CARLSBAD, Calif. (AP)—U.S. Olympian Christina McHale saved a set point, then used a late service break to pull out a 7-6 (5), 7-5 win over Jarmila Gajdosova in the first-round of the Mercury Insurance Open on Tuesday. McHale, the No. 5 seed, struggled against the Australian, and both players held

You probably knew that Novak Djokovic was 16-0 to start 2020, having posted an unbeaten mark at the ATP Cup, having won the Australian Open and having bludgeoned his way into the Dubai semifinals. In his first three matches at the 500-level event, Djokovic didn't lose more than three games

WASHINGTON (AP) Andy Murray is back on hard courts for the first time in four months - and back at the Citi Open for the first time in nine years. The two-time major champion is seeded No. 1 at the U.S. Open tuneup that began Monday, getting his game in

Former professional footballer Peter Crouch was outstanding on the pitch, but the 6'7" Brit had an early love for tennis. So much so that the 39-year-old believed he could have been the best British player in history. Crouch put his abilities to the test by taking the court against three-time

There is not one player in the world who is owed a wild card into a tournament. It does not matter how many times they have won a title, or how much better they might make the field, tournaments don’t owe anyone the gift of entry. That includes five-time Grand

The clay-court season has hit its full stride with the biggest tournament on the Road to Roland Garros underway in Madrid. With all top clay-court contenders in the draw, it should be a thrilling week. Here are the five players on the women’s side who could hold the Mutua Madrid

First comes the Slam, then comes the rebuilding period. This is our fourth and final one of 2013, as the game gathers itself in the wake of the U.S. Open and begins the two-month homestretch toward the off-season. That stretch consists of a tour through Asia, and the women have

VALENCIA, Spain (AP)—Argentina’s Juan Monaco beat defending champion David Ferrer of Spain 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 on Saturday to reach the Valencia Open final. Monaco will face fellow unseeded player Marcel Granollers of Spain, who beat sixth-seeded Argentine Juan Martin del Potro 6-4, 7-6 (4) to advance to his second consecutive

Just read this week's SI Mailbag , which contains one of the best ideas I've encountered in a long time. Wertheim suggests that instead of playing out dead rubbers in Davis Cup (that is, matches that no longer have meaning once the outcome of a tie is decided), the players

Watching Novak Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal at the French Open on Wednesday made me think of a scene from the 1970s tennis novel World Class. In it, a top young player has had a rare bad day and suffered an upset in his biggest match of the season. When it’s

We hear this phrase often, yet it always seems to be forgotten whenever we try to stack the sport’s greatest players up against each other. Typically, we see these legends ranked in order of their career accomplishments—how many major titles they won, how many weeks they spent at the top,

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Kimiko Date-Krumm is used to questions about retirement but still has no answer. For now, she's content to continue the "miracle" of playing professional tennis at age 43. She is also used to the distinction of being the oldest women's singles player at Grand Slams. On Monday,

Novak Djokovic was so good, so relentless, so flawless, that Rafael Nadal never stood a chance. Djokovic reduced one of the greats of the game to merely another outclassed opponent — just a guy, really — and one so out of sorts that Nadal even whiffed on one of his

One look at the top of the WTA rankings should be enough to let anyone know that opportunity will be knocking at Wimbledon this year. World No. 1 Ash Barty is recovering from a hip injury and hasn’t played on grass this year. No. 2 Naomi Osaka withdrew from the

INDIAN WELLS, Calif.—No one beats Tallon Griekspoor six times in a row. Amid the stunning scenery of the Coachella Valley, the 43rd-ranked Dutchman stunned Alexander Zverev—the BNP Paribas Open’s No. 1 seed—4-6, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4). Griekspoor had lost his previous five contests against Zverev, including four times just last

Our What's Next? series looks at every player who finished in the ATP or WTA Top 10 this season, and considers their future in three different ways.

What is it about 40-year-old Hall of Fame tennis players and their calves? If you’ve won eight or more Grand Slams, do they automatically get lean to the point of vanishing once they retire? As much as we like to say Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi are opposites (aren’t all

On Monday, tennis fans around the world were given one of the best gifts they could receive: a meeting between sisters Venus Williams and Serena Williams at Indian Wells. This was the 29th meeting between the two iconic players, but it's a matchup that will never get old. Going into

No matter how good you are, sometimes you’re going to choke. Here’s what to do if you feel yourself tightening up. It may be the worst feeling you can have as a tennis player. You fight and scratch until you’re just a few points from victory—and then nerves, fear, or

The remarkable milestones just keep on coming for Novak Djokovic. With his 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Taylor Fritz in Tuesday’s Australian Open quarterfinals, Djokovic became just the second man after Roger Federer to post 700 hard-court wins in the Open Era. The 36-year-old improved to 9-0 against