In January, ESPN Classic will present more than 100 hours of Australian Open programming, plus tennis-themed editions of the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning SportsCentury series and other interview shows. Beginning Tuesday, Jan. 8, ESPN Classic will air Australian Open programming virtually around the clock until Friday, Jan. 11 at 8:00 p.m. The marathon of more than 80 hours will climax with…
The 2014 Australian Open will take place at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia from Jan. 13-26. ATP top-ranked Rafael Nadal will look to unseat reigning champion Novak Djokovic on the men’s side of the draw, while world number one Serena Williams looks to take the title from Victoria Azarenka, 2013’s defending women’s champ. Here is…
Bulgarian qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova scored a big upset Wednesday at the 2014 Apia International Sydney to advance to the semifinals with a 7-6(2), 6-3 win over the number three seed, Italy's Sara Errani in the quarterfinals. Pironkova is now into her second-biggest WTA semifinal, her biggest being Wimbledon in 2010. "This off-season I decided to change things a little, taking it easier and…
The top-seeded American duo of Bob & Mike Bryan were upset Wednesday at the Apia International Sydney, falling to the unseeded duo of Lukas Rosol & Joao Sousa 3-6 6-3 [14-12] in the quarterfinals. It marked the Bryans' earliest exit in Sydney since 2007. Winners of the last two doubles titles in Sydney, the Bryans have won three Apia International…
It was a good day for the United States at Auckland’s Heineken Open on Wednesday, beginning with American Jack Sock's upset of the second-seeded Tommy Haas, 6-4, 6-4. The 21-year-old Sock, currently ranked 100th in the Emirates ATP Rankings, advances to his third ATP Tour-level quarterfinal and next meets Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, a 6-3, 6-4 winner over the sixth-seeded Benoit Paire….
The top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska was upset by Bethanie Mattek-Sands at the Apia International Sydney, falling 5-7, 2-6 on Tuesday. Having already won three qualifying rounds and a first round match this week, Mattek-Sands fell behind to Radwanska 5-3 in the first set, but turned things around in a hurry, building a 7-5, 3-0 lead en route to the win. Up…
Lucie Safarova pulled off the latest surprise at the Apia International Sydney on Tuesday, defeating Caroline Wozniacki 6-4, 7-6(7) to move into the quarterfinals. Wozniacki led 3-0 in the first set and held four set points in the second set tie-break, three at 6-3 and a fourth at 7-6, but Safarova won the last eight points of the first set and six…
Caroline Wozniacki opened her 2014 season on Monday with a 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 win over Julia Goerges in the first round of the Sydney International, one of the final warm-ups before the Australian Open. Wozniacki withdrew from last week's Brisbane International after hurting her right shoulder in practice and struggled early against Goerges, who was replacing the injured Sloane Stephens in the…
Australian Lleyton Hewitt defeated Roger Federer 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 in the finals of the Brisbane International, presented by Suncorp, earning his first ATP World Tour title since the 2010. "It means a lot with the caliber of players here as well in this tournament," said Hewitt. "It's not an easy tournament to win. I wasn't one of the top four…
Rafael Nadal defeated Gael Monfils in the finals of the 2014 Qatar ExxonMobil Open, opening his 2014 campaign with his 61st career title with a 6-1, 6-7(5), 6-2 victory. With Novak Djokovic opting not to play in Doha, Nadal further built on his lead at number one in the Emirates ATP Rankings, adding 250 points as well as $188,600 in prize…