Djokovic soldiers on to set up DeMinaur showdown at Australian Open

image
MELBOURNE-A creaking Novak Djokovic, hampered by a hamstring problem that threatens his quest for a 10th Australian Open crown and 22nd Grand Slam, soldiered on into round four on Saturday after a scintillating 7-6(7) 6-3 6-4 victory over Grigor Dimitrov.

Djokovic had his left thigh looked at by the trainer after a tight opening set where he was pushed to the limit and, though he came through the next comfortably and his movement improved, the groans grew louder with every point in the third.

“I didn’t know how I was going to feel physically, I was kind of going up and down,” said Djokovic, who staved off a late comeback attempt by Dimitrov to prevail and is now the only remaining Grand Slam champion in a depleted men’s draw.

“I thought the double break in the third was going to be enough for me, but he was locked in from that moment and up to the last shot I did not know if I was going to prevail or not. It was an incredible battle -- three sets over three hours.” The Serbian wondered how much longer his injured hamstring will hold up as he prepares to take on 23-year-old Alex de Minaur. 

Pakistan women football team returns home

Murray’s run ground to a halt against Roberto Bautista Agut, the 24th-seeded Spaniard fending off the former world No 1 6-1 6-7(7) 6-3 6-4. Australian De Minaur steamrollered Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi 7-6(0) 6-2 6-1 in front of a heaving centre court crowd. 

Czech fans at Melbourne Park savoured double delight as 17-year-old Linda Fruhvirtova burst into the spotlight by joining former world No 1 Karolina Pliskova in the fourth round, while fifth seed Aryna Sabalenka continued her progress. Sabalenka gave no quarter to former doubles partner Elise Mertens on Margaret Court Arena, beating her 6-2 6-3 to continue her barnstorming start to the season. Swiss 12th seed Belinda Bencic also through after beating Camila Giorgi 6-2 7-5. 

Men’s fifth seed Andrey Rublev avoided a third-round banana skin in form of Dan Evans, as the Russian sweeping aside 25th seed 6-4 6-2 6-3 with 60 winners on a glorious afternoon. Pliskova beat Russian Varvara Gracheva 6-4 6-2 in the early match to book a spot against China’s Zhang Shuai. 

Petroleum products not likely to increase

Fruhvirtova, the youngest woman left in the singles, showed that the next generation of Czech tennis is in rude health as she rallied from a break down in the decider to beat compatriot MarketaVondrousova 7-5 2-6 6-3. She will next meet Croatian Donna Vekic, a 6-2 6-2 winner over Spain’s NuriaParrizas Diaz.

Ben Shelton joined his compatriots by putting on a masterclass in powerhouse hitting to defeat Alexei Popyrin 6-3 7-6(4) 6-4. Men’s ninth seed Rune had a nasty fall against Ugo Humbert but after a lengthy medical time-out, the 19-year-old completed an impressive 6-4 6-2 7-6(5) win over the Frenchman.


News Source   News Source Text

Meta Urdu News: This news section is a part of the largest Urdu News aggregator that provides access to over 15 leading sources of Urdu News and search facility of archived news since 2008.

Get Alerts