SPORTS
November 10, 2013 | Wire reports
Defending champion Novak Djokovic set up an enticing final against Rafael Nadal with a 6-3, 6-3 victory Sunday over Stanislas Wawrinka at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. Nadal ended Roger Federer's hopes of finishing a disappointing season on a high note, defeating the six-time champion, 7-5, 6-3, in the other semifinal. Unbeaten in his round-robin matches this week, the second-seeded Djokovic extended his winning streak to 21 matches since losing in the U.S. Open final to Nadal.
SPORTS
November 8, 2013 | Staff and wire reports
Rafael Nadal kept his Spanish compatriot, David Ferrer , out of the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals on Friday by holding off Tomas Berdych , 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, to finish the round-robin portion of the competition at London undefeated and top Group A. Nadal won despite having clinched his own place in the semifinals Thursday. Stanislas Wawrinka beat Ferrer, 6-7 (3), 6-4, 6-1, but needed Nadal to win to advance. Defending champion Novak Djokovic , who topped Group B, is already in the semifinals.
SPORTS
September 7, 2013 | By Diane Pucin
NEW YORK -- Top-seeded Novak Djokovic, who had beaten ninth-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka all but two times in 14 matches, seemed on the way to a massive upset in the U.S. Open semifinals Saturday on Arthur Ashe Stadium before coming back from two sets down to beat his 28-year-old Swiss opponent, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Wawrinka had never beaten a No. 1-ranked player in his career. The 26-year-old Serb is aiming for his seventh Grand Slam title and second of the year after winning the Australian Open.
SPORTS
September 5, 2013 | By Diane Pucin
NEW YORK - Andy Murray found out. Defending a Grand Slam championship is not easy. From the start of the U.S. Open, Murray never seemed at his best. He needed four sets to eliminate undistinguished Denis Istomin of Uzbekistan in the fourth round, and afterward a soft-spoken Murray had little to say about his win. Thursday, ninth-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka reached his first major semifinal with a thorough beating of the third-seeded and defending champion Murray, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2, on Arthur Ashe Stadium court.
SPORTS
September 3, 2013 | By Diane Pucin
NEW YORK - It took Serena Williams 19 minutes to win the first set of her U.S. Open quarterfinal match against 18th-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro on the Spaniard's 25th birthday. The second set wasn't much better for Suarez Navarro, who received an occasional gifted point but not too many as Williams moved into the semifinals with a 6-0, 6-0 win in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday night. The match lasted 52 minutes. In a semifinal scheduled for Friday, Williams will face fifth-seeded Li Na, who became the first Chinese player to make the Open semifinals.
SPORTS
May 12, 2013 | Wire reports
Serena Williams kept the No. 1, and added No. 50. Williams beat Maria Sharapova , 6-1, 6-4 in the final of the Madrid Open Sunday to retain her No. 1 ranking and collect her 50th career title. And Rafael Nadal eased by Stanislas Wawrinka , 6-2, 6-4, for his fifth title since returning from a knee injury. The second-ranked Sharapova would have overtaken the top ranking with a win, but Williams stormed out to an early lead as Sharapova struggled with her serve. Despite Sharapova briefly recovering her poise in the second set, Williams' form never dipped as she eased to the title.