World No.132 Diatchenko stuns Sharapova in Wimbledon 1st round
Wimbledon, July 4 : Russia's Maria Sharapova suffered an upset against 132nd-ranked countrywoman Vitalia Diatchenko, who prevailed 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 in the first round of Wimbledon tennis championships here on Tuesday.
The 24th-seeded Sharapova, who was playing Wimbledon for the first time since returning to the WTA Tour last year after serving a 15-month doping suspension, won the first set in part due to her opponent's six double faults, reports Efe.
But the 27-year-old Diatchenko was more solid down the stretch and corrected her serving problems, committing just three double faults over the final two sets.
The underdog's superior winning percentage on second-serve points (a reflection of her superiority from the baseline) was the difference, as she won 53 per cent of those points compared to 41 percent for her much more accomplished countrywoman.
The 2004 champion and 2011 runner-up, who did not compete in last year's event due to injury, had never before lost in the first round of Wimbledon in 13 previous appearances.
Meanwhile, top-seeded Simona Halep of Romania began her journey at the 2018 Wimbledon with 6-2, 6-4 first-round victory over Kurumi Nara.
The world No. 1, fresh off winning her first Grand Slam title at the French Open, needed just an hour and 18 minutes to beat the Japanese world No. 100.
The Romanian star had not played an official tournament match since her breakthrough performance in Paris.
Halep will square off in the second round against Chinese world No. 126 Saisai Zheng.
In the men's section, three-time champion Novak Djokovic cruised into the second round with a 6-3, 6-1, 6-2 victory over American Tennys Sandgren.
The score was a perfect reflection of the reality on court, as the Serbian 12-time Grand Slam champion faced just one break point (losing it to drop serve) and converted seven of his 19 break-point chances.
Sandgren was a potentially tough first-round opponent who made a surprise run to the quarter-finals of this year's Australian Open. But he was no match for an all-time great player who has shown in recent weeks that he has put his injury woes behind him and is ready to go deep at major tournaments.
Djokovic will next take on Argentina's Horacio Zeballos in the second round.
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Ready to face no-confidence motion, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah
Hassan (Karnataka) (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday said that the Congress government led by him was ready to face the no-confidence motion if moved by the opposition during the legislature session from December 8.
With Deputy CM D K Shivakumar by his side, he reiterated that they would both abide by the high command's decision on the leadership issue.
"Let them (opposition) bring in a no-confidence motion or adjournment motion or any other motion. We are ready to face it. Ours is an open book, transparent government. We are ready to face anything," Siddaramaiah said in response to a question.
However, BJP state President B Y Vijayendra and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, clarified that the party, along with the JD(S) has not discussed or decided anything so far regarding moving a no-confidence motion against the government.
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The winter session of the Karnataka legislature will begin in Belagavi, bordering Maharashtra, on December 8 and will go on till 19th of this month.
Not wanting to react to a question on the leadership issue, the CM said the Congress high command is very strong.
"D K Shivakumar and I will be committed to whatever the high command decides," he said.
Earlier in the day in Bengaluru, Shivakumar accompanied AICC Mallikarjun Kharge till airport from Vidhana Soudha, after paying tributes to B R Ambedkar on his 69th death anniversary, which had led to some speculation about possible discussion between the two on the leadership issue.
The power tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a change in chief minister in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.
However, both the CM and Deputy CM had recently held breakfast meetings at each others residences, on the instructions of the high command, which is seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah's continuation as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.
