Weekly Digest (January 24-30): Nadal and Barty shine in Melbourne

From Rafael Nadal's record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title to Ashleigh Barty becoming the first Australian player to win the Australian Open in 44 years, here are the top sporting headlines from the week gone by.

Ashleigh Barty and Rafael Nadal emerged as the Australian Open champions.

From Rafael Nadal's record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title to Ashleigh Barty becoming the first Australian player to win the Australian Open in 44 years, here are the top sporting headlines from the week gone by.

TENNIS 

Rafal Nadal clinched a record 21st Grand Slam title as he made a stunning comeback to defeat Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 in Sunday's Australian Open final. ( REPORT )

Nadal fought from two sets down to win 2-6, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 and broke a three-way tie for the most major titles in the men's game.

 

An imperious Ashleigh Barty became the first Australian to win her home Grand Slam in 44 years Saturday, halting the charge of fearless American Danielle Collins in straight sets. ( REPORT )

Ashleigh Barty became the first Australian player to win the Australian Open in 44 years.

 

The "Special Ks" show at the Australian Open ended on a high after Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis lifted the men's doubles titles by defeating compatriots Max Purcell and Matt Ebden in the final on Saturday. ( REPORT )

French Open champions Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova added the Australian Open's women's doubles title to their resume on Sunday, with a 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-4 win over Anna Danilina and Beatriz Haddad Maia. ( REPORT )

France's Kristina Mladenovic and Croatian Ivan Dodig swept to a 6-3, 6-4 victory against local duo Jaimee Fourlis and Jason Kubler to claim the Australian Open mixed doubles crown. ( REPORT )

Top seed Bruno Kuzuhara won the Australian Open junior boys' title on Saturday, while the girls' singles final saw Croatian top seed Petra Marcinko secure her first major title with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Belgium's Sofia Costoulas. ( REPORT )

Sania Mirza’s swansong appearance at the Australian Open ended with a quarterfinal loss to local pair Jaimee Fourlis and Jason Kubler in the mixed doubles event on Tuesday. ( REPORT )

Japan's Kei Nishikori will be sidelined for up to six months after undergoing surgery for a hip injury, the former world number four said on Tuesday. ( REPORT )

France is tightening its vaccination rules in a way that could put Novak Djokovic at risk of missing the French Open. From February 15, anyone who is not vaccinated against the coronavirus will need to show proof they tested positive for COVID-19 within the previous four months — down from the current six-month window — in order to enter sports venues in France. ( REPORT )

CRICKET

The BCCI plans to start the Ranji Trophy by February 13 and there won't be any changes in the format. The elite teams will be divided in five groups, featuring six teams each, while the Plate group will have eight teams. ( REPORT )

Left-arm seamer Ravi Kumar bowled a sensational opening spell as India beat defending champion Bangladesh to enter the semifinals of ICC U-19 World Cup at Coolidge, Antigua, on Saturday. ( REPORT )

Kuldeep Yadav and Deepak Hooda have been recalled for ODIs while rookie spinner Ravi Bishnoi received a maiden call-up for India’s forthcoming limited overs series against the West Indies. ( REPORT )

Deepak Hooda in action during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2018. After being included in the India white-ball squad in 2017-18, it took five years for Hooda to get his second chance.

 

Pakistan captain Babar Azam was on Monday named the ICC ODI cricketer of the year while England Test captain Joe Root took home the top honours in the red-ball category. ( REPORT )

Babar Azam was prolific with the bat for Pakistan in 2021.

 

Kemar Roach, Nkrumah Bonner and Brandon King have been recalled to West Indies' ODI squad for the forthcoming three-match series against India, starting on February 6. ( REPORT )

Sri Lankan cricketer Dilruwan Perera, announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket with immediate effect on Wednesday. ( REPORT )

Former Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor was on Friday banned for three and a half years by the ICC for failing to report a 2019 spot-fixing approach by an Indian businessman on time. He was also handed a one-month suspension for failing a dope test which was linked to his intake of cocaine during the episode. ( REPORT )

FOOTBALL

Australia, a favourite to lift the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2022, crashed out in the quarterfinal on Sunday after losing 1-0 to South Korea. ( REPORT )

South Korea's players celebrate Ji So-yun's goal against Australia in the AFC Women's Asian Cup on Sunday.

 

Manchester United is looking into allegations that forward Mason Greenwood assaulted a woman. The statement from the Premier League club was issued in response to allegations being posted within images and audio that are no longer visible on a woman’s Instagram account. ( REPORT )

Iran became the first Asian nation to qualify for November's World Cup finals in Qatar on Thursday as a goal from Mehdi Taremi earned Dragan Skocic's side a 1-0 win over Iraq. (REPORT )

The win delivers qualification for a third consecutive World Cup finals for the Iranians, after appearances in Brazil and Russia, and the country's sixth in total.

 

A devastated Thomas Dennerby questioned the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) organisation and handling of the Covid-19 outbreak within the Indian women’s team, which led to its ouster from the home AFC Women’s Asian Cup. ( REPORT )

ATK Mohun Bagan's Kiyan Nassiri, son of former East Bengal legend Jamshid, scored a hat-trick against SC East Bengal in the Kolkata Derby in the Indian Super League (ISL). ( REPORT )

Barcelona has signed speedy winger Adama Traore on loan from Premier League side Wolverhampton Wanderers until the end of the season. ( REPORT )

Coveted striker Dusan Vlahovic signed a deal with Juventus through June 2026 and will wear the No. 7 shirt vacated by Cristiano Ronaldo. ( REPORT )

Juventus will reportedly pay Fiorentina a transfer fee of 67 million euros for Vlahovic, plus another possible 8 million euros in bonuses.

 

The president of South America's football confederation has reiterated that teams from the region would boycott FIFA's plans for a biennial World Cup and said there is “no chance” that such a proposal will go through. ( REPORT )

Barcelona has filed a complaint with local prosecutors against former club president Josep Maria Bartomeu and his board following an investigation into "possible irregularities". ( REPORT )

Italy will put forward a proposal to European football's governing body UEFA to host either the 2028 or 2032 European Championship, ( REPORT )

Clubs can apply for a fixture postponement only if they have a minimum of four positive COVID-19 cases in their squads, the Premier League said on Wednesday following a meeting of representatives of all 20 sides. ( REPORT )

Borussia Dortmund’s top-scorer Erling Haaland has been forced to take another break due to what the club says are “muscular problems.” ( REPORT )

HOCKEY

Hockey India on Tuesday announced a 33-member men's senior core group to prepare for major international tournaments this year starting with the FIH Hockey Pro League next month. ( REPORT )

Last edition champion India defeated China 2-0 to win a consolation bronze medal at the women's Asia Cup Hockey tournament in Muscat on Friday. ( REPORT )

Charanjit Singh, who captained the Indian team which won gold in the Olympics of 1964, died on Thursday at his home in Una, Himachal Pradesh. ( REPORT )

BADMINTON

Unnati Hooda, 14, capped a splendid run with an impressive finish against a fighting Smit Toshniwal to become the youngest winner of the women singles title in the $75,000 Odisha Open badminton tournament at Cuttack on Sunday. For the men’s singles title, Kiran George staved off a remarkable rally from Priyanshu Rajawat in three games. ( REPORT )

Women's singles winner Unnati Hooda (R) poses on the podium with runner-up Smit Toshniwal at the Odisha Open 2022 on Sunday.

 

Lakshya Sen and Malvika Bansod will lead India at the Asia Team Championships which will be held in Malaysia from February 15 to 20 after India was forced to field severely depleted men’s and women’s teams because of the non-availability of leading players. ( REPORT )  

SHOOTING

The Indian shooting team for the upcoming ISSF World Cup in Cairo was picked after taking into consideration the qualification score along with final ranking points of the 64th National Championship as the selection trials could not be held owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. ( REPORT )

ATHLETICS

Double Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs said on Thursday that he never has and never will take performance-enhancing drugs, while the Italian explained that he ended his 2021 season early because of exhaustion. ( REPORT )

Christian Coleman started strong and fended off a late challenge from Trayvon Bromell to win the men's 60m at the Millrose Games in his first major competition, since serving an 18-month suspension for breaching anti-doping whereabouts rules. ( REPORT )

CHESS

Champion with a round to spare, Arjun Erigaisi (10.5 points) finished off in style by winning the 13th and final round against Marc Andria Maurizzi (France) to claim the honours in the Challengers sections of the Tata Steel Masters on Sunday. ( REPORT )

Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi won the Tata Steel Challengers event with a round to spare.

 

Vidit Gujrathi and Koneru Humpy are set to lead India at this year’s Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, while Viswanathan Anand will mentor the squad. ( REPORT )

MOTORSPORT

Formula One has confirmed that pre-season testing will begin in Spain next month followed by a session in Bahrain in early March. ( REPORT )

BOXING

Tyson Fury will defend his WBC heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte in the U.K. this spring. ( REPORT )

Decorated Indian woman boxer and Olympian Sarjubala Devi has decided to enter the professional arena and will make her professional boxing debut in February. ( REPORT )