No. 1 Djokovic makes quick work of Rublev at ATP Finals
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic needed just 69 minutes to defeat Andrey Rublev on Wednesday and cruise into the semifinals of the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.
Djokovic defeated the Russian Rublev 6-3, 6-2 to win the Green Group. Djokovic won 88 percent of his first serves in the deciding set.
“I knew that I had to be on my toes and start well,” said Djokovic. “It was quite a nervous start from both of us until 4-3, then with new balls I somehow managed to find the right shots at the right time. I made him play, crucially on the break point at 4-3, when I managed to strike a good passing shot.
Djokovic, through to his 10th semifinal match at the ATP Finals, will play alternate Cameron Norrie on Friday, albeit a meaningless match. Norrie cannot advance after Wednesday’s loss.
Norway’s Casper Ruud rallied to dispatch Norrie 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Norrie replaced Stefanos Tsitsipas, who was forced to withdraw Wednesday with an elbow injury.
Ruud posted 10 aces and 32 winners against Norrie, winning in one hour, 51 minutes. He will play a win-and-in match against Rublev on Friday.
Today, first alternate Jannik Sinner faces Daniil Medvedev with a spot in the semis on the line. Medvedev, winner of the Red Group, has already qualified for the semis. Sinner replaced countryman Matteo Berrettini, who injured his oblique and had to withdraw. Alexander Zverev plays Hubert
Hurkacz of Poland in today’s other match.
College men’s basketball
STANFORD TOPS VALPARAISO >> Brandon Angel led with 13 points and Noah Taitz added 11 to lead the Cardinal to a 74-60 victory at home over Valparaiso. Stanford (3-1) plays at Baylor on Saturday at 10 a.m. Angel was 3 for 4 from 3-point range while Taitz was 3 for 5.
Golf KORDA, KO TAKE THEIR RACE TO FINAL EVENT OF LPGA TOUR >>
Nelly Korda won tournaments nearly nine months apart, with a major and an Olympic gold medal in between. Jin Young Ko did her damage late, winning four times in the last two months.
Each has four victories going into the CME Group Tour Championship, the season finale on the LPGA Tour with more than just $1.5 million at stake.
They are separated by a mere 10 points in the race for LPGA player of the year, with Korda taking the lead with her playoff victory last week. Both have a chance to finish the year with a sub-69 scoring average, a feat accomplished only once on the LPGA Tour, nearly 20 years ago by Annika Sorenstam.
They play together in the opening round today because of their 1-2 standing in the Race to CME Globe, along with No. 3 Lydia Ko.
Motorsports
EX-CHAMPION, DRIVING SCHOOL OWNER BONDURANT DIES >> Bob Bondurant, a former champion race car driver who opened a high-performance driving school in 1968 and taught numerous A-list actors for their movie roles, has died. He was 88.
According to his family and the Bondurant Racing School website, Bondurant died Friday in the Phoenix suburb of Paradise Valley.
He opened the school at Orange County International Raceway, then later moved it to Sonoma.
Among the celebrities Bondurant instructed in road course driving for their movie roles were Paul Newman, Tom Cruise, Clint Eastwood, James Garner and Nicolas Cage. MERCEDES SEEKS REVIEW OF VERSTAPPEN NON-PENALTY >> Mercedes will argue for a review of the decision not to penalize Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen at the Brazilian Grand Prix for an incident in which Lewis Hamilton was run off course as he attempted a pass for the lead.
The FIA said that Mercedes won the right to review the incident in which Verstappen appeared to force the seven-time champion off track. The stewards noted the incident at the time, but ruled it a racing incident and took no action against the Red Bull driver.
Hamilton made the racewinning pass 11 laps later to win at Interlagos on Sunday. It cut Verstappen’s lead in the standings to 14 points with three races remaining.
Even though Hamilton won, Mercedes believes Verstappen should have been penalized.
The hearing today ahead of the inaugural Qatar GP is to determine if Mercedes has met the criteria for a review. If the stewards find Verstappen should be penalized, he could receive a five-second time penalty applied to last Sunday’s race. He finished second ahead of Hamilton teammate Valtteri Bottas, and the time penalty would drop him to third. It would cut his lead from 14 points to 11.
Football
USFL MANAGEMENT TEAM TAKING SHAPE >> Fox Sports rules analyst Mike Pereira and game analyst Daryl Johnston will be part of the United States Football League’s senior management team when the league debuts next spring.
Pereira, who will be the head of officiating, was the NFL’s vice president of officiating for six seasons before retiring after the 2009 season. He has been with Fox Sports since 2010.
Johnston will serve as the executive vice president for football operations. This will be his third experience with a spring league after serving front office roles for two teams in the Alliance of American Football and XFL.