Osaka wins in her Australian Open opener
The Australian Open started Monday in Melbourne without nine-time champion Novak Djokovic, and, finally, the focus was on forehands and backhands instead of his fight to avoid deportation because he isn’t vaccinated against COVID-19.
And the tournament got started in a big way, with a combined 64 matches scheduled on Day 1 in the men’s and women’s brackets.
Naomi Osaka started her title defense by winning the first five games on the way to a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Camila Osorio in the second match on the tournament’s main court.
Two of her goals for 2022, Osaka said last week, were to stay completely composed on the court and off, and to enjoy the game.
“It just feels really nice to start the year with this tournament,” the four-time major winner and two-time Australian Open champion said in a post-match, oncourt interview. “I thought I played really well given the circumstances.”
Fifth-seeded Maria Sakkari started the program on the main court at Melbourne Park with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) win over Tatjana Maria. In other early results on Day 1 of the first major tennis tournament of 2022, Tokyo Olympics gold medalist Belinda Bencic beat Kristina Mladenovic 6-4, 6-3 and 15th-seeded Elina Svitolina got past Fiona Ferro 6-1, 7-6 (4).
On the men’s side, No. 31 Carlos Alcaraz opened with a 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 win over Alejandro Tabilo. Later Monday, Rafael Nadal renewed his bid for a men’s-record 21st Grand Slam event singles championship with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 victory over former UCLA standout Marcos Giron.
ETC. Sprained MCL for Nets’ Durant
Kevin Durant has a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, sidelining the NBA’s leading scorer just as the Brooklyn Nets were poised to finally have a lengthy run with their Big Three.
Durant was injured Saturday in a victory over New Orleans when teammate Bruce Brown was knocked backward and fell into his knee. Durant had an MRI exam that confirmed the injury.
The Nets said Durant was expected to return to full strength after a period of rehabilitation but didn’t provide a timetable. Brooklyn starts a four-game trip Monday in Cleveland to begin a stretch in which it plays nine of 11 games on the road.
Devin Booker scored 30 points and JaVale McGee added 20 in their Michigan homecomings to help NBAleading Phoenix rout Detroit 135-108 . ... Karl-Anthony Towns had 26 points and 11 rebounds to lead host Minnesota to a 119-99 victory over worn-out Golden State, which played without Steph Curry (right hand injury) . ... Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 19 rebounds in his return to the lineup as visiting Utah beat Denver 125-102. Gobert missed the previous five games after testing positive for COVID-19.
The Kings put forward Adrian Kempe, who leads the team with 17 goals this season, into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols.
Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz has disbanded an alumni advisory committee that was created after a 2020 investigation found evidence of racial bias against Black players in his program and bullying behavior by some of his assistants.
The Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Gazette reported that Ferentz’s decision to end the committee came shortly after its leader, former offensive lineman David Porter, suggested it was time for Iowa to part ways with Ferentz. But Ferentz said he had decided to overhaul the committee in the fall before Porter made his comment to other committee members in a text message.
Former Alabama tight end Jahleel Billingsley announced that he’s transferring to Texas . ... Texas Tech kicker Jonathan Garibay is bypassing his final season of eligibility, opting to declare for the NFL draft.
Real Madrid secured the Spanish Super Cup soccer championship with a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in Saudi Arabia . ... In Douala, Cameroon, defending champion Algeria lost 1-0 to Equatorial Guinea in one of the biggestever upsets at the African Cup of Nations . ... In the English Premier League, second-place Liverpool beat visiting Brentford 3-0 . ... Rafa Benitez was fired as manager by Everton after 200 days in charge.
German sleds swept the medals in the women’s World Cup bobsled finale in St. Moritz, Switzerland, and Elana Meyers Taylor of the United States clinched the seasonlong points title . ... Madeleine Egle of Austria won a World Cup women’s luge race in Oberhof, Germany, for her fifth victory of the season . ... Soaring from 29th place after the first run, Lucas Braathen of Norway scored a stunning World Cup slalom win in Wengen, Switzerland.