Murray, Djokovic looking forward to playing in 2020 Olympics

Associated PressNov 20, 2019, 4:13 PM EST

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MADRID — Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic have their sights set on playing at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Murray said Wednesday “he would love to compete in Tokyo,” and Djokovic acknowledged the Olympics are “very high on the list of wishes for next year.”

Murray, the two-time Olympic champion in singles and a three-time Grand Slam winner, has been slowly coming back to full speed after undergoing hip surgery in January. In October, he won his first title since his return.

He defeated Tallon Griekspoor 6-7 (7), 6-4, 7-6 (5) on Wednesday in his first Davis Cup match with Britain since 2016.

“I’ve really enjoyed playing in the Olympics,” the 32-year-old Murray said. “I’ve always enjoyed a team environment and competing for my country. Always really enjoyed that. So yeah, I would love to play in Tokyo.”

The Olympic gold medalist in 2012 and 2016, Murray said he hopes to “feel healthy” and that his “body feels good” at the end of next year.

“I’d be delighted with that,” he said. “That’s what I’d like for next year.”

Roger Federer has already said he plans to play in Tokyo, even though it adds to an already packed calendar. And Djokovic, who helped Serbia beat Japan in the new Davis Cup Finals on Wednesday in Madrid, said the Olympics are also part of his plans for 2020.

“I’m going to try to be healthy, be fit, be prepared to play my best,” he said. “I played the Tokyo (ATP) tournament, I won it this year. And the Olympic Games are going to be played on the same courts, which are quite good for my style of the game, I think it’s quite suitable.”

The 32-year-old Djokovic said he expects “fun” games in Japan.

“Olympics are always bringing something extraordinary,” he said. “Every four years you get a chance to be part of the most historic sports events in the history of sport. You never get really a chance to, other than in the Olympics, to really sit next to all the elite athletes from their sports and dine with them and just exchange experiences and knowledge and everything. There’s a lot of storytelling, a lot of fun.”

The Olympics is the only top tournament Djokovic hasn’t won in his career. He won the bronze medal in the 2008 Games in Beijing.

At French Open, Francisco Cerundolo is mad at chair umpire over Holger Rune’s double-bounce

Associated PressJun 5, 2023, 8:49 PM EDT

Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

PARIS – Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina was devastated about losing his French Open fourth-round match to Holger Rune of Denmark in a fifth-set tiebreaker Monday. He also was mad at chair umpire Kader Nouni for missing a double-bounce of the ball on a point that was awarded to Rune early in his 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (10-7) victory.

They were tied at a set apiece and on serve at 2-1 for the No. 6-seeded Rune early in the third at Court Suzanne Lenglen when the point of contention happened. Cerundolo, who was serving at deuce, hit a forehand that skidded low at the baseline and quickly bounced a second time – which normally would have meant that the point was his.

But Rune went ahead and got his racket on the ball, sending it back over the net. At about the same time, No. 23 seed Cerundolo was saying “sorry” to apologize for the odd way his forehand made the ball skim across the clay. Nouni was not immediately aware of the double-bounce, thought the ball was still in play and called Cerundolo for hindrance for talking during a point. That meant Rune got the point, and when he won the next one, too, he had a service break.

“It was unbelievable, because it was a clear double-bounce. I was mad at the umpire because he has to see it,” Cerundolo said. “It’s his fault.”

In tennis, electronic line-calling is used at many tournaments to make line calls, but replays are not used to check things like double-bounces or whether a point should be lost because a player touches the net, which is not allowed.

And while Cerundolo put the onus on the official, he also thought Rune could have ceded the point because of the double-bounce.

“For sure, I wish he would have done that, because it was a big moment,” Cerundolo said.

Rune, who moved into a matchup against No. 4 Casper Ruud in the quarterfinals, said he saw a replay after the following point, and “saw it was a double bounce. But the point already happened, and he called the score. So I felt sorry.”

But, Rune added: “This is tennis. This is sports. Some umpires, they make mistakes. Some for me; some for him. That’s life.”

Gael Monfils withdraws from French Open with wrist injury

Associated PressJun 1, 2023, 11:34 AM EDT

Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

PARIS — A thrilling five-set victory took a toll on Gael Monfils, whose withdrawal from the French Open handed No. 6 Holger Rune a walkover to the third round.

The 36-year-old Frenchman said he has a strained left wrist and can’t continue.

He battled Sebastian Baez for nearly four hours on Court Philippe Chatrier before beating the Argentine 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 in a first-round match that ended at 12:18 a.m. local time.

The victory was Monfils’ first at tour level this year, as the veteran was coming back from heel surgery.

“Actually, physically, I’m quite fine. But I had the problem with my wrist that I cannot solve,” he said. “The doctor say was not good to play with that type of injury. Yesterday was actually very risky, and then today definitely say I should stop.”

Monfils reached the semifinals at the French Open in 2008 and made it to the quarterfinals on three other occasions.