Second seed Dmitry Tursunov will play Canadian qualifier Frank Dancevic in the final of the inaugural men’s Eastbourne International after winning P>
Russia’s Tursunov, the world No. 27, had a straightforward 6-2, 6-2 victory over eighth-seeded Spaniard Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, while Dancevic beat French fourth seed Fabrice Santoro 6-4, 6-4.
The two finalists met two years ago in Dancevic’s only previous ATP Tour final in Indianapolis where the Russian won.
PHOTO: EPA
Dancevic, ranked No. 126 in the world, surpassed his own expectations by surviving qualifying after falling and twisting his leg during a match.
After treatment, he went on to beat top seed Igor Andreev of Russia in the first round of the main draw of the grass-court event.
“I just came here before Wimbledon trying to get a few matches in the qualifiers and here I am in the final,” said Dancevic, who comes from Niagara Falls. “I have had an awesome time this week.”
Santoro, who has said this will be his last year on the ATP Tour at the age of 36, has delighted the crowd here with his ability to chase down every ball and his trademark deft touches, which long ago earned him the nickname “The Magician.”
Dancevic, 12 years the Frenchman’s junior, had some magic tricks of his own, often winning points at the net in exquisite exchanges.
He fought off three breakpoints in a long fourth game, which went eight times to deuce, and took the only break of the first set in the ninth game when Santoro put a backhand into the net.
A single break also decided the second set and Dancevic saved a breakpoint as he served for the match, before volleying the winning shot on his first match point.
Tursunov, who underwent ankle surgery last month, said the gusting winds in the seaside town had caused problems for all the players.
“It was swirly, it was wavy, it was zig-zagging; it had everything that it is not supposed to be when you play tennis,” he told a news conference. “It was definitely not the easiest conditions to play in.”
■ORDINA OPEN
‘S-HERTOGENBOSCH, NETHERLANDS
World No. 1 Dinara Safina suffered a blow ahead of Wimbledon when she was beaten 7-5, 7-5 by Thai star Tamarine Tanasugarn in the semi-finals of the WTA grass-court tournament.
It was a case of deja vu for the Russian — who is yet to win a Grand Slam after three finals appearances — as she lost in the final of the same tournament to 32-year-old Tamarine last year.
The Thai veteran, who has won two WTA Tour singles titles, came back from 4-2 down in the second set to win, raising her record against the top-seeded Russian to 2-1. This one held special significance, however, as it was Tamarine’s first career win over a reigning world No. 1.
“Today was a very difficult match for both of us, especially because of the conditions — the wind kept on changing,” Tamarine said. “The match could have gone either way. I just tried to play my game and stay focused.”
Tamarine, ranked No. 42 in the world, will meet Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer in the final after she disposed of Italy’s Francesca Schiavone with a hard fought 7-6 (7/3), 2-6, 6-3 victory.
It will be the third time the 19-year-old Belgian — ranked No. 72 in the world — will contest a WTA final having lost to Ukraine’s Kateryna Bondarenko in Birmingham, though she won in Estoril last year.
Benjamin Becker had earlier won an all German battle in the ATP tournament as he beat fourth-seeded Rainer Schuttler in three sets to reach the final.
He will now play Dutchman Raemon Sluiter, who defeated Ivan Navarro of Spain 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-3.
South Korean giants T1, led by “Faker,” won their fifth League of Legends (LoL) world championship crown in London on Saturday, beating China’s Bilibili Gaming (BLG) in a thrilling final. The teams were locked at 2-2 at a packed O2 arena, but T1 clinched game five to make it back-to-back titles after nearly four hours of tense action. China’s BLG started strongly, taking the first game before T1 struck back to level. The Chinese team pulled ahead again at 2-1 only for their opponents to hit back again and go on to take the decider. Faker, who won the Most
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Belgian partner Elise Mertens on Monday notched up their first win in the doubles group stage of the WTA Finals in Riyadh to keep their semi-final hopes alive, while Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russian partner Veronika Kudermetova were aiming to record their first victory after press time last night. Third seeds Hsieh and Mertens came back from a disheartening opening-day loss to Australia’s Ellen Perez and Nicole Melichar-Martinez to defeat top seeds Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko, the women’s doubles world No. 3 and 4 respectively. The 6-1, 6-3 victory at King Saud University Indoor Arena
Amber Glenn overcame a fall and her own doubts to win a maiden Grand Prix figure skating title on Saturday at the Grand Prix de France. The American skater had the lead from Friday’s short program. That and the support of the crowd got her through a tough free skate in which she fell on a triple flip and put a hand onto the ice to steady herself on two other jumps. “I didn’t feel that great out there today, but I really tried, and the audience really got me through that last half when I was doubting myself,” Glenn
After pushing for months to get a shot at Colby Covington, Ireland’s Ian Machado Garry is getting to headline the UFC’s final card for this year. However, it will not be against Covington. The promotion on Friday announced that Machado Garry, the No. 7-ranked welterweight, would face ninth-ranked Joaquin Buckley at UFC Fight Night in Tampa, Florida, on Dec. 14. Machado Garry, 26, is undefeated through 15 matches, the most recent coming on June 29 when he beat Michael Page via unanimous decision. Last month, Machado Garry said in an Instagram post that in September he was offered a fight with Covington — the