Coric dethrones Federer at Halle Open
Halle , June 24: Croatia's Borna Coric on Sunday claimed the Halle Open title after beating defending champion and world No. 1 Roger Federer of Switzerland 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-2 in the final match, effectively handing the top spot in the ATP ranking back to Spain's Rafael Nadal.
It took world No. 34 Coric a little over two hours to claim his first grass court title at the Wimbledon tune-up tournament, as well as his first victory over Federer in their third career match, ending the Swiss player's grass-court winning streak at 20, reports Efe.
The 21-year-old Croatian had started the tournament by beating world No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany, and finished by denying Federer his 99th career title.
Coric became only the sixth player to defeat Federer in a grass court final, joining Novak Djokovic of Serbia, Britain's Andy Murray, Spain's Rafael Nadal, Germany's Tommy Haas and Australia's Lleyton Hewitt.
Having already made history as the first Croatian to reach the final of the 26-year-old tournament, Coric also took revenge for his loss to Federer in the 2018 Indian Wells semifinal in Mar.
Federer, who was seeking his 10th Halle Open title and won the Mercedes Cup last week, had the opportunity to take the lead but squandered two set points in the tie break.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion seemed to have regained control of the match as he drew level thanks to a service break in the eighth game of the second set.
However, Federer conceded his serve twice in the third set - in the sixth and eighth games - and although he managed to save a match point, the second did the trick for Coric, giving him his second career title.
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Trump’s fresh threat to bomb Iran amid reports of deal to end war
Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.
US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.
The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.
"Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
"If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before," Trump said.
According to Axios, the deal would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the US agreeing to lift its sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides lifting restrictions around transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
It said many of the terms laid out in the memo would be contingent on a final agreement being reached, leaving the possibility of renewed war or an extended limbo in which the hot war has stopped, but nothing is truly resolved.
