WTA

Zhang through to last eight at Nottingham Open

By Sports Desk June 08, 2022

Number four seed Shuai Zhang made it through to the quarter-finals of the Nottingham Open after a straight-sets win over home hope Jodie Burrage.

Zhang was never in danger against her unseeded opponent, easing to a 6-2 7-6 (7-4) win to set up a last-eight clash with Tereza Martincova.

Martincova brushed aside number eight seed Magda Linette 6-2 7-6 (7-3) in their round-of-16 meeting on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, Viktorija Golubic beat Heather Watson 7-5 6-2, while the match between number three seed Camila Giorgi and Harriet Dart was suspended at the start of the third set after the Briton had made it one set each. 

Meanwhile, rain caused havoc at the Rosmalen Grass Court Championships, with top seed Aryna Sabalenka's match against Arianne Hartono the only one to partially take place.

The match was called off for the day after Sabalenka had claimed the first set 6-2.

Related items

  • Auger Aliassime and Shapovalov help Canada to Davis Cup victory Auger Aliassime and Shapovalov help Canada to Davis Cup victory

    Felix Auger Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov helped Canada make a winning start to their Davis Cup Finals group-stage campaign, overcoming Argentina in Manchester.

    Former Wimbledon semi-finalist Shapovalov got Canada off to a flier in the opening singles match of the Group D encounter, beating Francisco Cerundolo 7-5 6-3 in one hour and 37 minutes.

    Cerundolo committed 51 unforced errors in a disjointed display, giving up back-to-back breaks early in the second set as the match slipped away from him after a competitive opener.

    Not to be outdone, Auger Aliassime followed up Shapovalov's victory by beating Sebastian Baez 6-3 6-3, keeping his opponent under fierce pressure throughout and converting seven of the 12 break points he forced.

    Doubles specialists Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni then beat Shapovalov and Vasek Pospisil in three sets, but that was not enough to deny Canada victory.

    Great Britain and Finland are the other two teams in Group D, with Jack Draper leading the hosts' bid to reach the knockout stages in Malaga later this year.

  • Murray embracing new found freedom after tennis retirement Murray embracing new found freedom after tennis retirement

    Andy Murray expected to miss playing tennis after putting his racket down for the final time last month but said retirement has been "the complete opposite" to what he anticipated.

    Murray, who won three grand slam titles across a glittering 19-year career, saw his time on the court come to an end at Roland-Garros in the Paris Olympics.

    The 37-year-old competed alongside Dan Evans in the men's doubles, reaching the quarter-finals of the competition to eventual bronze medallists Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul. 

    Murray withdrew from Wimbledon ahead of the Games after picking up a back injury against Jordan Thompson at the Queen's Club Championship, the latest of many injury setbacks towards the latter stages of his career.

    "Since I've stopped, I feel really free and have got lots of time to do whatever it is I want," Murray told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

    "I can dedicate time to my children and have free time to play golf or go to the gym on my own terms.

    "It is really nice and I didn't expect that. I was expecting to find retirement hard and be missing tennis a lot and wanting to get back on the tennis court on tour.

    "So far it has been the complete opposite to what I was thinking."

    The 37-year-old won his first grand slam in 2012 at the US Open before ending Britain's 77-year wait for a men's Wimbledon champion in 2013, winning it again in 2016.

    During his career, Murray played 1,001 singles matches in his career, earning his landmark victory against Alexei Popyrin in three sets at Queen's.

    After his injury in W14, the Scot vowed that the 2024 Olympic Games would be where his career ended, a competition he won two gold medals in 2012 and 2016.

    While there was no perfect ending in the French capital, Murray revealed he was now spending some quality time with his family. 

    "The thing that I always found difficult in recent years was that there was always a guilt associated with what I was doing," Murray said.

    "If I was going away for a trip of like three to four weeks I would feel guilty leaving my children at home or being away from my wife for a long time with them, so missing the kids I found hard.

    "But if I was at home with the kids then I was running around and spending a lot of my time on my feet after training.

    "I was then thinking 'is this going to affect my training or performance the next day, should I have my feet up?' I found that stuff difficult over the last few years."

  • US Open: ATP's next generation pushing each other, says Sinner US Open: ATP's next generation pushing each other, says Sinner

    After triumphing at Flushing Meadows, Jannik Sinner feels the next generation of stars on the ATP Tour push each other on.

    Sinner won his second grand slam title by beating Taylor Fritz 6-3 6-4 7-5 in the US Open final on Sunday.

    The Italian became the third youngest player in the Open Era to win the title at the Cincinnati Open and Flushing Meadows during the same season after Andy Roddick (2003) and John McEnroe (1981).

    He is the third youngest player during the Open Era to register a minimum of 23 wins in grand slam matches during a single season, older only than Pete Sampras (23-2, 1993) and Rafael Nadal (24-2, 2008).

    And while Novak Djokovic is still going strong, Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are spearheading a new generation of stars that are already living up to their potential.

    "I feel like the new generation, we push each other," the world number one told ESPN after his win over 26-year-old Fritz.

    "I always have players who are going to make me a better player, because there are going to be times where they beat me.

    "Then you have to try to find a way how to win against certain players."

    Alcaraz was among those to congratulate Sinner, with the Spaniard posting on his Instagram story after the final.

    Fritz, meanwhile, became the second oldest American male in the Open Era to reach a maiden men's singles final at a grand slam, after MaliVai Washington (27 years 15 days) at Wimbledon in 1996.

    He was looking to emulate Roddick's success from 2003, ending a 21-year wait for a homegrown champion at Flushing Meadows, but could not get over the line.

    "There's obviously a lot of positives, and when I get some time to cool down then I'll be happy about the fact that I made it to the finals," reflected Fritz, who feels like he let fans down.

    "But right now I'm pretty disappointed in just a lot of things on the court, how I played, how I hit certain shots. It sucks.

    "And I'm not saying that it necessarily would have made a difference. I don't know if it would have, but I just would have liked to have played better and given myself a better chance. It's really disappointing right now.

    "I feel like the fans obviously, American fans, been wanting a men's champion for a long time, and I'm pretty upset with how I played. I feel like, I don't know, I feel like I almost let a lot of people down."

© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.