With motivation and passion undimmed, senior players serve up a constant reminder of their longstanding greatnessVeronika Kudermetova is 26. Having spent 11 years as a tennis professional, scaling the top 10 in singles and doubles, she is not far from being classed as a veteran of her sport. And yet, still, last week in Cincinnati the No 14 was toppled by an opponent whose career long precedes her entire existence.In the year Kudermetova was born, 1997, Venus Williams reached her first grand slam final at the US Open. Now 43, her passion for the sport is so great that her motivation is undimmed. Williams trailed by a double break in both sets, 1-4 in the first set and 1-5 in...
The world’s top five arrived at the 2017 Australian Open with realistic title aspirations. This year there is no guarantee they will even reach the starting lineIn the year since the five top‑ranked men’s players – Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Milos Raonic, Stan Wawrinka and Kei Nishikori – arrived in Melbourne with reasonable expectations of challenging for the first grand slam title of the season, the tennis world has been tumble-dried like a 20-foot wave.Djokovic – once so dominant at the Australian Open – fell in the second round, Murray and Nishikori reached the last 16, Raonic got to the quarter‑finals and only Wawrinka reached the semi-finals. More significantly in a wider context, though, not one of them made it...
Rafael Nadal secured his 10th French Open title and looked back to his best – could he even hunt down Federer’s 18 grand slam titles?He made the relentless pursuit of La Decima look routine in the end, but it should not be forgotten how hard Rafael Nadal has fought to restore his dominance in Paris. It felt like the end of an era when Novak Djokovic toppled the king of clay in an embarrassingly one-sided quarter‑final in 2015. But spending some time away from the tour after being struck down by a wrist injury at the end of last year rejuvenated his mind and body. Backing up that crushing forehand with a devastatingly improved backhand, Nadal played some of his...
After five hours longer on court, ‘Diesel’ Wawrinka may be running on empty in the French Open men’s final as Nadal seeks historic 10th titleRoland Garros is where the Open era of professional tennis began in the fabled summer of 1968, when students took to the streets of Paris and Ken Rosewall picked up 15,000 francs, roughly £2,000, for beating his friend and rival Rod Laver in the final of the French Open. Related: Rafael Nadal returns to special French Open seeking record 10th title Related: Stanislas Wawrinka shocks Rafael Nadal to win Australian Open title Continue reading...