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FRENCH CUP: NICE KNOCKOUT PSG ON PENALTIES

Paris Saint-Germain were eliminated from the French Cup on Monday as Marcin Bulka, a goalkeeper they loaned to Nice, saved twice in a penalty shootout to put his new team into the last eight.

Nice, second to PSG in Ligue 1, won 6-5 on penalties after a scrappy 0-0 draw. That set up a grudge quarter-final against Marseille, third in the league.

“It’s madness,” Bulka said.

The last-eight draw, made before Monday’s kickoff, also paired the two surviving fourth-tier clubs, Bergerac and Versailles.

In both the other ties, a Ligue 1 team will host a Ligue 2 side as Monaco face Amiens and Nantes entertain Bastia.

At the Parc des Princes, both teams struggled to create clear chances, although Kylian Mbappe, who came on for the last 30 minutes, hit the bar in added time.

“We were better than Nice,” said PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino. “We deserved better, we deserved to win. But we did not create enough to win. We should have been more efficient.”

“The penalty shootout is a lottery,” he added.

In the shootout, Bulka, who PSG loaned to Nice for the season after Gianluigi Donnarumma arrived last summer, had the final word.

The Pole saved the third PSG penalty from Leandro Paredes, but Donnarumma responded by parrying from Andy Delort.

Bulka, making a rare start for Nice, then ended the contest by diving to his left to save from 18-year-old Xavi Simons.

“I have all the respect for PSG because I am on loan from this club that I love,” he said, adding that his familiarity with some players was not an advantage.

“I know the players but it’s more the feeling, I chose the correct sides and stopped them,” he said.

It was Bulka’s first appearance at the Parc des Princes, where he had never played for PSG.

“My family was here, I’m very happy because it was the first time they saw a game,” he said.

Nice will next host nearby Marseille in a rematch of a Ligue 1 game on August 22 that was abandoned after home fans invaded the pitch and then a brawl broke out between the sides.

Nice had a point deducted as punishment.

The quarter-finals are scheduled for midweek on 8-9 February.

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NOVAK DJOKOVIC CLINCHES 19TH GRANDSLAM TITLE WITH COME BACK WIN AT FRENCH OPEN FINAL

Novak Djokovic rewrote the history books once again by fighting back from two sets to love down to defeat Stefanos Tsitsipas and win a 19th grand slam title at the French Open.

The world number one is now only a single title behind Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the all-time list and is the first man in the Open era to win all the slams at least twice.

It appeared Djokovic had passed the big test by handing Rafael Nadal just his third defeat at Roland Garros on Friday but the effort it took to achieve that seemed to weigh heavily in the world number one’s arms and legs.

Tsitsipas saved a set point to win a compelling opener on a tie-break and looked to be cruising towards the title when he comfortably took the second but Djokovic showed once again why he can never be written off, willing himself to a 6-7 (6) 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-4 victory.

The Serbian barely had the energy to celebrate and, after sharing a moment at the net with his opponent, he crouched down on the court before pointing to the sky while Tsitsipas sat with his head buried in a towel.

Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer have guarded the slams like a fiefdom, repelling one generation after the next. There is no doubt Tsitsipas’ generation are getting closer but, even in their mid and late thirties, the big three still refuse to allow their fingers to be prised off the biggest trophies.

Djokovic had never successfully come back from two sets down in a grand slam final but, having lost in the final four times in Paris, including last year to Nadal, he was determined not to let another chance slip away.

Tsitsipas is not a man lacking in self-belief or ambition, so it was no surprise to see him handle the occasion well.

He faced two break points in the opening game but stood firm to hold and that became very important in the context of what followed.

Djokovic took a heavy tumble in the seventh game as he sprinted to try to reach a drop shot but was untroubled on serve until the ninth game when, out of nowhere, Tsitsipas created a set point.

Djokovic showed what makes him arguably the toughest competitor tennis has ever seen by turning himself into a wall from the baseline in a long point to save it, and then put himself in the driving seat with a break for 6-5.

But, with the sun in his eyes, Djokovic could not serve it out and then found himself 5-2 down in the tie-break.

The change of ends helped him win four points in a row to create a set point but Tsitsipas thumped a forehand into the corner to show that he was not going to give it away and it was Djokovic who faltered on his opponent’s second chance, dragging a forehand wide.

The Serbian has been renowned during his decade of dominance for his powers of recovery but he turned 34 last month and there were soon signs that Friday’s physical and mental epic had taken its toll.

Tsitsipas broke serve again to start the second set and Djokovic, the king of gruelling rallies, began to try to shorten the points, unable to trade with his much younger rival.

Djokovic likened beating Nadal in Paris to climbing Mount Everest, and even the fittest mountaineers would surely not be found up another mountain two days later.

He left the court at the end of the set, knowing if there was to be a renaissance it needed to be quick, and he made the breakthrough to lead 3-1, taking a fifth break point after Tsitsipas had brilliantly saved the first four.

There was no big display of emotion, Djokovic presumably saving all the energy he had for the court, but he found precision in offence that frustrated Tsitsipas.

By the fourth set it was the Greek, who took a medical time-out for treatment to his lower back, looking fatigued and he knew he had to dig in at the start of the decider.

The 22-year-old had done just that in his semi-final against Alexander Zverev but this was Djokovic at the other end and, despite fighting hard, a frustrated Tsitsipas was unable to keep his dream alive.

He raised his level again and saved a match point with a glorious backhand winner but Djokovic put away an overhead on his second chance.

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NOVAK DJOKOVIC OVERCOMES RAFAEL NADAL IN FRENCH OPEN CLASSIC TO REACH FINAL

Rafael Nadal was beaten for just the third time at the French Open as Novak Djokovic won an extraordinary semi-final on a night of sporting drama at Roland Garros.

The great Spaniard went into the contest having won 105 of his previous 107 matches on the Parisian clay, losing only to Robin Soderling in the fourth round in 2009 and Djokovic in the last eight six years ago.

He had won all 13 of his previous semi-finals but, in a 58th match between the pair that was on a par with almost any that came before, Djokovic found the answers to the greatest challenge in sport to win 3-6 6-3 7-6 (4) 6-2.

It is the world number one who will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas – winner of a five-set contest with Alexander Zverev earlier on Friday – in the final on Sunday, bidding for a 19th grand slam title and to become the first man in the Open era to win each title at least twice.

Nadal had been trying to claim the outright men’s record with 21 slam titles and went in as a clear, albeit narrow, favourite, particularly given his drubbing of Djokovic in the final last October.

The first five games were a near carbon copy of that match, with Nadal finding the answer to everything Djokovic could throw at him and moving into a 5-0 lead, but from there it swerved off in a completely different direction entirely.

Djokovic not only avoided the love set but pulled three games back, sowing a few seeds of doubt in Nadal’s mind before the Spaniard took his seventh set point.

Those doubts were evident as Djokovic moved into a 2-0 lead and then, after Nadal had broken back, a 4-2 advantage.

The next game summed up what makes contests between these two some of the best in all sport. The points were spellbinding, the athleticism mind-blowing, with both men not only trying to deploy their weapons but to prevent the other doing likewise.

Nadal had three chances to break back but was denied on each occasion, as he was two games later when Djokovic served for the set, the Spaniard missing a routine backhand on break point and paying the penalty.

There was no doubt Djokovic was in the ascendancy and yet this was Nadal on clay in Paris and, as the Serbian knows better than anyone having lost to him here seven times, there is no tougher challenge.

A Djokovic break for 3-2 in the third set was immediately snuffed out by Nadal but the effort of doing so took it out of the 35-year-old, who promptly dropped his serve to love.

Djokovic survived another long game to hold for 5-3 and was at 30-0 trying to serve it out but one moment of hesitation was all it took to give Nadal hope and back stormed the champion with four points in a row.

Both men were showing understandable signs of fatigue but somehow they engineered even more outlandish points, with Nadal fighting off break points to hold for 6-5 and then creating a set point only for Djokovic to save with a precision drop shot.

As in last year’s final, the tactic had been more foe than friend but, at the biggest moment of the match thus far, it came to his rescue.

The tie-break was nip and tuck until Nadal, normally the most solid of volleyers, put one long at 4-3 that would have left a club player with head in hands.

Djokovic was not so charitable and, for just the fifth time at Roland Garros, Nadal lost a second set in a match.

The biggest cheer of the night came with the announcement that the fans, who had been expected to be ejected to comply with Paris’ 11pm curfew, were in fact being allowed to stay.

Nadal made a statement with a break to start the fourth set but it was Djokovic who was in control of more of the points and, for once, the champion had no answer

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NAOMI OSAKA WITHDRAWS FROM FRENCH OPEN AMID MEDIA BOYCOTT HOWLER

Naomi Osaka has announced that she will be withdrawing from the French Open because of the furore caused by her boycott of media duties.

The world number two won her opening match against Patricia Maria Tig on Sunday but her decision not to take part in press conferences or interviews has been the biggest talking point of the tournament.

The grand slams reacted strongly to Osaka’s move, releasing a joint statement on Sunday that threatened her with potential disqualification and a ban from future tournaments should she not reconsider.

Osaka, who cited mental health reasons, wrote on Twitter: “Hey everyone, this isn’t a situation I ever imagined or intended when I posted a few days ago.

“I think now the best thing for the tournament, the other players and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris.”

Osaka said she had suffered bouts of depression since winning her first slam title at the US Open in 2018 and that talking to the media triggered anxiety.

“I never wanted to be be a distraction and I accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer,” she continued on Twitter. “More importantly, I would never trivialise mental health or use the term lightly.

“The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that.

“Anyone that knows me knows I’m introverted, and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I’m often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety.

“Though the tennis press has always been kind to me (and I wanna apologise especially to all the cool journalists who I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker and get huge waves of anxiety before I speak to the world’s media.”

Osaka’s sister Mari attempted to explain more about her sibling’s stance with a post on the website Reddit, highlighting her feelings of vulnerability, but then deleted her words and replaced them with an apology, saying she felt she had made things worse.

Osaka’s Twitter post continued: “So here in Paris I was already feeling vulnerable and anxious so I thought it was better to exercise self-care and skip the press conferences.

“I announced it pre-emptively because I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that.

“I wrote privately to the tournament apologising and saying that I would be more than happy to speak with them after the tournament as the slams are intense.

“I’m gonna take some time away from the court now, but when the time is right I really want to work with the Tour to discuss ways we can make things better for the players, press and fans.”

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NAOMI OSAKA FACES EVICTION FROM FRENCH OPEN OVER MEDIA BOYCOTT

Naomi Osaka has been warned she faces being thrown out of the French Open should she continue her media boycott.

The four-time grand slam champion announced on social media ahead of the tournament that she would not be doing any press at Roland Garros, citing mental health reasons.

It has not gone down well with the tournament and drew an unusually punchy joint statement from the four grand slams, who threatened Osaka with severe sanctions should she not reconsider her stance.

The statement said: “We have advised Naomi Osaka that, should she continue to ignore her media obligations during the tournament, she would be exposing herself to possible further code of conduct infringement consequences.

“As might be expected, repeat violations attract tougher sanctions including default from the tournament and the trigger of a major offence investigation that could lead to more substantial fines and future grand slam suspensions.”

Osaka has been fined $15,000 (approximately €12,300) for refusing to fulfil her media commitments after a 6-4 7-6 (4) first-round victory over Patricia Maria Tig.

The statement continued: “The Roland Garros teams asked her to reconsider her position and tried unsuccessfully to speak with her to check on her well-being, understand the specifics of her issue and what might be done to address it on site.

“The mental health of players competing in our tournaments and on the tours is of the utmost importance to the grand slams. We, individually and collectively, have significant resources dedicated to player well-being.

“In order to continue to improve, however, we need engagement from the players to understand their perspective and find ways to improve their experiences.

“A core element of the grand slam regulations is the responsibility of the players to engage with the media, whatever the result of their match, a responsibility which players take for the benefit of the sport, the fans and for themselves.
“As a sport, there is nothing more important than ensuring no player has an unfair advantage over another, which unfortunately is the case in this situation if one player refuses to dedicate time to participate in media commitments while the others all honour their commitments.
“Finally, all grand slams remain committed to continually reviewing and discussing opportunities, together with the tours and the players, to improve every aspect of the player experience, including with the media.

“But we consider this is only ever achieved through respectful and constructive discussions.”

Despite her media snub, Osaka did take part in a short and rather awkward on-court interview for the few hundred fans allowed into Court Philippe Chatrier following her victory over Romanian Tig.

“I’m very glad that I won,” said the 23-year-old, who skipped the tournament last year after winning her third slam title at the US Open.

“It’s a very beautiful court. I’ve only played two matches here, one was before the roof and one is right now. Hopefully I’ll keep it going.”

Regarding her movement on clay, Osaka, who next meets another Romanian in Ana Bogdan, said: “I would say it’s a work in progress. Hopefully the more I play, the better I’ll get.”

Petra Kvitova, a semi-finalist last year, saved a match point in the second set against Greet Minnen before coming through 6-7 (3) 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Angelique Kerber has won titles at the other three slams but her chances of completing the set appear remote after a third successive first-round loss.

The German, twice a quarter-finalist in Paris, was beaten 6-2 6-4 by a very in-form player in qualifier Anhelina Kalinina, who has now won her last 14 matches.

American Danielle Collins, who is back on tour after undergoing surgery for endometriosis, battled to a 6-2 4-6 6-4 victory over China’s Wang Xiyu.

Russian Elena Vesnina, meanwhile, defeated Olga Govortsova 6-1 6-0 in her first singles match at a grand slam since taking maternity leave in 2018.