18 Wednesday, January 23, 2019 Sports Emotional Kvitova in semis Off the court with Tsitsipas and Collins AFP Melbourne Djokovic An emotional Petra Kvitova swept into her first Grand concerned Slam semi-final on Tuesday since a terrifying knife attack about almost ended her career as the fairytale runs of Stefanos Open’s Tsitsipas and Danielle Col- lins continued at the Austral- ‘Big Brother’ ian Open. The Czech had not gone cameras past the last eight at a major since a burglar slashed her AFP left hand in December 2016, Melbourne forcing her out of the game for six months and leaving World number one Novak her with lasting nerve dam- Djokovic has expressed con- age in the fingers of her rac- cern about “Big Brother” sur- quet hand. veillance cameras that capture behind-the-scenes footage of players at the Australian Open, making the season-opening Grand Slam resemble a reality Czech Republic’s Petra Kvitova turned emotional during the on court interview with Jim Courier after her television show. victory against Australia’s Ashleigh Barty at the Australian Open on Tuesday. (AFP) The cameras dotted around Melbourne Park, which show players walking But the eighth seed has the corridors and making bounced back and is on a Danielle Collins of the US celebrates defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchen- their way to the courts, were sensational 10-match un- kova of Russia in the women’s singles quarter-final at the Australian introduced this year and are beaten streak after claiming Open on Tuesday. (EPA-EFE) not seen at any other major. the Sydney International Many of the candid clips warm-up title. have gone viral, with social She proved too much reSULTS (QUARTER-FINALS) media users amused when for Ashleigh Barty, crush- Men’s singles security guards asked high- ing the local hope 6-1, Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE x14) bt Roberto Bautista (ESP x22) 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) profile players such as Roger 6-4, and was in tears af- Rafael Nadal (ESP x2) bt Frances Tiafoe (USA) 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 Federer and Maria Sharapo- terwards as she reflected Women’s singles va for identification. Danielle Collins (USA) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 on her long journey back Petra Kvitova (CZE x8) bt Ashleigh Barty (AUS x15) 6-1, 6-4 Others have been more to the top. personal, including Croa- “Really, I didn’t imagine tian 31st seed Petra Martic to be back on this great sta- Today’s MATCHES slumping to the floor and dium and play with the best,” breaking down in tears after the two-time Wimbledon Men’s Singles: Milos Raonic (CAN) vs Lucas Pouille (FRA); N. Djokovic (SRB) vs Ken Nishikori (JPN) her third-round elimination. champion said. “It’s great.” Women’s Singles: Petra Kvitova (CZE) vs Ashleigh Barty (AUS); Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) vs Djokovic, who is chair- Kvitova will face un- Danielle Collins (US). man of the men’s player seeded American Collins in council, said he had privacy the semi-final on Thursday ing hard for,” said the 14th be in the finals of these tour- concerns, particularly for and she desperately wants to Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in action during the quarter-final match against Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut seed, who lives in Cyprus but naments,” he said. women players who were reach Saturday’s decider. at the Australian Open on Tuesday. (REUTERS) trains at the academy of Ser- “But here I think Rafa moving between the recovery “I want it bad, that’s ena Williams’ coach Patrick and Novak are my favour- centre and the locker rooms. right,” Kvitova said. Collins, who has spent But, yeah, I think I’m really to reach the semis at Mel- Mouratoglou in France. ites.” But the Serb said if that Collins, the world num- long stretches of her career embracing it. It makes it a lot bourne Park since Andy Rod- “I feel a bit emotional but Nadal, meanwhile, looks issue was fixed he had to re- ber 35, had never won a playing small tournaments easier when you play in front dick in 2003 and the first not too much – I know I re- to move another step clos- luctantly accept the intrusion. Grand Slam match before to build up her ranking of great fans and really good player from Greece – man ally worked hard to get here, er to winning an event he “That’s the only thing I entering this year’s tourna- points, was in big trouble af- energy.” or woman – to get so far at playing in semis of a Grand has only claimed once be- mind a little bit, you know. ment but she stunned three- ter losing the first set to the Greek sensation Tsitsi- Grand Slam. Slam.” fore among his 17 major But other than that, you time major champion and world number 44. pas was also living the dream Bautista Agut, seeded 22, titles against Tiafoe, who know, we live in Big Brother second seed Angelique Ker- But she fearlessly battled after powering into the last Living the dream acknowledged Tsitsipas was announced himself on the society. I guess you just have ber in round four. back into the match to again four with a measured 7-5, His exploits line him up with playing well, but with Nadal world stage by beating fifth to accept it,” he said. And the 25-year-old from stamp her mark on the tour- 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) win over semi-final against 17-time and Novak Djokovic still in seed Kevin Anderson in the Federer said tennis stars Florida continued her Cin- nament. “This has all been a Spain’s Roberto Bautista Grand Slam-winning Span- the tournament he doesn’t second round. were now used to having derella run by bouncing back really incredible experience,” Agut. iard Rafael Nadal, who beat give him much chance of The Spaniard, who has their every moment captured spectacularly to down Rus- she said. The 20-year-old, who American Frances Tiafoe 6-3 winning the title. been in ominous touch so far, on camera, although he did sia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchen- “This time last year I was ended Swiss great Roger 6-4 6-2. “Of course, he has a lot of is wary of the threat posed not appreciate intrusions on kova 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the playing a challenger (tour- Federer’s tournament, be- “I’m just living the dream, time to improve, a lot of time by the 21-year-old, who has his down time. quarter-finals. nament) in Newport Beach. came the youngest man living what I’ve been work- to get enough experience to nothing to lose. “Now it’s just like every- where all the time. It’s hard to find the corner where you can actually sort of relax a bit, but I can deal with it. It’s no problem,” he said. Rafa slays giantkiller Tiafoe, puts Stefanos in crosshairs Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou was a AFP ing foot surgery. strong supporter of the camer- Melbourne The Spanish second seed “I feel lucky to be where I as, saying showing the human continued his relentless am after what I went through to side of players helped draw in Ruthless Rafael Na- For me is always the same: progress by slaying giant- be able to compete at this level,” a new generation of fans. dal brutally swatted aside a you (Tsitsipas) are in the killer Frances Tiafoe 6-3, he said. “That’s why I get up in “If they root for a player bright young star in the Aus- semi-finals of a Grand 6-4, 6-2 in just 107 min- the morning and go to the gym or they hate a player, that’s tralian Open quarter-finals Slam, you can’t expect utes of power-packed, pre- and work hard.” Nadal had great, because they feel emo- Tuesday, before setting his an easy opponent. cision tennis never faced the world number tion when they watch ten- sights on the leading new 39 before but decided rather nis,” he said. kid on the block, Stefanos Rafael Nadal on his semi-final than feel his way into the match “They need to know the Tsitsipas. opponent Stefanos Tsitsipas need to play my best, and that’s he would bludgeon Tiafoe from players. All those behind the The Spanish sec- what I am looking for.” the start. scenes (clips) that show the ond seed continued Unseeded Tiafoe, 21, had An immediate break of personalities of the players... his relentless pro- as the Spaniard would be at shocked fifth seed Kevin An- serve was the result and a con- it’s great to show they are hu- gress by slaying his best in Thursday evening’s derson and Grigor Dimitrov, trolled romp to the opening set man and they are not machines giantkiller Frances semi-final. seeded 20, but the 17-time in 31 minutes as he imposed his and they have emotions. They Tiafoe 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 “For me is always the same: Grand Slam champion proved authority. have good emotions, they have in just 107 minutes of you are in the semi-finals of a too formidable for the popu- He repeated the lesson at bad emotions.” power-packed, precision ten- Grand Slam, you can’t expect lar American in his first major the start of the second, continu- Mouratoglou said ten- nis. an easy opponent,” he told re- quarter-final. ing a game plan that seemed nis was a conservative sport And Nadal, 32, warned porters. The Spaniard has been in to be based on overpowering but needed to move with the the 20-year-old Tsitsipas, who “Stefanos is one of the best irresistible form in Australia in the speedy young pretender times to stay relevant and Rafael Nadal of Spain in action against Frances Tiafoe of the US at knocked out Roger Federer in players of the world. To have his first tournament since limp- by keeping him pinned to the appeal to fans. the Australian Open on Tuesday. (EPA-EFE) the fourth round, to be ready the chance to be in that final, I ing out of the US Open and hav- baseline.

‘India lacks system to generate quality tennis players’ IANS ings high,” he added. Open but could not continue Melbourne “First we have to start with the momentum in the first the system then with tourna- Grand Slam of the year. Indian tennis star Rohan Bo- If each state in India has a ments then obviously to have “Nothing went wrong in panna has blamed the system one challenger tournament good academies in place. So this tournament. I have to give for not producing quality play- then we build constantly that entire system, once that credit to the opponents who ers and demanded more tour- number of athletes comes into play, we will have is playing in this circuit for naments in the country itself. travelling and getting the more players coming out of it.” such a long time so they are Rohan Bopanna at the Bopanna, who had bad out- Bopanna, who had paired more experienced than us,” Australian Open. ings in the both the categories sport and rankings high. up with Zhaoxuan Yang, went Bopanna said. (men’s and mixed doubles) in Rohan Bopanna down 6-3, 3-6, 6-10 to Robert “Yes we were seeded higher the ongoing Australia Open Farah and Anna-Lena Groene- but if you look at the experience here, also said the country feld in the opening match of the in the Grand Slams our oppo- needs to have more academies 30 weeks of just tournaments mixed doubles category at the nents were more experienced and strong grassroots pro- alone which makes a differ- Australian Open recently. than us. grammes to produce more ten- ence,” Bopanna told IANS. In the men’s doubles cat- For me playing with the nis players. “Tennis is an expensive egory, Bopanna has paired up left-hander is something new “We don’t have a system in sport so to travel constantly with fellow Indian Divij Sharan this time and it takes time to place to generate that many of week and week out is tough. If and lost his opening round build a partnership and that na said the tie against Italy will earlier five. might come into the top 100 but players. And not only the sys- each state in India has a one match to the Spanish pair of what we are working on as a be tough but the new format “The Davis cup tie is very apart from this they still have a tem but we need to have tour- challenger tournament then Pablo Carreño Busta and Guill- team,” he added. might help India. very tough tie because the Ital- lot more top players,” he said. naments in India. We have only you can travel only in India and ermo Garcia-Lopez. India will host Italy on According to the new ians have four or five players in “So we will surely going to one ATP tournament and two make international points and Divij is a left-handed player grass court in the qualifiers rules, the tie have been cut the top 100 which makes a big have a tough tie against them challengers in India which is that way we build constantly and Bopanna has paired up for the Davis Cup in Kolkata from three days to two and difference which we don’t have but having new format of best not enough. If you look at Eu- number of athletes travelling with him for he first time. The next month. each rubber will be decided anyone currently. Yes after this of three sets I think we do have rope or USA, they have 25 to and getting the sport and rank- duo had won the Maharashtra Taking bout the tie, Bopan- over three sets, down from the week Prajnesh(Gunneswaran) a chance.”