All smiles as Djokovic and Kyrgios treat crowd to flashy shots in doubles win

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All smiles as Djokovic and Kyrgios treat crowd to flashy shots in doubles win

2024-12-30 21:26 Last Updated At：21:31

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Exchanging smiles, laughs and flashy shots, Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios teamed up in doubles on Monday as they both returned to the court in preparation for the Australian Open.

The two former Wimbledon final opponents reached the second round of the Brisbane International with a 6-4, 6-7 (4), 10-8 win against Alexander Erler and Andreas Mies.

It was Kyrgios' first match in 18 months due to wrist and knee injuries, while Djokovic missed the season-ending ATP Finals last month with an unspecified injury.

They had the crowd on their feet several times at Pat Rafter Arena, including when Djokovic flicked an around-the-net backhand winner during the first set. Djokovic then turned to point at a grinning Kyrgios, who slapped Djokovic's outstretched hand in celebration.

“That’s just an iconic Novak moment. The way the guy moves around the court, I’ve never moved like that in my life. I was just loving it,” said Krygios, who treated the crowd to some shot-making of his own.

When Kygrios won another point following another extravagant shot — playing the ball between his legs, known as a tweener — he jogged proudly around the court with a grinning Djokovic chasing after him.

Then, after Kyrgios sealed the win with an ace, the pair jumped in the air to chest-bump each other.

“We tried to get the crowd on our side,” Djokovic said. “Get that energy and just use it for some good tennis.”

Kyrgios lost to Djokovic in the 2022 Wimbledon final, but the 29-year-old Australian had not played tennis since June 2023.

“This injury has been brutal for me so I wasn’t taking any of this for granted,” Kyrgios said afterward in a courtside interview. “I don’t know how many Aussie summers I’ve got left so I was just looking around and loving the energy and just so happy to be back out here."

The 37-year-old Djokovic has won the Australian Open singles title a record 10 times and counts a men's record 24 majors. He owns 99 singles titles overall but only one in doubles.

Kyrgios won the won the 2022 Australian Open doubles title alongside Thanasi Kokkinakis, and said the timing was right to team up with Djokovic in Brisbane before the Australian Open starts next month.

“We promised that we were going to do this one more time before either he goes or I go, so I’m glad we’re still alive," Kyrgios said.

Djokovic quickly agreed to the idea.

“He said the other day that it should be a pleasure to play with him, and it is. I’m glad to share the court with him on his comeback," Djokovic said. "I haven’t played that many doubles matches in my life.”

They were given a wild-card entry into the doubles tournament and next face top-seeded pair Nikola Mektic and Michael Venus.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Montenegro mourns after gunman kills at least 12 people before shooting himself

2025-01-02 22:37 Last Updated At：22:41

CETINJE, Montenegro (AP) — Shock and dismay prevailed in Montenegro on Thursday after a gunman fatally shot 12 people, including two children, in a western town before killing himself.

At least four others were wounded in the shooting rampage in Cetinje on Wednesday that followed a bar brawl, officials said. This was the second such incident in the town in the past three years.

The shooter, identified as 45-year-old Aco Martinović, killed the owner of the bar, the bar owner's children and his own family members, officials have said.

The attacker, who first fled after the rampage, was later located and surrounded by police. He died after shooting himself in the head, Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović said.

Residents of Cetinje, a town of some 17,000 people, were stunned and grief-stricken.

"I knew all of these people personally, also the attacker. I think when he did that, he was out of his mind," said Vesko Milošević, a retiree from Cetnje. "What do I know, he went from place to place and killed people. Its a catastrophe.”

Vanja Popović, whose relatives are among the victims, said that “we are all in shock.”

“How can I feel after this?" Popović said. "No one expected it. You can’t even ask anyone anything.”

Police had dispatched a special unit to search for the attacker in the town, which is located about 30 kilometers (18 miles) northwest of Podgorica, the capital. All roads in and out of the city were blocked for hours as police swarmed the streets.

Šaranović said that the shooter had died while being taken to a hospital in the capital and succumbed from the “severity of his injuries.”

Officials have said that the attacker was at the bar throughout the day with other guests when the brawl erupted. He then went home, brought back a weapon and opened fire at around 5:30 p.m.

Prosecutor Andrijana Nastić said Thursday that the attacker went to six locations during the shooting rampage, including the last one, where he shot himself.

Four men were killed at the bar, Nastić said. The shooter then moved on to another location where he killed four more people, and then two children at a third site. He then went on to kill two more people at two other locations before eventually shooting himself, Nastić said.

“Further investigation will determine the exact circumstances of the events,” she added.

The government has declared three days of national mourning starting on Thursday, and all planned New Year's festivities have been canceled throughout the country.

Prime Minister Milojko Spajić said that the government may try to impose a total ban on weapons “because we must ask ourselves after this who should be allowed to have guns in Montenegro.”

The small Adriatic Sea nation, which has a population of around 620,000 people, is known for its gun culture and many people traditionally have weapons.

In August 2022 in Cetinje, which is Montenegro’s historic capital, an attacker killed 10 people, including two children, before he was shot and killed by a passerby.

Police have said that the suspect in Wednesday's shooting received a suspended sentence in 2005 for violent behavior and had appealed his latest conviction for illegal weapons possession. Montenegrin media have reported that he was known for erratic and violent behavior.

“Instead of holiday joy ... we have been gripped by sadness over the loss of innocent lives,” Montenegro's President Jakov Milatović said in a post on X.

Jovana Gec and Dušan Stojanović contributed to this report from Belgrade, Serbia.