Slam. That came last year at Roland Garros.

By the end, Krejcikova appeared spent and was barely moving. She slapped a forehand into the net to finish the match, and Schmiedlova raised both arms overhead.

The two players accumulated nearly the exact same number of winners, with 18 for Krejcikova and 17 for Schmiedlova. The big difference was in unforced errors: 32 by Krejcikova, more than twice as many as Schmiedlova's 15.

That included five double-faults for Krejcikova, who needed to deal with 11 break points and lost five of her service games.

Next for Schmiedlova will be a match Thursday against Donna Vekic of Croatia, who beat Coco Gauff in the third round, or Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine, with a place in the gold medal final on the line.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

- 

GEORGIA HOLD CZECHS TO 1-1 DRAW

Reuters 

 European Championship newcomers Georgia took their first point of the tournament in a 1-1 draw with the Czech Republic on Saturday that left both teams probably needing to win their final Group F game to stand any chance of advancing.

Georges Mikautadze converted a stoppage-time penalty at the end of the first half to put Georgia ahead but Patrik Schick equalised in the 59th minute when the ball rebounded off the far post and on to his chest from Ondrej Lingr's glancing header from a corner.

Both the Czechs and Georgia lost their opening games and, with one point each, will be under immense pressure to get a result in their last group games on Wednesday.

Portugal and Turkey were playing later in Dortmund in Saturday's other Group F game.

- Reuters 

COCO GAUFF WINS HER FIRST GRAND SLAM DOUBLES TITLE AT THE FRENCH OPEN

AP Photo 

 PARIS (AP) — Coco Gauff won her first Grand Slam doubles title by teaming with Katerina Siniakova for the French Open trophy on Sunday.

Gauff, a 20-year-old American who won the U.S. Open singles title last year, and Siniakova, who is from the Czech Republic, defeated Italians Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani 7-6 (5), 6-3 on Court Philippe Chatrier.

It was Gauff's third women's doubles final after losing championship matches at Roland Garros in 2022 and the U.S. Open in 2021.

AP Photo 

Gauff and Siniakova both kissed the Coupe Simonne Mathieu — the winners' trophy.

“Third time’s a charm. Thank you, Katerina, for playing with me. We decided two days before the tournament to play together,” Gauff said. "Thank you to the fans. I know 11:30 Sunday morning is early for most people. It’s early for me.”

Paolini was also the runner-up in the singles final at Roland Garros to four-time champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday. Swiatek beat Gauff in the singles semifinal.

AP Photo 

“The last two weeks were very nice, very emotional,” Paolini said. “I have a lot of memories. I can’t wait to be back.”

Siniakova owns a career Slam in women's doubles alongside partner Barbora Krejcikova and has won eight majors — including the French Open in 2018 and 2021.

AP Photo 

Errani also owns a career Slam in doubles alongside her former partner Roberta Vinci. The Italian pair won the French Open title in 2012 — the year Errani lost the singles final.

“It’s really special to be in this court again. I don’t know how many more years I have to play. But it’s always special to play these kinds of matches,” the 37-year-old Errani said. “It will be special to play the Olympics here in this place. So I’ll see you in one month.”

AP Photo 

Paolini was playing in her first final in women's doubles.

Errani’s serve was broken twice in the first set, and Paolini stayed on the baseline to compensate in the 11th game. The tactic worked as Errani held serve.

Gauff and Siniakova took the first set when Errani’s volley at the net went long and raced to a 4-1 lead in the second set, with Paolini 0-30 down on her serve.

The Italians fought back to 4-3 with a service game to follow, but Errani’s serve was broken again and their momentum was lost. ___

- JEROME PUGMIRE

AUSTRALIAN OPEN ORDER OF PLAY ON SATURDAY

 

USA TODAY Sports 

Order of play on the main court on the 14th day of the Australian Open on Saturday (times local, prefix number denotes seeding):

* Day session: From 12 p.m. (0100 GMT)

* Night session: From 7:30 p.m. (0830 GMT)

ROD LAVER ARENA

Junior Girls' Singles final

1-Renata Jamrichova (Slovakia) v 6-Emerson Jones (Australia)

Junior Boys' Singles final

Jan Kumstat (Czech Republic) v 4-Rei Sakamoto (Japan)

Night session

Women's Singles final

12- Zheng Qinwen (China) v 2-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus)

Men's Doubles final

Simone Bolelli (Italy)/Andrea Vavassori (Italy) v 2-Rohan Bopanna (India)/Matthew Ebden (Australia)

- Reuters 

NOVAK DJOKOVIC LEADS SERBIA INTO UNITED CUP QUARTERFINALS

Reuters 

Novak Djokovic helped Serbia advance to the United Cup quarterfinals and a date with host Australia.

Serbia beat the Czech Republic 2-1 on Tuesday in Perth to win Group E. Djokovic held off Jiri Lehecka 6-1, 6-7 (3), 6-1 but the Czechs leveled with Marketa Vondrousova's 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 defeat of Olga Danilovic. Danilovic paired with Hamad Medjedovic for the decisive 4-6, 7-5, 10-8 win in mixed doubles over Petr Nouza and Miriam Kolodziejova.

AUSTRALIA OUTCLASS FINLAND TO RETURN TO DAVIS CUP FINAL

Reuters 

Australia reached a second successive Davis Cup final when Alex de Minaur overpowered Emil Ruusuvuori 6-4 6-3 after Alexei Popyrin beat Otto Virtanen 7-6(5) 6-2 to earn the 28-time champions a 2-0 win over Finland on Friday.

Lleyton Hewitt's team, who lost to Canada in the 2022 final and missed the opportunity to close in on 32-time champions the United States, will face Serbia or Italy who meet in the second semi-final on Saturday.

Giant-killers Finland were the only country left in Malaga to have not won a Davis Cup crown after the Netherlands lost to Italy but their quest to make a first final in the elite men's team competition ended with a whimper.

De Minaur, who sparked Australia's comeback victory in their quarter-final against the Czech Republic, left the Finns with an uphill task as he showed his resolve to recover from an early break against Ruusuvuori and take the first set.

Ruusuvuori showed little sign of the shoulder problem that kept him out of Finland's stunning win over champions Canada in the last eight and played aggressively in the second set but De Minaur held firm.

"Extremely proud moment but I could have not done it without these guys," De Minaur said, pointing to his team. "What we have been able to accomplish in back-to-back years is special just to show we come together as a group and how important it is for us.

"Alexei hasn't played for Australia in a very long time and had a massive match. He played a very high quality opponent and dug super deep. He won us the tie.

"I'm happy to be in another final and hopefully we can do one better."

CZECH REPUBLIC 1-2 DENMARK | POST MATCH ANALYSIS | #EURO2020

KALVIN PHILLIPS STATS VS. CZECH REPUBLIC | #EURO2020

CZECH REPUBLIC: PETR CECH AMESTAAFU MICHUANO YA KIMATAIFA

Kipa wa Arsenal na nchi ya Czech Republic, Petr Cech, amestaafu michuano ya kimataifa...Cech mwenye umri wa miaka 34 amechezea nchi yake mara 124...Alianza kuchezea timu ya taifa ya wakubwa mwaka 2002 na akaenda kuiwaakilisha nchi yake Euro 2004 na badae World Cup 2006...Euro 2008 aliisaidia timu yake akiwa kama Captain...Cech amemaliza msimu na Arsenal akiongoza kwa kuwa kipa mwenye clean sheet...Bofya hapa upate habari zaidi.