US Open Day 9 Preview: Four Must-See Matches - UBITENNIS
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US Open Day 9 Preview: Four Must-See Matches

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Venus Williams (zimbio.com)

We are down to eight men and eight women remaining in the singles draws, as quarterfinal action gets underway on Tuesday.

 

Pablo Carreno Busta vs. Diego Schwartzman
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What an amazing opportunity for both of these men to make their first major semifinal. Carreno Busta has not dropped a set on his road to this quarterfinal, though he’s had a dream draw as he’s faced nothing but qualifiers until this round. Schwartzman had a more impressive run to this stage, defeating former US Open champion Marin Cilic as well as a quarterfinalist from last year, Lucas Pouille. Schwartzman though received treatment to his right leg during his win on Sunday. At 5’7”, Schwartzman is the shortest major quarterfinalist in 23 years, and he can ill afford to have his movement hampered by a leg injury. This will be the first meeting between these two surprising quarterfinalists. Carreno Busta is the more accomplished player and will be the favorite on Tuesday. It will be interesting to see how both men handle the pressure in the biggest moment of their careers, as that will undoubtedly impact the outcome.

Anastasija Sevastova vs. Sloane Stephens
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Here’s another quarterfinal where the players have never before faced each other. This is Sevastova’s second straight year in the US Open quarterfinals, coming off her victory over Maria Sharapova on Sunday. Sloane Stephens has had a fantastic summer after missing almost a year due to a foot injury. She is now 12-2 in her last three tournaments, with her only losses coming to top 10-ranked players. This is the farthest Stephens has advanced in her career at her home major, though she’s a former Australian Open semifinalist and Wimbledon quarterfinalist. Sloane is such a great mover on the court, which may make the variety in Sevastova’s game less effective than it was against Sharapova. I like Sloane’s chances here to reach the semifinals at her third straight event.

Venus Williams vs. Petra Kvitova
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This is a big-time matchup to headline the night session. After struggling with her form this summer, Kvitova’s groundstrokes have been so strong during this fortnight, especially in ousting tournament favorite Garbine Muguruza in the fourth round. Meanwhile Venus Williams has also played very solidly through four rounds, just as she has at all the majors this year. Kvitova leads their head-to-head 4-1, with their most notable match being a memorable encounter at Wimbledon in 2014, which Petra won 7-5 in the third. Also notably, every match they’ve played has gone to three sets, and I expect another tight contest here. If Kvitova hits the ball as sharply as she did on Sunday, it will be extremely difficult for Venus to prevail. But it’s hard to expect Kvitova to maintain such a high level – she’s always been a streaky player, and has only been back on tour for a few months. Her hand is still not fully recovered from the attack she suffered in her home late last year, and this is actually her best career showing in New York. I expect Venus to be the steadier player and to return to the US Open semifinals for the first time in seven years.

Sam Querrey vs. Kevin Anderson
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The night cap on Arthur Ashe Stadium will be the fifteenth meeting in what has become an intriguing rivalry between these two big men. Overall Querrey leads Anderson 8-6 in their careers. Most recently, Querrey outlasted Anderson in a five-set battle in the fourth round of Wimbledon in July, though Anderson gained revenge a few weeks later on the hard courts of Montreal. Querrey has been in stellar form thus far in Flushing Meadows, especially in dropping just five games to Mischa Zverev in Sunday’s night session. Querrey will try to recapture that same night session magic in this match, though this is a much tougher matchup as both men play very similar styles. This is Querrey’s third major quarterfinal, and he’s 1-1 in this round. Anderson is 0-1, as he lost in the US Open quarterfinals two years ago to Stan Wawrinka. As noted by Simon Cambers on Twitter, Anderson will be making his Arthur Ashe stadium debut, as his US Open quarterfinal two years ago was actually played on Louis Armstrong Stadium. That could be a big factor here. This could easily be a four or five set battle that goes late into the night, or technically the next morning. Both men will be feeling a ton of pressure, as they’ll know this is a golden opportunity to make a major semifinal. They’ll also know whoever wins this match will be the favorite against either Carreno Busta or Schwartzman in the semifinals. The statistics seem to slightly favor Querrey, but I would not be surprised if Kevin Anderson pulls this one out.

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Rafael Nadal Announces First Tournament Since Injury

Rafael Nadal will make his ATP tour comeback in Brisbane.

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Rafael Nadal (@WeAreTennis - Twitter)

Rafael Nadal has confirmed the date for his comeback to the ATP tour as he looks to add more Grand Slam titles to his collection before his potential retirement.

 

The 22-time Grand Slam champion has announced that his comeback will take place on the first week of the calendar as he will play the ATP 250 tournament in Brisbane which starts on the 31st of December.

It will be Nadal’s first tournament since last year’s Australian Open after he suffered a hip injury at the event.

In a video on social media Nadal announced his return to the tour as he looks to make an impact in Brisbane, “After a year away from competition, it’s time to come back. It will be in Brisbane the first week of January,” Nadal stated.

https://twitter.com/RafaelNadal/status/1730557525097885909

January’s event will be a welcome sight to Nadal as he had initially been expected to return during the clay court season but the hip injury was much worse than expected.

That lead to Nadal doing a press conference in Mallorca where he not only said that he was withdrawing from Roland Garros but also hinted that 2024 could be his last year, “My idea and my motivation is to try to enjoy and try to say goodbye to all the tournaments that have been important for me in my tennis career during [next] year, and just try to enjoy that, being competitive and enjoying being on the court, something that today is not possible,” Nadal was quoted by The News as saying.

There is a high level of motivation for Nadal next year as he will want to win the Olympics at Roland Garros in Paris.

However before Nadal can think about the end of his career, the Spaniard will be determined to make an impact in Australia as he looks to stop Novak Djokovic’s dominance.

The tournament in Brisbane starts on the 31st of December while the Australian Open takes place on the 14th of January.

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Nick Kyrgios Opens Up About His Self-Harm Battle And Murray’s Support

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Nick Kyrgios (AUS) playing against Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) in the third round of the Gentlemen's Singles on No.1 Court at The Championships 2021. Held at The All England Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon. Day 6 Saturday 03/07/2021. Credit: AELTC/Jonathan Nackstrand

Nick Kyrgios says he became addicted to pain during his battle with self-harm that lasted between 18 and 24 months.

 

In an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan Uncensored on TalkTV, the former Wimbledon finalist spoke about his mental health issues. Kyrgios has previously spoken publically about the topic but has now revealed further details about the extent he went through and the role Andy Murray played in supporting him. He was admitted to a psychiatric ward in London and contemplated suicide following the 2019 Wimbledon Championships.

“It was pretty dark to be honest,” Kyrgios told Morgan. “I won tournaments on the professional tour, drinking every night, self-harming, burning things on my arm, cutting myself for fun. It became an addiction of pain. I hated myself. I hated waking up and being Nick Kyrgios.”

One of those who tried to help the Australian address his self-harm problem was three-time Grand Slam champion Murray who noticed cuts on Kyrgios’ arms during one of their practice sessions four years ago. According to The Times, the former world No.1 then alerted Kyrgios’ manager John Morris about the cuts.

Paying tribute to the Brit, Kyrgios says Murray has supported him throughout his career. The 28-year-old has been ranked as high as 13th in the world and has won seven ATP titles. Besides his run to the Wimbledon final last year, he has also reached the quarter-final stage of a major on three other occasions.

“Andy was always a big supporter of me,” Kyrgios said. “As soon as I came on the tour, he kind of saw a work in progress and took me under his wing. Then he realised later in my career that I don’t think I was coachable or I was on my own path, but he was always someone that was looking out for me.
“He saw it [the self-harm] and he said, ‘What’s that on your arm?’ It was pretty bad at that stage. Andy obviously was trying to give me advice on it. But I was just so stuck in my ways at that time that I didn’t listen. Obviously I’m very thankful. I thank him a lot.”

Kyrgios, who has only played one match on the Tour this season due to injury, hopes that he can help others by speaking publicly about his mental health battle. Something he describes as ‘the most powerful thing in his career.’

“I feel like I’ve helped so many people after I opened up about it and put it on social media,” Kyrgios said.
“I’ve almost been a beacon for people who are struggling. When they feel like they’re overwhelmed and they’re going towards drinking, drugs and stuff, they open up and they feel like I’m relatable.
“That’s been the most powerful thing in my career; people coming to me with genuine issues.
“They send me photos in my Instagram, direct messages, self-harming and genuinely wanting to commit suicide.
“I have conversations with these people. Sometimes I’ve had phone calls with these people. That’s making a real difference and I’m just really proud.”

Kyrgios recently had a stint in broadcasting after working for The Tennis channel during the ATP Finals in Milan. He is continuing his rehab from injury but it is unclear as to when he will make his return to professional tennis.

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Hamad Medjedovic earns first place in Red Group at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah

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Hamad Medjedovic beat Abdullah Shelbayh 3-4 (6-8) 4-2 4-3 (7-5) 4-2 to earn first place in the Red Group with a perfect 3-0 record at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah. 

 

Medjedovic needed to win at least one set to reach the semifinals, while Shelbayh needed to win the match in three or four sets. Luca Van Assche qualified as the second-placed player from the Red Group.

Medjedovic will face Dominic Stricker in the semifinal, while Van Assche takes on Arthur Fils.  

Medjedovic fired 18 aces and won 88 % of his first-serve points. He saved all three break points against Shelbayh. 

Medjedovic fired a tournament-leading 45 aces and was broken twice. 

Medjedovic saved three break points to hold serve in the fourth game of the first set. Shelbayh went up a mini-break twice, but Medjedovic pulled back on serve both times. Shelbayh won the final three points to clinch the tie-break 8-6. Both players went on serve in the first five games before Medjedovic earned the break to win the second set 4-2. 

The third set went on serve with no break points en route to the tie-break. Shelbayh earned the first mini-break to take a 3-2 lead. Medjedovic pulled back on serve to draw level to 3-3. The Serbian player earned a second mini-break to close out the tie-break 7-5. 

Medjedovic started the fourth set with an early break in the first game. He held on his next service games and sealed the win on his first match point. 

Medjedovic set up a semifinal match against Dominic Stricker. Luc Van Assche will face Arthur Fils in an all-French semifinal.“It was a great match. I played really good after the first set He is a very good friend of mine. He is a very good player and obviously the crowd here loves him and I respect that. It was a pleasure to play in front of the crowd”, said Medjedovic. 

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