Gael Monfils’ comeback from injury took a hit when he lost to German qualifier Daniel Brands 6-1, 7-5 in the Qatar Open quarter-finals on Thursday.
The Frenchman, who ended his season early last year due to knee problems, beat Philip Kohlschreiber in three sets to reach the quarter-finals. However, he came out sluggish against the 153rd-ranked Brands, struggling to return the German’s serve and failing to chase down many of his forehands.
After losing the first set, Monfils jumped out to 3-0 and 5-2 leads in the second, but Brands won the final five games.
“He went for his shots more than me, and obviously at the end he was like blowing in like every ball,” Monfils said. “Actually, he was playing very fast at the beginning, and it took me a while to adapt and to just to see how he was playing.”
Monfils said he was still not 100 percent, but he insisted his recovery remains on pace and he had no pain in his knees this week.
“It was tougher because I felt a bit heavier, and it was my first tough match yesterday,” Monfils said. “I struggled a bit with my recovery. I have to get used to, and, you know, just adjust a couple of stuff to be better.”
Brands is one of six unseeded players to reach the quarterfinals and is looking for his first ATP title. Though his win was a surprise, he said he has the ability to play with the world’s best players.
“If I have confidence and I feel good, then I can play like today,” Brands said. “I have to try to get into the top 100. That’s my goal.”
It was a much easier time for the two remaining seeded players, as No. 1 David Ferrer brushed aside Paolo Lorenzi 6-3, 6-0 in just over an hour while No. 2 Richard Gasquet beat Lukas Lacko of Slovakia 6-1, 6-3.
The 10th-ranked Gasquet played his best match of the tournament, mixing up a strong service game with good net play and a strong backhand. He also took advantage of Lacko’s injured left ankle, which limited his mobility and required treatment during the first set.
Ferrer was never challenged by the 64th-ranked Lorenzi. He broke the Italian early in the first on the way to a 3-0 lead. Mixing up some nifty drop shots with a good service game, he never gave Lorenzi a chance to break him and get back in the set.
The second set was even more one-sided, with the fifth-ranked Ferrer breaking Lorenzi three times.
“Well, the match, it was good,” Ferrer said. “In the second set, I played more aggressive with my game ... I’m trying to change my game sometimes. Depends on my opponent. Today I did two drops, and I am trying to improve my volley, to go more to the net.”
Gasquet will face Brands in the semi-finals while Ferrer will take on a resurgent Nikolay Davydenko who is showing signs of the form that saw him once reach third in the world.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
MLB on Friday announced a formal investigation into the scandal swirling around Shohei Ohtani and his former interpreter amid charges that the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar was the victim of “massive theft.” The Dodgers on Wednesday fired Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s long-time interpreter and close friend, after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that the Japanese two-way star had been the victim of theft, which was reported to involve millions of dollars and link Mizuhara to a suspected illegal bookmaker in California. “Major League Baseball has been gathering information since we learned about the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the news media,” MLB