7:42 AM ET Associated Press ADELAIDE, Australia — Serena Williams was preparing to play Naomi Osaka at an Adelaide exhibition tournament on Friday. But first things first — after 14 days in quarantine because of the COVID-19 pandemic regulations in Australia, the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion took her daughter to the zoo. Williams said

12:55 AM ET World No. 1 Novak Djokovic pulled out of an Adelaide exhibition because of a blistered hand on Friday before appearing on court to play a set after all, helping his compatriot Filip Krajinovic beat Jannik Sinner. Djokovic was scheduled to kick off the “Day at the Drive” event in front of a

8:02 PM ET As the final hours of Alex de Minaur’s enforced hotel quarantine come to a close, the 21-year-old has no complaints about his time locked inside and instead is looking at things with a different perspective. Unlike many of his countrymen, de Minaur arrived in Australia on an Australian Open chartered flight from

2:54 PM ET Sports fans should savour Ash Barty’s return to tennis because it could be fleeting. While Barty hopes Friday night’s [AEDT] comeback match in Adelaide marks the start of a “long season” ahead, the world No.1 is offering no real guarantees beyond the Australian summer. Barty hasn’t played since last February, deciding not

6:30 PM ET You could be forgiven for thinking reigning Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin was short-changed in 2020. The 22-year-old broke through for her maiden Grand Slam win in Melbourne last year, defeating Garbine Muguruza in three sets in the final, and looked on the cusp of an incredible breakout season. But one by

10:22 AM ET Associated Press LONDON — – Two Russian tennis players were banned from the sport for life on Wednesday for match-fixing, including incidents when they played together as doubles partners. The International Tennis Integrity Agency said Alija Merdeeva was found guilty of two counts of match-fixing. Sofia Dmitrieva was found guilty of six

7:53 AM ET Associated Press ROME — Andy Murray has entered a lower-tier challenger tournament in Italy next month after withdrawing from the Australian Open with the coronavirus. Murray is listed to play an indoor tournament in Biella starting Feb. 15, the Italian Tennis Federation said Wednesday. The tournament has 132,000 euros ($160,000) in prize

7:45 AM ET Nick Kyrgios and Rafael Nadal have both aimed digs at Novak Djokovic with the Australian saying he had a duty to call out the world No. 1 when he “lost his way” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kyrgios called the Serbian’s ill-fated Adria Tour in June “boneheaded” and described Djokovic as a “tool”

7:00 AM ET D’Arcy MaineESPN.com Victoria Azarenka cried when she heard the news. Having traveled halfway around the world to Melbourne for only the second time since 2016, the two-time Australian Open champion was excited to make her return to the tournament and build on the momentum from her 2020 season, in which she reached

2:54 AM ET An extra women’s tennis tournament catering for players serving 14-day hard lockdowns in Melbourne will be added to the calendar ahead of next month’s Australian Open. It means six tournaments will be staged simultaneously early next month ahead of the Open, which is due to begin on February 8. There will now