Local News Tuesday 8th September 2015

Motorway disruption - A contraflow is still in operation on the A8 motorway near Menton following a serious fire on Monday afternoon that forced authorities to close the road in both directions. The fire, which broke out above the Giraude Tunnel caused major traffic jams after 3 heilcopters and 40 firefighters were sent in to tackle the blaze. The fire was brought under control shortly after 8pm last night. Traffic problems in the area are likely to persist until the road is completely reopened.

Migrant update - The Grasse prefecture has said that there’s no change to France’s position on migrants despite the recent swell of sympathy for the displaced people of Syria and other war torn nations. The sub-prefect of Grasse Philippe Castanet says that migrants without the correct paperwork and who have not claimed asylum in France will continue to be expelled from the country. He said that between 100 and 200 migrants a day are being taken back to the Italian frontier after being apprehended in the Alpes-Maritimes. Mr Castanet stressed however, that some exceptions are made notably for unaccompanied minors or heavily pregnant women.

Road toll - There have been calls for a greater police presence on the roads following 3 deaths in separate accidents over the weekend. Two cyclists and a motorcyclist were killed in incidents between Saturday and Sunday. In two cases the drivers of the vehicles responsible for the deaths, fled the scene of the accidents. The driver of a car which hit a cyclist on the route de Saint-Laurent-du-Var in the early hours of Sunday was arrested afterwards when police found him asleep behind the wheel of his vehicle. He’s appeared in court in Grasse where the judge has ordered his detention for at least the next 4 months pending further enquiries.

Madame Medusa - The jellyfish are back in force along the Riviera coast with the Antibes area badly affected. The creatures have been pushed inshore by currents following the recent windy weather and there have been numerous cases of people being stung. Authorities say that bathers should take extra care in the sea and keep their eyes peeled.

Royal sculptures - Art created by the late Prince of Monaco Rainier III are being shown at a new exhibition in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. 6 sculptures created by the Prince in his Rocagel studio are on display at the Art-Bre exhibition to mark the 10th anniversary of his passing. The late Prince was a great supporter of the arts and set up a number of artists studios on the Port Hercule in 1997. The exhibition is open daily from 9am until 7pm at the parc de Roquebrune-Cap-Martin and admittance is free.

Trashville - Residents in parts of Hyeres in the Var are up in arms about a build up of refuse in the streets. The Paul-Long area of the town has been described as a public dump by local residents who say that there is an increasing amount of household and garden waste being dumped on the streets as well as illegal rubbish disposal. Many are said to be observing local laws which prevents rubbish being left on the street for collection until 8pm at night with refuse being dumped at all times of the day. There are calls for more ‘green patrols’ to be set up and offenders to be fined.

National News

No to immigration - A new opinion poll has found that the majority of French voters are opposed to relaxing immigration laws to help migrants from war torn Syria and other nations. The poll, carried out by Odoxa for Le-Parisien-Aujourd’hui newspaper found that 55 percent of the 1000 people surveyed are opposed to the easing of rules for migrants applying for refugee status.

Air strikes ? - France is to start carrying out reconnaissance flights with a view to conducting airstrikes on Islamic State positions in Syria. The news was announced by President Hollande on Monday and it’s reported that there’s widespread support for the idea among politicians from most mainstream parties. Mr Hollande says that the fight against terrorism must be carried out at home but also in the places where it’s entrenched. Flights could start as early as today in coordination with the US-led coalition fighting IS. Mr Hollande ruled out sending French ground forces into Syria saying that such a move would be ineffective and unrealistic.

Business

The German airline Lufthansa has cancelled nearly half of its long-haul flights today after pilots called a strike. Lufthansa says that it also expects to have to cancel many short-haul flights tomorrow with the pilot’s union calling for the strike to be extended. It’s the 13th strike to affect the airline in 18 months. 90 out of 170 long-haul flights have been cancelled today. Pilots are protesting over the retirement age although unions say that they have made concessions including increasing the average age of retirement to 60.

EU agriculture ministers have announced a 500 million euro aid package for struggling farmers who are protesting over falling prices. The new measures came as thousands of farmers protested on the streets of Brussels on Monday. Streets were blocked by tractors near EU headquarters with farmers saying that many are facing ruin because of falling prices. The European Commission says that it is well aware of the difficult situation being faced by farmers. The aid measures will be focused on milk producers who have been hard hit after Russia blocked EU imports and the dairy market was deregulated earlier this year.

The UK supermarket giant Tesco has sold its South Korean stores for 4.2 billion pounds as it tries to balance its budget sheet. Tesco has sold Homeplus to the South Korean buyout firm MBK Partners. The money will be used to pay down debt and help to revive the company’s core UK business. The sale will yield 3.35 billion pounds for Tesco after tax and costs.

Sport

Tennis - Andy Murray is out of the US Open. The world number 3 lost in 4 sets to Kevin Anderson of South Africa to make his earliest exit from the tournament in 5 years. Anderson won in 4 sets 7-6 6-3 6-7 7-6 and will now go on to meet Stan Wawrinka in the last 8. Also through to the quarter finals are Roger Federer who beat John Isner in straight sets and Richard Gasquet of France who put out Tomas Berdych in four sets.
In the women’s event Jo Konta’s amazing run is over.The Briton was beaten 7-5 6-3 by Petra Kvitova denying her a place in a maiden grand slam quarter final. Simona Halep and Victoria Azarenka are also through to the last 8.

Football - Northern Ireland remain top of their Euro 2016 qualifying group following a 1-1 draw against Hungary at Windsor Park last night. Scotland’s hopes of making the finals were severely dented though as they lost 3-2 at home to the world champions Germany. The Republic of Ireland registered a vital 1-0 win over Georgia in the same group to keep their hopes of making the finals alive.

Rugby Union - Tragedy for Wales as star full-back Lee Halfpenny has been ruled out of the World Cup after picking up a serious knee injury. Halfpenny ruptured his anterior cruciate knee ligaments during Wales’ victory over Italy last Saturday and will be out of action for several months. Scrum-half Rhys Webb is also an injury doubt after sustaining an ankle injury.

Cricket - England need to beat Australia in the 3rd one day international at Old Trafford today to keep the 5 match series alive. Australia won the first two games with comparative ease. Play starts at 3pm French time this afternoon.

Athletics - Usain Bolt says that it’s time for a rest and he’ll sit out the Diamond League final in Brussels on Friday. The Jamaican, who won the 100 and 200 metres finals at the World Athletics Championships in Beijing last month says that he wants to concentrate on next year’s Olympics and he’s decided not to race again this year.

Cycling - Frank Schlek of Luxembourg won stage 16 of the Vuelta a Espana on Monday but it’s a home rider who takes the overall lead. Joaquim Rodriguez has overhauled Fabio Aru at the head of the field and now has a 1 second lead. Today is a rest day.

Weather

Clear skies in coastal areas with the chance of some showers in the mountains this afternoon. Moderate easterly winds and a high of 26 degrees celcius. Overnight lows of 19 degrees on the coast tonight and 15 degrees inland with clear skies. Wednesday and Thursday-Mainly fine but a couple of degrees cooler.

And finally

More than 44,000 mobile phones are being distributed to South Korea’s military personnel – but they can only receive calls. The phones are being given to members of all four branches of Korea’s armed forces – the army, navy, air force and marines – to make it easier for them to stay in touch with friends and family while in their barracks. At the moment, urgent private calls have to be taken through an administration office. Due to defence ministry budget restrictions, the scheme was initially only going to apply to barracks in remote areas or on the front line but after telecoms company LG Uplus stepped in to fund the cost of the handsets and the network maintenance, the number was increased to 44,686 phones, covering every one of the military’s barracks.

KVITOVA COMPLETES LAST EIGHT LINE-UP

No.5 seed Petra Kvitova joined Simona Halep in the Last Eight Club, reaching her first US Open quarterfinal over qualifier, Johanna Konta.

Published September 07, 2015 12:14

NEW YORK, NY, USA - In the last of the US Open's round of 16 matches, No.5 seed Petra Kvitova ended an inspiring run by British qualifier Johanna Konta, 7-5, 6-3, to reach her first quarterfinal in Flushing on Monday night.

Riding a 16-match winning streak, Konta looked every bit ready for primetime in the opening set, holding serve easily and engineering no fewer than five break point opportunities on the Kvitova serve. 

But the Czech powerhouse had won seven straight matches of her own since winning her third Connecticut Open title before the tournament began. Playing under the lights on Arthur Ashe Stadium for the second time this fortnight, Kvitova held her ground and converted her only break point opportunity with a little help from Konta, who threw in an ill-timed first double fault to fall one set behind.

Speaking with Pam Shriver after the match, Kvitova knew just how crucial that first set was to victory.

"It was a very difficult match, actually. I knew it because nobody really can't play in the fourth round of a Grand Slam, so I expected that. I think she served really well, and I think from the beginning of the match, I was the worst player on the court but somehow I managed to keep my serve on and just waited for the chance."

With the momentum flipped, Kvitova continued to put pressure on the qualifier's serve in the second set and quickly broke and held to complete her resume of Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances.

"I won four great matches [in New Haven] even though I wasn't feeling really well in the first set but I was still able to win it, that's very important for the confidence. And coming to the US Open when I didn't have the best results but finally, I made it!"

Still dealing with mononucleosis, the amiable Czech has managed to draw some positives out of playing sick.

"Maybe my coaches are not very happy, but I learned that I don't have to practice that much!"

It may have been a somewhat sarcastic remark, but with four wins already under her belt in Flushing - all in straight sets - less just might be more for Kvitova.

Up next for the No.5 seed is perennial US Open quarterfinalist and No.26 seed Flavia Pennetta for a spot in the semifinals.

Halep, Kvitova into US Open quarters

NEW YORK, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- Second seed Simona Halep of Romania and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic reached their first US Open quarterfinals on Monday.

Halep overcame injury and 30-degree heat to set-up a last-eight clash against two-time runner-up Victoria Azarenka.

Halep needed 2 hours and 38 minutes to down German 24th seed Sabine Lisicki 6-7(6/8), 7-5, 6-2.

Halep, 23, is the first Romanian in the last eight in New York since Irina Spirlea went to the 1997 semifinals.

"It's unbelievable to reach my first quarterfinal at the US Open. It was a crazy match," said Halep after her fourth successive win over the 2013 Wimbledon runner-up.

Azarenka reached her fourth quarterfinal in four years with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Varvara Lepchenko of the United States.

Azarenka, a two-time Australian Open champion, holds a 2-0 career lead over Halep, although their last meeting was back in 2012.

"I'm a different player since then. I'm stronger mentally. I'm stronger physically. Will be a new match," said Halep.

Fifth seed and double Wimbledon champion Kvitova saw off British qualifier Johanna Konta 7-5, 6-3.

Kvitova is the first Czech in the quarterfinals since Daja Bedanova in 2001.

Kvitova will next face Italian 26th seed Flavia Pennetta, who reached her sixth quarterfinal in seven years with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Australia's Samantha Stosur, the 2011 champion.

US Open 2015: Jo Konta knocked out in fourth round by Petra Kvitova

British World No. 97 loses in straight sets to double Wimbledon champion after laudable run which saw her beat two seeds in New York

Valiant effort: Johanna Konta's US Open run ended in the fourth round Photo: REUTERS

Around half-an-hour before Andy Murray’s US Open came to a juddering halt, Jo Konta also departed the tournament, although she sounded in rather better spirits than Murray after her 7-5, 6-3 defeat to the double Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova.

As the world No. 97, a qualifier who had already knocked out two seeds on her way to the fourth round, Konta could be more than happy with her efforts. Not to mention the rankings points that will carry her up to No. 58 in the world next week, and the £141,000 in prizemoney that she can now reinvest in her training base in Gijon, Spain.

Konta puts maximum effort into a serve against Kvitova

Against Kvitova, Konta did exactly what she has been doing for the last couple of months. She competed for every ball, covering the court with great athleticism and resolve. She also made a number of stylish winners, including two in the first game of the match, which showed that she was hardly overawed by playing in Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world’s biggest tennis court.

In fact, Konta had the upper hand through most of the first set, carving out five break points while taking care of her own service games with great assurance. But Kvitova is a serious opponent, who hits a low and scudding trajectory off both wings, and also has the best lefty serve in the modern game. She scrapped her way out of trouble superbly, and when Konta finally faced a break point of her own, she double-faulted to hand away the initiative.

Petra Kvitova proved too strong for the Brit

“I think she played really well when she was break points down,” said Konta afterwards. “Obviously, I’m not that happy with how I double-faulted the two times I was break point down. But whether it was a conscious thing or not, she puts pressure on my serves, on any servers. She looks to step in. She really does take some swings at the ball. A lot of them do go in. That's why she is top five.

"I played against an incredibly tough player today,” Konta added. “She doesn't give you much rhythm. She definitely doesn't give you many chances to be able to take control in a point, because she keeps very good depth on her ball.

Konta's ranking will significantly improve after the tournament

"So it was very difficult for me out there. But I had an amazing time on Ashe. My mum actually reminded me that when we were here in 2007 for juniors, I said, ‘This is the most amazing stadium.’ I had completely forgot about that. I guess I had a little childhood dream come true, so that's pretty special.”

Despite her enthusiasm last night, Konta emphasised that she was not yet satisfied with what she has achieved this summer. She is already thinking about her next trip, which will take her to the Chinese tournaments in Wuhan and Beijing with a greatly enhanced reputation. Since the start of Eastbourne, she has won 19 of 22 matches, with the three losses coming against high-class opponents in Kvitova, Maria Sharapova and Belinda Bencic.

Konta and Kvitova shake hands at the conclusion of the match

It could be argued that Heather Watson and Laura Robson have both enjoyed similar moments in the sun, without being able to maintain that high level. Yet after a lengthy journey into the limelight via some of the further-flung outposts of the world tour, Konta just seems to have a grinder’s mindset that the other two women are yet to develop. If she carries on like this, you would have to expect that she will finish the year as the British No. 1.

“My coach was actually saying, ‘Oh, it's a nice bonus to be able to go to Australia next year and go into the main draw,’” Konta said. “But things keep going. I don't want to stop here. It's not something that I sit back now, and think ‘Oh, that's nice.’ Like I keep saying, I'm an ambitious person. If I wasn't a bit kind of sleepy tired, I'd be looking forward to getting on the court when I got home.”

US Open 2015: Johanna Konta sees dream run ended as Petra Kvitova cruises into the quarter-finals

Johanna Konta's best run at a Grand Slam tournament ended in a battling defeat to Petra Kvitova, but the 24-year-old Briton leaves the US Open with the biggest pay cheque of her career, a large number of ranking points, a host of great memories and a huge amount of hope for the future.

Having won 16 matches in succession since Wimbledon, Konta finally tasted defeat at the hands of the world No 4. Kvitova, the Wimbledon champion in 2011 and 2014, won their fourth-round meeting 7-5, 6-3, but only after Konta had pushed her hard from start to finish. The world No 97, who is expected to climb around 40 places in next week’s updated ranking list, followed up her earlier victories over Garbine Muguruza and Andrea Petkovic with another confident and measured performance.

Making her debut in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Konta never let the occasion get to her. She served well, struck the ball with confidence from the back of the court and built points with the same intelligence and coolness she had shown in her previous matches.

Kvitova, nevertheless, is a formidable ball striker. The Czech, whose leftie serve is one of the most effective in the game, punished anything that was short with ruthless efficiency. In the quarter-finals she will play Flavia Pennetta, who beat Sam Stosur 6-4, 6-4.

“It obviously was not the result I wanted,” Konta said afterwards. “It would have been nice to have kept my run here going. But I played against an incredibly tough player today. She doesn't give you much rhythm. She definitely doesn't give you many chances to be able to take control in a point. It was very difficult for me out there, but I had an amazing time.”

She added: “I think what Kvitova does really well is she keeps very good depth on her ball.  That's why it's quite difficult to be able to take charge in a point. She gave me very few chances to do that.”

Konta had five break points in the first set but was unable to take any of them. She served well until the very last game of the set. Having gone 30-40 down at 5-6, she double-faulted.

The second set followed a similar pattern. Trailing 4-3, Konta again double-faulted on break point. She saved two match points in the following game but on the third missed her backhand return.

“She served very well, for sure,” Kvitova said afterwards. “She didn't really miss that much. She really made me play a lot. It was a really good match and very tough.”

Konta was asked what the keys had been to her great winning run. “I think I stayed true to how I wanted to play out there,” she said. “I felt that I competed really well, just stayed calm. I really rolled with the punches.

“There's a lot of things going on here. There's a lot of emotions from a lot of players. It's a high-pressured environment. I felt I did a reasonable job at just dealing with that. I'm just looking forward to the next time I can go out on to the match court.”

Konta will be just behind Heather Watson, the British No 1, in the updated world rankings list. Her bank manager should also be happy. Her prize money as a fourth-round loser will total $213,575 (about £141,000).

US Open 2015: Johanna Konta run ended by Petra Kvitova

Briton Johanna Konta's remarkable US Open run ended with defeat by fifth seed Petra Kvitova in the fourth round.

Kvitova, a two-time Wimbledon champion, won 7-5 6-3 in the 23,000-seater Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Konta, 24, had only won one Grand Slam main draw match before arriving in New York this year.

She is projected to rise from a ranking of 97 to inside the world's top 60, just behind British number one Heather Watson.

"I don't even know what Heather is ranked right now - that's not something I actively look at," said Konta. "It's not my most important goal."

The defeat brought an end to Konta's winning run of 16 matches that stretched back to the first round of Wimbledon.

Kvitova too clinical

She might have been playing by far the biggest match of her career, but Konta retained the composure that had got her there as she tested the fifth seed.

"From the beginning of the match I was the worst player on the court, but somehow I managed to keep my serve on and wait for my chance," said the Czech.A match of fine margins came down to Kvitova taking both of her break points, albeit thanks to double faults, while Konta converted none of five.

It was Konta who made the running in the first set but she could not take advantage of break points in the first, fifth and ninth games.

Kvitova, on a seven-match winning streak, earned her first chance at 6-5 and Konta wobbled for the first time with a double fault.

The Briton did not crumble, calmly working her into the second set behind some good serving only to leak a forehand long in game eight.

Another doubt fault followed, and Kvitova wrapped up the win on serve after one hour and 28 minutes.

Konta fulfils childhood dream

"I wouldn't call it stage fright," Konta said of the double faults that made the difference.

"I think if it were stage fright we would have seen it at the beginning of the match. I actually settled quite quickly and enjoyed being out there."

And despite the defeat, she was able to enjoy the experience of opening a New York night session.

"My mum actually reminded me when I was speaking to her yesterday that when we were here back in 2007 for juniors, I said: 'This is like the most amazing stadium.' I completely forgot about that.

"I guess I had a little childhood dream come true, so that's pretty special."

Keen to get back on court

Since losing to Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon, Konta has won two titles on the lower challenger level, three matches in US Open qualifying and three in the main draw.

Having broken into the top 100 over the summer, she is likely to rise to around 58th when the new rankings are released at the end of the tournament.

She collects a cheque for £141,000 - four times her previous best - and should gain direct entry into the Australian Open in January for the first time.

The 24-year-old now plans to return home to Eastbourne before resuming training and then heading to Wuhan and Beijing in China, as the tennis circuit moves on to the 'Asian swing'.

"I'm not blown away by my performance here," said Konta. "I'm just satisfied that I get a little bit of candy for doing well.

"I'm just really looking forward to heading already to my next tournament.

"Obviously I need to take a little bit of a break now, just a couple days' rest, but I'm looking forward to the next plane I'm on to head to Asia."