Section: Saudi Gazette (Saudi Arabia)
Mladenovic ousts Vinci, Halep withdraws
ST PETERSBURG — Top seed Simona Halep pulled out of the St Petersburg Trophy Friday because of a persistent knee injury, as the seeds continued to crash at the tournament. “I’m really disappointed that I had to withdraw from the quarterfinal today, but my knee is not okay,” the Romanian Halep, ranked fourth in the world, said. “After my...
Trump, Putin talk for 30 minutes
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump has spoken by telephone with Russian President Vladimir Putin — their first call since Trump’s inauguration on January 20. The planned call on Saturday came amid reports in Washington that Trump was considering the lifting of sanctions imposed on Russia by his predecessor, Barack Obama, over its...
Supreme Serena
MELBOURNE — A jubilant Serena Williams said it was “awesome” to finally clinch a record 23rd Grand Slam title after beating her sister Venus in the Australian Open final, a result which also took her back to world number one. The dominant American won her seventh Aussie title 6-4, 6-4 to finally surpass Steffi Graf’s Open-era milestone of...
Nadal wins epic to reach Federer final
MELBOURNE – Rafa Nadal had to be at his battling best to outlast Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 5-7, 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 6-4 at the Australian Open Friday and set up a mouth-watering ninth Grand Slam final meeting with his great rival Roger Federer. The 30-year-old Spaniard looked every inch a 14-time Grand Slam champion as he slugged it out with his...
Stars struggle at Oz Open
MELBOURNE – World No. 1 Andy Murray was tested and Stan Wawrinka lost his cool as stars struggled on a hot first day at the Australian Open Monday. Roger Federer and Angelique Kerber, the defending women’s champion, both dropped sets on a day which threatened a host of upsets at Melbourne Park. In the event, fourth seed Simona Halep was the...
MH17 relatives mull new search in Ukraine for remains
THE HAGUE — Families of the MH17 plane disaster victims may push for a renewed search of the crash site in eastern Ukraine after the recent discovery of a bone fragment belonging to one of the dead. “We are considering speaking to authorities about another search for human remains,” Evert van Zijtveld, chairman of the MH17 victims’...
Dimitrov stuns Nishikori, bags Brisbane trophy
BRISBANE — Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov won his first title in over two years when he upset world No. 5 Kei Nishikori in three sets to win the Brisbane International Tennis Tournament Sunday. In an enthralling final between two evenly matched opponents, Dimitrov claimed the Roy Emerson Trophy 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, his fourth singles title on the ATP...
Turkey’s tourism reels under terrorist attacks
ISTANBUL — The once bustling Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is astonishingly quiet. The shops and restaurants in the city’s trendy Istiklal Street are all but empty of foreign customers and the hotels in the upscale Nisantasi district are nearly deserted. Turkey’s economy is suffering in the face of a string of extremist attacks — including...
Raonic knocks out Nadal
Canada’s Milos Raonic reacts after winning his match against Spain’s Rafael Nadal in Brisbane Friday. – ReutersBRISBANE – Defending champion Milos Raonic beat former world No. 1 Rafa Nadal in three sets Friday to reach the Brisbane International semifinals. The big-serving Canadian blasted 50 winners, including 23 aces, to overcome...
Svitolina humbles Kerber
BRISBANE — Angelique Kerber predicted that 2017 was going to have a different feel for her, considering her phenomenal breakout season last year. It certainly started differently, with the top-ranked German losing to sixth-seeded Elina Svitolina 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the Brisbane International quarterfinals Thursday. Kerber reached the final here last...
