Shortlisted for 2025 International Booker Prize: An excerpt from ‘Small Boat' by Vincent Delecroix
Stories written by
Vincent Delecroix
Translated from French by Helen Stevenson, in this novella, an inflatable dinghy carrying migrants from France to the UK capsizes. How and why did it happen?
Vincent Delecroix
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Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
Heart-warming French fairytale: Wild-card Lois Boisson's dream run continues
A year ago, Lois Boisson was on the verge of a career breakthrough. After a first title at the WTA 125 level (one rung lower than the full tour), she reached a career-high ranking of World No. 152 and was slated to make her Grand Slam debut in her home Major at Roland Garros. Instead, the fortnight was spent in hospital rooms as the then 21-year-old tore her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in the week leading up to the tournament. As she spent much of 2025 tumbling down the rankings, only returning from her injury four months ago, the opportunity seemed to have passed her. In a year that has seen nothing of note in French women's tennis – with only two women remaining in the top 100 – Boisson was handed another shot in the form of a wildcard for this year's clay Slam. But on Wednesday, the punt turned into a fairytale. The World No. 361 defeated the rising 18-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva, the sixth seed, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in a gutsy display in which she resolutely held her nerve and stuck to her power baseline game, to reach the semifinals of the French Open. It was her second upset in three days, after she knocked out third seeded American Jessica Pegula, coming back from a one-set deficit, in the fourth round on Monday. 6 GAMES IN A ROW TO REACH THE SEMI-FINALS FOR LOIS BOISSON 🔥#RolandGarros — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 4, 2025 The 22-year-old native of the small, inland city of Dijon endeared herself to sports fans all over the country by becoming the first French woman to reach the semifinals at her home Slam since Marion Bartoli in 2011. She is the youngest French player to reach the last four at a Major since Amelie Mauresmo – tournament director of the French Open now – in 1999. Entering the tournament as the 24th best French woman according to the rankings, she will leave as France No. 1, guaranteed to rise to at least World No. 65. Multiple other historical achievements tumbled with her performance on Wednesday, only to essay just how unlikely this feat is. She is the lowest-ranked semifinalist at a Major since 2017. Boisson is only the third player to have ever reached the semifinal on Grand Slam debut, after both Monica Seles and Jennifer Capriati also did so at Roland Garros in 1980 and 1999 respectively. She is the first-ever wildcard semifinalist at the French Open since the Open Era began in 1968. After the match, Boisson would profusely thank the home crowd that roared behind her relentlessly through the course of the topsy-turvy encounter that lasted over two hours. 'It's incredible. Thank you for supporting me like this — I have no words,' she said on court. 'I ran a bit too much because I was so tense early on. But I fought hard in that first set, which was so intense. At the start of the second, I felt a little empty, but I hung in there and finished the job,' she added. Lois Boisson 🆚 Coco Gauff, who will make the final? #RolandGarros — Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 4, 2025 Boisson had run Pegula ragged on Monday, doing much damage with her superior forehand. Her tendency to run around her backhand and hit the diagonal inside-out forehands made Pegula struggle, and even when Andreeva did get a read on those, the Frenchwoman's ability to take the same shot down the line sent her opponent into a tizzy. She started slowly, down 1-3 and 3-5 in the first set before resetting and taking a tight first set into a tiebreaker. Andreeva, unquestionably incensed at not taking her opportunities in the first set, blinked first, and Boisson took the opener. But after Andreeva launched into a 3-0 lead in the second, it was her superior experience, despite her younger age, that looked to be the teller. That was until the crowd got involved and willed their home hero on, often disrupting her opponent and raising the pressure every time errors leaked from that side of the court. Once Boisson had equalled scores at 3-3 in the second, the match was on her racquet, and she did not disappoint, rounding out six games in a row to take the win. The fairytale run will be given another shot at continuance in the semifinal against the second seed, Coco Gauff, in the semifinal on Thursday. With a vociferous crowd willing her on, and a huge gust of momentum behind her, it won't quite be the one-sided offensive it looks like on paper.
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
French Open: Wildcard Lois Boisson stuns Andreeva, joins Coco Gauff in semi-final
Lois Boisson's remarkable Roland Garros journey continued on Wednesday as the world No. 361 French wildcard stunned sixth seed Mirra Andreeva 7-6(6), 6-3 to secure a place in the women's singles caused the biggest upset of the tournament when she shocked No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals. She backed up that stunning victory by overcoming the young Russian teenager in a tense two-hour battle under the roof of Court scripted history by becoming the first wildcard in the Open Era to reach the French Open women's singles semi-finals. Her incredible run now guarantees her a rise to at least world No. 61 in the rankings. She also becomes the first Frenchwoman to reach the Roland Garros semi-finals since Marion Bartoli in 2011. French Open Day 11 Live UpdatesBefore Roland Garros, Boisson had never faced an opponent ranked inside the top 50, with her highest-ranked adversary being world No. 60 Moyuka Uchijima earlier this year. The 22-year-old earned her spot in the main draw through a wildcard, having missed last year's debut due to a torn ACL. Boisson also made headlines previously when opponent Harriet Dart made disparaging remarks about her during a match - a moment Boisson later handled gracefully on social media.6 GAMES IN A ROW TO REACH THE SEMI-FINALS FOR LOIS BOISSON #RolandGarros Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 4, 2025advertisementEarlier in the day, Coco Gauff battled into the semi-finals with a hard-fought 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-1 win over fellow American Madison Keys in a match notable for its high error count. Both players combined for over 100 unforced errors, with Gauff benefiting from 10 double faults by ranked world No. 2 and a finalist here in 2022, will now face either Boisson or Andreeva for a spot in the Roland Garros final. The 21-year-old admitted she had to adjust her game mid-match to handle Keys' fast and low shots."I'm happy to get through this match today. I have a lot more work to do and I'll be ready tomorrow," Gauff said. "It's tough to play against her because she hits the ball so fast and so low. I was just trying to fight for every point."Gauff also became the youngest woman since Martina Hingis (1995-2000) to achieve 25 main-draw wins at Roland Garros, underlining her rapid rise at the Grand Slam.
News18
5 hours ago
- News18
200-Year-Old Condom Featuring Erotic Art Displayed In Dutch Museum: 'Object To Laugh At...'
Last Updated: Joyce Zelen, curator of prints at the Rijksmuseum, said that ultraviolet testing confirmed that the condom had never been used. A rare 19th-century condom made from a sheep's appendix and printed with an explicit image is now on public display for the first time at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The unusual object, believed to be a luxury brothel souvenir from the 1830s, is the centerpiece of a new exhibition exploring sex, health and satire in the 19th century. Joyce Zelen, curator of prints at the Rijksmuseum, said that ultraviolet testing confirmed it had never been used. Printed on the flattened intestine of a sheep or goat using a copper plate, the image on the condom shows a nun with her legs open, surrounded by three clergymen lifting their robes to reveal erections. Below the scene is the caption in French: 'Voila mon choix" ('This is my choice"). Condoms like this were part of a booming 19th-century trade. At the time, such items offered limited protection against sexually transmitted infections, especially syphilis- a widespread health threat at the time. 'This was probably made for someone who appreciated both erotic humor and classical references," Joyce Zelen said. 'The hardest part was deciding who would call the boss to ask permission to buy a condom," Joyce Zelen joked. The condom is now featured in the museum's new exhibition 'Safe Sex?", which explores 19th-century perspectives on prostitution, desire and disease. It will remain on view in the Rijksmuseum's Print Room until the end of November. First Published: June 04, 2025, 19:06 IST
