Spain's Rafael Nadal during his win over Marton Fucsovics of Hungary at Roland-Garros. PA
Spain's Rafael Nadal during his win over Marton Fucsovics of Hungary at Roland-Garros. PA
Spain's Rafael Nadal during his win over Marton Fucsovics of Hungary at Roland-Garros. PA
Spain's Rafael Nadal during his win over Marton Fucsovics of Hungary at Roland-Garros. PA

Paris Olympics: Nadal sets up Djokovic showdown as Biles dazzles on her return


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Spain's Rafael Nadal was made to work hard by Hungary's Marton Fucsovics before clinching a three-set first-round singles victory that sets up a clash with old foe Novak Djokovic.

The 14-time French Open champion was back on familiar ground on the red clay of Roland Garros as he sealed a 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 win over Fucsovics on Sunday.

Before the match, Nadal, 38, had cast doubt over whether he would be able to take part in the match because of a thigh injury.

The Spaniard was superb in the first set against Fucsovics, easing fears about the injury, but could not maintain his level in the second set.

With his thigh heavily strapped, he managed to battle through the final set to tough out the victory.

The 2008 Olympic champion will now meet Serbia's Djokovic, who beat Australian Matt Edben 6-0, 6-1 in just 53 minutes on Saturday, to renew their fierce rivalry in the next round. It will be their 60th meeting.

Djokovic, winner of a record 24 Grand Slam titles and who missed out a 25th after losing in the Wimbledon final last month, won bronze at the Beijing Games at which Nadal – who has won 22 majors – clinched his gold.

“Situations are completely different for him, for me. He's being very competitive. I was not being very competitive for the last two years, so in that case, I think probably he is the clear favourite,” said Nadal, who holds an 8-2 head-to-head advantage over the Serb at Roland Garros.

“I'm going to try my best to bring the best to the court and then let's see how far I can go and how many problems I can create for him.”

Djokovic described the possibility of the matchup as “one last dance” after the draw and speaking on Saturday he said: “Playing him is like finals for me. In any tournament and particularly here, knowing what he has achieved and what he’s done for our sport, particularly here in Roland Garros, his record speaks for itself.

“So I look forward to it. If we get to face each other, it’s going to be, possibly, the last time we face each other on a big stage, so I’m sure that people would enjoy it.”

Nadal is also competing in the doubles with fellow Spaniard and world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Djokovic in the Wimbledon final last month. The pair opened their campaign on Saturday with a victory over Argentinian sixth seeds Andres Molteni and Maximo Gonzales.

Meanwhile, Simone Biles made a stunning return to Olympic competition in the gymnastics on Sunday, powering through left calf pain to get her multiple-medal bid off to a rousing start.

The US superstar, aiming to add to the four gold medals she won in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, tweaked her left calf warming up for her second apparatus, the floor exercise.

It didn't stop her from soaring through her signature Yurchenko double pike vault – now known as the Biles II – which even with a big step back on landing earned a 9.4 for execution for a massive total of 15.800 points.

She had another step back landing her second vault, but laughed as she crawled back towards her teammates on her hands and knees.

That was all it took for Biles's coach Cecile Landi to know that for Biles “It's on. It's OK.”

Landi, who said Biles aggravated a minor injury she'd first dealt with a couple of weeks ago, said there was never any doubt Biles would continue.

“Never in her mind,” Landi said, adding that she was also confident that Biles would be ready to go for the team final on Tuesday and the individual events to follow.

“It's incredible,” US team technical lead Chellsie Memmel said. “What she was able to do looking like she has soreness or something in her leg is remarkable.”

From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases

A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.

One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait,  Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.

In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.

The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.

And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.

 

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RESULTS

Bantamweight:
Zia Mashwani (PAK) bt Chris Corton (PHI)

Super lightweight:
Flavio Serafin (BRA) bt Mohammad Al Khatib (JOR)

Super lightweight:
Dwight Brooks (USA) bt Alex Nacfur (BRA)

Bantamweight:
Tariq Ismail (CAN) bt Jalal Al Daaja (JOR)

Featherweight:
Abdullatip Magomedov (RUS) bt Sulaiman Al Modhyan (KUW)

Middleweight:
Mohammad Fakhreddine (LEB) bt Christofer Silva (BRA)

Middleweight:
Rustam Chsiev (RUS) bt Tarek Suleiman (SYR)

Welterweight:
Khamzat Chimaev (SWE) bt Mzwandile Hlongwa (RSA)

Lightweight:
Alex Martinez (CAN) bt Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR)

Welterweight:
Jarrah Al Selawi (JOR) bt Abdoul Abdouraguimov (FRA)

FIXTURES (all times UAE)

Sunday
Brescia v Lazio (3.30pm)
SPAL v Verona (6pm)
Genoa v Sassuolo (9pm)
AS Roma v Torino (11.45pm)

Monday
Bologna v Fiorentina (3.30pm)
AC Milan v Sampdoria (6pm)
Juventus v Cagliari (6pm)
Atalanta v Parma (6pm)
Lecce v Udinese (9pm)
Napoli v Inter Milan (11.45pm)

INFO

Everton 0

Arsenal 0

Man of the Match: Djibril Sidibe (Everton)

GOLF’S RAHMBO

- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)

THE BIO

Bio Box

Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul

Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader

Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Favorite food: seafood

Favorite place to travel: Lebanon

Favorite movie: Braveheart

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Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre V8

Power: 503hp at 6,000rpm

Torque: 685Nm at 2,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Price: from Dh850,000

On sale: now

The candidates

Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive

Ali Azeem, business leader

Tony Booth, professor of education

Lord Browne, former BP chief executive

Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist

Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist

Dr Mark Mann, scientist

Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner

Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister

Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster

 

Small Victories: The True Story of Faith No More by Adrian Harte
Jawbone Press

Six pitfalls to avoid when trading company stocks

Following fashion

Investing is cyclical, buying last year's winners often means holding this year's losers.

Losing your balance

You end up with too much exposure to an individual company or sector that has taken your fancy.

Being over active

If you chop and change your portfolio too often, dealing charges will eat up your gains.

Running your losers

Investors hate admitting mistakes and hold onto bad stocks hoping they will come good.

Selling in a panic

If you sell up when the market drops, you have locked yourself out of the recovery.

Timing the market

Even the best investor in the world cannot consistently call market movements.

Updated: July 29, 2024, 10:51 AM`