Veteran Alizé Cornet to resume tennis career next month, less than a year after retiring

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Veteran Alizé Cornet to resume tennis career next month, less than a year after retiring

2025-03-24 23:21 Last Updated At：23:31

PARIS (AP) — Less than a year after ending her tennis career, veteran Frenchwoman Alizé Cornet is making a comeback.

Cornet said in a statement relayed by Rouen tournament organizers on Monday that she will be playing at the indoor clay-court event next month.

“You thought you’d got rid of me, but it’s not quite the case yet,” said Cornet, who added that she had resumed training two months ago.

Cornet retired last year after a 6-2, 6-1 loss to No. 7 seed Zheng Qinwen in the first round of the French Open.

The 35-year-old Cornet has been granted a spot in the main draw at Rouen through a wild card, organizers of the WTA 250 tournament said. The event runs from April 14-20.

Cornet reached a career-high ranking of No. 11 in 2009. She holds the women’s record for most consecutive Grand Slam tournaments played at 69, a streak that ran from the 2007 Australian Open to the 2024 French Open.

Her career highlights include defeating No. 1 Serena Williams in the third round at Wimbledon in 2014 and one major quarterfinal appearance, at the Australian Open in 2022.

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

Clippers prevent Knicks from clinching a playoff spot with 126-113 victory

2025-03-27 10:00 Last Updated At：10:10

NEW YORK (AP) — James Harden had 29 points, six rebounds and six assists, Kawhi Leonard scored 27 points and the Los Angeles Clippers prevented the New York Knicks from clinching a playoff berth with a 126-113 victory Wednesday night.

Norman Powell added 19 points and Ivica Zubac finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who improved to 41-31 and tied Golden State for sixth place in the Western Conference, the final guaranteed postseason place.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 34 points and 13 rebounds for the Knicks, who were looking to follow Cleveland and Boston and become the third team to wrap up a spot in the East.

The Knicks started impressively on the second night of a back-to-back, going 8 for 9 en route to an 18-5 lead. But the Clippers blew by them with a 16-3 run to end the third quarter and broke it open in the fourth.

Clippers: Los Angeles bounced back from a loss to Oklahoma City that snapped its five-game winning streak and got off to a good start on a four-game road trip as it tries to avoid the play-in tournament.

Knicks: The Knicks fell to 5-5 without Jalen Brunson (sprained right ankle) and are running out of point guards. Deuce McBride, his original replacement, was out with a strained left groin and Cam Payne missed the second half after spraining his right ankle while scoring 15 points in the first half.

With the Clippers down 81-78, Harden scored their next 11 points, hitting three 3-pointers, to power the 16-3 finish to the third quarter.

A night after his first triple-double with the Knicks, Towns had his 18th game with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds, tying Patrick Ewing for third-most in a season by a Knicks player.

The Clippers stay in New York to visit Brooklyn on Friday. The Knicks visit Milwaukee on Friday.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba