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sports Diahuebs 9 December 2021

7-time champion Serena Williams won’t play Australian Open

(AP) — Not long after pete in Melbourne “follow- comment on his vaccination
Serena Williams’ name ing advice from her medical status in recent months, al-
was absent from the en- team.” though he was included last
try list for the Australian week on the Serbian team for
Open, she confirmed the “While this is never an easy the ATP Cup which starts
obvious: the seven-time decision to make, I am not Jan. 1 in Sydney.
champion won’t play the where I need to be physically
2022 edition of the season- to compete,” Williams told The nine-time Australian
opening major in January. the website. “Melbourne is Open champion is tied with
one of my favorite cities to Roger Federer and Rafael
The 40-year-old Williams visit and I look forward to Nadal for the men’s record
hasn’t played since retiring playing at the AO every year. of 20 Grand Slam singles ti-
from her first-round match I will miss seeing the fans, tles. Nadal is also entered for
at Wimbledon with a right but am excited to return and the Australian Open, which
hamstring injury and her compete at my highest level.” starts Jan. 17, but Federer is
ranking has slipped to No. skipping the tournament as
41. She won the last of her Novak Djokovic was on the he continues his recovery
23 Grand Slam singles titles men’s entry list at No. 1 in a from surgery.
at the 2017 Australian Open, further indication that he’ll at the ATP Cup. O’Neil in 1978.
and was beaten in the semifi- be playing at Melbourne Park Daniil Medvedev, who ended
nals this year by Naomi Osa- beginning Jan. 17 despite Djokovic’s bid for a calendar- Ash Barty tops the women’s On Monday, Bianca An-
ka in straight sets. Australia’s strict regulations year Grand Slam with a vic- entry list and will contin- dreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open
requiring all players, officials tory in the U.S. Open final, ue her quest to end a long champion, said she will take a
The Australian Open’s web- and fans to be fully vaccinat- Alexander Zverev, Stefanos drought for Australian wom- mental break from tennis and
site Wednesday said the ed for COVID-19. Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev en at the tournament. No sit out the start of next sea-
seven-time women’s singles are listed above No. 6 Nadal, Australian woman has won son, including the Australian
champion would not com- Djokovic has declined to who is not playing for Spain the singles title since Chris Open.

Lakers handle Celtics 117-102, split rivalry for season

(AP) — Unlike most of his most storied rivalry. on their four-game West “I think at the beginning of
Los Angeles Lakers team- Coast trip. Jaylen Brown sat the year, Russ was a little bit TIP-INS
mates, Russell Westbrook Anthony Davis had 17 points out his third straight game passive,” Davis said. “He was Celtics: Bruno Fernando was
grew up a Lakers fan who and 16 rebounds for the Lak- with a strained right ham- trying to get guys involved, inactive after feeling lower
personally understood the ers, who produced one of string, and nobody else man- pass the ball. ... We told him, back spasms at their morn-
yearly importance of their their best recent performanc- aged more than Robert Wil- ‘The more you’re aggressive, ing shootaround. ... Jabari
rivalry series with the Bos- es in their fourth victory in liams III’s 13 points for Bos- the more it will open up for Parker stayed at the team ho-
ton Celtics. six games overall. With James ton. everyone else.’ The last seven tel with a non-COVID-19
and Westbrook playing domi- to 10 games, he’s been very, illness. ... Romeo Langford
Leading a dominant victory nant floor games, Los Ange- “I feel like our energy was very aggressive, and when played 16 minutes after miss-
over the Celtics while wear- les made 56.5% of its shots great, especially starting off he does that, it opens up the ing Boston’s last game with a
ing the Lakers’ gold jersey for in the first three quarters and the game,” Williams said. floor for everyone else as far sprained right ankle.
the first time clearly made for throttled Jayson Tatum’s sup- “We just weren’t ready for the as shooting. He’s just been in
a special night for the veteran porting cast defensively. punch in the second half, so attack mode. That’s why we Lakers: Carmelo Anthony
guard. we’ve got to clean it up. ... We brought him here, to be Rus- scored nine points. He was
“I just like the way we com- tend to lay back and get com- sell Westbrook and not any- questionable earlier in the day
“As a player like myself, you peted tonight on both sides fortable when the game is body else but that.” after he fell ill, but the desig-
want to make sure you ap- of the floor,” James said. “We going our way, and it’s some- nation was removed later in
proach all games the same had a lot of intensity, a lot of thing we need to break.” The Lakers have lost seven the day. ... Malik Monk had
while also understanding the ball movement. Guys were games this season in which a show-stopping breakaway
significance of this particular attacking the rim. I think The Lakers got a much-need- they held a double-digit lead, dunk among his 10 points.
game,” Westbrook said. “That defensively, besides the first ed comfortable victory in the but Boston never applied
makes it a good win for us.” 14-point avalanche on Ta- 296th edition of the matchup fourth-quarter pressure in SCHADENFREUDE?
tum’s part, we locked in from between venerable franchises this one. Dennis Schröder struggled
LeBron James scored 30 that point forward.” with a record 17 champion- for the Celtics, scoring 10
points, Westbrook added 24 ships apiece and a record 12 “We’re disappointed as far points on 1-for-6 shoot-
points and 11 assists, and the Tatum scored 14 of his 34 NBA Finals meetings. Bos- as we were outhustled, out- ing before sitting out in the
Lakers beat the Celtics 117- points in an incredible early ton and Los Angeles split toughed a little bit,” Boston fourth quarter. He was also
102 on Tuesday night in the first-quarter blitz for the their season series 1-1 for the coach Ime Udoka said. “It booed regularly in the first
latest chapter of the NBA’s Celtics, who dropped to 1-2 fifth straight campaign after hasn’t happened in a long half by Lakers fans still in-
the Celtics beat the Lakers time. They would put their sulted by the German guard’s
last month behind Tatum’s head down, get to the bas- handling of his free agency
37 points. ket and get whatever they after his sole season with Los
wanted. We’re better than Angeles.
Westbrook staked the Lak- that defensively, but a lack of
ers to a 19-point lead in the effort and a lack of toughness Schröder turned down an
third by scoring 15 points showed tonight.” $84 million, four-year con-
in the quarter with a series tract offer from the Lakers to
of dominant drives against Tatum scored Boston’s first test the market last summer,
whatever Boston guard had 14 points in the first 3:49, but he was forced to settle
the bad luck to be matched hitting four 3-pointers for a $5.9 million, one-year
up with him. After a tenta- among his five shots without deal with Boston after find-
tive start with his hometown a miss. James kept the Lakers ing nothing near the Lakers’
team, Westbrook is averaging close with 16 points in the offer. Los Angeles also lost
23.5 points, 8.9 assists and 6.9 first quarter, and his assist to out because it traded Danny
rebounds in the Lakers’ last Westbrook right before the Green and a first-round pick
eight games. buzzer put Los Angeles up to get Schröder, only to see
60-55 at halftime. him walk for nothing.