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25 Sports Wednesday, August 1, 2018 Emotional Andy Murray makes triumphant hardcourt return Murray outlasts McDonald at ATP Washington Open WASHINGTON: An emotional Andy Murray made a be used at the US Open this year. “Without a shot triumphant return to hardcourts Monday in his first clock, that would have been a three-hour match,” match on the surface for nearly 17 months, outlasting Murray said. “It’s a positive change for tennis.” After Mackenzie McDonald at the ATP Washington Open. making his return from January hip surgery last month The three-time Grand Slam champion and former at Queens and Eastbourne, Murray skipped world number one, who missed 11 months with a right Wimbledon and began preparing for the hardcourt hip injury and surgery last January, defeated the 80th- campaign. ranked American 3-6, 6-4, 7-5. Murray, who has fallen to 832nd in the rankings, Wawrinka rained out needed seven match points to subdue McDonald, His lone win on grasscourts came over Swiss Stan squandering five before being broken in the 10th game Wawrinka, another three-time Grand Slam winner of the final set before breaking back and finally ending fighting back from a left knee injury. The world number matters after two hours and 37 minutes at 12:45 am 198 had a first-round match against US qualifier yesterday. “I fought hard and I had to,” Murray said. Donald Young rained out. Murray’s first hardcourt “The movements and stuff were fine. I didn’t break match in nearly 17 months, delayed three hours by rain, down. It lasted pretty well.” turned when he broke in the penultimate game of the The 31-year-old Scotsman unleashed a primal second set and again on his fifth break chance in the scream and a right fist-pumping frenzy of joy after opening game of the third set. Murray, whose best McDonald hit a forehand long on the final point. “I Washington finish was a runner-up effort in his 2006 enjoyed getting through that one. You could see it in debut, served for the match in the 10th game but the celebration,” Murray said. “That was a tough squandered five match points, four of them on errors, match. It could have gone either way. It was nice to get and McDonald broke back to 5-5 when Murray netted it.” Murray had not played in a hardcourt match since a forehand to end the 12-minute game. March 2017 at Indian Wells, where he lost in his open- At 30-30 in the 11th game, McDonald stuck his rac- ing match. “I hadn’t played in darkness or under the quet over the net to play the ball, losing the point on a lights in a really long time and I felt my rhythm was violation quickly called by French umpire Arnaud off,” Murray said. “I was struggling on my serve. I cut Gabas. McDonald then hit a forehand long to give WASHINGTON: Mackenzie McDonald returns a backhand to Andy Murray during the Citi Open at the Rock Creek the unforced errors a little bit in the second set and Murray another chance to serve for the match. Murray, Tennis Center on July 30, 2018 in Washington, DC. — AFP started serving better.” who surrendered four double faults and won only five- Murray booked a second-round match Wednesday of-15 second-serve points in the first set, broke to against British fourth seed Kyle Edmund, who had an open the second set but swatted an ugly forehand well to hand Murray the break and a 5-4 lead. Murray held against third-ranked defending champion Alexander opening bye. “I’ll have to play much better if I want to wide to surrender a break in the next game, slamming on a service winner to force a third set. Zverev of Germany by defeating Russian Evgeny win that match, more aggressively,” Murray said. “It a ball to the court in frustration at what in top form Donskoy 6-4, 6-1. US wild card Noah Rubin beat will help having one more match under my belt.” It was would have been a routine shot. Both held serve until Jaziri gets Zverev next Russian Mikhail Youzhny 6-4, 6-4 to reach a second- Murray’s first experience with a serve clock, which will the ninth game, when McDonald sent a forehand wide Tunisia’s Malek Jaziri booked a second-round match round match against US second seed John Isner.— AFP been bracing myself for this for some time. Serbian Danilovic “I still haven’t slept and what I have What pressure? achieved still hasn’t sunk in. I need a few days to clear my head.” Having lost to dreaming big Spaniard Paula Badosa Gibert in the final Japan’s Momota round of the qualifiers, Danilovic was on her way to the airport for a return flight to after maiden Belgrade with her mother when the organis- explosive in the ers asked her to re-enter the tournament. WTA success The daughter of Serbia’s former trophy- worlds opener laden basketball player Predrag Danilovic, who had stints with NBA teams Miami Heat BELGRADE: Rising Serbian tennis prodigy and Dallas Mavericks, then staged one Olga Danilovic is ready to shine on the big upset after another en route to the trophy. NANJING: Japan’s Kento Momota made a stage after winning her maiden WTA title in Her victims included Germany’s world num- blistering start to his badminton World stunning fashion. Danilovic became the first ber 10 Julia Goerges in the quarter-finals Championships yesterday - then brushed off lucky loser from the qualifiers and the first and she also fought back in the third set to any talk of pressure. The explosive 23-year- player born in this millennium to win a WTA beat home crowd favorite Potapova in the old is the man in form coming into the trophy after beating Russia’s Anastasia final. Showing her father’s on-court tenacity Nanjing showpiece and is tipped by many to Potapova in a dramatic Moscow Open final and willpower akin to her more illustrious win the tournament. After swatting aside on Sunday. compatriot Novak Djokovic, the left-handed Ukraine’s Artem Pochtarov 21-13, 21-12, “I said last year I was ready to turn pro- Danilovic hammered in a barrage of spec- Momota said: “I don’t take the attention at fessional and I really don’t see myself play- tacular winners which cancelled out a flurry home and abroad as pressure, but instead ing junior tournaments any more,” the 17- of unforced errors. The tearful youngster motivation.” “The first match was an easy year-old told a news conference in the embraced her mother, a Serbian state televi- win. I feel very good now and hope I can win Serbian capital. “Some plans have now NANJING: Kento Momota of Japan reacts after defeating Artem Pochtarov of the Ukraine in sion presenter, after the 7-5, 6-7(1) 6-4 win all the matches. I want to win,” Xinhua news changed and I will definitely aim for bigger as she was cheered on by a contingent of their men’s singles match during the badminton World Championships yesterday. — AFP agency quoted the sixth seed as saying. tournaments with higher ambitions. I’ve Serbian fans. —Reuters Momota plays Luka Wraber, the 136th- ranked Austrian today. In the women’s draw, and seventh seed Carolina Marin of Spain. 16 in the first game and was trailing for much world number one Tai Tzu-ying of Taiwan Ratchanok Intanon survived a major scare of the second, losing 19-16 at one stage. The eased through in her opener to underline as the fourth seed battled back from the 23-year-old appeared troubled by a right Kuwait Squash Team in her status as the woman to beat. The top brink of a shock early exit. ankle or foot injury and called for her trainer seed was never really in trouble against Ratchanok, the 2013 champion and one of as she stared defeat in the face. But the for- Cairo for training camp Hsuan-Yu Wendy Chen of Australia, winning the favorites, looked set to go out to the mer world number one stormed back to 21-10, 21-16 to reach the third round. unseeded Mia Blichfeldt of Denmark, before squeeze through the second game 22-20 and Similarly untroubled were former number recovering her poise to gleefully reach round then raced away in the decider 21-10 after a one Saina Nehwal of India, the 10th seed, three. A lacklustre Ratchanok went down 21- nervy 76 minutes of action.—AFP was scathing in his column for Britain’s More pressure Daily Telegraph published Tuesday, accusing Rashid of being a “spoilt brat”. “He should Dog Stormy never have been handed a Test recall,” on lone spinner insisted Boycott. “In two years England have gone around in a circle. By picking Rashid, wins medal they are selecting the unselectable: a player Rashid after who will not play four-day Championship cricket for Yorkshire because his heart is not SYDNEY: A dog called Stormy has been awarded Boycott blast in it, but he will play for England in Test a medal after completing a half-marathon in out- matches. Absurd? Yes.” back Australia and winning the hearts of its human Vaughan had previously labelled competitors. The crossbreed diligently ran the 21- Rashid’s selection “ridiculous”, with Rashid kilometre (13-mile) Goldfields Pipeline Marathon BIRMINGHAM: Adil Rashid faced further responding angrily by saying his former near the West Australian town of Kalgoorlie this pressure ahead of his controversial recall to team-mate’s remarks were “stupid”, while month in two-and-a-half hours, the average time of the England Test side for their series open- suggesting Yorkshire’s less than enthusias- participants.