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A18 SPORTS
Friday 17 august 2018
No. 1 Halep wins

suspended match,

advances at Cincy

By JOE KAY her lower back on a 105
MASON, Ohio (AP) — Top- mph serve during the sec-
ranked Simona Halep ond set on Wednesday
needed only eight points night. After losing the first
to complete a gritty come- three games of the final set,
back that was put on hold she took a medical timeout
overnight by rain, beating for treatment.
qualifier Ajla Tomljanovic Halep returned to the court
4-6, 6-3, 6-3 at the Western and took control, running
& Southern Open on Thurs- off four straight games for a
day. 4-3 lead when rain arrived.
Rain resulted in three Seventeen hours later, she Simona Halep, of Romania, returns to Ajla Tomljanovic, of Australia, at the Western & Southern
matches suspended over- was back on court and Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Aug. 16, 2018, in Mason, Ohio.
night. Nobody was closer needed only 5 minutes to Associated Press
to finishing off a win than complete the win.
Halep, who had over- "I have learned that I don't left the court, delaying play 6-2, 6-3, finally completing had already lost top play-
come an injury and staged have to give up, because again and creating chaos the second round in late af- ers. No. 2 Caroline Wozni-
a third-set rally when the anything can happen," she with the schedule. ternoon. The winners faced acki retired from her match
storm arrived. said. When the courts were the challenge of playing Wednesday night because
Fresh off her second Rog- Halep was scheduled to dried, Amanda Anisimova essentially two full matches of an injured left knee, her
ers Cup title, Halep arrived face Ashleigh Barty in the beat qualifier Petra Mar- in one day. second straight disappoint-
in Cincinnati looking to ex- last match Thursday night, tic 6-4, 6-3 in a match sus- While the suspended ing exit from a tournament.
tend her momentum to- with the winner advancing pended overnight. Fourth- matches wrapped up, the Wozniacki lost her open-
ward the U.S. Open. She to the quarterfinals. Rain re- seeded Juan Martin del third round began on other ing match last week in
appeared to aggravate turned shortly after Halep Potro beat Hyeon Chung courts in a tournament that Montreal.q

Davis Cup overhauled for 2019 with season-ending team event

By BRIAN MAHONEY next two weeks. The U.S. Tennis Association
AP Sports Writer The new event was devel- was among the national
The Davis Cup is getting a oped in partnership with the federations that backed
radical makeover in hopes investment group Kosmos, the changes.
of reviving an event that which was founded by Bar- The organization said the
has lost some luster. celona and Spain soccer new format will "project
Beginning next year, the player Gerard Pique. Davis Cup into the 21st
top team event in men's The original plan called for century" and elevate the
tennis will be decided with simply an 18-team cham- competition to "the heights
a season-ending, 18-team pionship at the end of the it deserves."
tournament at a neutral year, but was amended The Americans will play at
site. after some nations object- Croatia in this year's semi-
The International Tennis ed to the loss of home-site finals in September, with
Federation believes this In this Nov. 26, 2017, file photo, members of the French team matches. So those were Spain and France meet-
format will be more attrac- lift up their trophies after France won the Davis Cup final at the added to the proposal ing in the other semifinals.
tive to elite players who of- Pierre Mauroy stadium in Lille, northern France. as the qualifying round, Top-ranked Rafael Nadal is
ten pass on competing for Associated Press though that still wasn't expected to play for Spain,
their countries because of enough for critics of the but Roger Federer has fre-
a crowded schedule. percent did. ing two singles matches plan who felt neutral-site quently passed on playing
Teams will play one week in Beginning in 2019, 24 na- and one doubles, all best- matches were too much of for Switzerland.
February to advance to the tions will compete in a of-three-sets — instead of a change for an event that The new format would
championship in Novem- home-or-away qualifying the current best-of-five for- dates to 1900. cut in half the Davis Cup
ber, replacing the current round in February, with the mat featuring four singles "Those that were opposed time commitment. Pique is
Davis Cup format that is 12 winners advancing to matches and one doubles. were generally opposed among those who think the
played over four weekends the final tournament. They The winners, along with the because they may be- World Cup-style format is
throughout the year. Play- will be joined by the four next two teams with the lieve that home-and-away the boost the event needs.
ers will compete for what semifinalists from the pre- best records, will advance should be the way that "This is the beginning of a
the ITF says rivals Grand vious year, along with two to the single-elimination the format is played and new stage that guarantees
Slam prize money. wild-card teams, who need quarterfinals. always should be every the pre-eminent and legiti-
The $3 billion, 25-year to be in either the top 50 of The first championship will round," Haggerty said, mate place that the Davis
agreement was approved the Davis Cup rankings or be held on an indoor hard- adding he believed the Cup should have as a com-
Thursday at the organiza- have a top-10 singles play- court from Nov. 18-24, 2019, February qualifying round petition for national teams
tion's conference in Or- er to be eligible. in either Madrid or Lille, "gives us the combination while adapting to the de-
lando, Florida. Two-thirds of The finalists will be placed France. ITF President David of history and tradition that mands of this professional
the delegates needed to into six, three-team groups Haggerty said he expected we maintain as well as in- sport at the highest level,"
vote for the reforms, and 71 for round-robin play, involv- that announcement in the novation with the finals." he said in a statement.q