{"id":20545,"date":"2017-01-27T11:43:25","date_gmt":"2017-01-27T11:43:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=20545"},"modified":"2017-01-27T11:43:25","modified_gmt":"2017-01-27T11:43:25","slug":"dimitrov-wins-2nd-set-levels-semi-vs-nadal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/tennis\/dimitrov-wins-2nd-set-levels-semi-vs-nadal.html","title":{"rendered":"Dimitrov wins 2nd set, levels semi vs Nadal"},"content":{"rendered":"<div align=\"Justify\">\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Dimitrov wins 2nd set, levels semi vs Nadal<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">The Latest on Friday at the Australian Open (all times local):<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">9:30 p.m.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Grigor Dimitrov converted his fifth set point to take the second 7-5 and level his Australian Open semifinal against Rafael Nadal at one set apiece on Friday night.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">After losing the first set 6-3, Dimitrov broke Nadal&#8217;s serve in the fourth game of the second set. Nadal got back on terms during an exchange of service breaks from the seventh game to the ninth, with both players double-faulting on key points.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Dimitrov had a chance to serve for the set at 5-3 but was broken. Nadal saved four set points in the 10th game, serving at 4-5, but couldn&#8217;t hold on again in the 12th game, sending backhand long at 15-40.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">8:25 p.m.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Rafael Nadal has won the first set 6-3 in his Australian Open semifinal against No. 15-seeded Grigor Dimitrov.The 14-time major winner, returning from an extended injury layoff for his left wrist, broke Dimitrov&#8217;s serve in the fourth game and closed out in 35 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">No. 9-seeded Nadal and Dimitrov are playing off for a spot in Sunday&#8217;s final against Roger Federer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">7:20 p.m.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Lucie Safarova enhanced their reputation as the dominant duo by winning the Australian Open women&#8217;s doubles final 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-3 over Andrea Hlavackova and China&#8217;s Peng Shuai.It extended the pair&#8217;s unbeaten record to 12 matches at Melbourne Park \u2014 they won the 2015 doubles title, but didn&#8217;t play together last year because Safarova was ill.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">The second Australian title was their fourth together in Grand Slams after also winning the 2015 French Open and last year&#8217;s US Open.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">It was the first meeting of the teams in which all four players have won at least two Grand Slam doubles titles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Hlavackova and Peng, who had not dropped a set on the way to the final, took an early service break and seemed in command of the opening set.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">But Mattek-Sands and Safarova were able to retrieve it and the duel headed inevitably to a tiebreak. Hlavackova and Peng surged to the lead and held on to close it out 7-3.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Hlavackova and Peng both lost serve to slump to 0-3 in the second set before breaking Mattek-Sands to get on the scoreboard. It proved to be merely a slight interruption for the American and Safarova as they powered through the second set 6-3 to square the stirring final.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">The deciding set swung on Hlavackova&#8217;s serve in the fourth game. After seemingly being in control, she had to fight off a break point and then double-faulted on the next one for the crucial service break.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Trying to build on a 3-1 lead, Safarova staved off three break points to finally hold serve.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Peng pulled back from 0-40 at 1-4 to hold serve. But when Mattek-Sands held in the next game, the second-seeded pair were in winning position.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">5:40 p.m.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Sania Mirza has a shot at another Australian Open mixed doubles title.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Mirza and Ivan Dodig reached the final after ending the hopes of local pair Sam Groth and Samantha Stosur 6-4, 2-6, 10-5 in Friday&#8217;s semifinals on Rod Laver Arena.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Mirza won the 2009 Australian Open mixed doubles title with fellow Indian Maheshi Bhupathi. She reached the 2016 French Open final with Dodig, losing to Martina Hingis and Leander Paes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Groth and Stosur squandered a 4-2 lead, surrendering four successive games to lose the opening set, but the Australian pair rallied strongly to send the match into a deciding tiebreak set.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>v<span style=\"font-size: 14pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #000000;\">Second-seeded Mirza and Dodig seized control when Groth&#8217;s booming serve misfired on a couple of crucial points and the powerful Australian even gave up a critical double-fault.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 8pt;\">Source:-\u00a0http:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/tennis\/2017\/01\/27\/the-latest-mattek-sands-and-safarova-win-womens-doubles\/97125334\/<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"fb-background-color\">\n\t\t\t  <div \n\t\t\t  \tclass = \"fb-comments\" \n\t\t\t  \tdata-href = \"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/tennis\/dimitrov-wins-2nd-set-levels-semi-vs-nadal.html\"\n\t\t\t  \tdata-numposts = \"10\"\n\t\t\t  \tdata-lazy = \"true\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-colorscheme = \"light\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-order-by = \"social\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-mobile=true>\n\t\t\t  <\/div><\/div>\n\t\t  <style>\n\t\t    .fb-background-color {\n\t\t\t\tbackground: #ffffff !important;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t.fb_iframe_widget_fluid_desktop iframe {\n\t\t\t    width: 630px !important;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t  <\/style>\n\t\t  ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dimitrov wins 2nd set, levels semi vs Nadal The Latest on Friday at the Australian Open (all times local): 9:30 p.m. Grigor Dimitrov converted his fifth set point to take the second 7-5 and level his Australian Open semifinal against Rafael Nadal at one set apiece on Friday night. After [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":20546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[936],"tags":[12597,12595,12594,3242,12596],"class_list":["post-20545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tennis","tag-breaking-sports-news","tag-dimitrov-wins-2nd-set","tag-dimitrov-wins-2nd-set-levels-semi-vs-nadal","tag-latest-news","tag-levels-semi-vs-nadal"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20545","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20545"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20545\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20545"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20545"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20545"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}