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WIMBLEDON, England — Novak Djokovic knows that, as things stand now, Wimbledon will be his last Grand Slam tournament of 2022, because he will not be able to play in the U.S. Open — he has not received any COVID-19 shots and can’t enter the United States as an unvaccinated foreigner. “That,” the 35-year-old from Serbia said Saturday at the All England Club, “is an extra motivation to do well here.” Djokovic began this season tied with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer at 20 major championships, then the record for a man. But Djokovic’s decision not to get vaccinated led...

In a breathless puff piece, Variety celebrated tennis star Venus Williams' new crusade for “equal pay” with male tennis players. But her sudden concern for equal pay seems to clash with events even she was involved in. Williams claims she realized she would not be paid the same as men when she was 16. “Getting there and realizing, ‘Wow, I’m not being paid equally,’ was just definitely a slap in the face to a 16-year-old. … It hit me hard.” But both Venus and her sister Serena have already been involved in a game that shows the disparity between the...

Tennis great Boris Becker was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison on Friday for illicitly transferring large amounts of money and hiding assets after he was declared bankrupt. The three-time Wimbledon champion was convicted earlier this month on four charges under the Insolvency Act and had faced a maximum sentence of seven years in prison. Judge Deborah Taylor announced the sentence after hearing arguments from both the prosecutor and Becker’s attorney. She told the former top-ranked player that he’s shown no remorse.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic holds the winners trophy as he poses for photographers after he defeated Italy's Matteo Berrettini in the men's singles final on day thirteen of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Sunday, July 11, 2021. Novak Djokovic will be allowed to defend his title at Wimbledon, despite not being vaccinated against COVID-19, because the shots are not required to enter Britain, All England Club chief executive Sally Bolton said Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic will be allowed to defend his Wimbledon title despite being unvaccinated against COVID-19. The All England Lawn Tennis...

Concerns over the prospect of Russian tennis player Daniil Medvedev winning Wimbledon - one of sport's most iconic tournaments - with members of the Royal family in attendance on Centre Court was one of the key reasons that the nation's players were banned from competing. Wimbledon announced on Wednesday that they have banned all players from Russia and Belarus from this summer's Championships in light of the ongoing atrocities in Ukraine. Medvedev, the World No 2 and reigning US Open champion, was among the favourites to win Wimbledon this summer. But organisers will have been mindful of the genuine possibility...

Following a trial at Southwark Crown Court, Boris Franz Becker was convicted of four counts against the Insolvency Act 1986. He will appear for sentencing on 29 April 2022 During proceedings, the court heard that Boris Becker was made bankrupt on 21 June 2017 in the High Court following a petition from Arbuthnot Latham & Co, a private bank. Boris Becker was legally obliged to disclose all of his assets so that his trustee could distribute available funds to his creditors. The former tennis player, however, failed to disclose, concealed and removed significant assets from the Official Receiver and his...

Kouame says insults were being hurled at him during the match A top-seeded junior French tennis player apologized for slapping an opponent after losing a tournament match. Michael Kouame was the No. 1 seed going into the International Tennis Federation’s junior tournament in Ghana. After losing to Raphael Nii Ankrah on Tuesday, the 15-year-old was seen coming to the net for what was supposed to be a gesture of good sportsmanship but instead slapped Nii Ankrah. A brawl reportedly broke out after the slap. Kouame on Wednesday posted an apology on his Instagram page.

Buried Bombshell: Tennis World Rocked as FIFTEEN “Fully Vaccinated” Players Unable to Finish Miami Open Tennis fans are upset and the sporting world is reeling after an unprecedented number of players either withdrew or retired from the Miami Open this week. A total of 15 players were unable to finish, including the male and female favorites to win. The tennis world reacted with shock after favorites Paula Badosa and Jannik Sinner had to retire during the quarterfinals of the Miami Open. Badosa, soon to be the number three in the world, became unwell during her match against Jessica Pegula and...

MIAMI The tennis world reacted with shock after favorites Paula Badosa and Jannik Sinner had to retire during the quarterfinals of the Miami Open. Badosa, soon to be the number three in the world, became unwell during her match against Jessica Pegula and left the court in tears. Badosa, who was comforted by her American opponent, decided to stop after consultation with her physiotherapist. Pegula reached the semifinals of the Miami tennis tournament for the first time in her career after Badosa’s resignation, reported Yahoo Sports. In the men’s tournament, the Italian phenomenon Jannik Sinner was forced to withdraw. He...

“It’s like a needle all the time inside. I get dizzy because it’s painful.” Full story and photos here… 'It's like a needle all the time inside... I get dizzy because it's painful: Rafael Nadal reveals he had a BREATHING problem in his Indian Wells final defeat by Taylor Fritz, who ended the Spaniard's 20-match win streak https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/tennis/article-10634731/Taylor-Fritz-upsets-Rafael-Nadal-win-ATP-Masters-1000-title-Indian-Wells.html Nadal after losing in straight sets..💣🔥"I have problem to breathe. I don't know if it's something on the rib, I don't know yet. When I'm breathing, when I'm moving it's like a needle all the time inside here," If this one blows,...

Tennis player Novak Djokovic announced Wednesday he will not be competing in the Indian Wells Open or Miami Open, citing his unvaccinated status in face of rules by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on requiring vaccines for noncitizens to enter the United States.“While I was automatically listed in the [Indian Wells Open] and [Miami Open] draw I knew it would be unlikely I’d be able to travel,” he wrote. “The CDC has confirmed that regulations won’t be changing so I won’t be able to play in the US. Good luck to those playing in these great tournaments.”In...

Russian tennis player Andrey Rublev wrote "No War Please" on a TV camera moments after advancing to the final at the Dubai Championships on Friday. The seventh-ranked Rublev had just beaten Poland's Hubert Hurkacz 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) in their semifinal match before writing his message on the camera -- as is common after matches. Russian troops bore down on Ukraine's capital Friday in an invasion of a democratic country that has fueled fears of wider war in Europe and triggered worldwide efforts to make Russia stop.

Australian tennis player Alex de Minaur has denied wrongdoing after being linked to a Spanish police investigation of people suspected of paying for false COVID-19 vaccination certificates. De Minaur says he has “a completely valid, accurate and true vaccination record.”

Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai has denied she ever accused anyone of sexual assault, adding that she herself had deleted her social media post in November that had appeared to make such a claim. The well-being of Peng, a three-time Olympian, became a matter of global concern when she appeared to allege on social media that a former Chinese vice premier, Zhang Gaoli, had sexually assaulted her in the past. In an interview with French newspaper L'Equipe at a hotel in Beijing, Peng denied she had made such allegations.

Rafael Nadal broke a three-way tie with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic by claiming his 21st Grand Slam title Sunday, coming back to beat Daniil Medvedev, 2-6, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5, in the 2022 Australian Open men's singles final. Nadal rallied from two sets down -- just the third comeback from 0-2 at a major for Nadal in his career -- to win the marathon five-setter. Nadal, 35, along with Federer and Djokovic make up the generation-defining Big Three that has dominated the professional circuit for well over a decade now. With Nadal's 2022 Australian Open championship, the second...

Rafael Nadal is a truly great tennis player but the once great sporting nation of Australia has abandoned it's own proud history of sportsmanship to persecute Nadal's rival Djokovic for insisting on his rights to medical privacy and personal control of what substances are injected into his own body. I rate the chances pretty low of Cheif Commissioner Shane Patton doing anything to bring Novak's vicious criminal persecutors to justice. But I have started the formal process by demanding an investigation and one young police officer took the first step toward doing that. Patton should support her. And when and...

Andrew Beatty @AndrewBeatty #BREAKING @AFP (Melbourne) The Australian Open is reversing its ban on 'Where is Peng Shuai' tee shirts, tournament chief Craig Tiley tells @AFP

Officials back down after being charged of “kowtowing to China” to please sponsors.. Forty Eight hours after demanding that spectators at the Australian Open remove clothing and hand over signs protesting China’s Communist government, officials have reversed course and said that the garments will be allowed, with a caveat. As we reported yesterday, the shirts and banner read “Where is Peng Shuai?”, referring to the previous disappearance of the Chinese tennis star who had accused a high ranking CCP official of sexually assaulting her. After not being seen for weeks, Shuai reappeared looking worse for wear and immediately retracted the...

With the huge increases in Omicron cases in Australia, let’s have a look at the measures taken by the Australian Open organizers to address transmission, both for athletes and spectators. This brief analysis concludes that, unless quiete a few athletes are already immune thanks to a previous disease, like for example Nadal is, it may be hard for the event to be realistically held, as most players will likely get Omicron during the 2 weeks of the event – from January 17 to January 30.A quick look at the website of the Australian Open shows that the authorities rely solely...

Alexander Zverev: "I think few players have covid. We are not getting tested." CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE BRIEF INTERVIEW It was all a show to embarrass Novak Djokovic