Nadal rides Mexican wave, in quarters

Los Angeles, February 27

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal stepped up his bid for a third ATP Mexico Open title with an impressive display of serving and shotmaking to beat Serbian youngster Miomir Kecmanovic on Wednesday.

The Spaniard hit 20 winners as he kept his hopes alive of regaining the top ranking with a 6-2 7-5 victory over the 20-year-old Kecmanovic to reach the quarterfinals at the Acapulco hardcourt tournament.

“He’s a very dangerous player. Young, with a lot of power. I’m very pleased with the victory,” Nadal said. Next up for the Spaniard is South Korea’s Kwon Soon-woo, who reached his fourth quarterfinals of the month with a 7-6(7) 6-0 upset against eighth-seeded Dusan Lajovic.

Elsewhere in the last-16, world No. 7 Alexander Zverev was knocked out by 22-year-old US qualifier Tommy Paul 6-3 6-4. The second seed German failed to convert four break points and made 10 double faults as Paul claimed the first top-10 victory of his career.

Jabeur’s KO jab to Pliskova

Doha: Tunisian Ons Jabeur dumped world No. 3 Karolina Pliskova out of the WTA event in Doha to reach the quarterfinals. The Australian Open quarterfinalist came through a tight match against the Czech, winning 6-4 3-6 6-3 to set up a last-8 tie against Petra Kvitova today.

Meanwhile, Australia’s Barty will play Garbine Muguruza for a semifinal spot after the Australian Open runner-up saw off Ukrainian youngster Dayana Yastremska 6-2 6-4.

Swiss fourth seed Belinda Bencic cruised past Yulia Putintseva 6-4 6-3 and will face Svetlana Kuznetsova in the quarters after the Russian veteran was also the beneficiary of a walkover as American teenager Amanda Anisimova pulled out of the event.

Evans makes it count

Dubai: Britain’s Dan Evans upset sixth seed Andrey Rublev 6-2 7-6(11) today to reach the fourth ATP semifinals of his career with victory at the Dubai Championships.

“It was tough, I just hung in at the end and got through,” unseeded Evans said. — AFP

Djokovic is all praise for outgoing Sharapova

Paris: Novak Djokovic hailed Maria Sharapova as a “legend” with “the mind of a champion” after the Russian superstar announced her retirement from tennis at the age of 32. Five-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1 Sharapova called time on her career after losing a long-term battle with shoulder trouble having amassed a total of 36 WTA titles, spending 21 weeks on top of the rankings and with a personal fortune estimated at $300 million. “Her impact on the sport, not just women’s tennis, but tennis in general, was great. It still is great,” said world No. 1 Djokovic in Dubai where he made the quarterfinals on Wednesday.” “She’s a very smart girl, someone that I know very well for a long time. She has the mind of a champion, someone that never gives up. She’s shown that especially in the last five years. AFP