The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| ‘Rusty’ Serena enjoys easy win over Minella Posted: 25 Jun 2013 08:24 AM PDT Five-times champion Serena Williams dismissed her first-round opponent in less than an hour on Tuesday, opening her Wimbledon title defence with a 6-1 6-3 thrashing of Luxembourg's Mandy Minella. The American world number one, who rattled through the first set on Centre Court in 19 minutes, stretched her unbeaten run to 32 matches. Williams, playing her first match since winning the French Open a fortnight ago, was given a brief fright at the start of the second set when she lost her serve to go 2-0 down, hitting a double fault on break point. The 16-times grand-slam winner, who admitted being "a little rusty" on grass, swiftly regained control, however, breaking in the next game when Minella, too, double faulted. Minella, ranked 92nd in the world and who has never won a WTA singles title, drew warm and sympathetic applause from the crowd whenever she managed to steal a point off Williams but could do little in the face of the American's power. The top seed blew one match point when she mis-hit a forehand high into the sky but wrapped up the win in 57 minutes at the second chance, when Minella put a forehand long. Minella, whose supporters in the crowd included her 86-year-old grandfather Carletto, swiftly gathered her belongings and walked off court, not waiting for Williams. The 31-year-old Williams, who will face France's Caroline Garcia in the second round, said the match was harder than expected. "I feel like I was a little rusty for some reason today," she told a news conference. "I don't feel like I played my best. I felt really upset when I lost my serve in the second set." Asked if anyone could seriously threaten her title defence, Williams said she guarded against thinking of herself as unbeatable. "I never feel invincible, I always feel that I have to be ready for each opponent in each game," she said. "I never become over-confident and I think when I do, or if I do, that's the moment that I'm most vulnerable." Williams was diplomatic when asked about a spat with world number three Maria Sharapova which has filled the tabloid newspapers after a remark she made which was interpreted as an attack on the Russian's relationship with Bulgarian player Grigor Dimitrov. Were she and Sharapova friends again, a reporter asked. "We're playing on opposite days, so we don't really see each other," the American said before moving on to more questions about on-court matters.- Reuters, June 25, 2013. |
| 50,000 turn out to back Madrid’s Olympic bid Posted: 25 Jun 2013 06:38 AM PDT Madrid's bid for the 2020 Olympic Games was given a resounding show of public support on Saturday night as 50,000 people took part in a range of sporting activities to highlight the city's desire to host the Games in eight years time. A final decision on whether it will be Madrid, Tokyo or Istanbul that wins the right to host the XXXII Olympiad will be made in Buenos Aires on September 7 and there is a growing belief that after failed bids for the previous two summer Games, the degree of public support could drive Madrid to success this time around. "We deserve the Games and it is a collective dream, not just in Madrid but in Spain in general that it becomes a reality," mayor Ana Botella said as she formally opened the event. In keeping with the bid for the games, a number of the city's landmarks were used for events with beach volleyball taking place in Retiro park, whilst crowds took part in aerobic and cardiovascular training sessions outside Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Table tennis, seven-a-side football, basketball and gymnastics activities were also held throughout the city. However, the main event was an eight kilometre run that coincided with the time when the winner of the bid will be announced in Buenos Aires, in which 30,000 people took part. And bid president Alejandro Blanco believes the event was a clear demonstration of the public support for the bid. "The opinion polls talk of more than 80 per cent of public support, but it is enough to take a look at the streets of Madrid to see that this city wants the Games. This is the best opinion poll you could have and these images will be seen around the world," he said. Indeed, 81 per cent of Madrid's citizens are said to be in favour of the bid despite Spain's ongoing economic crisis. The bid leaders have consistently stressed that the cost of hosting the Games will not come close to the nearly £9 billion (RM 44.3 billion) the London 2012 Games cost due to the majority of the sporting stadia and infrastructure already being in place. Moreover, there is the hope that the Games could even help stimulate the Spanish economy. Today, the bid process will take another step closer to its conclusion as the International Olympic Committee's Evaluation Committee will publish its reports on the visits it made to all three cities back in March.- AFP, June 24, 2013. |
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