Taiwan’s Chang Kai-chen advanced to the second round of the Japan Open by beating Christina McHale of the US 6-3, 7-6 (7/5) yesterday.
Chang had two aces and converted five of 12 break points at the Utsubo Tennis Center in Osaka, Japan.
Also in the first round yesterday, Samantha Stosur of Australia advanced by beating Erika Sema of Japan 6-4, 6-2, while Jamie Hampton of the US defeated Ayumi Morita of Japan 6-3, 6-2.
Stosur, who won the tournament in Osaka in 2009, had five aces and converted five of six break points.
The world No. 9 reached the semi-finals of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo earlier this month and is seeking her first title of the year.
France’s Pauline Parmentier, Casey Dellacqua of Australia, Britain’s Heather Watson and Misaki Doi of Japan also advanced to the second round.
VICTORIA AZARENKA
AFP, BEIJING
World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka warned she was planning to finish the season with a flourish after ending a seven-month win drought at the China Open on Sunday.
“I have two more tournaments to play. It’s going to be about 10 more matches, so I’m looking forward to maximizing that potential in all of them,” Azarenka said. “It’s just going to be the last two pushes. I’m actually really happy that in the end of the year I am still able to have that determination I had in the beginning of the year, and the desire to go out there and win, and show my best tennis, to progress throughout difficult times physically and mentally.”
Azarenka next plays an indoor event in Linz this week as she prepares for the WTA Championships season finale, involving only the world’s top eight players, in Istanbul, Turkey, later this month.
For the first time in almost 36 years, a Parisian derby will be played in French soccer’s top flight when reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain FC take on the nouveau riche Paris Football Club (PFC) today. Not one of the players involved in today’s match — PFC’s 38-year-old third-choice goalkeeper Remy Riou is almost certainly not going to be involved — was born the last time there was a Parisian derby in Ligue 1. That was on Feb. 25, 1990, when Moroccan midfielder Aziz Bouderbala scored a brace as Racing Paris 1 beat PSG 2-1 at the Parc des Princes home that
BOUNCING BACK: Antetokounmpo had just returned from an eight-game injury absence last month, leading the Milwaukee Bucks to their third win in four games Giannis Antetokounmpo threw down the game-winning dunk with 4.7 seconds remaining to lift the Milwaukee Bucks to a 122-121 victory over the Charlotte Hornets and grab a slice of NBA history on Friday. The Bucks trailed by as many as 16 on their home floor, but Antetokounmpo scored 12 of his 30 points in the final quarter to help seal the win in a frantic finish that saw five lead changes in the final 45.7 seconds. The two-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) added 10 rebounds and five assists. It was his 158th regular-season game with at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and
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Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka yesterday got her season off to a winning start for Japan in the United Cup, after the UK’s Emma Raducanu pulled out of their singles clash with a fitness issue, while in Brisbane, Taiwan’s Latisha Chan and Wu Fang-hsien crashed out of the women’s doubles. In Perth, despite Osaka’s win, the UK took the match 2-1 with a deciding mixed doubles victory. Osaka was too strong for reserve and 276th-ranked Katie Swan, winning 7-6 (7/4), 6-1 as Raducanu watched from the sidelines. “I’m proud of how I fought,” Osaka said. “I’d never played here, it was tough.” Britain
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