Latisha Chan yesterday cruised into the women’s doubles final at the Sydney International, in which the Taiwanese world No. 1 and partner Andrea Sestini Hlavackova are to face a duo who advanced without having to hit a ball.
Chan, who previously played on the WTA Tour using her Chinese name, Chan Yung-jan, and Czech Sestini Hlavackova took just 61 minutes to complete a comfortable 6-2, 6-4 victory over Lara Arruabarrena of Spain and Lauren Davis of the US in their semi-final on Court 1 at Sydney Olympic Park.
The top seeds did not face a single break point and converted three of 10, winning 60 of the 101 points contested.
In today’s final, they face third seeds Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and Xu Yifan of China, who were handed a walkover when second-seeded Czech duo Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova withdrew without hitting a shot.
In the singles, Italian qualifier Camila Giorgi continued her impressive run by racing past Agnieszka Radwanska 6-1, 6-2 on Thursday to set up a last-four clash with Angelique Kerber.
Giorgi, belying her ranking of 100th in the world, beat US Open champion Sloane Stephens in the first round and then ousted two-time Wimbledon and former Sydney champion Petra Kvitova.
She is yet to drop a set over six matches in qualifying or the main draw, and is next to meet world No. 22 Kerber, who staged a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Dominika Cibulkova in the last eight.
Former world No. 1 Kerber fell out of the top 20 last year, but has made a strong start to this year ahead of next week’s Australian Open with victories over Lucie Safarova and Venus Williams this week.
The other semi-final in Sydney is to be an all-Australian affair between Ashleigh Barty and Daria Gavrilova.
Barty completed a confident 6-3, 6-2 victory over Czech Barbora Strycova, while Gavrilova advanced after her last-eight opponent, Garbine Muguruza, withdrew due to a leg injury.
“I think it’s amazing for Sydney and for Australian tennis — we’re gonna have an Aussie in the final, which is awesome,” Barty said after her win at the Ken Rosewall Arena. “Dash [Gavrilova] and I know each other very well so hopefully we can play some good tennis.”
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins arrived in Taiwan with his family early yesterday to finish his renewed contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards in the T1 League. Cousins initially played a four-game contract with the Leopards in January. On March 18, the Taoyuan-based team announced that Cousins had renewed his contract. “Hi what’s up Leopard fans, I’m back. I’m excited to be back and can’t wait to join the team,” Cousins said in a video posted on the Leopard’s Facebook page. “Most of all, can’t wait to see you guys, the fans, next weekend. So make sure you come out and support the Beer
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