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Tag Marin Cilic

Sport

Bautista Agut upsets Cilic to make Australian Open quarter-finals

Upset
Melbourne (Australia), Jan. 20, 2019 (Reuters/NAN) Roberto Bautista Agut held firm in a tense five-set duel to knock sixth seed Marin Cilic out of the Australian Open and book his maiden Grand Slam quarter-final on Sunday.

The 22nd-seeded Spaniard captured the decisive break in the ninth game of the final set before serving out strongly to claim a 6-7(6) 6-3 6-2 4-6 6-4 win at Margaret Court Arena.

Bautista Agut, who knocked an injured Andy Murray out of the first round, threw his arms up in the air and roared in triumph.

The 30-year-old will now face Stefanos Tsitsipas, who knocked out veteran Roger Federer, for a place in the semi-finals. (Reuters/NAN)
KIA/ENN/EEE
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Edited by Edwin Nwachukwu/Ese E. Ekama

 

Sport

Third seed Cilic makes solid Wimbledon start

Third seed Cilic makes solid Wimbledon start
Tennis
London, July 2, 2018 (Reuters/NAN) Last year’s runner-up Marin Cilic made a solid start to the Wimbledon championships with a clinical 6-1 6-4 6-4 victory over Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka on Monday.
Croatian Cilic, who lost last year’s final to Roger Federer, underlined his credentials for another Grand Slam title bid to add to his U.S. Open triumph in 2014.
The lanky 29-year-old third seed served 21 aces and made four service breaks in a match lasting one hour and 45 minutes on Court Two.
His young opponent, Nishioka, was just coming back from major knee surgery.
Cilic’s preparations were boosted eight days ago when he beat Novak Djokovic in the final to lift the Queen’s Club trophy, his 18th ATP Tour title. (Reuters/NAN)
KIA/SA
Edited by Salif Atojoko
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Sport

Cilic reaches semi-finals after Nadal retires hurt

NAN-S-12
Nadal
Abuja, Jan. 23, 2018 (Reuters/NAN) Marin Cilic advanced to the Australian Open semi-finals on Tuesday after top seed Rafa Nadal retired hurt when trailing 3-6 6-3 6-7(5) 6-2 2-0 in their quarter-final match.

Nadal took a medical time-out late in the fourth set for treatment on an apparent hip injury and was clearly struggling as he battled on in the evening match .

After being broken to fall behind 2-0 in the fifth set at the Rod Laver Arena, Nadal called it quits, and shook hands ruefully with the chair umpire and Cilic.

Sixth seed Cilic will meet Briton Kyle Edmund for a place in the final.(Reuters/NAN)
DE/OLAL
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)

 

Sport

Cilic into Wimbledon quarter-finals for 4th straight year

NAN-S-20
Tennis
Abuja, July 10, 2017 (NAN) Marin Cilic on Monday zoomed into the Wimbledon quarter-finals for a fourth straight year, roaming through The Championships’ draw with a menacing, confident intent.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Croatian is yet to drop a set in four completed matches.

The seventh-seeded Croatian dominated Spanish number 18 seed Bautista Agut 6-2, 6-2, 6-2, breaking serve seven times.

Cilic was almost perfect on serve in the third set, but lost three straight points at 5-2, 40/0 as he closed on his 25th match win at the All England Club.

He capitalised on the second serve of Agut, winning 12 of 15 return points and 15 of 18 points at the net for victory in one hour and 41 minutes.

The Croatian will now hope to go one round better than in 2014 and 2015, when he lost to Djokovic both times, and last year against Federer.

Against the Swiss, he held a two sets to love lead and failed to convert three match point chances in the fourth set.

Cilic has lost his serve on five occasions over the past eight days.

Twice against Florian Mayer in the second round, twice against Steve Johnson in the third round and once against Bautista Agut, when he was leading 4-1 in the second set.

The 28-year-old Cilic has a 10-2 record on grass courts in recent weeks (27-13 overall for 2017), including a runner-up finish at the Aegon Championships.

There, he failed to convert a match point chance against Feliciano Lopez in the final.

He will next challenge fourth seed and two-time former Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal or No. 16 seed Gilles Muller on Wednesday.(NAN)
VO/OLAL
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(Edited by Olawale Alabi)