
Minnen wins first WTA 125 title at Lexus Birmingham Open
Minnen won her first WTA 125 title with a 6-2 6-1 win over Fruhvirtova in her second match of a rain-affected final day.
The fifth seed had twice tasted defeat at this level but blew her Czech opponent away to lift the trophy.
"It's a wonderful moment, it hasn't been easy the last few years, I haven't played a lot finals," Minnen said.
"To be here, to win a final on the grass is the best I could hope for honestly.
"It's been a tough week with all the rain, for everybody involved in the tournament, thanks to everyone for helping out.
"I know it's not easy with the weather, I don't know how I pulled it off, let's not think about it and enjoy it."
The Belgian took both break-point opportunities she had in the first set to move into a commanding position.
Fruhvirtova broke in the first game of the second set, her first break of the day, but Minnen immediately responded and it was one-way traffic from there as Minnen closed out the match with six straight games.
Minnen had earlier ground out a 6-3 7-6 (7) 7-6 (5) semi-final win over Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland, which had been played over two days.
Fruhvirtova said: "It was a great week for me, of course I am disappointed it didn't go the way I had hoped today.
"I have to give credit Greet today, she was too good. But overall, it was a positive week for me.
"I had two season without a final and this is my second this season so I just have to appreciate it, it means a lot to me."
Finland's Otto Virtanen timed his men's singles triumph to perfection as he beat Colton Smith 6-4 6-4.
Virtanen earned the only break of the opening set at 5-4 and then held his nerve when Smith took a 3-0 lead in the second.
The World No. 114 broke back immediately before again breaking to move 5-4 ahead and close out the match.
Victory was Virtanen's first title on grass, with Smith also playing in his first grass court final.
'It feels amazing, playing on grass, I don't think we have a single grass court in Finland,' Virtanen said.
'But I have always liked the surface, I played juniors on it, but then in the last two or three years too. I always enjoy playing a grass tournament.
'It suits my game as well. It feels great to win a lot of good matches, and today I played a good match from my side.
'He put me in really tough situations, and so I had to do my best on very important points."
Smith had beaten third seed Rinky Hijikata 6-3 6-4 earlier in the day to advance to the showpiece.
The American said: 'I just want to thank the city of Birmingham for coming out to support. This has been an unforgettable week for me.
'It is fun, I am looking forward to keep building from here. I just want to thank my family and everybody else that has been supporting me, it has been incredible.
'I would probably say grass is now one of my favourite surfaces.'
Marcelo Demoliner and Sadio Doumbia triumphed in a disrupted men's doubles final, beating Diego Hidalgo and Patrick Trhac 6-4 3-6 10-5.
The match had been due to take place on Saturday but was pushed back due to rain, and the wet weather interrupted the final with Demoliner and Doumbia 6-4 2-3 ahead.
Trhac and Hidalgo took advantage of the delay to immediately break Demoliner and Doumbia on the restart and held on to their advantage to ensure a Championship tie-break.
With the pairs locked at 5-5 all, the fourth seeds reeled off five points on the bounce to claim the title.
For 36-year-old Demoliner, it marks a first Challenger win since 2009, while Doumbia extended his record in Challengers finals to 19-0.
For the latest action on the British summer grass court season, check out the LTA website

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Herald Scotland
22 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Wayne Rooney: Criticism from Birmingham minority owner Tom Brady ‘very unfair'
NFL great Brady, who became a minority shareholder at Birmingham in August 2023, said he was 'a little worried about our head coach's work ethic' during a documentary after visiting Blues' training ground the following November. Tom Brady, right, became a minority shareholder at Birmingham in August 2023 (Nick Potts/PA) Former England captain Rooney said he was 'really disappointed' at the seven-time Super Bowl winner's criticism. The ex-Everton and Manchester United striker said: 'I think Tom came in once, which was the day before a game where the days are a little bit lighter anyway, and I don't think he really understood football that well. 'But what he does understand is – he's a hard worker – we know that.' Rooney added: 'Football is not NFL – NFL works for three months a year. Players do need rest as well, so I think he's very unfair, the way he's come out and portrayed that.' Wayne Rooney was sacked by Birmingham after 15 games in charge (Bradley Collyer/PA) Birmingham were bought out by American consortium Knighthead Capital Management in the summer of 2023 and Brady became a shareholder two months later. Rooney was sacked following 15 matches after Blues had slipped to 20th in the Sky Bet Championship and the club were relegated at the end of the 2023-24 season. Under current boss Chris Davies, Birmingham bounced straight back to the second tier as League One champions last season with an English Football League record points tally of 111.


Wales Online
39 minutes ago
- Wales Online
Today's rugby news as Louis Rees-Zammit flies in to sign deal and Scotland international dies
Today's rugby news as Louis Rees-Zammit flies in to sign deal and Scotland international dies The latest headlines from Wales and around the world Louis Rees-Zammit flew in this morning (Image: Luke Hales) These are your latest rugby headlines on Thursday, August 14. Louis Rees-Zammit flies in Returning Wales superstar Louis Rees-Zammit flew back to the UK from Florida overnight to seal his immediate rugby future. The 24-year-old is expected to sign for Bristol Bears imminently and begin his comeback after 18 months in the the NFL. News emerged on Wednesday evening Bristol were now very confident of finalising the deal for the winger, who is keen to return to the Wales team as soon as possible this autumn. It's likely Rees-Zammit will take several weeks to get tuned back into rugby, having trained in a very different way for more than a year. The former Gloucester player admitted NFL training was nowhere near the intensity of rugby, with the focus on learning playbooks and short, explosive plays rather than the gruelling fitness demands of 80-minute rugby matches. "Physically, it's not as demanding as rugby, it's nowhere near," Rees-Zammit admitted before leaving American football, but he believes he will now be an even better player. He added: "I've learnt so many different movements that I never even thought about in rugby. Article continues below "The way you train is so much different, but I think that would help me massively. "When I was playing rugby, I went to America twice to train and the things I learned there I knew straight away would help my game. "Now, having two years of it, I think if I did have to go back I'll definitely be able to excel again." Rees-Zammit, who has bulked up significantly during his time in America, will be a marquee signing for Bristol and is likely to be used as a major marketing tool, not least when the club plays a home match at Cardiff's Principality Stadium against Harlequins in March. Tributes paid to Scotland international Scottish Rugby has paid tribute to former Scotland and Barbarians prop David Milne, who has died at the age of 66. Milne, who passed away on Tuesday following a long illness, was famously part of 'The Three Bears', playing alongside his brothers Iain and Kenny, who both represented Scotland on the international stage and went on British & Irish Lions tours in 1983 and 1993 respectively. He represented Scotland on their tours of Japan in 1989 and North America in 1991, winning retrospective caps for his appearances against the USA and Canada, while he won his first official cap in that year's Rugby World Cup opener against Japan. Milne, who also represented Heriots school and Edinburgh district, went on to line up alongside his brothers to form the Barbarians front row in their win over the East Midlands at Franklin's Gardens in 1989. In retirement, he worked in business development and marketing, serving on the board of five different companies and becoming the chair of Edinburgh Leisure. Remembering Milne as "a strong scrummager" and "bright and intelligent both on and off the field," Scottish Rugby said in a statement: "Scottish Rugby is saddened to learn of the death yesterday (Tuesday 12 August) following a long illness of the former Scotland prop David Milne. He was 66. "[The union] extends its sincere condolences to all David Milne's family, in particular his wife Julia, son Rory, daughter Shonagh, grandson Freddie, Rory's wife, Jas, and Shonagh's husband Kalen, plus his sister Susan." Springbok legend sentenced Springbok rugby legend Schalk Burger Sr has been sentenced by a South African court over tax return failures. The 69-year-old - who is the father of former Springbok captain and 2007 Rugby World Cup winner Schalk Burger - was convicted and sentenced together with his wine farm Welbedacht Wines (Pty) Ltd, over failure to submit VAT, Pay as You Earn and income tax returns, according to reports in South Africa. At the sentencing hearing at Paarl Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said Burger Sr was fined R6,000 (£251) or 12 months' imprisonment on each count, and R2,000 (£83) or four months' imprisonment was suspended for five years. "This amounts to a payable fine of R56,000 (£2,356), or 112 months' imprisonment, and a further R28,000 (£1,178) or 56 months' imprisonment suspended for five years on specific conditions," said Mr Ntabazalila. "He successfully requested the court to grant him a deferred fine and was ordered to pay the R56,000 in instalments of R6,000 per month and a final payment of R8,000". Mr Ntabazalila added: "With the filing season for income tax currently underway, this is a clear message that failure by persons and juristic persons to file their income tax returns will not be tolerated. "It is a serious offence that impacts negatively on the fiscus... failure to comply will be met with severe fines coupled with imprisonment in the alternative, as well as suspended fines and imprisonment." Top coach branded 'clueless' Australia legend David Campese has slammed Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt as 'clueless' after it was reported that he had selected veteran James O'Connor to start against the Springboks this weekend. According to reports Down Under, the 35-year-old O'Connor will not only make his first Test appearance since 2022 at Ellis Park on Saturday, but will do so as part of the starting side. While he did not feature during the recent British & Irish Lions Test series, the 64-cap international had an impressive season for the Stormers, and an injury to Tom Lynagh looks to have opened the door for him to start against South Africa. Schmidt will officially confirm his team on Thursday, with O'Connor expected to be named as the starting fly-half with Ben Donaldson on the bench. However, that is much to the frustration of Campese, who slammed Schmidt as he shared his reported decision in a post on X. 'I can see why Joe Schmidt has never won a RWC," said the Wallabies great. "He has no idea about rugby. Clueless. This shows us why." While he questioned the call to put O'Connor straight in the starting team against the Boks, however, Campese added that he was pleased for the playmaker after missing out on facing the Lions. 'Very happy for James who should have been on the bench for the Lions," he said. "Ben at 10". It comes after Campese took umbrage with Schmidt's Kiwi background last year, as he branded his appointment to the top job as "very sad". He said: 'I don't believe we should have a Kiwi coach. Joe Schmidt hasn't won anything. Yes, he might have won a Six Nations, but the World Cup is the ultimate for any sports player or coach, and he hasn't won anything. 'We always seem to get a coach that has never won anything. We always seem to get the second-best Kiwi coach, never the first-best. Joe Schmidt has got no idea about our culture or history. We're mauling the ball from 22 metres out. We don't do that. That's not Australian rugby. 'We are used to counterattack and attack from anywhere," he added. "We can't even do that. It's very sad that we have to go through this again with another Kiwi coach.' Man in court charged with rugby international's murder By Helen William, PA A man accused of killing a father and son at a business premises in south-east London has been remanded in custody. Terry McMillan, 58, and Brendan McMillan, 27, of Chislehurst, Bromley, died after the alleged incident at a commercial property in Long Lane, Bermondsey, on July 28. Hassan Cevik, 31, appeared at the Old Bailey via videolink on Wednesday charged with two counts of murder. Cevik, of Mount Pleasant Lane in Hackney, east London, is also charged with grievous bodily harm relating to a 47-year-old man and possession of an offensive weapon. The Metropolitan Police were called to the commercial property in the Southwark district on July 28 after reports of multiple stabbings. Article continues below Two other men were treated for stab wounds by emergency services and taken to hospital. Cevik was arrested and also taken to hospital. The defendant, who currently uses a wheelchair, was ordered to next appear for a preliminary hearing at the Old Bailey on September 3. Brendan McMillan played rugby for Blackheath RFC and previously represented Jamaica at international level, with Jamaica Rugby Football Union director Hughton Campbell describing him as "a force of nature" and "well-loved" following his death.


Scotsman
39 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Rangers target ‘in discussions', Celtic U-turn, Ben Doak latest
Scottish transfer news from Rangers, Celtic, and the Scotland national team this Thursday morning. Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Here are the top Scottish transfer stories, rumours and gossip on Friday morning, including the latest news from Rangers, Celtic, and the Scotland national team. Vaclav Cerny is exploring a move to the Turkish Super Lig this summer. | Getty Images Cerny 'says yes' to move Ex-Rangers loanee Vaclav Cerny has also been tipped for a move to the Super Lig this summer, after reports claimed the Czech winger was close to a move to Besiktas. The 27-year-old bagged 18 goals at Ibrox after joining on a season-long deal from Wolfsburg, although a permanent move failed to materialize, and he returned to the Bundesliga side in June. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Trabzonspor were also credited with an interest in Cerny this summer, alongside West Ham United, though Turkish outlet Fanatik are now reporting that it is The Black Eagles who have won the race for his signature, with Cerny 'ready to say yes' to the switch. The Czech international is understood to be keen on the move, and the two clubs are now in discussions over a fee. They add that the 27-year-old is keen on the move, with the two clubs now needing to agree on a fee. Ben Doak is in demand this summer, but has been advised on his next move by a former Scotland internatonalist. |Ben Doak latest Scotland international Ben Doak has been advised to choose a summer move to newly-promoted Leeds United if he opts to leave Anfield this summer. A number of clubs are battling it out for his signature, with a report from Sky Sports journalist Anthony Joseph claiming the teenager is seeking to play regular first-team football this season. West Ham United, Bologna, and Monaco have been credited with an interest in the Tartan Army star, who impressed on loan with EFL Championship side Middlesbrough last season, scoring three goals and assisting a further seven before a thigh injury cut short his season at the Riverside Stadium. However, former Rangers and Scotland full-back Phil Bardsley has urged Doak to make a switch to Elland Road, explaining to 'He's certainly an exciting player. If you're not going to get game time at your club, you have to look at the next best thing. And it's about going on loan to a club that will suit him and suit the style that he plays. So, I'm sure Liverpool has got their eyes on that and will make a decision. I'd probably go to Leeds to be fair. I just think that style of football under [Daniel] Farke would probably suit him. West Ham and Leeds both come with great expectations. It depends if you want to live in London or Leeds too - it depends what he likes away from football.' Jack Grealish had interest from Celtic earlier in the transfer window, according to reports. | Getty Images Celtic transfer U-turn Celtic's striking target Giuseppe Ambrosino is reportedly set to reject interest from several clubs this summer and fight for his future at Napoli, according to Corriere del Mezzogiorno. The Italy under-21 international, whose contract expires next summer, was heavily linked with a move to the Hoops earlier in the window. However, they faced stiff competition from Serie A side Cremonese, with both clubs exploring a potential season-long loan for his signature. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Now, however, the Gli Azzurri youngster appears to have reversed his decision, opting to stay at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium and compete alongside Romelu Lukaku and Lorenzo Lucca for a coveted place in Antonio Conte's first team. Elsewhere, new Everton loan signing Jack Grealish is reported to have rejected a move to Celtic earlier in the transfer window prior to his move to the Toffees. According to a report from The Athletic, the Scottish champions had 'expressed an interest' in the England international, but the 29-year-old 'never seriously considered a move to Scotland.' Arsenal keeper Karl Hein has been linked to Rangers this summer. | Getty Images Rangers target 'in discussions' Rumoured Rangers target Karl Hein has been linked with a move to the Turkish Super Lig, with Rizespor said to be 'in discussions' with Arsenal over a move for the Estonian goalkeeper. The 23-year-old stopper is keen to leave the Emirates in search of first-team football, and had been touted for a transfer to Rangers last month following his loan stint at Real Valladolid last season.