Thiem upsets Nadal at Australian Open

Outplayed at his own brand of physical tennis for much of the match, Rafael Nadal finally claimed a set to try to start a comeback against Dominic Thiem.

Nadal marked the moment by hopping in a crouch at the baseline and vigorously pumping his right arm four times.

Soon, though, he was back in trouble. And eventually, his bid to tie Roger Federer’s record of 20 Grand Slam titles by winning the Australian Open was over with a quarterfinal loss Wednesday to Thiem — a younger version of Nadal himself.

Thiem’s 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-6 (6) victory over the top-seeded Nadal lasted 4 hours, 10 minutes because of so many lengthy, electrifying points and put him in his fifth major semifinal.

It is his first somewhere other than at the French Open, the place that is Nadal’s domain.

Of more significance: The outcome ended Nadal’s career-best streak of making at least the semifinals at seven consecutive Grand Slam tournaments, a span during which he earned three trophies to narrow his gap with Federer...

Martina Navratilova has apologized after getting caught on a technicality in her on-court campaign to have a stadium renamed at the Australian Open.

The 18-time major winner didn’t step back from the key message, though. Navratilova has regularly objected to Margaret Court Arena being named to honor the Australian tennis great who has become a religious minister and made controversial comments about homosexuality and gay-marriage.

Navratilova and John McEnroe tried to take their push to have the stadium renamed Evonne Goolagong Arena, in honor of Australia’s seven-time Grand Slam titlist, to the people. Navratilova climbed up the umpire’s chair at the stadium on Tuesday and started to address spectators, but organizers cut off the live feed. Navratilova and McEnroe then unfurled a banner reading “Evonne Goolagong Arena” as they walked on the court.