Tennis

Transylvania Open: Harriet Dart misses out on WTA final with Karolina Pliskova defeat..

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Harriet Dart missed out on her first WTA Tour final by losing in straight sets to former world number one Karolina Pliskova at the Transylvania Open.

The British number three was beaten 6-3 6-3 by the Czech, who reached her first WTA final in three-and-a-half years.

Dart, who came through qualifying, beat Spain's Nuria Parrizas-Diaz to reach her first semi-final on the WTA Tour.

However Pliskova put an end to her impressive run in Cluj, Romania.

A double break allowed the Czech to take a firm grip on the first set and prevail 6-3.

She went 4-0 up in the second set but allowed Dart to claw her way back into it, before eventually defeating the Briton.

Pliskova will meet Romanian Ana Bogdan in Sunday's final in front of a home crowd.

After reaching her 17th WTA Tour final, she said: "I know how you guys can be tough if I play against Romanian girls so let us see but no matter what I'll accept you'll cheer for Anna.

"I just want to play good tennis. There is always a chance with my game to win and I've reached finals already so there is no pressure.

"I want to win the title, because I haven't won a title for a couple of years already but also I haven't played a final for a while so I will enjoy it."

ATP Rio Open: Briton Cameron Norrie beats Hugo Dellien..

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British number one Cameron Norrie started the defence of his ATP Rio Open title with a routine 6-3 6-2 win over over Bolivian Hugo Dellien in Brazil.

Norrie, 28, made light work of an opponent who gave him a tough time at the quarter-final stage in 2023.

It took Norrie, who offered up just one break point in the match, one hour and 21 minutes to seal victory.

He will meet Chile's Tomas Barrios Vera for the first time in his career in the next round.

"I served much better than last week, and I was a bit more patient," said Norrie.

"I knew I had to play point for point and really make the rallies a bit longer. I think I learned from last week with that, and I'm just happy to be back in Brazil."

In Mexico, Britain's Dan Evans reached the second round of the Los Cabos Open with a 6-2 6-4 victory over Russia's Roman Safiullin.

Evans will face Thanasi Kokkinakis in the next round after the Australian beat Briton Jack Draper 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.

Qatar Open: Andy Murray loses to teenager Jakub Mensik in 3 tie-break sets...By Jonathan Jurejko, BBC Sport.

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Andy Murray lost to a teenage opponent for only the third time since 2007

Britain's Andy Murray was unable to back up his first win of 2024 as he lost to 18-year-old Jakub Mensik in a rollercoaster Qatar Open match.

Murray, 36, ended a run of six defeats by beating Alexandre Muller on Tuesday but lost 7-6 (8-6) 6-7 (3-7) 7-6 (7-4) to 116th-ranked Mensik 24 hours later.

Trailing 5-2 in the decider, the Scot clawed back both breaks as his Czech opponent could not serve out.

However, Mensik reset mentally to win and reach his first ATP quarter-final.

"I'm just speechless right now, I don't know what to say," said Mensik, who will play Russian top seed Andrey Rublev on Thursday.

"It was a tough match - [Murray] is a great player and I watched him on the TV winning Wimbledon twice. It is unbelievable at this age he can still compete with the best players of the world."

Elsewhere, Britain's Dan Evans lost 6-4 6-2 to Australia's Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round of the Los Cabos Open.

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Murray was beaten by the Czech teenager in the second round of the Qatar Open in three sets

The outcome of the match could have been different had Murray won the first set, as he really should have done.

On the first of two set points when leading 6-4 in the tie-break, Murray planted a volley into the net with the court gaping, drawing shrieks from the shocked crowd and leaving the Scot covering his face with his hand.

Murray went on to lose the set and was suddenly chasing the match.

Neither player was able to break serve in a tight second set before Murray, with confident hitting and delicate touches, levelled after making a fast start in another tie-break.

Having not faced a break point since the third game of the match, Murray lost serve for 1-0 - shortly after taking a tumble on his right ankle - and an increasingly confident Mensik moved a double break up at 5-2.

But Murray, just as he did to stop Mensik serving out the first set, used his vast experience to fight back.

Sensing nervousness down the other end of the court, Murray increased the aggression of his groundstrokes to pile on the pressure but he could not maintain the momentum in the tie-break as Mensik regained his composure to seal a memorable win.

Murray's frustrations were clear as he made a sharp exit after a tense contest lasting three hours and 23 minutes - the longest match in the Qatar Open's history.

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Murray has struggled for form in the early stages of the 2024 season recording only one win

Having reached the final in Doha last year, Murray had a significant number of ranking points to defend - and losing in the second round means the former world number one will drop outside the top 60 next week.

In a troubling start to 2024, Murray lost his opening four matches of the new season, which led to questions about how long he planned to keep playing and provoked a defiant response from the three-time Grand Slam champion.

Murray, who turns 37 in May, insisted he would continue to "keep fighting" as he aims to play at a level which he believes he remains "capable of" delivering.

Earning his first win of the year against French world number 75 Muller was a huge relief and a step in the right direction.

Losing to Mensik - a talented player with a powerful game and considerably bright future, but yet to crack the world's top 100 - is another setback.

Cameron Norrie reaches Rio Open semi-finals with victory over Thiago Seyboth Wild..

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British number one Cameron Norrie moved into the semi-finals of the Rio Open with a 6-1 3-6 6-2 victory over home favourite Thiago Seyboth Wild.

Defending champion Norrie wrapped the first set up in 30 minutes but an error-strewn second set allowed the Brazilian to level.

The 28-year-old raced to a 5-1 lead in the decider and sealed victory with his fifth match point.

"I was just really proud of how I fought hard," said Norrie.

"It was so humid and it was tough physically. I managed to break there in the end, so I'm proud of myself."

Norrie, ranked 23rd, has reached his first ATP Tour semi-final since May and will face 22-year-old Argentine qualifier and world number 113 Mariano Navone.

The other semi-final sees an all-Argentine encounter between Francisco Cerundolo and Sebastian Baez.

"I had a tough patch at the end of last year and I just wanted to stay strong. It's wins like this that make it count," added Norrie.

No player has won the Rio Open twice, while Norrie has joined Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz in reaching the semi-final of the tournament the year after winning it.

Andy Murray: Briton suggests he may only have few months left of career..By Jess Anderson, BBC Sport.

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Great Britain's Andy Murray has suggested he may only have a "few months" left of his tennis career after earning his second win of 2024 in Dubai.

The 36-year-old beat Canadian Denis Shapovalov 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-3.

"I probably don't have too long left but I'll do as best as I can these last few months," he said after the victory.

Murray was on a six-match losing streak until last week when he secured his first win of the year in Doha.

"I still love competing and still love the game but it gets harder and harder to compete the older you get, to keep your body fit and fresh," he said.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Murray's potential retirement has been a topic of discussion for several years after the Scot underwent hip replacement surgery in 2019.

But Murray defied the odds to return to the court, winning another title and reaching three other finals, the last of which was last year when he lost to Daniil Medvedev in Doha.

This year, however, Murray lost his opening four matches of the 2024 season and said he was in a "terrible moment" but that he "won't quit" despite speculation around when he might decide to retire.

He had looked out of sorts at the Australian Open, and during two subsequent ATP Tour defeats in France, but had said he was determined to produce performances he knew he was still capable of.

Beating world number 75 Alexandre Muller last week in Doha was one of those performances but Murray went on to lose to 18-year-old Jakub Mensik, ranked 116th, in the second round and dropped to 67th in the world as a result.

During that match, Murray appeared to tell his box "this game is not for me any more" but, when asked about those comments in Dubai on Monday, he said: "People read a lot into what I say on the court and it's not always rational."

Mexican Open: Jack Draper beats Tommy Paul but Dan Evans loses out..

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British number three Jack Draper raced into the second round of the Mexican Open with a straight-set win over American seventh seed Tommy Paul.

Draper held serve throughout and converted four of his five break-point opportunities to win 6-0 6-4 in one hour and 26 minutes in Acapulco.

He will next face Japanese lucky loser Yoshihito Nishioka.

Draper's compatriot Dan Evans went out after losing 2-6 7-5 7-6 (7-5) to American Ben Shelton.


Evans served for the match in the third set after surviving three match points but Shelton, the world number 17, came back at him.

"Definitely a really tricky match-up for me," Shelton said. "Dan is a guy that I know well, we have a lot of banter in the locker room and [he is a] guy whose game presents a lot of challenges.

"So to be able to come out of this first match here with a win after losing the first set is a big accomplishment for me."

Mexican Open: Britain's Jack Draper through to semi-final in Acapulco..

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Jack Draper continued his fine form at the Mexican Open by beating Miomir Kecmanovic to reach the semi-final.

The British number three broke twice in each set as he cruised past the Serb, who is ranked three places below him in the world at 53rd, 6-3 6-3 in Acapulco.

Draper, 22, takes on defending champion and world number nine Alex de Minaur in the last four on Saturday.

The Australian fought back to beat Greek fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 1-6 6-3 6-3 in his quarter-final.

Draper beat both Kecmanovic and American Tommy Paul, who he defeated in his opening match in Acapulco, en route to the final of the Adelaide Open in January, where he lost to Czech player Jiri Lehecka.

Andrey Rublev: Russian defaulted in Dubai semi-final for yelling at line judge..By Russell Fuller, BBC tennis correspondent.

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Andrey Rublev has been disqualified from the Dubai Tennis Championships for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The Russian second seed screamed in the face of a line judge following a disputed call in the third set of his semi-final with Alexander Bublik.

A Russian-speaking official told ATP supervisor Roland Herfel that Rublev had sworn at the line judge in Russian.

Rublev denied he was speaking Russian, but was defaulted for unsportsmanlike conduct by umpire Miriam Bley.

The world number five, who was trailing 6-5 in the final set, will lose all of his prize money and ranking points for the week.

Fellow Russian Daria Kasatkina, world number 12 in the women's rankings, called the decision a "joke".

"So you can just default a player, take his points and money away, without even checking a video replay? What a joke, another confirmation we need a VAR in tennis and electronic line calling on all tournaments," Kasatkina posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Russian-born Kazakh Bublik, who received a code violation for smashing his racquet earlier in the match, was awarded the win at 6-7 (4-7) 7-6 (7-5) 6-5.

He will face top seed Daniil Medvedev or Frenchman Ugo Humbert in Saturday's final.

Mexican Open: Britain's Jack Draper forced to retire from semi-final..

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Britain's Jack Draper was forced to retire in the third set of his Mexican Open semi-final in Acapulco.

The 22-year-old had treatment from the physiotherapist and tournament doctor in the second set against Australian defending champion Alex de Minaur.

De Minaur had taken the opening set 6-3 before the British number three came back to win the second 6-2 thanks to some strong returns.

Draper was trailing 4-0 in the decider when he withdrew from the match.

The Australian world number nine wished Draper "a speedy recovery".

De Minaur added: "Even though I dropped that second set, I knew he was hurting from then and I just told myself to bring up the intensity, try and get a head start in the third set and make it a little bit harder for him.

"He's a hell of a player, a hell of a talent and I hope it's nothing too serious."

De Minaur will play Norwegian Casper Ruud in the final after he defeated Denmark's Holger Rune 3-6 6-3 6-4.