Category: Tennis

• Latvian criticised for saying Taylor Townsend had ‘no education’

• Ostapenko strongly denies US Open comments were racist

Naomi Osaka has condemned Jelena Ostapenko’s comments during her courtside confrontation with Taylor Townsend at the US Open.

The incident on Wednesday has been one of the most talked-about of the tournament, with Ostapenko accusing the American Townsend of having no education and no class after their second-round match. The comments, which Ostapenko justified as a reaction to Townsend not apologising for a shot that hit the top of the net, have prompted accusations of racism.

• Former world No 3 beaten by Daniel Altmaier at US Open

• German deployed underarm serve in fourth set

A frustrated Stefanos Tsitsipas took exception to his opponent’s tactics after blowing a match point and exiting the US Open in the second round courtesy of a five-set loss to Daniel Altmaier on Thursday.

The 7-6 (5), 1-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 defeat means the former world No 3 Tsitsipas will end the season without playing in the third round of a grand slam for the first time since 2017.

• De Minaur and Kasatkina keep hopes alive in New York

• Four other Australians crash out in second round

Alex de Minaur and Daria Kasatkina have expressed relief for different reasons after saving Australia’s blushes with contrasting second-round US Open victories in New York.

As Alexei Popyrin, Adam Walton, Tristan Schoolkate and Maya Joint all crashed out, De Minaur hit the go button in a straight-sets victory over Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki.

• Williams wins first women’s doubles in decade

• Partners with Fernandez to stun No 6 seeds

• Raucous crowd backs 45-year-old on Armstrong

Venus Williams insists she is not a good doubles player. The 14 major championships she and Serena won together tell a different story.

Without her younger sister by her side, Williams showed Thursday she’s still got it. Williams won a women’s doubles match at the US Open for the first time in more than a decade, teaming with Leylah Fernandez to defeat the sixth-seeded pair of Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez 7-6 (4), 6-3.

Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner move into round three, likewise Naomi Osaka, Lorenzo Musetti and Andrey Rublev

Goffin has broken back against Musetti and they’re now 4-4 in set one. On Grandstand, Rublev is giving Boyer all he can handle, forcing break points that he can’t quite convert. Oh, and Swiatek survives break point to lead Lamens 3-0, I don’t imagine this match will detain us all that long.

Also a set up are Sakkari, 6-3 against Bondar; Alexandrova, 6-2 1-1 against Wang; and Kalinskaya, 6-1 1-1 against Putitnseva. Meanwhile, Swiatek breaks Lamens for 2-0, already looking monstrous; it’ll take something significant to beat her here, but both Gauff, her potential semi-final opponent, and Sabalenka, the defending champ and no 1 seed, are capable of that.

• Russian enraged by umpire decision in first-round exit

• Former world No 1 destroyed racket after match

Daniil Medvedev was fined $42,500 by the US Open on Wednesday – more than a third of his $110,000 prize money from this year’s singles at the tournament – for his meltdown after a photographer wandered on to the court at match point.

Tournament referee Jake Garner docked Medvedev $30,000 for unsportsmanlike conduct and another $12,500 for racket abuse. When Sunday’s first-round match ended in defeat for Medvedev he repeatedly smacked a racket against his chair, destroying the equipment.

Cameron Norrie beat Francisco Comesana to set up a meeting with Novak Djokovic after Jack Draper withdrew and Emma Raducanu won in style

Well in Janie Tjen. She holds to avoid the bagel so, at 6-2 5-1,Raducanu will now serve for round three.

Raducanu is serving like an absolute demon, another quick hold giving her 6-2 5-0. She’s nearly there.

• Australia’s No 1 reaches second round with 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 win

• Teenager Joint beats Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva 6-4 7-6 (8-6)

Alex de Minaur cast aside friendship to lead three more Australians into the US Open second round in New York. As Alexei Popyrin set up a showcourt showdown with defending champion and world No 1 Jannik Sinner, De Minaur was all class in defeating fellow Sydneysider Chris O’Connell in straight sets.

The two-time Open quarter-finalist did not face a solitary break point in ousting O’Connell 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 on the Grandstand on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST). De Minaur’s reward is a second-round meeting with Japan’s world No 112 Shintaro Mochizuki.

• Brother gives 2022 champ haircut in barber’s absence

• Frances Tiafoe among critics of new style

Carlos Alcaraz thought the biggest challenge he would face in the early stages of this year’s US Open was the 145mph serves of his 6ft 11in first round opponent, Reilly Opelka. Instead it turned out to be his own brother.

Alcaraz wanted a haircut before the tournament and, in the absence of his usual barber, Victor Martínez, asked one of his brothers to give him a trim. It did not go well.

• Mortimer-Barrett won three grand slam singles titles

• All England Club says it is ‘deeply saddened’

The former Wimbledon champion Angela Mortimer-Barrett has died at the age of 93. Mortimer-Barrett defeated fellow Briton Christine Truman to win the 1961 ladies’ singles title, three years after losing her first final against Althea Gibson.

Mortimer-Barrett won three grand slam singles titles, including the 1955 French Championships and the Australian Championships three years later. She also won the Wimbledon ladies’ doubles title in 1955, teaming up with Anne Shilcock to clinch an all-British final against Shirley Bloomer and Pat Ward.

• Match halted for six minutes after photographer incident

• Russian enraged by umpire decision in first-round exit

The US Open descended into chaos on Sunday when a photographer came on to the court as Daniil Medvedev faced match point, bringing the first-round match to a standstill and sparking a spectacular meltdown from the Russian.

Medvedev, the 2021 champion, was eventually knocked out 6-3, 7-5, 6-7 (5), 0-6, 6-4 by France’s Benjamin Bonzi, who threatened to walk off the court at one point and called for the Russian to be disqualified.

• Serb manages physical issues to beat Learner Tien 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-2

• Djokovic is aiming for a record 25th grand slam title

In his first competitive outing after a six-week hiatus, there were times when an increasingly frustrated Novak Djokovic looked dead on his feet. However, in the most important moments of his turbulent first round match against American teenager Learner Tien, Djokovic worked through his physical discomfort and then held his nerve in the decisive moments to win 6-1, 7-6 (3), 6-2 and reach the second round of the US Open.

Even at 38 years old, Djokovic has been the third best player at the grand slam tournaments this year, reaching the semi-final of all three prior events. However, his ageing body has struggled to handle the physicality required to succeed in the best of five sets format. After his straight sets loss to Jannik Sinner at Wimbledon, Djokovic cast doubt on his ability to remain fresh and healthy deep in the grand slam tournaments at his age.

Serena Williams made a a surprise appearance at the International Tennis Hall of Fame ceremony in Newport, Rhode Island, emerging from behind the stage to introduce 'former rival, former fan and forever friend' Maria Sharapova for her induction on Saturday night. 'My favourite moments were always the quiet victories,' Sharapova told the audience. 'In giving my life to tennis, tennis gave me a remarkable life.'

• Sharapova enters tennis Hall of Fame with surprise cameo by Serena Williams

• Williams surprises Sharapova at induction

• 23-time major winner hails fierce rivalry

• Bryan brothers, Sharapova join 2025 class

Serena Williams made a a surprise – and early – appearance at the International Tennis Hall of Fame, emerging from behind the stage to introduce “former rival, former fan and forever friend” Maria Sharapova for her induction on Saturday night.

Williams, a 23-time grand slam champion who will be eligible for her own enshrinement in 2027, drew gasps and shrieks from the crowd at the Newport shrine.