While this year’s Australian Open offering some surprises, the favorites have mainly held their own so far. This includes Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic, who both booked the ticket for the semi-finals on Tuesday.

Williams saw some challenges from the No. 2-ranked Simona Halep but still managed to finish the job in straight sets and get a 6-3, 6-3 win.

The 39-year-old American won the first set easily, being in front every step of the way. Halep responded well in the second, starting with a 3-1 lead where it seemed like Williams had her work cut out for her.

Still, Williams managed to turn things around and won five straight sets to stay in the tournament.

“I think this was the best match I have played at this tournament for sure,” said Williams after the match. “I knew it had to be going up against the No. 2 in the world. I had to be better, and I was, so I’m excited.”

Williams will play Naomi Osaka on Thursday for a place in the finals.

Djokovic, on the other hand, scored a win against the No. 6-ranked Alexander Zverev.

Despite losing the first set in the tiebreaker, the Serbian kept his composure and went on to produce a dominant performance in the next two sets and get ahead with 6-2 and 6-4 wins.

Zverev came close to taking the match to five sets but couldn’t capitalize on a 3-0 lead in the fourth. Djokovic found a way back and took the set in the tiebreaker, where he came out on the winning end.

Djokovic is now set to play this year’s sensation Aslan Karatsev in the semi-final bout.

The post Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic Advance to Australian Open Semis appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Serena Williams departed the Australian Open in the most dramatic way, losing to Czech’s Karolina Pliskova after leading 5-1 in the deciding set Wednesday morning.

Williams, who was pursuing a 24^th Grand Slam to equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Major title wins, had a rocky start to the match. The Czech star was 3-1 in the first set when the American fought back to win the set 6-4.

In the second, the 37-year-old was 5-1 and on her way to a victory. While serving a potential winner, she sprained her ankle and things turned worse there afterward. Not only did Pliskova initiate a comeback in that set to win 6-4, she won the third set 7-5 to bundle out the American.

Despite the injury, Williams refused to use it as an excuse for the loss.

“My ankle seems to be fine. I don’t usually know until the next day,” the American said. “I think she just played lights out on match points, hitting lines. She just played unbelievable on match points.”

With the loss, tennis fans will miss out on a rematch between last year’s US Open winner Naomi Osaka against Williams. Instead, Osaka will face Pliskova. Both of these players will meet in the Australia Open Semi-finals for the first time ever

The post Serena Williams Knocked Out of Australian Open by Karolina Pliskova appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The match between Serena Williams and Simona Halep in round 32 of the 2019 Australian Open was widely regarded as “finals before finals,” and it certainly didn’t disappoint. Williams managed to outlast Halep, who is the best-ranked woman tennis player in the world and the tournament’s first seed, in a thrilling 6:1, 4:6, 6:4 clash filled with momentum swings and excellent tennis play.

The biggest moment came in the third set when Halep had three break points that would give her 4:2 lead. Still, the 27-year-old Romanian couldn’t close out the gem, with Williams managing to get 3-all and get the momentum on her side. The 37-year-old American then managed to get a 4:3 break and didn’t lose the control until the end.

“It was a really intense match, and it was some incredible points,” – said Williams after the match. “I love playing tennis and I love to play here and I love to be back out here.”

“In order for me to stay out there, I had to play a little like I knew I could,” – she added. “I’m such a fighter. I just never give up. It’s definitely something that’s innate. I just work so hard for every point.”

Serena Williams, who entered the 2019 Australian Open as the 16th seed, will now face seventh-seeded Karolina Pliskova in the quarterfinals. Williams is in the hunt for her eighth Australian Open title, which would also give her 24th Grand Slam title and tie her with Margaret Court on the all-time list.

The post Australian Open: Serena Williams Defeats No.1 Simona Halep appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Youngster Frances Tiafoe dug deep at the Australian Open on Wednesday to stun No 5 seed Kevin Anderson in four sets for his biggest career win.

The 20-year-old American overcome a 4-6 first set loss to beat the South African 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 in one of the best matches at the ongoing Australian Open so far.

“I went to a different place. I dug insanely deep,” Tiafoe said. “It’s all about competing. Guys are so good. It’s just about how badly you want it. I want it real bad.”

In the same night, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal overpowered their opponents Dan Evans and Matt Ebden in straight sets to qualify for the round of 32. An injury in Anderson’s right arm certainly helped Tiafoe emerge victorious. It didn’t matter though as the win gave the 20-year-old a much needed victory.

Tiafoe was a nine-game losing streak prior to Wednesday. He lost all his matches at the Hopman Cup, including the three mixed doubles he was paired with Serena Williams. His losing streak continued at the Next Gen ATP Finals before clinching a win this week.

Wednesday also say another American youngster, Taylor Fritz, upset France’s Gael Monfils in four sets. However, Mackenzie Macdonald, lost to last year’s finalist Marlin Cilic.

The post American Youngster Frances Tiafoe Stuns Kevin Anderson at Australian Open appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Sisters Serena and Venus Williams cruised into the second round of this year’s Australian Tournament with wins against opponents Tatjana Maria and Mihaela Buzarnescu Tuesday morning.

Serena, 37, beat Maria 6-0, 6-2 in 49 minutes to kick off her chase for a record 24^th Grand Slam in a good way. The 23-time major title champion will become the all-time greatest major title winner should she win this year’s tournament, equaling Australia’s Margaret Court who has 24 titles.

Venus, 38, dug deep to triumph over Buzarnescu after losing the first set 6-7 (3-7) before beating her in the second and third sets 7-6 (7-3), 6-2. Expectedly, Venus comments after the match described the beauty of winning a game after almost losing it.

“It was pretty hairy there. I hope that this tough match will prepare me for the rest of the tournament.”

Serena dominated her German opponent throughout the match. She won the first set in 18 minutes to win her first Grand Slam match since her problematic loss at the US Open final last year. While she lost, Maria was full of praise for the American calling her the “greatest ever.

Serena will face Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard next while her sister will met France’s Alize Cornet.

The post Australian Open: Serena and Venus Williams Cruise into the Second Round appeared first on SportzBonanza.

20-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer and 23-time Champion Serena Williams will face each other at the Australia Hopman Cup on Tuesday in one of the most anticipated matches this year.

Federer will head into the mixed doubles match having already won his previous match against Britain’s Cameron Norrie effortlessly (6-1, 6-1). By contrast, the American had to overcome an ankle problem to beat her Greece opponent Maria Sakkari 7-6, 6-2.

Both tennis champions are excited for the matchup, with Williams already preparing to take a selfie once he meets Federer. The Swiss, on the other hand, was full of praise for the American

“It’s very exciting for both of us,” – Federer said. “I admire everything she’s done on and off the court.”

Federer then talked about parenthood and the experience they both share.

“We can relate to one another now even more so for being parents. I’ve played with some of the greatest double players in the world in Martina Navratilova and Martina Hingis, and I’ve also played against some of the best in Venus and other great ones in the past. This time it’s against Serena, who is one of the biggest champions ever in our sport—men and women combined.”

In their individual singles, Federer will face America’s Frances Tiafoe while Williams will face Swiss Belinda Bencic.

The post Hopman Cup: Serena Williams to Face Roger Federer in Battle of the Greats appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Serena Williams won’t add another French Open title to her trophy cabinet, at least not in 2018. The 36-year-old announced on Monday that she has pulled out of the tournament due to a chest muscle injury. Williams announced her decision shortly before she was scheduled to play Maria Sharapova in the fourth round.

“It’s extremely disappointing,” – Williams told reporters on Monday. “But also, I made a promise to myself and to my coach and to my team that if I’m not at least 60 percent or 50 percent, then I probably shouldn’t play.“

Williams explained that she will get an MRI and do further tests in order to figure out how severe the injury is and how it will affect her tennis season.

“The fact that I physically can’t serve at all is a good indication that maybe I should just go back to the drawing board and stay positive, and try to get better and not get it to a point where it could be a lot worse.” – she added.

2018 French Open was the first Grand Slam tournament Serena Williams participated in since January 2017, when she won Australian Open. After the tournament, Williams revealed she was already eight-weeks pregnant and took a break from tennis. After giving birth to her daughter in September 2017, she made her return to tennis in late December of the same year, playing an exhibition match in Abu Dhabi.

Serena Williams currently has 23 Grand Slam titles, which represent the most for all tennis players in the modern era. When it comes to all-time ranking, she is second to Margaret Court, who has 24.

The post Serena Williams Withdraws from French Open Due to a Chest Muscle Injury appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Australian Open title definitely won’t stay in the Williams family. After Serena Williams, reigning champion of Australian Open, decided not to participate in the first Grand Slam of the season, her sister Venus quickly finished her participation in the tournament with a 6-3, 7-5 loss against 78th ranked women tennis player in the world, Belinda Bencic.

Although Bencic failed to take a set from Williams in their previous 4 matches, this time she stepped up and defeated one of the tournament’s biggest stars.

“I think I had a little bit too much respect, played a little bit careful and safe,” – said Bencic. “This time I really tried to come out and hit it big.“

Williams had a bad match with 26 unforced errors and just couldn’t find an answer for Bencic’s play.

“I don’t think I played a bad match. She just played above and beyond,” – said Williams. “I just have to give her credit for that.“

Things didn’t go well for other U.S. women at the tournament since they’ve lost nine out of their 10 matches in the first round. This included the U.S. Open champion, Sloane Stephens, who now lost eight straight matches. This time, she was defeated by 34th ranked Zhang Shuai.

“Tennis is definitely a roller coaster,” – said Stephens after the loss. “But I have learned to just not panic. It will be OK.“

CoCo Vandeweghe was a semifinalist in both Australian Open and U.S. Open in the last year loss against Timea Babos in a frustrating match. Irina Falconi, CiCi Bellis, Sofia Kenin, Alison Riske, Taylor Townsend and Jennifer Brady are also out of the tournament. Nicole Gibbs managed to break the U.S. women losing streak by defeating Viktoriya Tomova.

The post Venus Williams and Sloane Stephens Out of Australian Open after the First Round appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Although everything was set for Serena Williams to make her big competitive comeback at Australian Open, that won’t be the case. After playing an exhibition match against French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, Williams realized she isn’t ready and needs more time for a full comeback. She lost the match against Ostapenko 2–6, 6-3, [5–10].

“After competing in Abu Dhabi I realized that although I am super close, I’m not where I personally want to be,” – said Williams in a statement. “My coach and team always said ‘only go to tournaments when you are prepared to go all the way.’ I can compete — but I don’t want to just compete, I want to do far better than that and to do so, I will need a little more time. With that being said, and even though I am disappointed about it, I’ve decided not to compete in the Australian Open this year.“

Serena Williams won the Australian Open tournament in 2017 while she was eight weeks pregnant, and then took a break from tennis. In the meantime, she gave birth to a daughter named Alexis Olympia in September 2017 and married Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian two months later.

The 36-year-old is currently sitting behind Australian Margaret Court in most Grand Slam tournament singles titles. Court won 24 titles, while Williams has 23, and she believed that she can get tied with Court at Australian Open 2018. Now, the French Open looks like a more realistic option.

Williams isn’t the only big name that will miss the first Grand Slam of the season. Former world No.1 tennis player Andy Murray also announced that he won’t be able to compete in Melbourne due to a hip injury. Novak Djokovic might not play as well and will make his decision after playing few exhibition matches next week.

The post Serena Williams Won’t Play in Australian Open 2018 appeared first on SportzBonanza.

While this year’s Australian Open offering some surprises, the favorites have mainly held their own so far. This includes Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic, who both booked the ticket for the semi-finals on Tuesday.

Williams saw some challenges from the No. 2-ranked Simona Halep but still managed to finish the job in straight sets and get a 6-3, 6-3 win.

The 39-year-old American won the first set easily, being in front every step of the way. Halep responded well in the second, starting with a 3-1 lead where it seemed like Williams had her work cut out for her.

Still, Williams managed to turn things around and won five straight sets to stay in the tournament.

“I think this was the best match I have played at this tournament for sure,” said Williams after the match. “I knew it had to be going up against the No. 2 in the world. I had to be better, and I was, so I’m excited.”

Williams will play Naomi Osaka on Thursday for a place in the finals.

Djokovic, on the other hand, scored a win against the No. 6-ranked Alexander Zverev.

Despite losing the first set in the tiebreaker, the Serbian kept his composure and went on to produce a dominant performance in the next two sets and get ahead with 6-2 and 6-4 wins.

Zverev came close to taking the match to five sets but couldn’t capitalize on a 3-0 lead in the fourth. Djokovic found a way back and took the set in the tiebreaker, where he came out on the winning end.

Djokovic is now set to play this year’s sensation Aslan Karatsev in the semi-final bout.

The post Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic Advance to Australian Open Semis appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Serena Williams departed the Australian Open in the most dramatic way, losing to Czech’s Karolina Pliskova after leading 5-1 in the deciding set Wednesday morning.

Williams, who was pursuing a 24^th Grand Slam to equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 Major title wins, had a rocky start to the match. The Czech star was 3-1 in the first set when the American fought back to win the set 6-4.

In the second, the 37-year-old was 5-1 and on her way to a victory. While serving a potential winner, she sprained her ankle and things turned worse there afterward. Not only did Pliskova initiate a comeback in that set to win 6-4, she won the third set 7-5 to bundle out the American.

Despite the injury, Williams refused to use it as an excuse for the loss.

“My ankle seems to be fine. I don’t usually know until the next day,” the American said. “I think she just played lights out on match points, hitting lines. She just played unbelievable on match points.”

With the loss, tennis fans will miss out on a rematch between last year’s US Open winner Naomi Osaka against Williams. Instead, Osaka will face Pliskova. Both of these players will meet in the Australia Open Semi-finals for the first time ever

The post Serena Williams Knocked Out of Australian Open by Karolina Pliskova appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The match between Serena Williams and Simona Halep in round 32 of the 2019 Australian Open was widely regarded as “finals before finals,” and it certainly didn’t disappoint. Williams managed to outlast Halep, who is the best-ranked woman tennis player in the world and the tournament’s first seed, in a thrilling 6:1, 4:6, 6:4 clash filled with momentum swings and excellent tennis play.

The biggest moment came in the third set when Halep had three break points that would give her 4:2 lead. Still, the 27-year-old Romanian couldn’t close out the gem, with Williams managing to get 3-all and get the momentum on her side. The 37-year-old American then managed to get a 4:3 break and didn’t lose the control until the end.

“It was a really intense match, and it was some incredible points,” – said Williams after the match. “I love playing tennis and I love to play here and I love to be back out here.”

“In order for me to stay out there, I had to play a little like I knew I could,” – she added. “I’m such a fighter. I just never give up. It’s definitely something that’s innate. I just work so hard for every point.”

Serena Williams, who entered the 2019 Australian Open as the 16th seed, will now face seventh-seeded Karolina Pliskova in the quarterfinals. Williams is in the hunt for her eighth Australian Open title, which would also give her 24th Grand Slam title and tie her with Margaret Court on the all-time list.

The post Australian Open: Serena Williams Defeats No.1 Simona Halep appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Youngster Frances Tiafoe dug deep at the Australian Open on Wednesday to stun No 5 seed Kevin Anderson in four sets for his biggest career win.

The 20-year-old American overcome a 4-6 first set loss to beat the South African 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 in one of the best matches at the ongoing Australian Open so far.

“I went to a different place. I dug insanely deep,” Tiafoe said. “It’s all about competing. Guys are so good. It’s just about how badly you want it. I want it real bad.”

In the same night, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal overpowered their opponents Dan Evans and Matt Ebden in straight sets to qualify for the round of 32. An injury in Anderson’s right arm certainly helped Tiafoe emerge victorious. It didn’t matter though as the win gave the 20-year-old a much needed victory.

Tiafoe was a nine-game losing streak prior to Wednesday. He lost all his matches at the Hopman Cup, including the three mixed doubles he was paired with Serena Williams. His losing streak continued at the Next Gen ATP Finals before clinching a win this week.

Wednesday also say another American youngster, Taylor Fritz, upset France’s Gael Monfils in four sets. However, Mackenzie Macdonald, lost to last year’s finalist Marlin Cilic.

The post American Youngster Frances Tiafoe Stuns Kevin Anderson at Australian Open appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Sisters Serena and Venus Williams cruised into the second round of this year’s Australian Tournament with wins against opponents Tatjana Maria and Mihaela Buzarnescu Tuesday morning.

Serena, 37, beat Maria 6-0, 6-2 in 49 minutes to kick off her chase for a record 24^th Grand Slam in a good way. The 23-time major title champion will become the all-time greatest major title winner should she win this year’s tournament, equaling Australia’s Margaret Court who has 24 titles.

Venus, 38, dug deep to triumph over Buzarnescu after losing the first set 6-7 (3-7) before beating her in the second and third sets 7-6 (7-3), 6-2. Expectedly, Venus comments after the match described the beauty of winning a game after almost losing it.

“It was pretty hairy there. I hope that this tough match will prepare me for the rest of the tournament.”

Serena dominated her German opponent throughout the match. She won the first set in 18 minutes to win her first Grand Slam match since her problematic loss at the US Open final last year. While she lost, Maria was full of praise for the American calling her the “greatest ever.

Serena will face Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard next while her sister will met France’s Alize Cornet.

The post Australian Open: Serena and Venus Williams Cruise into the Second Round appeared first on SportzBonanza.

20-time Grand Slam winner Roger Federer and 23-time Champion Serena Williams will face each other at the Australia Hopman Cup on Tuesday in one of the most anticipated matches this year.

Federer will head into the mixed doubles match having already won his previous match against Britain’s Cameron Norrie effortlessly (6-1, 6-1). By contrast, the American had to overcome an ankle problem to beat her Greece opponent Maria Sakkari 7-6, 6-2.

Both tennis champions are excited for the matchup, with Williams already preparing to take a selfie once he meets Federer. The Swiss, on the other hand, was full of praise for the American

“It’s very exciting for both of us,” – Federer said. “I admire everything she’s done on and off the court.”

Federer then talked about parenthood and the experience they both share.

“We can relate to one another now even more so for being parents. I’ve played with some of the greatest double players in the world in Martina Navratilova and Martina Hingis, and I’ve also played against some of the best in Venus and other great ones in the past. This time it’s against Serena, who is one of the biggest champions ever in our sport—men and women combined.”

In their individual singles, Federer will face America’s Frances Tiafoe while Williams will face Swiss Belinda Bencic.

The post Hopman Cup: Serena Williams to Face Roger Federer in Battle of the Greats appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Serena Williams won’t add another French Open title to her trophy cabinet, at least not in 2018. The 36-year-old announced on Monday that she has pulled out of the tournament due to a chest muscle injury. Williams announced her decision shortly before she was scheduled to play Maria Sharapova in the fourth round.

“It’s extremely disappointing,” – Williams told reporters on Monday. “But also, I made a promise to myself and to my coach and to my team that if I’m not at least 60 percent or 50 percent, then I probably shouldn’t play.“

Williams explained that she will get an MRI and do further tests in order to figure out how severe the injury is and how it will affect her tennis season.

“The fact that I physically can’t serve at all is a good indication that maybe I should just go back to the drawing board and stay positive, and try to get better and not get it to a point where it could be a lot worse.” – she added.

2018 French Open was the first Grand Slam tournament Serena Williams participated in since January 2017, when she won Australian Open. After the tournament, Williams revealed she was already eight-weeks pregnant and took a break from tennis. After giving birth to her daughter in September 2017, she made her return to tennis in late December of the same year, playing an exhibition match in Abu Dhabi.

Serena Williams currently has 23 Grand Slam titles, which represent the most for all tennis players in the modern era. When it comes to all-time ranking, she is second to Margaret Court, who has 24.

The post Serena Williams Withdraws from French Open Due to a Chest Muscle Injury appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The Australian Open title definitely won’t stay in the Williams family. After Serena Williams, reigning champion of Australian Open, decided not to participate in the first Grand Slam of the season, her sister Venus quickly finished her participation in the tournament with a 6-3, 7-5 loss against 78th ranked women tennis player in the world, Belinda Bencic.

Although Bencic failed to take a set from Williams in their previous 4 matches, this time she stepped up and defeated one of the tournament’s biggest stars.

“I think I had a little bit too much respect, played a little bit careful and safe,” – said Bencic. “This time I really tried to come out and hit it big.“

Williams had a bad match with 26 unforced errors and just couldn’t find an answer for Bencic’s play.

“I don’t think I played a bad match. She just played above and beyond,” – said Williams. “I just have to give her credit for that.“

Things didn’t go well for other U.S. women at the tournament since they’ve lost nine out of their 10 matches in the first round. This included the U.S. Open champion, Sloane Stephens, who now lost eight straight matches. This time, she was defeated by 34th ranked Zhang Shuai.

“Tennis is definitely a roller coaster,” – said Stephens after the loss. “But I have learned to just not panic. It will be OK.“

CoCo Vandeweghe was a semifinalist in both Australian Open and U.S. Open in the last year loss against Timea Babos in a frustrating match. Irina Falconi, CiCi Bellis, Sofia Kenin, Alison Riske, Taylor Townsend and Jennifer Brady are also out of the tournament. Nicole Gibbs managed to break the U.S. women losing streak by defeating Viktoriya Tomova.

The post Venus Williams and Sloane Stephens Out of Australian Open after the First Round appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Although everything was set for Serena Williams to make her big competitive comeback at Australian Open, that won’t be the case. After playing an exhibition match against French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, Williams realized she isn’t ready and needs more time for a full comeback. She lost the match against Ostapenko 2–6, 6-3, [5–10].

“After competing in Abu Dhabi I realized that although I am super close, I’m not where I personally want to be,” – said Williams in a statement. “My coach and team always said ‘only go to tournaments when you are prepared to go all the way.’ I can compete — but I don’t want to just compete, I want to do far better than that and to do so, I will need a little more time. With that being said, and even though I am disappointed about it, I’ve decided not to compete in the Australian Open this year.“

Serena Williams won the Australian Open tournament in 2017 while she was eight weeks pregnant, and then took a break from tennis. In the meantime, she gave birth to a daughter named Alexis Olympia in September 2017 and married Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian two months later.

The 36-year-old is currently sitting behind Australian Margaret Court in most Grand Slam tournament singles titles. Court won 24 titles, while Williams has 23, and she believed that she can get tied with Court at Australian Open 2018. Now, the French Open looks like a more realistic option.

Williams isn’t the only big name that will miss the first Grand Slam of the season. Former world No.1 tennis player Andy Murray also announced that he won’t be able to compete in Melbourne due to a hip injury. Novak Djokovic might not play as well and will make his decision after playing few exhibition matches next week.

The post Serena Williams Won’t Play in Australian Open 2018 appeared first on SportzBonanza.