Tuesday, July 19, 2016

TENNIS TUESDAY: Vika Pregnant, Davis Cup Semis Set, Rio Withdrawals, Sharapova Appeal Postponed


DAVIS CUP SEMIFINALS SET: CROATIA V FRANCE, GREAT BRITAIN V ARGENTINA
The United States started their quarterfinal David Cup tie with a surprising comeback win by Jack Sock over 2014 U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic and led 2-0 after the first day after John Isner bludgeoned Borna Coric with his big serve. Unfortunately, it was all down hill from there. The Bryan Brothers were unable to beat the doubles team of Cilic and Ivan Dodig, so then on the final day either Isner had to beat Cilic, or Sock had to beat Coric, and neither happened. France defeated Davis Cup stalwarts Czech Republic 3-1 when Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated young gun Jiri Vesely. Defending Davis Cup champions Great Britain defeated Serbia without either Andy Murray or Novak Djokovic playing for their respective countries. Argentina outlasted Italy as the South American country made it to the semifinals for the 11th time but still has never won the Cup. The semifinals will be played the week after the US Open.

AZARENKA ANNOUNCES PREGNANCY, EXTENDED ABSENCE FROM WTA TOUR
2-time major champion (and current World #6) Victoria Azarenka announced via Twitter last Friday that she found out after Roland Garros that she is pregnant and that she intends to have the baby and then resume her tennis career afterwards. Interestingly, Kim Clijsters returned to tennis after having a kid and came back a much more mature player, and ended up winning three major titles as a parent (and had only 1 major win before getting pregnant).

ZIKA EMPTIES THE FIELD IN RIO: RAONIC, HALEP, BERDYCH ARE OUT
2016 Wimbledon finalist Milos Raonic joins the long list of highly ranked tennis players who will skip the 2016 Olympics in Rio due to fears of the Zika virus. In addition to Raonic,  fellow elite players Tomas Berdych and Simona Halep have also announced that they will not be making the trip down to Brazil for the prestigious sporting event. Previously, Nick Kyrgios, Bernard Tomic and John Isner have also said they are skipping the Olympics.

SHARAPOVA APPEAL OF TWO-YEAR DOPING BAN POSTPONED TO SEPTEMBER
The decision on Maria Sharapova's appeal of her two-year ban for her use of the banned substance of meldonium has been postponed to September 19th, which means the 5-time major champion will miss two huge events: the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2016 U.S. Open.

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