In a battle between former No. 7s, David Goffin beat Richard Gasquet in the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open on Saturday, 6-3, 6-4, to reach the first ATP Masters 1000 final of his career in Cincinnati. It was fifth time lucky for Goffin, who had been 0-4 in

On Saturday, after retiring from a tour-level match for the first time in her career, two-time Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka said she wasn’t fully recovered to play Wimbledon. “We're doing everything we can with my team to make sure I'll be able to play my first match here,” she

On a blustery afternoon, wind gusts blew bits of copper-colored dirt into the players' eyes, prompted one fan to fashion a scarf into a surgeon's mask for protection, and swept service tosses askew like runaway balloons. Unruly conditions transformed a lunch-time battle between Grand Slam champions Venus Williams and Samantha

PARIS -- Defending champion Maria Sharapova returned to the French Open quarterfinals by beating 17th-seeded Sloane Stephens of the United States 6-4, 6-3 on Monday. The second-seeded Sharapova handled Stephens' strong serve well, accumulating 12 break points and converting eight. In 2012, Sharapova completed a career Grand Slam at Roland

PARIS (AP)—A man who jumped onto the court with a fiery flare spurting white smoke briefly interrupted the French Open final Sunday between Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer. The topless spectator wearing a white mask surged from the crowd near Nadal as the Spanish player was about to serve for

HALLE, Germany -- In a match featuring two men over 30, Roger Federer rallied past defending champion Tommy Haas 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 Saturday to reach the final of the Gerry Weber Open. Federer lost last year's final to the German veteran. But he's on course for his first title --

Maria Sharapova's back was to the court as she whipped her racquet through the air repeatedly before turning around to face Angelique Kerber. Even when the ball wasn't in play, a supremely focused Sharapova struck a predatory posture. Sharapova served with purpose and smacked sledgehammer shots in winning eight straight

The queasy expression on her face, her shaky shot-making, the demands of playing her sixth match in the last nine days and the medical time-out she took for a stomach issue all seemed to conspire against Angelique Kerber. As she walked off the court facing a one-set, 1-2 deficit against

Victoria Azarenka’s blond braid bounced against her back as if keeping the beat of her fast feet, tap-dancing behind the baseline. Playing as if propelled by music she heard in her head, Azarenka got in a smooth groove early and left Li Na looking as displaced as a woman seeking

A roar erupted from the fans inside Court Philippe Chatrier when the scoreboard confirmed Gael Monfils’ win on Court Suzanne Lenglen, but streak silencer Robin Soderling soon pressed the mute button on Gilles Simon and the French faithful. The two-time French Open finalist stormed through the first two sets, then

SYDNEY -- Top-seeded John Isner lost 6-4, 6-4 to fellow American Ryan Harrison in the second round of the Sydney International on Wednesday. The exit of Isner, who was promoted to No. 1 seed after Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet withdrew, followed two more injury withdrawals: second-seeded and 2011 Sydney

by Bobby Chintapalli MEMPHIS—You could feel Brad Gilbert’s presence around The Racquet Club of Memphis the past few days. He was physically here, but it was more than that. As a two-time winner (he won the title in 1986 and 1989), Gilbert has a reserved parking spot just outside the

Afternoon, everyone. This was supposed to be a day off for me, but Madame Highpockets, TW's poet laureate (are we ready desigate her PLFL, or Poet Laureate For Life yet?), has been inspired to write another commemorative poem. Remind me if I ever get elected President of the United States

An interesting item came across in my daily Bob Larson's Business News, having to do with the event that nobody really seems to care about, know about, or follow. I mean, of course, the Arag World Team Cup that is in progress this week at the Rochusclub in Dusseldorf. This

LONDON (AP)—Just nine months after returning from a career-threatening knee injury, Rafael Nadal clinched the year-end No. 1 ranking for the third time by beating Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) at the ATP finals on Wednesday. Nadal, who beat Wawrinka for the 12th time in as many matches, can't

SYDNEY (AP)—Second-seeded Petra Kvitova suffered an upset 6-4, 6-3 loss to Bulgarian qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova in the semifinals of the Sydney International on Thursday. Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, was broken twice in the first set and four times in the second against Pironkova, who finished last season ranked No.

MELBOURNE, Australia—The debate over court speed in Australia continued in Melbourne, with most of the top players who were interviewed on Saturday saying the courts are indeed playing faster, but not as quick as those in Brisbane or Sydney. Nearly every player asked at the tournaments in Brisbane and Sydney

It was Kids’ Day in Rotterdam, but it quickly became clear that the clash between Juan del Potro and Gael Monfils was all about stress management. Would del Potro’s creaky left wrist withstand the pounding in his return to match play, and would Monfils hold his sometimes wayward mind together

MELBOURNE, Australia -- The injuries are mounting at the Australian Open, though for the most part, players are coping with the oppressive heat. No. 13-seeded John Isner and No. 21 Philipp Kohlschreiber were among five players who dropped out of the tournament on Tuesday, joining No. 12 seed Tommy Haas

PARIS (AP) -- About a week after her engagement to two-time major golf champion Rory McIlroy was called off, Caroline Wozniacki exited the French Open in the first round. The 13th-seeded Wozniacki, a former No. 1 and the runner-up at the 2009 U.S. Open, lost 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-2 on