Raducanu beats Osaka in straight sets to reach Washington quarters
Raducanu, US Open champion in 2021, next faces former world number three Maria Sakkari after the Greek stunned American second seed Emma Navarro in straight sets.
"I thought it was going to be a really difficult match. Naomi's won four slams, she's been world number one, won Masters," Raducanu told Sky Sports. "She's so dangerous and on the hard courts, I think she's particularly comfortable.
"I knew I was going to have to play well and manage my own service games, which I'm really proud of how I did. I was making some inroads in her service game after I got used to it a little bit.
"I'm really pleased with how I handled the ball speed and conditions here in DC."
Raducanu, who will reclaim the British number one ranking from Katie Boulter when the WTA rankings are released on Monday, is also into the women's doubles semi-finals alongside Wimbledon 2022 champion Elena Rybakina.
Venus Williams' comeback tournament after 16 months away from the game ended with a 6-2 6-2 loss to Polish fifth seed Magdalena Frech.
The 45-year-old seven-times singles Grand Slam champion became the oldest player to win a WTA singles match since 2004 when she beat Peyton Stearns in her Washington opener on Tuesday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Today
10 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Young gets first PGA Tour win; Yamashita grabs maiden LPGA major crown
American Cameron Young seized his first US PGA Tour title on Sunday, firing a two-under par 68 in the final round of the Wyndham Championship for a six-stroke victory over Mac Meissner. It was an emotional win for Young, whose seven career runner-up finishes included the 2022 British Open at St. Andrews. He started the day with a five-stroke lead and after an opening bogey reeled off five straight birdies -- a run that included a 26-foot bomb at the third hole. A pair of bogeys at 16 and 17 were immaterial and Young tapped in for a par at the 18th to cap a two-under par 68 that gave him a 22-under total of 258. 'I've been waiting for it for awhile,' Young said. 'I never thought I'd really be that emotional about it, but it's the end of my fourth season and I've had my chances. Never quite like this -- and I wasn't going to let it get away from me today.' The win at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, had a little extra resonance for Young, who played college golf at North Carolina's Wake Forest University. He was also hoping the win might catch the eye of US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley with the biennial match play showdown with Europe coming up in September. 'Obviously that team is a goal of many of us,' the world number 44 said. Fellow American Meissner had five birdies in his four-under 66 to take second on 16-under 264. Sweden's Alex Noren and American Mark Hubbard shared third on 265 while US amateur Jackson Koivun shared fifth place with American Chris Kirk and England's Aaron Rai. Sunday's round marked the end of the PGA regular-season with the top 70 on the points list advancing to the playoffs which start next week at the St. Jude Championship. Of the players hoping to play their way in this week, Kirk's finish was enough to move him up from 73rd in the standings to 61st. Yamashita wins Women's British Open: Japan's Miyu Yamashita won the Women's British Open by two strokes at Royal Porthcawl on Sunday to clinch an emotional first major title. Yamashita carded a two-under par final round to hold off a strong challenge from England's Charley Hull on the Welsh links course. She finished on 11-under par for the tournament, with Hull and Japan's Minami Katsu ending in a tie for second place after final rounds of 69 left them on nine under. Just a day after turning 24, Yamashita became the third Japanese woman to win the British Open after Hinako Shibuno in 2019 and Ayako Okamoto in 1984. She joyously swigged from a bottle of champagne on the 18th green before wiping away tears of joy after sealing her victory. 'To win such a historic tournament in front of all these amazing fans is such an incredible feeling,' Yamashita said. 'The course is set up to be very difficult but also in a brilliant condition. The amount of people supporting me today really pushed me towards the victory and this is for them.' Yamashita's previous best performance in a major was a tie for second place at last year's Women's PGA Championship. She survived a stern test of her temperament on the last day after resuming with a one-stroke lead over South Korea's Kim A-lim. Having posted a bogey-free 65 on Friday, she had carded a two-over par 74 marred by erratic driving off the tee and struggles on the greens in the third round. Agence France-Presse
Gulf Today
15 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Siraj stars as India beat England by six runs in fifth-Test thriller
Mohammed Siraj was the hero as India beat England by just six runs in a thrilling fifth Test at the Oval on Monday to end a dramatic series level at 2-2. England arrived on the final day of the series needing just 35 runs with four wickets in hand to complete a remarkable chase of 374. But they were blown away on a morning of unbearable tension, with Siraj taking three wickets for nine runs to finish with figures of 5-104. The dramatic ending was a fitting finale to a series played out in less than seven weeks packed with drama from the first ball. "It just shows that both the teams came with their A-game and I am very happy to get over the line in this one," India captain Shubman Gill told Sky Sports. "When you have got bowlers bowling a spell like Siraj, captaincy seems easy." Mohammed Siraj celebrates with Dhruv Jurel and teammates after taking the wicket of England's Gus Atkinson. Reuters The series was also a personal triumph for Gill, who scored 754 runs, including four hundreds. England, who had been seemingly cruising to victory on Sunday when they were 301-3, were still favourites to win when play started under gloomy skies on Monday. Jamie Overton hit the first two balls of the day off Prasidh Krishna for four to immediately ease the pressure but England were soon reduced to 354-8 after Siraj struck twice to remove Jamie Smith and Overton. Josh Tongue was next to go and when injured last man Chris Woakes came in to bat with his left arm strapped up owing to an injured shoulder, England still needed 17 more runs for victory. Gus Atkinson hit a six off Siraj before England got the target down to single figures. But the paceman clean bowled Atkinson (17) to spark delirious scenes among the India team and their supporters. Non-stop drama The series started with England successfully chasing down a target of 371 to win at Headingley — the 10th highest fourth-innings run chase in Test history. India won the second Test at Edgbaston by a huge margin of 336 runs before England bounced back to win at Lord's, taking a 2-1 series lead. Akash Deep, left, Mohammed Siraj, center, and Prasidh Krishna celebrate their win against England on day five at The Kia Oval in London. AP England's time-wasting tactics during the third Test sparked the first of several flashpoints in an increasingly fiery series. In a drawn fourth Test at Old Trafford, memorable for an astonishing Indian rearguard action, England were angered by the tourists' refusal to agree a draw at the first opportunity. Both sides were hampered by fitness issues at the Oval decider, with England missing inspirational captain Ben Stokes because of a shoulder injury. "I'm bitterly disappointed we couldn't get over the line here, but I'm incredibly proud of my team and everything they've thrown into it," said Stokes. India were without Jasprit Bumrah after deciding to stick to their decision to only play the world's top-ranked Test bowler in three games of the series. But the lion-hearted Siraj, who featured in every match, seized his moment, ending the series as the leading bowler on either side with 23 wickets at 32.43. The paceman struck with his third ball on Monday to have a nervous Smith caught behind, leaving England 347-7. Overton fell next, lbw for nine to a Siraj delivery that angled into the batsman. Tailender Tongue was bowled by Krishna to leave India on the brink of victory before Siraj, appropriately, wrapped up the match, India's narrowest winning margin in a Test match. "From day one to here, everyone fought so hard so we are very happy,"Siraj said. "I just wanted to make sure I hit the right areas, the wickets would fall, and anything else would be a bonus. When I woke up I believed I could do it." England will be bitterly disappointed not to have got over the line after Harry Brook (111) and Joe Root (105) took the game by the scruff of the neck on Sunday. Brook's reckless dismissal was the beginning of a collapse, which ultimately proved decisive, with the home side losing their final seven wickets for just 66 runs. Agence France-Presse
Gulf Today
21 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Canadian teen Mboko stuns top-seeded Gauff to reach Montreal quarter-finals, Zverev and Popyrin advance
Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko took down top-seeded American Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday, thrilling the home crowd as she reached the quarter-finals of the WTA 1000 tournament in Montreal. The 18-year-old wild card saved all four break points she faced, and broke reigning French Open champion Gauff three times on the way to a comprehensive victory in just 62 minutes. Mboko started the season ranked 333rd in the world and has worked her way up to 85 but the win over Gauff -- who she took to three sets in Rome in May -- is the biggest win of her career. 'Playing Coco is obviously never easy. She's number two in the world, and it has been such a great opportunity for me to play against someone like her,' Mboko said. 'I was just happy I kept my composure today and I pulled it through.' Coco Gauff plays a backhand against Victoria Mboko. AFP Gauff, who had a combined 37 double faults as she struggled through her first two matches, was caught flat-footed as the Canadian teen raced through the first set in 25 minutes. Gauff buckled down in the second, but she was unable to convert three break chances in the seventh game -- coming up short on a drop shot and smacking a forehand into the net on the first two. She gained anther chance only to hit a service return long, then flew a volley wide to give Mboko a game point, duly converted when Gauff fired a forehand long. Down 15-30 in the ninth game, Mboko leveled at 30-30 with a blistering backhand, then closed out the hold for a 5-4 lead. Serving to stay in the match, Gauff fell in a quick 0-30 hole and double-faulted to give Mboko a match point, on which the American hit a backhand into the net. Mboko will next play Spain's Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who won a see-saw battle with China's Zhu Lin 7-5, 1-6, 6-2. Rybakina hangs on: Former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina out-lasted Dayana Yastremska 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 to book a quarter-final clash with Marta Kostyuk. Kazakhstan's Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion who won her first title in more than a year at Strasbourg in May, was slowed by nine double faults. But she ultimately had enough to get past Ukraine's Yastremska, breaking her twice in the third set and sealing it on her fourth match point. She'll face another Ukrainian in Kostyuk, who came from behind to beat American McCartney Kessler 5-7, 6-3, 6-3. Alexander Zverev returns a shot to Francisco Cerundolo (unseen) during their fourth round match at the Toronto Masters. Reuters Zverev and Popyrin enter quarter: Top-seeded Alexander Zverev advanced to an ATP Toronto Masters quarter-final against defending champion Alexei Popyrin as his fourth-round opponent Francisco Cerundolo was forced to retire with an abdominal injury on Saturday. Germany's Zverev secured a 6-4, 1-0 victory, Argentina's Cerundolo taking a medical timeout after the fifth game and finally calling a halt after less than an hour on court. Australia's Popyrin won his ninth straight match in Canada, beating ninth seed Holger Rune 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. The 26th-ranked Aussie profitted from nearly 40 unforced errors from his Danish opponent, who has been taking occasional advice from Andre Agassi. With Popyrin on the horizon, Zverev said he was headed back to the practice court after his abbreviated victory, but he paid tribute to Cerundolo first. 'He's an incredible player, we have a close personal relationship,' Zverev said of Cerundolo. 'I know about abdominal injuries. 'You can't serve or accelerate on the forehand. He had tears in his eyes when he had to quit. He didn't want to disappoint the crowd. 'But they can last from a few days to a few months. I have respect for him - he beat me three times before tonight.' Zverev, the 2017 champion, will be playing his fifth quarter-final in seven Canadian appearance. Earlier, Popyrin saved a break point with his sixth ace against Rune as he served for victory in the final game, finishing the job with a lob winner which left Rune flat-footed. 'This win means a lot,' the Aussie said. 'I started the week not high on confidence but I knew my game was there. Agence France-Presse
