[ad_1] The mood in the press room at the Davis Cup in Madrid on Friday was maudlin. The Serbians looked more like mourners at a funeral than elite athletes, their eyes raw and red, their visages grim. They had just lost to Russia in the quarterfinals of the first edition of the revamped Davis Cup competition after wasting three match points in the decisive doubles match.Nenad Zimonjic, the Serbian Davis
[ad_1] LONDON -- A couple of days into his final ATP Finals, Chris Kermode, the outgoing CEO and chairman of the ATP Tour, was asked about his faith in the future of the sport."I have always [said] and I genuinely mean this, the game will carry on when Roger [Federer], Rafa [Nadal], Novak [Djokovic] and Andy [Murray] all leave the game," Kermode said."They have played an immense part and are
[ad_1] LONDON -- The ATP Finals will have a first-time champion for the fourth year in a row after Stefanos Tsitsipas and Dominic Thiem won their semifinals on Saturday.Thiem beat defending champion Alexander Zverev after Tsitsipas ousted six-time winner Roger Federer, with both players reaching their first final at the season-ending tournament.Tsitsipas had to keep his nerve at the key moments to beat Federer 6-3, 6-4, saving 11 of 12
[ad_1] The year in men's pro tennis will end on a compelling note, as the remade Davis Cup takes place next week in Madrid. We're about to see if the risky makeover will cure the ills of this historic, 119-year-old competition, or if the International Tennis Federation, which owns and promotes the Davis Cup, is throwing out the baby with the bathwater.Here are some FAQs for those who aren't sure
[ad_1] LONDON -- Roger Federer finally found a way to put Novak Djokovic away, beating his rival 6-4, 6-3 on Thursday to reach the semifinals of the ATP Finals.It was Federer's first win over Djokovic since 2015, having lost their past five meetings -- including an epic five-set Wimbledon final in July when the Serb saved two match points.This was their first match since then, but it had little of
[ad_1] LONDON -- It is about half an hour by public transportation from London's O2, the venue for this week's ATP Finals, to Sloane Square in trendy central London. For many years, Andy Murray would have been at the O2 in mid-November, battling it out in the season-ending event, a title he won in 2016. On Tuesday, though, he was in the latter, launching a new range of clothing with
[ad_1] Less than 24 hours before Novak Djokovic strolled onto the floor of London's 02 Arena on Sunday morning to resume his quest to regain the top ranking at the ATP Finals, an Italian youngster established himself as a player who might soon follow in the Serbian star's outsized footprints.Jannik Sinner, a lean 6-foot-2 18-year-old from a ski town deep in the Italian Dolomites, flew over every mogul in his
[ad_1] LONDON -- Defending champion Alexander Zverev pulled off another big win at the ATP Finals, beating top-ranked Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-4 Monday for his first career victory against him.Nadal had a 5-0 record against Zverev but had an uncharacteristically mistake-filled performance at The O2 arena.In his first match since pulling out of the Paris Masters semifinals with an abdominal injury just nine days ago, Nadal dropped his serve three
[ad_1] LONDON -- If Novak Djokovic wins the ATP Finals for the sixth time next weekend, he will equal a record held by Roger Federer. Depending on the performances of Rafael Nadal over the coming eight days, it could also secure the year-end world No. 1 ranking for the sixth time, which would equal the record held by Pete Sampras.When he won Wimbledon in the summer to claim his 16th
[ad_1] LONDON -- In the 10 years that London has staged the season-ending ATP Finals -- the event for the year's eight top players -- Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer have been about as dominant as it's possible to imagine.Although Russian Nikolay Davydenko won the title in its first year in the English capital, at least one of Djokovic and Federer has made the final in all but one of
