Tennis
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Radwanska soars in Sydney, Ferrer hits his stride in NZ
Agnieszka Radwanska needed eight match points to finish off Li Na yesterday but confirmed her fine pre-Australian Open form by maintaining her perfect start to the year and reaching the final of the Sydney International. The Polish top seed was well...
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Isner knocked out as withdrawals persist
Top seed John Isner was knocked out of the Sydney International by US compatriot Ryan Harrison yesterday but at least he got out on court on a day when injury withdrawals continued to ravage Australian Open warm-up tournaments. Second seed Gilles...
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Radwanska makes it six straight wins in Sydney
Poland’s Agnieszka Radwanska stretched her winning streak to six matches with a straight sets victory over Japan veteran Kimiko Date-Krumm in brutal heat at the Sydney International yesterday. As temperatures soared above 41 degrees Celsius, the...
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Stosur’s Grand Slam hopes rapidly vanishing
World number nine Samantha Stosur’s terrible build-up to the Australian Open continued yesterday when she was knocked out of the Sydney International by China’s Zheng Jie in the first round. The former US Open champion also crashed out of the first...
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Deal with the heat says Radwanska
World number four Agnieszka Radwanska has shrugged off any notions of fatigue and the prospect of blistering temperatures in the build-up to the Australian Open. Radwanska, the top seed for the Sydney International, arrived in Australia at the...
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Djokovic, Azarenka top seeds for Open
World number ones Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka were named the top seeds yesterday for next week’s Australian Open. Djokovic, who beat Rafael Nadal in five sets in last year’s final, will be bidding for his third successive Australian Open...
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Murray beats Dimitrov to win Brisbane title
Scotland’s Andy Murray called on all his experience to defeat rising Bulgarian star Grigor Dimitrov 7-6 (7/0), 6-4 and retain his Brisbane International title yesterday. In a high-class final, Murray came from 4-1 down in the first set and a break...
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Kvitova out, Wozniacki through in Sydney
World number eight Petra Kvitova’s Australian Open preparations were dealt another blow yesterday when she was trounced in straight sets at the Sydney International by Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova. Fifth-seed Czech Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon...
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Williams cruises to Brisbane title win
Serena Williams confirmed her eagerness to get started at the Australian Open as she demolished Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-1 in just 50 minutes to win the Brisbane International yesterday. Third-seeded Williams served notice that she...
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Spain upset Serbia in Hopman final
Spain upset Serbia 2-1 to win their fourth Hopman Cup in an emotional final which finished in the early hours yesterday. The Spanish pairing of Fernando Verdasco and Anabel Medina Garrigues were underdogs against the top-seeded glamour Serbian...
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Murray takes chances to reach semi-finals
Defending champion Andy Murray moved into the semi-finals of the Brisbane International yesterday when he downed a tenacious Denis Istomin, of Uzbekistan, 6-4, 7-6. Murray, back on court after playing the late match on Thursday night, took his...
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Djokovic fires as Tsonga is injured
World no.1 Novak Djokovic bounced back to his imposing best as Serbia advanced to the Hopman Cup final yesterday. The Serbian pairing of Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic beat Germany 3-0 to finish their round robin ties unbeaten and earn the right to face...
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Isner injury puts Spain into Hopman final
A tournament-ending knee injury to American John Isner yesterday handed Spain a berth in this weekend’s final of the Hopman Cup. The US pairing of Isner and Venus Williams were set to face Spain’s Fernando Verdasco and Anabel Medina Garrigues...
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Battling Serena sets up Azarenka showdown
Serena Williams survived a testing examination from fellow American Sloane Stephens at the Brisbane International yesterday to book a semi-final against world number one Victoria Azarenka. Williams was pushed all the way by her Fed Cup team-mate in...
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Impressive Azarenka reaches quarter-finals
World number one Victoria Azarenka moved into the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International with a hard-fought 6-3, 6-3 win over German Sabine Lisicki yesterday. Azarenka was made to work hard for her win by the hard-hitting Lisicki, who traded...
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Djokovic suffers shock loss but Serbia win
Serbia beat Australia at the Hopman Cup despite world number one Novak Djokovic suffering a shock defeat at the hands of Bernard Tomic yesterday. It was Djokovic’s first defeat on Australian soil since 2010, with the Serbian aiming for his third...
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Serena imposes authority with crushing win, Sharapova out
Serena Williams stamped her authority on the Brisbane International yesterday when she crushed Frenchwoman Alize Cornet 6-2, 6-2. On a day that saw second seed Maria Sharapova withdraw with an injured collarbone and fifth and sixth seeds Sara Errani...
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Venus leads United States fightback
Venus Williams lifted the United States to victory in their Hopman Cup tie against France yesterday. The USA pairing of Williams and John Isner beat the French team of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Mathilde Johansson 2-1 to remain unbeaten in the mixed...
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Djokovic dodges injury as Serbia thrash Italy
World number one Novak Djokovic escaped serious injury in an incident with over zealous fans after helping Serbia beat Italy at the mixed teams Hopman Cup in Perth yesterday. Djokovic, who only arrived in the city on Sunday evening after winning an...
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Pervak ousts Wozniacki from Brisbane
Caroline Wozniacki lost valuable Australian Open match practice when she was bundled out of the first round of the Brisbane International by Kazakhstan qualifier Ksenia Pervak yesterday. In a battle lasting 2hrs 48mins, left-handed Pervak eased past...
