DUBAI // Exactly five weeks after their pulsating semi-final at the Australian Open, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will go head-to-head again today for a place in the final of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship.
In Melbourne, the two 24 year olds, born just a week apart, thrilled the crowds with an epic battle that lasted 10 minutes shy of five hours. After 345 points, 96 winners and 155 unforced errors, Djokovic emerged a 6-3, 3-6, 6-7, 6-1, 7-5 winner, but Murray is hoping he can that reverse that result and stop his old friend from winning a record fourth straight Dubai title.
"It should be obviously a great challenge," Murray said after his 6-3, 7-5 win over Tomas Berdych yesterday. "Any time you play against the top players, that's the case. I would like to get a chance to play him again. You know, before the Indian Wells, Miami stretch. It would be good to see exactly what I need to work on, where my game is.
"I had a great match with him in Australia and hopefully can reverse the result tomorrow."
Rivals from an early age, Djokovic and Murray have played against each other 11 times on the main tour. Their first duel was in Madrid in 2006 when Djokovic won in three sets and now holds a 7-4 record against the Scot.
But the world No 1 concedes any game against the other three players in the world's top four - Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Murray - is always a challenge.
Federer beat Mikhail Youzhny 6-3, 6-4 yesterday to make it to the semi-finals. Juan Martin del Potro defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6, 6-2 late last night.
"Every time you play, especially a top four, it's a big challenge for both of us, especially after that Australian Open thrilling match that lasted for five hours," Djokovic said after his 6-1, 7-6 win over close friend and compatriot Janko Tipsarevic last night.
"He [Murray] is somebody that is established already at the top of the men's game, somebody that is one of the biggest talents that I have seen in the game.
"He has all round game. He can play equally well in defence, in offence. He has a great serve, very solid from both strokes on the baseline. So there is not much weaknesses.
"It's going to be a good match. We both look forward to that. Regardless if it's a grand slam or 1000 or 500 event or 250, we always try win against each other and it's a great rivalry."
While a win over Djokovic here would not exactly compensate for a grand slam loss, Murray believes it will give him confidence moving forward and be a part of his memories.
"I know if I said, it [a win] is so important, it would be like, 'Well, you know, the matches in the slams are the ones that are the most important ones'," Murray said.
"But any time you get a win against the No 1 player in the world it's important, because you don't get a chance to play them that often. It will be nice when you finish playing to look back and see the list of the guys you've played against and had the chance to win against as well."
arizvi@thenational.ae
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RESULT
Esperance de Tunis 1 Guadalajara 1
(Esperance won 6-5 on penalties)
Esperance: Belaili 38’
Guadalajara: Sandoval 5’
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
NBA Finals so far
(Toronto lead 3-1 in best-of-seven series_
Game 1 Raptors 118 Warriors 109
Game 2 Raptors 104 Warriors 109
Game 3 Warriors 109 Raptors 123
Game 4 Warriors 92 Raptors 105
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Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
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