''There was definitely a point where, in the beginning, I was like: There is no way these tournaments can even happen,'' Serena Williams said about playing amid a pandemic. Professional tennis returned recently from a hiatus of nearly six months caused by the coronavirus outbreak -- and it will be back on one of its biggest stages Monday, when Flushing Meadows begins hosting the first Grand Slam matches since the Australian Open ended in February.
Williams' 5-7 7-6(5) 6-1 loss in the round of 16 was a big blow to her preparations for next week's U.S. Open, where the 38-year-old is bidding for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title. It was a second exhausting three-setter in as many rounds for Williams, who squandered the opportunity to close out the contest on serve in the second set before her Greek opponent launched a comeback.
Nick Kyrgios was once fined for a "lack of best efforts" at the Shanghai Masters but the mercurial Australian is showing no signs of giving up on his crusade to have Novak Djokovic held accountable for the ill-fated Adria Tour.The 25-year-old has been taking pot shots at Djokovic and other tennis players who have breached social distancing guidelines since the exhibition event organised by the Serbian resulted in four players contracting COVID-19. Djokovic, who is preparing for the U.S. Open at the Western & Southern Open in New York, has complained of being subjected to a "witch hunt" over the Adria Tour and last week said he had no regrets over organising the event. Kyrgios said earlier this month that he would be skipping the U.S. Open, using his announcement to once again lambast the players he felt were being "selfish" by ignoring health protocols.