Around the Tour: Osaka breaks grass drought
FORMER world number one Naomi Osaka cruised to her first win on grass court since the 2019 Birmingham Classic, taking care of Belgian Elise Mertens at the Libema Open. Osaka won 6-2 6-4 at the ‘s-Hertogenbosch event in the Netherlands, needing 69 minutes to knock off the 32nd ranked Belgian. Holding a wildcard at the […]
Aussies receive favourable BJK Cup qualifier
FRESH off failing to make the semi-finals after coming runner-up the year before, Australia has been handed a favourable Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup qualifying tie for 2024. The world number twos – behind only reigning champions Canada – were seeded one heading into the 2024 BJK Cup Qualifying draw last night – and drew […]
Juvan sets up Slovenian BJK Cup success
SLOVENIAN rising star Kaja Juvan has moved her nation one step closer to the Billie Jean King Cup knockout stages after dominating second ranked Australian Ajla Tomljanovic in just 36 minutes. The 104th ranked 22-year-old – who turns 23 later this month – was outstanding in the 6-4 6-1 victory, with the 17 games lasting […]
2023 BJK Cup Finals preview: Swiss eye back-to-back titles
SWITZERLAND returns to the Billie Jean King Cup Finals determined to go back-to-back after defeating Australia in the decider last year. Twelve months on, and the four players that tasted that success return with top seeded Belinda Bencic alongside Jil Teichmann, while doubles pairing Viktorija Golubic and Simona Waltert are also back. This year, the […]
2023 US Open Day 1 Talking Points
A COUPLE of huge upsets have already gone down at Flushing Meadows as the US Open got underway with the opening day of action completing in the Australia early afternoon hours today. Some big seeds bowed out, others came from behind and there were no shortage of talking points. Masarova sinks Sakkari The biggest upset […]
ITF update: Aussies and Japanese dominate in Burnie
ALL eight of the remaining contenders in the ITF W25 event in Burnie are either home nation hopes or Japanese talents with the Apple Isle event edging closer to the pointy end. Aussie young gun Olivia Gadecki headlines the field, having reached the quarter finals after some impressive performances, and will now take on compatriot […]
2023 Australian Open ICYMI: Day 5
AFTER a day of upsets and epics on Thursday, and though a bit more normality returned to Melbourne Park in the day session, there were still plenty of surprises at night. THE GOOD: Unpredictable wins. China’s Lin Zhu stunned sixth seed Maria Sakkari in three sets, while Sebastian Korda took down 2022 finalist, Daniil Medvedev […]
2023 Australian Open ICYMI: Day 2
WEATHER at both ends of the spectrum gave players a taste of the ‘four seasons in one day’ for Melbourne, with scorching heat, followed by rain forced delays and suspended contests. Here is a quick look at what did go down on day two. THE GOOD: Epic tennis. There were some absolute thrillers on both […]
Tiafoe confident ahead of AO as Kooyong crowd treated to entertaining spectacle
WORLD number 17 Frances Tiafoe is bullish on his chances at next week’s Australian Open. There is saying you want to win a major, and there is confidently declaring it. Tiafoe has set that as a realistic goal ahead of this year’s first Grand Slam tournament. The American enters the Australian Open off the back of […]
Aussies de Minaur, Hijikata get wins ahead of Australian Open
TOP-RANKED Australian male Alex de Minaur has carried his strong form from the United Cup to Melbourne, defeating Dominic Thiem 6-4 6-4 in the Kooyong Classic opener on Tuesday. De Minaur has repeatedly spoken about his love for playing in front of his home crowd and representing his country, and, donning the green and gold, […]
