Category: Tennis

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Novak Djokovic winning his first Olympic gold medal on Sunday was a double surprise. First of all, he was not a shoo-in to win, although he was the goat of tennis in simple male. The 37 -year -old man, who spent much of the year to face knee problems, faced Carlos Alcaraz, the 21 -year -old Spanish phenomenon who beat Djokovic in the Wimbledon final last month .

The second surprise was his intensely emotional reaction to victory. When he scored the final point, he let out a powerful howl, raising his arms to the sky and dropping his racket. This is normal for the course for Djokovic. But it was after he went to greet Alcaraz with the net that his emotions began to settle. He fell on his knees on the red clay then rested on his elbows, his head buried in his hands and his chest lifting with emotion.

After a few moments, he switched to his lap and raised his hands to the sky. Sobbing, he made the sign of the cross. Djokovic was then taken to the stands, where he immediately caught his young daughter while his wife, son and team surrounded him in a huge hug. He had finally fulfilled his dream.

At this point, even the most relaxed tennis fans saw Djokovic winning a tournament. He collapses on the ground, he jumps and shouts, he kisses his family and his team. It’s not by heart, but it’s a routine. He has won all the Grand Colam several times. He has the record for most of the Men’s Grand Chelem victories in the history of tennis and is equal to Margaret short for the record of all time (24).

This is why his answer was so unexpected. After winning bronze in 2008 at the age of 21, then finished fourth in 2012 and 2021, he Really wanted to gain gold. And it was like the first time in a long time that he was ready to let the world see part of him that is not perfect and composed. He wanted something, failed, had to fight for that and finally got out in mind. It is one of the most human stories that are.

The place of Djokovic in the history of tennis, and all that he accomplished is what makes his response so resonant and so touching. The Olympic Games do not matter for tennis (nor the ranking points of the WTA or ATP for the Games), but the Olympic Games count for him. It was not only another cut in his Grand Chelem belt. He wanted to win the gold medal for himself and Serbia.

He has almost lost it several times. There were moments that you could almost feel that the desperate carelessness just hiding under the surface, ready to unbalance it. He shouted in his box, accusing them of staying silent and not to help him when he needed it. He looked at Alcaraz in perplexity, shaking his head every time he transformed one of the winners of Djokovic into his own winner.

But Djokovic has never broken. He never panicked. He has never abandoned. Faced with a 21 -year -old man at the very beginning of what has already been an exciting and accomplished career, the 37 -year -old went to each lesson he has ever learned in tennis, each experience he had Acquired, each endurance ounce that he could bring together. Beating Alcaraz was not only tennis on the ground. It was about his mind. Which player could better resist pressure?

Sunday was Djokovic. The crowd was slightly tilted to Alcaraz, but it was clear that they wanted to be entertained by great tennis more than anything else. Djokovic did not always obtain a full support for Roland Garros, but the crowd was 100% behind him when the last point was marked. They rugged in appreciation and celebration while the greatest male tennis player of all time finally realized his dream of winning an Olympic gold medal.

At that time, there was no tomorrow. No thought of his next tournament, or the United States, or his knee injury, or even Carlos Alcaraz. There was just Djokovic, crumpled on the red clay, doing what thousands of Olympians around the world have done before him: crying with joy, shouting excitement, shouting with pride, desperate to kiss people who Aid every day on his trip on his trip.

There are a lot of djokovic moments that will live in memory. But that, his Olympic gold medal at the end of his career, will be out of competition in 10, 20, 30 years. It represents so much the spirit of tennis and the true nature of dedication and commitment. But that also represents so much Djokovic: for a man who has always been dedicated to being the aberrant value, the exception, the different, his most touching moment came when he simply let his real emotions shine and let them take.

Carlos Alcaraz apologized on X for his actions during a defeat in the second round against Gaël Monfils at the Cincinnati Open on Friday during which he broke his racket several times at the start of the third set.

Alcaraz, 21, who had been playing in his first tournament since he won a silver medal at the Paris Olympic Games, was frustrated during his 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) defeat, 6- 4 against Monfils. The quadruple winner of the Grand Chelem could no longer hold back his emotions and released it on his racket.

“It has never happened before because I could control these feelings,” said Alcaraz. “Today, I couldn’t. I felt that I didn’t play any kind of tennis. It was really frustrating for me. At one point, I didn’t want to be on the ground.”

Subsequently, Alcaraz called him the “worse match that I never played in my career” and he said he was running the page and looked at the US Open, which begins on August 26.

“I practice myself very well,” said Alcaraz. “I felt good. But I couldn’t play. I want to forget it and try to go to New York.”

Jannik Sinner, the world of male tennis player N ° 1 in the world, will head to the US Open with his steroid scandal behind him.

Sinner, who has tested positive twice for an anabolic steroid prohibited earlier this year, will not be suspended. The International Tennis Integrity Agency said on Tuesday that the prohibited substance that it had tested positive for having involuntarily entered its system by a massage of its physiotherapist, and that the sinner was “not at fault”.

Although he will always lose ranking points and prices he received at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, in which he was in competition when he was tested positive for the first time, the sinner will avoid the suspension.

The sinner was tested positive for Indian Wells in March for low levels of clostebol metabolite, which is the same anabolic steroid as the star of San Diego Padres Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended at 80 games for the major baseball league in 2022. Tatis and his father pretended he came from a tired ringing medication.

Sinner was then tested positive a second time eight days later after the tournament, and he was temporarily suspended. However, he called on this decision, and was authorized to continue to compete.

ITIA said in a statement that the positive test was a “result of the contamination of a member of the support team, who had applied an over -the -counter spray containing clostebol to their own skin to treat a small injury ». This was then transmitted to the sinner through “daily massages and sports therapy”.

Sinner took first place in the world ranking for the first time in his career in June. The 23 -year -old won the Australian Open in January, which marked his first Grand Chelem title, and he beat Frances Tiafoe to win the title of Cincinnati Open on Monday. The sinner reached the semi -finals at the French Open and the quarterfinals of Wimbledon this season, and it is listed at +200 – even with Novak Djokovic and slightly behind Carlos Alcaraz – to win the US Open on Betmgm .

The quest for Novak Djokovic for a historic title of the 25th Grand Chelem is underway.

Djokovic crossed his opening match at the US Open on Monday evening. He beat Radu Albot of Moldova in right sets at the Arthur Ashe stadium in New York, 6-2, 6-2, 6-4. He marked his 71st consecutive victory in the first round during a major championship, and pushed him to 18-0 in the first round at the US Open in his career.

Djokovic, who won the US Open title last year, resumed where he stopped after his Gold Medal Victory at the Paris Olympic Games in 2024 – which, according to him, was the biggest achievement that ‘He had in his career and officially completed the Golden Slam. Djokovic won four consecutive games to close his first set, then did the same thing in the second to finish that went without any problems.

Although it is not as fast – Albor jumped 3-2 in the third set after a battle for the point of the third match – Djokovic has made its way through the sixth and seventh games of the set to resume the Moving and finally take victory in just over two hours.

Djokovic, who lost in the semi-finals of the Australian Open to start the year, withdrew from the French Open with a meniscus torn to the right knee in the quarter-finals. After undergoing surgery, Djokovic returned to Wimbledon and reached the final – although he fell to Carlos Alcaraz in London. This led Djokovic to his victory at the Olympic Games, where he beat Alcaraz to win the first gold medal in his career. It was also his first title of all kinds this season.

Although it still has a long way to go, a victory at the US Open would end a historic year for the Serbian star. He would mark his 25th Title du Grand Chelem, which would extend his lead in the race and add to his list of distinctions. This would also break his tie with Margaret short and make him the most decorated tennis player of all times.

Djokovic will now face his Serbian compatriot Laslo Djere in the second round. Djere defeated the Struff of Jan-Lennard in Germany in a battle of five sets in his opening match on Monday evening.

If Naomi Osaka will break in the tennis elite, the United States open is a natural place for her.

The double champion of the US Open defeated the head of the start n ° 10 Jeļena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-2 in the first round on Tuesday, marking his first victory over an opponent of the Top-10 in four years. Osaka’s last victory was on Kiki Bertans at the Brisbane International 2020.

Osaka, 26, was obviously emotional after the match:

The exposed form was vintage Osaka, who overwhelmed Ostapenko in a way that should be familiar to anyone who saw Osaka win the Grand Slam titles. It started with a dominant service because it won 24 of the 30 points at the first service with nine AS and zero doubled.

Sporting an outfit Grekerbell and Green Neon, Osaka made only five unforeseen errors in two sets, against 21 of Ostapenko, and did not failed at a single break.

Of the United States Open:

Osaka will advance to face another former top 10 player in Karolína Muchová, who has derailed his 2024 season by a wrist injury. A victory on Thursday would give Osaka its first appearance in the third round of a Grand Slam since the Australian Open 2022.

Osaka has not reached the quarter -final of a Grand Colem since she won the Australian Open 2021, which is very long in tennis. Months after winning this Australian Open in 2021, Osaka put her career on a break, citing mental health problems, in the midst of a controversy over her refusal to speak with the media to the French Open. She had a hard time returning to train on her return and went into another interruption after getting angry at the US Open.

The 2022 season was not much better for Osaka because she fought against injuries and consistency, then she removed everything 2023 after announcing that she was pregnant. She now returns in 2024.

After having lost in the first round of the Australian Open this year, Osaka scared the world number 1 IGA Swiatek to the French Open, bringing the possible champion to a match. Overall, she has 18-15 this year, without titles.

His first opponent was more feist than expected, but Carlos Alcaraz is offbeat and short at the US Open.

The world No. 3 beat the Australian qualifier Li Tu 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the first round at Flushing Meadows on Tuesday. He will face Botic Van de Zandschulp in the second round Thursday, after the Dutch Dispatch from Denis Shapovalov Tuesday.

Alcaraz seemed to be on the right track for a standard eruption of the first round, but you then showed a shape for which the Spaniard was not exactly ready. You promised that he would try to give Alcaraz “three, four, five hellish sets” before the match and found this form in the second set.

You stayed in service against Alcaraz for part of the third set, but the disparity of the talents was ultimately too much to overcome. You are the first opening opponent to take an Alcaraz decor in a large home since 2022 Wimbledon. Alcaraz did not help his cause with 18 uncomposed mistakes overall.

You stayed in service against Alcaraz for a part of the third set, but all it took is that Alcaraz found his feet to transform a potential upheaval into a laugh. He has won the next nine games to stifle the threat.

Alcaraz is in competition to win his third large consecutive chelem after taking the French open and Wimbledon earlier this year. Another title of this year would also be the fifth slam in the 21-year-old career and a return to the New York summit after losing Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals last year.

The draw in Alcaraz against Medvedev or Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals, except a major upheaval, Novak Djokovic waiting on the other side of the support. The three potential opponents represent intriguing clashes: Medvedev for a revenge match last year, a sinner as a new world n ° 1 and the only other man to win a slam this year, Djokovic for a revenge match of the loss of Alcaraz in the Olympic gold medal match earlier this month.

But first, Alcaraz must get there, just like the rest. Djokovic ran predictable in the first round on Monday, while Medvedev and Sinner both abandoned sets against adversaries not rescued on Tuesday.

The sinner in particular entered the tournament under a cloud of controversy after having tested twice positive for an anabolic steroid prohibited earlier this year and avoiding suspension. This could have been the cause of a slow start against Mackenzie McDonald in a 2-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-1 victory.

The United States Open will remain on ESPN in the foreseeable future, at no small cost.

ESPN announced on Wednesday that it has extended its relations with the tournament based in New York to a 12 -year agreement, pushing its ownership of rights until 2037. Athletics reports the price to $ 2.04 billion.

This amounts to around $ 170 million a year.

The ESPN agreement was previously expired after 2025, and this new gives the network exclusive rights in Latin America, the Caribbean and Canada. There will also be widened streaming rights and Sunday and last Sunday coverage of the Tournament on the ESPN broadcast partner in ABC.

Of ESPN:

ESPN also holds the rights of Wimbledon and the Australian Open, while the French Open should migrate from NBC and the TNT tennis channel in 2025, due to the agreement of $ 650 million in Warner Bros. Discovery.

The higher price of the United States is due to several factors, but the evidence is the advantage of the time zone of the only Grand Chelem based in the United States. The tournament has a larger domestic appeal than the rest of the Slams and frequently offers value beyond the programs thanks to the factor of celebrity of players and participants.

With Roger Federer and Serena Williams retired, Rafael Nadal about to join them and Novak Djokovic at 37, the agreement is also a bet that the world of tennis will provide new superstars in the next decade.

US Open 2024 continued on Wednesday with a solid slate of tennis stars, notably Coco Gauff and Novak Djokovic among those who strive by the title of Flushing Meadows.

The female and defending champions both had moments of discomfort – literally in the case of Djokovic – but both qualified in the third round without dropping a set.

After a difficult first set, Gauff managed to win Tatjana Maria’s victory in two sets, surviving the German player to the third round. Although Gauff was able to use her athletics to her advantage, Maria made him work in the first set, forcing her all around the field.

Gauff took the first match with relative ease, but quickly died in 2-1 after a very maria effort. Gauff finished things with a few solid games and finally took an advance of 5-3 after winning a long game with several equality breaks. Maria took advantage of a few uns forked mistakes to do it 5-4 and get in a GAUFF’s advance match. Gauff then remained creative, obtaining the advantage after a delicate drop of drop in the inner corner.

Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, one of the first four seeds of the US Open, withdrew from the competition due to an uncluttered injury. Rybakina was to face the French qualifier Jessika Ponchet in the second round Thursday, but retired before the match.

With the absence of Rybakina, Ponchet – which is not classified – between now in the third round.

The United States Open is now marking the seventh time this year that Rybakina has withdrawn from competition due to illness or injury. This summer only, the 25 -year -old retired early in a match in the Grass Court Berlin championships in June and withdrew from the Eastbourne international a week later.

Rybakina returned to play Wimbledon – the competition where she won her only Title du Grand Chelem, in 2022 – but lost in the semi -finals against the possible winner Barbora Krejčiková. Rybakina then retired from the Paris 2024 Olympic Games due to acute bronchitis.

As a seeded n ° 4, Rybakina was the seeded of her support district. In his absence, the seeded n ° 15 Anna Kalinskaya is the best classified player in this section.

Carlos Alcaraz was on the wrong side of the upheaval of the year at the US Open.

The world n ° 3 was shocked 6-1, 7-5, 6-4 in the second round at Flushing Meadows by the Botic Van de Zandschulp not classified in the Netherlands, putting an end to his attempt to win his third Grand Chelem consecutive .

The fall was not a progressive process either. Alcaraz was released flat as can be in the first set, without scoring a single winner in seven games, and he still didn’t have much bite on his service in the second. Meanwhile, Van de Zandschulp, ranked 74th in the world, played some of the best tennis in his career.

Alcaraz moved away from the court after the second set to hold back his snowshoes. Whether this decision was born from a legitimate concern, a play of mind or an attempt to reset, it did not work. The power was released for the most electric player in tennis, on the field where he reached fame two years ago.

There was a brief moment when a return seemed possible, after Alcaraz prevented Van de Zandschulp from consolidating a break. He had never returned from two sets for anyone, but he looked confident, the crowd was behind him and he had some magic points which became his signature.

And then Van de Zandschulp broke him again three games later. A service later, and the match was over. Alcaraz polished the friendly crowd, which had just looked at two hours of some of the worst tennis in his career, and left the field.

However, a fan was more amazed than others. A bettor would have deposited $ 25,000 on Alcaraz to win the match with BETMGM, at -10,000 dimensions. Payment had won Alcaraz: $ 250.

The upset loss of Carlos Alcaraz is a huge development

Van de Zandschulp will be announced to face the Jack Draper n ° 25 in the third round. It is a potentially changing career change for a player who has been classified n ° 22 in the world, but has seen a total loss of form this year. This is the first time he has passed in the third round of a tournament sanctioned by ATP all year round.

He did it by beating Wünderkind, 21, who was largely expected to take tennis during the next decade, a person who had beaten him in straight sets during their two other meetings.

The release of Alcaraz is a massive development through the draw in New York. The Spaniard was the favorite of betmgm bets before the tournament, but even his first round match against the qualifier li you saw him meet more resistance than you expect a player of his caliber.

His loss is a good development for Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev, one of whom was likely to face Alcaraz in the semi-finals. Even Novak Djokovic can breathe a little more easily, having lost against Alcaraz in the final in Wimbledon last month (before beating it in the Olympic final).

This upheaval also comes after the seeded n ° 7 Hubert Hurkacz direct loss on Thursday. Because Hurkacz and Alcaraz were in the same support district, the best player who can take this slit in the semi-finals is No. 10 Alex de Minaur.