Tennis
After 11 Attempts, Cilic in Wimbledon Final for 1st Time
It is tenacity of purpose in display. Marin Cilic of Croatia finally gets to the Wimbledon final match after having made efforts 10 times in the past. The seventh-seeded player advanced to his second major final by beating Sam Querrey 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-5 on Friday at the Centre Court.
He is now waiting for the outcome of the other semi final game between Roger Federer and Tomas Berdych to know who he will face in the Sunday’s final at the All England Club. According to AP reports, Cilic and Querrey, both 6-foot-6, used their powerful serves to dominate most of the match. Neither even had a break point in the first set.
“Sam came out serving huge, hitting big,” Cilic said. Querrey took lead after a brief delay late in the opening tiebreaker. With the score 6-6, stewards entered the stands to attend to a woman who needed assistance. The break only lasted a couple of minutes, but Querrey won both points when play resumed, with Cilic missing a pair of backhands.
Cilic finally managed the first break of serve in the second set, and then went up another break in the third. But Querrey broke back to force another tiebreaker.
In the fourth set, it was Querrey who got an early break. But Cilic bounced back and then broke for the fourth time in the final game.
“After that (first tiebreaker), I was just a little bit better on the return games,” Cilic said. “I was making him (play more) on his service games.”
He finished with 25 aces and won 88 percent of the points on his first serve. Cilic also had 70 winners and only 21 unforced errors. Querrey had 46 winners and 26 unforced errors to go with 13 aces.
Cilic is now 5-0 against Querrey and 3-0 against the American at Wimbledon. Their last match at the All England Club, in 2012, went five sets and Cilic won 17-15 in the fifth.
Cilic is the second Croat player to reach the Wimbledon final. Goran Ivanisevic won the title in 2001.
Federer, in search of an eighth Wimbledon title, was to play Berdych next on Centre Court.
Federer is 18-6 against Berdych, but the 11th-seeded Czech beat Federer in the quarterfinals during his run to the Wimbledon final in 2010.
Five players from the United States are ranked in the Women’s Tennis Association’s top 15 for the first time in two decades, the USTA said on Monday.
World number two Coco Gauff led the American charge followed by sixth-ranked Jessica Pegula and Danielle Collins, who climbed two spots to ninth on the list amid a remarkable farewell season.
Madison Keys was ranked 14th while Emma Navarro hopped two spots to a career-high 15th after reaching her first major quarter-final at Wimbledon.
The last time five American women featured in the top 15 was May 24, 2004, when Lindsay Davenport was fourth in the world
-Reuters
Seven-times Grand Slam champion Venus Williams and Australian soccer player Mary Fowler are among nine athletes to get a Barbie doll in their likeness as toy maker Mattel seeks to shine a light on women sports role models ahead of the Paris Olympics.
Mattel unveiled the dolls on Wednesday, each with their bespoke accessories. Fowler’s wears gloves and holds a football while Williams’ doll, dressed in an all white tennis dress and visor as well as wearing earrings, comes with a miniature racket.
The former world number one said she hoped to motivate young girls into sports with the doll.
“I literally can’t imagine my life without sports and without the game,” Williams said in a video, in which she held the doll.
“I want other young girls to have that invaluable experience of playing a sport and what it teaches you and what you learn and what you take from it, not just that moment (but) for the rest of your life… I think it’s so important for girls to be in sports.”
Other sports figures to have a doll in their likeness include French boxer Estelle Mossely, Polish sprinter Ewa Swoboda, Spanish doctor and paratriathlon athlete Susana Rodriguez, Italian former swimmer Federica Pellegrini, Canadian soccer player Christine Sinclair as well as Mexican and Brazilian gymnasts, Alexa Moreno and Rebeca Andrade.
The dolls, unveiled as Barbie turns 65 this year, “(recognise) the impact of sport in fostering self-confidence and ambition among the next generation”, Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie and Mattel’s Global Head of Dolls, said.
“By shining a light on these inspirational athletes and their stories, we hope to champion the belief that every young girl deserves the opportunity to pursue her passions and turn her dreams into reality,” she said in a statement.
-Reuters
Tennis great Serena Williams will host the 2024 ESPYs in July, ESPN announced on Tuesday.
The 23-times Grand Slam champion, who retired after the 2022 U.S. Open and is widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, will take the stage July 11 at The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
“This is a dream come true for me, and something I’ve wanted to do for as long as I can remember,” Williams, 42, said in an ESPN news release.
“It has been a sensational year for sports and an unprecedented one for female athletes. I can’t wait to celebrate everyone on-stage in July.”
The ESPYs, which are co-produced by ESPN and Full Day Productions, commemorate the past year in sports by recognizing major athletic achievements, reliving unforgettable moments, and saluting the leading performers and performances.
-Reuters
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