Top seed Gael Monfils stayed on course for a third ATP title with a 6-4, 7-5 victory over friend and fellow Frenchman Josselin Ouanna in their SA Tennis Open second-round tie on Thursday.
Paris-born Monfils, who has won tournaments in Poland and his homeland, is ranked 13th in the world, 108 places above Ouanna from the town of Tours, 200km southwest of the French capital. That huge gap was never evident at the Montecasino Entertainment Centre, however, as Monfils took 79 minutes to subdue his former French tennis academy roommate.
Monfils, who is hoping to emulate compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and collect the US$80,000 first prize tomorrow, triumphed because he served better and produced several timely top-drawer strokes, but it was not a vintage performance from the 23-year-old Frenchman, who committed 37 unforced errors in perfect conditions after rain and thunder forced an afternoon delay.
While the potent Monfils service delivered 12 aces, he would have been concerned by six double-faults ahead of a last-eight duel against Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun.
“It was tough playing against someone I once shared a room with and I am happy to have succeeded,” Monfils said.
The other three second round ties were also settled in straight sets, with seeds David Ferrer (No. 2) of Spain, Lu (No. 7) and India Davis Cup star Somdev Devverman progressing.
■ZAGREB INDOORS
AP, ZAGREB
Defending champion Marin Cilic cruised into the quarter-finals of the Zagreb Indoors on Thursday by defeating Daniel Koellerer of Austria 6-2, 6-1.
The top-seeded Croat dropped only seven points on serve and after two matches at the tournament, Cilic has spent only 1 hour, 57 minutes on court.
It has been a good season for the 22-year-old Cilic so far. He won the ATP tournament in Chennai, India, last month and reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open last week.
Cilic will next face another local player in Ivo Karlovic, who defeated French qualifier Alexandre Sidorenko 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (10/8).
Lukas Lacko of Slovakia also reached the quarter-finals, ousting 2006 champion Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia 7-6 (7/3), 5-7, 7-6 (7/5).
Lacko will play Philipp Petzschner of Germany, who defeated compatriot Benjamin Becker 1-6, 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (8/6) after saving match point in the third-set tie-breaker.
Germany’s Michael Berrer also advanced after beating Croatia’s Petar Jelenic 6-4, 6-3.
■MOVISTAR OPEN
AP, SANTIAGO
Third-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil won a three-hour match against Chile’s Paul Capdeville 5-7, 6-4, 7-5 to reach the quarter-finals of the Movistar Open in Santiago.
In Thursday’s other matches, second-seeded Juan Monaco of Argentina beat compatriot Juan Ignacio Chela 6-3, 7-5, while Peter Luczak of Australia also advanced to the quarter-finals, beating David Marrero of Spain 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).
Former champion Jose Acasuso of Argentina retired injured during his second-round match. Acasuso won the first set from Eduardo Schwank 7-6 (7/3), but was injured in the second and retired hurt.
Brazil has four teams, more than any other country, in the expanded Club World Cup that kicked off yesterday in the US, but for SE Palmeiras, the competition holds a special meaning: winning it would provide some redemption. Under coach Abel Ferreira since 2020, Palmeiras lifted two Copa Libertadores titles, plus Brazilian league, cup and state championships. Even before Ferreira, it boasted another South American crown and 11 league titles. The only major trophy missing is a world champions’ title. Other Brazilian clubs like Fluminense FC and Botafogo FR, also in the tournament, have never won it either, but the problem for Palmeiras
Badminton world No. 3 Anders Antonsen clinched his first Indonesia Open title yesterday after beating Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen, while South Korea’s An Se-young won her second championship in Jakarta. The 28-year-old Dane sank world No. 7 Chou at the Indonesian capital’s Istora Senayan arena, winning 22-20, 21-14 in a 60-minute match to secure the prestigious Super 1000 event. Antonsen came out on top in a tightly contested first game before cruising to victory in the second. In a more closely fought women’s singles final, South Korean ace and world No. 1 An fought back from one game down to beat China’s
‘STILL’: In front of a packed New Jersey arena attended by Donald Trump and Mike Tyson, UFC 316 delivered high drama as Merab Dvalishvili retained his title Georgia’s Merab Dvalishvili scored a second-round submission win over Sean O’Malley to retain his bantamweight title at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 316 on Saturday, with Kayla Harrison also winning by submission in the co-main event, tapping out Juliana Pena to claim the women’s bantamweight crown. In front of a packed crowd at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, which included US President Donald Trump and retired heavyweight great Mike Tyson, Dvalishvili, a 34-year-old from the country of Georgia, won the belt in a convincing, although not aesthetically pleasing, unanimous decision. Dvalishvili (19-4) sat on top of the cage and shouted
Manchester City on Monday completed the signing of left-back Rayan Ait-Nouri from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a reported ￡31 million (US$41.8 million). The 24-year-old Algeria international has signed a five-year contract and will be available for the FIFA Club World Cup, which begins later this week. Ait-Nouri is expected to be just one of a trio of new City faces for that tournament with deals close to completion for AC Milan midfielder Tijjani Reijnders and Olympique Lyonnais playmaker Rayan Cherki. After missing out on a major trophy in the recently completed season for the first time since 2016-2017, City are hoping
RSS