Page 15 - aruba-today-20201106
P. 15

A15
                                                                                                       sports Friday 6 November 2020
            Nadal reaches Paris Masters quarters, chasing elusive title




            By JEROME PUGMIRE                                                                                                   "Diego  is  playing  amazing
            AP Sports Writer                                                                                                    at  this  moment,"  Medve-
            PARIS  (AP)  —  Top-seeded                                                                                          dev said. "His results are un-
            Rafael  Nadal  stayed  on                                                                                           believable."
            course for an elusive first ti-                                                                                     Schwartzman would qualify
            tle at the Paris Masters after                                                                                      for  the  Nov.  15-22  tourna-
            beating  Jordan  Thompson                                                                                           ment in London if he beats
            6-1,  7-6  (3)  on  Thursday  to                                                                                    Medvedev.
            reach the quarterfinals.                                                                                            In other third-round match-
            Nadal has won 86 career ti-                                                                                         es,  2014  runner-up  Milos
            tles, including 35 in Masters                                                                                       Raonic  advanced  after
            events, but lost his only final                                                                                     beating American qualifier
            at  the  Bercy  Indoor  Arena                                                                                       Marcos Giron 7-6 (1), 6-2.
            in Paris 13 years ago.                                                                                              The 10th-seeded Canadian
            Thompson found his range                                                                                            had  15  aces  and  did  not
            in the second set, hitting a                                                                                        face a break point.
            couple of big winners down                                                                                          He  next  faces  unseeded
            the  line  and  forcing  a  set                                                                                     Frenchman  Ugo  Humbert,
            point with Nadal serving at                                                                                         who  defeated  former  U.S.
            6-5. After a decent second                                                                                          Open    champion     Marin
            serve, Nadal saved it after                                                                                         Cilic 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3 to con-
            a long rally.                                                                                                       tinue his strong form.
            "He  played  well,  so  I  give                                                                                     Humbert    knocked     out
            credit  to  him.  He  started   Spain's Rafael Nadal poses with the trophy of his one thousandth victory of the ATP at the end of   French   Open   semifinal-
            to  change  directions  very   his match against compatriot Feliciano Lopez during the second round of the Paris Masters tennis   ist  Stefanos  Tsitsipas  in  the
                                         tournament at the Bercy Arena in Paris, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2020.
            well  with  the  serve,  hit-                                                                      Associated Press  second round, and took his
            ting the right spots," Nadal                                                                                        second title of the year two
            said.  "Then  he's  super  fast  on  the  next  opportunity  this year playing the semifi-  before rallying to beat 16th-  weeks ago at the European
            from the baseline, returning  Nadal  pushed  his  oppo-   nals again in New York (at  seeded Alex de Minaur 5-7,  Open in Antwerp, Belgium.
            some very difficult balls."  nent  to  the  back  of  the  the  U.S.  Open)  and  quar-  6-2,  6-2.  The  strong-serving  Carreno Busta, who is chal-
            But  Thompson  threw  his  court and Thompson's fore-     terfinals  in  Roland  Garros,"  Russian  concluded  with  a  lenging  Schwartzman  for
            racket  onto  the  ground  hand sank into the net.        Nadal  said.  "He's  playing  13th  ace  and  next  plays  a  place  at  The  O2  arena
            in  frustration  after  losing  Nadal,  a  20-time  Grand  great."  Still,  Nadal  holds  a  No. 6 Diego Schwartzman,  in  London,  won  7-5,  6-2
            the  next  point  and  Nad-  Slam  champion  who  on  6-0  lead  in  their  meetings,  the French Open semifinal-   against  unseeded  Norbert
            al's  sharp  backhand  vol-  Wednesday  became  only  having  beaten  him  twice  ist who routed qualifier Ale-     Gombos.
            ley  at  the  net  took  it  into  the  fourth  man  to  reach  already this year.     jandro  Davidovich  Fokina  Later Thursday, No. 4 Alex-
            a  tiebreaker.  The  unseed-  1,000  match  wins,  next  Earlier,  third-seeded  Daniil  6-1, 6-1 to take a step clos-  ander  Zverev  played  Adri-
            ed  Australian  saved  one  faces  Spanish  countryman  Medvedev  overcame  a  er to reaching the season-           an  Mannarino  and  No.  12
            match  point  with  his  third  Pablo Carreno Busta.      first-set blip where he con-  ending  ATP  Finals  for  the  Stan Wawrinka faced No. 5
            ace  of  the  tiebreaker,  but  "He's  always  improving  ,,,  ceded  11  straight  points  first time.             Andrey Rublev.q
            Philipsen wins Stage 15, Roglic keeps Spanish Vuelta lead




                                                                      ters  (142  miles)  through  a  just ahead of Pascal Acker-  forced officials to reduce it
                                                                      winding, wooded terrain in  mann and Jannik Steimle.      to 18 stages from the usual
                                                                      northwest Spain.             Roglic,   the   defending  21.Riders  were  forced  to
                                                                      "I have been waiting all the  champion,  maintained  his  put on rain jackets to com-
                                                                      Vuelta for the right moment  42 second lead over Rich-    bat the drizzle and the low
                                                                      and today was more than  ard  Carapaz  as  the  race  temperatures.
                                                                      I  expected,"  Philipsen  said  closes  in  on  Sunday's  cer-  "It was a hard day so I am
                                                                      after  embracing  his  UAE  emonial  arrival  in  Madrid.  really  happy  it  is  behind
                                                                      Team  Emirates  teammates  John  Hugh  Carthy  is  third,  us," Roglic said.  On Friday,
                                                                      and  race  director.  "The  47 seconds behind.            the  race  moves  to  cen-
                                                                      head wind all day it made  The coronavirus pandemic  tral Spain as it starts its final
                                                                      it  really  hard  on  the  front  caused  the  Vuelta  to  be  approach  to  the  capital.
                                                                      group  ...  I  can  enjoy  this  pushed  back  from  its  hot  Stage  16  takes  riders  over
                                                                      moment and try to finish my  and   sunny    August-Sep-   162  kilometers  (100  miles)
                                                                      first grand tour. I am super  tember  slot  to  the  cooler  of  hills  from  Salamanca  to
                                                                      proud  now."  The  22-year-  and  often  wetter  days  of  Ciudad  Rodrigo.  That  will
            La Vuelta's pack cover the last meters before crossing the fin-  old  rider  crossed  the  finish  October  and  November.  set  up  Saturday's  decisive
            ish line during the third stage of La Vuelta between Lodosa and
            La Laguna Negra Vinuesa, in Vinuesa, northern Spain, Thursday   line  in  6  hours,  22  minutes,  A tight race calendar also  mountain stage.q
            Oct. 22, 2020.
                                                     Associated Press
            PUEBLA     DE   SANABRIA,  with two more competitive
            Spain  (AP)  —  Belgian  rid-  days of racing left. Philipsen
            er  Jasper  Philipsen  won  a  earned his first stage win in
            long, wet and windy Stage  a grand tour. He powered
            15  at  the  Spanish  Vuelta  ahead  of  the  pack  near
            on  Thursday,  and  Primoz  the  end  of  the  race's  lon-
            Roglic held his overall lead  gest  stage  of  230  kilome-
   10   11   12   13   14   15   16