tennis Page 54 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Here's Why You're Going To Miss The Djokovic-Nadal Semi Tomorrow
Well, tomorrow is the big day! Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal. The semifinal that's effectively the French Final. The 7-time French champion versus the guy who has won every Grand Slam except this one. Tennis's most exciting rivalry. It has everything, except now you will miss most or all of it....

Roger Federer Booted From The French Open In Straight Sets
And there goes Roger Federer in straight sets. His loss to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals was 7-5, 6-3, 6-3, and it took less than two hours to complete. It was a blowout, just like Federer's straight set loss to Novak Djokovic in the semis last year. ...

David Foster Wallace's Interview With Roger Federer Lasted 20 Minutes
David Foster Wallace's 2006 Times Magazine profile of Roger Federer is one of sports journalism's most famous write-arounds. Or, as Wallace wrote himself, the piece was "a spectator’s experience of Federer, and its context." But the Times flew Wallace out to Wimbledon, so surely he got to spend some...

ESPN Will Replace CBS As The Home For The U.S. Open Finals. Thank God.
In two years, ESPN will start broadcasting the men's and women's finals at the U.S. Open. ESPN has gone all-in on tennis—it already airs the Australian Open and the Wimbledon finals—and this means that CBS's decades-long run of broadcasting the men's and women's U.S. Open finals will conclude next S...

Tennis Player Has Cameraman Help With Epic Tirade Against Chair Umpire
This video of Viktor Troicki's meltdown at the Italian Open goes on for four minutes, but be sure to watch it from beginning to end. It just keeps getting better and better....

After Being Scandalously Interesting, Sloane Stephens Opts To Get Dull
Why do athletes give the worst quotes in the world? Because at a young age they learn the hard way that it's not at all worth it to say interesting things to a reporter. ...

So, Sloane Stephens And Serena Williams Really Aren't Friends
Back in January, before 19-year-old Sloane Stephens upset Serena Williams in the quarterfinals at the Australian Open, we went through the dumbest possible pre-match story: the fake mentorship narrative. ...

Mother Knows Best
Here's Frank Deford's 1978 Sports Illustrated portrait of Jimmy Connors: "Raised By Women to Conquer Men."...

Here's American Tennis Player John Isner Captured As A Nifty, Janky Shadow
Every now and then you run across a photo so distinct it reminds you that when photographers cover an event such as, say, the U.S. Men's Clay Court Championship, they like writers can grow weary of saying the same thing first once and then again, on repeat, on and on....

Sad Novak Djokovic Cries On Serbian TV After Ankle Injury
Novak Djokovic led Serbia to a big win over Sam Querrey and the U.S. in the Davis Cup yesterday, but at what cost?...

For Anyone Who Doesn't Think Serena Williams Is Capable Of Being Bubbly
Serena beat Maria Sharapova today in Key Biscayne, Fla. But flying suds and big trophies reminded everyone that it's just a game, y'all!...

Agnieszka Radwanska Hit An Impossible No-Look, Behind-The-Back Winner In Miami Last Night
Sure, Agnieszka Radwanska got lucky with the net's part in this trick shot Tuesday night, but Agnieszka Radwanska also managed to spin around, blindly, and hit a behind-the-back, backhand drop volley with finesse and spin, so we'll forgive the net for interfering....

Tommy Haas Became The Oldest Guy To Beat A No. 1 In 30 Years
Something weird happened last night. Tommy Haas, a week shy of his 35th birthday and a guy who hasn't made it past the third round of a Grand Slam in four years, defeated Novak Djokovic in Miami's Sony Open in straight sets. At 34, he was the oldest guy to beat a no. 1 ranked player since 1973. Haa...

Tennis Player Stung By Wasp Right On The Backside
Florida: it's a horrible place. When Lauren Davis met Alize Cornet in the Sony Open at Key Biscayne on Sunday, the temperature was in the 90s with a solid wall of humidity. Both players were failing by the second set, and both players left the court in wheelchairs after Cornet's 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victor...

This Behind-The-Back Table Tennis Shot Confused The Heck Out Of Its Victim
This happened over the weekend at the ITTF Kuwait Open (that explains the announcer), but we're just getting it to you now because we assumed you hadn't yet received your Kuwait Open highlights DVD. Sue us....

Andy Roddick, Who Retired In September, Rose Two Spots In This Week's ATP Rankings
Hell of a week for Andy Roddick, who jumped up two spots in this week's ATP rankings despite not having played in six months. But when you're the 40th best men's tennis player in the world, these are the kinds of things you can do. (Also when you're part of a severely flawed ranking formula.)...

Justin Gimelstob Would Like You To Watch The Australian Open Mixed Doubles Final
Former professional tennis player and all-world manly man—as in sex-with-ladies manly man—Justin Gimelstob is at it again (here, "at it again" is open to interpretation, but most likely means "reminding you he is a thing that exists"). Gimelstob is currently an announcer for the Tennis Channel and l...

Can Anyone Think Of Another Reason Sloane Stephens Is Considered Serena Williams's "Protégé"?
This evening, Serena Williams plays 19-year-old American phenom Sloane Stephens in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. The two played for the first time just three weeks ago in Brisbane, when No. 3 Williams cruised past No. 25 Stephens, 6-4, 6-3. But tonight's match has something of a differen...