Zheng seizes control to take out Uchijima in Tokyo
A DOMINANT purple patch when 5-4 down in the first set lit the flame of top seed Qinwen Zheng in Tokyo as the Chinese talent won the last nine games of the match against local hope Moyuka Uchijima to reach the Pan Pacific Open quarter finals. Uchijima took it up to Zheng early, was no […]
Katie Boults into Tokyo second round
BRITISH ninth seed Katie Boulter wasted no time in dismissing Australian qualifier Priscilla Hon to race into the Round of 16 at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo overnight. The sole seed in action, and only match that did not contain a local Japanese hope, Boulter needed just 77 minutes to get past Hon 6-1 […]
Turkish qualifier upsets Pole in Tokyo
AN EARLY upset on day one saw Turkish qualifier Zeynep Sonmez take out seventh seed Magdalena Frech to reach the second round of the WTA 500 event in Tokyo. Sonmez – ranked 148th in the world – defeated Frech 1-6 6-4 6-3, coming back from the brink to post the victory in an hour and […]
Around the Tour: Upstaged in Antwerp; upsets galore
THERE was no shortage of upsets across multiple ATP and WTA Tour events overnight, but the major results came in Antwerp where three of the lower ranked players took out the top three seeds. In what was a dismantling day, number one seed Alex de Minaur, number two seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and number three seed […]
Around the Tour: Ito crafts third straight upset
ADMITTING she has not got “any power” and she is “skinny”, Japanese qualifier Aoi Ito has made a name for herself in Osaka. The 188th ranked Japanese hope knows where her strengths and weaknesses lie, and focuses on what she can do, rather than she cannot, leading her to a quarter finals appearance in the […]
Sorribes Tormo survives four-hour marathon in Beijing
SPANIARD Sara Sorribes Tormo survived the fourth longest WTA Tour match in Open era history with a come-from-behind win over Chinese wildcard Gao Xinyu in an epic four-hour and 15-minute battle at the China Open in Beijing. In what can only be described as a battle of attrition, the 104th ranked Sorribes Tormo came back […]
Osaka crushes Jabeur to reach Toronto second round
BUILT up as the match to watch in the first round of the National Bank Open, former world number one Naomi Osaka made light work of ninth seed Ons Jabeur en route to a dominate 6-3 6-1 victory in just 72 minutes. Osaka returned to her preferred hardcourt surface and picked up her fifth Top […]
PREVIEW | 2024 Paris Olympic Games
PARIS will place host to a second massive tennis event in a couple of months when the Olympic Games gets underway this weekend. We took a look at some of the top players representing their countries, and who might lift the trophies. In an article tomorrow, Rookie Me Central will take a deep dive into […]
Around the Tour: US Open winners set for quarter finals clash
A TANTALISING quarter finals clash between US Open champions Naomi Osaka and Bianca Andreescu awaits in ‘s-Hertogenbosch after the pair won their respective Round of 16 matches overnight. Osaka, who holds four Grand Slams – all on hard court – three more than Andreescu’s sole 2019 US Open title, will face the fellow wildcard on […]
Swiatek double bagels Potapova in 40 minutes
IT had to be seen to be believed, but world number one Iga Swiatek played like she had somewhere to be during her fourth round win over Anastasia Potapova, smashing the Russian 6-0 6-0 in just four minutes at Roland Garros. Swiatek’s double bagel in the Round of 16 was her shortest match in history, […]