Harry West Updated at 11:30 a.m. ET Updated at 11:30 a.m. ET Serena Williams has returned to the top 10 of the WTA rankings for the first time since taking a break from tennis to have a baby. The 23-time major champion won the Australian Open in January 2017 while still in the early stages of her pregnancy before giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia in September of that year. Williams, 37, returned at Indian Wells in March 2018, having dropped as low as 491st in the rankings, but Monday's update saw her move up to No. 10 in the world. The American has not played this season since a quarterfinal loss to Karolina Pliskova at the Australian Open but has moved up in the rankings becasue some of her rivals' failures to defend their points. Naomi Osaka, who won at Melbourne Park after defeating Williams at the U.S. Open in the final major of 2018, remains at No. 1, while Simona Halep … [Read more...] about Serena Williams returns to WTA top 10 for first time as a mother
Tennis
Naomi Osaka’s explanation for Sascha Bajin split raises more questions than answers
In purely results terms, there have been few more successful tennis partnerships than Naomi Osaka and Sascha Bajin. In their year spent working together, Osaka climbed from No. 68 to No. 1 in the world and won two of the five grand-slam titles available. Prior to linking up with Bajin, Osaka's best showing at a major was reaching the Wimbledon third round in 2017. The decision then to split with Bajin just a couple of weeks after winning the Australian Open was a bit like if Arsenal had thought in 2004 that it was time for Arsene Wenger to move along. Or Leicester saying in May 2016: "Thanks for everything, but we're looking for something different now Claudio." Or... well, you get the idea. Still, at least we could expect platitudes from Osaka about how much she had enjoyed working with Bajin, what a journey it had been, maybe a photo of the two of them on social media? Not quite. Instead Osaka tweeted a terse 26-word statement last Monday: "Hey … [Read more...] about Naomi Osaka’s explanation for Sascha Bajin split raises more questions than answers
‘I only saw it in Rafael Nadal’ says Roger Federer’s ex-coach; talks about rivalry
Rafael Nadal is one of the only two strongest sportsmen in tennis, according to Roger Federer's former coach Jose Higueras. Jose Higueras coached Roger Federer in 2008 and he says Rafael Nadal and Bjorn Borg are the only two tennis stars who have a strong mentality. That means Federer and Novak Djokovic are not as strong as Nadal mentally, according to Jose Higueras. "When I saw him so young, he did not stand out for his technique but for his mental strength," said Jose Higueras. "I only saw it in Rafael Nadal. They are the strongest two tennis players, well I would say sportsmen in general, mentally," he added. Not that many would agree because Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic are the two tennis stars from the current lot. They have collectively won 35 Grand Slam titles, with the Swiss tennis legend winning 20 of them and Djokovic winning the remaining 15. Rafael Nadal has won 17 Grand Slam titles and the three tennis players are in the top three in the list of most number of Grand … [Read more...] about ‘I only saw it in Rafael Nadal’ says Roger Federer’s ex-coach; talks about rivalry
Novak Djokovic wants to surpass Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, says father
Novak Djokovic will beat tennis stars Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the list of most Grand Slam wins, according to Novak Djokovic's father Srdjan Djokovic. Novak Djokovic won his 15th career Grand Slam title in January after he defeated Rafael Nadal at the 2019 Australian Open final in straight sets. Roger Federer leads the list with most number of Grand Slam wins with 20 titles and Nadal is second in the list with 17 titles. Djokovic Sr is confident his son can overtake the Spaniard and the Swiss tennis ace. Novak Djokovic's wish is to overtake Nadal and Federer, according to his father. "His wish is that by the end of his tennis career, which will last several more years, he will surpass the records of Nadal and Federer," said Srdjan Djokovic. "He is simply too ambitious and too good not to do that. If he had not sustained that injury, he would be a step away from that goal. This way he is just two steps away. And trust me, he will succeed." Novak Djokovic's next chance to win a … [Read more...] about Novak Djokovic wants to surpass Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, says father
Swiss great Roger Federer accused of fixing opponents; Twitter’s shocking reaction to controversy
The debate over whether Roger Federer gets preferential treatment has gained fresh momentum after the tournament director of Dubai Tennis Championship said he hopes the draw "helps" the Swiss win the title. Federer was caught in the line of fire late last year when former French tennis player Julien Benneteau accused the 37-year-old of getting preferential treatment from the officials at the Australian Open. The Frenchman said that over the last two years (2017 and 2018), Federer played "12 or 13" out of the 14 matches at night and avoided the scorching temperatures day time. In the Dubai Tennis Championships starting February 17, Federer has been handed the number 1 seeding in the tournament and this will be his first official tennis match since being knocked out of the Australian Open by Stefanos Tsitsipas. The 20-time grand slam winner will head into the tournament on the brink of history as he sits on 99 career titles. If he does manage to go all the way, he will become only the … [Read more...] about Swiss great Roger Federer accused of fixing opponents; Twitter’s shocking reaction to controversy