Mara Abbott had been showing her battle long before her run toward Olympic gold dropped into a medal-free finish in the women’s road race on Sunday. At the Rogers Cup event she was serving at half-speed – practically lobbing the ball in – although she declined to specify what the issue was.
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After Saturday’s defeat, Williams chose not to come to the mixed zone to speak to the media.
Venus did not speak to reporters after the match because she was not feeling well, as confirmed by US women’s tennis coach Mary Joe Fernandez to the media. “She’s really ill right now”. She’s now won 19 of her past 20 matches.
‘Venus had cramping, dehydration and an upset stomach after her loss. “There are going to be many rallies, because the court is slow, but I have to be patient and mentally strong”.
“A bit of bad luck and bad timing that everything came together at this juncture for her”. It may not close that gap on Margaret Court or give her daylight on Steffi Graf in Slam land but gold is clearly her colour.
At 36, Williams is the oldest player in the women’s draw in Rio. But Flipkens is the type of opponent who makes that more hard to execute. I felt I just had to prepare mentally.
Gavrilova is a feisty character and she can get frustrated on the court when she is struggling, but she is a talented young player and she has wins over Grand Slam champions, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova, and Petra Kvitova.
Flipkens has a two-handed backhand but rarely uses it. A disappointed Radwanska put her 6-4 7-5 loss down to a lack of time to prepare. Undersized and underpowered, she used her guile to try to maximize the moment, and the crowd immediately took to it. But Gavrilova got them back before finally winning the point that earned a standing ovation. “They were just enjoying my game”, Flipkens said.
Williams didn’t participate in the Olympics four years later in Athens due to an injury, however, she returned to Beijing in 2008 and as the second seeds with Venus, they regained their gold medal.
“I was like “you’re the first one to say it”. It’s unbelievable. I’m from Belgium; I’m not even from Brazil. “I want to know what it is like when you’re a Brazilian guy playing on the center court”.
Jaziri, on a career high of 58 in the world, served for the match at 5-4 in the second set. She was up 5-3 as well and was two points away from living to fight another day.
But she just couldn’t get it done.
Although she would be on the court soon again for doubles, Serena Williams indicated she’s done more than play tennis during her stay in Rio. Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic are experienced, quality players.
The eating disorder was more about control than weight, she said.
“Fingers crossed, she’ll be OK”.
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Williams and Gavrilova have met once before and it was in the second round of Doha back in 2013, and Gavrilova entered the tournament as a lucky loser.
