Monica Puig, Andy Murray Are Golden In Rio - Mondays with Bob Greene

Mondays with Bob Greene

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Rio Olympics

Gold

Men’s singles: Andy Murray, Great Britain

Women’s singles: Monica Puig, Puerto Rico

Men’s doubles: Marc Lopez and Rafael Nadal, Spain

Women’s doubles: Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina, Russia

Mixed doubles: Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Jack Sock, United States

Silver

Men’s singles: Juan Martin del Potro, Argentina

Women’s singles: Angelique Kerber, Germany

Men’s doubles: Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau, Romania

Women’s doubles: Timea Bacsinsky and Martina Hingis, Switzerland

Mixed doubles: Venus Williams and Rajeev Ram, United States

Bronze

Men’s singles: Kei Nishikori, Japan

Women’s singles: Petra Kvitova, Czech Republic

Men’s doubles: Steve Johnson and Jack Sock, United States

Women’s doubles: Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova, Czech Republic

Mixed doubles: Lucie Hradecka and Radek Stepanek, Czech Republic

OTHER

Ivo Karlovic beat Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (5) 6-2 to win the Abierto Mexicano Los Cabos in Los Cabos, Mexico

Janko Tipsarevic beat Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo 1-6 7-5 6-1 to win the China International Challenger in Qindao, China

Daniel Evans beat Cameron Norrie 6-3 6-4 to win the Nordic Naturals Challenger in Aptos, California, USA

SAYING

“I know that my life is probably going to change a little bit from here on out, but it’s going to change for the better, I know.” – Monica Puig, after winning the gold medal by beating Angelique Kerber.

“She played her best tennis and one of her best matches in her career, for sure. I tried everything.” – Angelique Kerber.

“Today was a long, tiring match. I’m glad I got through it.” – Andy Murray, following his gold-medal marathon men’s singles win over Juan Martin del Potro.

“I just achieved one of my biggest dreams. I’m just so happy I was able to be the first Puerto Rican woman to win a medal at the Games, and not just any medal – the gold medal.” – Monica Puig.

“I can compare this with the Davis Cup finals, where we were a couple of years ago, because I think the nicest, deepest and strongest emotions you can only achieve when you play for your country. … This medal belongs to our whole country.” – Radek Stepanek of the Czech Republic, who teamed with Lucie Hradecka to win the mixed doubles bronze medal.

“I’m very happy to win, to get a medal, even though third place. It means a lot for me to especially beat Rafa. I knew before playing the Olympics that if I can play good tennis, good, solid tennis, I’d have a chance to get a medal.” – Kei Nishikori, who beat Rafael Nadal to win the men’s singles bronze medal.

“With Serena, I expect to win! I’ve got to be honest.” – Venus Williams, who with sister Serena won three Olympic women’s doubles gold medals but lost in the first round at Rio.

“It’s different when you are winning Grand Slams at 16, you think you have another 10 years, at least, at the top of the game. But now that I know it’s coming towards the end and everything is behind me, today is the way it is.” – Martina Hingis.

“You know I am number two in the world and that means a lot to me and that gives me a lot of confidence. I am trying to enjoy every single moment on court here because it is really special. The Olympics you play for your country. And then the Village, it is a little bit different to the normal hotels with all the athletes from the world, so I am really trying to take the energy when I am going on court.” – Angelique Kerber.

“It’s unbelievable. If I could play in 12 Olympics, I’d play in 12 Olympics. Is there senior Olympics for tennis? There should be. Just so that we can come back. It’s been great. It’s so amazing.” – Madison Keys.

“This is only my second Olympics in 20 years. I skipped the other ones because I wasn’t playing tennis, but this is an experience you don’t forget quickly. It’s just so different to the regular tournaments you play. You play for your partner, you play for your country and this is something that I cherish.” – Martina Hingis.

“It’s amazing. I’m staying in the village and it’s an amazing atmosphere over there, it’s like a big family and I feel the support of the other athletes there. We are watching other sports on TV and they are coming to watch tennis, which is pretty close to the village, which is great. It’s amazing and I wish to have Olympics every year.” – Petra Kvitova.

“I would love to try lots of sports. When I went to school, Sports Day was the best day of the year.” – Samantha Stosur.

“I came here for my first Olympic Games with a very open and positive mind and so far the experience has been really great – sleeping in the village, seeing all the other athletes, having a good time. Of course now it is hard to describe this feeling, ending with a very sad and serious injury.” – Philipp Kohlschreiber, who withdrew after the opening round with a stress fracture in his right foot.

STUNNER

“Yes I can,” Monica Puig kept repeating to herself. And she did. Puig beat Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-4 4-6 6-1 to win Puerto Rico’s first Olympic gold medal. “It’s just amazing,” said Puig, who is ranked 34^th in the world. “I know my country really appreciates this, and I really wanted to give this victory to them.” Puig’s women’s singles title was a shocker, but it ended a week of stunning victories for the right-hander. On her way to the gold medal she also beat reigning French Open champion Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain and two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic. After the two finalists split sets, Puig raced to a 5-0 lead in the decider. She then failed to cash in on three match points, but Kerber squandered six break point chances in the final game. When the German sailed a cross-court backhand wide on championship point, Puig threw her racquet into the air, fell to the ground and cried tears of joy. “I did hear everybody saying, ‘Yes, you can, yes, you can, yes, you can,’” Puig said. “I kept repeating it inside myself, ‘Yes, I can, yes, I can, yes, I can.’” And she did.

Kvitova beat American Madison Keys 7-5 2-6 6-2 to win the bronze medal.

SUCCESSFUL REPEAT

Great Britain’s Andy Murray made history by becoming the first player to win the men’s singles gold medal in consecutive Olympics when he fought off Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro 7-5 4-6 6-2 7-5 in a battle that lasted more than four hours. Murray also captured the singles gold four years ago at the London Games. Del Potro entered the Rio final as a big underdog. But despite being ranked 141^st in the world, the Argentine had begun his amazing Olympic run by upsetting top-ranked Novak Djokovic, then beating fifth-ranked Rafael Nadal in the semifinals. Murray, though, was able to come up with the key points as both players struggled with fatigue. He broke del Potro in the 12^th game of the match to take the opening set. After del Potro evened the match at a set apiece, Murray won four straight games to close out the third set. Serving to send the fourth set to a tiebreak, del Potro instead found Murray’s quickness and all-court game too much to handle. The Scot cashed in on his second match point to clinch the gold.

Japan’s Kei Nishikori won the bronze medal, beating Spain’s Rafael Nadal 6-2 6-7 (1) 6-3.

SWEET FINISH

Life-long friends Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina almost didn’t make it to the Rio Olympics. They finally did, however, and ended up with the women’s doubles gold medal, defeating Switzerland’s Timea Bacsinsky and Martina Hingis 6-4 6-4 in the final. “We were supposed to get here Tuesday morning, but we got here Wednesday, but late,” Vesnina said of the pair’s trip from Montreal, Canada. “We got the last two seats in economy class … We gave up our business tickets.” The Russian pair made their trip to Rio pay off. “We stick together, we knew what we wanted and it’s incredible that we got this gold medal in the end,” Vesnina said.

Hingis was playing in her second Olympics, but her first since Atlanta in 1996. The 35-year-old had been scheduled to play mixed doubles with Roger Federer, but he withdrew from the Olympics with an injury. A day later, her doubles teammate, Belinda Bencic, also pulled out of the Games. Hingis was then teamed with Bacsinszky, a pairing that resulted in a silver medal.

In an all-Czech battle, Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova won the bronze by defeating Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka 7-5 6-1.

STREAK ENDS

Playing in their first Olympics, Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Jack Sock denied Venus Williams the chance to become the first five-time gold medalist in Olympics tennis history. Instead, Williams wound up with the silver as she and Rajeev Ram fell to their fellow Americans 7-6 (3) 6-1 10-7 (match tiebreak). The first set took 55 minutes before Mattek-Sands and Sock prevailed. After Williams and Ram ripped through the second set to level the match, the teams played a 10-point tiebreak.

Williams has won four gold medals since her Olympic debut in 2000 and is tied with her sister Serena for the most tennis gold medals. Her five medals ties her with Kathleen McKane, who won five in the 1920s, including one gold.

The Czech Republic’s Lucie Hradecka and Radek Stepanek beat India’s Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna 6-1 7-5 for the bronze medal.

STILL GOLDEN

Although Rafael Nadal lost to Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro in the singles semifinals, the Spanish star left Rio de Janeiro with a gold medal. Nadal’s second Olympic gold came in the doubles, where he and Marc Lopez rallied for a break down in the third set to beat Romania’s Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau 6-2 3-6 6-4. “Amazing experience,” Nadal said, “especially doing that with one of my best friends. Nadal and Lopez have known each other since they were young – Nadal says he was 14, Lopez says Nadal was 12. Nadal, who has won a record nine French Open singles titles, rarely plays doubles on the ATP World Tour, but four of his nine tour doubles titles have come with Lopez. Nadal’s first gold medal came in singles at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

The silver for Mergea and Tecau is Romania’s first Olympic tennis medal.

Steve Johnson and Jack Sock of the United States won the bronze, beating Canada’s Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil 6-2 6-4.

SMASHING WIN

The 6-foot-11 (2.11m) Ivo Karlovic stood tall in Los Cabos, Mexico. The 37-year-old Croatian won his eighth ATP World Tour title, the Abierto Mexicano Los Cabos, by downing Feliciano Lopez 7-6 (5) 6-2. It was the third time in his last four tournaments that Karlovic has reached the final. He slammed 13 aces but wrapped up the title when Lopez double-faulted on match point.

SPLITSVILLE

Martina Hingis and Sania Mirza are the top-ranked women’s doubles team. They no longer are a team. While admitting on her official Facebook page that the two have split up, Hingis said they would reunite to defend their title at the WTA Finals. Mirza and Hingis, self-dubbed “Santina,” dominated the women’s tour for more than a year, winning 13 titles over a 165-month span, including three majors – the 2015 Wimbledon, 2015 US Open and 2016 Australian Open – besides the BNP Paribas WTA Finals Singapore last fall. But since their 41-match winning streak was snapped in February, the team has won just one title, the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. They have failed to make it past the quarterfinals in their last four tournaments. According to reports, Hingis will now team up with CoCo Vandeweghe while Mirza will partner with Barbora Strycova at the Western & Southern Open and the US Open. She also will team up with Bethanie Mattek-Sands at the Connecticut Open.

SICK CALL

Injuries don’t take time off for the Olympics. Both Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany and Romania’s Monica Niculescu withdrew before their second-round matches at the Rio Games. Kohlschreiber said he has a stress fracture of his right foot, while Niculescu said she had injured her lower back. “The doctor said that I really should stop right away and I have to rest and make sure it doesn’t become a really big injury,” Kohlschreiber said. Czech Lucie Safarova retired with stomach pain after dropping the first set in her match against Belgium’s Kirsten Flipkens.

SECURES WILD CARD

Serena Williams is playing in this week’s Western & Southern Open in a bid to keep her number one ranking. Williams received a wild card entry into the hard-court event in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, a Premier 5 event. The two-time defending champion has a 10-match win streak in Cincinnati and a 21-4 match record in seven previous appearances at the tournament. She has played only three matches since winning Wimbledon in July – losing her third-round match at the Rio Olympics to Elina Svitolina. Angelique Kerber, who won the silver medal in Rio, could take over the number one ranking if she wins the Western & Southern Open and Williams loses before the quarterfinals. Kerber is seeking to become the first German to reach the top ranking since Stefanie Graf and would be only the third left-hander to be ranked number one after Martina Navratilova and Monica Seles.

SKIPPING CINCY

While Serena Williams has signed up for Cincinnati, the world’s top-ranked male, Novak Djokovic, has withdrawn from the Western & Southern Open with an injured left wrist. “I have a recurring injury that has taken its toll on my body due to a very busy and active schedule this year,” said Djokovic, who was upset in the first round at the Rio Olympics. “I have played many matches and I have to take some rest in order to heal.” Cincinnati is the only Masters 1000 series event Djokovic has never won.

SWITCHING COACHES

Tomas Berdych has a new coach: former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic. “Goran, with his playing and coaching experience, as well as his energy, is a perfect addition to the team,” said Berdych, who fired his previous coach Dani Vallverdu in May. Berdych has led the Czech Republic to two Davis Cup titles but has never won a Grand Slam tournament, losing in the Wimbledon final in 2010.

STRESSED

Just before Kristina Mladenovic and Carolina Garcia went on court for their first-round women’s doubles match, they were told they could be defaulted if the players did not wear the same colored clothing. Mladenovic lent a spare outfit to Garcia, who has a different clothing sponsor than her partner. The two then raced through the first set 6-0 before Japan’s Misaki Doi and Eri Hozumi rallied to upset the Frenchwomen in three sets. On Twitter Mladenovic and Garcia said the episode affected them and criticized the Federation Francaise de Tennis (FFT) for not informing them of the rules. “To be at the Olympics, about to start our match, and be completely stressed because the ITF (International Tennis Federation) won’t let us play in different colors,” Mladenovic wrote. “Thanks to our federation, so incompetent, to have ruined a sporting moment so important in the careers of Caroline Garcia and me.”

SENT HOME

Benoit Paire was kicked off the French Olympic team for “flouting the rules.” Arnaud di Pasquale, technical director of the French tennis squad, refused to divulge the details of Paire’s indiscretions, but said, “You cannot flout the rules and the jersey like this.” Paire was kicked off the team moments after he had lost his second-round match to Italy’s Fabio Fognini 4-6 6-4 7-6 (5). “This is not the first time he has been warned,” di Pasquale said. “The France team, it is not an open bar. There are rules to follow. … We did not see much of him in the Olympic Village.” Paire was a late addition to the French Olympic team, replacing the injured Richard Gasquet.

SAYONARA

The US Open, which begins later this month, was be the final tournament for Eric Butorac. After 13 years on the ATP World Tour, Butorac will play doubles at America’s premier tennis event with good friend Scott Lipsky. “I grew up with my dad being around every day,” said the 35-year-old Butorac, whose highest ranking was 17^th in the world in doubles. “I want to be around for my kids the same way. I don’t want my son to have to run up to me any more before I get on a plane and say, ‘Daddy, don’t go.’” Butorac and his wife Maggie have two children. Butorac served eight years on the ATP Player Council, including two as vice president under Roger Federer and a two-year term as president. His future job will be Director, Professional Tennis Operations and Player Relations for the USTA and the US Open.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Aptos: Nicolaas Scholtz and Tucker Vorster beat Mackenzie McDonald and Ben McLachlan 6-2 (5) 6-3 10-8 (match tiebreak)

Los Cabos: Purav Raja and Divij Sharan beat Jonathan Erlich and Ken Skupski 7-6 (4) 7-6 (3)

Qindao: Danilo Petrovic and Tak Khunn Wang beat Gong Mao-Xin and Zhang Ze 6-2 4-6 10-5 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Cincinnati: www.wsopen.com/

New Haven: www.ctopen.org

Winston-Salem: www.winstonsalemopen.com/

New York: www.usopen.org

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

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$5,004,505 Western & Southern Open, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, hard