Naomi Osaka To Start Comeback At Brisbane International, Murray To Play Men's Tournament - UBITENNIS
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Naomi Osaka To Start Comeback At Brisbane International, Murray To Play Men’s Tournament

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3 weeks ago

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Naomi Osaka (@AustralianOpen on Twitter)

Naomi Osaka’s 15-month break from professional tennis will come to an end during the first week of January after signing up to play a WTA 500 event in Australia. 

 

The four-time Grand Slam champion will begin her comeback at the Brisbane International which will get underway on December 31st. Osaka hasn’t played a professional match since September 2022 after taking time away to give birth to her first child, a baby girl called Shai. It will be her fourth appearance in Brisbane where she has twice reached the semi-final stage in 2019 and 2020. 

“I am really excited about getting back out on court and competing. I always love starting my season in Brisbane and can’t wait to return,” said Osaka.
“The Brisbane International is such a great tournament and will set me up for a brilliant comeback this summer.”

Earlier this week, one of Osaka’s coaches said the Japanese player was eager to chase after more Grand Slam titles and reclaim the world No.1 ranking position in the future. Performance coach Florian Zitzelsberge told tennis.com that work has been done to make the tennis star more of a defensive player on the court to fare better with the current level of women’s tennis. 

“She’s obviously a great offense player, but I think things have changed in the game over the last half-decade where defense is getting more and more important,” said Zitzelsberger.
“We’re working to make Naomi into a player who can transition more effectively from defense to offense. That way, even if she’s getting pushed into a defensive position, she can still strike an offensive shot.”

Joining Osaka in the 48-player women’s draw in Brisbane will be two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka. The Belarusian won the tournament in 2009 and 2016. 

Murray among trio named for men’s tournament

In the men’s draw, Andy Murray will be another player to start their season at the event. The former world No.1 has experienced mixed results on the Tour in recent weeks and has admitted that he is ‘really not enjoying tennis’ following his exit from the Paris Masters where he led Alex de Minaur 5-2 in the deciding set before losing. 

“It’s great to see the Brisbane International back and I am really looking forward to returning to Queensland this summer,” Murray said. 
“I have great memories of winning the title in 2012 and 2013 and I would love to lift the trophy again for a third time in Brisbane.”

World No.10 Holger Rune will also be playing. The Dane has reached three Grand Slam quarter-finals and won four ATP titles so far in his career. However, he has yet to contest a Tour-level final on Australian soil. 2017 champion Grigor Dimitrov is another to confirm his participation in the event. 

“We are really excited to welcome Naomi Osaka, Andy Murray, Victoria Azarenka, Holger Rune and Grigor Dimitrov to Brisbane in 2024 and know the atmosphere of watching these top players will be thrilling this summer,” Brisbane International Tournament Director Cam Pearson said.
“Victoria, Andy and Grigor are all past Brisbane International champions, so to have them confirmed this early shows their commitment to the tournament and how much players love coming back to Queensland. 
“We are also thrilled to have one of the world’s best young players, Holger Rune, confirmed for the Brisbane International. The 20-year-old has had an incredible year, reaching world No.4 in August and next week has his eyes set on winning the 2023 ATP Finals, under new coach Boris Becker.”

The 2024 Brisbane International will have a combined prize money pool of AUS$3.1 million. Matches are scheduled to take place between 31 December and 7 January. 

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Luca Van Assche rallies from two sets to one down to beat Alex Michelsen

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6 hours ago

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30/11/2023

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Luca Van Assche came back from two sets to one down to defeat Alex Michelsen 4-3 (7-0) 3-4 (4-7) 3-4 (4-7) 4-1 4-3 (8-6) in 2 hours and 36 minutes at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Jeddah in the second longest match in the history of this tournament. 

 

Van Assche and Michelsen went on serve in the first three sets. Both players saved all five break points they faced in the first three sets. 

There were three consecutive breaks in the fourth set. Van Assche earned two of them and served out the set at love in the fifth game. 

Both players traded breaks in the fifth and sixth games of the fifth set. Van Assche earned a chance to serve for the match, but Michelsen pulled back on serve to force a tie-break. 

Van Assche built a 3-0 in the tie-break with an early mini-break. Michelsen saved two match points to draw level to 6-6. Van Assche sealed the win with another mini-break on the second match point. 

“He was playing very well the whole match. It was really close. Not a lot of breaks and it was difficult for me but I am very happy”, said Van Assche. 

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Arthur Fils beats Dominic Stricker to end Green Group unbeaten

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9 hours ago

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30/11/2023

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Arthur Fils battled past Dominic Stricker 4-2 3-4 (3-7) 4-2 4-3 (7-5) after 1 hour and 47 minutes in the final round-robin match to end the Green Group unbeaten with a 3-0 record at the Next Gen ATP Finals. 

 

Stricker knew that he would advance to the semifinals if he won just one set. The Swiss player won the set he needed against the already qualified Fils to secure his spot in the semifinal despite the defeat. 

Stricker saved a break point on the deciding point in the third game of the fourth set. Fils earned the break in the fifth game to take a 3-2 lead and served out on his second set point. 

Stricker held serve at love in the first game of the fourth set. The Swiss player broke serve on the deciding point to open up a 2-0 lead. Fils broke straight back in the third game and held serve at 15 to draw level to 2-2. Fils earned three mini-breaks, but Stricker pulled back on serve each time. Fils sealed the tie-break 7-5 on his second match point. 

Stricker beat Fils 7-6 7-6 in Gstaad in their only previous head-to-head match last summer. 

Fils saved two break points in the first game to hold serve. Stricker fended off a break point in the fourth game on the deciding point to draw level to 2-2. Fils earned his first break on his third set point with a forehand return winner in the sixth game to clinch the first set 4-2. 

Stricker saved the only break point of the second set in the fourth game. Both players held on their serve en route to the tie-break. Stricker won six consecutive points from 0-1 down with two mini-breaks to win the tie-break 7-3. 

Fils won his first title in Lyon and reached the final in Antwerp

“I knew before the match that I qualified, but I just want to win every match that I am playing. I think I put a little bit more focus out there out there today than the first two days because I know this opponent and he already beat me this year. It was a tough match but I am really happy to win and let’s see who I get in the semifinal”, said Fils in the post- match interview. 

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Luca Nardi beats Flavio Cobolli but it’s not enough to advance to the semifinals at the Next Gen Finals

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12 hours ago

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30/11/2023

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World number 115 Luca Nardi overcame Flavio Cobolli in an Italian match 3-4 (4-7) 4-2 4-3 (7-1) 1-4 4-3 (7-3) in 2 hours and 14 minutes in the final round robin match of Green Group at the Next Gen Finals at King Abdullah Sports Club in Jeddah. 

 

The win was not enough to earn a semifinal spot for Nardi. Arthur Fils is the first player to qualify for the knock-out stage. The top seeded Frenchman will face Dominic Stricker later today. Stricker needs to win just one set to reach the semifinals. 

Both players went on serve in the first set en route to the tie-break. Cobolli earned two mini-breaks to win the tie-break 7-4. 

Nardi saved two break points in the third game of the second set to take a 2-1 lead. The world number 115 broke serve in the sixth game to close out the second set 4-2. 

Cobolli converted his second break point in the first game of the third set. Nardi pulled back on serve in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. Nardi opened up a 3-0 lead with two mini-breaks. Cobolli pulled one of the two mini-breaks back for 1-3. Nardi won the final four points with two mini-breaks to claim the tie-break 7-1. 

Nardi clutched his groin when he was serving at 0-1 in the fourth set and called a medical time-out at 0-3. Cobolli earned a break in the second game to close out the fourth set 4-1. 

Cobolli saved two break points to hold serve in the second game. Nardi fended off two break points in the fifth game. Both players held on serve en route to the tie-break. Nardi earned his first mini-break with a backhand flick from out wide to take a 2-1 lead. Cobolli pulled the mini-break back to draw level to 2-2. Nardi closed out the match with a return down the line winner.   

Nardi hit 27 winners to 12 unforced errors. 

“I am happy with the win. Even if I did not qualify, I think today was the best match I played out of the three. I am a bit sad I did not qualify, but I did not want to leave Jeddah without a win. I kept fighting today and I am happy”, said Nardi. 

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