Iga Swiatek scooped her 13th career title with a statement victory against Aryna Sabalenka in Sunday's Stuttgart Open final.

The world number one has seen her dominance take a dip this season, with Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina emerging as serious candidates to displace her at the top of the women's game.

However, Swiatek is the queen on clay and illustrated her prowess with a 6-3 6-4 win at the tournament that rewards its champion not only with a cheque for $120,150 and trophy, but also a Porsche.

This success made Swiatek the first player to defend the Stuttgart title since Angelique Kerber's back-to-back 2015 and 2016 triumphs, and it came in her first tournament back after a rib injury.

The 21-year-old Polish player entered the title match having said she and Ons Jabeur are the tour's best players on clay, and that put her there to be shot at by Australian Open winner Sabalenka, who has climbed to second place in the rankings.

This was the first time a tour-level final has featured the top two women in the world rankings since the 2018 Australian Open final, when Simona Halep beat Caroline Wozniacki.

It was also a repeat of last year's Stuttgart final that Swiatek won comprehensively, dropping only four games, amid a 37-match winning run that would bring her a second French Open title.

The traffic was not quite so one-way this time, but Swiatek was terrific and did not drop serve once.

For Sabalenka, the outcome meant a third consecutive defeat in Stuttgart title matches, having also lost in the 2021 showpiece to Ash Barty.

After Swiatek surged through the opener, she forced a break point at the start of the second set and a Sabalenka double fault handed over the advantage.

Unforced errors were costing the Belarusian, who could not capitalise on a break point in the fourth game of the second set, going on to fling a desperate forehand wide to hand over a 3-1 lead.

Swiatek took evasive action to avoid a fierce Sabalenka smash in the next game, after initially charging towards the net, but she remained firmly in charge.

The title was secured with a ruthless love game on serve, an outmanoeuvred Sabalenka left to watch her opponent drill away a backhand into an empty court.

Reflecting on her injury lay-off, Swiatek said: "It's been such an intense time in the last couple of weeks and tough decisions sometimes, but I'm so happy we're making the right decisions."

Sabalenka, who during the week made no secret of her eagerness to win the Porsche, said: "I'll keep coming back until I get the car."

Carlos Alcaraz raced through to the Barcelona Open final as the defending champion set up a final showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas.

With his 20th birthday approaching on May 5, world number two Alcaraz will have the chance on Sunday to land his ninth ATP title as a teenager.

Alcaraz crushed the hopes of first-time Barcelona semi-finalist Dan Evans, racing to a 6-2 6-2 victory over a player who was seeking to become the first British finalist at this tournament.

Earlier, Tsitsipas, who had not dropped serve en route to the semi-finals, had to dig deep for a 6-4 5-7 6-3 victory against Lorenzo Musetti, the Italian who beat Novak Djokovic in Monte Carlo last week.

Greek star Tsitsipas bizarrely has a 0-9 record in finals at ATP 500 level, the tier at which this tournament sits, despite having won two of his six title matches in elite ATP 1000 events.

Alcaraz will start as a firm favourite in the final. He holds a 3-0 career head-to-head lead over Tsitsipas from their past meetings, including a three-set win in the Barcelona quarter-finals last year.

That was a stormy encounter, with Alcaraz taking exception to almost being hit by a shot from Tsitsipas at the end of the opening set, so the rematch could be one to savour.

"It's so special to play a final here in Barcelona, a tournament I love playing," Alcaraz said on Prime Video. "I came to watch this tournament when I was very, very young, and I played for this club when I was 12, 11. I love this club, I love this tournament, and it's so special to have the chance to lift the trophy here again.

"Last year [against Tsitsipas] we had a spicy match, but I know he's a really nice guy off the court."

At the BMW Open in Munich, it was much the same story on Saturday.

Defending champion Holger Rune, another 19-year-old with a birthday approaching, in his case on April 29, earned another shot at the title.

Rune set up a Sunday showdown against Botic van de Zandschulp, in what will be a repeat of last year's final.

A resilient Rune lived up to his top seeding by ending Christopher O'Connell's fine run, which included a win against Alexander Zverev at the last-16 stage.

The 6-3 6-2 outcome masked the fact Rune saved eight break points as unseeded world number 82 O'Connell threatened to make it a tighter contest on the scoreboard than it turned out to be.

Van de Zandschulp then scored a fine win in the second semi-final as the Dutch fourth seed got the better of American second seed Taylor Fritz, winning 6-4 7-6 (7-2) 

Last year's trophy match ended in disappointment when Van de Zandschulp retired due to chest pains during the first set, with Rune saying it was "probably the worst way to win a final".

Rune has three ATP titles to his name, with 27-year-old Van de Zandschulp yet to lift a singles trophy.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek will face Aryna Sabalenka in the Stuttgart Open final after Ons Jabeur was forced to retire from their semi-final with a left calf injury.

World number one Swiatek was 3-0 up against Jabeur when her tearful opponent called a medical timeout and ultimately ended the contest early.

It sets up a mouthwatering showdown between top seed Swiatek and second seed Sabalenka, who defeated Anastasia Potapova in straight sets earlier on Saturday.

Jabeur, who struggled to shake off the injury sustained in the first game, said: "The third point, I don't know what happened.

"I was really excited to play Iga today – it's always a fun match between us. I wish her the best luck for the final. I'm sorry guys, I really tried to run, but Iga never makes it easy."

Sabalenka, a beaten finalist in the past two years, held her serve in the opening set against Potapova and twice broke her unseeded opponent to take the lead.

The Belarusian raced 4-0 ahead in the second set and saw out a comfortable 6-1 6-2 victory in a little under an hour to reach her fourth final of the year.

"I think I was really focused, and I think from the very first point I was playing really aggressive," Sabalenka said in her on-court interview. "I didn't give [Potapova] much time. 

"I think that's why the match finished like that quick. But anyway, she's a great player, and I think in the future she's going to be a top player."

Swiatek defeated Sabalenka in last year's Stuttgart final 6-2 6-2 and is aiming to become the first player to defend the title since Angelique Kerber in 2016.

Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the Madrid Open, with the world number one struggling with an elbow injury just over a month before the start of the French Open.

The 22-time grand slam champion wore strapping on his right elbow at last week's Monte Carlo Masters, suffering a shock 6-4 5-7 4-6 defeat to Lorenzo Musetti in the third round.

Djokovic was back in action at the Srpska Open in Banja Luka this week, losing to fellow Serbian Dusan Lajovic in the quarter-finals, but he sparked concerns regarding his injury on the eve of that tournament.

Djokovic described his elbow as "not in an ideal condition" on Tuesday, though he added it was "good enough" for him to continue his preparations for Roland Garros.

On Saturday, however, it was confirmed Djokovic would not compete at the upcoming Masters 1000 event in Madrid, which he has won on three previous occasions.

Djokovic's absence from the clay-court event, which finishes just three weeks before the French Open begins, leaves the 35-year-old facing a battle to be fit for the second grand slam of the year.

Djokovic will not be the only big-name absentee in Madrid, with Rafael Nadal withdrawing earlier this week as he continues to struggle with an injury to his left hip.

With Nadal's chances of participating at the French Open also in the balance, tournament director Amelie Mauresmo said it was "hard to imagine" the event taking place without the 14-time winner.

Both Djokovic and Nadal will be targeting a record-breaking 23rd grand slam singles title if able to compete at the French Open, which will run from May 28 to June 11. 

Novak Djokovic had only words of praise for his opponent after being beaten in straight sets by fellow Serbian Dusan Lajovic at the Srpska Open in Banja Luka.

Lajovic bested the 22-time grand slam winner 6-4 7-6 (8-6) on Friday in the quarter-finals, dumping Djokovic out against the odds.

The key for Lajovic was saving break points, managing to rescue an incredible 15 of 16 that Djokovic earned.

Speaking after his loss, the number one seed said: "Dusan is a fantastic person, great guy. Someone I've known for a very long time, since he started playing professional tennis. So many times on the Davis Cup team together, trained together. I'm happy for him, to be honest.

"I know this is an important win for him considering the last 12 months that he's been through, it's not been easy for him. He's playing well and he deserved to win today."

It was the first time Djokovic had lost to a compatriot since Janko Tipsarevic beat him at the ATP Masters 1000 in Madrid in May 2012.

Lajovic declared it his biggest ever victory, and reciprocated the words of kindness from Djokovic.

"I'm overwhelmed, it is the biggest win of my career," Lajovic said on-court. "The emotions are very mixed because I'm playing here in front of the home town and I'm also playing against Nole, who is a good friend and he's a hero of our country.

"Beating him, it's something that I didn't even think is going to be possible, but it happened."

Lajovic will face another Serbian in the semi-finals in Miomir Kecmanovic, who beat Jiri Lehecka 7-5 6-0.

It was a day for comebacks at the Stuttgart Open, with number one seed Iga Swiatek recovering from a set down to beat Karolina Pliskova in the quarter-finals.

Swiatek made a disastrous start, going 4-0 down, and though she broke back once, was unable to find the second as Pliskova took the opening frame 6-4.

The determined Pole stepped up a level though to take the second 6-1, before breaking early in the third.

It was still an improvement for the Czech player, who lost 6-0 6-0 to Swiatek in their only previous meeting in Rome in 2021.

Pliskova kept her opponent honest on her own serve, but Swiatek had too much for the world number 17 as she clinched the decider 6-2.

Aryna Sabalenka also showcased her powers of recovery as she beat Paula Badosa despite going a set down.

The second seed won 4-6 6-4 6-4 in an even contest that saw nine breaks of serve, before the Belarusian eventually got over the line.

Sabalenka is now the player with the joint-most comeback wins over the last two seasons (13) level with Caroline Garcia, though the French star was actually the victim of a comeback herself on Friday.

Garcia won the first set against Anastasia Potapova, before the Russian came back to take it 4-6 6-3 6-3 to set up a semi against Sabalenka.

There was no need for such drama from Ons Jabeur, who eased to a 6-3 6-0 victory against Beatriz Haddad Maia in just 68 minutes to confirm a clash with Swiatek.

Carlos Alcaraz kept his Barcelona Open title defence on track following a 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 victory over compatriot Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarter-finals.

The world number two is aiming to become the first player to successfully defend the Barcelona crown since Rafael Nadal won three in a row between 2016 and 2018.

And though run close by Davidovich Fokina, the reigning champion has now reeled off six sets without reply, taking his overall record at the ATP 500 event to 8-1.

The Spaniard, who is now 9-1 against his fellow countrymen since the start of 2022, will play Dan Evans in the last four. The Briton came from behind to defeat 15th seed Francisco Cerundolo 2-6 7-5 6-3.

They are joined by Stefanos Tsitsipas, whose quest for a first title of the campaign continues after a commanding 6-4 6-2 victory over eighth seed Alex De Minaur.

The second seed, who was runner-up at this event in 2018 and 2021, sealed the deal in one hour and 21 minutes to claim his ninth successive win against the Australian.

His reward is a showdown with Lorenzo Musetti, who received a walkover into the last four following Jannik Sinner's withdrawal.

Over in Munich, reigning champion Holger Rune booked his semi-final place with a dominant 6-2 6-4 win over Cristian Garin.

The world number seven, who is now 7-0 in this event, will play Christopher O'Connell. After defeating Alexander Zverev earlier in the week, the Australian qualifier built on his momentum by seeing off Flavio Cobolli 7-6 (7-5) 4-6 6-3.

Second seed Taylor Fritz also advanced in straight sets with a 6-3 6-4 victory over former world number three Dominic Thiem, who overcame eighth seed Marc-Andrea Huesler earlier in the day.

Fritz's semi-final opponent will be Botic van de Zandschulp after the fourth seed saw off Marcos Giron 7-6 (7-5) 6-3.

French Open tournament director Amelie Mauresmo feels it is "hard to imagine" the tournament without Rafael Nadal, with the 14-time champion's participation at Roland Garros in doubt.

The most successful player in the history of the season's second grand slam, Nadal has not played since his second-round exit at the Australian Open in January due to a hip injury.

The 22-time major winner recently withdrew from the upcoming Madrid Open, and is now facing a race to be fit in time for the French Open, which begins in a little over five weeks' time.

Nadal is an ever-present at Roland Garros since winning his first title in 2005, and Mauresmo hopes that continues to be the case.

"It's obviously a possibility for him not to be able to be fit to come here to Roland Garros," the two-time grand slam winner told BBC Sport on Court Philippe Chatrier.

"But the only thing I know for sure is that if there is one tournament he doesn't want to miss, it is this one. We are still five weeks away from the main draw. I am still hopeful, and I'll keep my fingers crossed.

"It will be hard [to imagine Roland Garros without him]. It would be hard if he doesn't come, to be honest.

"He's so much part of the history of the tournament for the last almost 20 years – it would be sad. But I am someone that is positive, so I'm going to hope that things are going to get better for him."

Nadal's exploits at the French Open were recognised when a statue was erected outside the general public entrance and the Jardin des Mousquetaires at Roland Garros.

Mauresmo also revealed discussions are ongoing regarding an alternative way to commemorate his achievements in the French capital.

"The opinions are very different with everyone," she added. "I think it would be hard to change the name of this [Philippe Chatrier] court, but, yes, we are having these conversations sometimes.

"We will need to do something to [celebrate] 14 – maybe more one day. It is just something that is incredibly crazy, and in the history of sport quite unique."

Iga Swiatek believes it is "pretty confusing" to see the International Olympic Committee backing sports stars from Russia and Belarus to return to top-level sport while the invasion of Ukraine continues.

Since Russia launched its assault in February 2022, supported by Belarus, many sports have banned athletes from the two countries outright, while tennis has been among those that has largely allowed them to compete but under a neutral flag.

Swiatek, the women's tennis world number one, hails from Poland and has been a vociferous critic of the war and a fervent supporter of Ukraine.

Interim recommendations were issued by the IOC last month to international federations and organisers of events regarding the involvement of Russians and Belarusians.

The Olympic body urged federations to exclude any athletes or support personnel "who actively support the war" and said teams from either country should not be allowed to compete in international sport for now.

However, in a statement, the IOC said it should be "the sole responsibility" of sporting bodies to decide whether individuals can compete, and this should be "based on their sporting merits and not on political grounds or because of their passports".

There is a clear possibility of Russian and Belarusian athletes being allowed to compete as neutrals at the Paris 2024 Olympics, although IOC president Thomas Bach stressed there has been no decision taken on that matter.

Swiatek was asked about the IOC stance after her opening match at the Stuttgart Open, and the 21-year-old said: "Human rights are important, but I always feel like there are values that you have to kind of treat respectfully, and war is not something that we want in the world. I was pretty open about that since the beginning.

"Right now the situation is pretty complicated, because at the beginning of the war there weren't many decisions one way. At first they were kind of banned in other sports, not in tennis.

"Then it changed a little bit, and they are starting to be allowed, the Russian and Belarusian players, which is pretty confusing, because I feel like nothing changed in Ukraine and the cities are still under attack and many Ukrainian athletes are fighting in the war and actually losing their lives.

"It's heartbreaking. I just hope, no matter what the decision is going to be, the sport will be able to kind of put people together and not separate them.

"But there are tensions, so it may be tricky and hard to do. As just one athlete, I don't have full influence on what's going on, so we kind of have to just compete our best no matter what the circumstances are."

Carlos Alcaraz moved into the quarter-finals of the Barcelona Open with a straight-sets defeat of Roberto Bautista Agut, but it was a miserable Thursday for Alexander Zverev on home soil.

Defending champion Alcaraz won an all-Spanish contest with Bautista Agut 6-3 7-5 on Pista Rafa Nadal.

Top seed Alcaraz will face another compatriot in the form of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who saw off Emil Ruusuvuori, for a place in the last four in his homeland.

Eyeing a third title of the year, 19-year-old US Open champion Alcaraz was a break down at 3-2 in the opening set before winning six games in a row to take the opener.

Bautista Agut broke the teenager's serve twice midway through the second set, but the favourite reeled off nine points in a row to seal victory in an hour and 54 minutes.

Second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-3 6-2, and Jannik Sinner, the fourth seed, battled past Yoshihito Nishioka 6-1 4-6 6-3, but Casper Ruud was beaten by Francisco Cerundolo in straight sets.

Lorenzo Musetti and Dan Evans advanced at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona-1899 along with Alex de Minaur, who went through with a walkover as Grigor Dimitrov withdrew due to injury.

Meanwhile, there will be no third BMW Open title for Zverev in Munich this week after he suffered a shock loss at the hands of world number 82 Christopher O'Connell.

Australian O'Connell saw off the third seed 7-6 (7-2) 6-4, while defending champion and top seed Holger Rune ousted Yannick Hanfmann 6-3 6-4, and Taylor Fritz got past Marton Fucsovics in three sets.

Lorenzo Sonego was another seed who bowed out, Cristian Garin beating the Italian 6-3 7-6 (7-3).

Iga Swiatek is through to the quarter-finals of the Stuttgart Open after easing to a 6-1 6-4 win over Zheng Qinwen on her return from a rib injury.

Swiatek had not played since sustaining the issue in the semi-finals of Indian Wells over a month ago, but advanced on Thursday despite stating that she felt "rusty".

The world number one won 84 per cent of points after landing her first serve in as she made up for lost time.

Swiatek also forced eight break points, winning four of them as she took just and hour and 26 minutes to set up a quarter-final with Karolina Pliskova, who bested Donna Vekic in a thriller.

Pliskova looked to be on her way to a routine win as she claimed the first set 6-2, only for the Croatian to take the second via a tie-break.

The decider also went the distance, with Pliskova able to finally put Vekic away 6-2 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-5) to book her clash with Swiatek.

Coco Gauff perhaps paid the price for taking almost three hours to beat Veronika Kudermetova on Wednesday, as the fifth seed fell to a straight-sets loss to Anastasia Potapova on Thursday, going down 6-2 6-3.

Fourth seed Caroline Garcia will go up against Potapova next after she defeated Tatjana Maria 7-6 (7-5) 6-4, while Paula Badosa had few problems seeing off fellow Spaniard Cristina Bucsa 6-1 6-2 and will face second seed Aryna Sabalenka in the last eight.

Rafael Nadal remains unsure when he will return to action with the French Open looming after being forced to withdraw from the Madrid Open.

The 22-time grand slam champion has been struggling with a left hip issue that contributed to his second-round exit at the Australian Open in January.

Nadal pulled out of the Indian Wells Open and Miami Open, while the troublesome injury has also hampered the start of his favoured clay-court season.

Having withdrawn from the Monte Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open, the Spaniard is still not fit enough to participate in next week's Madrid Open on home soil.

And a concerned Nadal is now facing a race to be fit in time for the French Open, which begins in a little over five weeks' time.

"As you know, I suffered an important injury in Australia of the psoas [muscle]," he said in a video published on social media on Thursday.

"Initially it had to be a six-to-eight-week recovery period and we are now on fourteen. The reality is that the situation is not what we would have expected.

"All medical indications have been followed, but somehow the evolution has not been what they initially told us and we find ourselves in a difficult situation.

"The weeks are passing and I had the illusion of playing in tournaments that are the most important in my career, like Monte Carlo, Barcelona, ​​Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros. 

"For the moment, I have missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona. I will not be able to be in Madrid, unfortunately."

Nadal, who has played just four matches this season, added: "The injury still hasn't healed and I can't work out what I need to to compete. 

"I was training, but now a few days ago we decided to change course a bit, do another treatment and see if things improve to try to get to what comes next.

"I can't give deadlines because if I knew I would tell you but I don't know. This is how things are now."

Nadal won a record-extending 14th French Open title with a straight-sets victory over Casper Ruud in last year's final.

Ons Jabeur forged a comeback win over Jelena Ostapenko to get her Stuttgart Open campaign off to a flying start.

Jabeur endured an injury-hit start to 2023 but bounced back with a victory in Charleston and made it six wins on the bounce by overcoming Latvian Ostapenko 1-6 7-6 6-3 on Wednesday.

Next up for Jabeur is a potential quarter-final tie with Elena Rybakina – a rematch of last year's Wimbledon final.

Rybakina, who won the Indian Wells Open in March, came up trumps on that occasion, fighting back to win 3-6 6-2 6–2.

The Kazakh, seeded sixth, overcame German Jule Niemeier 7-5 6-3 in the round of 32 and will now face Beatriz Haddad Maia in the last 16.

World number two Aryna Sabalenka also booked her progression to the last eight, beating 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova 6-2 6-3.

Coco Gauff, meanwhile, claimed her first victory in Stuttgart as she overcame a tough test from Veronika Kudermetova.

Gauff, the world number five, was taken to a deciding tie-break but ultimately prevailed 6-2 4-6 7-6 (7-3). The American will face Anastasia Potapova in the next round.

Former world number one Karolina Pliskova defeated Maria Sakkari in straight sets in Wednesday's other encounter.

 

 

Stefanos Tsitsipas breezed into the third round of the Barcelona Open with a straight-sets win over Pedro Cachin on Wednesday.   Tsitsipas took 79 minutes to see off Argentine Pedro Cachin 6-4 6-2 on Pista Rafa Nadal.   The second seed from Greece did not face a break point and won all three that he fashioned to set up a meeting with Canadian Denis Shapovalov, who got the better of Jozef Kovalik 6-4, 6-3.   Jannik Sinner, the fourth seed from Italy, eased to a 6-2 6-4 win over Diego Schwartzman at the Real Club de Tennis Barcelona-1899.   Cameron Norrie and Lorenzo Musetti will do battle in round three after defeating Pavel Kotov and Jason Kubler respectively in straight sets.   Karen Khachanov beat Nicolas Jarry 6-4 6-4, while Grigor Dimitrov, Dan Evans, Alex de Minaur, Yoshihito Nishioka and Francisco Cerundolo also celebrated midweek wins.   Rain hit the schedule hard at the BMW Open, where Aslan Karatsev was leading Daniel Altmaie 3-0 in the third set when play was suspended in the only singles action of the day.  

Novak Djokovic was forced to come from a set down to beat Luca Van Assche 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 6-2 in the Srpska Open second round on Wednesday.

Teenager Van Assche took a big step towards a stunning victory after going a set ahead, but the world number one rallied to seal his progression against the stubborn Frenchman.

Djokovic, who admitted his right elbow "was not in an ideal condition" earlier this week after a shock exit at the Monte Carlo Masters, was not at his brilliant self as Van Assche took the first set by finding two crucial breaks in the tie-break.

The Serbian improved, though, and he dominated the second set by holding all five of his service games and breaking twice to take the match to a decider.

With the first two games of the final set going against serve, Djokovic took over to win four of the next six and secure a comeback triumph.

Just over a month ahead of the French Open, Djokovic will be glad to have battled to victory in Banja Luka as he prepares for an attempt to win a record 23rd grand slam title at Roland Garros having already claimed the Australian Open crown earlier this year.

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.