Rafael Nadal showed no hint of a US Open hangover as he crushed Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-0, 6-0, 6-4 to put Spain 2-0 up on Ukraine in their Davis Cup World Group play-off in Madrid on Friday.
The new US Open champion returned to action less than four days after securing a second success at Flushing Meadows.
Yet he showed no signs of fatigue as he mastered his favorite clay surface and in so doing inflicted a humiliating defeat on the world 92nd ranked player.
Earlier, Fernando Verdasco beat world No. 40 Alexandr Dolgopolov 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 to put Spain firmly in command.
Another player to dish out a tennis lesson was Britain’s Andy Murray, who thumped 16-year-old Borna Coric 6-3, 6-0, 6-3 as Croatia and Britain finished the day tied at 1-1 in Umag.
The US Open junior champion initially caused Britain’s world No. 3 problems, but from 3-3 in the first set, Murray won nine games in a row to take complete control.
However, Ivan Dodig then defeated Murray’s British teammate Daniel Evans 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 as Croatia drew level.
In other play-off ties, Australia took a decisive 2-0 lead over Poland in Warsaw as Lleyton Hewitt romped past Lukasz Kubot 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 and Bernard Tomic followed up with a 7-5, 7-6 (7/1), 6-4 victory over Michal Przysiezny.
Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka made a flying start to his country’s meeting against Ecuador in Neuchatel.
Wawrinka beat Emilio Gomez 6-3, 6-0, 6-3 before Marco Chiudinelli then made it 2-0 for Switzerland with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-3, 7-6 (9/7) win over Julio Cesar Campozano.
Philipp Kohlschreiber and Florian Mayer put Germany in control of their clash with Brazil.
Kohlschreiber beat Rogerio Dutra Silva 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 while Mayer coasted to a 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 success against Tomaz Bellucci.
In a match that started on Thursday, Israel went 2-1 up on Belgium after Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram beat Steve Darcis and Olivier Rochus 6-3, 5-7, 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 in the doubles.
The Netherlands took a 2-0 lead over Austria as Robin Haase beat Andreas Haider-Maurer 6-4, 6-3, 6-1, and Thiemo de Bakker defeated Jurgen Melzer 5-7, 7-5, 5-7, 6-4, 6-1.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
Brighton & Hove Albion’s Jack Hinshelwood on Monday sealed a dramatic 3-2 victory against Liverpool to leave the English Premier League champions without a win since clinching the title. Arne Slot’s side took the lead through Harvey Elliott’s early opener before Yasin Ayari equalized at the American Express Stadium. Dominik Szoboszlai restored Liverpool’s advantage just before halftime, but Brighton staged a late fightback as Kaoru Mitoma leveled before Hinshelwood came off the bench to net with his first touch. Liverpool have taken just one point from their three matches following the title-clinching rout of Tottenham Hotspur on April 27. The Reds have lost at
Logan O’Hoppe, Taylor Ward and Matthew Lugo homered, and the Los Angeles Angels spoiled Clayton Kershaw’s season debut, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-9 on Saturday night to take the first two games of the three-game series. Kershaw allowed three runs and threw 38 pitches in the first inning. The three-time National League Cy Young Award winner lasted four innings, giving up five runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Shoulder, toe and knee injuries limited Kershaw to seven games last season, and his 2025 debut was delayed as he recovered from multiple offseason surgeries. O’Hoppe had two hits with
RSS