World No 1 Osaka pulls out of Qatar Open with injury
TOKYO:WORLD No 1 Naomi Osaka has pulled out of next week’s Qatar Open with an unspecified back injury, tournament organisers said on Tuesday.
Osaka, who was set to play for the first time since her Australian Open triumph, has had back problems in the past as well.
“I am sorry to have withdrawn from Doha as I was looking forward to playing and seeing my fans there,” the 21-yearold said in a statement.
Simona Halep, the Romanian who Osaka replaced as world No 1, Karolina Pliskova and Angelique Kerber head the field in Doha event which will start from February 11.
MONFILS MAKES IMPRESSIVE START
SOFIA: Former world No 6 Gael Monfils made a fine start to his Sofia Open title bid by beating Serbia’s Viktor Troicki 6-3, 6-4 in the first round at the Armeets Arena Centre Court on Tuesday. The Frenchman, who has slipped to 33 in the world rankings after a series of injuries, offered fans plenty of jaw-dropping moments with his trademark acrobatics and baseline winners.
The charismatic 32-year-old, watched by Ukrainian girlfriend Elina Svitolina — seventh in the women’s rankings — eased through the first set after breaking Troicki in the fourth game.
Big-serving Daniel Brands stunned Georgian fifth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili 7-6(7), 7-5 while fellow German qualifier Yannick Maden beat Adrian Mannarino of France 6-4, 7-6(4).
BERDYCH ENJOYS WINNING RETURN
MONTPELLIER: Former champion Tomas Berdych made a winning return to the Open Sud de France on Tuesday with a 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 victory over German qualifier Matthias Bachinger.
Berdych, who won the hardcourt title in 2012, saved seven of the 11 break points he faced to win in 2 hours and 12 minutes.
The Czech player will next face eighth seed Benoit Paire, who defeated Evgeny Donskoy of Russia 7-5, 6-3. Berdych has won all three previous meetings against the French player.
Also on Tuesday, sixth seed Jeremy Chardy defeated Adrian Menendez-maceiras 6-1, 6-1 while Ernests Gulbis, Antoine Hoang and Filip Krajinovic also advanced.
KVITOVA TESTIFIES IN KNIFE ATTACK CASE
PRAGUE: Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova told a Czech court on Tuesday how she grabbed the blade of an attacker’s knife and forced it away from her neck during an attack at her home in December 2016.
Giving testimony in the trial of a 33-year-old man charged with her assault, Kvitova said she had felt no pain when the 10-inch blade cut into her hand.
To avoid direct confrontation with the suspect during the trial, Kvitova sat in a separate room at the Brno regional courthouse, giving a detailed account via microphone and camera of how the man entered her apartment.