Let’s start with who is not in Madrid this year: Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, to name the two most famous absentees, followed by David Goffin, Gael Monfils, Milos Raonic, and Stan Wawrinka. Some are injured, some may not be enticed by the smaller prize-money purse, and some, like Djokovic

I went to sleep last night with the singsong chant ringing in my ears: “Mar-cos, Bagh-da-tis. . . Mar-cos, Bagh-da-tis. . . “ What an amazing shootout it was, too, on the floor of Rod Laver arena. Today, The Cyprus Cyclone is the toast of Melbourne, not to mention Nicosia,

91216083 Greetings, Twibe. I had to smile when I saw that Jelena Jankovic and Maria Sharapova will face off for the title at the Toray Pan Pacific Open; it seems so, well, almost retro, as if the past year in tennis has been wiped off the hard drive, and we've

The Davis Cup draw for 2006 was announced yesterday, and the big winners of the annual lottery were Croatia and the U.S., while the big losers were Spain and Sweden. Croatia will host Austria, whose best player is Jurgen Melzer, who’s just inside the Top 50 (No. 49) as I

• Picby Pete Bodo* Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will meet in the semifinals of the Australian Open. Last year, it was in the finals, but why quibble? Just like last year, both men have slashed their way to the semis with nary a glitch. As former Yankees catcher and

You know that Rafael Nadal clay-court slump? It was fun while it lasted, right? Today in the Madrid semifinals, Nadal put the naysayers and critics in the rear view mirror with a comprehensive beating of increasingly dangerous Roberta Bautista Agut. Nadal won it in a neat hour and three-quarters, 6-4,

In the future, will we stop saying, I play tennis, and start saying, I play racquet sports? I asked that question a little more than a year ago, in a story about the mammoth new racquet-sport facilities that have been sprouting up around the U.S., and which now routinely come

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. Open is moving its mixed doubles championship to the week before the tournament begins, hoping a revamped format and $1 million prize will persuade top singles players to chase a Grand Slam doubles title. This year's event will feature 16 teams competing over two

I can see by your replies to my last post that this idea of catching up with folks is, well, catching. I'm definitely going to be doing it on a regular basis, especially during "slow" periods. Theoretically, this is not a slow period; as Kamakshi pointed out this morning, the

WIMBLEDON, England (AP)—If Roger Federer’s performances at Wimbledon weren’t already the stuff of poetry, they certainly will be this year. The All England Club said Tuesday it has appointed a “Championships Poet” to write a poem per day to sum up the matches and atmosphere of the the grass-court Grand

Carlos Alcaraz's Dad "Probably" Filmed Djokovic Practicing—And No, It's "Not An Advantage"

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — Boris Becker is returning to coaching for the first time since the six-time Grand Slam tennis winner's release from a British prison last year, with sixth-ranked Holger Rune. Becker told broadcaster Eurosport on a podcast published on Thursday that he will work with the 20-year-old Danish

Will this be the year Shelby Rogers finally defeats Elina Svitolina? After the Ukrainian's middling 9-6 start to the season, it may be her best chance to upset the world No. 5. Rogers has played brilliant tennis in 2021, already racking up nine wins and has only lost to the

NEW YORK (AP) — Shelby Rogers knew she was in for a tough match, facing a quick opponent who runs down a lot of shots. More than 3 1/2 hours later, she finally won it. The 62nd-ranked American prevailed in the longest women's match in U.S. Open history, beating No.

Maria Sharapova says her injured shoulder is holding up and she's "excited to compete again" as she returns this week at the WTA event at Mallorca. The 32-year-old Russian has not played since St. Petersburg, and also underwent a "small procedure" on her shoulder this season. "I took this time

A gold star for anyone who predicted, before the tournament began, that this would be the women’s final. The presence of the 18-year-old Andreescu, who began the year ranked No. 178, is obviously a shock. But Kerber wasn’t really part of the contenders’ conversation when the draw was made, either.

After grabbing hold of his sixth Wimbledon title, Novak Djokovic was surprisingly uncertain if he'd make the trip to Tokyo and represent Team Serbia for the upcoming Olympic Games. Djokovic's initial enthusiasm was understandably dampened given the COVID-19 restrictions that would prevent fans and most of his team from attending.

Tennis tends to be played in warm-weather conditions when, you know, the sun is out. Well the script has been flipped at the BMW Open in Munich on Sunday, where qualifying play was halted several times due to snow. Snow? Snow?! We’ve heard of rain delays before—those are quite common

Tecnifibre has always prided itself on appealing to dedicated and discerning players. Although perhaps more well-known for its strings, the French brand has been gaining traction with its high-performance racquets. In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the company is releasing two frames targeted at serious competitors with serious game. Dubbed

It's madness, I tell you! Fuzzy yellow ball style. Follow along this week for our Top 17 takeaways and outtakes from the 2017 Sunshine Double in California and Florida. Check out No 14 here. The California desert and the south of Florida aren't known as sartorial meccas, and yet on-court