The big news: Venus on a roll

Former Grand Slam Champion Venus Williams reached the third round of the Australian Open after a straight-sets win over Swiss qualifier Stefanie Voegele. Williams beat Voegele 6-3, 6-2 in 83 minutes. Williams is the oldest woman in the singles draw at 36 and will play either China’s Duan Yingying or fellow American Varvara Lepchenko next.

“I played an opponent who didn’t make it easy. It was a battle,” she said. Williams is playing her 17th Australian Open, but has never won the title. Her best run was to the final in 2003, when she lost to her younger sister, Serena.

Other top stories

Tennis:

  • The All India Tennis Association has reportedly asked Indian tennis star Leander Paes to consider retirement after February’s Davis Cup tie against New Zealand in Pune. AITA wants to spare Paes the embarrassment of being dropped. However, Paes has told AITA that he would “think over it”.
  • India’s Sumit Nagal has been dropped  from the Davis Cup team for the upcoming New Zealand tie due to serious breach of discipline. During the tie against Korea in Chandigarh in July last year, Nagal skipped morning practice sessions due to a hangover, among other transgressions.
  • World No. 1 Andy Murray will face Russia’s Andrey Rublev in round two on Wednesday. Murray will take on the big-serving Russian, who is ranked 152nd in the world. 
  • Fifth seed Kei Nishikori progressed to round three of the Australian Open by beating Jeremy Chardy in straight sets on Wednesday. Chardy lost to Nishikori 6-3, 6-4, 6-3.

Cricket:

  • Despite over a day having passed since the India’s three-wicket win over England in the first ODI in Pune, both teams are yet to depart for Cuttack, where the second game is set to start on January 19. The reason for the delay is being attributed to the unavailability of hotel rooms in Cuttack.
  • Former Pakistan batsman Muhammad Yousuf said Sachin Tendulkar was a better cricketer than Virat Kohli despite the current India captain’s recent form.
  • Domestic cricketers have criticised the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s decision to have Ranji Trophy matches at neutral venues.
  • Former England cricketer Monty Panesar has been recruited  by Cricket Australia as a spin-bowling consultant for their tour of India next month. They have also hired former India spinner Sriram Sridharan as a consultant for the Test series.       
  • Former India cricketer Mohammed Azharuddin has moved the Hyderabad High Court challenging the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s decision to bar him from contesting elections for the post of president.       
  • Former India cricketer and World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev was inducted into Legends Club Hall of Fame in presence of former India captains Ajit Wadekar, Sunil Gavaskar and Nari Contractor at the Cricket Club of India.        

Football:

  • Leicester City boss Claudio Ranieri wants Antonio Conte to win the Premier League title with Chelsea. “As former Chelsea coach and as an Italian supporter, I hope that Conte can achieve the goal,” Ranieri said. “He has shown that the Italian school of coaches is valid more than ever.”
  • Swansea City have completed the signing of Tottenham midfielder Tom Carroll for a fee of about £4.5 million. Carroll has signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Swansea.
  • Goals from Lalruatthara and Jayesh Rane gave  Aizawl FC a 2-1 win over Shillong in the I-League on Tuesday.
  • Mohun Bagan made it three wins out of three as they thrashed Minerva Punjab 4-0 in their I-league encounter on Tuesday. Darry Duffy and Jeje Lalpekhlua scored two goals apiece as they ran riot against a depleted Minerva side.
  • DSK Shivajians scored a goal in either half to beat Chennai City FC 2-0 in an I-League tie in Pune on Tuesday.  Juan Quero and Seong-Yong Kim scored for the Shivajians.  
  • Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure has turned down a £430,000-a-week offer from China. Toure has always been a subject of interest from the Chinese Super League.