Tag: Wimbledon

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Sinner outlasts Zverev to win second straight Wimbledon title

Jannik Sinner was at his clinical best as he successfully defended his Wimbledon title with a bruising four-set victory over French Open champion Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final.

The world number one recovered from losing the first set in a match largely dominated by serve, eventually wearing Zverev down to secure a 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (7/2), 6-3, 6-4 win.

“You can feel the nerves on Sunday morning, it is a very special place,” said Sinner, who saved the only break point he faced on Centre Court. “You never know how many times you are going to come back. I never take it for granted.”

The Italian was rewarded for his perseverance in an attritional contest with his first Grand Slam title since lifting the trophy at the All England Club 12 months ago.

Sinner’s fifth Slam crown is just two behind the majors tally of his injured rival Carlos Alcaraz after notching his 100th match win at tennis’ four biggest events.

He hit 58 winners against only 25 unforced errors in three hours and 46 minutes on Centre Court, refusing to buckle against an in-form Zverev who brought a 13-match winning streak at the Slams into the final.”It has been an amazing final once again.

It takes two players,” added Sinner, who banks the winner’s prize of £3.6 million ($4.8 million). “I’m very happy about the win but I’m mostly very happy about the level we played.”

Sinner has banished the memories of his shock second-round exit from the French Open at the hands of Juan Manuel Cerundolo when he blew a two-set lead last month.

The closest Sinner came to crashing out of Wimbledon was in the first round when he had to come from behind to beat Miomir Kecmanovic in five sets.

It was plain sailing from then on for Sinner, who has become a fearsome force on grass.

The 24-year-old now boasts a remarkable 44-3 win-loss record this year after winning his sixth title of the season.

Zverev had never even reached the quarterfinals in nine previous visits to Wimbledon.

He managed to take a first set off Sinner in seven meetings, but could not kick on to snap a now 10-match losing streak against a seemingly unbreakable rival.

Zverev, who was bidding to become the first German man to win the trophy since Michael Stich in 1991, will climb above Alcaraz to second in the ATP rankings on Monday.

“At 29 years old, it’s the first time I actually believe I can win this trophy,” said the second seed.

Zverev saved the only break point of a tight first set dominated by serve as it went to a tie-break. (JapanToday)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Noskova defeats compatriot Muchova in dramatic final, wins first Wimbledon title

Linda Noskova has won her first Wimbledon title in astonishing style as the tearful Czech recovered from wasting five match points to beat Karolina Muchova in one of the most dramatic finals in All England Club history.

Noskova, seeded ninth, appeared to be on the brink of a devastating loss when she broke down in tears after squandering those match points in the second set of a Centre Court classic.

But the 21-year-old somehow regained her composure in a final on Saturday with more twists than a Hollywood blockbuster.

Summoning incredible resilience, Noskova clinched her maiden Grand Slam crown with a remarkable 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 victory over her 10th-seeded compatriot.

Quite how she was able to avoid a complete meltdown in the aftermath of her mid-match collapse will go down in the annals of Wimbledon lore.

In two hours and 28 minutes of unrelenting drama, Noskova showed the heart of a champion to establish herself as the youngest woman to win Wimbledon in 15 years.

The third tour-level title of Noskova’s career emulated the success of her compatriot Petra Kvitova, who was the same age when she won the first of her two Wimbledon crowns in 2011.

It was a full circle moment for Noskova, who was inspired to take up tennis by the Wimbledon success of her childhood idol Kvitova.

Fittingly, Kvitova was watching from the royal box as Noskova celebrated her breakthrough victory.

For the third time in the last four years, a Czech woman won Wimbledon following Barbora Krejcikova in 2024 and Marketa Vondrousova in 2023.

Noskova, who banked the winner’s prize of £3.6 million ($4.8 million), has emerged as one of the rising stars of the women’s game during her remarkable run at the All England Club.

Like Kvitova, Noskova has been a quick learner on grass, having only played her first match on the surface in Birmingham in 2023.

She has won more matches on grass than any other player on the WTA Tour in the past two years.

Even so, she had never been past the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam prior to arriving at Wimbledon two weeks ago.

Lifting the Venus Rosewater Dish was hard to imagine for Noskova when she faced match point against Sorana Cirstea in the third round. (Channels)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Carlos Alcaraz withdraws from Wimbledon with wrist injury

Carlos Alcaraz says he will ⁠skip Wimbledon ⁠as he recovers from the right wrist injury that also forced the Spaniard ⁠out of the French Open, the world number two men’s tennis player said on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old ⁠seven-time Grand Slam champion has not played since withdrawing from the Barcelona Open last month.

“My recovery is going well and I feel much ‌better, but unfortunately I’m still not ready to be able to play, and that’s why I have to withdraw from the grass-court swing at Queen’s and Wimbledon,” the 2023 and 2024 Wimbledon champion wrote ⁠on X.

Alcaraz’s rivalry with ⁠Italian Jannik Sinner has captivated men’s tennis, and his absence from the next two Grand Slam tournaments is a ⁠huge blow to fans and broadcasters alike.

The pair contested ⁠an epic French Open final ⁠last year, with Alcaraz coming back to win the title before Sinner turned the tables to take the ‌Wimbledon crown.

Alcaraz became the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam this year when ‌he ‌won the Australian Open. (AlJazeera)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Sabalenka beats Anisimova to retain US Open title

World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka, on Saturday, successfully defended her US Open title with a thrilling 6-4 7-6 (7-3) win over Amanda Anisimova in New York, United States.

Sabalenka sealed a hard-fought victory against Anisimova at Flushing Meadows, making her the first woman to win the tournament in consecutive years since Serena Williams in 2014.

The Belarusian picked up the fourth Grand Slam title of her career as a result, all on hard courts – having now added two New York triumphs to her pair of Australian Open trophies.

Both women were looking to bury recent scar tissue, with Anisimova back in a major final 56 days after her Wimbledon whitewash, while Sabalenka suffered heart-breaking defeats at the Australian Open and French Open – forced to apologise after an ungracious press conference towards winner Coco Gauff at the latter.

Sabalenka also lost to Anisimova in the semi-finals at Wimbledon, putting her in the strange position of being by a distance the best player in the world but without a major trophy in 2025, but she quelled a fightback from her opponent to secure the silverware.

The set was threatening to run away from Anisimova in a similar fashion to Wimbledon, but she told herself above all this tournament to be brave and she powered winners into opposite corners to finally get on the board.

Having won one game, she quickly made that three in a row, the crowd greeting every winner with a huge cheer.

The American was dominating both the winner and error count and it was the latter that climbed again as Sabalenka responded with four games in a row to take the opening set.

Anisimova, who was struggling with the roof lighting on her ball toss, was too inconsistent to apply any solid pressure.

Anisimova slammed a ball down in frustration when a backhand pass from Sabalenka gave her another break in the third game of the second set and, although she fought back to level, the eighth seed’s serve was too much of a liability.

Sabalenka forged ahead again to lead 5-3 and soon found herself serving for the title.

Perhaps it was inevitable that it would not be straightforward. Anisimova somehow dug out a backhand lob that Sabalenka dumped into the net to give herself a chance to level and more huge hitting made it 5-5.

If there was a moment for the demons to resurface, it was now, but Sabalenka took the set to a tie-break, where she has been untouchable this season, and this time finished the job.

Anisimova’s final tally of 29 unforced errors, including seven double faults, was ultimately too many, but the American, who started the year ranked outside the top 30, will have the consolation of being a top-four player on Monday.

Reacting to her win, Sabalenka, who fell to her knees after clinching victory with an unreturnable serve and jumped up and down with her coaches in the stands in a scene of utter joy, said, “I want to thank everyone who came here, who flew in to be there in my box.

“I’m going to reach a lot more finals and I don’t care where you are in the world I want you in my box.”

Also speaking after her loss, Anisimova, who was left in tears yet again after the heartbreak of her 6-0 6-0 drubbing in the Wimbledon final two months ago, said, “It’s been a great summer, losing in two finals in a row is great but it’s also super hard.

“I didn’t fight hard enough for my dreams today.”

She later admitted having problems seeing the ball with the glare of the roof causing her issues when serving.

“I haven’t played on the court during the day with the roof closed. It was literally white, and I couldn’t see the ball when I was serving the whole match.

“It started from the warm-up. I was like, ‘this is really going to be a problem for me’. I didn’t know what to do.

“There was no way of adjusting, because I could not see the ball when I was serving, and that was a huge shock to my system, because I knew if I can’t hold my serve, it was going to be very tough to stay in the match,” she said. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

‎Alcaraz beats Sinner to win US Open, reclaims No.1 ranking

Carlos Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in four sets on Sunday to win the US Open as loud boos — mixed with a smattering of cheers — greeted President Donald Trump at the final in New York.
‎
‎The 22-year-old Alcaraz won 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to capture his second US Open crown and sixth Grand Slam title, avenging his lone defeat in a major final by Sinner at Wimbledon in July.
‎
‎Alcaraz will reclaim the world number one ranking from Sinner, returning to top spot for the first time since September 2023 after ending the Italian’s 27-match winning run at hard-court Grand Slams.
‎
‎”I tried my best today. I couldn’t do more,” said Sinner, who was also defeated by Alcaraz in an epic French Open final in June.
‎
‎Sinner’s defeat extends the longest drought without a successful men’s title defence of any Grand Slam in the Open era.
‎
‎No man has retained the US Open crown since Roger Federer won five in a row from 2004 to 2008.
‎
‎Anticipation for the third straight Grand Slam final between the sport’s top two players assumed an even greater dimension with the presence of Trump.

‎It was the latest in a series of visits to major sporting events for the US leader after his trip to the NFL’s Super Bowl in February and the FIFA Club World Cup final in July.
‎
‎He appeared before the playing of the Star-Spangled Banner, waving to the crowd, which greeted him with a mix of cheers and boos. He was given a frostier reception later in the match though when shown again on the stadium’s big screens.
‎
‎A constellation of showbiz and sports icons turned out as well, with rock star Bruce Springsteen, fashion icon Tommy Hilfiger, actor Michael Douglas and basketball superstar Stephen Curry all on hand.

‎The start of the final was pushed back 30 minutes to allow fans additional time to enter Arthur Ashe Stadium as a result of tighter security measures in effect due to Trump’s attendance.
‎
‎Even then the 23,000-capacity venue was no more than three-quarters full when Alcaraz broke Sinner in the opening game of the match.
‎
‎As he did in the Wimbledon final, Alcaraz pinned Sinner on the back front early and broke a second time for a 5-2 lead before serving out to love.
‎
‎With hundreds of spectators still waiting to get in at the start of the second set, Alcaraz sought to hammer home his advantage.
‎
‎He created a break point but Sinner hung on and stalled Alcaraz’s momentum, belatedly ramping up his game and surging 3-1 ahead as the Spaniard suffered a brief dip on serve.

‎Sinner levelled the contest at a set apiece but Alcaraz stormed back with another break early in the third, wriggling out of a tight spot on serve with the help of a sensational baseline smash that sliced away from his rival for a 3-0 edge.
‎
‎He padded his lead with another break and quickly wrapped up the set, keeping his foot down to corner Sinner again to begin the fourth set.
‎
‎This time Sinner saved two break points but Alcaraz made another charge in the fifth game, delivering the decisive blow for an advantage he never relinquished as the Spaniard became only the fourth man to win multiple majors on hard court, grass and clay. (Punch)
‎

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Sinner downs Alcaraz to win first Wimbledon title

Jannik Sinner downed defending champion Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to win his first Wimbledon title, gaining sweet revenge for his painful defeat in the French Open final.

The world number one is the first Italian to win at the All England Club and now has four Grand Slams to his name at the age of 23.

Sinner stayed ice cool after losing the first set, with the momentum quickly shifting, and he was not broken once in the final three sets.

He squandered three championship points in the final at Roland Garros last month but this time made no mistake as he served out for victory.

Sinner said he was “living his dream”, prompting an eruption of cheers from the Centre Court crowd.

“An amazing tournament, thank you for the player you are,” he said to world number two Alcaraz. “It is so difficult to play against you.

“I am going to keep hold of this (trophy), you have two already!”

The tennis world has been captivated by the emergence of the new rivalry between the players to follow the storied “Big Three” era of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.

Sinner and two-time defending Wimbledon champion Alcaraz have now shared the past seven Grand Slam titles between them, with the Italian winning four of those.

Defeat in Paris last month was a bitter blow for Sinner, who led by two sets and had a clutch of championship points.

Prior to Sunday’s victory, he had lost five consecutive times against Alcaraz, including the final of the Italian Open in the first tournament he played after returning from a three-month doping ban.

But this time he turned the tables in impressive fashion.

Both players were solid on serve until the fifth game, when Alcaraz sprayed a forehand long to hand Sinner the first break of the match.

But the Spaniard levelled at 4-4 to the delight of the Centre Court crowd, which included Prince William and his wife Catherine, Princess of Wales.

Sinner double-faulted to hand Alcaraz a second set point.

The Italian laced a searing forehand down the line but Alcaraz produced a magical backhand winner, pointing his finger to his ear as the crowd rose to their feet. (Punch)

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Wimbledon: Swiatek beats Anisimova to claim Women’s title

Polish star Iga Swiatek took another stride towards tennis greatness by ruthlessly tearing apart American 13th seed Amanda Anisimova 6-0 6-0, lifting her first Wimbledon trophy on Saturday.

On another warm afternoon on Centre Court, Swiatek got off to a scorching start by breaking a nervous Anisimova three times en route to winning the first set of a match with a score of 6-0, prompting some spectators to get behind the shell-shocked American.

A frustrated Anisimova looked to her team in the stands for any kind of guidance after conceding yet another break point early in the second set and it was not long before her machine-like opponent pulled away further.

Anisimova continued to disappointingly crack under pressure, before Swiatek completed the brutal mauling in 57 minutes with a backhand winner on her second match point to become the first Wimbledon champion from Poland.

“It’s something that is just surreal. I feel like tennis keeps surprising me, and I keep surprising myself,” Swiatek told reporters after hoisting the gilded Venus Rosewater Dish.

“I’m really happy with the whole process, how it looked like from the first day we stepped on a grasscourt. Yeah, I feel like we did everything for it to go in that direction without expecting it, just working really hard.”

“It means a lot, and it gives me a lot of experience. Yeah, I don’t even know. I’m just happy,” she added.

Swiatek’s triumph ended a barren 13-month run for the Polish 24-year-old, who served a short suspension late last year after an inadvertent doping violation linked to contaminated sleep medication melatonin.

“I want to thank my coach (Wim Fissette). With the ups and downs now, we showed everybody it’s working,” Swiatek said

Already a US Open champion and a four-time French Open winner, Swiatek’s demolition job at the All England Club meant that she became the youngest woman since a 20-year-old Serena Williams in 2002 to lift major titles on all three surfaces.

Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, celebrated with a picture of himself watching a post-match interview, while President Andrzej Duda was effusive in his praise.

“Iga! Today, on the grasscourts of Wimbledon, you wrote history – not only for Polish sport, but also for Polish pride. On behalf of the Republic of Poland – thank you,” Duda wrote. (VON)