Sports
Djokovic, Federer Win In Shanghai Masters
World number one Novak Djokovic produced another high-quality display to ease past American John Isner in the Shanghai Masters third round.
Serb Djokovic, 32, did not face a break point as he won 7-5 6-3 against the big-serving 16th seed.
Switzerland’s Roger Federer, 38, also reached the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 win over Belgium’s David Goffin.
Goffin could not convert any of five set points in the opener.
Federer, who won the Shanghai title in 2014 and 2017, will take on German fifth seed Alexander Zverev in the last eight, while Djokovic faces Greek sixth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Zverev, 22, won 6-0 7-6 (7-4) against Russian Andrey Rublev, who trailed 3-0 and 5-2 in the second before finally pushing his opponent, with 21-year-old Tsitsipas beating Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz 7-5 3-6 7-6 (7-5).
Defending champion Djokovic, who won the Japan Open last week, has not dropped a set in seven matches since injury forced him out of the US Open.
“I’m very happy with the way I am playing. This is one of the best serving matches I’ve played,” said Djokovic, who won 85% of his service points.
Later on Thursday, Djokovic and compatriot Filip Krajinovic lost 6-3 6-2 to British pair Jamie Murray and Neal Skuspki in the doubles.
Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev saved five set points in the first set before squeezing past Canadian qualifier Vasek Pospisil.
The US Open runner-up, who won the St Petersburg Open last week, earned a 7-6 (9-7) 7-5 victory to extend his record to two defeats in his past 24 matches.
Those losses came against Spanish world number two Rafael Nadal, who is not playing in Shanghai, in the US Open final last month and the Rogers Cup final in August.
Medvedev, 23, will play 10th seed Fabio Fognini in the last eight after the 32-year-old Italian beat Russian seventh seed Karen Khachanov 6-3 7-5.
Italian 11th seed Marco Berrettini progressed with a 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 win over Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, boosting his chances to qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in London next month.
A well-known football pundit in the State, Chief Christopher Okonkwo has lauded the efforts and vision of the Super Eagles Coach Eric Chelle for going from one venue of the Nigeria Domestic Nigeria Professional Football League match to the other in monitoring Nigerian players, with a view to invite some exceptional good one discovered into the main stream of the Super Eagles team.
Okonkwo, who made the commendation in an interview at the Port Harcourt Club recently, described the positive move by Coach Chelle as a good step in the right direction, noting that the practice was how its been done in the past among any contracted coach assigned to tinker the Super Eagles team.
“Truly, it has been an old tradition in the country seeing any newly engaged Coach to lead the National team, visiting some our Nigeria League venues during the league matches to spot light some good talents that could be used to beef up some grey areas in the department of Eagles team”
He, however, frowned at the current situation where our coaches had continously been over depending on the use of foreign based players during invitation of players to the National camp, thereby, relegating the domestic home based league players to the background as if they have nothing much to offer to the team.
“I can vividly recall that the likes of great players in the mode of Finidi George, Taribo West, Kanu Nwankwo, Austin Okocha, Richard Owobokiri, Emmanuel Osuigwe among others started from Nigeria football league before they graduated to play in Europe through which they later invited to Super Eagles camp to represent Nigeria”
“Besides, I’m also of the view that going to secondary school football competitive games could equally serves as a a good platform to discover budding talents that could be nurtured to become great stars in near future”, Okonkwo frankly added.
Okonkwo, therefore, prayed that any football coach to be engaged by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to tinker the Super Eagles should be told not to confine himself in staying in big hotel alone but to be visiting some of our local league match venues, with a view to discover some good players that can be drafted into the Super Eagles team.
“Indeed, I stand to be challenged that there some young good players in the Nigeria Professional League. If spotted and exposed, could give the some of the invited foreign based players a stiff competitive fight in securing a postion in the team”, Okonkwo emphatically stated.
Ezechukwu, one of the youngest members of the Nigerian contingent at the championship in Ghana, said her ambition was to win the 100m title in style and cap it with a new personal record.
The fresh secondary school graduate explained that she is fully focused on contributing to Team Nigeria’s medal hopes and is determined to deliver strong performances across her events.
“My main objective in Ghana is to clinch the 100m title and the 4×100m,” Ezechukwu told Tidesports source.
“Nigeria can be assured of my very best and my commitment to the Team. I would love to set a new personal best in Ghana, but anything that comes, I will take it. The spirit in the team is high, and I think we are ready to go,” she said.
Ezechukwu, who was part of Nigeria’s women’s 4x100m relay squad at the World Relays in Botswana, said the experience gained from that competition has strengthened her mindset heading into the continental championships.
She admitted that she learned valuable lessons from her previous outing, including a difficult moment during the relay where an early error affected the team’s rhythm, but said she has used the experience to improve her discipline and composure.
“The secret is just being disciplined, training hard and trusting my coach and believing in God, and the result will show,” she added.
The teenager is part of a 41-member Nigerian team comprising 24 female and 17 male athletes competing at the championships, which begin today at the University of Ghana, Legon.
Nigeria are expected to compete across multiple track and field events as they aim for a strong finish against the continent’s elite athletes.
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