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Geelong day three: maintain form anything possible
In the second round of the men’s singles event, Patrick Franziska beat China’s Fan Zhendong (8-11, 7-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-4, 11-7); at the quarter-final stage of the women’s singles competition Kasumi Ishikawa also caused China pain, she ousted Chen Meng (6-11, 6-11, 13-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-5).
Further progress, the odds look good for Patrick Franziska. In the round of the last eight he faces Sweden’s Mattias Falck. Runner up earlier this year at the Liebherr 2019 World Championships and the no.8 seed in Geelong, as opposed to Patrick Franziska who is the no.15 seed, status favours the Swede but on the most recent three occasions when they have met on the international stage, the verdict has gone in favour of Patrick Franziska.
However, they have not met in 2019; the most recent was the Liebherr 2015 European Championships, since that date much water has passed under the bridge.
A slight vote in favour of Patrick Franziska in the remaining men’s singles quarter-final matches, the evidence is clearer. Xu Xin faces Brazil’s Hugo Calderano. Always in previous matches the verdict has gone in favour of Xu Xin but he is the only Chinese player remaining in the top half of the draw. Remember, the Liebherr 2019 World Championships when he was in a similar situation, he was beaten in the third round by Frenchman Simon Gauzy.
Nevertheless, having struck gold at the most recent ITTF World Tour tournaments in Sapporo and Busan, the results suggest the scales are weighed heavily in favour of Xu Xin. It is a situation that also applies in the all-Chinese lower half of the draw clashes, Liang Jiangkun faces Wang Chuqin, Ma Long opposes Lin Gaoyuan.
Earlier this year Liang Jingkun beat Wang Chuqin at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF Challenge Plus Portugal Open; Ma Long prevailed against Lin Gaoyuan on the ITTF World Tour in Qatar and China as well as at the World Championships.
Patrick Franziska the slight favourite again Mattias Falck; in the women’s singles semi-final for Kasumi Ishikawa, despite the fact that she is the no.6 seed and Sun Yingsha is a qualifier, the odds favour the latter. Three meetings this year on the ITTF World Tour, all three have results in wins for Sun Yingsha; however, Kasumi Ishikawa can take great heart from their most recent, last week in Busan she held match point in the deciding seventh game before experiencing defeat.
In the counterpart semi-final, China’s Ding Ning meets Mima Ito; it is always difficult to back against Ding Ning and she starts the favourite, but as last year in Sweden, this year in China, Mima Ito prevailed.
Meanwhile, in the men’s doubles event Korea Republic’s Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu, the top seeds, defend their title but I would suggest their opponents start as favourites; in the final they meet Lin Gaoyuan and Ma Long.
Similarly, in the women’s doubles gold medal contest, it is a tough task for the Korea Republic; appearing in no less than their 17th ITTF World Tour women’s doubles final as a pairing, Jeon Jihee and Yang Yaeun, the no.2 seeds, oppose Chen Meng and Wang Manyu, the top seeds.
Clear favourites; in the mixed doubles final, statistics read it should be the same; Hong Kong’s Wong Chun Ting and Doo Hoi Kem, the no.2 seeds, face Jun Mizutani and Mima Ito; the Japanese duo was required to qualify but they form a very harmonious combination. The may well upset the order.
At the close of play the winners in the men’s doubles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles events will be known as will the men’s singles semi-finalists and the women’s singles finalists.
Day Three: Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Australian Open
History repeats as Sun rises highest
This has not been the kindest year for Japanese Kasumi Ishikawa while playing China’s Sun Yingsha in ITTF World Tour. Having lost 4-0 to Sun earlier this year in the Qatar Open and Japan Open, she also lost 4-3 in Busan last week while holding one match point. Would today be any different?
No, there was simply nothing that could stop Sun from getting to the final, not even the best efforts of Kasumi when she kept taking huge leads in games, and Sun just kept recovering. In what turned out to be the final game, the Chinese was actually down 3-8 and raced to level things up 10-10. This was the trend for the entirety of 38 minutes Sun took to reach the finals (11-3, 11-7, 12-10, 12-10).
Day three arrives
The action is beginning to hot up in Geelong with the arrival of day three at the Seamaster 2019 ITTF World Tour Platinum Australian Open – Take a look at the fixture schedule below and make sure to watch along live with itTV:
TORONTO – Injured NTT IndyCar Series driver Robert Wickens got a chance to drive Thursday for the first time since his massive crash at Pocono Raceway last August.
Wickens turned laps in a specially-modified Acura NSX Thursday and will drive the same car on a parade lap before Sunday’s Honda Indy Toronto.
Wickens also revealed that he continues to make progress in his physical recovery from a spinal injury suffered in the horrific crash on Aug. 19, 2018.
“There is always steady progress,” Wickens said. “I haven’t woken up one day and had this miraculous gain, but I think little by little, we’re getting there, we’re getting a little bit stronger – well, quite a bit stronger I would say.
“In terms of new nerves firing, it’s funny, sometimes you don’t really notice, but something will be moving, and you’re like, when did that start moving, I don’t remember that. A couple months ago I started gaining some feeling in my abdominal area, and I just kind of one time just itched my stomach and realized that I felt it, but I just didn’t – I have no idea how long, if it was that day that I noticed it or it might have been there for weeks.
“Luckily I haven’t hit that plateau yet. I’m hoping I never will. And if it does, it’s years down the road because there’s people that defy odds. They always say that nerve regeneration is the first 24 months of a spinal cord injury, but then I know speaking to a lot of patients from Craig Hospital where I was rehabbing, the fact that people find their biggest gains four and five years afterwards because they finally start training really hard or they finally get stronger. Anything is possible with this injury. So, I think it’s not easy, but hopefully we can keep on keeping on.”
The next goal for Wickens is to dance at his wedding when he marries Karli Woods later this year.
“Like I said in March, I’ll confidently say I’ll be able to stand there, and then jokingly like that wouldn’t have been much different than if I wasn’t injured in the first place,” Wickens said of his dancing ability. “Hopefully we can sway a little bit. She might have to take the lead, and I’ll just drag behind her.
“But we’ll figure something out.”
The Guelph, Ontario, native will take the next step in his rehabilitation when he takes the modified Acura NSX on a parade lap prior to Sunday’s Honda Indy Toronto. His fiancé, Karli Woods, will be by his side in the passenger seat.
“This was the longest I’ve not driven anything since I was seven years old,” Wickens said in an introductory video shot after his initial drive on Thursday. “It definitely felt like freedom. It was something that finally felt familiar to me.
“Braking points, hitting an apex, bouncing over curbs; it all felt the same. It was fun to figure that stuff out and I’m really excited to keep this project going and see where it takes us.
“This is just phase one of many more phases to come.”
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TORONTO – The notoriously slick 11-turn, 1.7836-mile street course at Toronto’s Exhibition Place lived up to its reputation in Friday’s practice session for the Honda Indy Toronto as several drivers had scrapes with the turn 11 wall.
By the time the two practice sessions were over, Team Penske’s Simon Pagenaud was the fastest driver of the day with a fast time of 59.8708 for a speed of 107.391 mph in the No. 22 Chevrolet. That was faster than rookie Felix Rosenqvist’s 59.9311 (107.283 mph) in the No. 10 Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing.
“It’s been a really good day,” Pagenaud said afterwards. “I think it comes from all the preparation ahead of time. I’m just very happy with the DXC Technology Chevy. I love this track. It’s just a lot of fun. It reminds me of Reims in France, and it’s just awesome. Just really like the rhythm.
“It’s fun. The car is really honestly really good. I just needed to put a good lap together, and it seems good on every tire in every condition. I’ve got to get the job done, and I’ll tell you what, man, this is so much fun. It’s just awesome. I told the team, it’s such a pleasure to drive this car; thanks for preparing it.”
Although Rosenqvist is a rookie in the NTT IndyCar Series, he won both Indy Lights races at Toronto in 2016. He has also finished fourth in two other street races this season, including St. Petersburg in March and Detroit in June.
“It felt actually like a really good prep being in Indy Lights here,” Rosenqvist said. “I think that shows that the program is really good, the Road to Indy. It’s a good way to get prepared for (the NTT) IndyCar (Series). Actually, it felt easier driving one of these cars than the Indy Lights car. Having such sophisticated dampers like we have today in IndyCar, it really helps going around a bumpy track like this.
“It was a good day. The NTT DATA Cessna car, it was the first week we’ve had Cessna with us this year. Obviously, a long-term partner with Chip Ganassi Racing, but it’s good to have them on board, and it was a good way to start out the day with finishes like that.”
Former Toronto winner Sebastien Bourdais was third at 59.9866 (107.184 mph) followed by Spencer Pigot’s Chevrolet at 1:00.0401 (107.088 mph) and defending Toronto winner Scott Dixon’s Honda at 1:00.1445 (106.903 mph).
Although there were several drivers that clipped the turn 11 wall and damaged their cars, none were serious. Alexander Rossi also clipped the wall in turn nine. He finished way down the time list in 14th at 1:00.8161 (105.722 mph).
“It was difficult this afternoon,” Rossi said. “For sure a couple mistakes for me, so I think that cost us a bit of time changes-wise and understanding the car. But yeah, I agree with Simon, it’s pretty crazy around here. It’s a lot of fun. You’re sideways a lot of the time, so it’s what people want to see in Indy car racing.”
SPARTA, Ky. – Daniel Suarez made sure the best was saved for last during Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series qualifying on Friday evening at Kentucky Speedway.
As the final car to attempt a lap, Suarez bumped Aric Almirola to secure the provisional Busch Pole Award, touring the 1.5-mile oval in 29.254 seconds (184.590 mph) with his No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Mustang.
Friday marked Suarez’s second-career Cup Series pole and his first of the season.
“My car has been very fast the entire day. I feel that we had probably the fastest car in the last practice and the fastest car in qualifying again,” Suarez noted. “I am very proud of my guys, everyone with Ford Performance and Stewart-Haas Racing, and everyone that makes this program go. We have been working very hard.
“I really want to win so bad. I haven’t been in victory lane for awhile,” added Suarez, who is seeking his first Cup Series victory. “The last time was in Brazil in a go-kart race. I am looking forward to bringing a trophy home for awhile and we have a very fast car so now it is up to me to make it happen tomorrow night.”
The starting grid and qualifying results will be confirmed following pre-race inspection on Saturday afternoon, as the Cup Series is on an impound schedule this weekend.
Any cars which fail tech on Saturday will have their time disallowed and be forced to start from the rear of the field.
Aric Almirola qualified second and, pending his car passing inspection, will join Suarez on the front row for Saturday night’s Quaker State 400 presented by Wal-Mart.
Almirola posted a time of 29.380 seconds (183.799 mph) with his No. 10 Ford Mustang, a tenth and a quarter off of Suarez’s pole-winning time at the end of the day.
Brad Keselowski timed in third-quick, giving Ford a sweep of the top three grid positions, followed by the Chevrolet Camaro of Kurt Busch and another Ford in Kevin Harvick.
Daniel Hemric, Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr., Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch rounded out the top 10 on the speed charts.
Defending Cup Series champion Joey Logano rolls off 11th, while seven-time titlist Jimmie Johnson starts 13th on Saturday night.
To view the complete starting grid, advance to the next page.
WOODSTOCK, Ga. – The United Sprint Car Series events July 12-13, at Travelers Rest Speedway and Dixie Speedway, respectively, have been postponed due to weather.
The USCS Sprint Cars will make their annual July stop at Carolina Speedway on Friday, July 19 next weekend, then travel 90 minutes south to Travelers Rest Speedway on July 20th for the rescheduled event at that facility.
The 11th annual Randy Helton Memorial Race at Dixie Speedway during the Dixie Sprint Car Nationals will be made up on Aug. 3.
Vegas leads at midway point of revitalizing John Deere Classic
With most of the PGA Tour’s stars taking the week off or playing in Scotland, the John Deere Classic was likely going to offer the chance for players to resurface atop a leaderboard and collect some much needed FedExCup points. On cue, Jhonattan Vegas leads Andrew Landry by a shot at the halfway point of Revitalization Week at TPC Deere Run:
Leaderboard: Vegas (-13), Landry (-12), Lucas Glover (-11), Harold Varner III (-10), Russell Henley (-10), Daniel Berger (-10), Cameron Tringale (-10)
What it means: A week after Matthew Wolff and the young guns dominated the headlines in Minnesota, we’ll enter the weekend in the Quad Cities with some contenders we haven’t seen in a while. Vegas, who had missed four of his past five cuts entering the week, has slipped to 89th in the world – a T-3 at The Players the only reason he was back inside the top 100 in the first place. Landry, who won for the first time on Tour last summer, has slipped 102 spots in the world rankings and hasn’t had a top-25 finish on Tour in more than a year. And then there’s Berger, now No. 104 in the world; Chris Stroud, who has now made two weekends in his past 10 tries; and Henley, who is shockingly ranked 200th in the world and had made just one cut in his last seven events before this week. All three are within four shots of Vegas.
Round of the day: Vegas did it all Friday, making nine birdies, missing just two greens and holing over 117 feet of putts to shoot 9-under 62, the best round of his Tour career.
Best of the rest: Glover fired a 7-under 64, highlighted by the shot of the day (see below). Landry and Varner each used second-round 65s to climb into the top 4. Varner is looking for his first top-10 since Phoenix. Roger Sloan and Chris Stroud were among the other players to shoot 6 under.
Biggest disappointment: Cameron Champ continued his struggles, entering the day at even par and with a chance to make the cut. However, Champ shoot 75 to punch his ticket home.
Biggest storyline entering the weekend: With just four weeks remaining until the start of the FedExCup Playoffs, the John Deere Classic is one of the final chances for players to secure their spots in the Tour’s postseason. Vegas is comfortably at No. 70, though a win would move him inside the top 30. Landry and Henley are both well outside the top 125, and Henley would have to go to the Korn Ferry Tour Finals should he fail to move inside that number. Bill Haas and Stewart Cink are other veterans in contention who desperately need a FedExCup boost. Of course, there’s also a spot in The Open on the line. Glover is the only player inside the top 10 who is already qualified.
Shot of the day: Playing alongside Wolff, Kevin Tway showed off his driving ability on the 14th hole. #Gainz
But that's the not the shot of the day. That belongs to Glover, who holed his 255-yard second shot at the par-5 10th hole for an albatross.
Quote of the day: “It was business. I was grinding my tail off. No, it was a lot of fun. I mean, I guess you guys can see the scorecard. I haven't really looked – I signed the scorecard, but I didn't really look at it. Yeah, I just feel like I'm doing a lot of good things.” – Varner
Goosen (62) catches fire to take 3-shot lead at Senior Players
AKRON, Ohio – Retief Goosen shot an 8-under 62 on Friday to take a three-stroke lead in the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship, the fourth of the PGA Tour Champions' five major tournaments.
After returning in the morning to birdie the 18th for a 69 in the rain-delayed first round, Goosen made an 8-foot eagle putt on the par-5 second hole in the second round and added six birdies in the bogey-free round at Firestone Country Club.
"I got it off to a nice flying start on my 18th hole at 7 this morning. I birdied 18 this morning, then went back to the hotel, had an hour and a half sleep again. Came back out and continued the great play after that."
The 50-year-old South African is winless in 11 starts in his first season on the senior tour, losing a playoff to Jerry Kelly last month in the American Family Insurance Championship. Goosen won seven times on the PGA Tour, taking major titles at the U.S. Open in 2001 and 2004.
Playing partner Steve Stricker, the first-round leader after a 64 that he completed with a birdie in the morning, had a 70 to drop into a tie for second with Brandt Jobe.
"Steve got off to great start yesterday and you feel like you're falling way behind," Goosen said. "I managed to finish OK this morning only being five behind and suddenly I went on a roll and his game went dead. So it's funny how it works."
Stricker is coming off a victory two weeks ago in the U.S. Senior Open at Norte Dame, and also won the major Regions Tradition in May.
"Never really got anything going at all," Stricker said. "Drove it in the rough quite a few times, missed quite a few greens, and just when I did hit it on the green, it really wasn't that close to have legitimate birdie putts at it. It's just a good golf course. And if you're a little off off the tee, you pay the price."
Firestone is a longtime PGA Tour venue, hosting the World Golf Championships event and previously the World Series of Golf.
"It's a golf course that I've had some good rounds and I've also had lots of bad rounds," Goosen said. "It's that kind of course. If you're a little bit off your game you could be on the fairway behind a tree. So, it's a course that can get the best of you very quickly and not really playing all that bad."
Jobe shot 69-65.
"It's a hard golf course. No let-up," Jobe said. "I played almost 28 holes. I'm tired. On this golf course, with it being wet and long, it was a long day."
Jay Haas (68), Kent Jones (67) and Tommy Tolles (67) were tied for fourth at 3 under.
Defending champion Vijay Singh was even par after his second 70. Bernhard Langer was tied for 50th at 8 over after rounds of 76 and 72. He won the event three straight times from 2014 through 2016.
S.Y. Kim (64) holds 1-shot lead heading to weekend at Marathon Classic
SYLVANIA, Ohio – Sei Young Kim shot a 7-under 64 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead over U.S. Women's Open champion Jeongeun Lee6 in the Marathon Classic.
Kim had four straight birdies on Nos. 3-6 and also birdied the par-4 12th and 15th holes and the par-5 18th to get to 11-under 131 at Highland Meadows Golf Club. The South Korean player won the LPGA Mediheal Championship in May in California for her eighth tour title.
Lee6 shot her second straight 66. The South Korean birdied two of the last three holes.
Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis and Jennifer Kupcho were 9 under. Kupcho shot 66, Thompson 67, and Lewis 68, with Lewis playing alongside Kim the first two days.
Lewis won the last of her 12 LPGA tour titles in 2017. She was born in nearby Toledo and has an endorsement deal with Marathon Oil.
Thompson is coming off a two-week break.
Kupcho is making her sixth tour start as a pro. The former Wake Forest star won the inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur in April.
Yealimi Noh, the 17-year-old from California who tied for sixth last week in Wisconsin in her LPGA Tour debut, missing the cut with rounds of 73 and 72. She played on a sponsor exemption after Monday qualifying last week.
Trio of Americans lurking behind South Korean stars at Marathon Classic
Lexi Thompson continues to build on strong momentum with yet another run into weekend contention.
Jennifer Kupcho looks to break through as a pro three months after making history at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.
Stacy Lewis takes another step to winning as a hometown favorite.
Those three Americans put themselves in position Friday to win halfway through the Marathon Classic in suburban Toledo, but they’ll have to get through two players looking to continue South Korea’s dominance this year.
Sei Young Kim posted the day’s best round with a 7-under-par 64, taking the second-round lead at 11 under overall. She’s one shot ahead of Jeongeun Lee6 (66), winner of last month’s U.S. Women’s Open.
Kim and Lee6 are looking to give the Koreans their ninth victory in 18 LPGA events this year. They’re each also looking for their second victories this season.
Thompson (67), Kupcho (66) and Lewis (68) are all one shot back.
“I feel good where my game’s at,” Thompson said.
Her record demonstrates why. In Thompson’s last eight starts, she has finished T-4 or better five times, a run that includes a victory at the ShopRite Classic and two runner-up finishes.
It’s a good time to be at top form. After taking two weeks off to rest, Thompson is embarking on a run of four consecutive weeks that will end with back-to-back majors.
“It was very much needed,” Thompson said. “I played five weeks straight before that and was just mentally drained. I had two majors in that five-week stretch. Really, my whole career, I've never played five weeks straight.”
Thompson, 24, is the highest ranked American in the world at No. 4.
After this week, Thompson will partner with Cristie Kerr at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational’s inaugural team event in Michigan, then it’s off to France for the Evian Championship and England for the AIG Women’s British Open.
Kupcho’s profile soared winning the Augusta National Women’s Amateur in April, but it has taken time to get used to the rhythms of life as a pro. She’s coming off back-to-back missed cuts with a T-23 her best finish in her five LPGA starts since leaving the amateur ranks.
Her growing popularity has added to the challenge in transitioning to the pro game.
“So many time things, that it's definitely been hard to calm down and really focus on golf,” Kupcho said.
She’s eager to have something more than the ANWA to talk to media about.
“There are still people that are like, 'Oh, can we interview you for Augusta?’ I'm like, 'That happened two months ago,'” Kupcho said. “I'm trying to move on and work on pro stuff.”
Lewis is looking for her 13th LPGA title, her first since becoming a mom and her first in Toledo, where she was born and where her parents grew up. She’s got her child, Chesnee, with her this week and lots of local family and friends following her.
“It's just a lot of fun this year to give them something to cheer about,” Lewis said. “They were pretty pumped after the round yesterday. It's always fun to have them, and have those family dinners every night, and just be around everybody.”
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