Knockout Down Under

Tomáš Berdych's Australian Open dream came to an abrupt end in the quarterfinals Jan. 22 after he was beaten in four sets by defending champion Novak Djoković. In the late-night match at Rod Laver Arena, the Serb prevailed 6-1 4-6 6-1 6-4 to set up a last-four clash with Spain's David Ferrer.

While Berdych was yet to drop a set in the tournament, Djoković headed into the pair's encounter having overcome Stanislas Wawrinka in a grueling five-hour epic just two days before. However, if the Czech fifth-seed thought he could give his opponent the runaround, he was very much mistaken.

The world No. 1, aiming to become the first man to win three straight Australian Open titles in the professional era, blitzed through the opener in less than half an hour. Although Berdych replied by taking a nervy second set, his joy was short-lived as Djoković stepped it up a gear in the next two to seal the victory.

"I've seen him play way better," Berdych said afterward. "He played well today, but he played much, much better in his previous matches. It was kind of a chance for me, but I didn't come up with my best game, and that's what was decisive today."

Winter sports: After 169 starts, Matura finally breaks his duck

They say good things come to those who wait, but ski jumper Jan Matura must have feared his reward was never going to materialize. At the age of 32, the Czech had never been on a World Cup podium, let alone experienced the glory of a first-place finish.

However, that all changed over the weekend when he picked up not one but two gold medals on the large hill at the Japanese resort of Sapporo. Taking advantage of a weakened field, with many of the big names electing not to travel to the Far East, Matura recorded his maiden win Jan. 19 as he saw off the challenge of Tom Hilde and Robert Kranjec with a total score of 249.5 points.

The veteran followed up that success a day later by landing jumps of 132.5 meters and 133 meters ahead of Slovenia's Kranjec and Andreas Wank of Germany. That amazing double pushed Matura up to 13th in the overall standings, although he is still some way behind leader Gregor Schlierenzauer.

Not that this matters too much to the Dukla Liberec man. "I knew when I arrived here that the conditions would be windy, and that I could perhaps get onto the podium," he reflected. "But the fact I won twice is something indescribable for me."

Ice hockey: Jágr shines in first appearance for the Stars

As debuts go, Jaromír Jágr couldn't have asked for much more. After pulling on the Dallas Stars jersey for the first time since an NHL lockout that lasted 119 days, the 40-year-old impressed his new fans with a stellar performance against the Phoenix Coyotes Jan. 19.

Showing age is no barrier, Jágr scored twice in the first two periods - which sent him to ninth in the all-time goal standings on 667 - before coming up with two third-period assists to help the Stars to a 4-3 home victory. While Phoenix's Radim Vrbata jokingly bemoaned the success of his compatriot, the Czech legend revealed it wasn't as easy as it looked.

"Don't get too used to it," Jágr said after the game. "It was strange. We only had one week in training camp. I had to get used to my new teammates, too, and of course we haven't had the chance to play any games this season."

Unfortunately for Jágr and Dallas, the winning streak didn't last long. They went down 1-0 to the Minnesota Timberwolves a day later, with Zach Parise's early strike enough to separate the two sides. The Stars were due to travel to Detroit to face the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena Jan. 22.

Football: Out of contract Latka chooses Düsseldorf

Czech players often find the lure of the Bundesliga too hard to resist, and for Martin Latka, that temptation proved no different. The defender left Slavia Praha on a free transfer after his contract expired and signed an 18-month deal with Fortuna Düsseldorf Jan. 17.

The 28-year-old had the option of staying in Prague or moving down the D5 motorway to Gambrinus liga leaders Viktoria Plzeň, but instead opted for the German league strugglers. "It was always my dream to play in the Bundesliga," Latka told the Czech News Agency following his move.

The Czech international, who earned his first cap in a friendly against Slovakia last year, didn't feature in Fortuna's 3-2 home defeat against Augsburg Jan. 20. But with his new side leaking goals, Latka is expected to slot into the squad to visit Borussia Mönchengladbach Jan. 26.

Meanwhile, going in the opposite direction is Martin Fenin, who has left second-tier Energie Cottbus to join Slavia. The 25-year-old's spell in Germany was marred by a host of health problems. He suffered a brain hemorrhage in 2011 and then needed time off for depression. Fenin was also one of six players booted out of the national team in 2009 for allegedly cavorting with prostitutes.

Jonathan Crane can be reached at
jcrane@praguepost.com