Australian Open goes quiet as lockdown keeps crowds away
Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic serves to compatriot Karolina Pliskova during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021. Crowds were gone from the Australian Open on Saturday because of a five-day hard lockdown imposed by the state government to contain an outbreak of COVID-19 cases. And with the lack of fans, players were faced with an all-too-familiar feeling: a distinct lack of buzz. The Australian Open was allowed to continue during the lockdown โ but without fans. He struggled without a crowd in a warm-up tournament before the Australian Open.
French Open: Mladenovic collapses again but blames umpire
France's Kristina Mladenovic plays a shot against Germany's Laura Siegemund in the first round match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)PARIS โ Kristina Mladenovic's first match since her nightmarish end to the U.S. Open produced another collapse and a controversial umpire's call at the French Open on Tuesday. The French player lost to Laura Siegemund of Germany 7-5, 6-3 after serving for the first set at 5-1. Mladenovic was furious with chair umpire Eva Asderaki for not spotting a double bounce on set point. Mladenovic slowed up, looked confused, and wound up touching the net, which automatically gave the point to Siegemund.