TENNIS
Vandeweghe wins Ricoh
Coco Vandeweghe on Sunday won her second Ricoh Open title by beating Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 7-5 in a final blighted by long rain delays. Vandeweghe also won the grass-court tournament in 2014 — her only other title on the tour. The match was first suspended after five games and again after the sixth-seeded Vandeweghe had won the first set. Vandeweghe had seven aces and saved two of three break points. Third-seeded Mladenovic was in her first final of the year. The men’s final between Nicolas Mahut and Gilles Muller was suspended because of rain after Mahut had won the first set 6-4. The final was scheduled to be continued yesterday.
TENNIS
Rain delays Mercedes final
Heavy rain has forced organizers to suspend the Mercedes Cup final between Dominic Thiem and Philipp Kohlschreiber. The match, already an hour late to start, was halted for about five hours on Sunday. It was then finally suspended after another delay, with the two tied 6-6 and Kohlschreiber up 3-2 in the tiebreaker. Workers tried to dry the slippery court with hot-air blowers, but the rain kept returning to make it impossible to play. The match was scheduled to be completed yesterday.
TENNIS
Pliskova secures Aegon title
Top seed Karolina Pliskova on Sunday saved six set points to take the first set on a nail-biting tiebreaker on her way to clinching the Aegon Open title. The Czech made it a fifth WTA crown — but a first on grass — with the hard-fought 7-6 (10/8), 7-5 victory over Alison Riske of the US. Pliskova’s first title this year sets her up perfectly for Wimbledon, which begins in two weeks. The world No. 17 also won titles in Prague last year, Seoul and Linz in 2014 and Kuala Lumpur in 2013.
GOLF
China’s Wu wins Lyoness
China’s Wu Ashun rallied to win the Lyoness Open for his second European Tour victory, improving his chances of playing in the Rio Olympics. Wu, 30, closed with a three-under 69 for a one-stroke victory over Spain’s Adrian Otaegui. The Volvo China Open winner last year, Wu finished at 13-under 275 at Diamond Country Club.
OLYMPICS
Bolt ready to give up medal
World and Olympic sprint king Usain Bolt said he was “heartbroken,” but prepared to give up his 4x100m relay gold from the 2008 Beijing Games after teammate Nesta Carter reportedly tested positive for a banned substance. “It’s heartbreaking, for years you’ve worked hard to accumulate gold medals and you work hard to be a champion, so it’s heartbreaking, but it’s one of those things,” Bolt told newspaper the Gleaner on Sunday. “Things happen in life, if it’s confirmed or whatever and I need to give back my gold medal, it’s not a problem to me.” A retest of Carter’s A sample from Beijing found traces of methylhexaneamine, the newspaper said, placing one of Bolt’s six gold medals in jeopardy. The result of retests of Carter’s B sample is not yet officially known. If Carter is subjected to doping sanctions, it could mean Bolt stands to lose his relay gold. Carter, 30, ran the first leg for Jamaica’s 4x100m relay team in Beijing, which also included Michael Frater, Asafa Powell and superstar Bolt. The team took gold in what was then a new world record of 37.10 seconds, ahead of Trinidad and Tobago and Japan.
OUT AGAINST INDONESIA: Taiwan reached the semi-finals at the tournament for the first time by defeating Denmark, with Chou Tien-chen beating Viktor Axelsen Taiwan yesterday crashed out of the Thomas Cup team competition in Chengdu, China, but achieved their best result at the top-tier badminton event by reaching the semi-finals. Indonesia were too good in the semis, winning 3-0 to advance to today’s final against China, who eliminated Malaysia 3-1. In the opening singles of the men’s team clash at the Hi-Tech Zone Sports Center Gymnasium 2, Anthony Ginting defeated Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen 21-18, 21-19 in 51 minutes, which put a huge hole in Taiwan’s aspirations to perhaps even make the final. In the men’s doubles, Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Ardianto downed Lee Yang and Wang
NO DOUBT: Spurs star Wembanyama was unanimously selected as NBA Rookie of the Year, winning all 99 votes to become the first Frenchman to capture the honor The Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night produced a dominant defensive display to seize a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven playoff series against the Denver Nuggets with a 106-80 road victory. The third-seeded Timberwolves harassed Denver relentlessly to claim a second straight win over the NBA champions as the series heads back to Minneapolis for Game 3 on Friday. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards scored 27 points apiece, but the star of the show was Minnesota’s suffocating defensive effort, which knocked Denver out of their stride almost from the tip-off. The Timberwolves finished with 11 steals and 12 blocks, in sharp contrast to
Top-ranked Iga Swiatek on Saturday came through “the most intense and crazy final” she has ever contested to avenge her loss to Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s Madrid Open final with a grueling three hour, 11 minute victory in the Spanish capital. Coming back from 1-3 down in the decider and saving three match points in total, Swiatek claimed a 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (9/7) victory to secure the Madrid Open trophy for the first time. “Well, who is going to say now that women’s tennis is boring, right?” Swiatek said. Swiatek, who picked up the 20th title of her career, and ninth at
One of Malaysia’s top soccer clubs has pulled out of today’s season-opening Charity Shield after a spate of assaults, including an acid attack, on players in the country. It leaves the kickoff of Malaysia’s season this weekend under a cloud following the unprecedented acts of violence against players, which have left the country shocked and angry. Authorities said they have imposed tighter security, but Selangor said that they would not play in the showpiece curtain-raiser against Malaysian Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) citing “a series of criminal incidents and recent threats.” Selangor and Malaysia winger Faisal Halim is in intensive care