2019 Australian Open: Dominic Thiem outlasts Alexander Zverev to make final

Tireless Dominic Thiem came from a set down to outlast German Alexander Zverev and make his first Australian Open final Friday, booking a showdown with seven-time champion Novak Djokovic.

The 26-year-old fifth seed, the first player from Austria ever to reach the Melbourne decider, battled past seventh-ranked Zverev 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4) on a sweltering evening.

Defending champion Djokovic awaits him after the second seed ended Roger Federer's dreams in straight sets Thursday to make his eighth Melbourne Park final.

Thiem has his work cut out against the Serb who is on a 12-match unbeaten streak this season and has won all seven of the Australian Open deciders he has contested.

And if Djokovic needs extra motivation, winning on Sunday will see him reclaim the world number one ranking after Rafael Nadal crashed to Thiem in the last eight.

"It was an unreal match, two tie-breakers, so tough and so close. It was almost impossible to break him," said Thiem.

"Being in the Australian Open final is unreal. What a start to the season for me."

Thiem had dealt with semi-final pressure before, although always on the slower red clay at Roland Garros, where he reached the past two finals only to be beaten by Nadal.

That experience paid dividends as he coolly closed out the match after 3hrs 42 mins to give himself another chance to break the stranglehold of the Big Three and win his first Grand Slam.

"I was playing four hours 10 against Rafa (in the quarter-finals), who is the most intense guy on tour, almost always so intense and long," Thiem said.

"So it was not easy to recover. But once all the adrenalin came, already when I walked into the full stadium was fine, actually, but still I had some troubles in the first set."

- Light failure -

A jittery Thiem was broken in the opening game, saving two break points before sending a backhand wide to immediately be on the back foot.

Both players were nervous and the German failed to consolidate, broken straight back.

Their momentum was interrupted when rain began falling and the roof needed closing, but it was only a brief intermission and Zverev resumed to hold for 2-2.

Thiem was still struggling with his first serve and a double fault handed the German a chance to go 4-3 in front and he grabbed it.

Zverev took command, putting 90 percent of his booming first serves in, and broke again to seal the set as the Austrian error-count mounted.

But the 22-year-old lost focus and two double faults in game three of the second set handed Thiem a 2-1 lead.

Zverev managed to break back but he was too erratic as Thiem broke again and clung on, firing an ace to take set two.

Bizarrely, play was halted for nine minutes one game into the third set when a light went out above the baseline and it bothered Zverev.

When they resumed, Thiem held serve and then broke with an epic backhand winner as Zverev again lost concentration and the momentum appeared to shift.

Thiem is one of the best returners in the game and was getting almost every ball back. He looked to be on his way, but Zverev refused to surrender and broke again to even it up.

It went to a tiebreak where Thiem turned on the style to take a stranglehold on the match.

There was little between them in the crucial fourth set as they traded blows. It went to serve and another tie-breaker when Thiem's experience helped him over the line.

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Tennis: Thiem rallies to subdue Tsitsipas in Beijing final

Austrian top seed Dominic Thiem overcame a sluggish start and clawed his way back from a set and a break down to beat Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas 3-6 6-4 6-1 in the final of the China Open in Beijing on Sunday.

The win secured Thiem's fourth title of the year after triumphs at Indian Wells, Barcelona and Austria.

Thiem, who was forced to dig deep and come back from a set down in the semi-final against Karen Khachanov, broke Tsitsipas five times while dropping serve three times to lift his first ever title in Asia.

"Honestly I think this was one of the best matches I've played so far in my whole career," Thiem said. "I know it's hard for you, Stefanos. You played amazing and I really hope that we have a lot more finals in the biggest tournaments.

"Last year we had a great rivalry going on and I hope it continues with many more finals to come."

This was the first time the pair had competed in a final after playing each other five times in 2018. Thiem now leads Tsitsipas 4-2 in head-to-head meetings.

The top seed dropped serve twice in the opening set to give Tsitsipas the advantage while the Greek fired four of his seven aces to take the lead.

Tsitsipas, 21, was clearly the more fired up player, taking out his frustration on his racket after losing a point in the first set. However, Thiem recovered in the second set, saving three of four break points while converting two himself.

In the deciding set, it was Thiem who dominated, breaking twice to take a 5-0 lead.

Tsitsipas won a game back but only delayed the inevitable as Thiem wrapped up the match for his 15th ATP singles title. 

(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru Editing by Toby Davis)

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Tennis: Fabulous Fabbiano stuns Thiem in US Open first round

Dominic Thiem’s latest bid for Grand Slam glory came to an abrupt end at the U.S. Open on Tuesday when he fell to unseeded Thomas Fabbiano 6-4 3-6 6-3 6-2 in a shock first-round exit, the biggest upset of the men's competition so far.

The fourth-seeded Austrian’s blistering serve yielded 14 aces but it was not enough to overcome the 30-year-old Fabbiano, whose fearsome forehand helped him save nine out of the 10 break points he faced.

The 25-year-old Thiem did himself no favours, committing 48 unforced errors during the match at Arthur Ashe Stadium, 28 more than his Italian opponent.

“I beat a top-10 guy in Wimbledon and another one here,” said Fabbiano, who upset world number eight Stefanos Tsitsipas in their first-round meeting at the All England Club in July.

“I’m starting to like to play these big matches and my game is coming better and better.”

Thiem said he was fatigued after the second set and that he was "far away from 100%.

"Congratulations to (Fabbiano) and I'm happy for him. But it was not the real me there on the court," Thiem said. "But I don't know how much his performance is worth because (it) was not against the real me."

For Thiem, who toppled Roger Federer earlier this year in the final at Indian Wells, the loss marks the latest frustration in his bid to claim a Grand Slam title.

Thiem was beaten by the King of Clay, Rafa Nadal in the 2018 and 2019 French Open finals, as well as in their quarter-final match at last year's U.S. Open.

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Tennis: Nadal beats Thiem to win record-stretching 12th French Open title

PARIS -- Spain's Rafael Nadal beat Austrian Dominic Thiem, 6-3 5-7 6-1 6-1, to claim a record-extending 12th French Open men's singles title on Sunday.

The second seed, who has now won 18 majors, also becomes the first player to win the same Grand Slam title 12 times. 

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Tennis: Adrenaline-fuelled Thiem ready for Rafa

PARIS - Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem says he will be fuelled by adrenaline when he takes on Rafael Nadal in Sunday's French Open final in what will be his fourth successive day on court.

The 25-year-old battled Novak Djokovic over two weather-ravaged days on Friday and Saturday to set up a repeat of last year's final which he lost in straight sets.

He also played on Thursday while Spaniard Nadal played only on Tuesday and Friday and was able to put his feet up while Thiem slugged his way past Djokovic.

Despite getting the rough side of the schedule, however, Thiem says fatigue will not be a factor as he attempts to claim his first Grand Slam title.

"I feel good. Luckily I didn't have so many long matches before today," Thiem, who trails Nadal 8-4 on head-to-head record but beat him, on clay, in Barcelona this year, told reporters after his 6-2 3-6 7-5 5-7 7-5 win over Djokovic.

"Today and yesterday, of course, was tough. It's probably a little bit more difficult to play these four hours with all the interruption than if you played in one time.

"But still, I'm feeling fine. I'm full of adrenaline, of course, still from today's match, and also I will have that tomorrow. So I'm not going to be tired."

Thiem said he would "leave everything he has out on court" to try and stop 11-times French Open champion Nadal, but added a dose of realism as he looked ahead to probably the toughest task there has even been in tennis.

Asked why he can join Robin Soderling and Djokovic as the only men to get the better of Nadal at Roland Garros since the Spaniard won his first title in 2005, Thiem said: "I don't know yet, because I never beat him here on this court.

"But still, I had some very good matches in the past against him on clay, and I also beat him on clay already.

"It's important that I go into the match with the belief. Of course it's big dream for me to win that match tomorrow, to win this title.

"But I also have in my head that if it's not happening tomorrow, which can happen easy because of the opponent on the other side of the net, I don't put too much pressure on myself."

The Austrian, nicknamed back home the Thieminator, is bidding to become Austria's first Grand Slam champion since Thomas Muster at the French Open in 1995.

Thiem's coach Nicolas Massu said his man will be flying after beating world number one Djokovic.

"It was an amazing match, amazing feeling," Massu said. "I think that tomorrow he's looking forward to showing his best.

"So it's a beautiful challenge for him as a player and for me as a coach. The most important thing is for him to recover physically and to play the way he wants with the cards he has in hands.

(Reporting by Martyn Herman, editing by Ed Osmond)

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Tennis: Thiem rides out difficult start to ease to Barcelona Open victory

BARCELONA -- World number five Dominic Thiem captured his second title of the year after thrashing Russian Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-0 in the Barcelona Open final on Sunday.

The Austrian had been beaten by Rafael Nadal in his previous appearance in the Barcelona final in 2017 but after knocking out the 11-times French Open champion in the semi-finals, Thiem easily dispatched the 23-year-old Medvedev.

Thiem made a slow start as he trailed 3-0 but he then got into a groove as he produced a number of scorching winners, including a sublime drop shot, to win four successive games and go 4-3 up.

Medvedev struggled to respond and called on the physio to get some treatment on his shoulder but that intervention failed to get him going and Thiem easily served out for the set.

Thiem faced little resistance in the second, using his drop shots to devastating effect to wipe out seventh seed Medvedev.

The Austrian third seed, who triumphed at Indian Wells last month, sealed victory with a simple volley.

"It's such an honour to win this tournament, looking at all the names who have won it I'm very happy and proud that my name is also there now," Thiem, who prevented Nadal from his bid to win a record-extending 12th title in Barcelona, told reporters.

"I had some trouble in the beginning and going 0-3 down. I had some troubles at the beginning with the slice then it got better and that's the only thing you can do against him and I'm happy that I made it work." 

(Reporting by Richard Martin, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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Tennis: Thiem stuns Nadal to reach Barcelona final

BARCELONA - Dominic Thiem knocked favorite and 11-times champion Rafael Nadal out of the Barcelona Open with a stunning 6-4 6-4 victory in Saturday's semi-final, avenging his defeat by the Spaniard in last year's French Open final.

The Austrian will meet 23-year-old Daniil Medvedev in Sunday's final after the Russian also pulled off a surprise by edging out fourth seed Kei Nishikori 6-4 3-6 7-5 in a tight match.

Thiem had lost his last two matches against world number two Nadal, at Roland Garros as well as a thrilling five-setter in the U.S. Open quarter-finals, but he won their last meeting on Spanish soil, beating the Mallorcan in last year's Madrid Open.

The Austrian, ranked fifth in the world, broke Nadal to take a 3-2 lead in the opener and held in the next game thanks to a stunning crosscourt forehand winner before seeing out the set.

He broke Nadal again and was serving for the match but Nadal dug deep to earn three break points only to lose each one, Thiem levelling the game with an ace after a marginal call from the umpire.

He sealed his fourth career victory over Nadal in 12 matches with a softly-struck backhand, ending the Spaniard's chances of a fourth consecutive Barcelona Open title.

"I'm always super proud if I beat him because he's the best player ever on this surface, and it's always very special to beat him here on clay," Thiem told reporters.

"We always had great matches in the past, and also today was very good and I was more lucky today and I got the win."

Nadal, long regarded as the king of clay, has struggled for form on the surface of late, losing in the semi-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters and having a poor tournament in Barcelona.

He dropped a set for the first time in four years at the event in his opening match against Leonardo Mayer and conceded he has been far from his best.

"COMPLICATED WEEK"

"This has been a complicated week for me, especially at the start. Today I enjoyed playing tennis again, I lost against a top rival and I was competitive until the end," Nadal said.

"What I needed to do was play more games like this to have a chance of victory. It has been a good base for what is to come. There are some victories which hurt you and others which can help you and this is one of those."

Twice Barcelona champion Nishikori beat Medvedev in the final of the Brisbane International in January but the Russian took an early advantage by breaking the world number seven in the seventh game.

Medvedev comfortably saw out the set but was pegged back by the Japanese, who won five games in a row to take the second set and make an ideal start to the decider.

Medvedev, ranked 14th, soon broke back to level the match and as both players consistently held their serve a tiebreak looked inevitable.

But Medvedev earned the first match point with a down-the-line winner and needed only one opportunity, clinching an entertaining match that lasted two hours and 25 minutes when Nishikori found the net with a forehand.

Sunday's final will be Medvedev's third of 2019 but his first final on clay. 

(Reporting by Richard Martin; editing by Clare Fallon, Ed Osmond and Christian Radnedge)

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Tennis: Nadal claims record-extending 11th French Open title

PARIS --  Rafael Nadal was at his awe-inspiring best as he crushed Austrian Dominic Thiem to snatch a record-extending 11th French Open title with a 6-4 6-3 6-2 victory on Sunday.

The Spanish world No. 1 took his Roland Garros win-loss record to 86-2 as he captured his 17th Grand Slam title by demolishing the seventh seed, who was hoping to become the second Austrian to win at Roland Garros.

In 11 finals in Paris, Nadal has only lost six sets as he matched the all-time record of most singles titles won at the same Grand Slam event set by Margaret Court at the Australian Open during the 1960s and '70s.

Sunday's result marks the sixth consecutive Grand Slam won by either Nadal or 20-times major champion Roger Federer.

The muscular Spaniard had won all 10 of his previous Roland Garros finals and although Thiem was the only man to have beaten him on clay over the past two seasons, the Austrian never threatened the claycourt master on Sunday.

Nadal called on the trainer to get his forearms massaged twice in the final set but even that problem failed to improve Thiem's chances of emulating fellow Austrian Thomas Muster's 1995 triumph.

Nadal got off to a dream start, pocketing the first six points of the match as he broke Thiem in the second game to open up a 2-0 lead.

Thiem broke back immediately as he continued to go for his shots, and he saw off a break point to hold for 2-2.

FRUSTRATED THIEM

Nadal, however, turned the screw in the 10th game and Thiem seemed to grow nervous, sending a forehand long to hand his opponent the opening set.

The signs were already ominous for Thiem at that stage because in 112 best-of-five-set matches, Nadal had never lost after taking the first set.

The top seed went 2-0 ahead in the second set as he wore Thiem down in lung-burning rallies, leaving the Austrian screaming in frustration.

Thiem found some life and threatened with a break point in the seventh game, but Nadal broke his pace with a drop shot and finished it off with a passing shot, holding for 5-2.

He bagged the second set when Thiem sent a backhand long.

Thiem was still on the back foot in the third set, being forced to save four break points in the first game. He dropped serve in the third and Nadal held for 3-1 after taking a time out because of a sore hand.

He then had his forearm massaged at the changeover before resuming his demolition job. Nadal had another massage at 5-2 and he ended Thiem's ordeal on his fifth match point when the Austrian returned long.

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Zverev crushes Thiem to win Madrid title

MADRID - Germany's Alexander Zverev looked every bit a serious French Open title contender as he crushed claycourt specialist Dominic Thiem 6-4 6-4 in the Madrid Open final on Sunday.

Oddly the 21-year-old world number three is yet to progress past the last 16 of a grand slam but he now has three Masters 1000 titles to his name and against Thiem played with a swagger that suggests that his record in the majors will improve soon.

The second seed broke a nervy-looking Thiem in the opening game thanks to a double-fault and was never really challenged as he produced a clinical serving display in which he did not even offer up a break point.

Zverev, who did not face a break point all tournament, broke again right at the start of the second but squandered the chance of a double-break two games later as Thiem, conqueror of Rafael Nadal in the last eight, hung on.

There was no chance of a let-up from Zverev though and he remained focussed throughout, winning on his first match point when his Austrian opponent returned long.

Zverev becomes only the fifth active player to win at least three Masters 1000 titles -- joining the 'big four' of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

He will roll on to try to defend his Rome title next week having won nine matches in a row on clay, dropping only one set in the process during title runs in Munich and Madrid.

"Hopefully I can continue this kind of streak in Rome," Zverev told reporters.

"Winning two titles in two weeks is great. Winning a Masters, another Masters, is unbelievable. But before the French Open, there's still Rome where I'm the defending champion...

"Obviously I didn't get broken one time (in Madrid)," he added. "But I don't think I faced breakpoints in the whole tournament. For me, this is an amazing stat to know in the back of my mind."

(Reporting by Martyn Herman Editing by Toby Davis)

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Ailing Del Potro escapes brink to beat Thiem

NEW YORK - An ailing Juan Martin Del Potro came back from the brink of defeat to beat Austrian sixth seed Dominic Thiem 1-6 2-6 6-1 7-6(1) 6-4 and reach the last eight of the U.S. Open on Monday.

Del Potro, the 2009 champion who will next face Roger Federer, saved two match points in the fourth set of what was arguably the best of the tournament so far.

"Oh my God, I don't know (I won). What can I say after a battle like this. I was sick the last two days and I just tried to improve game after game," 24th seed Del Potro, who took a pill near the end of the opening set, said on court.

"I fought like this because of you guys, so thank you very much," he added in reference to the noisy Argentine fans who had turned the Grandstand Arena into a raucous soccer-stadium like atmosphere.

"The crowd was on his side. But it was a great atmosphere," said Thiem. "I mean, we're not playing every day in an atmosphere like this."

Del Potro struggled early on, spraying the court with unforced errors and the Argentine called the doctor twice.

At 5-0, he took a tablet. He won one game and had two break points at 5-1 but Thiem, who was looking to book his spot in the last eight here for the first time, coolly closed out the set.

He raced to a 4-0 lead in the second as Del Potro looked completely out of sorts.

The 'Dominator' was in full control, dictating the play with deep forehands, and he sealed the set with a cracking backhand winner down the line.

The question was then whether Del Potro would retire.

But the Argentine found his range with his impressive wristy forehand. His opponent could not keep up the pace and Del Potro easily pulled one back.

The real fight started in the fourth set.

Del Potro broke for 2-1 but Thiem played tighter and broke immediately back. A delightful backhand winner earned him another break for 4-2 and the Austrian served for the set at 5-3.

He led 30-0 but lost his focus and scooped a forehand long to allow Del Potro back in the contest.

Thiem had two match points at 6-5 but Del Potro saved them with consecutive aces -- one of them at 204 kph.

In the resulting tiebreak, Thiem suffered a meltdown and Del Potro levelled with a gravity-defying crosscourt forehand winner.

The decider was tightly contested but Del Potro eventually had the last word. On the second match point, he challenged Thiem's second serve and was spot on as the ball was out, meaning the wiry Argentine got to fight another day.

(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)

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Wimbledon takes time to chill before the fizz of Manic Monday

LONDON - The All England Club was strangely silent on Sunday as Wimbledon took a pause for breath before the most intense day of the tournament - Manic Monday.

While it seems odd for one of the world's biggest sports events to take a day off in the middle of competition, there is a good rationale for the schedule and a reward for the restraint.

Just as a fine bottle of wine benefits from being given time to breathe, the Wimbledon vintage is just that little more special after a day off.

On Monday every player, men and women, remaining in the tournament, takes to the court to fight for a place in the quarter-finals.

It's the business end of the tournament and instead of the early stages messily merging into the last 16 match-ups, the tournament presses the re-set button and the pause amplifies the sense of drama to come.

   
"It's unlike other grand slams. Wimbledon is very unique because it's not played on middle Sunday. So Monday is a big day for all the players, both men and women," said Novak Djokovic who takes on France's Adrian Mannarino.

"It is even more so for the tournament and fans. It's one of the days where you can get probably the most quality matches, both singles and doubles, men and women, that you can have throughout the entire tournament," said the Serb, a three-times Wimbledon winner.

Eleventh seed Tomas Berdych, beaten finalist in 2010, has an intriguing match against Austria's rising star Dominic Thiem on Court Three and the Czech believes fans with tickets for Monday have chosen wisely.

"I would say it's the best day of tennis that you can see," says Berdych.

"I think if anybody asked me for a day that they want to go to the tennis, I would say the second Monday of the Wimbledon, because you see men's, women's, you see last 16.

"So you see a lot of matches so you can also go to the ground courts and you're still going to see a great match up. I think it's the best day in tennis," he said.

Indeed, away from big stadium courts, fans can see title contenders such as French Open winner Jelena Ostapenko taking on fourth-seed Elina Svitolina on Court 12.

Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov has prime billing on Centre Court against seven-times Wimbledon champion Roger Federer and while he is relishing that prospect he savoured the silence of Sunday.

"Everything is so calm. It's just us, the players. All you can hear is the hitting of the ball. You can just hear how the ball sits on the strings. You just hear that.

"Honestly, it's a pretty special feeling. It puts a huge smile on my face."

(Editing by Ed Osmond)

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Tennis: Nine is fine for Nadal? Really?

PARIS - Rafa Nadal was not fooling anyone when, after thrashing elegant Austrian Dominic Thiem in the French Open semi-finals on Friday, he said nine French Open titles was enough.

The record books might not interest the 31-year-old Mallorcan, but he will have to be dragged away screaming and kicking before giving up the chance to move into double figures and land La Decima against Stan Wawrinka on Sunday.

Nadal, often written off as a spent force since winning the last of his 14 grand slam titles here three years ago, is secretly salivating at the prospect of ruling Roland Garros again after watching Wawrinka and then Novak Djokovic usurp him.

Victory on Sunday would see Nadal become the first player to win the same grand slam 10 times in the modern era.

After dropping only 29 games en route to a 10th final, only a brave man would bet against him.

"I think I don't need to make more history, no? It's enough. Nine are more than good," Nadal, whose resurgence this year began when he reached the Australian Open final against Roger Federer, losing an epic, told reporters.

"Nine or 10, it's only 10 percent more! It's true 10 is a beautiful number, but actually my favourite is nine. But for sure if it becomes 10, it will be my favourite.

"In general, to be in the final again here is probably the most important event in my career."

Nadal's 6-3 6-4 6-0 defeat of Thiem means he will be playing his 22nd grand slam final on Sunday, putting himself second on the all-time list behind Federer who is out on his own with 28.

Yet he describes himself as "not very special" -- another statement that was never going to wash, coming from the greatest claycourt tennis player of all time.

"Nine is probably difficult," he said. "It is obvious that you need to combine a lot of things, and a lot of things have to come together to have that record. You need to be lucky, you need to play well, you need to be healthy for two weeks."

"I am not the right one to say, but to play 10 finals here is something difficult."

Sunday's final will be Nadal's first grand slam clash with the Wawrinka since the Swiss beat him to win his first major at the 2014 Australian Open -- a match in which Nadal struggled with physical problems.

Asked if it was a chance to right a wrong, Nadal said: "Revenge is not part of my vocab. The best player will win again. He's in the final. It's the toughest opponent possible." (Reporting by Martyn Herman, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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Djokovic back on song to set up Zverev final in Rome

Novak Djokovic made a timely return to his brilliant best after a traumatic year on Saturday and talked of rediscovering his lost "joy" for tennis as he thrashed Dominic Thiem to set up an Italian Open final meeting with young German Alexander Zverev.

Djokovic, who has suffered a fall from grace over the last year while wrestling with injuries and a lack of confidence, looked his old dominant self as he hammered the Austrian 6-1 6-0 in the second semi-final in virtuoso fashion.

Earlier in Rome, Zverev won a battle of the giants to down unseeded American John Isner 6-4 6-7(5) 6-1, making the tall 20-year-old the youngest ATP Masters 1000 finalist since a 19-year-old Djokovic in Miami in 2007.

Djokovic said that his mini masterpiece, carved out in just 59 minutes against Thiem who had ended Rafael Nadal's 17-match winning streak so thrillingly on Friday, was "by far" his best performance of a difficult year.

The quick workout against Thiem was just what Djokovic needed as it was his second match of the day, having completed a 6-1 6-4 win over Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro in a rain-delayed quarter-final carried over from Friday.

"Best by far, obviously," Djokovic said when asked on Sky Sports whether the win over world number seven Thiem, which saw him spray 14 winners and give up a mere six unforced errors, was his best in 2017.

"The closest I got to this level was the final against Andy (Murray) in Doha in the first week of the season (which Djokovic won). Otherwise, I've been struggling to find the right level and be consistent."

Earlier this month, the Serb had parted company with his entire coaching team in a bid to regain the form that had made him an untouchable world number one a year ago.

AMAZING FEELINGS

The move, which he described as "shock therapy", appears to have already paid dividends as Djokovic, who lost his top ranking to Murray at the end of 2016, produced a devastating display against one of the game's new luminaries.

"This game brought back some amazing feelings and memories on the court so I'm really glad," said Djokovic, who feels he is running into form at the perfect time with the start of his defence of the French Open just over a week away.

"Yes, I was looking for that," he said, when asked if everything was falling into place again.

"I was looking to have a nice balance between the right intensity and the fire and feeling satisfied and happy, calm again on the court and finding the joy of playing because, to be honest, I lost that in the last seven, eight months.

"There was fire but perhaps too much fire. Now I feel I'm on the right track and things are progressing well," he added, looking forward to his first final since Doha.

Another of the young guns, Zverev, had looked like wrapping up his match with Isner in straight sets after romping through the opener in under half an hour, but the defiant American took the second set down to a tiebreak.

The German was 5-0 down in the tiebreak but battled back before Isner took the match to a third set with a forehand winner.

Isner, the first American to reach the semi-finals in Rome since Andy Roddick in 2008, had a chance to break with Zverev leading 3-1 in the final set but the German snuffed out the challenge.

Earlier, Djokovic had finished an emphatic job against Del Potro. The match had been halted by rain and lightning on Friday with the Serbian leading 6-1 1-2.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin and Ian Chadband; Editing by Ken Ferris and Pritha Sarkar)

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Nadal eases to 10th Barcelona Open title

BARCELONA - Rafael Nadal won a record-extending 10th Barcelona Open title on Sunday by thrashing Dominic Thiem of Austria 6-4 6-1, collecting his second claycourt title in a row.

Nadal, who won the Monte Carlo Masters for a 10th time last week, romped to the title without dropping a set on the newly renamed Rafa Nadal court at the Real Tennis Club in Barcelona, and needed just 90 minutes to finish off Thiem.

Thiem had beaten the 14-times Grand Slam champion on clay in the Argentina Open last year and earned a place in the final by beating world number one Andy Murray for the first time in his career on Saturday, but he proved no match for Nadal.

The Mallorcan took a while to impose himself on Thiem on an overcast day in Barcelona with the cold weather slowing down the court.

Thiem earned the first breakpoint of the match but Nadal recovered and eventually took the first set by breaking his opponent in the 10th game.

There was no let-up in the second set from Nadal, who broke the 23-year-old Austrian twice in a row before serving for the championship and wrapping up his 51st tournament win on clay.

"I'm especially happy for these 10 victories in two tournaments that are as special to me as Monte Carlo and Barcelona, especially here as it's my club, and for the support of these incredible fans," Nadal told Spanish network TVE.

"It's a dream start to the claycourt season."

Thiem paid tribute to his opponent after Nadal's 71st tournament win in his career.

"First of all congrats to Rafa, 10 titles here and in Monte Carlo, it's unbelievable," he said.

"I really enjoyed the week in Barcelona. There are worse things than to lose against the greatest player on clay ever. I enjoyed it even though I lost and I really hope I can come back in the next years."

(Editing by Clare Fallon)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Federer out, Serena beats effects of dog's dinner

ROME - Roger Federer said 'time was ticking' in his battle to recover form and fitness for the French Open after he lost to rising Austrian Dominic Thiem 7-6(2) 6-4 in the third round of the Italian Open on Thursday.

Defending champion Novak Djokovic had an unexpected stumble at the start of his match, losing the first set to Thomaz Bellucci to love, before recovering to beat the Brazilian 0-6 6-3 6-2.

Women's top seed Serena Williams won through to the quarter-finals despite falling ill after tasting her pet dog's dinner in her Rome hotel.

Her Yorkshire terrier Chip had been served a salmon and rice dish and Williams told followers on social media she had been tempted by the look of it, saying: "I ate a spoonful. Don't judge me."

The food tasted "a little bit like a house-cleaner thing," Williams said in a video posted on Snapchat, adding that she had made an urgent trip to the bathroom a few hours later.

"I don't think it's consumable for humans. They should have wrote that," added Williams, who showed no lingering ill effects in beating fellow American Christina McHale 7-6(7) 6-1.

Former world number one Federer still looks way short of his best after knee and back injuries and struggled to get to grips with the 22-year-old Thiem at the Foro Italico, a week after withdrawing from the Madrid Open.

Thiem, ranked 15th, recovered from an early break and streaked into a 6-2 lead in the tiebreak before taking the opening set with a backhand winner.

He broke the 34-year-old Federer's serve again midway through the second set as he claimed the 32nd victory of a breakthrough season that saw him rise to a career-high 13th.

Seventeen-times major champion Federer, who has missed 10 weeks of the season following knee surgery, shrugged off the defeat, saying his immediate priority was the French Open that begins on May 22.

"This is like, 'who cares about the results here?'. It matters what comes now in the next couple of months," Federer told a news conference.

"Now obviously time starts ticking more towards Paris. Clearly the way I'm playing right now is never going to be enough for a good run in Paris... I'm still confident I will be fine somehow."

Federer, a four-times finalist in Rome, missed last week's Madrid Open with a back problem but said there had been some encouraging signs this week.

"For the first time maybe I could play a match really playing freely, trying out a few things," he added.

World number one Djokovic was on the wrong end of a love set for only the ninth time in his career, picking up just eight points.

From there, though, he moved to a smooth victory over the 37th-ranked Belluci and a quarter-final meeting with Rafael Nadal, who defeated Australian Nick Kyrgios 6-7(3) 6-2 6-4.

World number three Andy Murray came back from a break down in the second set to defeat Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-0 6-4 and set up a meeting with David Goffin, who thrashed Tomas Berdych 6-0 6-0.

Women's third seed Garbine Muguruza of Spain reached the quarter-finals by beating Latvian Jelena Ostapenko 6-1 6-4. (Writing by Martyn Herman and Clare Fallon; Editing by Pritha Sarkar)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com