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Shannon Sharpe: LeBron James sitting out isn’t surprising; he won’t miss the Championship banner unveiling I UNDISPUTED

May 12, 2021

https://b.fssta.com/uploads/2021/05/lebron.vresize.335.220.high.0.jpg

The Los Angeles Lakers were able to get a thrilling 101-99 overtime win over the New York Knicks last night but without LeBron James. The 36-year-old forward sat out once again despite previous reports saying that he had his spring back from a stiff ankle. The reigning champs now have three regular season games against the Houston Rockets, Indiana Pacers, and New Orleans Pelicans before postseason play. Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe discuss what LeBron sitting out another game meant.

Sports

Tre Kronor pressade Ryssland – men föll

May 12, 2021

Sverige tog ledningen genom KHL-forwarden Oscar Lindberg drygt åtta minuter in i den första perioden – men roligare än så blev det aldrig. Kvitteringen kom knappt sex minuter efter och i andra perioden drog Ryssland i väg till 4–2 efter bland annat två mål i numerärt överläge.

När Vladislav Kamenov sedan utökade till 5–2 i tredje perioden genom ett backhandskott mellan benen på Sveriges målvakt Adam Reideborn såg det ut att vara klappat och klart.

Två snabba mål med 32 sekunders mellanrum skulle ge Tre Kronor nytt hopp. Först tryckte Filip Hallander in en retur till 3–5 och sedan prickade Skellefteåspelaren Jonathan Pudas in 4–5.

Sverige fick chansen att kvittera i ett numerärt överläge men lyckades inte skaka fram någon kvalificerad målchans. I stället fastställde ryssarna slutresultatet i tom kasse med 19 sekunder kvar.

Sports

Förre FBK-kaptenen klar för en återkomst

May 12, 2021

Den dåvarande lagkaptenen Linus Johansson lämnade Färjestad för att pröva vingarna i KHL och HK Sotji efter säsongen 2019/20.

Efter att tvingats lämna HK Sotji redan efter åtta matcher skrev centern i vintras på för Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk i KHL. Totalt noterades Johansson för nio poäng på 27 matcher i KHL och nu är det klart att han återvänder till SHL och Färjestad redan efter en säsong.

Det är Värmlands Folkblads Johan Ekberg som skriver på Twitter att Färjestad bekräftat övergången i ett medlemsmail. Johansson har skrivit på ett kontrakt med Färjestad som sträcker sig till 2025 med option att bryta kontraktet efter två och tre år.

Johansson förutom Färjestad även representerat Djurgården i SHL.

Sports

”Jag fick inte riktigt vara en riktig person”

May 12, 2021

Målmaskinen Veronica Wislander, 29, har flyttat hem till väst igen – för spel i HK Aranäs.

Saknaden till familjen blev för stor.

– Familjen har varit det som har varit jobbigast, säger Veronica Wislander, som i en intervju med GT berättar om hur det har varit att bli jämförd med sin pappa.

Flyers drop from trendy East favorite to another lost season

May 12, 2021

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Alain Vigneault met with Philadelphia Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher after the team was eliminated from the playoff race and was blunt on his self-evaluation.

“I sort of felt like I’ve let everyone down here, from him to ownership to our fans to our players,” Vigneault said.

Vigneault’s second season on the bench opened with so much promise coming off a successful debut that included a playoff series victory for the first time since 2012.

What the Flyers (25-23-8; 58 points) suffered through instead was, in many ways — thanks to big expectations — a season that ended with disillusionment.

It still ended like so many of the rest: Without a sip out of the Stanley Cup. The Flyers have not won the championship since taking consecutive Cups in 1974 and 1975 and have not played in the Final since 2010.

Vigneault was hired with a championship pedigree, having led the Rangers and Canucks to the Cup Final, but his first two seasons in Philly have been shortened and hampered by the pandemic.

“I’d like to coach the Flyers in a normal year,” Vigneault said Tuesday. “With everything going on in the world, I don’t want to make it sound like I’m complaining because it’s been hard on everyone. I would really enjoy coaching the Flyers in a normal year and in a normal setting.”

There was, of course, nothing normal about this season and the Flyers were no more affected than any other team in the NHL.

Yet, Vigneault and Fletcher indicated the root of their struggles started last offseason when the Canadian players struggled to train at home.

They pinned their woes on COVID-19-related absences and no practice time that set back a core of promising talent that on the whole regressed.

“Those younger players, when the game slips a little bit, were not quite executing the way we need to have success,” Vigneault said.

“You have to practice and we didn’t have any practice time. I’m not saying that’s the reason. A lot of things happened, but I’m going to need some time to reflect on it. But I do think that played a part in our game slipping and our season going the way it did.”

Consider some of the numbers:

— Went 12-12-4 at home a year after posting an NHL-best 25-6-4 record at Wells Fargo Center.

— Allowed 197 goals this season (3.52 per game).

— Allowed 15 straight goals over two games to the New York Rangers.

— Lost to a Sabres team that had lost 18 straight games.

Comcast Spectacor CEO David Scott took five questions Tuesday for his first full-media availability this season without providing much of a game plan for the future.

“The city of Philadelphia deserves so much more,” he said.

The Flyers once routinely packed the arena and the orange-and-black faithful could make Philly one of the best hockey cities in the league.

Now, the Flyers have dropped behind the other pro teams when it comes to buzz and fan interest, and the roster misses that Bryce Harper or Joel Embiid — the kind of player you pay to watch and can change the outcome with one play.

The Flyers have plenty to figure out this offseason.

HEART STOPPER

The most baffling setback this season came with 22-year-old Carter Hart struggling as the No. 1 goalie. He went 9-11-5 this season with a 3.67 goals-against average.

Last year, Hart became the youngest goalie in Flyers history with a shutout in Game 3 at 22 years, 3 days and his second one made it the fifth time in NHL history a goalie had back-to-back postseason shutouts before age 23. Carter sat out the final games of this season with a mild knee strain.

“Certainly, we’re going to have to take a look at our situation in goal, which has kind of been a constant struggle here for years,” Fletcher said.

BLAME CANADA?

The Flyers’ use of the “Anytime. Anywhere” slogan might need a tweak.

Fletcher and Vigneault said players who spent last season in Canada had trouble finding gyms, training facilities and ice time because of the lockdowns, and players such as Travis Konecny and Sean Couturier were among the players who didn’t play up to their potential.

“One of my questions when meeting with the players this afternoon is, what are you doing this summer? If things stay the way they are right now in Canada, they’re going to have to make some adjustments to their summer plans,” Vigneault said.

“I can’t reflect throughout the rest of the NHL, but our team, the Canadian players that went back to Canada had a challenging time.”

Tsitsipas Cruises Past Cilic In Rome

May 12, 2021

Stefanos Tsitsipas passed an opening-round test against Marin Cilic 7-5, 6-2 to reach the fourth round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

“Sometimes I need to adjust my game and Marin is someone I respect a lot,” Tsitsipas said on-court. “I knew he was going to come out here and play his best tennis.”

The Greek improved to 28-7 this season, which tied him back up with Andrey Rublev for most wins after Rublev beat Jan-Lennard Struff earlier on Wednesday. Though Tsitsipas lost in the third round in Madrid, the World No. 5 is filled with confidence after winning his first ATP Masters 1000 title at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. He’s also a former semi-finalist in Rome (2019).

Cilic is 0-11 against Top 10 opponents dating back to his 2018 Australian Open win over Rafael Nadal. He’s now 8-8 on the season.

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In a competitive first set, Tsitsipas pounced at 6-5 to break Cilic for the first time when it mattered the most. He had full control of the match from there with Cilic hitting 23 unforced errors to Tsitsipas’ 13.

“He made me move a lot,” Tsitsipas said. “It was quite tricky to adjust to that at the beginning, but towards the very end of the first set I stayed calm and I stayed resilient. I had to play deep on the returns and find solutions from the baseline rallies. Obviously, that worked well for me from 6-5.”

Tsitsipas next faces Matteo Berrettini, who beat John Millman 6-4, 6-2. The Italian will have the home-court advantage when fans return on Thursday. Tsitsipas feels right at home in Rome though, and enjoyed the scenery Pietrangeli stadium had to offer.

“[Pietrangeli] itself is very beautiful; it’s one of the best courts on tour,” Tsitsipas said. “I feel like the atmosphere here is great. We’re surrounded by trees in the city and it’s very, very quiet which is important for tennis. And honestly, I can’t wait for the fans to come and fill in the stadium.”

Berrettini continued his great serving form from his final run in Madrid. He faced zero break points, giving him freedom to go for more on return games. He broke the Aussie to start the second set and ran away with the match quickly from there.

Since his debut in 2017, the World No. 9 has improved with each appearance in Rome, reaching the second round in 2018, the third round in 2019, and the quarter-finals in 2020. He will have a tough challenge next in Tsitsipas, who beat him in their only meeting at the 2019 Australian Open.

Your 2020-21 NHL on NBC TV schedule

May 12, 2021

• All 31 NHL Teams Featured Throughout Roughly 100 Games Across NBC and NBCSN; 21 Teams Make At Least Four Appearances

• Schedule Features Wednesday Night Hockey and Tuesday Hockey Happy Hour Doubleheaders; More Than 75% of Teams Appear on Wednesday Nights

NBC Sports announced its full regular-season NHL NBC schedule that will feature all 31 NHL teams across roughly 100 games on NBC and NBCSN, beginning January 13 with a Wednesday Night Hockey tripleheader on NBCSN headlined by the defending Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning against the Chicago Blackhawks.

NBC Sports will present a record 16 regular-season games on the NBC broadcast network, beginning Sunday, Jan. 17 when the Pittsburgh Penguins host the Washington Capitals.

In December, the NHL announced a 56-game regular-season schedule per team for the 2020-21 season, as well as a divisional realignment which limits team matchups to intra-division play and minimizes team travel as much as possible.

• No team will have more than seven exclusive appearances on NBC and NBCSN and 21 teams will have at least four national appearances this year.

• Some teams will appear nationally more than seven times, but those games will be blacked out in the local market and shown on their local RSN.

Additional NHL NBC schedule highlights:

• Wednesday Night Hockey Presented by New Amsterdam Vodka on NBCSN – More than 75% of NHL teams will appear on Wednesday nights on NBCSN, and most will feature doubleheaders (and in some cases tripleheaders) surrounding its Wednesday Night Hockey coverage, including both early and late start times.

• NHL on NBC – NBC Sports will showcase the NHL 16 times on NBC – once per week on average during the 2020-21 season – marking the most-ever NHL regular-season games on NBC. In addition, the final matchup on Saturday, May 8, is TBD and will feature the most compelling game with playoff implications.

• Sunday Night Hockey on NBCSN – There will be 10 Sunday Night Hockey matchups on NBCSN, featuring teams from all four divisions, all four Conference Final teams from the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and a majority of matchups featuring a traditional Western Conference team.

2020-21 NHL NBC REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN)

Wed., Jan. 13	Pittsburgh	Philadelphia	NBCSN	PHI 6-3
	Chicago	Tampa Bay	NBCSN	TB 4-1
	St. Louis	Colorado	NBCSN	STL 5-1
Sun., Jan. 17	Washington	Pittsburgh	NBC	PIT 4-3 (SO)
Mon., Jan. 18	Columbus	Detroit	NBCSN	CBJ 3-2
	Boston	N.Y. Islanders	NBCSN	NYI 1-0
	Buffalo	Philadelphia	NBCSN	BUF 6-1
	Arizona	Vegas	NBCSN	VGK 4-2
Tues., Jan. 19	Washington	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 5-4
Wed., Jan. 20	Edmonton	Toronto	NBCSN	EDM 3-1
	Minnesota	Anaheim	NBCSN	MIN 3-2
Thur., Jan. 21	Tampa Bay	Columbus	NBCSN	TB 3-2 (OT)
	Montreal	Vancouver	NBCSN	MTL 7-3
Sun., Jan. 24	Detroit	Chicago	NBC	CHI 6-2
Tues., Jan. 26	N.Y. Islanders	Washington	NBCSN	WSH 3-2
Wed., Jan. 27	Chicago	Nashville	NBCSN	NSH 2-1 (SO)
Mon., Feb. 1	Pittsburgh	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	NYR 3-1
Tues., Feb. 2	Buffalo	N.Y. Islanders	NBCSN	PPD
	Minnesota	Colorado	NBCSN	COL 2-1
Wed., Feb. 3	Detroit	Tampa Bay	NBCSN	TBL 5-1
	Boston	Philadelphia	NBCSN	BOS 4-3 (OT)

Sun., Feb. 7	Philadelphia	Washington	NBC	PHI 7-4
Mon., Feb. 8	N.Y. Islanders	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	NYI 2-0
Tues., Feb. 9	Philadelphia	Washington	NBCSN	PPD
	Tampa Bay	Nashville	NBCSN	TB 6-1
Wed., Feb. 10	Boston	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	BOS 3-2 (OT)
Sun., Feb. 14	Washington	Pittsburgh	NBC	PIT 6-3
	Colorado	Vegas	NBCSN	VGK 1-0
Mon., Feb. 15	N.Y. Islanders	Buffalo	NBCSN	NYI 3-1
Tues., Feb. 16	Washington	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	WSH 3-1
Wed., Feb. 17	Chicago	Detroit	NBCSN	CHI 2-0
	Winnipeg	Edmonton	NBCSN	EDM 3-2
Sat., Feb. 20	Vegas	Colorado	NBCSN	COL 3-2
Sun., Feb. 21	Philadelphia	Boston	NBCSN	BOS 7-3
	New Jersey	Washington	NBC	WSH 4-3
Tues., Feb. 23	Pittsburgh	Washington	NBCSN	PIT 3-2 (OT)
Wed., Feb. 24	N.Y. Rangers	Philadelphia	NBCSN	PHI 4-3
	Los Angeles	St. Louis	NBCSN	LA 2-1
Sun., Feb. 28	Boston	N.Y. Rangers	NBC	BOS 4-1
	Detroit	Chicago	NBCSN	CHI 7-2
Tues., March 2	Philadelphia	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 5-2
Wed., March 3	Washington	Boston	NBCSN	WSH 2-1 (SO)
	St. Louis	Anaheim	NBCSN	STL 3-2
Sun., March 7	Buffalo	N.Y. Islanders	NBC	NYI 5-2
	Tampa Bay	Chicago	NBCSN	TBL 6-3
	New Jersey	Boston	NBCSN	NJ 1-0
	N.Y. Rangers	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 5-1
Tues., March 9	N.Y. Rangers	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 4-2
	Chicago	Dallas	NBCSN	DAL 6-1
Wed., March 10	Vegas	Minnesota	NBCSN	MIN 4-3
	Los Angeles	Anaheim	NBCSN	LAK 5-1
Sun., March 14	Los Angeles	Colorado	NBCSN	COL 4-1
Mon., March 15	Philadelphia	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	PHI 5-4 (OT)
Tues., March 16	Boston	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	BOS 2-1
Wed., March 17	Philadelphia	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	NYR 9-0
	Edmonton	Calgary	NBCSN	EDM 7-3
Sun., March 21	Vegas	Los Angeles	NBCSN	LAK 3-1
Mon., March 22	Anaheim	Minnesota	NBCSN	MIN 2-1
Tues., March 23	New Jersey	Philadelphia	NBCSN	NJD 4-3
Wed., March 24	Anaheim	Minnesota	NBCSN	MIN 3-2
	Buffalo	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 5-2
	Los Angeles	San Jose	NBCSN	SJ 4-2
Sun., March 28	N.Y. Rangers	Washington	NBC	WSH 5-4
	Columbus	Detroit	NBCSN	DET 4-1
	New Jersey	Boston	NBCSN	NJ 1-0
	Nashville	Chicago	NBCSN	NSH 3-2
Mon., March 29	N.Y. Islanders	Pittsburgh	NBCSN	PIT 2-1
Tues., March 30	Carolina	Chicago	NBCSN	CHI 2-1
Wed., March 31	Philadelphia	Buffalo	NBCSN	BUF 6-1
	Los Angeles	Vegas	NBCSN	LAK 4-2
Thurs., April 1	Carolina	Chicago	NBCSN	CAR 4-3
	Minnesota	Vegas	NBCSN	MIN 3-2 (SO)
Sun., April 4	Detroit	Tampa Bay	NBC	DET 5-1
	Dallas	Carolina	NBCSN	CAR 1-0
Tues., April 6	Pittsburgh	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	NYR 8-4
Wed., April 7	Edmonton	Ottawa	NBCSN	EDM 4-2
	Montreal	Toronto	NBCSN	TOR 3-2
Tues., April 13	Philadelphia	Washington	NBCSN	WSH 6-1
Wed., April 14	Colorado	St. Louis	NBCSN	COL 4-3
	Vegas	Los Angeles	NBCSN	VGK 6-2
Thurs., April 15	Florida	Tampa	NBCSN	TB 3-2 (OT)
Sat., April 17	Pittsburgh	Buffalo	NBC	PIT 3-2
Sun., April 18	Washington	Boston	NBC	BOS 6-3
	N.Y. Islanders	Philadelphia	NBCSN	NYI 1-0 (OT)
	Los Angeles	Colorado	NBCSN	PPD
Mon., April 19	Detroit	Dallas	NBCSN	DAL 3-2 (SO)
Tues., April 20	Buffalo	Boston	NBCSN	BOS 2-0
	Colorado	St. Louis	NBCSN	PPD
Wed., April 21	Nashville	Chicago	NBCSN	CHI 5-4 (OT)
	San Jose	Vegas	NBCSN	VGK 5-2
Sat., April 24	Colorado	St. Louis	NBC	STL 5-3
Sun., April 25	Boston	Pittsburgh	NBC	PIT 1-0
	Columbus	Tampa Bay	NBCSN	TB 4-3 (OT)
Mon., April 26	Carolina	Dallas	NBCSN	DAL 4-3 (OT)
Tues., April 27	N.Y. Islanders	Washington	NBCSN	WSH 1-0
Wed., April 28	St. Louis	Minnesota	NBCSN	STL 4-3
	Colorado	Vegas	NBCSN	VGK 5-2
Thurs., April 29	Florida	Chicago	NBCSN	FLA 4-3 (OT)
	Calgary	Edmonton	NBCSN	CGY 3-1
Sun., May 2	Tampa Bay	Detroit	NBC	TB 2-1
Mon., May 3	Vegas	Minnesota	NBCSN	MIN 6-5
Tues., May 4	Pittsburgh	Philadelphia	NBCSN	PIT 7-3
Wed., May 5	Washington	N.Y. Rangers	NBCSN	WSH 4-2
	Colorado	San Jose	NBCSN	SJS 3-2
Thur., May 6	N.Y. Rangers	Boston	NBCSN	BOS 4-0
Sat., May 8	N.Y. Rangers	Boston	NBC	NYR 5-4
Mon., May 10	N.Y. Islanders	Boston	NBCSN	BOS 3-2 (OT)
Wed., May 12	Minnesota	St. Louis	NBCSN	9 p.m.

*subject to change

*Some games will be blacked out in local markets and televised in those markets by a regional carrier.

Djokovic, Tsitsipas & More Congratulate Serena On 1,000th Match

May 12, 2021

WTA legend Serena Williams is playing her 1,000th match on Wednesday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia against Nadia Podoroska. ATP stars Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Grigor Dimitrov, Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev sent the former World No. 1 a message to congratulate her on the incredible achievement.

Novak Djokovic
“Congratulations on your big milestone playing the 1,000th match in your career. Words cannot describe how much you’ve contributed to tennis in general, both the male and female sides. You’ve been an icon for this sport, thank you so much for everything you have done on and off the court and what you keep on doing. You inspire myself and many other players on both the men’s and women’s side. We are so excited to share the same era as you as well. Wishing you all the best champ, keep going and happy to still watch you on the court.”

Congratulations on 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ career matches, @serenawilliams! 🎉@DjokerNole | #IBI21 pic.twitter.com/M9PhZVAWh3

— ATP Tour (@atptour) May 12, 2021

Alexander Zverev
“Congratulations on playing your 1,000th match, what an achievement! I think you’ve been on the top of the game for such a long time, you’re the greatest tennis player of all time. I have nothing but respect for you, you know that. But I actually can say we’re quite good friends, so it’s always fun hanging around you. We always have a good laugh. I hope we can still have you around for quite a long time.”

Stefanos Tsitsipas
“Serena, this is exquisite. I would like to congratulate you on your incredible achievement in your career and hopefully you can go on and keep playing and reach 2,000 matches on the Tour. I’m your biggest supporter and I really hope you get to play with me mixed doubles one day. Why not?”

Grigor Dimitrov
“Serena, congratulations on your 1,000th match. [You are] one of my closest friends and always [are] there to support me through the tough times. But all I can say is that you’re a true inspiration to the sport and you have shown not only me, but everyone around what you are capable of. The achievements that you have reached and the achievements that you want to reach are truly amazing. Stay blessed and keep on playing this sport.”

Daniil Medvedev
“Hi Serena, congrats on your 1,000th match. That’s a huge achievement, something unbelievable. Hopefully I can see you play [another] thousand on the Tour, even if it’s not easy, but I wish you this.”

Andrey Rublev
“Hey Serena, what’s up? Congrats on your 1,000th match. This is amazing. The things you’ve achieved, it’s unreal. Good job. You know everything better than me!”

Karatsev Rips Past Countryman Medvedev In Rome

May 12, 2021

Aslan Karatsev continued his breakthrough season by taking out third seed Daniil Medvedev at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Wednesday 6-2, 6-4 in one hour and 18 minutes. In what is just his fourth tour-level clay appearance, he moves into the third round where Reilly Opelka awaits.

“I’m super happy,” Karatsev said. “It was a really tough match. Against Medvedev you never know, he’s a big server. It’s tough to return, but I managed it well.”

Karatsev and Medvedev were facing off for the first time, but the Russians had familiarity with each other’s games having won the ATP Cup together this year. At the time, Karatsev was an afterthought in Russian tennis and relegated to doubles behind Medvedev and Andrey Rublev.

A lot has changed since February as Karatsev is now 21-6 this season, during which he beat Rublev en route to the Dubai title. Wednesday marked his second Top 5 win in the past month after upsetting World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in Belgrade.

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Although Medvedev is at a career-high World No. 2 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, he has yet to find his rhythm on clay with an early exit in Madrid and now Rome. Before losing against Karatsev, Medvedev had a flawless 6-0 record versus fellow Russians dating back to the start of 2019.

With Medvedev coming out slow, Karatsev made the first move with a break for 3-2 followed by a second break to lengthen his lead to 5-2. The World No. 27 served it out comfortably, winning 90 per cent of his first-serve points across the match and needing to save just one break point.

Karatsev used his forehand and aggressive court positioning to put pressure on Medvedev, who was passive from start to finish. Karatsev maintained his focus in the second set and a series of slick winners, including a flick-of-the-wrist forehand passing shot and a sharp volley, helped him get a break for 4-3. It was smooth sailing from there to serve it out.

Zverev Sweeps Past Dellien In Rome Opener

May 12, 2021

Mutua Madrid Open champion Alexander Zverev picked up right where he left off in his Internazionali BNL d’Italia opener, racing past qualifier Hugo Dellien 6-2, 6-2 on Wednesday.

Zverev won his first ATP Masters 1000 title in Rome in 2017, and his fourth on Sunday at Madrid after sweeping World No. 2 Rafael Nadal, No. 4 Dominic Thiem and No. 10 Matteo Berrettini last week.

The German didn’t miss a beat in Rome against Dellien, who was seeking his first Top 10 victory (0-5) against the World No. 6 out on Pietrangeli. But Zverev continued his winning ways in the Italian capital, firing 27 winners and saving all six of the break points he faced to secure the win in straight sets.

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The ‘Good Problem’ Zverev Has In Rome

“I think it took a few games [to find my timing]. In the first game, the ball barely reached the net,” Zverev joked in an on-court interview. “It was obviously not easy coming from altitude [in Madrid] to sea level again, but I’m happy with this match. I’m happy with this win. Moving forward, of course I need to play even better, but for a first [match] this was a good performance from my side.”

Zverev will next face Kei Nishikori for the second time in as many weeks after the Japanese player received a walkover from 13th seed Pablo Carreno Busta to advance. Zverev improved to a 3-1 ATP Head2Head over Nishikori after beating him in the second round in Madrid.

“In Madrid I played well against everybody, and I know I need to play just as well to have a chance,” Zverev said. “Kei is a great player, especially on clay. We’ve played in Monte-Carlo [in 2018] and in Madrid, and it’s 1-1 on clay courts. I’m looking forward to another one.”

The German needed a couple of games to adjust to the conditions in Rome. But once he found his footing he was relentless in his aggression as he reeled off five games in a row to open up a double-break, 5-1 and served out the set comfortably.

He faced the toughest challenge of the match in the fourth game of the second set. Up a break at 2-1, Zverev needed nearly 12 minutes and had to save six break points as Dellien made a late comeback push on his serve. But Zverev passed the test with flying colors, and claimed his fourth break of the match at 4-1 to close in on the victory.

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Elsewhere in the Eternal City, qualifier Federico Delbonis raced into the third round after a victory over 12th seed David Goffin. The Argentine didn’t face a break point across the 66-minute contest, and in turn broke Goffin four times from nine chances to complete the 6-2, 6-1 rout.

Delbonis will meet Felix Auger-Aliassime next after the Canadian defeated eighth seed Diego Schwartzman 6-1, 6-3 on Tuesday.

More NHL news

HEART STOPPER

BLAME CANADA?

Additional NHL NBC schedule highlights:

More NHL news

2020-21 NHL NBC REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN)