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SERENA WILLIAMS’ FED CUP RECORD ENDS

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World No. 41 Anastasija Sevastova handed Serena Williams a shock first Fed Cup singles loss on Saturday but Latvia eventually fell 3-2 to the United States in the qualifier.

Sevastova won 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 7-6 (7/4) to end Williams’ perfect Fed Cup record at 14 matches.

“We were playing in the USA so obviously the crowd was going to be for Serena. I just tried to give it my best,” Sevastova said of her win at the Angel of the Wings arena.

Williams, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, bounced back from losing the first set by cruising through the second set in 33 minutes. But she was outplayed on the big points for a second tiebreak in the decider.

Sevastova used her powerful serve to deliver aces at key moments, and a precision forehand kept Williams on the move as the American ran out of gas in the final moments of the 2hr 25min marathon.

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Williams looked fatigued in her first Fed Cup singles match in four years. She had played doubles with sister Venus in her last tournament appearance in 2018.

“It was a really intense match,” said the 38-year-old. “There were lots of points and lots of running.”

Her latest loss comes just weeks after she was shocked in the Australian Open last 32 by China’s world No. 27 Wang Qiang.

Earlier, former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko had kept Latvia alive with a 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 win over new Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin in just under two hours.

The Americans had gone into the second day with a 2-0 lead after Kenin defeated Sevastova and Williams beat Ostapenko on Friday.

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“I was fighting until the last point,” said Ostapenko. “I knew it was going to be a very tough match and the key thing for me was just to play aggressive.”

Kenin made amends in the deciding doubles match, partnering Bethanie Mattek-Sands to defeat Ostapenko and Sevastova 6-4, 6-0.

“We are very happy to have won this match against a tough opponent,” US team captain Kathy Rinaldi said after the record 18-time champions qualified for the April 14-19 Fed Cup Finals in Budapest. “They could easily have been contenders for Budapest too.”

The Fed Cup has followed the men’s Davis Cup competition by adopting a multi-nation finals tournament in one city.

As well as trying to increase the exposure of the women’s team event run by the International Tennis Federation, the extra TV revenue means an US$18 million (S$25 million) prize fund, of which US$12 million goes to the players and US$6 million to the federations.

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Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, Slovakia, Germany, Russia, Belarus, France, Australia, Czech Republic and hosts Hungary complete the 12-nation showdown.

-AFP/Reuters

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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Osaka parts way with her coach

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Naomi Osaka of Japan in action during a match at the U.S. Open in August, 2024. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo 

Naomi Osaka has parted ways with coach Wim Fissette after four years together across two stints, the 26-year-old announced late on Friday.

The former world number one won two of her four Grand Slam titles under the guidance of the Belgian, but is currently 75th in the rankings having returned to the tour nine months ago after a lengthy maternity break.

“Four years, two slams and a whole lot of memories,” Osaka wrote in an Instagram post.

“Thanks Wim for being a great coach and an even greater person. Wishing you all the best.”

Of the 16 tournaments Osaka has played this season, she has made the quarter-finals in only two – Doha and ‘s-Hertogenbosch – and the Japanese player has also failed to go past the second round in each of the four Grand Slams

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-Reuters

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Five US women in top 15 in the world for first time in two decades

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 Coco Gauff of the United States returns a shot during her match against Emma Navarro of the United States (not shown) on day seven of The Championships at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo 

Five players from the United States are ranked in the Women’s Tennis Association’s top 15 for the first time in two decades, the USTA said on Monday.

World number two Coco Gauff led the American charge followed by sixth-ranked Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins, who climbed two spots to ninth on the list amid a remarkable farewell season.

Madison Keys was ranked 14th while Emma Navarro hopped two spots to a career-high 15th after reaching her first major quarter-final at Wimbledon.

The last time five American women featured in the top 15 was May 24, 2004, when Lindsay Davenport was fourth in the world

-Reuters

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Venus Williams among sporting figures to get own Barbie doll

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 Venus Williams poses with a Barbie doll, in Puerto Rico in this undated handout image. Mattel/WME Sports Studio/Handout via REUTERS

Seven-times Grand Slam champion Venus Williams and Australian soccer player Mary Fowler are among nine athletes to get a Barbie doll in their likeness as toy maker Mattel seeks to shine a light on women sports role models ahead of the Paris Olympics.

Mattel unveiled the dolls on Wednesday, each with their bespoke accessories. Fowler’s wears gloves and holds a football while Williams’ doll, dressed in an all white tennis dress and visor as well as wearing earrings, comes with a miniature racket.

The former world number one said she hoped to motivate young girls into sports with the doll.

“I literally can’t imagine my life without sports and without the game,” Williams said in a video, in which she held the doll.

“I want other young girls to have that invaluable experience of playing a sport and what it teaches you and what you learn and what you take from it, not just that moment (but) for the rest of your life… I think it’s so important for girls to be in sports.”

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Other sports figures to have a doll in their likeness include French boxer Estelle Mossely, Polish sprinter Ewa Swoboda, Spanish doctor and paratriathlon athlete Susana Rodriguez, Italian former swimmer Federica Pellegrini, Canadian soccer player Christine Sinclair as well as Mexican and Brazilian gymnasts, Alexa Moreno and Rebeca Andrade.

The dolls, unveiled as Barbie turns 65 this year, “(recognise) the impact of sport in fostering self-confidence and ambition among the next generation”, Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie and Mattel’s Global Head of Dolls, said.

“By shining a light on these inspirational athletes and their stories, we hope to champion the belief that every young girl deserves the opportunity to pursue her passions and turn her dreams into reality,” she said in a statement.

-Reuters

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