LONDON — Dominic Thiem mastered the tiebreakers again to get the better of Rafael Nadal, and defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas also won Tuesday on Day 3 of the ATP Finals.
Thiem beat the 20-time Grand Slam champion in straight sets and secured his spot in the semifinals when Tsitsipas outlasted tournament newcomer Andrey Rublev in the evening match at an empty O2 Arena.
Thiem clinched a 7-6 (7), 7-6 (4) win on his fifth match point in his first meeting with Nadal since the Australian Open quarterfinals in January, when the Austrian player prevailed after winning three tiebreakers in a tight four-set match.
“If I want to look for mistakes or for things I didn’t do right, I think I wouldn’t find many,” Thiem said.
The U.S. Open champion opened group play in the season-ending event with a three-set victory over Tsitsipas on Sunday and qualified for the semifinals when Tsitsipas won 6-1, 4-6, 7-6 (6), handing Rublev his second defeat.
On Wednesday, top-ranked Novak Djokovic will play Daniil Medvedev — both players won their opening matches — and Alexander Zverev faces Diego Schwartzman, with both in search of their first victories.
Nadal, who beat Rublev in straight sets in their opener, missed a chance to qualify with a match to spare and next will play Tsitsipas on Thursday with a semifinal place at stake. Nadal has never won the ATP Finals, one of few gaps on his resume.
Nadal credited Thiem but described the match as “very equal.”
“Both of us played at a very high level. He deserved to win because he played a little bit better at some key moments,” Nadal said.
“I am much more confident now with the level of tennis that I am playing than a couple of days ago.”
Thiem, who described his performance as one of the best of his career, won the first set after coming from 5-2 down in the tiebreaker, saving two set points in the process.
There was high-quality shot-making throughout the match, but not least when Thiem produced two inside-out forehand winners in a three-point span to close the tiebreaker — the first on set point for Nadal — and then to clinch the set.
“It was a great match from the first to the last point,” Thiem said, “but actually I was pretty lucky to get that first set.”
After both players had their service broken in the second set, Nadal saved three match points when serving at 5-4 and 40-0 down. He won five straight points in that game, with one including a lob from a ’tweener that Thiem just managed to get back before Nadal powered a backhand down the line.
Thiem won three straight points to move 6-3 ahead in the tiebreaker. Nadal saved another match point but sent a tired backhand just wide to lose the match.
On the day Austria went back into lockdown amid a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, one of the country’s greatest sports stars was happy to put on a show for his compatriots.
“I hope people enjoyed the match back home,” Thiem said, “and forgot a little bit for a few hours the tough times we are living through right now.”
Tsitsipas cruised early on against his Russian opponent, requiring just 19 minutes to win the first set. But Rublev found his serve and it was a slugfest thereafter. The match clocked in at just under 1 hour, 56 minutes.
In the third set tiebreaker, the 22-year-old Greek player saved match point when Rublev double-faulted for 6-6. Rublev then returned a deep shot into the net, and Tsitsipas pumped his right fist in celebration.
“Even though it was a win, I still feel like there’s plenty to improve and get better at,” Tsitsipas said.
The ATP Finals move to Turin, Italy, next year, after 12 years in London.
The tournament is using electronic line calling for the first time. Players can’t challenge whether a ball was in or out, but they can request a video review for other disputed situations, such as double bounces.
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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
