12-30-2019, 08:09 AM
Andy Murray has reached the final of the Rome Masters for the first time after he swept aside Lucas Pouille in straight sets. The Scot was only troubled by the weather in a rain-interrupted match and sealed a comfortable 6-2 6-1 win over Pouille in under an hour and he will again face world No 1 Novak Djokovic in Sundays final.Murray had never previously played against Pouille, who qualified as a lucky loser and then benefitted from Juan Monacos withdrawal in the quarter-finals, but the Frenchmans good fortune would end there. Murray was beaten by Novak Djokovic in last Sundays Madrid Open final After rain had delayed the start, Murray broke for a 3-1 lead with a fizzing forehand, before a further downpour sent the players back to the changing rooms at 4-2.Murray did not want to risk another interruption when the match resumed and quickly broke Pouille again to claim the first set.Pouille was showing glimpses of his talent, in particular with his cleverly disguised drop shot, but was only briefly delaying Murray, who broke again for a 3-1 lead. Andy Murray says Lucas Pouille is improving all the time after he defeated the 21-year-old to reach the final of the Rome Masters for the first time The world No 52 could not fend off his opponent for much longer and conceded his serve once more, allowing Murray to book his appearance on Sunday with a thumping ace. Djokovic defeated the British No 1 in last weekends Madrid Open final, and he overcame an early injury scare in a tough 2-6 6-4 7-6 win over Kei Nishikori in the later semi-final. He made quite a few mistakes and I served well today and made it easy for myself. Andy Murray Murray is expecting a far tougher test against Djokovic as he told Sky Sports: I didnt feel that comfortable coming out on the court, obviously the break as well at 4-2 was tricky too. He made quite a few mistakes and I served well today and made it easy for myself. Any time you get the chance to play the best players, especially right before a slam, its great preparation.The few matches I have played here have been fairly quick matches and regardless of who I play tomorrow, I know Ill be pushed extremely hard and be put in difficult situations, difficult moments. Thats what you want. Djokovic needed an injury time-out early in his clash with the Japanese star, appearing to suffer a ankle injury in the first game of a set he went on to lose and look very uncomfortable in.But his form returned in the second set and a tense decider ended in a tie-break that Djokovic was able to win 7-5, with Nishikori wasting a number of good chances.And on his injury, an embarrassed Djokovic said: A message to all the kids out there: dont hit your own ankle when youre cleaning your shoes.It was an awkward situation in the first game, I hit myself pretty hard on the ankle and bruised the bone. It hurt for a while, and though the pain faded it returned towards the end of the match.Watch Andy Murray v Novak Djokovic from 4pm, live on Sky Sports 4. Also See: As it happened Djokovic beats Nadal in Rome ATP schedule Tennis on Sky Kevin Lowe Jersey . 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Now comes an off-season of questions about manager Matt Williams decisions and a handful of key roster choices, including what to do about Ryan Zimmerman, whether to sign Jordan Zimmermann and Ian Desmond to long-term deals, and how to upgrade an offence that fell flat in October.TORONTO -- Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri apologized Saturday for insulting Brooklyn before an outdoor gathering of fans in advance of Torontos NBA playoff game against the Nets. Brooklyn had the last laugh, however, hanging on for a 94-87 victory in Game 1 of the first-round best-of-seven series. Emotions ran high as the Raptors returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2008 and Ujiri helped stoke the pre-game fire. Ujiri, a former NBA executive of the year in Denver, took the stage before the afternoon game to address pumped-up fans under bright sunshine at Maple Leafs Square. The moment seemed to get to him as he paired an F-bomb and Brooklyn on his way off the stage. The crowd loved it, roaring in response. He handed the microphone to his boss, MLSE CEO Tim Leiweke, who smiled and shook his head before leaving the stage. Video of the trash talk quickly surfaced on Twitter and other social media. The GM was quick to do damage control, with team officials summoning media for a halftime gathering in the hall outside the playoff media centre at the Air Canada Centre. "I apologize. Wrong choice of words out there," Ujiri told some three dozen media. "This thing is really not about me, its about the players and the playoffs. So just trying to get the crowd out there rattled. Wrong choice of words. "I apologize to kids out there and to the Brooklyn guys. Nothing against them. Just trying to get our fans going. Thats it." He declined to take questionns.dddddddddddd But he offered an addendum, over his shoulder, as he headed down the corridor. "You know how I feel," he said. "I dont like them (the Nets) but I apologize." Adding to the drama of the day, the shot clocks stopped working -- prompting a break -- in the third quarter. The shot clock was subsequently counted down by longtime PA announcer Herbie Kuhn as he looked at the stopwatch held by the official next to him. Kuhn likely needed a post-game throat lozenge. The crowd was loud and proud inside the building and out. Those inside sported giveaway white T-shirts with the words Northern Uprising around a Raptors logo on them. Drake, hip-hop star and Raptors global ambassador, sported one of the shirts under his jacket in his normal courtside perch. He was heavily involved in the Raptors rebrand, built around the slogan "We The North." Ujiri was feisty prior to the series, after talk the Nets may have slipped down the standings in order to face the Raptors. The Toronto GM said his team "havent lost one second of sleep worrying about the Brooklyn Nets." "They can do whatever they want," Ujiri said Thursday. "Well be right here." The Toronto Sun tabloid helped stir the pot with a Page 1 headline that said "Raptors vs. Dinosaurs," in a shot at Brooklyns aging stars. Game 2 is Tuesday at the Air Canada Centre. Toronto (48-34) and Brooklyn (44-38) split four meetings during the regular season. ' ' '