Australian Open 2014: Stanislas Wawrinka beats Nadal in final

Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka won his first Grand Slam title with victory over an injury-hit Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final.
Wawrinka withstood a fightback from the world number one, who was struggling with a back problem, to come through 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-3.
The 28-year-old becomes only the second Swiss man to win a Grand Slam singles title after 17-time champion Roger Federer.

 

Fortunes fluctuated wildly over the course of two hours and 21 minutes as Wawrinka opened in scintillating form before a tearful Nadal appeared close to quitting at two sets down, only to stage a remarkable recovery in the third.

The Spaniard, 27, showed great spirit to hit back once again from a break down in the fourth, but a forehand winner gave Wawrinka the decisive break at 5-3 and he served out the biggest win of his life with a love game.
"The last thing that I wanted to do was retire. No, I hate to do that, especially in a final," said Nadal, who revealed he felt the back issue in the warm-up.
"It's not the moment to talk about that. It's the moment to congratulate Stan. He's playing unbelievable. He really deserved to win that title.
"I'm very happy for him. He's a great, great guy. He's a good friend of mine."
Wawrinka had never won a set, let alone a match, in 12 previous attempts against Nadal, and was making his Grand Slam final debut against a man in his 19th.
But Nadal's travails in the second half of the match should not overshadow what was a magnificent performance from Wawrinka for much of the contest.
He coped brilliantly with the Spaniard's fizzing forehand in the early stages, using his backhand to return the fire, and 12 winners almost helped him to a 5-1 lead.
Some nerves were finally revealed when he tried to close out a set against Nadal for the first time, failing to make a first serve as he fell 0-40 down, but the 2009 champion could not get a return in play as Wawrinka hit back to seal it with an ace.
Three sweeping forehands helped the Swiss break at the start of the second on a run of 12 straight points, and it was when serving at 2-0 down that Nadal first appeared to feel the problem with his back.
After leaving the court for treatment, to the annoyance of Wawrinka and boos from some sections of the crowd, Nadal returned unable to serve at anything like full speed, and at one stage was close to tears.

Another visit from the physio followed after game five, and when Wawrinka took the second set almost unopposed, the 13-time Grand Slam champion appeared close to calling it quits on a long walk back to his chair.

What followed was remarkable, with Nadal staging the unlikeliest of fightbacks - possibly as the pain killers kicked in - while Wawrinka completely lost his rhythm with victory apparently his for the taking.
The Swiss made 19 unforced errors and, despite still not moving freely, Nadal managed to increase his service speed just enough to keep the misfiring Wawrinka at bay and clinch the third set.
It now appeared to be a test of Wawrinka's nerve as much as Nadal's fitness, because the Spaniard was clearly not about about to give up, and he clung on magnificently.
Two break points were saved at the start of the fourth, and a break recovered at 4-2 down, but Wawrinka made the decisive move with a brilliant forehand into the corner to break for 5-3 and raced through the final game.
Looking a little shell-shocked at joining the elite club of major winners, Wawrinka becomes the first man outside the 'big four' of Nadal, Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray to win a Grand Slam since Juan Martin Del Potro at the 2009 US Open.

Australian Open 2014: Li Na vs Dominika Cibulkova

China's Li Na won her second Grand Slam title with victory over Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova at the Australian Open.

Li, seeded fourth, came through an edgy first set from both women to dominate the second and win 7-6 (7-3) 6-0.

It was the 31-year-old's third Australian Open final and brings her a second major title after the 2011 French Open.

Already a popular figure at Melbourne Park thanks to her previous success - and entertaining on-court interviews - Li was urged on by a large contingent of Chinese supporters on Rod Laver Arena.
"Finally I got her [the Australian Open trophy]," said Li. "The last two times [in 2011 and 2013] were very close.
"Now I have to thank my team. Thanks to my agent for making me rich, thanks a lot."
And speaking to her husband, who was courtside: "Thanks a lot, you are a nice guy. Also you are so lucky."
Seven years older, with a 4-0 head-to-head record and facing a player making her Grand Slam final debut, Li had been a strong favourite against 20th seed Cibulkova.
In the event, it was a difficult call as to who was the more nervous in the early stages of the match.
Cibulkova double-faulted twice to give up her serve in the opening game, but Li handed it back in similar fashion at 3-2 after a dreadful start that saw her make just two first serves in the first six games.

The pair had shared 30 unforced errors in that time, and it was a question of who could string together something approaching their normal game to take charge.

Cibulkova opened the door once again at 5-5 with a double fault but Li could not serve it out, struggling with her ball toss as a set point slipped by.
It was the Chinese player's aggressive start to the tie-break that eventually got her over the line, her backhand doing much of the damage as she moved into a 5-1 lead and sealed the set after a largely unconvincing 70 minutes.
With the tension lifted and now swinging more freely, Li found her range at the start of the second and swept a winner into the corner on her way to an immediate break.
The forehand that had been a liability at times in the first set was now a potent source of attack, and a barrage from that side took her to 5-0 within 20 minutes.
"Come on, Li, bagel her!" cried one voice from the crowd, keen for a love set, and she delivered.
A rasping backhand winner helped her to two match points and, when Cibulkova fired over the baseline on the second, Li raised her arms in delight at finally prevailing in a Melbourne final at the third attempt.

Roger Federer claims best tennis still ahead of him

Former world number one Roger Federer says his best tennis this year is still to come after losing his Australian Open semi-final to Rafael Nadal. 

The 32-year-old Swiss was beaten in straight sets by current number one Nadal in Melbourne on Friday.
Federer said: "This is a very good start to the season - I played some really good tennis.
"I still feel my best tennis is only ahead of me right now - hopefully by April I'm going to be 100% again."
Federer's defeat by Nadal was his 23rd in 33 encounters between the pair and he will drop to eighth in the world rankings when they are released on Monday.
He will also be overtaken by fellow Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka as the country's number one player - the first time he has not been Switzerland's top player since 2001.
Wawrinka, who reached his first Grand Slam final by defeating Tomas Berdych, will face Nadal on Sunday and Federer added: "I wish I could have won tonight and given an all-Swiss final. That's something I'll regret for a long time."
However, Federer is taking heart from his more attacking performance in Melbourne, where he beat Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, after a back injury hampered him for much of 2013 and led to him winning only one title - his lowest haul in a year since 2001.
"What I like to do is I like to take it to the guy, I like to be in command," he said. "That's what I was able to do now the last couple of weeks, so that's very encouraging.

"That's why I'm not too disappointed tonight because I feel it's been a good start.

"I've come from far back. I didn't have surgery like Murray had or like Rafa, being out seven months.
"But I played with something that has been going on for a while. This is a step in the right direction, and that's the way I want to go. I have a belief this could be a very good year for me again."
Federer complained to the umpire about Nadal's grunting during the match, but added afterwards that while he found it distracting at times, it had not affected the result.
"It is not distracting when he does it every point," he said. "But it goes in phases. One point he does and he doesn't. That's just what I was complaining about.
"It had no impact on the outcome of the match."
When Nadal was asked whether he knew he was putting Federer off with his grunting, the Spaniard said: "I really didn't know that.
"When I am playing, when I am hitting the ball during the point, the last thing that I am thinking is trying to bother the opponent.
"The only thing that I am focusing is try to hit my ball well. That's it."

Tennis and swimming among sports to have funding cut

Tennis is one of six sports to have funding cut for their governing bodies because of falling participation levels.

Sport England has also reduced budgets for swimming, basketball, table tennis, squash and fencing.
However, extra funding will be provided directly to programmes at grassroots level.
"There are tough messages here for national governing bodies," said Sport England chief executive Jennie Price.
"If they don't grow participation we will reduce their funding, and we won't make long-term investments until we have confidence in their ability to deliver."

The last tennis participation survey confirmed the number of 16-25-years-olds playing the sport had fallen, so Sport England has reduced funding for Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) programmes with this age group by 20% over the next year.

Instead, it intends to invest directly into a pilot project to boost park court usage, and has followed a similar route with the other sports affected by the cuts.
LTA chief operating officer Nick Humby said: "We know that we have more to do and that change takes time, but we have started to transform our approach to participation by building effective partnerships and we are determined to change the long-term trend."
Table tennis, which was among four sports to have their elite-level funding withdrawn by UK Sport  ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, will benefit from greater grassroots investment from Sport England.
Sara Sutcliffe, chief executive of the English Table Tennis Association, said: "The past six months have been a major - and necessary - journey for the sport of table tennis.

Australian Open 2014: Defending champion Victoria Azarenka loses

Two-time defending champion Victoria Azarenka is out of the Australian Open after she was beaten in a thrilling quarter-final by Agnieszka Radwanska.

The second seed had won her previous 12 sets against Radwanska but the Pole started superbly, racing into a 5-0 lead before taking the first set.
Azarenka responded to claim the second but the fifth seed hit top form again in the decider to win 6-1 5-7 6-0.
Dominika Cibulkova awaits in the semi-finals after she thrashed Simona Halep.

Andy Murray says it was "stupid" to think he could win Australian Open

Britain's Andy Murray said it would have been "stupid" to think he could win the Australian Open so soon after back surgery. 

The Wimbledon champion lost 6-3 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 to Roger Federer in the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park.
It was Murray's second tournament since he underwent surgery in September.
"I wasn't expecting to come in and win the event; that would have been completely stupid to think that," he told BBC Sport.

"It's a very tough thing to do playing against Roger at that level, and even if I'd won I would have had to play Rafa [Nadal] in a couple of days.

"I'm happy to be playing at a good level just now and, with a few more matches and a bit of training and working on a few things, I'll hopefully be back to my best at some stage this year."

Murray arrived in Melbourne having played just two competitive matches in 2014 following a lengthy recovery process.
"I've come a long way in four months," the Scot said. "Obviously right now I'm very disappointed.
"There's a few things I would have liked to have done differently if I was ever to have surgery again, possibly.

Andy Murray loses to Roger Federer in Australian Open

Four-time champion Roger Federer ended Andy Murray's Australian Open hopes with a dramatic win in the quarter-finals.

The Swiss, 32, won 6-3 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 in three hours and 20 minutes to set up a semi-final against world number one Rafael Nadal.
Federer had been on the verge of wrapping up a faultless three-set performance but failed to serve out the match, and then missed two match points in the tie-break.

Murray was fighting to stay alive in only his second tournament since back surgery, and saved six break points in a marathon 19-minute game early in the fourth set.

But the Scot was constantly playing catch-up and eventually he could no longer hang on, as Federer brought his man into the net at 4-3 and flipped a backhand past the 26-year-old for the decisive break.
"I was proud of the way I fought," said Murray.
"I changed my tactics a little bit, started playing a little bit more aggressive, and that was maybe my undoing a little bit at the end, because I really started going for my shots to get myself back into the match.
"Then when I got broken in that fourth set, I went for three balls. Maybe one or two of them weren't there to be hit."
Federer was relieved to come through to clinch an 11th consecutive Australian Open semi-final place.
"Andy played well and put the pressure on me so I'm happy to get the win," he said.
"I probably miss more break points than other guys but I kept my composure and kept the poker face and tonight it worked."
The first two sets saw Federer pick up where he had left off against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on Monday, serving magnificently and moving forward at every opportunity.
Playing with a larger, more powerful racquet this year, and under the guidance of six-time Grand Slam champion Stefan Edberg, his game was simply too strong for Murray.
By the time he closed out the second set, after only 80 minutes, he had been taken to deuce just once on serve.
Murray was unable to dominate from his home turf of the baseline and could not get his return game going when second serves came his way - and his evening looked as good as over when two errors saw him drop serve at 4-4 in the third.
Federer had not faced a break point all evening but, when the moment arrived to close out the match, the 17-time major winner looked more like the fragile player that had slipped down the rankings last year.