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An Unplayed Australian Open Is a Turning Point for Novak Djokovic ( Opinion)

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An Unplayed Australian Open Is a Turning Point for Novak Djokovic ( Opinion)

Even after being ejected from Australia, Novak Djokovic will remain No. 1 in the men’s tennis rankings at the end of the Australian Open, which began on Monday without him.

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He still holds the titles at the French Open and Wimbledon; still has supple limbs, formidable tennis skills and a deep history of resilience in the face of hostile crowds and long odds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Unplayed Australian Open Is a Turning Point for Novak Djokovic ( Opinion)

 

 

But in a what-have-you-won-for-me-lately sport that is often categorised by eras and the champions who define them, it would come as no surprise if Sunday marked a turning point, symbolised by his long, grim walk to the airport gate in Melbourne under the escort of immigration officials.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Djokovic is 34, and as he left Australia against his will after his Visa was cancelled, a new generation of taller, talented stars in men’s tennis was preparing to pursue the title at the Grand Slam tournament he has dominated like no other and may never play again, if his three-year ban from the country is not rescinded.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“This certainly could knock him back,” John Isner, a friend of Djokovic’s and one of the top-ranked American players, said on Sunday. “I honestly don’t know which way it will go. It could take him a long time to recover, or light a fire under him.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Djokovic has rebounded from demoralising periods in the past and resumed winning. In 2017, after perhaps the most dominant phase of his career, he struggled with his motivation and lost his edge for more than a year amid personal problems and a persistent right elbow injury. He had a commitment to natural healing that foreshadowed his decision not to be vaccinated for the coronavirus. But after playing and struggling at the Australian Open in 2018 with his elbow supported by a compression sleeve, he decided, tearfully he has said, to undergo surgery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five months later, he was a Grand Slam champion again, winning the 2018 Wimbledon title and soon re-establishing himself as No. 1, at the expense of his career-long rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In early 2020, Djokovic was still on a roll, starting the year with 18 straight victories before the pandemic shut down the sport for five months in 2020. He organized an ill-advised exhibition tour in Serbia and Croatia in June during the enforced break that turned into a superspreader event and public-relations bonfire as he and other players and team members, including Djokovic’s coach Goran Ivanisevic, danced and partied unmasked in a Balkan nightclub, thoroughly out of sync with the global mood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tour was cancelled. Djokovic; his wife, Jelena; Ivanisevic; and others tested positive for the coronavirus, and when Djokovic did return to Grand Slam action, at the 2020 U.S. Open, he proceeded to eliminate himself from the tournament in the fourth round by hitting a ball in frustration after losing his serve and inadvertently hitting a lineswoman in the throat. He was defaulted by the tournament referee and returned to Europe to regroup. A young Austrian, Dominic Thiem, eventually won the title.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After all the dubious decisions and dents to his image, another Djokovic tailspin was hardly out of the question, but in a reflection of his tenacity and talent, he roared back in 2021 with one of his finest seasons: winning the first three Grand Slam tournaments and coming within one match of achieving the first men’s Grand Slam in singles in 52 years before losing to Daniil Medvedev in the U.S. Open final.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That display of resilience in 2021 should give pause to all those who might expect Djokovic to curl himself into a ball on the floor of his Monte Carlo apartment in the aftermath of the Australian affair.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are talking about a player who became a champion despite growing up in Belgrade during the violent breakup of Yugoslavia, when NATO bombing forced him to interrupt tennis practices. He left home at 12 for a tennis academy in Germany as his parents and family borrowed and improvised to fund his training in the hope that the sport would be his route, and theirs, to better days. Djokovic told me that his father, Srdjan, once gathered the family and slammed a 10 Deutsche mark on the kitchen table and explained that this was all the money they had left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“He said that more than ever we have to stick together and go through this together and figure out the way,” Djokovic said in that interview. “That was a very powerful and very impactful moment in my growth, my life, all of our lives.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is one deportation in comparison with all of that?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The answer seems self-evident, but the body blows can add up. Djokovic is accustomed to being the outsider, to hearing the roars of support for Federer and other opponents and winning anyway. He has even gone so far as to imagine that the crowds are chanting his name instead, but he has never been a global target to this degree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though he insists he does not want to be an anti-vaccine champion, the fallout from his iconoclastic stance in Australia — he is one of only three top-100 men’s players to be unvaccinated — means that he will be indelibly associated with the issue. And as long as he remains unvaccinated, he will face challenges entering some other countries and tournaments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Energy is one of Djokovic’s hallmarks. Spend time with him one on one and his life force and restless curiosity come through, but he has expended a great deal of effort in recent years on causes beyond winning tennis matches: taking on the status quo on the men’s tour and creating a new player group to promote — so far unsuccessfully — change and more decision-making power for players at all levels of the rankings. He has helped start a new tournament in Belgrade, done charitable work in Serbia and the Balkan region and has cooperated with a behind-the-scenes documentary that is expected to be released in 2022.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It should have no dearth of content: no shortage of major triumphs and brutal setbacks. At what point does it all dull his edge? The answer could be right about now.

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48 Cultists Surrender Firearms, Renounce Membership in Ogun

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48 Cultists Surrender Firearms, Renounce Membership in Ogun

 

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In a bid to quell the alarming surge of violence in Ogun State, particularly in Sagamu, forty-eight youths have taken the bold step of renouncing their membership in cult groups.

This significant development comes alongside the surrender of firearms by those who possessed them illegally, marking a pivotal moment in the state’s efforts to combat crime and restore peace.

The arms submitted includes onepump action, four double barrels, seven single barrels, two english pistol, four locally made pistol and thirty-five cartridges

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Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, CP Abiodun Alamutu, affirmed the progress, stating, “Aside from those licensed to bear firearms, no other person is permitted to possess them. Anyone found in possession of firearms after this will be treated as a criminal.”

He emphasized the importance of ongoing profiling and the forthcoming stage of the program, which will involve the public parading of those who have renounced their involvement in cult activities.

“After adequately profile them, they’ll be paraded. What we will encourage members of the community so that they don’t treat them as outcast because we know from experience that some of them found themselves in this fold , it was after they have been entrapped in it, they now understand what cultism is and it’s never easy to opt out because of fear of attack. Now that they’re bold enough to surrender what we should do is to reintegrate them as legitimate and law abiding members of the community .”

Acknowledging the complexities surrounding cultism, the Akarigbo of Remo Land Oba Babatunde Ajayi emphasized the need for community engagement and support in facilitating the reintegration of former cult members.

 

 

 

He highlighted the collaborative efforts between the community, law enforcement, and armed forces in addressing the security challenges and expressed optimism in the willingness of surrendered individuals to contribute positively to society.

Special Adviser to the Ogun State Government on Security Matters, Olusola Zubair, commended the collective endeavour that led to the surrender of arms, attributing it to the perseverance and resilience of all stakeholders involved.

He underscored the potential for replicating such initiatives in other areas grappling with similar issues, emphasizing the paramount importance of peace for sustainable development.

“We know that development can only strive where there’s an atmosphere of peace and that’s what we’re clamouring for here. I want to use this opportunity to appeal to all other sectors of this state that what we are doing in sagamu today, is doable in other places also . I want to thank the Governor of Ogun State for giving us that support .

“I want to say this is not all the arms that they have been using but just as the Akarigbo said , it’s a continuous process , we are still in that process of recovering these firearms and am sure that most of them will know now that crime doesn’t pay so it is better to live in peace . All of us should live in unity and that’s what will bring development to our state.”

The Director of Department State Services (DSS) Folashade Adekayajo represented by Deputy Director of Operations and Intelligence, Sikiru Kolawole, echoed the call for individuals involved in cult activities to embrace peace and renounce violence.

He emphasized the crucial role of community members in providing information to aid law enforcement efforts in curbing criminal activities.

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Osimhen, Boniface Beat Ronaldo As World’s Best Strikers

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Osimhen, Boniface Beat Ronaldo As World’s Best Strikers

 

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Nigeria’s Super Eagles strikers Victor Osimhen and Victor Boniface have been ranked above Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski in the world’s latest top 10 best strikers. Norwegian and Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland leads the list, followed by England skipper Harry Kane. The third slot went to Kylian Mbappe. Are there other great African football players that were not ranked but deserve recognition?

 

Osimhen, Boniface Beat Ronaldo As World's Best Strikers

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1. Erling Halaand
2. Harry Kane
3. Kylian Mbappe
4. Victor Osimhen(NIGERIAN)
5. Lauaro Martinez
6. Heung Ming Song
7. Victor Boniface(NIGERIAN)
8. Julian Alvarez
9. Cristiano Ronaldo
10. Robert Lewandoski.

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Score & Shine: Organizers Release Forms For Spectacular 4th Edition of Kiraa Football Cup Competition

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Score & Shine: Organizers Release Forms For Spectacular 4th Edition of Kiraa Football Cup Competition

Score & Shine: Organizers Release Forms For Spectacular 4th Edition of Kiraa Football Cup Competition

 

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Ososa, Ijebu, Ogun State will once again be buzzing with football fervor as Kiraa TV, one of Nigeria’s leading entertainment firms, gears up for the 4th edition of the highly anticipated Kiraa Football Cup competition. Scheduled to kick off in April 2024, the organizers have officially released the forms for interested football clubs in Ijebu land, in and outside Ogun State in general.

 

Score & Shine: Organizers Release Forms For Spectacular 4th Edition of Kiraa Football Cup Competition

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The pulsating football action is set to unfold at the Muslim Primary School in Ososa, Ijebu, the traditional venue for the competition. With the success of the 2023 edition, which saw Kiraa FC, owned by Franklin Oluwasegun, clinched the victory among the 16 participating football clubs, with Olasunkanmi Ibrahim winning highest goal scorer award.

 

 

 

The upcoming edition promises even more excitement and fierce competition, as NPFL Referee, Okunuga Muyiwa will be officiating.

 

 

 

Football enthusiasts and clubs across Nigeria, particularly in Ogun State, are invited to participate in this unique competition, which has gained a reputation for its thrilling matches and passionate fanbase. The organizers are reaching out to potential sponsors and advertisers, extending a warm welcome to individuals and companies eager to be part of this sporting extravaganza.

 

 

 

 

As Kiraa TV continues to foster a sense of community and entertainment through sports, the Kiraa Football Cup Competition has become a highlight on the local football calendar. With the unveiling of the 2024 edition’s forms, anticipation is building, and football clubs are gearing up for a chance to showcase their skills on the vibrant football stage in Ososa, Ijebu.

Stay tuned for updates as the Kiraa Football Cup 2024 approaches, promising a spectacle of talent, teamwork, and sporting camaraderie in the heart of Ogun State.

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