Djokovic Eyes Wimbledon Glory after Nadal Pulls Out

Eye on the ball: Novak Djokovic is targeting a seventh Wimbledon crown Glyn KIRK AFP
Eye on the ball: Novak Djokovic is targeting a seventh Wimbledon crown Glyn KIRK AFP
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Djokovic Eyes Wimbledon Glory after Nadal Pulls Out

Eye on the ball: Novak Djokovic is targeting a seventh Wimbledon crown Glyn KIRK AFP
Eye on the ball: Novak Djokovic is targeting a seventh Wimbledon crown Glyn KIRK AFP

Novak Djokovic is preparing for Friday's Wimbledon semi-final against Cameron Norrie safe in the knowledge that his greatest rival Rafael Nadal no longer stands in the way of a 21st Grand Slam triumph.

The Spanish second seed was Thursday forced to pull out before his last-four match against Nick Kyrgios with an abdominal injury, admitting defeat in his race to be fit, AFP said.

Nadal's withdrawal deprives the tournament of a blockbuster semi-final against Kyrgios, which had been on the cards since the Australian beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in a bad-tempered third-round match.

Kyrgios will have an enforced break before Sunday's final while Djokovic, the top seed, can now see the path to a fourth consecutive Wimbledon title opening up before him.

The Serb had to come back from two sets down against Italian 10th seed Jannik Sinner in his quarter-final on Tuesday.

But the 35-year-old finished the match looking fresh, even pulling off an outrageous winner while doing the splits.

Djokovic is on a 26-match winning streak at Wimbledon as he seeks to draw level with Pete Sampras on seven titles at the All England Club -- just one behind Roger Federer's men's record.

He is also bidding to reach a record 32nd Grand Slam singles final, which would put him one ahead of Federer.

If he wins the title he would reach 21 Grand Slam titles, moving past Federer and just one behind Nadal in the race to be crowned the greatest of all time.

- 'Take it to Djokovic' -British ninth seed Norrie had never progressed beyond the third round of a Grand Slam before this year's Wimbledon.

The 26-year-old has vowed to "take it" to Djokovic and will hope to ride a wave of home support but he has a tough task on his hands to unseat the champion.

Djokovic, who beat Norrie in their only previous meeting, is braced for a partisan crowd.

"For him, not much to lose," he said. "Every victory from now onwards is a big deal for him.

"I know that. But, you know, I practiced a few times. I know his game well. He's been around. Of course I will do my homework and get ready."

Kyrios will be kicking his heels on Friday, deprived of the chance to repeat his famous 2014 victory over Nadal at Wimbledon, which the Spaniard avenged five years later.

The Australian cruised through his last-eight match against unseeded Chilean Cristian Garin in straight sets to reach his first Grand Slam semi-final.

Kyrgios's tournament has been defined by breathtaking shot-making but also his familiar rants on court -- including a demand that Tsitsipas be thrown out of the championships for hitting a ball into the crowd.

The 40th-ranked player has been fined a total of $14,000 and he now has the added distraction of a looming court appearance in Australia, related to an allegation of assault.

But he said he was proud to have come so far at Wimbledon.

"I obviously had thoughts the last year, year and a half, whether I wanted to play anymore -- lost the love, lost the fire, lost the spark.

"Then some things just changed in my life... I kind of just rediscovered that I've got a lot of people that want me to play, that I play for.

"I've got a lot left in the tank. I feel like I'm probably playing some of my best tennis, mentally feeling great."

Kyrgios, who has beaten Djokovic in both of their two meetings, will fancy his chances whoever he plays on Sunday.

In the meantime he must watch and wait.



Lyon's Attack Looks Sharp Under New Coach Fonseca

Lyon's Georgian forward #69 Georges Mikautadze celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal during the French L1 football match between Montpellier Herault SC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) at Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier, southern France on February 16, 2025. (Photo by Sylvain THOMAS / AFP)
Lyon's Georgian forward #69 Georges Mikautadze celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal during the French L1 football match between Montpellier Herault SC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) at Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier, southern France on February 16, 2025. (Photo by Sylvain THOMAS / AFP)
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Lyon's Attack Looks Sharp Under New Coach Fonseca

Lyon's Georgian forward #69 Georges Mikautadze celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal during the French L1 football match between Montpellier Herault SC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) at Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier, southern France on February 16, 2025. (Photo by Sylvain THOMAS / AFP)
Lyon's Georgian forward #69 Georges Mikautadze celebrates with his teammates after scoring a goal during the French L1 football match between Montpellier Herault SC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) at Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier, southern France on February 16, 2025. (Photo by Sylvain THOMAS / AFP)

After 10 goals in three games, new coach Paulo Fonseca's pledge to bring attacking soccer back to Lyon is holding firm.
Sunday's 4-1 win at Montpellier in Ligue 1 saw four different Lyon players on target for the second straight game, The Associated Press reported.
After being involved in all four Lyon goals against Reims last weekend, Rayan Cherki took only three minutes to set up Georgia's Georges Mikautadze for the opener.
Forward Tanguy Coulibaly equalized for last-placed Montpellier shortly before halftime, but Lyon pulled away early in the second half. Ernest Nuamah scored and three minutes later set up rejuvenated midfielder Corentin Tolisso, who has netted in every game under Fonseca.
Under previous coach Pierre Sage, the team was looking laborious and had scored only five goals in six games without a win before he was fired.
Veteran striker Alexandre Lacazette completed the rout in the 73rd minute for Lyon, which stayed in sixth place because Lille won 2-0 at Rennes in Sunday's late game to retain fifth spot.
The race for third place promises to be intense, with Nice reclaiming it from Riviera rival Monaco on goal difference after winning 3-1 at lowly Le Havre.
Both Nice and Monaco have 40 points and trail second-place Marseille by six points.
Striker Gaëtan Laborde sent Nice ahead in the 16th minute and an own-goal from Étienne Youté two minutes later put Nice in control. Yassine Kechta pulled a goal back soon after but Sofiane Diop made it 3-1 in stoppage time.
Coach Liam Rosenior's Strasbourg won 2-0 at Lens to leapfrog the northern side — also on goal difference — and move into seventh place, with Dutch striker Emanuel Emegha grabbing his 10th goal of the season.
Algerian winger Farid El Melali scored the only goal as Angers won 1-0 at Reims. The two sides meet again in the French Cup quarterfinals on Feb. 25.
Bentaleb's poignant goal After poking in Lille's opening goal from close range following a corner, Nabil Bentaleb sprinted to the bench and was hugged by everyone there.
With good reason.
The Algeria midfielder only started training again last month after suffering a cardiorespiratory arrest in mid-June last year. He was put into an artificial coma and fitted with a pacemaker-defibrillator days later.
Lille's top scorer Jonathan David was rested for this game and his replacement penalty-taker missed from the spot. Chuba Akpom's effort in the 44th was saved by goalkeeper Brice Samba.
The English striker then had a goal disallowed midway through the second half for an offside. But Akpom's perseverance led to a red card for defender Christopher Wooh, who fouled him in the 75th, and the sending off opened up the game for the visitors.
The former Tottenham and Schalke midfielder Bentaleb scored five minutes later — prompting a big smile from Lille coach Bruno Genesio — and Akpom was played in by Mitchel Bakker six minutes later against 13th-placed Rennes.
After the final whistle, Lille's players urged Bentaleb to go toward the traveling supporters, who applauded him.
“It’s incredible. These images will remain engraved for life,” Bentaleb told match broadcaster DAZN. “There are things that are not forgotten and that I will not forget when I stop playing football.”
Runaway leader PSG scraped a 1-0 win at Toulouse on Saturday to stay 10 points clear of free-scoring Marseille in second position.