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Australian Open: Contrasting first-round wins for teenager Alcaraz and Shapovalov

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Spanish teenager and last year’s US Open quarterfinalist Carlos Alcaraz lived up to his status as a first-time Grand Slam seed as the world No. 31 scored a 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 win over Chilean qualifier Alejando Tabilo on Day One of the Australian Open here on Monday.

The 18-year-old Alcaraz’s first serves proved too much for the 24-year-old Tabilo, who was making his second Grand Slam main-draw appearance, as the Spaniard put his game on full display after an offseason spent on improving his skills.

“I felt really good,” said Alcaraz after the match. “I didn’t expect that this first match was going to be really good for me. I played a great level the first match of the season. Really good feelings… hope the next matches are going to be the same.”

With Alcaraz at No. 31 and Tabilo at No. 135, it was never going to be an easy job for the latter and the gap in the rankings showed as the Spaniard advanced comfortably after the pair traded early breaks.

Alcaraz went on a six-game winning streak to wrestle away control. The Spaniard built his opening-round game on intense aggression from the baseline, but he also deftly mixed well-placed returns in building the lead.

Alcaraz faced just one break point in the match, while breaking seven times in 16 chances of his own.

“I’m starting to get more comfortable on hard court than on clay courts,” said Alcaraz. “I think the most tournaments of the year are on hard court, so you have to be ready.”

Alcaraz enters the new year on the heels of a breakout year that also saw him reach the US Open quarterfinals, win his first ATP title (Umag) and break into the ATP’s top-40 for the first time. Alcaraz had started the 2021 season inside the top-150.

This season, his goals include reaching the top-15 and playing in the Nitto ATP Finals.

“It’s a really good goal for me, but so difficult as well,” he said.

With the top quarter of the Australian Open draw now missing world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, Alcaraz will take on Dusan Lajovic of Serbia, who defeated Marton Fucsovics of Hungary 6-3, 4-6, 6-1, 6-7(6), 6-1. One step further, No. 7 seed from Italy Matteo Berrettini looms as a potential third-round opponent.

Less than a fortnight after helping Canada win the ATP Cup, Denis Shapovalov survived a first-round matchup against Croatia’s Laslo Djere. After being two points away from a fifth set, the Canadian advanced in four, 7-6(3), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3). Djere had an opportunity to serve for both the first and fourth sets, but each time the No. 14 Canadian seed denied him.

“I felt like the fourth set was slipping away from me after that set point,” Shapovalov said in his on-court interview. “But I’m very happy with the outcome.

“He did a great dob to come back from two sets to none,” Shapovalov was quoted as saying by atptour.com. “He changed his tactics, tried to go for it more and was very tricky.”

Next up for the Canadian is South Korea’s Soonwoo Kwon, who edged past Holger Rune of Denmark 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.

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Varun Dhawan: One must travel to learn

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Mumbai, June 3: Actor Varun Dhawan stressed that travel is essential for gaining knowledge and life experience.

The actor took to Instagram, where he shared three pictures from the airport. The first was an image of the actor posing inside the airport with the airplane docked. The other was of him at the same location but this time his back was towards the camera as he looked at the aircraft. The third was a closeup image of him as he made his way inside the flight.

“One must travel to learn,” Varun wrote as the caption.

A few days ago, Varun wrapped up the Scotland schedule of his upcoming project ‘Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai’.

Sharing the professional update on social media, Varun penned, “It’s a schedule wrap for us here in Scotland on #haijawaanitohishqhonahai. So many days everyone pulling together to make this happen. Bringing u all the laughs soon. Now back home.”

The post also included some fun moments of the “Badlapur’ actor in Scotland with his co-stars Mrunal Thakur, Mouni Roy, Chunkey Panday and Pooja Hegde.

The title “Hain Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hain” is inspired by the song “Ishq Sona Hai” from “Biwi No.1.” starring Salman Khan, Karisma Kapoor, and Sushmita Sen. The 1999 drama was helmed by David Dhawan, who is also directing Varun’s next.

“Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai” is reported to have the charm of classic 90s rom-coms.

Varun also has Shashank Khaitan’s “Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari.” Janhvi Kapoor, Sanya Malhotra, Abhinav Sharma, Maniesh Paul, and Manini Chadha are also a part of the project’s pivotal cast.

Furthermore, Varun also had “Border 2”, which is being made under the direction of Anurag Singh. He will be co-starring Sunny Deol, Diljit Dosanjh, and Ahan Shetty in the highly-anticipated sequel.

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Mohit Suri calls ‘Saiyaara’ an ode to his favourite love stories

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Mumbai, May 31: Director Mohit Suri, who is awaiting the release of his upcoming film ‘Saiyaara’, has called it an homage to the love stories that he has grown up loving.

Mohit is known for his musical hits like ‘Zeher’, ‘Kalyug’, ‘Woh Lamhe’, the cult-classic ‘Awarapan’ and the blockbuster ‘Aashiqui 2’.

While all the aforementioned films were made under the banner of Vishesh Films, with ‘Saiyaara’, Mohit has moved into the territory of Yash Raj Films.

‘Saiyaara’ brings together YRF and Mohit, both known for creating timeless romances for an intense love story, and introduces Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda (of ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ fame) as the next YRF heroine.

Talking about the film, Mohit said, “I feel you can tell so many beautiful stories and take people along so many journeys and celebrate so many emotions but romantic genre is always special. ‘Saiyaara’ is my homage to the love stories I love and the sweeping romances that I have come across through my life. I have been fortunate to have met so many people who have been kind enough to share their incredible love stories with me”.

He further mentioned, “I’m delighted to see this unanimous response to the teaser of ‘Saiyaara’. I’m thrilled for Ahaan and Aneet. They deserve all the love because they have really put in everything for people to connect so deeply with the teaser of ‘Saiyaara’. I share this moment with my incredible team and everyone at YRF. I hope people keep engaging and connecting with ‘Saiyaara’ as we peel every layer of emotion, every season of love through our marketing campaign”.

Produced by YRF, ‘Saiyaara’ is set to release in cinemas on July 18, 2025.

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Karan Johar to Shah Rukh Khan: ‘All hail the king of the MET’

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Mumbai, May 6: Global icon Shah Rukh Khan made a dazzling debut at the Met Gala 2025, setting the red carpet ablaze with his signature charm and style. His longtime friend Karan Johar couldn’t hold back, declaring, “the internet didn’t just broke into a gazillion hearts” the moment he stepped out.

Karan Johar to Shah Rukh Khan: All hail the king of the MET

Mumbai, Global icon Shah Rukh Khan made a dazzling debut at the Met Gala 2025, setting the red carpet ablaze with his signature charm and style. His longtime friend Karan Johar couldn’t hold back, declaring, “the internet didn’t just broke into a gazillion hearts” the moment he stepped out.

Wearing a sharp ensemble by Sabyasachi Mukherjee, Shah Rukh looked dapper in a floor-sweeping black trench coat layered over an unbuttoned shirt. He completed chunky jewellery including eye-popping diamond-studded pendants emblazoned with “K”.

To add to the drama, he carried a walking stick with a tiger-top, which was completely in sync with this year’s theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style”.

Karan took to his Instagram, where he shared a video of Shah Rukh walking out in style. The filmmaker captioned it: “All hail the king of the MET!!! The internet just broke into a gazillion hearts!!! Bhai you rule.”

He then shared a picture of Shah Rukh originally posted by the star’s manager Pooja Dadlani and wrote: “The King” along with the song “Here Comes The Hotstepper” playing in the background.

As per reports, Shah Rukh posed, smiled, waved and even treated fans with his signature pose.

The 2025 theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” is inspired by Monica L Miller’s book Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, published in 2009. The fashion gala for the first time has put the spotlight on menswear.

The Met Gala is the annual haute couture fundraising festival held for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in Manhattan. The Met Gala is popularly regarded as the world’s most prestigious and glamorous fashion event.

Attendees are given the opportunity to express themselves through fashion, often producing elaborate and highly publicized outfits inspired by the evening’s theme and broader cultural context.

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