Tennis Page 56 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

The WTA stood up to China, thank goodness somebody did
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) decided that enough was enough and it could not continue its business relationship with China, but the right decision could come with a significant financial cost. WTA Chairman and CEO Steve Simon released a statement that the organization will be suspending all ...

Sorry, I just don’t trust the IOC
The IOC continues to happily eat whatever the Chinese government is willing to shovel to it. Yesterday IOC President Thomas Bach allegedly had a 30-minute video confab with Peng Shuai, in the hopes that would quell all the questions and fears about her whereabouts and well-being after she went off t...

Serena Williams is still bothered by what happened at Indian Wells 20 years ago — the tournament should be renamed in her honor
Your apology should be louder than your disrespect....

Tennis player Peng Shuai is missing after accusing a Chinese official of sexual assault
A top-ranked tennis player has not been heard from for days since detailing sexual abuse allegations against former Chinese official Zhang Gaoli. Like the social media post that was quickly taken down, Peng Shuai has also vanished....

Emma Raducanu pulls off the other type of unrepeatable triumph
It’s funny, if not remarkable: during a tournament that was mostly about a once-in-a-lifetime achievement before it began, another type of a once-in-a-lifetime achievement has stolen the headlines. While Novak Djokovic goes for the first calendar grand slam in decades later today, and tries to take ...

It’s a Canadian invasion
The main story of the U.S. Open, other than the plethora of five-set matches, or three-set matches for the women, has been the surprising runs of a few teenagers in both the women’s and men’s side of the draw. The longest run so far is by a young Canadian named Leylah Fernandez, who has kneecapped a...

If Naomi Osaka doesn’t love tennis anymore, good on her for taking a break
Naomi Osaka’s title defense at the U.S. Open is over, and it’s not really clear right now what else might be. ...

It’s getting biblical out there, folks, so what are we going to do about it?
I do my best to not get into the doom-scrolling or doomsaying mode, though yesterday in America truly felt like some of the foundation simply melting courtesy of New York City flooding, and coming to a halt, and Texas making every citizen the arbiter of any woman’s body....

We’ve got tennis beef at the U.S. Open
Andy Murray and Stefanos Tsitsipas had a first-round doozy on Monday, that saw Murray take a 1-0 and 2-1 sets lead on the Greek star, but Tsitsipas fought back in the fourth and fifth sets to save his blushes from a first-round exit and move on. It was after that fourth set that things got spicy. ...

The icons of tennis are about to leave the stage, and the US Open will be our first taste of life without them in decades
With Serena Williams withdrawing from US Open, and Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal out, we’re about to get a peek at tennis without its icons...

Naomi Osaka’s issues with (some) in ‘the media’ are legit
Asking questions is an important part of this job. How you ask those questions are even more significant, as tone and context are essential. There’s a difference between asking a question to get an answer, and asking one to get a quote....

Big tennis doesn’t want players to be polite to each other
Everybody loves rivalries, trash-talking, and lighthearted ribbing in sports. Nobody wants to see it go too far, but competition and mutual respect that lead to heated confrontations on the field are pure entertainment. Big egos and confidence are a big factor in several athletes’ mindsets, and that...

Naomi Osaka lights up Megyn Kelly, follows with Twitter block heard around the world
As though Naomi Osaka couldn’t demonstrate any more grace in the face of aggressive trolls, she somehow did it again in the form of a simple block on social media....

That had to be it
Roger Federer never slips. However, you remember — and it feels like it’s assuredly past tense now — Federer’s greatness; it was always based on his movement. He always looked like he had enough time to blueprint several options for his next shot before choosing one, usually the perfect one. He just...

Maybe this is really it for Federer and Serena
Tennis fans don’t like to think about the day, even if we can bring ourselves to admit that it will arrive. The opening rounds of Wimbledon are certainly just about the furthest distance from picturing the day when Serena Williams and Roger Federer won’t be playing anymore. This is where they’ve str...

No one wants Novak Djokovic to be the best player ever, but he might be
When discussing tennis history, people’s tastes will always influence and muddy debates about who’s what and the places they hold. Because it’s an individual sport that incorporates so many styles among its players that what one individual prefers watching will always make them lean in one direction...

Novak Djokovic is loud
These primal athlete screams hit different with no fans....

Federer vs. Osaka, a tale of two reactions
Roger Federer withdrew from the French Open yesterday, which put the tournament in an awkward spot. Federer has only played six matches in a year or so, thanks to the pandemic and double knee surgery and rehab. After a near four-hour match in the third round where he really had to slog through a tep...

Naomi Osaka was bullied out of the French Open
In 2006, Zach Greinke almost quit baseball. Racked with social anxiety, Greinke told the media he thought, “Why am I putting myself through torture when I didn’t really want to do it? I mean, I enjoyed playing, but everything else that went with it I didn’t.”...
