Posts Tagged ‘daniel nestor’
Sunday, April 7th, 2013
Daniel Nestor (Wikimedia Commons)
This is an outstanding time for Canadian tennis at the moment. For the first time in exactly 100 years, Canada is on the brink of qualifying for the semi-finals of Davis Cup.
This is not Davis Cup qualifying. This is the real thing.
On Saturday afternoon in Vancouver, Daniel Nestor of Toronto and Vasek Pospisil of Vancouver beat the Italian duo of Fabio Fognini and Daniele Braccaili in five grueling sets, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 15-13.
With the win, Canada now leads Italy 2-1 and can advance to the semis if Milos Raonic defeats Andreas Seppi this afternoon or if Canada wins the fifth and deciding match. Right now Pospisil is expected to play Fognini, but don’t be surprised if Canadian coach Martin Laurendeau gives the assignment to Jesse Levine, because Pospisil has played ten sets in the last two days.
It was also a great week in Canadian women’s tennis as Eugenie Bouchard of Westmount, Quebec defeated Laura Robson of Great Britain and former U.S. Open champion Samantha Stosur of Australia at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, South Carolina before losing to Jelena Jankovic in the quarterfinals.
Tags: andreas seppi, daniel nestor, daniele braccaili, davis cup, eugenie bouchard, fabio fognini, family circle cup, jelena jankovic, jesse levine, laura robson, martin laurendeau, milos raonic, samntha stosur, vasek pospisil
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, April 6th, 2013
Daniel Nestor (Wikimedia Commons)
This weekend is an extremely significant one when it comes to the history of Canadian tennis. Team Canada is tied 1-1 with Team Italy in the quarterfinals heading into a key doubles match today and two singles matches on Sunday.
This afternoon (Saturday, Sportsnet, 4:30 p.m., joined in progress) Daniel Nestor of Toronto and Vasek Pospisil of Vancouver will take on the Italian pair of Paolo Lorenzi and Daniele Braccaili. It will be interesting to see how much energy Pospisil has in the tank after he lost a five set marathon to Andreas Seppi on Friday afternoon. Canadian head coach Martin Laurendeau ridiculously went with Pospisil over Jesse Levine, who is overall a much better tennis player.
Sunday’s matches are right now Milos Raonic versus Seppi (Saturday, Sportsnet, 3:00 p.m.) followed by Pospisil versus Fabio Fognini.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching this weekend:
(more…)
Tags: 2013 world men's curling championship, andreas seppi, Blake Griffin, brad jacobs, chris stewart, daniel nestor, daniele braccaili, david murdoch, davis cup, detroit red wings, Edmonton Oilers, fabo fognini, jered weaver, los angeles angels of anaheim, Los ANgeles Clippers, los angeles kings, los angeles lakers, milos raonic, nik stauskas, niklas edin, paolo lorenzi, Philadelphia Flyers, rasmus sterjne, rick pitino, russ smith, st. louis blues, Taylor Hall, texas rangers, tom brewster, university of louisville cardinals, university of michigan wolverines, university of syracuse orange, university of wichita state shockers, vasek pospisil, winnipeg jets, yu darvish
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, Curling, Home, MLB, More, NBA, NHL, University Sports |
Friday, February 1st, 2013
Frank Dancevic (Wikimedia Commons)
In a gigantic night in Canadian tennis history, Canada received masterful performances from Milos Raonic of Thorhill, Ontario and Frank Dancevic of Niagara Falls, Ontario on the opening night of first round action of the 2013 Davis Cup in Vancouver.
Raonic defeated Albert Ramos 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 this afternoon and then Dancevic defeated Marcel Granollers 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 this evening at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre on the campus of the University of British Columbia. With the victories, Canada leads Spain 2-0 heading into the doubles match om Saturday.
The major story however was the Dancevic one hand backhand which was completely sensational. Sportsnet analyst Robert Bettauer compared it to Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro, as one of the very best in the world.
It could definitely have been a defining moment for Dancevic however who is currently ranked 166th in the world. He beat a player in Granollers, who is currently 33rd.
(more…)
Tags: daniel nestor, davis cup, frank dancevic, milos raonic
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, September 15th, 2012
The Edmonton Eskimos will try to snap a two game losing streak to their provincial rivals, the Calgary Stampeders, when they face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Ivor Wynne Stadium this afternoon (TSN, 1pm).
The Eskimos may be sitting last in the Western Division at 5-5, but with a victory can move an important six points up on the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in a possible opportunity to cross-over in the East come playoff time, if they cannot make up ground on the 5-5 Saskatchewan Roughriders.
This week the Eskimos and Tiger-Cats also made a trade. Edmonton acquired fullback Darcy Brown from the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for defensive back Ricardo Colclough and a sixth round pick in the 2015 Canadian Football League draft.
(more…)
Tags: baltimore ravens, british columbia lions, british women's open, chris gimenez, dallas cowboys, daniel nestor, darcy brown, davis cup, detroit lions, Edmonton Eskimos, hamilton tiger-cats, inbee park, ivan nova, izak van der merwe, james shields, jiyai shin, kevin smith, lesean mccoy, marco andretti, matt stafford, michael vick, milos raonic, montreal alouettes, new york jets, New York Yankees, philadelphia eagles, pittsburgh steelers, raven klaasen, ricardo colclough, san francisco 49ers, Saskatchewan Roughriders, seattle seahawks, tampa bay rays, toronto argonauts, vasek pospisil
Posted in ATP World Tour, CFL, Indy Racing League, Ladies Professional Golfers Association, MLB, More, NFL |
Thursday, June 28th, 2012
(Lukas Rosol, Wikimedia Commons)
In what could be the most stunning tennis upset in history, Spain’s Rafael Nadal, the world’s number two seed, was eliminated in the second round of Wimbledon.
But it is who Nadal lost to that is leaving people’s head scratching. Nadal lost to the world’s 100th ranked player, Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.
Rosol is making his first appearance at Wimbledon after not being able to qualify for Wimbledon over the last five attempts.
It was Rosol’s serve that was overpowering. In his final service game he delivered three aces. Rosol had 22 overall.
But is this the greatest tennis upset ever? I say no. My pick is still Daniel Nestor’s remarkable Davis Cup win over world no.1 Stefan Edberg of Sweden in Vancouver in 1992.
With Lacko’s win, it clearly opens up the lower half of the bottom draw, and given opportunities to a vast number of players to come through.
(more…)
Tags: arantxa rus, daniel nestor, lukas rosol, Wimbledon
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Friday, June 8th, 2012
Drew Doughty (Wikimedia Commons)
The Los Angeles Kings are one win away from capturing their very first Stanley Cup. On Saturday night the Kings will play the New Jersey Devils (CBC, 6pm) leading the Finals 3-1.
The Devils meanwhile are taking a game-by-game approach according to all-star goaltender Martin Brodeur. In game four, the Devils had a solid third period and stayed alive with a 3-1 win. For the Devils to make the Stanley Cup Finals interesting, they will need a solid performance from Ilya Kovalchuk, who only has one goal in four games so far, and that one went into an empty net.
The Kings are getting great production from Drew Doughty, who leads all blueliners with 14 playof points.
One player though nobody is talking about is New Jersey’s defenceman Bryce Salvador who has 13 points. Just how unexpected has Salvador’s point production been? Well his NHL regular season career high came in 2009 when he had 16 points in 76 games!
(more…)
Tags: arjen robben, atlanta braves, beezie madden, bob bryan, boston celtics, bryce salvador, cristiano ronaldo, daniel nestor, daniele de rossi, david silva, drew doughty, eric lamaze, fernndo torres, french open, ian millar, ilya kovalchuk, inbee park, jason heyward, john mcenroe, LeBron James, los angeles kings, lpga championship, maria sharapov, martin brodeur, max mirnyi, Miami Heat, mika miyazato, mike bryan, new jersey devils, nicklas bendtner, novak djokovic, paula creamer, RAFAEL NADAL, rajon rondo, rich fellers, robbie keane, sandra gal, sara errani, se ri pak, spruce meadows, stanley cup finals, toronto blue jays, wesley sneijder
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, Ladies Professional Golfers Association, MLB, More, NBA, NHL, Soccer |
Thursday, June 7th, 2012
Maria Sharapova (Wikimedia Commons)
It was a big win for Maria Sharapova on Thursday.
By defeating Wimbledon Champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-3, she not only advanced to her first French Open final of her career, but she also passed Belarussian Victoria Azarenka into number one in the world.
Sharapova last was ranked no.1 in the world in 2008. The three-time Grand Slam winner (2004 Wimbledon, 2006 U.S. Open and 2008 Australian Open champion) will also win the career grand slam with a victory on Saturday.
Sharapova’s opponent will be no.21 ranked Sara Errani of Italy, who upset no.6 seeded Samantha Stosur 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 in a topsy-turvy match. Errani won despite having 24 fewer winners than Stosur.
(more…)
Tags: bob bryan, daniel nestor, french open, maria kirilenko, maria sharapova, max mirnyi, mike bryan, nadia petrova, petra kvitova, roberta vinci, samantha stosur, sara errani, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Sunday, February 12th, 2012
Julien Benneteau (Robbie Mendelson, Wikimedia Commons)
If Canada was going to pull off the upset and defeat France in the first round of the 2012 Davis Cup at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Stadium at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver this weekend, they desperately needed a victory in men’s doubles Saturday.
Well, the Canadian duo of Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ontario and Daniel Nestor of Toronto stayed even with the French duo of Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra for the majority of the first two sets (except the tie-break where they lost 7-1 and 7-2 respectively). In the end though it was a straight sets French victory of 7-6, 7-6, 6-3.
Canadian captain Martin Laurendeau’s decision to go with Raonic over Vasek Pospisil will now be questioned. Pospisil and Nestor helped Canada defeat Israel in four sets in the World Group Playoff, and seem to have more chemistry. Raonic as well, will now have to play the well-rested Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France today at 3pm with Canada in a do-or-die situation as they are currently down 2-1 in the best of five. The winner will take on the United States in round two in April.
Tags: daniel nestor, davis cup, jo-wilfried tsonga, julien benneteau, michael llodra, milos raonic, vasek pospisil
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, February 11th, 2012
Daniel Nestor (Wikimedia Commons)
One of the most exciting sporting events of the entire year got under way last night in Vancouver.
For only the fourth time since 1923, Canada is in the main World Group of the Davis Cup, and yes folks there are reasons to be very excited.
Last night, Milos Raonic was dominant with his serve in his 6-2, 6-4, 7-5 win over France’s Julien Benneteau. Equally as dominant though was France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga who beat Canada’s Vasek Pospisil yesterday afternoon 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.
Now the stage is set for exciting doubles action today. I know Milos Raonic is the best Canadian tennis player today, but you could make the serious case that Daniel Nestor is the greatest Canadian tennis player ever. Nestor is a doubles specialist, who has a remarkable career record of 830-318. The seven-time major winner is still going great at age 39 and is currently ranked number three in the world. Like Steve Nash who I discussed yesterday, Daniel Nestor is playing at an elite level which is truly amazing to watch. Nestor along with Pospisil will play the French duo of Michael Llodra and Benneteau with the Canadian team favoured to win the match (Sportsnet, 3pm).
Play will continue Sunday (Sportsnet, 3pm) with Raonic taking on Tsonga and a fifth match with possible meaning. The two have never faced each other.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching this weekend:
(more…)
Tags: andrew bynum, bill murray, calgary flames, charlie wi, dallas mavericks, daniel nestor, daniel sedin, davis cup, dustin johnson, Edmonton Oilers, george lopez, henrik sedin, jo-wilfried tsona, julien benneteau, Kobe Bryant, lamarcus aldridge, los angeles lakers, michael llodra, milos raonic, Ottawa Senators, paul maclean, portland trail blazers, ray romano, Toronto Raptors, Vancouver Canucks, vasek pospisil
Posted in ATP World Tour, More, NBA, NHL, PGA |
Saturday, September 17th, 2011
Adam Kleeberger (Bing Images)
It is a jammed pack weekend of sports coverage, and I will be keeping an eye on a wide variety of sports.
In rugby, Canada is looking for a second consecutive victory when they take on the mighty French. France has one more point in the Group A Standings because they were able to record four tries in their 47-21 hammering of Japan.
The Canadians meanwhile exemplified outstanding determination in coming from behind to beat Tonga. They were down 20-13 with about ten minutes left before the Canadians scored 12 unanswered points to win. The game can be seen at 2:30am on Sunday morning on TSN.
(more…)
Tags: andy ram, atlanta falcons, boston red sox, british columbia lions, buffalo bills, Calgary Stampeders, chris carpenter, cole hamels, dallas cowboys, daniel nestor, davis cup, jeff niemann, jim harbaugh, jon lester, jonathan erlich, michael vick, mike tolbert, new england patriots, oakland raiders, philadelphia eagles, philadelphia phillies, pittsburgh steelers, rugby world cup, ryan fitzpatrick, san diego chargers, san francisco 49ers, seattle seahawks, st. louis cardinals, tampa bay rays, ted ginn jr., tom brady, vasek pospisil
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, CFL, Home, MLB, More, NFL, Rugby |
Monday, August 22nd, 2011
Milos Raonic (John Donegan, Associated Press)
I have great admiration for Canadian tennis star Milos Raonic.
The rising talent from Thornhill, Ontario announced today he will skip the 2011 United States Open in favour of Davis Cup qualifying, where he will suit up for Canada starting September 16 in Israel.
He is basically going to rest his hip for an event that he does not see any financial revenue come his way. It is an international tournament where basically pride is on the line.
The last time Canada advanced for the Davis Cup was in 2004. That year the Canadians lost to Holland 4-1.
Prior to that year, Canada participated at the 1913, 1921 and 1991, and 1992 Davis Cups, In 1913, Canada, led by Robert Powell and Bernard Schwengers, advanced to the final, defeating South Africa in the quarterfinals and Belgium in the semi-finals, before losing to the United States in the final. In 1921, Canada lost to Australia 5-0 in the opening round and in 1991, Canada lost to Spain. In 1992, Daniel Nestor upset world number one Stefan Edberg of Sweden and Grant Connell defeated Magnus Gustafsson in Vancouver. Sweden won 3-2 however.
Tags: bernard schwengers, daniel nestor, davis cup, grant connell, milos raonic, robert powell
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Thursday, July 7th, 2011
Milos Raonic (Julian Finney, Getty Images)
Milos Raonic won’t be participating in Montreal in August.
According to Rogers Sportsnet, Raonic, from Thornhill, Ontario and currently ranked 26th in the world, will have to miss the Rogers Cup from August 5-14, because of a hip injury.
Raonic suffered the lower body injury when he fell awkwardly while leading Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller in the second round of Wimbledon.
Raonic, who underwent hip surgery in Vail, Colorado on Tuesday, is expected to miss six weeks. He should still be able to participate at the United States Open in late August.
Despite the loss of Raonic, the men’s event will be stacked with top international talent. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray still all plan to participate.
Murray is the two-time defending champion, having beaten Roger Federer in 2010 and Juan Martin del Potro in 2009.
Controversially, the women’s event takes place in Toronto the same week. Some of the top players that have confirmed their participation are Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and French Open Champion Li Na.
In other tennis news, Canada is playing in Ecuador this weekend in Davis Cup qualifying. Canada will be represented by Philip Bester of Vancouver, Vasek Pospisil of Vernon, British Columbia in singles and Daniel Nestor of Toronto.
Tags: andy murray, daniel nestor, gilles muller, juan martin del potro, li na, maria sharapova, milos raonic, novak djokovic, philip bester, RAFAEL NADAL, ROGER FEDERER, rogers cup, serena williams, vasek pospisil
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, June 4th, 2011
Daniel Nestor (Wikimedia Commons)
Daniel Nestor of Toronto won his tenth Grand Slam title on Saturday.
Nestor and partner Max Mirnyi of Belarus, seeded second, defeated the unseeded pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal of Colombia and Eduardo Schwank of Argentina 7-6, 3-6, 6-4.
It was Nestor’s third French Open championship, as he previously won in 2007 with Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and in 2010 with Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia.
This is the first time that Nestor and Mirnyi have teamed up to win a Grand Slam title.
Mirnyi has now won five Grand Slam titles. Like Nestor, he has won the French Open three times. Mirnyi has also won the U.S. Open twice.
Nestor was significantly better than his Belarussian teammate on Saturday, who struggled at times while at the net. When Nestor and Mirnyi secured the victory, Mirnyi gave Nestor a playful celebratory spank.
The match was very even throughout, with not a lot of break points. Actually, there was only two in all. Cabal and Schwank had one early in the second set to go up 2-0, while Mirnyi and Nestor had one in the tenth game of the third set to close out the match.
Tags: daniel nestor, eduardo schwank, french open, juan sebastian cabal, mark knowles, max mirnyi, nenad zimonjic, u.s. open
Posted in ATP World Tour |
Friday, June 3rd, 2011
Daniel Nestor (Wikimedia Commons)
One of the most underrated athletes in Canadian sports history will be going for his tenth grand slam title in tennis tomorrow.
Toronto’s Daniel Nestor hasn’t won a singles’ grand slam title, but has won multiple times in men’s doubles and mixed doubles. Let’s not forget as well a Gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia with Sebastien Lareau.
Nestor and Max Mirnyi of Belarus, the second seeds in the men’s doubles competition at the French Open, will be taking on the unseeded pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal of Colombia and Eduardo Schwank of Argentina. Cabal and Schwank cannot be taken lightly however as they recently defeated Mike and Bob Bryan, the number one seeds in the world, in the semi-finals.
The match can be seen on TSN at approximately 9am Mountain time tomorrow morning, following the women’s singles final.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching:
(more…)
Tags: boston bruins, chicago cubs, Chris Bosh, claude julien, Dan Hamhuis, daniel nestor, dirk nowitzki, Dwyane Wade, eduardo schwank, francesca schiavone, french open, jack nicklaus, jonathan byrd, juan sebastian cabal, keith ballard, kim clijsters, kyle lohse, lance berkman, li na, manny malhotra, max mirnyi, novak djokovic, RAFAEL NADAL, raffi torres, ricky barnes, rod pampling, ROGER FEDERER, rory mcilroy, sebastien lareau, st. louis cardinals, steve stricker, Tyler Seguin, Vancouver Canucks
Posted in ATP World Tour, MLB, More, NBA, NHL, PGA |
Loading ...
