Tennis
Ruud into US Open final and brink of world top ranking
Casper Ruud reached the US Open final and closed in on the world number one ranking with a four-set victory over Karen Khachanov on Friday.
Ruud defeated the Russian 7-6 (7/5), 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 in his semi-final and will face either Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz or Frances Tiafoe of the United States in Sunday’s championship match.
It will be world number seven Ruud’s second Grand Slam final of the season after finishing runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the French Open in June.
Should Alcaraz lose his semi-final later Friday, the 23-year-old from Norway will become the new world number one next week.
“This match today was another great match from my side. I think we were both a bit nervous in the beginning, some breaks back and forth,” said Ruud who had never got past the third round in New York before this year.
“You have to take into account that this match was probably the biggest match for both of our careers and of course there will always be some nerves.”
Ruud and Khachanov, who knocked out Nick Kyrgios in a five-set quarter-final, exchanged a double break each in a scrappy opening set.
However, it ended with a lung-busting flourish when Ruud came out on top in a 55-shot rally to convert a third set point in the tiebreak.
The Norwegian raced to a double break in the third and fifth games of the second set, wrapping it up in just 33 minutes when Khachanov fired a forehand long.
Olympic silver medallist Khachanov hit back, moving to two set points in the 12th game of the third set, cutting the match deficit when Ruud buried a lazy forehand in the net.
It was a brief setback, however, for Ruud who broke in the fourth set to lead 2-1, thanks to a pinpoint forehand pass, and backed it up with another break for 4-1.
‘Humble enough’
The Norwegian moved to three match points and sealed victory courtesy of a sweetly-timed drop shot with Khachanov rooted at the back of the court.
“After Roland Garros, I was extremely happy but at the same time humble enough to think that could be my only final in a Grand Slam in my career,” said Ruud.
“They don’t come easy. So here I am a couple of months later – it feels beyond words to describe.”
-Straitstimes
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
-Reuters
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
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.”
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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