Jannik Sinner: Quiet man of tennis basks in the limelight of Wimbledon glory

Italy’s Jannik Sinner celebrates with the trophy after winning the men’s final against Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz. (Reuters)
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Updated 13 July 2025
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Jannik Sinner: Quiet man of tennis basks in the limelight of Wimbledon glory

  • Jannik Sinner is the quiet man of tennis who has become a big noise, burnishing his legacy on Sunday by winning his first Wimbledon title

LONDON: Jannik Sinner is the quiet man of tennis who has become a big noise, burnishing his legacy on Sunday by winning his first Wimbledon title.

The Italian beat his fierce rival Carlos Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in the latest instalment of their captivating rivalry to claim his fourth Grand Slam at the age of 23.

The pair are the new dominant forces in men’s tennis, sharing the past seven Grand Slams between them as the memory of the “Big Three” era fades.

While Alcaraz is the flashy showman of the game, adored by the fans for his high-risk, high-reward tennis, Sinner stays ice-cold on the court and mild-mannered off it.

His game is based on relentless power and accuracy from the baseline, resembling that of 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

The Italian is getting used to life at the top, reaching his fourth successive major final at Wimbledon this year — a run that started with the US Open last season.

Sinner defended his Australian Open title in Melbourne in January but his career was put on hold after that as he served a three-month ban for twice testing positive for banned anabolic steroid clostebol last year.

Sinner has always maintained the product entered his system unintentionally through a massage from his physiotherapist, who had used a spray containing it to treat a cut.

The World Anti-Doping Agency said “Sinner did not intend to cheat” but that he would serve his suspension as he is responsible for the actions of his entourage.

Sinner returned to the court in May, reaching the final of the Italian Open, where he was beaten by Alcaraz.

Next on his schedule was the French Open and again he reached the title match, this time suffering heartbreak as Alcaraz came back from two sets down, saving three match points to defend his title.

That gave the Spaniard an 8-4 lead in the rivalry between the pair and was his fifth straight win.

But the tables were turned on Sunday as Sinner showed impressive mental strength to come back after losing the first set.

Sinner was born in German-speaking San Candido, in northern Italy, near the border with Austria.

A career in professional tennis was not a given.

He was a champion skier as a youngster and still enjoys the sport in the off-season. He was also a keen footballer.

The right-hander, who stands six feet 3 inches (191 centimeters) tall, won his first title indoors in Sofia in 2020.

The 2024 season was his breakthrough year as he collected his first Grand Slam, the Australian Open, and followed up with seven other titles including the US Open.

He became world number one — and the first Italian to reach top spot — in June last year.

Sinner’s super-power is his extraordinary ability to stay calm on court.

“I know he’s just 23 years of age, but sometimes it feels like he’s much older and wiser than what we are,” said his coach Darren Cahill. “He’s an incredible young man.”

Sinner makes no secret of the fact that he loves the job he has chosen.

“I’m very lucky because tennis started off a hobby when I was young, and now it becomes my job,” he said.

“In my mind it’s still a hobby. I love to go on court and just play. There is no better place to do it than in big stadiums with packed crowd.”


Allizen Corpuz finally sees results and shares Boston lead on LPGA

Updated 4 sec ago
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Allizen Corpuz finally sees results and shares Boston lead on LPGA

  • Corpuz had four birdies on her last six holes at the TPC Boston, holing a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth to catch Kim, who played in calmer conditions in the morning
  • Shadoff was the last to finish, and she did so in style with four straight birdies

NORTON, Mass.: Allizen Corpuz kept her patience while spinning her wheels for so much of the year and finally saw some good results Thursday when she opened the FM Championship with a 7-under 65 to share the first-round lead with Sei Young Kim and fast-closing Jodi Ewart Shadoff.

Corpuz had four birdies on her last six holes at the TPC Boston, holing a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth to catch Kim, who played in calmer conditions in the morning.

Shadoff was the last to finish, and she did so in style with four straight birdies.

“Holed a lot of putts outside 20 feet, so that definitely helps. And then the last four just good ball striking and some really nice putts,” Ewart Shadoff said.

Nelly Korda switched putters to more of a blade and saw it pay off with seven birdies in a round of 67 in her debut on the TPC Boston course that previously hosted one of the four PGA Tour postseason events.

Corpuz has only one LPGA victory and it was a big one — the US Women’s Open at Pebble Beach two years ago. She had a pair of top 10s early in the year, including a third in the Ford Championship in Phoenix in late March. That was her last top 10.

“Just feel like golf is such a funny game,” Corpuz said. “Even if it hasn’t been the results that I wanted to see, it’s just felt really, really close all season. It was a good start to the season and kind of just feel like things are starting to turn the corner a bit.”

Kim played in the morning when the weather was slightly cooler and she wondered if that would make the course play longer with the golf ball not flying as much. But she birdied three of the par 5s until having to settle for a par on the closing hole that has a large ditch in front of the green and big swales around it.

That’s what tripped up Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand in her second week since returning to No. 1 in the women’s world ranking. She blasted a tee shot down the right side, but her approach on the par-5 18th missed left and went down that steep slope. Her first pitch came up short and rolled back to her feet, and the Thai took a bogey for a 69.

Two stories have been in play all year on the LPGA — 22 consecutive tournaments to start the year with different winners at each one, and Korda not winning any of them. Korda is coming off a seven-win 2024 and only two weeks ago lost the No. 1 ranking to Thitikul.

Her 67 left her in a log jam of players tied for third that included Women’s PGA champion Minjee Lee, Celine Boutier, Andrea Lee and Gurleen Kaur, the LPGA rookie who had to go through Monday qualifying to get into the field.

Korda said the Florida courses where she lives aren’t in the best shape in the hot summer, so she wasn’t sure what she thought of the putter at home. But she took it to Canada, liked how it felt and kept it in the bag. It’s a similar model to the one she was using last year.

“Just something new,” Korda said, who also went with a different grip on the putter. “I knew I had so much success with that kind of putter and felt confident with it. Just needed to feel something different.”


Giannis powers Greece past Italy, Poland outlast Slovenia, Luka in NBA stars’ EuroBasket openers

Updated 20 min 14 sec ago
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Giannis powers Greece past Italy, Poland outlast Slovenia, Luka in NBA stars’ EuroBasket openers

  • Toronto Raptors forward Sandro Mamukelashvili scored 19 points to lead Georgia to an 83-69 upset victory over defending champions Spain
  • France, playing without Victor Wembanyama at the tournament, eased past Belgium 92-64 with the rest of their NBA talent on display in a dominant performance

LIMASSOL, Cyprus: American-born guard Jordan Loyd hit seven 3-pointers and finished with 32 points to help Poland outlast Slovenia and Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic 105-95 Thursday in both teams’ EuroBasket opener.

Loyd’s efforts spoiled a strong effort by Doncic, the slimmed-down NBA star, who finished with 34 points and nine rebounds in the Group D matchup in Katowice, Poland. Poland led 47-46 at the half, then outscored Slovenia 33-23 in the third quarter to take control.

Fellow NBA and Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo had a much easier outing, scoring 31 points in 29 minutes for Greece as they downed Italy 75-66 in Group C in Limassol, Cyprus. Greece shot 62 percent from the field and hit seven 3s in the victory.

Georgia upset defending champs

In another Group C matchup, Toronto Raptors forward Sandro Mamukelashvili scored 19 points to lead Georgia to an 83-69 upset victory over defending champions Spain.

Mamukelashvili added seven rebounds and six assists as Georgia outrebounded Spain 46-29. Spain shot poorly in a disjointed performance — only making 6 of 13 free throws — but still only trailed 61-58 in the fourth quarter when Georgia went on an 11-2 run to take a decisive lead.

American-born guard Kamar Baldwin had 12 points for Georgia, including a 3-pointer in the final seconds.

Juancho Hernangomez led Spain with 13 points in the Group C game at Spyros Kyprianou Arena.

“They deserved to win. They played way better. They played more physically than us,” Hernangomez said. “We played really, really bad ... so let’s get better for the next game.”

No Wemby, no problem; Bosnia run by Cyprus

France, playing without Victor Wembanyama at the tournament, eased past Belgium 92-64 with the rest of their NBA talent on display in a dominant performance in Katowice, Poland.

Washington Wizards shooting guard Bilal Coulibaly had 12 points and seven rebounds. NBA teammate Alex Sarr provided one of the game highlights late in the first quarter, dunking off a running, behind-the-back pass from Sylvain Francisco.

“We needed to make a strong debut as a team and I think that’s what we did,” France shooting guard Isaia Cordinier said. “Everybody brings something to the team. ... The danger comes from everywhere.”

Israel beat Iceland 83-71 in Katowice, leading throughout following a 10-0 run in the first quarter. Roman Sorkin scored 31 points for Israel in their Group D opener.

Co-hosts Cyprus were trounced 91-64 by Bosnia and Herzegovina.


Ronaldo remains the face of the Saudi football league as the season kicks off

Updated 26 min 30 sec ago
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Ronaldo remains the face of the Saudi football league as the season kicks off

  • Industry expert: “He has been helpful in raising global awareness of Saudi football”

Ronaldo is still a name above all others when attention turns to the Saudi football league’s season-opening round.
Just like it was earlier this month when more than 30,000 fans turned out in Hong Kong to watch Al-Nassr defeat Al-Ittihad 2-1 in the first semifinal of the Saudi Super Cup on Aug. 19, he’s part of the league’s growth and marketing plans.
“The majority can only be described as Cristiano Ronaldo fans,” Chris KL Lau, a Hong Kong resident and fan, told The Associated Press. “The match had an electric buzz and each time Ronaldo had the ball there was excitement.”
The Portuguese star was mobbed the following day when he visited the city’s official Cristiano Ronaldo museum. “Fans have traveled from across China, Saudi Arabia and the Asia-Pacific to see him,” Lau said.
After Ronaldo left Manchester United and joined the Saudi Pro League in December 2022, other big names followed to Riyadh, Jeddah and elsewhere, including Karim Benzema, Neymar and Riyad Mahrez. The ‘Big Four’ – Al-Nassr, Ittihad as well as Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli – were taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in 2023 and have budgets as big as ambitions.
The league season kicked off Thursday with three games. Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr opens Friday against Al-Taawoun.
While the five-time Ballon d’Or winner is still the international face of the league, backers are working to expand the reach of the league. But the importance of Ronaldo’s presense was evident in the second game at Hong Kong Stadium between Al-Ahli and Al-Qadsiah, when organizers announced a crowd of 16,000. Some doubt that figure.
“Those who were at the game reckon only 5,000 to 6,000 fans were inside,” Lau said “Fans were happy to splash the cash for Ronaldo but were less inclined to do so for Al-Ahli and Al Qadsiah. This resulted in rows of empty seats.”
Expanding influence
Simon Chadwick, a specialist in the relationship between sports, geopolitics and economics, said while people are aware Ronaldo plays in Saudi Arabia, “It’s questionable just how much they know about Al-Nassr or the Pro League.”
“He has been helpful in raising global awareness of Saudi football,” Chadwick, professor of Afro-Eurasian Sport at Emlyon Business School in Paris, said, “but there needs to be greater depth and more sustainable engagement in relations with fans.”
Wael Al-Fayez, the league’s chief commercial officer, says that is already happening.
“Last season, we reached a record 180 countries worldwide, up from 150 the year before,” Al Fayez said. “On the sponsorship side, international deals have surged by 200 percent, which reflects real, measurable growth. On social media, our following grew from 11 million to 15 million last season, with a 60 percent jump in engagement.”
Playing games overseas is another strategy. As Lau, the fan in Hong Kong, noted: “Media coverage here means it was impossible not to be aware of these matches.”
Attracting fans around the world, as major European clubs such as Real Madrid and Liverpool already do, is a long process.
“If Saudi clubs are to compete on the same basis, it will take decades to build a global fan base,” Chadwick said. “So they need to tell a different story to people. The likes of Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal need to give fans something that they can’t get elsewhere.”
Next goal
This could involve becoming Asia’s premier club team.
“Currently, there is no obvious candidate that qualifies as Asia’s No. 1 club or brand,” Chadwick said, “so why shouldn’t this be a Saudi club?”
Domination of Asian continental club competitions will help.
The investment in players has clearly increased standards. Three of the four semifinalists in last season’s Asian Champions League were from Saudi Arabia, with Al-Ahli going on to win the title.
At the Club World Cup in August, Al-Hilal was the only Asian team to make a big impact, drawing with Real Madrid in the group stage and then defeating Manchester City 4-3 in the round of 16.
“The appetite for football globally is growing, and the Saudi Pro League is on its way to become the home of football outside Europe,” Al-Fayez said. “It’s been an incredible start to our journey, and the momentum is undeniable.”


Osaka condemns Ostapenko over heated US Open row with Townsend

Updated 29 August 2025
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Osaka condemns Ostapenko over heated US Open row with Townsend

  • Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko verbally dueled at the net after their match
  • Osakahas been an outspoken supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement

NEW YORK: Naomi Osaka said using words like “no education” and “no class” to criticize a Black tennis player were among the worst things to say as the debate over a heated row between Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko raged on at the US Open on Thursday. Townsend, who is Black, overcame 2017 French Open champion Ostapenko 7-5, 6-1 in a tough second-round battle a day earlier. But the real tension came shortly after match point, when the pair verbally dueled at the net, with the Latvian repeatedly wagging her finger at the American.
Townsend revealed a part of the exchange during her on-court interview, after which she said during her press conference that Ostapenko would have to answer if there were “racial undertones” to the altercation.
Ostapenko said on Instagram later that her anger stemmed from Townsend’s refusal to apologize after winning a point at a pivotal moment when her ball clipped the net and stayed in play, as she accused the American of being “disrespectful.”
Apologizing for winning a point with assistance from the net cord is a tradition that most players adhere to it, but they are not obliged to do so.
The Latvian added in another statement that she had never been racist in her life, but Osaka said the words Ostapenko chose during the altercation were in bad taste.
“It’s one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority white sport,” four-times Grand Slam winner Osaka said.
“I know Taylor and I know how hard she’s worked and I know how smart she is, so she’s the furthest thing from uneducated or anything like that.”
Champion advocate
Osaka, born to a Japanese mother and Haitian father, has been an outspoken supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement both in the United States, where she resides, and in Japan. She was a champion advocate for the campaign during her run to the 2020 Flushing Meadows title.
The 27-year-old had used her platform to highlight racial injustice in the United States to a wider audience by wearing a different face mask – each bearing the name of an African American who had been killed in recent years – before each one of her seven matches.
“If you’re like genuinely asking me about the history of Ostapenko, I don’t think that’s the craziest thing she’s said. I’m going to be honest,” Osaka continued with a smile.
“I think it’s ill timing and the worst person you could have ever said it to. And I don’t know if she knows the history of it in America.
“I know she’s never going to say that ever again in her life. But yeah, it was just terrible. That’s just really bad.”
American Coco Gauff waded into the debate, saying although Ostapenko should not have said what she said, it was a “heat of the moment” thing.
“I know what was said after the match,” said Gauff, another vocal advocate for social issues including racial justice.
“It was a heat of the moment thing. Jelena was probably feeling emotions after she lost. I do think that shouldn’t have been said regardless of how you’re feeling ... Knowing Taylor personally, she’s the opposite of that.
Gauff said that Townsend was one of the nicest people she knew and hoped people would now make an effort to find out more about her.
“Maybe this is the first people are hearing who Taylor is, and I don’t want that to be the main focus of who she is because she’s a lot more than that.
“She’s a mother, a great friend, a talented tennis player and a good person. At the end of this tournament I hope people do a deep dive into her and get to know her more than what was said in the previous match.”


Football icon Son Heung-min leads way as MLS smashes transfer spending record

Updated 29 August 2025
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Football icon Son Heung-min leads way as MLS smashes transfer spending record

  • MLS teams broke the league’s individual transfer fee record three times in 2025, most recently by LAFC’s reported $26.5 million deal for South Korea captain Son
  • There were 169 international arrivals in 2025, spanning 50 countries and averaging 25.2 years of age

LOS ANGELES: Major League Soccer clubs smashed the league’s transfer spending record in 2025, laying out about $336 million on player acquisitions led by LAFC’s blockbuster acquisition of Son Heung-min from Tottenham, the league told Reuters this week.

The total outlay was nearly double the previous MLS record of $188 million set in 2024 and would have ranked eighth among global leagues last year, ahead of Mexico’s Liga MX and Argentina’s Primera Division. It represents a 75 percent year-on-year increase in spending.

MLS teams broke the league’s individual transfer fee record three times in 2025, most recently by LAFC’s reported $26.5 million deal for South Korea captain Son, followed by Atlanta United’s acquisition of Emmanuel Latte Lath for $22 million and FC Cincinnati’s move for Kevin Denkey at $16.3 million.

Eight clubs set new internal transfer records, with Austin FC doing so twice, while nearly half of MLS teams have completed a club-record signing in the past two years.

There were 169 international arrivals in 2025, spanning 50 countries and averaging 25.2 years of age.

Top-flight leagues most targeted by MLS sides included Brazil (11 signings), Argentina (10), England (8) and Portugal (8). Teams executed at least eight deals worth $10 million or more.

From Jan. 1 to Feb. 4 – typically MLS’s busiest window – the US ranked sixth worldwide in transfer expenditure at $145 million and seventh in revenue at $125 million, with outgoing fees up 126 percent versus the same period in 2024.

Seven players departed MLS for fees of at least $10 million in 2025, and nine clubs set new records for outgoing transfers.

The league said its new “cash-for-player” trade rule, introduced in January, has reshaped intra-league movement by allowing clubs to trade directly for players without using General Allocation Money or other assets such as draft picks.

In its first season, the mechanism accounted for more than $40 million across 11 players, a development MLS says has helped keep top performers in the league while allowing selling clubs to realize value.

Notable trades under the new system included moves for Evander to FC Cincinnati, Djordje Mihailovic to Toronto FC, Jack McGlynn to Houston Dynamo, Daniel Gazdag to Columbus Crew, Luciano Acosta to FC Dallas and Dejan Joveljic to Sporting Kansas City.