2013 Wimbledon champ Marion Bartoli says she's coming back

Agencies
December 20, 2017

Paris, Dec 20: Marion Bartoli, the 2013 Wimbledon champion, says she is coming out of retirement and returning to the tennis tour next season.

The 33-year-old Frenchwoman made the announcement via a Twitter post yesterday.

"Hi, guys. I have something to tell you: I am coming back. ... It's going to be a huge challenge," Bartoli said in a video she put on Twitter.

"I have still a lot of practice ahead of me, but I am hoping to be ready for March and the Miami Open."

Bartoli mentioned three events she is particularly looking forward to: the French Open, the Fed Cup and, of course, Wimbledon.

She surprisingly won her only Grand Slam title while seeded No. 15 at the All England Club four years ago. Less than two months later, after losing a match at another tournament, she abruptly retired from professional tennis.

Bartoli was an original player -- and personality -- during her playing career.

She hit two-fisted shots for forehands and backhands, just like her idol, Monica Seles.

Bartoli was coached by her father, a doctor, and they came up with other unique elements.

She would cross her arms before serving, never bouncing the ball before a toss. She would stand well inside the baseline to receive an opponent's serve. And she would hop in place or take practice swings between points.

Her first big breakthrough came in 2007, reaching the Wimbledon final before losing to Venus Williams.

Then came the magical two-week run to the championship there six years later. Bartoli never dropped a set and capped her fortnight with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Sabine Lisicki in the final, closing the match with an ace.

A year later, Bartoli became the first woman in 17 years who declined to try to defend her Wimbledon title.

At a news conference before the 2014 tournament, Bartoli tugged at the collar of her white top to reveal strips of blue tape providing support for her right shoulder and explained: "Literally, I can't even lift my arm every morning."

That, she said, was why she harbored "definitely no regrets at all" about walking away from tennis back then.

She since moved on to other pursuits, including TV commentary, launching a shoe line and designing jewelry.

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Agencies
April 12,2020

London, Apr 12: Former Formula 1 legendary driver Stirling Moss died at the age of 90 on Sunday.

"All at F1 send our heartfelt condolences to Lady Susie and Sir Stirling's family and friends," Formula 1 said in a statement.

Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win the world championship, Moss contested 66 Grands Prix from 1951 to 1961, driving for the likes of Vanwall, Maserati and Mercedes, where he famously formed a contented and ruthlessly effective partnership with lead driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

In his 10-year-long stint at the tracks, Moss took 16 wins, some of which rank among the truly iconic drives in the sport's history - his 1961 victories in Monaco and Germany in particular often held up as all-time classics.

Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia on public roads for Mercedes at an average speed of close to 100mph, while he also competed in rallies and land-speed attempts.

Following an enforced retirement from racing (barring a brief comeback in saloon cars in the 1980s) after a major crash at Goodwood in 1962, Moss maintained a presence in Formula 1 as both a sports correspondent and an interested observer, before retiring from public life in January of 2018.

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News Network
May 1,2020

Melbourne, May 1: Reclaiming the top spot in Test cricket has brought smiles back on their faces but Australia coach Justin Langer says beating India in their own den remains the ultimate test and their numero uno status will be put to test when they clash with the Virat Kohli-led team.

After a tumultuous transition phase post the ball-tampering scandal, Australia on Friday displaced India as number one side in Test format but Langer is aware that it does not take long for the situation to change.

"We recognise how fluid these rankings are, but at this time it was certainly nice to put a smile on our faces," Langer told Cricket Australia website. "We've got lots of work to do to get to be the team that we want to be, but hopefully over the last couple of years not only have we performed well on the field, but also off the field," Langer added.

The former left-handed opener underlined what he felt will be the ultimate test of character.

"Certainly a goal for us has been the World Test Championship ... but ultimately, we have to beat India in India and we've got to beat them when they come back (to Australia).

"You can only judge yourself as being the best if you beat the best and we've got some really tough opposition to come," Langer put his priorities in place. The team he insists needs to get better as now others will come gunning for them.

"Getting to No.1 is a great thing, but when you're No.1, you're always the hunted," Langer said. "We've been the hunters for a while, now we're the hunted and we need to get better and better."

Langer also hoped that white ball team under Aaron Finch will win the World Cup. "I know how hard it is to win World Cups ... everything has to go right. One day, I'd love to see Aaron Finch with all his mates lift that T20 World Cup above his head."

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News Network
April 5,2020

New Delhi, April 5: England batsman James Vince lashed out at people for not taking proper measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic and said people are going out as if "everything is normal".

"Just seen the pictures of people out and about today as if everything is normal. What selfish people, surely by now they've realised this is serious. Well done to everyone who's doing their bit and staying in," Vince tweeted.

On March 13, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said that Europe was now the 'epicentre' of the disease.

The death toll due to the novel coronavirus in the UK has exceeded 4,313 with at least 708 new deaths in the last 24 hours, the largest one-day rise since the start of the outbreak as confirmed by the Department of Health and Social Care.

The total number of cases in the UK as on Saturday is 41,903, a rise of 3,735 cases in the last 24 hours.

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