Five-time finalist Andy Murray was beaten in straight sets by Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel at the Australian Open on Thursday.
Hopes were high that Murray could have another strong run in Melbourne when he battled to a five-set win over Nikoloz Basilashvili in the first round.
But, back on John Cain Arena, the feeling was very different this time as Murray, 34, struggled for sharpness against a tenacious and mobile opponent and fell to a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 defeat.
"I'm really, really disappointed. Very frustrated. A tough loss for me, that's for sure," Murray said.
"I made way too many errors today. Yeah, wasn't able to turn it around today, but he definitely was solid today. He moved well and deserved to win.
“This is a really important year for me for a number of reasons and I want to perform well in the big events. For me, tonight is not good enough in that respect.
“Making second rounds of Slams is not something I find particularly motivating. I want to be doing better than that. It depends on how I get on this year results wise and how I perform in the big events.”
It was a desperately disappointing end for the Briton who struggled for sharpness against the world No 120 — the lowest-ranked opponent ever to beat Murray at a major.
“Winning a big match like this is unbelievable,” said Daniel. “It was an amazing level from me. I got a bit nervous in the third set. I tried not to make too big a deal of this match, playing Andy Murray.
“Even if it was against me, I was trying to feel the energy [in the crowd]. I felt goosebumps, it was amazing.”
Daniel, 28, had won just five games over three sets in their only previous meeting in the Davis Cup in 2016 but Murray, whose heavy workload also included reaching the final of the ATP Tour event in Sydney at the weekend, began sluggishly and was unable to turn the tide in his favour.
He had never lost to a player ranked outside the top 100 at a Grand Slam, with then world No 191 Arnaud Clement the previous lowest, in the second round of the US Open back in 2005.
World No 2 Daniil Medvedev proved too strong for home favourite Nick Kyrgios as the Russian ran out an impressive 7-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 winner on Rod Laver Arena.
The US Open champion sealed his place in the next round despite capacity 50 per cent crowd relentlessly backing his opponent throughout. An inspired Kyrgios forced a break of serve in the third set to take the match into the fourth but Medvedev, who is the highest-ranked men's player remaining following Novak Djokovic's deportation, soon regained control.
A double break in the fourth set made it look easy for last year's Australian Open finalist and he will next meet 57th-ranked Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands for a place in Round 4.
“I came to win this match and I am happy to do it,” said Medvedev. “It's not easy when you get booed between the first and second serve. I had to stay calm.”
World No 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas ground out a 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Grand Slam debutant Sebastian Baez in a battle of two former junior world No 1 players.
Tsitsipas — a two-time Australian Open semi-finalist — said his 21-year-old opponent from Argentina had made him work. “It wasn't easy. I'm glad I overcame that obstacle today,” said the Greek. “Lot's of fighting, a little bit of swearing, but glad to be in the third round.”
Tsitsipas will now face Benoit Paire of France who knocked out 26th-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 7-6.
Last year's quarter-finalist Andrey Rublev made short work of Ricardas Berankis with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-0 win over the unseeded Lithuanian. The Russian fifth seed next meets Croatia's Marin Cilic, who beat Norbert Gombos 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6.
Canadian ninth seed Felix Auger Aliassime defeated Spain's Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-6, 6-7, 7-6, 7-6 to set up a third-round tie with Briton Dan Evans, who received a walkover after Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech withdrew with a wrist injury.
Argentina's Diego Schwartzman, seeded 13th, fell to a 7-6, 6-4, 6-4 defeat against world No 175 Australian wild-card Christopher O'Connell.
Australian prospect Alex de Minaur, 22, made it through in front of the Rod Laver Arena crowd with a comfortable 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 win over Poland's Kamil Majchrzak.
Taylor Fritz won an all-American clash with Frances Tiafoe 6-4, 6-3, 7-6, and will now take on Spanish 16th seed Roberto Bautista Agut, who beat Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1, 6-0, 6-3.
Film: In Syria
Dir: Philippe Van Leeuw
Starring: Hiam Abbass, Diamand Bo Abboud, Mohsen Abbas and Juliette Navis
Verdict: Four stars
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
The Transfiguration
Director: Michael O’Shea
Starring: Eric Ruffin, Chloe Levine
Three stars
Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7
World Sevens Series Pools
A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan
B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland
C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales
D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
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Wolves 1 (Traore 67')
Tottenham 2 (Moura 8', Vertonghen 90 1')
Man of the Match: Adama Traore (Wolves)
Roll of honour: Who won what in 2018/19?
West Asia Premiership: Winners – Bahrain; Runners-up – Dubai Exiles
UAE Premiership: Winners – Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners-up – Jebel Ali Dragons
Dubai Rugby Sevens: Winners – Dubai Hurricanes; Runners-up – Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Conference: Winners – Dubai Tigers; Runners-up – Al Ain Amblers
How to help
Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:
2289 - Dh10
2252 - Dh50
6025 - Dh20
6027 - Dh100
6026 - Dh200
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.
Afghanistan squad
Gulbadin Naib (captain), Mohammad Shahzad (wicketkeeper), Noor Ali Zadran, Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Asghar Afghan, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Najibullah Zadran, Samiullah Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Dawlat Zadran, Aftab Alam, Hamid Hassan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman.
Janet Yellen's Firsts
- In 2014, she became the first woman to lead the US Federal Reserve
- In 1999, she became the first female chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers
How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
WORLD RECORD FEES FOR GOALKEEPERS
1) Kepa Arrizabalaga, Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea (£72m)
2) Alisson, Roma to Liverpool (£67m)
3) Ederson, Benfica to Manchester City (£35m)
4) Gianluigi Buffon, Parma to Juventus (£33m)
5) Angelo Peruzzi, Inter Milan to Lazio (£15.7m
'Joker'
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix
Rating: Five out of five stars
The Settlers
Director: Louis Theroux
Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz
Rating: 5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
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Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 194hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 275Nm from 2,000-4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: from Dh155,000
On sale: now
