World No.18 Maria Sakkari advanced to her second major semifinal of the season and first in New York, defeating No.4 Karolina Pliskova, 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of the US Open. The 26-year-old is the first Greek woman to reach the US Open singles semifinals. She will face Britain’s Emma Raducanu on Thursday for a spot in her first major final.
“I want to dedicate this win to Greece because we struggled a lot last month with some fire damages,” Sakkari said. “So for me winning for Greece, making Greek people proud and happy, especially in difficult times, it makes me even more happy because you know how much I love my country.”
Sakkari’s win over Pliskova is her third straight win over a Top 10 seed, after defeating No.6 seed Bianca Andreescu in a record-setting Round of 16 win and No.10 seed Petra Kvitova in the Round of 16. She is now an impressive 4-0 vs Top 5 opponents in 2021; she previously defeated Naomi Osaka and Sofia Kenin twice.
Having spent 3 hours and 30 minutes to hold off Andreescu in the latest finish of a US Open women’s singles match, the big question coming into Wednesday night’s quarterfinal was how well Sakkari could physically recover.
Sakkari answered the question quickly, with a remarkable serving display that never gave the Czech a chance of a foothold in the match. Sakkari broke Pliskova just once in each set, but never faced a break point in the match as she served her way to a dominant straight-sets win. Sakkari’s run through New York continues to build on her career-best season, which includes a Roland Garros semifinal and Miami Open semifinal.
Stat of the Match: Sakkari lost just two points on her first serve for the entire match (23 of 25). In total, Sakkari lost just eight points on serve for the match, while breaking Pliskova early in each set to keep Pliskova at bay. During one stretch through the first set and early games of the second, Sakkari won 22 consecutive service points.
Sakkari finished the match with 22 winners to just 12 unforced errors. Pliskova, who struggled to find her forehand rhythm over the night, hit 14 winners to 20 unforced errors.
Turning Point: Despite Sakkari’s domination on serve, Pliskova earned one late chance to turn the match around. With Sakkari serving for the match at 6-4, 5-4, Pliskova saved two points from 40-15 to get to deuce for the first time of the night. But with an opportunity to break open a protracted rally with her forehand, Pliskova netted a forehand down the line to give Sakkari a third match point.
This time, Sakkari closed out her dominant win, booking her spot in the semifinals after 81 minutes.
Sakkari on her second Slam semifinal: “After reaching my first Grand Slam semifinal at the French, I felt like I can do it again. It was not luck because I beat all these good players.
“Now I think I had one of the toughest draws, to be deadly honest. I think Sloane had a tougher draw than me. But Kostyuk, Siniakova, Kvitova, Andreescu, Pliskova, all these players are players I don’t want to play in the first rounds. Going deep, you won’t have it easy. I had to play really well to be here. That gives me a lot of confidence because I beat some very, very good players to reach the semifinals this time. I’m actually feeling really well. I don’t want to jinx it.
“My tennis looks in a great place right now. Mentally I’m pretty calm. I don’t want to get too excited for this win today because I have to play tomorrow. If I had a day off, it would be different.”
Next up: Sakkari will face British teenager Raducanu, who has yet to drop a set en route to being the first qualifier in the Open Era to make a US Open women’s semifinal.
“She’s a new player on tour so I don’t know much about her,” Sakkari said. “Obviously she’s having the tournament of her life. She deserves to be here. She has won all these matches.
“But I wouldn’t call myself the favorite. I think we all have equal chances of winning the semifinals and then winning the title. I would give 25% to each starting tomorrow, then 50 to the two finalists. We are all for a reason here. We’re all playing well. It was not like we had five walkovers. I’m excited to play a second semifinal this year.”
Vancouver Canucks winger Dakota Joshua is set to make his season debut Thursday after missing time for cancer treatment.
Head coach Rick Tocchet says Joshua will slot into the lineup Thursday when Vancouver (8-3-3) hosts the New York Islanders.
The 28-year-old from Dearborn, Mich., was diagnosed with testicular cancer this summer and underwent surgery in early September.
He spoke earlier this month about his recovery, saying it had been “very hard to go through” and that he was thankful for support from his friends, family, teammates and fans.
“That was a scary time but I am very thankful and just happy to be in this position still and be able to go out there and play,,” Joshua said following Thursday’s morning skate.
The cancer diagnosis followed a career season where Joshua contributed 18 goals and 14 assists across 63 regular-season games, then added four goals and four assists in the playoffs.
Now, he’s ready to focus on contributing again.
“I expect to be good, I don’t expect a grace period. I’ve been putting the work in so I expect to come out there and make an impact as soon as possible,” he said.
“I don’t know if it’s going to be perfect right from the get-go, but it’s about putting your best foot forward and working your way to a point of perfection.”
The six-foot-three, 206-pound Joshua signed a four-year, US$13-million contract extension at the end of June.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 14, 2024.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
