Category: Tennis

• Serena Williams calls out hypocrisy of Sinner ban
• Williams says ‘I would have gotten 20 years’ if caught
• World No 1 Sinner twice tested positive for clostebol

Serena Williams says she would have been hit with a 20-year ban if she had failed drug tests like men’s world No 1 Jannik Sinner, who received a three-month suspension in February.

“I love the guy, love this game,” Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam winner, told Time magazine this week after being named one of its 100 most influential people. “He’s great for the sport. I’ve been put down so much, I don’t want to bring anyone down. Men’s tennis needs him.

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• French tennis player suggests Dove ‘collab’ on Instagram
• Dart apologises for telling umpire Boisson ‘smells bad’

French tennis player Lois Boisson has responded to Harriet Dart’s on-court claim that “she smells really bad” with a social media post that pokes fun at the incident.

During a change of ends in Tuesday’s match at the Rouen Open, Dart asked the umpire: “Can you tell her [Boisson] to wear deodorant because she smells really bad?” Her comments were picked up by a courtside microphone and quickly attracted attention and criticism on social media.

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• ‘She smells really bad,’ says British player of Lois Boisson
• Dart spoke to umpire during defeat at Rouen Open

Harriet Dart has apologised after requesting her opponent at the Rouen Open put on deodorant because she “smells really bad”.

The British No 4 was beaten 6-0, 6-3 by the French player Lois Boisson in the first round.

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The GB squad are into the finals for the second year running – a far cry from the early 2000s nadir

The turn of the millennium marked one of the most significant periods in women’s tennis. An audacious, charismatic generation had stormed the tour, usurping the old leaders and transforming the image of the sport. Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati and Anna Kournikova often generated more attention and higher TV ratings than their male counterparts. Some transcended the sport as global superstars.

At the same time women’s tennis was thriving around the world, it had reached a grim nadir in the UK. For years, not a single woman reached the top 100. They competed almost exclusively on the lower-level ITF circuit, making fleeting cameos on the tour through wildcards at Wimbledon and during the grass season.

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• Spanish second seed wins 3-6, 6-1, 6-0
• Musetti suffers leg injury in final set

Carlos Alcaraz stormed back to a 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory against an ailing Lorenzo Musetti to win the Rolex Monte Carlo Masters in Monaco.

The second-seeded Spaniard claimed his sixth ATP Masters 1000 title and first since Indian Wells in March 2024. It was the 18th career title for the four-time grand slam winner, who turns 22 next month.

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• The Australian reaches last four of Monte Carlo Masters
• He will play either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Lorenzo Musetti

Alex de Minaur has humbled Bulgarian star Grigor Dimitrov 6-0 6-0 to feast on the first “double bagel” of his professional career while powering into the Monte Carlo Masters semi-final.

The Australian was in merciless mood against the out-of-sorts veteran, taking only 44 minutes to hand the world No 18 one of his most embarrassing defeats on the Monte Carlo Country Club’s main arena, Court Rainier III, on Friday.

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• Spaniard beats British No 1 6-3, 6-7 (6) on clay court
• Serve abandons Draper, who records 10 double faults

Jack Draper crashed out at the last-16 stage of the Monte-Carlo Masters following defeat to Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Fifth seed Draper, who dispatched Marcos Giron in a comfortable 6-1, 6-1 victory on Tuesday, struggled with his serve, accounting for 10 double faults during the 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-4 loss.

“Today I didn’t feel at my best or at my best mentally with my strategy,” Davidovich Fokina said on court after the win, in which he made 57 unforced errors to his opponent’s 46. “It was a rollercoaster with my mind, I didn’t know how to control the emotions and I didn’t respect myself or my team. I am so sorry with how I did today and I am happy with the win and I will be ready for tomorrow.

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• Kim Birrell and Maya Joint lose singles in straight sets in Brisbane
• Storm Hunter and Ellen Perez win doubles in BJK Cup qualifying tie

Kazakhstan have placed Australia on the brink of Billie Jean King Cup elimination with a 2-1 victory in their qualifying tie in Brisbane.

Big-hitting former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina out-gunned Kim Birrell to secure victory for Kazakhstan before the hosts picked up a precious point with success in the not-so-dead-rubber doubles.

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• Alejandro Tabilo inflicts 6-3, 6-4 defeat on Djokovic
• Alcaraz battles past Francisco Cerundolo in three sets

Novak Djokovic crashed out of the Monte Carlo Masters with a straight sets defeat to Alejandro Tabilo. The Chilean had beaten the world No 5 on clay in Rome last year and built on a solid start to the second-round match before securing a 6-3, 6-4 win in just under an hour and a half on Court Rainier III.

Djokovic’s wait for a 100th ATP Tour title goes on, having lost to the teenager Jakub Mensik in last month’s Miami Masters final.

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One clip has been watched 25m times but a Netflix documentary shows him in his childhood bedroom with Wimbledon trophy

There’s a Carlos Alcaraz clip on YouTube that has to date been viewed 25m times. The whole thing is a seven-second loop of him catching a ball on his racket at Wimbledon. Currently it also has well over a thousand comments, engaged in a constantly shifting battle for most-liked, most-approved, most gushingly enthused-over.

You probably shouldn’t click on it because it is also addictive, a perfect moment of perfect Alcaraz, another endlessly replicating needle-prod of pleasure into your overstimulated brain.

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• World No 12 switched allegiance from Russia last week
• She overcomes nerves to beat Lauren Davis 6-1, 6-1 in Charleston

“And please welcome from Australia, Daria Kasatkina!” With those words from the MC introducing her on court at the Charleston Open on Wednesday, Australia’s latest tennis import admitted she was left feeling a bag of nerves about the advent of her new adventure.

She need not have worried. For just over an hour later, following her consummate first triumph as an Australian player, Kasatkina was soaking up the cheers of the US crowd amid the strains of “I come from a land Down Under”, while beaming a smile of relief mixed with joy.

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• Raducanu will miss matches in Netherlands next week
• British No 2 will focus on training after Miami Open run

Emma Raducanu has pulled out of Great Britain’s squad for next week’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers against Germany and the Netherlands.

The British No 2 reached the quarter-finals of the Miami Open last week, her deepest run at a WTA 1000 event and best tournament performance since her stunning US Open triumph in 2021.

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• Briton says ‘heart worked a little too hard’ in Bogotá
• Watson defeated in opening round of Charleston Open

Britain’s Francesca Jones has been forced to withdraw from the Colsanitas Cup in Bogotá after collapsing on court. The 24-year-old appeared to stagger after failing to return a serve from Argentina’s Julia Riera in the third set of their round-of-32 match and was unable to return to play. She fell to the ground and was removed from the court in a wheelchair but later said her heart had “worked a little too hard”.

“Due to a physical issue, Francesca Jones has withdrawn from her match against Julia Riera at 6-2, 5-7, 5-3 in favour of the Argentinian,” the tournament posted on X. “We wish the British tennis player a speedy recovery.”

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Loss to teenager Jakub Mensik in Miami final shows difficulty of maintaining such high standards at the age of 37

During a quiet period in the relentless calendar three years ago, the 16-year-old Jakub Mensik received an unexpected proposal. The Czech, who had just reached the boys’ singles final at the Australian Open, was invited by Novak Djokovic, his idol, to train together at the Serb’s academy in Belgrade. The pair quickly established a rapport, with Djokovic offering advice and counsel. For Mensik, this was a pivotal moment.

On Sunday, at the Miami Open, the pair stood across the net from each other again, this time as rivals, and he closed out a 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4) victory to win his first ATP title in one of the top tournaments.

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