Tag:

Tennis

Other Sports

Stefanos Tsitsipas comes out on top against Zdenez Kolar during an intense four-hour showdown that wraps up Day 5 of the 2022 French Open

by Sports Benches

What a way to finish Day 5 of the 2022 French Open with a four-hour thriller between Zdenez Kolar from Czech Repiblicj & Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas at Court Suzanne Lenglen. Tsitsipas went up ahead early in the first half while Kolar was never being given a free pass where he showed plenty of fight throughout the whole time. But a 3rd set win alone from Kolar wasn’t enough to drag this game even further towards a 5th set decider & a possible shock upset, as Tsitsipas takes out the win; 3-6, 6-7 via 8-10 tiebreaker, 7-6 via 7-3 tiebreaker, 6-7 via 7-9 tiebreaker.

It’s unlucky to see Kolar being eliminated after he did everything possible to stay in this fight during his Round 2 match-up. He responded really well from the opening set down where Kolar held back Tsitsipas until the very end through the tiebreak, which is a super competitive effort from the 25-year-old, who is currently ranked at World No.134. Although he denied Tsitsipas a straight sets win at the first attempt following the 3rd set, but a poor start and finishing just saw Kolar being too far behind when it comes to matching his opponent’s elite stature. There’s always room for improvement because Kolar never gave up & fought hard against a top-ranked player like an underdog tonight, as he hopes to come back better with even more miracles at Wimbledon late next month.

And congratulations To Tsitsipas with the win where he will advance to Round 3 on Day 7 Saturday v Mikael Ymer from Sweden. It was a very easy fire off as always with the opening set lead. Now Tsitsipas wasn’t given an easy ride as this tie goes on where he was constantly being challenged by Kolar that went all the way through the tiebreak. He almost got the job done in straight sets at one point, having secured a close 2nd set win before Kolar struck one back going into the fourth set. However, he finally found light at the end of the tunnel when Tsitsipas used his first-half advantage that came back to haunt Kolar & closed his gruelling night at the office on a high note.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

2022 French Open: Iga Swiatek too good for Alison Riske in Round 2 at Court Suzanne Lenglen

by Sports Benches

World No.1 Iga Swiatek was just too good against Alison Riske in straight sets at Court Suzanne Lenglen. Her first set spell so was outstanding that went unchallenged with six games to zero.

Although Riske may have fought back a game or two after the break, but it’s all about the overall performance where Swiatek closed this off comfortably from start to finish; 6-0, 6-2.

It was not the exit Riske wanted, having been blown away by Swiatek’s elite offerings on the table. She did the best she can when Riske fought back a couple of games, as well as shown some late progress with two games being accrued in the 2nd set. But the ship was already sailed by that stage when it comes to the overall lead.

And there’s so many good things to say about Swiatek where she dominated this game for the whole time; left, right & centre. She will continue her French Open campaign going into Saturday for Round 3 against Danka Kovinic from Montenegro, in a bid to secure her 2nd grand slam triumph since that breakthrough here as a 19-year-old two years ago. And although she would’ve love to challenge Ash Barty at any final, but with Barty now retired, It’s Swiatek’s time now to prove herself that she can win grand slam singles’ tournaments every year.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

2022 French Open, Round 2: Belinda Bencic holds off Bianca Andreescu’s late fightback in the 2nd set with a straight sets win

by Sports Benches

It was an easy run for the majority from the World No.13 in Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic while Canadian Bianca Andreescu made up some lost time with the 2nd set rebound. At the end of the day though, it’s Bencic who cancelled Andreescu’s possible 3rd set lifeline in a straight sets win at Court Philippe Chatrier; 6-2, 6-4.

Belinda Bencic was just too good with the strong fire offs that helped her get the ball rolling through a massive lead, so she can give herself some time to hold back her opponent. She was prepared for whatever Andreescu throws at her during the 2nd set, having almost been tied at 1-1 going into the final set decider at one point. However, Bencic eventually found a way to shut down Andreescu’s best game with her opponent’s lack of finishing while she still held a comfortable lead, where the Swiss No.1 came out unscathed that helped secure a 3rd Round tie with another Canadian in Leyland Anne Fernandez tomorrow.

And Bianca Andreescu responded well as of late in the 2nd set where she did the best she can to stay in contention towards the 3rd & final set decider, as Bencic doesn’t give any opponent including Andreescu a free pass. However, the poor starts really hurt Andreescu while Bencic take advantage of her weaknesses with a huge lead before it’s too late. The knee hasn’t been great to her over the last year or two since her heroics at the US Open back in 2019, but there’s still a lot of time to climb back into her best form towards pre-2020 level at age 21.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

2022 French Open: Novak Djokovic advances into the 3rd Round with a straight sets win v Alex Molcan

by Sports Benches

It was an easy start by Novak Djokovic while Slovakian Alex Molcan began to make up some lost time after he was beaten easily in the opening set. However, Molcan’s late fightback in the 3rd set wasn’t enough to save his French Open campaign, as Djokovic closed out this Round 2 tie in straight sets with the win; 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 via 7-4 tiebreaker.

Congratulations to Djokovic who is through to Round 3 tomorrow against Aljaz Bedene from Slovenia. He was simply outstanding for the majority during these two opening sets. Although he had to overcome a competitive duel in the third while Molcan tried to keep this game alive, but Djokovic used the lifeline well going into the tiebreak and capped off in style with the win. Brilliant response there to hold back his opponent in a couple of areas that helped Novak being prepared to fight hard & show grand slam quality on the court.

Meanwhile, Moclan played some brilliant shots that earned him a few games, especially when he tried to stay in this fight which went all the way through the tiebreak in the 3rd set. But a poor opening set spell alongside a couple of gaps with his inconsistency just couldn’t him challenge the elite stature of Djokovic in the end. He came off a great run recently in the ATP Tour despite a couple of runner-up losses so far in 2022. But there’s still room for improvement though at age 24 where his best grand slam appearance was the US Open 3rd Round last year, as well as being the 38th ranked singles’ player right now.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

2022 French Open: Paula Badosa off to a great start after an easy 54 min match-up v Fiona Ferro in Round 1

by Sports Benches

And 3rd seed Spaniard Paula Badosa was just too good against Fiona Ferro from France in straight sets, 6-2, 6-0. She basically wrapped this up real quick in just 54 minutes from start to finis, as Badosa’s next opponent going into Round 2 tomorrow will be Estonian Kaja Juvan.

She’s currently ranked Number 2 behind Iga Swiatek from Poland in the world of the women’s singles game after Ash Barty chose to retire on a high with an Australian Open women’s singles’ title two months. Her best grand slam performance to date was the Quarter-Finals here last year where she was defeated by Slovakian Tamara Zidansek.

However, this is her only grand slam finals appearance so far after she couldn’t get past the Round of 16 earlier this year at the Australian Open by American Madison Keys in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1. It’s still a long way to go but a great tournament last year here on clay, as well as a great WTA Tour campaign, also off the back from the same year, will hopefully be her breakthrough in a bid to win her first grand slam career here at the Roland Garros.

And unlucky with the heavy loss from Ferro where she was eliminated very early in this tournament. She was on the same page as Badosa with a point or two at the beginning of this match-up, but she just couldn’t keep up the high standards Badsoa has set ever since.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

2022 French Open: Alex De Minaur eliminated early in a shock defeat by Frenchman Hugo Gaston despite a competitive battle out of a five-set showdown

by Sports Benches

We’re all gutted to see our Australian No.1 & World No.19 Alex De Minaur being eliminated early by Frenchman Hugo Gaston in the opening round of the 2022 French Open at Court Suzanne Lenglen, even though it was a really competitive effort by the two players.

He fired off well but then fell behind for a while where De Minaur at one point was on a brink towards an early end going into the third set. However, he never gave up and began to rebound lost time midway through this match-up with two easy mini-wins in sets 3 & 4. Unfortunately, he just couldn’t hold off Gaston in a head-to-head sprint to the finish when De Minaur blew his lifeline away during the 5th & final set via the tiebreak.

And hats off to 21-year-old Gaston who opened his French Open campaign he really wanted at home in Paris. He responded to De Minaur’s fire off beautifully at the beginning with a late snatch following the opening set before he was too good in the second stanza. Now he may began to falter when De Minaur denied Gaston the chance to close the opening round in straight sets, even though he was beaten so easily after the fourth set. However, you gotta praise his finishing going into the final set tiebreak where Gaston managed to reset himself that helped him bow out comfortably with the win.

The final score if 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 0-6, 7-6 via 10-6 tiebreaker, as Gaston will meet Argentine Pedro Cachin in the second round tomorrow.

There’s only one Aussie though in the men’s singles running when it comes to Jason Kulber after he too overcame a really tight battle v American Denis Kudla in straight sets that was all collected via tie-breakers. He will need to beat 10th seed Cameron Norrie from Great Britain if Kubler wishes to continue his run in the 2nd Round tonight.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

The next best Australian Tennis stars to watch following the retirement from Ash Barty

by Admin

Ashleigh Barty, a three-time Grand Slam champion, has announced her retirement from tennis. Barty, the No. 1 ranked women’s player got her country most of its major tournament, made it known publicly on Wednesday that she was leaving tennis for other pursuits. This will be the third time that Barty has stepped away from professional tennis but this is her first time of announcing her retirement. But her sudden retirement announcement coming after her triumph Melbourne, is a decision she has considered a lot. She has spent 113 weeks altogether at No. 1 putting her seventh on the career list. Barty happen to be the first women’s player to retire while on top of the single rankings since the Belgian star Justine Henin suddenly announced her retirement in May 2008.

Presently, and probably for eternity, Barty has ended her career $23.8 million prize money plus 15 career singles titles, including three at Grand Slam tournaments. In 2019, she won the French Open, in 2021 she won Wimbledon, and Australia Open this year, which means that she has won major singles titles on all three of tennis’ primary surfaces (clay, grass and hard court). Her triumph in the Australia Open gave her a great ending. She withdrew from the BNP Paribas Open making her Melbourne triumph her last match.

To conclude with, her unexpected retirement is obviously a blow to the sport. Barty is extremely popular in Australia with her humble personality. She is also a very important figure of Indigenous Austrailan descent.

After Barty’s retirement, there are few Aussie women’s players to watch: There are just two Australian women sitting in the world’s top 100 and they are Ajla Tomljanovic and Astra Sharma.

Ajla Tomljanovic has recorded eight singles wins in her career best Grand Slam season. She reached the Wimbledon quarter finals and US open third round. Ajla played a major role in the Fed Cup final in November 2019, making her first win for the country.

Astra Sharma won her first WTA singles title in April. She won her second WTA doubles title in Guadalajara. She was named twice in the Fed Cup team in 2019.

A 19 year old Olivier Gadecki. She is one of the fastest risers on the WTA the previous year. She moved from no ranking to mid-200s.

Charlotte Kempenaers and Tayla Preston are the two highest ranked juniors at the moment. They are both ranked in the top 40 – 50 in the world. Both of them will be competing at the upcoming junior grand slams.

THE NEXT BEST AUSTRAILIAN TENNIS STAR (MEN)

At 23, Alex de Minaur is one of Australia’s brilliant tennis prospect. He has continued to arise heads and he is still a player to keep close eye on moving forward.

De Minaur will be in action at the Miami Open on the 29th of March to face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the round of 32. Alex De Minaur has kept Australia’s hopes alive with a victory in the Davis Cup qualifier over Marton Fucsovics. In a relentless display, De Manaur defeated Fusovic, who is is ranked No. 35 in the world and 5 places below De Minaur.

James Duckworth is an Australia professional tennis player. He has a high rank in Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) singles ranking of the world No. 47 who he achieved on November 8 2021 and No. 185 doubles achieved on February 10 2020. Duckworth has won three titles and reached the semifinals of the 2010 French Open.

Thanasi Kokkinakis has made another chapter in his stunning 2022 comeback story with a victory over Hungary in the Davis Cup qualifier. It was his first match win in the world team event since 2015. That was the last time he represented Australia against Great Britain in the World Group semifinals.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

Tennis News, Thanasi Kokkinakis has just helped Australia clinch a 2022 Davis Cup finals berth after he defeated Zsombor Piros in straight sets

by Sports Benches

Thanasi Kokkinakis has done it for Australia having just defeated Zsombor Piros in straight sets, Australia just wrapped up a 3-2 series win following the best of five match-ups v Hungary in the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers at Ken Rosewall Arena. That means Australia has now punched their ticket for the Finals later this year, where they join 17 other qualified teams to battle it out for the Davis Cup title.

Kokkinakis was relieved to come out unscathed following a close battle with Piros for the whole time that determined the series result for his country, Australia. He fired off well with the early lead, then he was tested on occasions where Piros fought back as this deciding tie goes on. However, it’s all about persistence, having taken his time wisely thanks to the first set lead advantage, that helped Kokkinakis play a huge part in Australia’s series decider win v Hungary.

Meanwhile, Piros would be disappointed with the loss even though he has been a great opponent to face. We love how he made up some lost time during the second-half run in each spell, having almost brought in the tiebreaker that can give him an extended shot to try & stay in this game. He left it too late when Piros lacked the first-half momentum & fell behind along the way, in which he was let down in this area while trying to hold back Kokkinakis.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

Tennis News, Alex De Minaur levels 2-2 for Australia with one deciding tie to spare after he overcame a competitive singles duel v Marton Fucsovics

by Sports Benches

Wow! How good is Alex De Minaur! He just defeated Marton Fucsovics in such terrific fashion after a tight encounter with a straight-sets win at Ken Rosewall Arena, as Australia level 2-2 v Hungary with the 5th and deciding singles tie left to go.

Both players played so well when they were neck in neck for that opening set lead, but De Minaur got there first via the tiebreaker before he overcame another tough duel & held off Fucsovics that wowed the home crowd supporters by his side.

Final Score: 7-6 via 7-4 tiebreaker, 6-4

Fucsovics didn’t get the win he deserves through two hours of play on the court today v De Minaur. He got the build-up base going where the Hungarian was on the same page as the Aussie for the whole time, which helped him stay on top of his game. He just couldn’t group himself when Fucsovics was under immense pressure while trying to overtake & hold off De Minaur, and De Minaur spotted his one huge weakness that saw the Australian escape in both sets.

And going back to De Minaur, it’s incredible to see him save Australia’s hopes alive in their 2022 Davis Qualifier v Hungary on home soil after four ties out of five. He never gave up with so much fight under his belly, having been on the same page as Fucsovics. It gave him some time to get on top of his opponent before De Minaur re-setted the momentum via the tiebreak, got himself past the opening set & persisted in that fight, as Australian No.1 was able to maintain his path towards victory.

Australia is turning their attention to Thanasi Kokkinakis for the 5th and deciding tie v Zsombor Piros right now, with the Davis Cup Finals place up for grabs later this year if Kokkinakis can wrap up a 3-2 series win.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

Tennis News, Alex De Minaur off to a great start v Zsombor Piros as Australia lead Hungary 1-0 in the Day 1 of the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers

by Sports Benches

Great start by the Aussies v Hungary on Day 1 of the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers at Ken Rosewall Arena. It was a competitive opening set spell between Australian No.1 Alex De Minaur and Zsombor Piros. However, it’s De Minaur who just narrowly escaped Piros with the early lead before he wrapped up comfortably in straight sets (7-5, 6-2).

Piros would be disappointed with the loss there. He tested De Minaur well that held the Aussie back on occasions, and he almost put in a tiebreaker that would’ve given the Hungarian a great chance to build on from his opening set performance. He just couldn’t give himself a bit more time when Piros made up some lost time, then a close first set loss threw him an even tougher challenge after the break & was unable to find a way out ever since.

And hats off to De Minaur with the win that gifted Australia a 1-0 lead after this first singles match-up. We love how he stuck to his game & never gave up battling while facing a decent opponent like Piros in the first set. Thankfully, he overcame a close battle unscathed when it comes to the executions before De Minaur smashed this game with confidence.

Next up is Thanasi Kokkinakis (Australia) v Marion Fucsvovics (Hungary) in the second singles match of the 2022 Davis Cup Qualifiers series between Australia v Hungary.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail