Wimbledon: Ben Shelton needs four points and about a minute to wrap up a win
'Very different playing over two days and coming out for whatever that was — 55 seconds? — today,' the 10th-seeded Shelton said. 'I was hoping to maybe hit a few groundstrokes today. I might have to go to the practice courts.'
The American, who reached the final four at the 2023 U.S. Open and this year's Australian Open, was about to try to serve out the match on Thursday at 9:30 p.m. when action was halted at No. 2 Court, which does not have a roof or artificial lights.
They came back out to the same stadium a little less than 16 hours later and, after a warmup period that was quite a bit longer the resumption of actual play, Shelton began with a 141 mph ace. The 22-year-old left-hander then hit a second serve that resulted in a framed return by Hijikata, followed with an ace at 140 mph and one more at 118 mph to end things quickly.
'You come out here, serving for the match, the nerves are there a little bit. To hit three aces and take the pressure off of myself, I couldn't have been happier with what I came out here and did," said Shelton, who will face 105th-ranked Marton Fucsovics of Hungary for a chance to reach the fourth round at the All England Club for the second consecutive year.
Shelton told the crowd: "I'm sorry that you guys didn't really get to see much tennis.'
Right before things were halted Thursday, Shelton held three match points while leading 5-3 and at love-40 on Hijikata's serve. But but the 87th-ranked Hijikata grabbed the next five points to extend the contest.
'A great match,' he said. 'A clean match.'
___
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
20 minutes ago
- Fox News
2025 Gold Cup Odds: Books hope USMNT can 'get the job done' against Mexico
Bookmakers got what they wanted from the Gold Cup odds market: USA vs. Mexico, in Houston, in a championship showdown capping the Fourth of July weekend. At 7 p.m. ET Sunday on FOX, the U.S. Men's National Team and El Tri square off. "This is definitely the match we want. I'd say Mexico is the USA's biggest rival," BetMGM Nevada's Scott Shelton said Friday evening. Shelton helps break down Gold Cup betting odds for the championship match. Mexico Moves To Favorite On Wednesday, Team USA got two Diego Luna goals in the first 15 minutes and made that hold up in a 2-1 semifinal victory over Guatemala. Mexico followed with a 1-0 victory over Honduras. Then BetMGM Nevada posted the three-way odds for Sunday's title tilt, declaring it a toss-up: Mexico +170/USA +170, with the draw at +200. But our neighbors to the south have since moved to the favorite. "Ticket-wise, there's literally one more ticket on the U.S. than on Mexico. But money-wise, it's 3/1 on Mexico. Draw only has a handful of tickets," Shelton said. With that action, Mexico is now a modest +145 favorite, with the U.S. at +190 and draw at +210. What that means: If you put a $100 bet on Team USA, and the Americans win, then you profit $190 (total payout $290) if the U.S. wins within 90 minutes plus injury time. And that's important to note. If you were to bet the U.S. on the three-way market, that bet doesn't extend to overtime/penalty kicks. So if the U.S. went on to win in overtime or on penalties, your ticket would be a loser. To avoid that possibility, you might want to consider the two-way "To Lift The Trophy" market, in which Mexico is -135 and USA is even money (+100). Then your bet is live, regardless of whether the game ends in regulation or goes to overtime/penalty kicks. Tie Goes To The Sportsbook As is often the case in soccer, and particularly in high-profile international matches, BetMGM Nevada would love to see the U.S. and Mexico tied after 90 minutes plus injury time. "By kickoff, we're gonna need a draw. That will end up being our best-case scenario," Shelton said. "Mexico will be just as heavily bet as USA." So, ostensibly, bookmakers are rooting for Sunday's match to go to overtime, and even to penalty kicks if possible. That's certainly what Caesars Sports is hoping for, along with a win from the Red, White & Blue on this Fourth of July weekend. "Draws are always a book-friendly result," Caesars head of soccer trading Mark Bickerdike said. "The U.S. ultimately getting the job done, preferably on penalties, would be the most favorable for the book." Patrick Everson is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and senior reporter for He is a distinguished journalist in the national sports betting space. He's based in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golfing in 110-degree heat. Follow him on X: @PatrickE_Vegas. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
New York Times
31 minutes ago
- New York Times
Free agency slows, but are the biggest NBA moves still coming?
The Pulse Newsletter 📣 | This is The Athletic's daily sports newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Pulse directly in your inbox. Good morning! We hope you executed a sign-and-trade to acquire some hot dogs. NBA free agency is more or less over. It's a funny thing to say, given that nobody can officially sign a new deal until tomorrow at 12:01 p.m. ET. There are still a few loose ends to tie up, particularly in the market for restricted free agents like Jonathan Kuminga, whom the Warriors are trying to convert into a small ransom. But after a few days of intense dealmaking, most of the league's most notable players have a home for 2025-26. Advertisement John Hollinger argues that the trade deadline is now more exciting than free agency, and he's right. But news of this year's splashiest acquisition so far came neither at the deadline nor in the free agency negotiating window of the past week. Instead it came on June 22, when the Rockets' trade for Kevin Durant became public. That deal may become bigger in the next few days, and the term 'seven-team trade' could become a part of the professional sports lexicon. It's worth bookmarking our big moves tracker as deals trickle in. But could there be a really big one coming? LeBron James' future with the Lakers is uncertain enough that Fred Katz wrote up a detailed index of potential trade destinations. The Bucks' waiving of an injured Damian Lillard and signing of Myles Turner — a really interesting two-step, by the way — do not at all suggest they're giving up. The opposite, if anything. Yet the chances of a Giannis Antetokounmpo trade still seem higher than zero. Much has happened. How much has changed? To take stock of how the league has shifted, we've got Hollinger and Bounce newsletter author Zach Harper here for a quick survey. The non-Thunder favorites to come out of the West? Likelier to move: Giannis or LeBron? The worst team Giannis could credibly take to the finals: One move that will age like fine wine: One move that will age like spoiled milk: Harper's July 4 favorite in the East, by the way, is the Magic. Only 109 days remain for someone to supplant Orlando before tip. Chestnut wins 17th Mustard Belt In a surprise to no one, Joey Chestnut dominated the field in his return to the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest after a one-year hiatus. Chestnut ate 70.5 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes, a ridiculous 24 hot dogs clear of second place. Meanwhile, Miki Sudo won her 11th title on the women's side, though she fell much short of her world record. Read our full report. Shelton completes Wimbledon win in one minute American Ben Shelton won his second-round match at Wimbledon yesterday in 70 seconds. Well, sort of. With Shelton one game from victory Thursday night, officials halted his match against Rinky Hijikata due to darkness. The two returned to the court yesterday, warmed up for a couple minutes, played four points and that was that. A bizarre situation. More headlines from Wimbledon Day 5 and tomorrow's matches to watch in our daily recap. 📺 WNBA: Sparks at Fever 7 p.m. ET on NBA TV We'll see if a Commissioner's Cup win gave Indiana, now seeking its fourth straight win, a spark. (No pun intended, genuinely.) Caitlin Clark is rehabbing a groin strain. 📺 MLB: Astros at Dodgers 7 p.m. ET on Fox Framber Valdez vs. Shohei Ohtani is both a pitchers' duel and a thrilling head-to-head at-bat that we should see two or three times. The Astros won 18-1 last night. Daniel Taylor and Guillermo Rai put together a moving piece on the levels of heartbreak the soccer world is experiencing in the wake of Diogo Jota's death. No good way to transition out of that one, but here are our holiday weekend recs: My July Fourth weekend necessities: The Only Ice Cream Recipe You'll Ever Need + rewatching 'Independence Day,' a 10/10 blockbuster with Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman in peak performance, in which the only threat to America is the extraterrestrial kind! — Hannah Vanbiber Advertisement This grill brush lives up to the hype. It's made grilling quicker, easier and generally more pleasant. Dad approved. — Alex Iniguez The Athletic's weekly sports news quiz. I also suggested it in yesterday's Pulse, but the new season of 'Tour de France: Unchained' on Netflix is excellent, and you still have a little time to catch up on the lore before really focusing on this year's race. — Torrey Hart The MLB logo patch from Clayton Kershaw's 3,000th strikeout jersey was put into a baseball card. See it here. Apple Music's 'Safe for Work' hip-hop playlist was a party hit with the kids. Kendrick or Lil Durk with no swears? it's like discovering Diet Coke (not the Pusha T version). — Chris Sprow Crab feasts. They're for more than Marylanders, but Old Bay is still a must. — Emily Olsen Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Everything we know about the Luis Ortiz gambling investigation. Most-read on the website yesterday: The Wimbledon Day 5 live blog. Still active.
Associated Press
32 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Grid penalty for Bearman at British Grand Prix after a pit-lane crash under a red flag
SILVERSTONE, England (AP) — Oliver Bearman will head into his first home race in Formula 1 with a 10-place grid penalty after crashing on his way into the pit lane under a red flag. The 20-year-old Haas rookie lost control and spun into a barrier while coming into the pits after the third practice session had been stopped because of an earlier crash for Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto. The race stewards ruled that Bearman had failed to comply with red-flag rules when he 'accelerated significantly to race pace' before coming into the pits. The stewards said the British driver had been trying to simulate coming into the pits in race conditions and had been going faster under the red flag than on his previous entry to the pits. Bearman said the crash happened because his brakes had gone cold under the red flag conditions. 'While this may have been a factor contributing to the crash, we do not consider it to be a mitigating factor,' the stewards ruled. As well as the grid penalty, Bearman picks up four penalty points, giving him a total of eight. Reaching 12 penalty points means an automatic one-race suspension. ___ AP auto racing:
