Miami Open: Novak Djokovic, Kei Nishikori pass tough tests to set up finals clash

April 2, 2016

Miami, Apr 2: World number one and defending champion Novak Djokovic will face Japan's Kei Nishikori in the ATP and WTA Miami Open final after straight-set triumphs Friday in which both were tested.

Novak

Djokovic, an 11-time Grand Slam champion whose three titles this year include the Australian Open, downed Belgian 15th seed David Goffin 7-6 (7/5), 6-4.

The 28-year-old Serbian will try to match the career record of six Miami crowns won by Andre Agassi by capturing his third consecutive title at the hardcourt event.

"It's a privilege just to be mentioned alongside Andre Agassi," Djokovic said.

Sixth seed Nishikori, the 2014 US Open runner-up, downed Australian 24th seed Nick Kyrgios 6-3, 7-5.

"First Miami final, that makes me very happy," Nishikori said.

Djokovic has a 6-2 career edge over Nishikori, including five wins in a row, most recently in this year's Australian Open quarter-finals.

"It's going to be tough for sure. He has been playing well," Nishikori said. "I played him in Australia. I will try to come up with something better."

Djokovic won his 15th consecutive Miami match and the 29th of his past 30, but only after winning a tense tie-breaker and taking the lone break of the second set, prompting a post-match kissing of the court.

"I wanted to make sure the court feels my love," Djokovic said. "A little kiss for goodbye and I'll see you in two days. I've had so many beautiful memories on that court. It's one of my favorite courts."

Djokovic improved to 27-1 on the season, which has included his 11th career Grand Slam title and crowns at Doha and Indian Wells.

He could claim the Miami-Indian Wells double for the third year in a row and his 63rd career title on Sunday.

Squared 4-4 in the tie-breaker, Goffin hit an overhead smash that Djokovic sent back as a lob inside the far baseline to keep the point alive and later took full advantage by winning it with a forehand drop volley winner.

"I was a bit fortunate in the tie-breaker but I made him play the extra shot," said Djokovic.

"I anticipated where he might smash that ball and he framed it a little bit and that allowed me to get that height. Right place at the right time."

Added Goffin: "I was a little bit tired at the end of the point and it was tough to finish it."

Goffin, who will jump to a career-best 13th in next week's rankings, hit a forehand wide to give Djokovic two set points, then saved one on a drop volley winner but lost the set when the ball deflected off the edge of his racquet as he leaped to reach another Djokovic lob.

"Against Djokovic you have to go for the shot in every point," Goffin said. "If you're not there for a few seconds you lose the game."

In the second set, Goffin netted a backhand to hand Djokovic a break for a 4-3 edge and the world number one held twice to triumph after two hours and five minutes.

Djokovic has reached the final in 19 of his past 21 events and in 11 consecutive ATP Masters Series events. He could win a record 28th ATP Masters crown, surpassing the mark he now shares with Rafael Nadal.

Nishikori broke Kyrgios for a 2-1 edge and held from there, claiming the first set after 29 minutes when the Aussie double faulted away a break.

"My serve just let me down," Kyrgios said. "I felt rushed out there. I was looking for answers. He was too good."

After an early exchange of breaks, the second set was decided when Nishikori broke in the last game on a wild point. Nishikori raced to the net to save a ball off the net cord, Kyrgios fired back two tricky returns and Nishikori finally won with a crosscourt forehand volley.

"At the net I was very confident," Nishikori said. "I thought I played a good point."

Nishikori, who won his fourth consecutive Memphis title in February, reached his second ATP Masters final, the other coming in 2014 at Madrid.

"He is somebody that has been around and played so many matches on the big stage," Djokovic said. "I don't see him being too overwhelmed or nervous."

Kyrgios, at 20, will become the youngest top-20 player since 2009 on Monday. Two-time Grand Slam champions Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia will meet in Saturday's women's final.

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News Network
May 14,2020

New Delhi, May 14: Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an unconventional and unique leader, whose biggest strength is his incredible gut feeling, says his Chennai Super Kings teammate Faf du Plessis.

The former South Africa skipper has spent considerable time with Dhoni after joining the Indian Premier League (IPL) side in 2011 and has been an integral part of its successful journey.

"He reads the others player really well and he uses that to make instinctive decisions on the field. He's got an incredible gut feeling on the game and I think that's his biggest strength," du Plessis said in a Facebook live session with Bangladesh ODI skipper Tamim Iqbal.

The 35-year-old said Dhoni changed his perception of how a captain should be.

"It was amazing for me to see how different M S was as a captain. I used to think a captain must speak all the time in team meetings etc but M S was completely different.

"He doesn't believe a lot in team meetings. He's a very instinctive captain he's got such a good cricket brain that he relies on it to make the right decisions on the field," du Plessis said of former India skipper.

Dhoni last played for India in World Cup semifinal last year and was expected to be back to playing competitive cricket at now-postponed IPL.

Calling Dhoni the best finisher he has played with, Du Plessis said no one can emulate what the dasher from Ranchi can do with the bat.

"He's extremely calm. I haven't played with someone who is a better finisher than him. It's just remarkable to watch him from the side of the field."

"If someone else tries to do it like him they won't be able to. He's just so unique like he times the ball so late he's got an incredible calmness. He knows his game and he picks a bowler and goes for it."

Du Plessis said that playing for CSK alongside Dhoni and under the guidance head coach Stephen Fleming has taught him a lot about leadership.

"I'm lucky to have started my journey there at CSK because I have really learned a lot from a leadership point of view. I tried to learn as much as possible from Dhoni and Stephen Fleming because both are great captains."

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Agencies
March 6,2020

Mumbai, Mar 6: Former India batsman Virender Sehwag expressed excitement over the upcoming Road Safety World Series and said he is looking forward to playing with Sachin Tendulkar again.

"I am very excited about this tournament because I will get another chance to play with Sachin. We have played many international matches together and there was a gap and then we played an All-Star match and now again getting a chance. I am looking forward to playing with Tendulkar," Sehwag told media persons.

In the opening match of the Road Safety World Series, India Legends will play against West Indies Legends on March 7. The main aim of the Series is to create awareness about road safety and change people's mindset towards their behaviour on the roads.

Sehwag hailed the initiative of Road Safety World Series and said: "I think it is a very good initiative by the government that they are working towards creating awareness regarding road safety. Awareness regarding road safety is important for everyone."

Road Safety World Series, a five-nation T20 cricket tournament, will showcase some of the biggest names in cricket from India, Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and South Africa.

Players who will feature in this series include Tendulkar, Sehwag, Brian Lara, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Brett Lee, Brad Hodge, Jonty Rhodes, Muttiah Muralitharan, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Ajantha Mendis and many more. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar is the Commissioner of the Series.

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Agencies
May 9,2020

Tokyo, May 9: As the world continues to grapple with coronavirus pandemic, the organisers of Tokyo Game Show have cancelled 2020 showpiece event.

TGS 2020 was slated to be played from September 24 to September 27 at the Makuhari Messe convention center. However, there now talks going on for holding an online event instead.

According to the Verge, this is the first time that TGS has ever been cancelled since it started in 1996.

TGS 2020 gained more attention because of its status as the last major trade show before the launch of the upcoming next-gen consoles, the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.

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