Tennis News

From around the world

'It wasn’t that long ago, surely?’ – GB aim to end 25-year Fed Cup wait

  • Posted: Apr 19, 2018
Japan v Great Britain – Fed Cup World Group II play-off
Venue: Bourbon Beans Dome, Miki, Japan Dates: 21-22 April
Coverage: Live TV streaming on the BBC Sport website and mobile app, Radio 5 live updates, plus live text commentary on 22 April

The last time Great Britain were in the elite group of the Fed Cup one of the current team was not even born, two were toddlers and one was aged four.

“It seems ridiculous now – it wasn’t that long ago, surely?” said Julie Salmon, a member of the GB team from 1993 – the last time the country was in the World Group of the women’s tennis team competition.

The 25-year wait for a return will be over this weekend if Great Britain beat hosts Japan in their World Group II play-off. Victory will also mean the possibility of playing at home for the first time in a quarter of a century.

  • Fed Cup can’t be ignored while ‘time & energy” devoted to Davis Cup – Keothavong

British number one Johanna Konta, 26, and Heather Watson, 25, will be the singles players for the tie on indoor hard courts in Miki, while Anna Smith, 29 and debutant Gabi Taylor, 20, also feature.

The first of Saturday’s two singles rubbers starts at 05:00 BST, while Sunday’s action – the reverse singles plus a doubles match – begins at 04:00 BST.

BBC Sport has spoken to three members of the 1993 team – Jo Durie, Clare Wood and Salmon – to assess the current team’s chances and find out why it is worth setting your alarm clock early to follow the tie on the BBC.

Home sweet home

Salmon still has the memorabilia she picked up off the floor when the scoreboards were being dismantled after the 1977 Federation Cup – as it was then known – at Eastbourne, where she went to watch as a 12-year-old.

“That inspired me to play,” said the 52-year-old, who competed in the event between 1988 and 1993.

“I stayed until the very last minute, when they were taking down the scoreboards – and I’ve still got them somewhere. I took as many pictures and country names as I possibly could, to my parents’ annoyance – they probably wanted to get home.

“To have a tie in this country and what that could do to inspire juniors to play and compete… we’ve got such a fantastic team that it would be amazing to eventually get a home tie.”

Teams in the World Group play home and away ties, while those in the Europe/Africa Zone – where Great Britain have been stuck for so long – play a week-long round-robin competition at one venue to determine who will make the play-offs.

While Britain have made the play-offs for the fourth time in seven years, each time they have been drawn to play away from home.

A flawed format?

In Durie, Salmon and Wood’s day, the Federation Cup followed a different format – more like a tennis World Cup with 32 countries participating in a week-long event in one country.

But that changed in 1995 when a multi-tiered league system was introduced, and Great Britain have been unable to climb back to the elite level.

“That Euro-Africa Group I zone is the toughest zone in the world to get out of and stay out of,” Wood said.

“You’ve got nations like Croatia, Serbia, sometimes Romania – it’s hard, high-quality tennis so you’ve got to have strength in depth.”

Britain lost play-offs in Sweden in 2012, in Argentina in 2013 and in Romania last year, and defeat in Japan this weekend will send them back to square one again.

“When Great Britain got to the final against USA [in 1981], there were 32 teams in Japan. It was a good event,” said former world number five Durie, who featured in the doubles alongside Sue Barker in that final.

“There’s one week, you know where you are, there’s 32 teams that can have a go – maybe it would be good to go back to that.”

The International Tennis Federation wants to turn the Davis Cup – the men’s equivalent of the Fed Cup – into a one-week tournament featuring 18 countries, while there have been plenty of calls for a revamp of the Fed Cup.

When she resigned as GB captain in 2016, Judy Murray said: “Things have got to change. The GB team has been stuck in the 16-team Euro-Africa Zone for an eternity.

“If you don’t make the play-off, there’s nothing until the following February, making it impossible to build any momentum on or off the court.

“Everyone can see the buzz created around the home ties and team tennis at all stages of the Davis Cup. Fed Cup should be afforded a similar format.”

The Osaka factor

While Britain’s women’s tennis is, according to Fed Cup captain Anne Keothavong, “at its highest point in over three decades” with eight players ranked in the top 250 in the world, the form of the team’s singles players has been shaky of late.

Konta has slipped from ninth in the world rankings at the start of the year to 23rd, while Watson, ranked 77th, is on a run of seven successive losses and has not won a match since January.

That is in marked contrast to Japan’s top player, Naomi Osaka, who has climbed to 22 in the world from 68 at the end of 2017 and last month won Indian Wells – one of the most prestigious tournaments outside the Grand Slams.

Asked where this weekend’s tie would be won or lost, Salmon and Wood immediately responded with the same question: “Is Osaka playing?”

Durie added: “Naomi Osaka is a very good player who is on her way up.

“But she has been winning a lot. Sometimes that is a different kind of pressure, and at home in Japan they expect their players to play well and perform, so she will have that pressure on her, for sure. She might be a little bit nervy.

“We just have to be strong and step up.”

A reason for British optimism is Osaka’s head-to-head record against Konta, the Japanese 20-year-old having lost their two tour-level encounters last year.

Forgetting about Nastase

Britain’s defeat in Romania last year was overshadowed by home captain Ilie Nastase verbally abusing Konta and Keothavong and swearing at the umpire, which led to him being suspended by the ITF.

Konta left the court in tears and her match against Sorana Cirstea was suspended for 25 minutes in a tie that Romania eventually won 3-2.

Durie called on this year’s players to learn from the experience as it “probably can’t get much worse that that”.

“There might have been things said to me on court in a team event but you’ve got to use that to spur you on and think ‘they can say what they like to me but my racquet is going to do the talking’,” she said.

“You are going to have a few of these moments in a team event. The crowd are going to be against you but you’ve got to enjoy that situation and the battle and get the best out of yourself.

“The Japanese are a little bit more polite. They will be cheering but I don’t think it will get to what happened last year.”

And what other advice would the 1993 team give to this year’s?

“Relax and enjoy,” Salmon said. “Don’t feel that pressure of we haven’t done it for 25 years.

“Just keep knocking on that door and it will eventually open.”

Source link

Fed Cup can't be ignored while 'time & energy" devoted to Davis Cup – Keothavong

  • Posted: Apr 19, 2018
Japan v Great Britain – Fed Cup 2018 play-offs
Venue: Bourbon Beans Dome, Miki, Japan Dates: 21-22 April
Coverage: Live TV streaming on the BBC Sport website and mobile app, Radio 5 live updates, plus live text commentary on 22 April

Great Britain captain Anne Keothavong says the Fed Cup must not be “ignored” while so much “time and energy” is being devoted to Davis Cup reform.

GB will be promoted to the World Group for the first time since 1993 if they beat Japan in a play-off this weekend.

In February, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) announced plans for a new-look Davis Cup.

“I hope the ITF value the Fed Cup as much as the Davis Cup – and give women a chance to shine,” said Keothavong.

Unlike the Davis Cup, the World Group of the women’s event is currently split into two divisions of eight teams.

Under the current format, the winners of the GB-Japan tie would have to earn another promotion in 2019 to be able to compete for the title in 2020.

“I would like to see a 16-team World Group,” Keothavong told BBC Sport after a penultimate day of practice at the Bourbon Beans Dome in Miki, near Kobe.

“I would like to see the ITF do something with the Fed Cup competition which brings it in line with Davis Cup.”

  • Live scores, schedule and results

The ITF announced plans for a 25-year, $3bn (£2.15bn) partnership with the investment group Kosmos which would see the Davis Cup fought over by 18 teams at an annual end of season event.

It remains to be seen whether the proposal will get the support required at August’s annual general meeting but the idea has generated great debate.

“We’re all aware of huge plans for Davis Cup,” Keothavong continued.

“A lot of time and energy has gone into how they can improve Davis Cup, and I don’t want Fed Cup being ignored. We’ve got to put Fed Cup in the spotlight. We shouldn’t settle for anything less than Fed Cup being on the same platform as Davis Cup.”

“I want Fed Cup to come into line with Davis Cup so it’s a competition people can follow, fans can follow, players can understand – and so we represent men’s and women’s tennis equally.”

The ITF has said very little publicly in recent months about its plans for Fed Cup reform, but is still working towards the formation of a 16-team World Group – and hinting at greater financial rewards.

“The ITF remains committed to enhancing the Fed Cup competition,” president David Haggerty said in a statement to BBC Sport.

“Our immediate priority is to increase the size of the World Group to 16 nations in 2019, played over the traditional three weeks and including a Fed Cup Final Four event. This would allow twice as many nations to challenge for the trophy each year, and better movement between the World Group and zone group events.

“The Kosmos proposal for Davis Cup will also enable us to increase the Fed Cup prize money in 2019. Kosmos has already expressed an interest in Fed Cup, and we will continue to have discussions with them about the future of the competition.”

So there is much at stake in Kobe this weekend. Japan’s team is headed by the Indian Wells champion Naomi Osaka, who is now ranked one place above Britain’s number one Johanna Konta.

“I know anything is possible this weekend, so I do see this tie as being very much 50-50,” Keothavong said.

“Everyone’s motivated to do well and to showcase women’s tennis because British female players are very capable, and it’s something we want to show off to the British public.”

Inspired to play tennis?

Find out how to get into tennis in our special guide.

  • Alerts: Get tennis news sent to your phone

Source link

Djokovic, Thiem, Nadal Headline Day 5 In Monte-Carlo

  • Posted: Apr 19, 2018

Djokovic, Thiem, Nadal Headline Day 5 In Monte-Carlo

Djokovic eyes sixth win in seven meetings with Thiem

Beating Rafael Nadal on clay is ample grounds for bragging rights and on Thursday, the two most recent men to have done so – Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem – will square off in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. The reward for the winner of arguably the toughest of the third-round match-ups is a potential meeting with the 10-time champion and top-seeded Spaniard in the quarter-finals, should he find a way past Russian Karen Khachanov.

View FedEx ATP Head2Head for the following matches from the 2018 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters & vote for who you think will win! 
Thiem v Djokovic | Cilic v Raonic | Nadal v Khachanov

 

Watch Live

It was Djokovic who ended Nadal’s hot streak in the 2013 final after Nadal had won eight straight Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters titles. The Spaniard, has claimed 31 of his past 33 matches on clay, with those two losses coming to Djokovic in the Rome 2016 quarter-finals and to Thiem in the Rome 2017 quarter-finals.

“The matches are only going to get tougher. I’m going to just think about Dominic,” Djokovic said. “Last year at Roland Garros he beat me in straight sets. He’s definitely top-three player in the world on clay. He’s one of the best players in general. 

“He’s coming off an injury himself… But he came back yesterday, I think match point down, and had a tough one himself. As I said, he’s a clay-court specialist. He’s someone that has a very powerful game and can play from inside of the court, back of the court, spin the ball, flatten it, hit a 220km/h serve, have an equally effective kick serve. He’s got it all, the entire game for clay. I’ve got to think only about that. It’s not the first time I have to face in earlier rounds some top players. I look forward to it.”

You May Also Like: Novak Hopes Small Racquet Changes Will Yield Big Results

Djokovic leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head series with Thiem 5-1 however, the Austrian easily prevailed in their most recent clash, in the quarter-finals at Roland Garros last season. Fifth-seeded Thiem had not played since fracturing his ankle at Indian Wells, forcing him to skip the Miami Open presented by Itau before his Monte-Carlo return.

In his return to his favourite surface, Thiem saved a match point to deny Russian Andrey Rublev 5-7, 7-5, 7-5 on Tuesday. Ninth seed Djokovic, too, was forced to work hard, needing 10 match points to eke out a 7-6(2), 7-5 victory over in-form Croatian Borna Coric, after an earlier 6-0, 6-1 dismissal of countryman Dusan Lajovic.

Top seed Nadal will carry a 2-0 FedEx ATP Head2Head record into his third-round encounter with Khachanov in the match following Djokovic vs. Thiem on Court Rainier III on Thursday. In his first match since a quarter-final exit at the Australian Open, Nadal opened with a 6-1, 6-3 victory over Aljaz Bedene on Wednesday. The 21-year-old Khachanov did not drop a set in his first two matches over Thanasi Kokkinakis and Gilles Simon. 

Third seed Alexander Zverev will continue his campaign for a second ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court title when he meets countryman Jen-Lennard Struff. Zverev, who owns a 2-0 FedEx ATP Head2Head record over the 29-year-old, struggled to a three-set result over Gilles Muller first up, while Struff defeated Yuichi Sugita and 13th seed Fabio Fognini.

In fourth seed Grigor Dimitrov’s only previous clash with German Kohlschreiber, the Bulgarian prevailed on the clay in Madrid in the first round last season. Both are bidding to reach their third Monte-Carlo quarter-final, with Kohlschreiber coming off an impressive straight-sets win over No. 15 seed and last year’s runner-up Albert Ramos Vinolas.

Source link

Nadal Building Towards No. 54 On Clay

  • Posted: Apr 19, 2018

Nadal Building Towards No. 54 On Clay

Spaniard bids for record-extending 11th Monte-Carlo crown

There is a certain homely feel to a site where you have tasted considerable success there for well over a decade. Tucked away on the fringes of the Mediterranean, the Monte-Carlo Country Club is one such place for Rafael Nadal. 

Last year, the Spaniard became the first man in the Open Era to win 10 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters crowns when he easily accounted for countryman Albert Ramos-Vinolas in the final. He won eight straight finals on Court Rainier III from 2005-12 before Novak Djokovic broke his extraordinary winning streak in the 2013 final. 

“Of course, there are places that you have special feelings in terms of you feel comfortable on court, you played a lot of times on this court, you know you had a lot of success. All these things help your self-confidence,” Nadal said after his opening victory over Aljaz Bedene on Wednesday. 

“When you play in a place, it’s like you play in a golf club that you know very well. It is easier than when you play in a new golf club.

You May Also Like: Nadal Back To Business

“I know a tennis court is always a tennis court, but at some point you know the court very well, you feel comfortable with it, you have been in that place lot of times competing. When you are inside the court, positive memories come to your mind, not negative memories. That’s always going to help.”

Victory in 2017 was a precursor to two further clay-court benchmarks – a 10th Barcelona title and 10th Roland Garros triumph. As it stands, the 31-year-old now boasts a record 53 clay-court trophies.

Nadal must retain his Monte-Carlo title, which would represent his 31st Masters 1000 crown, to remain at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings. Roger Federer will return to the top spot on 23 April otherwise. 

Russian Karen Khachanov is Nadal’s third-round opponent. The Spaniard will attempt to win his fourth straight match on clay for 2018 after two Davis Cup wins against Germany prior to his defeat of Bedene. His confidence is again building.

“Of course, when you play matches, you feel more comfortable, you feel more safe with your body, you feel stronger, too, physically,” Nadal said. “You feel less tired because you get used to the high intensity… When you play more in a row, [these] feelings come easier.”

Source link

Novak Hopes Small Racquet Changes Will Yield Big Results

  • Posted: Apr 18, 2018

Novak Hopes Small Racquet Changes Will Yield Big Results

Former World No. 1 made the change earlier this year

After beating Croatia’s Borna Coric 7-6(2), 7-5 at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters on Wednesday, Novak Djokovic revealed he made adjustments to his racquet earlier this year.

The 12-time Grand Slam champion recently made the change under former coaches Andre Agassi and Radek Stepanek as he began his return to the Tour, with his mind set on recapturing the form that saw him finish as year-end No. 1 in the ATP Rankings on four occasions (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015).

“[I] changed the racquet earlier this year,” said Djokovic. “I made some small minor changes that actually in our world are quite significant.

“(Andre) Agassi and Radek (Stepanek) who worked with me at the time felt it was a good call for the big picture and for the long run. I feel more comfortable with the racquet as I go along.”

The Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters ninth seed, who said the recent tweaks have given him more power and angle on his serve, emphasised the need for patience as he continues to develop his game with the changes. Djokovic compared his current situation to Roger Federer’s experiences more than four years ago, when the Swiss star changed his racquet model in a bid to improve performance.

“Obviously it takes a little bit of time,” said Djokovic. “I think Roger (Federer) some years ago also had that racquet change, and it took him a little bit [of time], some months, to get comfortable with it.”

Djokovic, two-time Monte-Carlo champion, was keen to look long-term when making the change. “If you think about certain parts of your game you maybe want to improve, maybe the technology, the racquet can help you with that. Why not? It was a big call,” expressed Djokovic.

The 30-year-old showed clear belief in his abilities when asked about his chances of returning to the pinnacle of the game, emphasising the importance of health in realising his ambitions.

“I wouldn’t be sitting here in front of [the press] and competing in this tournament if I didn’t believe that I can [win Grand Slam events and return to World No. 1],” said Djokovic. “Being in that position already and having achieved so much just gives me enough reason to believe I can make it again.

“I just hope that I’ll be healthy. That’s the most important thing. I know when I’m healthy, when I’m not dealing with any significant injury that can disturb me on the way to compete and train, then I can really reach that desired level.”

Source link

Cilic Halts Verdasco To Setup Raonic Clash

  • Posted: Apr 18, 2018

Cilic Halts Verdasco To Setup Raonic Clash

Cilic celebrates match win No. 450 in the Principality

Marin Cilic denied Fernando Verdasco the 500th match win of his career on Wednesday as he booked his spot in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters third round.

The second-seeded Croatian worked hard for a 6-3, 7-6(4) victory over 2010 runner-up Verdasco in the final match of the day on Court Rainier III, the main show court. He will now compete against No. 14 Milos Raonic of Canada on Thursday. Cilic leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 2-1.

Cilic broke Verdasco’s serve for a 3-1 lead, then recovered from 0/40 in the seventh game of the 35-minute first set. Verdasco, who saved three match points against Pablo Cuevas on Tuesday, gained a 2-0 lead in the second set, but Cilic quickly restored parity.

You May Also Like: Nadal Back To Business

It wasn’t until Cilic served at 3-4, that Verdasco was rewarded for his hard yards when a mis-timed drop shot landed in the net at 30/40 and handed the Spaniard an opportunity to serve for the set. However, Cilic regrouped and played aggressively to break to 30 for 5-5. He served out the tie-break to move within a match of returning to the quarter-finals (2015, 2017).

The World No. 3 is now 8-5 lifetime against Verdasco in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series (1-1 on clay, also 2015 Mutua Madrid Open).

Earlier on day four, Raonic struck 16 aces past Marco Cecchinato in his third successive victory over the Italian on clay courts (also 2016 Monte-Carlo and Internazionali BNL d’Italia).

Raonic, who has 298 career victories and is now one win away from reaching the quarter-finals for the fourth successive year, won 7-6(5), 6-2 in 86 minutes.

Source link

Monte Carlo Masters: Rafael Nadal beats Aljaz Bedene to reach third round

  • Posted: Apr 18, 2018

World number one Rafael Nadal raced past Slovenia’s Aljaz Bedene to reach the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco.

Defending champion Nadal beat Bedene, ranked 58th in the world, 6-1 6-3 in 77 minutes.

Ex-world number one Novak Djokovic beat Croatia’s Borna Coric but needed 10 match points before closing out a 7-6 (7-2) 7-5 win over the world number 39.

“After two years finally I can play without pain,” said Djokovic.

“Under the circumstances and considering I haven’t played too many official matches, I thought I played well.”

Live scores, schedule and results

Spaniard Nadal is continuing his return from a hip problem that forced him to retire from his Australian Open match against Marin Cilic in January.

He won 75% of points on his first serve and converted four of his eight break points as he raced past Bedene.

He will face Russia’s world number 38 Karen Khachanov in the next round while Djokovic, who is seeded ninth in Monaco, will face Austrian fifth seed Dominic Thiem.

Nadal, a 10-time champion in Monaco, needs to win the tournament to stay top of the world rankings, or he will be replaced by Roger Federer.

Japan’s Kei Nishikori, also continuing his return from a lengthy lay-off with a wrist injury, beat Russia’s Daniil Medvedev 7-5 6-2.

He will now face Italy’s Andreas Seppi, who beat British number one Kyle Edmund in the first round.

Source link