Emma Raducanu goes down swinging in thrilling loss to Aryna Sabalenka
The 22-year-old played some electrifying tennis under the roof on Centre Court but was unable to apply the finishing touches, eventually going down 7-6 (6) 6-4 after exactly two hours.
The first set alone took 74 minutes, with Raducanu saving seven set points and creating one of her own, while she led 4-1 in the second before Sabalenka recovered to set up a fourth-round clash with Elise Mertens.
Raducanu will now drop to British number three behind Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal, who is the last home woman left in singles, but that will not be the case for long if she can maintain this level.
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South Wales Guardian
31 minutes ago
- South Wales Guardian
Iga Swiatek's Wimbledon run fuelled by strawberries mixed with pasta
The Pole's less-than-stellar record on grass and a disappointing year thus far meant she arrived at the All England Club as something of an also ran. But being under the radar is suiting the former world number one just fine, and she progressed to the last 16 with a 6-2 6-3 victory against fiery American Danielle Collins. Pasta with strawberries 🍓@iga_swiatek's favourite meal is an interesting one 😂#Wimbledon — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 5, 2025 Afterwards, Swiatek revealed her diet this fortnight has included strawberries and pasta, a childhood favourite in Poland. The 24-year-old was perplexed by the attention given to her culinary choices, saying: 'Why is it such a big thing? Everybody should eat that. I think in summer kids are eating it a lot. It's just a perfect mix of tastes. We have great strawberries in Poland, as well. 'My dad adds the cream. And some sugar. I try to eat with yoghurt to at least pretend that it's a good meal.' Asked which country's strawberries were better, Swiatek admitted her answer might get her in trouble. 'I think Poland,' she said. 'Because we have a better climate for strawberries, right? Now Wimbledon is probably going to ban me from answering these questions. The strawberries are great here, as well. They are different. But they are great.' Swiatek is a former junior champion but she has often cut an uncomfortable figure at Wimbledon, weighed down by the pressure of expectation on a surface that is not natural to her. But this year the Pole is only seeded eighth, while she found her feet on grass by reaching the final of the warm-up event in Bad Homburg last weekend. She never looked in the slightest trouble against Collins, who has beaten her twice in the past, including on her favoured clay this year in Rome. There is little love lost between them, with Collins, who reversed a decision to retire at the end of last season and start a family because of fertility issues, criticising Swiatek for 'fakeness' in her reaction after pulling out injured during their clash at the Olympics last summer. Collins is renowned for her feisty attitude on court and earned headlines around the world at the Australian Open in January when, after beating home hope Destanee Aiava in a hostile atmosphere, she blew kisses to the crowd and slapped her bottom. 'Every person that's bought a ticket to come out here and heckle me or do what they do, it's all going towards the Danielle Collins Fund,' she said. 'Me and my group of girlfriends love a five-star vacation.' A mid-afternoon Centre Court crowd in SW19 is about as big a contrast as it is possible to get, and Collins simply did not play well enough to apply any psychological pressure to Swiatek. 'I was just in the zone. I knew how I wanted to play and I knew I needed to be brave,' said the five-time grand slam champion, who was particularly effective on serve. 'You can't let Danielle play her winners. I'm really happy with the performance, it was a good match. It's much more fun this year. I had some practices where the ball was listening to me, which was pretty new on grass.' This is only the third time Swiatek has reached the fourth round at Wimbledon, with her best run so far a quarter-final appearance two years ago. She faces a dangerous opponent next in 23rd seed Clara Tauson, who defeated former champion Elena Rybakina, but, with so many big names already out of the tournament, Swiatek appears to have a good chance of going all the way.
Metro
41 minutes ago
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Novak Djokovic's Wimbledon opponent throws ball at him after incredible point
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South Wales Argus
an hour ago
- South Wales Argus
Murray hailed as Scottish tennis trailblazer after Wimbledon defeat
The Scot, 39, combined with Emily Appleton in the mixed doubles event but suffered a straight sets defeat against Glasgow's Maia Lumsden and partner David Stevenson. Murray, a joint British record-holding seven-time Grand Slam doubles champion, was knocked out of the men's doubles alongside Rajeev Ram on Thursday evening and unable to bounce back in the mixed as he and Appleton, 25, lost 6-3 6-4 on a packed-out Court 16. Murray was crowned mixed doubles king of SW19 in both 2007 and 2017 and sits joint top with Virginia Wade as the most decorated doubles player in British tennis history. Fellow Scot Lumsden, 27, has grown up idolising the former world No.1 and loved sharing a court with him in front of watching friends and family. 'We know Jamie really well and everything he has achieved,' said Lumsden, who lost alongside Harriet Dart in the women's doubles the previous day. 'He's obviously someone I've always looked up to a lot - he's had an amazing career, won a lot of Slams, so it's very cool to be on the same court as him and play against him. 'I respect him a lot for all he's done for Scottish and British tennis.' The match was played in front of a raucous SW19 atmosphere on a sunbaked Friday afternoon in south-west London. And Stevenson, 26, said: 'There was a group of lads I didn't know would be there I used to played football with, who were loud and had a few drinks. 'It's a relaxed environment on mixed side - to get the opportunity to continue playing at this place is what we want to do.' Elsewhere, Henry Patten kept his men's doubles title defence with Harri Heliovaara alive with a 7-6(6) 6-3 victory over British pair Billy Harris and Marcus Willis. But he was unable to progress in the mixed event alongside Olivia Nicholls, going down 6-3 6-4 against Asia Muhammad and Andres Molteni. Patten, 29, captured Wimbledon hearts last summer with an unexpected men's doubles triumph alongside experienced Finn Heliovaara, 36. And speaking after navigating his way to the third round, he said: 'We've definitely got a little bit of work to do – but we stuck together as a team and got over the line. 'They're good signs that we were able to come together under pressure at the tournament and not get too daunted by that.' For the latest action on the British summer grass court season, check out the LTA website.
