Czechia claims top gong in historic mixed doubles win
CZECHIA is the toast of mixed doubles tennis at the Paris Olympics, after Katerina Siniakova and Tomas Machac proved too strong for China’s Xinyu Wang and Zhizhen Zhang in the gold medal match. In a match that lasted about an hour and a quarter, the Czach duo ultimately prevailed in the third set tie breaker […]
Mixed doubles means more mixed up expectations
IF there is one thing to learn from the mixed doubles draw at the 2024 Olympics, it is that rankings are often nothing more than just a number. American third seeds Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz learnt this the hard way, losing to their northern neighbours Gabriela Dabrowski and Felix Auger-Aliassime in three sets. The […]
Rankings don’t mean much with surprises aplenty in mixed doubles
THE Mixed Doubles competition of the 2024 Olympics got underway at Roland Garros overnight, and right out of the gate the surprises came. German pair Laura Siegemund and Alexander Zverev found out the hard way that their number one ranking was merely a number after they succumbed to Czech pair Katerina Siniakova and Tomas Machac […]
Doubles Dutch allows Norway into final eight
A STUNNING last gasp hurrah from Dutch dup Wesley Koolhof and Demi Schuurs has sensationally allowed Norway a place in the quarter finals after a thrilling finish to Group F. In what was the closest group in Sydney, Croatia had taken the tie with two singles wins – after a shock loss to Norway the […]
China finds Czech mate in clean sweep
CHINA stunned Group E’s top ranked nation in Czech Republic with a 3-0 clean sweep over higher ranked opponents. Though the Asian nation was regarded as a dark horse coming into the tournament, few could have predicted that China would breeze past one of the tournament favourites. Zhizhen Zhang had the first big challenge up […]
2024 United Cup preview: Group F
CONCLUDING the 2024 United Cup group previews, we take a look at Group F, where title contenders Croatia suit up alongside Netherlands and Norway in what looms as a competitive round robin. All three sides have capable stars, with Croatia and Netherlands also having elite doubles players. Group F begins on Saturday when Netherlands takes […]
WTA Tour wrap: Jabeur and Sharma to face off in Charleston as Billie Jean King Cup playoff winners decided
ONS Jabeur and Astra Sharma will face off in the MUSC Health Women’s Open final after the respective players toppled their opponents overnight in the semi-finals. Top seed Jabeur continued her steam-rolling of opponents with a 6-3 6-0 smashing of Montenegro’s Danka Kovinic, reversing the result of last tournament, when Kovinic won in straight sets. […]
Fed Cup qualifiers wrap: Eight nations book spot in Finals
SIX of the eight seeded nations have booked a spot in the Fed Cup finals following the round’s qualifying action over the weekend. Plenty of top 20 WTA Tour players were running around the courts across the world in a number of tight contests. Fourth seed Germany was the only side to sweep the opponent […]
2020 Fed Cup qualifiers preview: Nations load up on star talent
MUCH like the Davis Cup last year, the Fed Cup in 2020 has undergone a revamp with a World Cup-style tournament planned for Budapest in April. In it, 12 nations will compete for the title, with last year’s grand finalists, France and Australia automatically qualifying, as well as host nation Hungary, and wildcard Czech Republic […]
