Nadal says ‘not 100 percent certain’ it is his final French Open

Nadal says ‘not 100 percent certain’ it is his final French Open
Spain’s Rafael Nadal holds a press conference during the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros Complex in Paris on May 25, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 25 May 2024
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Nadal says ‘not 100 percent certain’ it is his final French Open

Nadal says ‘not 100 percent certain’ it is his final French Open
  • “There is a good chance that it will be my last French Open,” said the Spaniard
  • Nadal has 22 Grand Slam titles

PARIS: Rafael Nadal said Saturday that it is likely he is appearing at the French Open for the final time but cautioned it was “not 100 percent certain.”
“There is a good chance that it will be my last French Open, but I cannot say that I am 100 percent certain that it will be the last,” said the Spaniard.
Nadal, who has won the French Open 14 times and will celebrate his 38th birthday on June 3, faces world number four Alexander Zverev in the first round in Paris on Monday.
The Spanish legend has racked up 112 wins in 115 matches at the tournament since his title-winning 2005 debut when he was just 19.
He has 22 Grand Slam titles — second only to Novak Djokovic’s 24 on the all-time men’s list — but his career has been plagued by injuries.
Nadal has played just four tournaments since January last year after suffering a hip injury and then a muscle tear.
As a result, his ranking has slumped to 276 in the world and comes into the French Open unseeded.


Zverev dispatches Humbert in straight sets to win Paris Masters

Zverev dispatches Humbert in straight sets to win Paris Masters
Updated 04 November 2024
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Zverev dispatches Humbert in straight sets to win Paris Masters

Zverev dispatches Humbert in straight sets to win Paris Masters
  • The third-seeded Zverev was in total control of the final to earn his seventh Masters 1000 title, his first in the French capital
  • Zverev became the second German player to win in Paris after Boris Becker

PARIS: Alexander Zverev was imperious in dispatching Frenchman Ugo Humbert 6-2, 6-2 to win the Paris Masters on Sunday.

The third-seeded Zverev was in total control of the final to earn his seventh Masters 1000 title, his first in the French capital. The win also moved him past top-ranked Jannik Sinner for the most wins on the ATP tour this year, at 66.

Zverev’s big serve, excellent returns and great attacking shots did not take long to extinguish the hopes of the partisan crowd as Humbert never got into the match.

Humbert won’t have fond memories of his first Masters final. He tried to play aggressively from the start and to take all the risks to shorten rallies. But he could not find his range while Zverev defended extremely well.

The German quickly solved his rival’s serve and had his first break chance in the third game. He took it when Humbert sent a forehand into the net.

Humbert continued to make unforced errors. Trailing 3-1, he saved two break points but dropped his serve again when another shanked forehand sealed the game.

Zverev dropped just one point on his serve in the opening set and sealed it at love with an ace.

The 15th-seeded Humbert walked back to the locker room after the first set. The interlude didn’t change anything.

The Frenchman double-faulted on his return to the court, continued to make poor tactical decisions and was immediately broken with a forehand into the net. Another break gave Zverev a 3-0 lead as Humbert wasted a 40-0 lead and was never able to stage a comeback.

Zverev became the second German player to win in Paris after Boris Becker. He will overtake Carlos Alcaraz to move into second place in the new ATP rankings and will be a top contender at the ATP Finals gathering the top eight players of the season from Nov. 10-17 in Turin, Italy.


Swiatek and Gauff make winning starts to WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh

Swiatek and Gauff make winning starts to WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh
Updated 03 November 2024
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Swiatek and Gauff make winning starts to WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh

Swiatek and Gauff make winning starts to WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh
  • Polish superstar began her title defense with an almighty comeback
  • American had a more straightforward evening

RIYADH: Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff enjoyed winning starts to their WTA Finals campaigns in Riyadh on Sunday, albeit in contrasting fashion.

Swiatek began her title defense with an almighty comeback, rallying back from a set and a double-break down to overcome eighth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 in two hours and 33 minutes.

The win was crucial for the Polish second seed to keep her hopes of wrestling back the number one ranking from Aryna Sabalenka alive.  

Meanwhile, third-ranked American Gauff had a more straightforward evening, completing a 6-3, 6-2 win over her compatriot and US Open finalist Jessica Pegula in 75 minutes.

“It was a tough match. She's always a tough opponent. And these conditions against her, it’s tough,” said Gauff, who snapped a three-match losing streak to Pegula.

“But overall, I think I'm just happy with how I played. Sometimes it was sloppy, sometimes it was great, but that's tennis. I thought we both were playing at a high level. I think I just, was able to break through on some of the more important points.”

Earlier at King Saud University Indoor Arena, making her first competitive appearance in two months, Swiatek fell behind 4-6, 0-3 before she mounted a successful comeback against Krejcikova.

"For sure it wasn’t easy. At the beginning I felt a bit rusty but I’m happy I found a way to play a little bit more solid," said Swiatek, who finished the match with a total tally of 10 aces.

"I tried to do the usual stuff that I do to control the ball a bit more because it was flying like crazy off my racquet.

"I knew I had this game in me, I just needed to find it. It was hard to be patient with that but at the end I’m glad I just kept it going and didn’t think what the score was."

Swiatek, a five-time major champion, skipped last month’s Asian swing and hadn’t played a match since her US Open quarter-final exit in early September.

The 23-year-old Pole parted ways with her coach of three years Tomasz Wiktorowski and debuted her new partnership with Belgian coach Wim Fissette at these WTA Finals.

Krejcikova is ranked 13 in the world but claimed a place in Riyadh as one of the tour’s best eight players due to a new rule implemented this season that gives priority to a grand slam champion that maintains a ranking between nine and 20 over the eighth-ranked player in the Race.

FIGHTBACK

Swiatek stared down three consecutive break points in her opening service game. She saved the first two but overcooked a forehand, sending it long to get broken at the start of the match.

A costly double fault saw Krejcikova fall behind 0-40 but the Czech swept the next five points to get out of trouble and inch ahead 4-2.

Swiatek saved a set point with a good serve in the ninth game to hold but Krejcikova was unnerved as she comfortably served out the set to take the lead in 47 minutes.

The two-time Grand Slam champion looked on her way to a comfortable straight-sets victory when she went up 3-0 with a double-break in the second set, punishing Swiatek’s second serve and benefitting from her opponent’s mistimed shots.

But that only sparked a fightback from Swiatek, who erased her deficit by grabbing the next four games to take the lead for the first time in the match.

Krejcikova double-faulted at a crucial moment, handing Swiatek two set point opportunities in game 12. Swiatek converted her second chance to clinch the set and force a decider.

That took the wind out of Krejcikova’s sails as Swiatek quickly carved a 5-0 gap. 

Swiatek got broken while serving for the match but quickly self-corrected, breaking Krejcikova in game eight to seal the win.

With Sabalenka’s opening round win over Zheng Qinwen on Saturday, Swiatek will now need to win the title, while winning at least two round robin matches, in order to secure the year-end number one ranking.


Sabalenka kick offs WTA Finals campaign with win over Olympic champ Qinwen

Sabalenka kick offs WTA Finals campaign with win over Olympic champ Qinwen
Updated 02 November 2024
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Sabalenka kick offs WTA Finals campaign with win over Olympic champ Qinwen

Sabalenka kick offs WTA Finals campaign with win over Olympic champ Qinwen
  • Sabalenka is eyeing a maiden trophy at the prestigious season finale in Riyadh after finishing second two years ago

RIYADH: World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka commenced her WTA Finals campaign in Riyadh on Saturday with her fifth victory in as many meetings with the current Olympic champion, China’s Zheng Qinwen, posting a 6-3, 6-4 result.

Facing off for the fifth time in the last 14 months, Sabalenka and Zheng opened the action at the first-ever professional women’s tennis tournament in Saudi Arabia in front of a near capacity crowd at King Saud University Indoor Arena.

The Belarusian top seed needed just one hour and 24 minutes to defeat Zheng, dropping a mere two points behind her first serve throughout the contest.

A runner-up at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas two years ago, Sabalenka is eyeing a maiden trophy at the prestigious season finale, which would also guarantee her the year-end top ranking.

“It’s going to mean everything for me, that’s one of my dreams and I really worked hard in the past years and I really hope that one day I’ll be able to hold this beautiful trophy,” said Sabalenka, 26, on court.

“Qinwen is such a great player and we always had great battles against each other. She’s playing really aggressive tennis. I’m super happy with the win, especially against such a tough opponent.

“I think I served really well today and I put her under so much pressure on her serve. So I think my serve helped me tonight.”

Saudi Tennis Federation President Arij Mutabagani, tournament director and former world No. 1 Garbine Muguruza, and the highest-ranked African and Arab player in history, Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur, kicked-off proceedings by welcoming the crowd and the tennis tour to Riyadh in a pre-match opening ceremony.

Very little separated the players in the opening set as both dominated the points behind their first serves, Sabalenka winning 18/19 and Zheng winning 13/16.

But it was the second serve where Sabalenka found an edge, and after she saved a break point in the third game, the top seed broke for a 4-2 advantage and sealed a one-set lead in 39 minutes.

With Chinese supporters representing the majority of the crowd and rallying behind their Olympic hero, Zheng was near clinical through the first eight games of the second set.   

But Sabalenka upped the ante in game nine, converting her second break point opportunity to inch ahead and she closed out the win on her own serve minutes later.

In a bizarre incident, Sabalenka had to wait at the net for a short moment before Zheng realized she had actually lost the match.

Sabalenka, a three-time Grand Slam champion, has now won her last seven consecutive matches against top-10 opposition.


Sabalenka wants to ‘dominate the tour’ ahead of WTA Final in Riyadh

Sabalenka wants to ‘dominate the tour’ ahead of WTA Final in Riyadh
Updated 02 November 2024
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Sabalenka wants to ‘dominate the tour’ ahead of WTA Final in Riyadh

Sabalenka wants to ‘dominate the tour’ ahead of WTA Final in Riyadh
  • New world No. 1 spoke to Arab News about rivalry with Iga Swiatek, raising tennis’s profile in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East

RIYADH: Aryna Sabalenka is back at the top of the world tennis rankings and has every intention of staying there.

After spending eight weeks at the summit last year, the Belarusian is now enjoying a second stint as the world’s best player, and enters this week’s WTA Finals in Riyadh in pole position to secure the year-end No. 1 ranking.

While some might crumble under the weight of expectation and responsibility that comes with being at the top, this current generation of leaders in women’s tennis, like Sabalenka and her direct rival Iga Swiatek, seem to thrive in it.

With three Grand Slam titles under her belt — two scooped up this season — and a wealth of experience from spending the majority of the past five years inside the top 10, Sabalenka has come to enjoy the wider role of being one of the leading ladies on the WTA tour.

“Overall, I think to be a leader is tough. But I think it’s a great opportunity to help the sport,” Sabalenka told Arab News in Riyadh ahead of her WTA Finals opener against Zheng Qinwen on Saturday.

“To fight for equal prize money, to show the world, to help countries like where we are, to improve the quality of life for women.

“It’s a responsibility, it’s a good opportunity to speak up for women. I like it, I like to have this responsibility and I like to represent women’s sport as strong and powerful women who can fight for their rights.”

Power is definitely something one associates with Sabalenka, and it is not just because her average forehand speed is often clocked higher than that of many male tennis players.

The 26-year-old has shown great strength in overcoming adversity; be it playing through grief after the sudden passing of her father, recovering from a severe case of the yips on her serve, or finding ways to reel in her famously emotional temperament during matches.

She has learned to accept the things that are beyond her control and is instead buoyed by huge ambition and an eagerness for self-improvement.

When Swiatek first took over the No.1 ranking in April 2022 after Ashleigh Barty’s surprise retirement, not many would have expected the young Pole would go on to spend a total of 125 weeks occupying the top spot — a tally that will no doubt continue to increase as she battles Sabalenka for the summit.

That kind of dominance is something Sabalenka aspires to reach.

“I always wanted to dominate the tour like Serena (Williams) did, like Iga was able to do for so long. And she’s still close, it’s all going to be decided after this tournament, so who knows?” said Sabalenka.

“But it’s really inspiring and of course I want to dominate the tour like they did. But I’m trying to focus on myself, on improving myself, to make sure that I have all of the tools to dominate the tour as they did.”

 

 

Watching Sabalenka and Swiatek practice together at King Saud University Indoor Arena this weekend, and filming a TikTok video when they were done, one would not have guessed that the pair are in the midst of fierce duel for the year-end No. 1 ranking this week in Riyadh.

They have faced off 12 times on tour already, with Swiatek leading the head-to-head 8-4, but Sabalenka has a healthy 1,046-point advantage over the Pole in the rankings entering these WTA Finals.

A pure athlete at heart, Sabalenka says she “loves” her rivalry with Swiatek.

“I think first of all it’s really great that we have this rivalry,” declared Sabalenka.

“It’s really competitive and I really love it because this is something that forces us to improve and forces us to get better every day and what motivates us to keep working, keep trying to find something else, to keep improving yourself, mentally, physically.

“That’s great, I love it. That’s what sport is all about. It would be so boring and not interesting to watch for people and for us to play if it wouldn’t be that tight.”

Swiatek isn’t the only one sparking that fire in Sabalenka. China’s reigning Olympic gold medalist Zheng has emerged as a rising force in tennis, and even though she lost all four of her meetings against Sabalenka in the last 14 months, Sabalenka sees her as a serious threat moving forward.

“I think it’s already kind of like a rivalry, even though I lead whatever the score is between us. But I still think we have a rivalry and I see this passion, this … I don’t know, not like aggression against me but I see that she really wants to get this win and it’s already become like a rivalry,” said Sabalenka, who faces Zheng in Purple Group action on Saturday in Riyadh at 6 p.m. local time.

“The last match (in the Wuhan final) was very competitive. I actually see her being one of the best and to have a rivalry with her, I enjoy it, I like it.

“It’s important for sport, that’s why I came to the sport because I like to be competitive and like to have these tight battles and to work on a lot of things during the match and to get this win I think is the sweetest feeling ever, so I love it.”

The WTA Finals tournament in Riyadh is offering a record $15.25 million in prize money, which is equal to what is on the table at the men’s equivalent ATP Finals.

An undefeated champion — with three wins in the round-robin stage — will pocket a whopping $5.155 million.

“That’s crazy, that’s actually crazy. But I think we all deserve that,” said Sabalenka, when asked what it feels like to fight for that kind of money.

“We are working as hard as the men do. We are making a lot of sacrifices, maybe even more than the men do and I think we deserve it.”

Sabalenka has enjoyed a tremendous tail-end of the season and enters the tournament in Riyadh having won 20 of her last 21 matches.

She has lifted four trophies this season — all on hard courts — and all three of her Grand Slam triumphs so far have also been on hard courts.

Sabalenka believes it is only a matter of time before she also reigns supreme on the clay of Roland Garros and the lawns of Wimbledon.

“I was pretty confident this year but (at the) French Open my stomach issues stopped me, that was very mentally painful. And then Wimbledon, my shoulder stopped me,” said Sabalenka.

“But I was pretty confident I can do well at those Slams. I already proved it to myself in previous years. So going into next year I’m pretty confident I can do really well there, if my body allows me.

“We’re doing everything we can to make sure whatever happened this year will never happen again. So I’m pretty confident I can do well.”


World No. 1 Sabalenka looking to hold off Swiatek at WTA Finals in Riyadh

World No. 1 Sabalenka looking to hold off Swiatek at WTA Finals in Riyadh
Updated 01 November 2024
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World No. 1 Sabalenka looking to hold off Swiatek at WTA Finals in Riyadh

World No. 1 Sabalenka looking to hold off Swiatek at WTA Finals in Riyadh
  • Belarusian surpassed her Polish rival last week in the world rankings
  • World’s Top 8 singles players and doubles teams commemorated the event in the historic district of Diriyah

RIYADH: Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek are set to battle for the year-end No. 1 ranking, which will be decided at this week’s WTA Finals in Riyadh.

Sabalenka “unexpectedly” recaptured the top spot last week after Iga Swiatek dropped points for not fulfilling mandatory tournament requirements this season, and enters the competition in Saudi Arabia as the No. 1 seed.

The Belarusian, however, is more concerned about ending the year at the summit of the rankings, and wants to avoid last season’s scenario, where she surrendered the position in the closing week of her campaign as Swiatek clinched the WTA Finals title.

Sabalenka has had an incredible 2024, which included two Grand Slam title runs at the Australian Open and US Open. She secured a third consecutive Wuhan trophy last month and said that she was surprised when she learned she had snatched the world No. 1 ranking from Swiatek before the WTA Finals.

“I was like, ‘How, what happened? Where did she lose those 100 points?’ I didn’t expect that,” Sabalenka told reporters in Riyadh on the eve of her Saturday opener against Zheng Qinwen. 

“I woke up that morning and my boyfriend was like, ‘Congrats, you became world No. 1.’ I was like, ‘What? I didn’t do anything,’ kind of like in that moment. I was like, ‘Whatever, I’ll take it.’”

Sabalenka holds a comfortable 1,046-point advantage over her Polish rival in the rankings, which means Swiatek must defend her WTA Finals title to have any chance of clinching the year-end No. 1 spot.

“I want to finish the year as No. 1, then I’ll be OK. I’ll be more confident in saying I’m world No. 1, not just because someone lost 100 points,” said the 26-year-old Sabalenka.

Swiatek arrives in Riyadh having not played since her US Open quarter-final exit early September. The five-time grand slam champion parted ways with her coach of three years Tomasz Wiktorowski and decided to skip the Asian swing to focus on finding a new mentor.

She announced two weeks ago that she had hired Naomi Osaka’s former coach Wim Fissette, and they will debut their partnership in Riyadh this fortnight.

Swiatek said that she does not feel rusty coming into the tournament, and practiced with Sabalenka at the King Saud University Indoor Arena ahead of this weekend’s start.

“I am determined, I want to play my best game here and win this,” Swiatek said.

“It was nice just to practice with Aryna because we haven’t done that probably since 2022. It was a really good practice and she’s a great player and she also deserves to be world No. 1. But for sure I’m going to fight for me to be in that place.”

Meanwhile, world No. 5 Elena Rybakina revealed that she has hired Novak Djokovic’s former coach Goran Ivanizevic and that they will begin working together during the offseason, in preparation for 2025.

Rybakina split with her coach of five years Stefano Vukov ahead of the US Open and has been battling health issues, including insomnia and a back injury. The Kazakhstani big-server has played only two matches since Wimbledon, and will be making her first appearance since September, when she withdrew ahead of her US Open second round.

“It’s not easy to start after this break. But I’m happy with the work we did in the last two weeks. Of course, I’m not maybe at my 100 percent. I’m just looking forward and happy to be healthy now and start playing,” the former Wimbledon champion said.

Zheng is perhaps the most in-form player in the field at the moment. The Olympic gold medallist has put together a 28-4 win-loss record since Wimbledon, including a 12-2 run through the Asian swing, which she wrapped up with a title triumph in Tokyo last week.

The first Chinese player since Li Na in 2013 to qualify for the WTA Finals, Zheng has a tough task ahead of her as she opens her campaign against Sabalenka, a player who has defeated her four times in the past 14 months.

“The trickiest part for me right now is how to really find a way to break through the wall and trying to beat her,” Zheng said.

“Because the last match (in the Wuhan final), I was obviously closer but if I’m able to really do something good, try to hold my serve well or try to break her earlier in the match, and try to find a way to win, I think that’s the most important. Because I feel the level is there, everything is there, but you have to show it during the match.”

On the eve of the 53rd WTA Finals, the best eight singles players and best eight doubles teams came together in the historic district of Diriyah to commemorate the season-ending tournament coming to Saudi Arabia for the first time.

The WTA Finals will begin a three-year stint in Riyadh on Saturday and will conclude on Nov. 9.