Victoria Mboko claims maiden WTA tour title with win over Naomi Osaka
The final featured 13 service breaks, Mboko converting eight of her nine break point opportunities after forcing none in a first set when she made 22 unforced errors.
VICKY MBOKO MONTREAL CHAMPION 🏆✨
Vicky Mboko completes an incredible run on homesoil to defeat Osaka 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 in the final and win her first WTA title!#OBN25 pic.twitter.com/NCu3iFbgk2
— wta (@WTA) August 8, 2025
'It's been an incredible week,' said Mboko, who had previously knocked out grand slam champions Sofia Kenin, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina.
'I also want to thank Naomi for an incredible match. I've always looked up to her when I was really little, so it's always great to play with an amazing player like you.
Having started the year ranked 333, Mboko will rise to 34 in the updated rankings.
Osaka's last title was at the Australian Open in 2021. The final was her first at the WTA 1000 level since Miami in 2022 and her best performance since returning from maternity leave after having her daughter Shai in July 2023.
In the men's event in Toronto, second seeds Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool beat sixth seeds Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski 6-3 6-7 13-11 in an all-British doubles final.
The victory, Cash and Glasspool's sixth of the year and first ATP Masters 1000 success, ensured the Wimbledon champions are the first pair to ensure qualification for the ATP Finals in Turin.
Cash told the ATP website: 'Qualifying for Turin was one of our big goals in the offseason, so to have done it so early is obviously amazing.
'But (we have) got some more things to do before the end of the season and then we'll push for that at the end.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Emma Raducanu faces Aryna Sabalenka repeat after emotional Wimbledon complaint
Emma Raducanu could face world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka for the first time since their dramatic Wimbledon showdown, with the pair on a collision course at the Cincinnati Open Emma Raducanu is set for a potential showdown with Aryna Sabalenka after the Wimbledon drama that left the British star in tears. Raducanu heads to the Cincinnati Open with a first-round bye and will take on either Katie Boulter or Olga Danilovic in round two. Should she triumph, a rematch with world No.1 Sabalenka is on the cards. It would be their first face-off since the dramatic third-round meeting at SW19, which Sabalenka won 7-6(6) 6-4. The match was slightly overshadowed by a disputed call when a Sabalenka serve at 2-4, 15-0 seemingly went wide but wasn't called. Raducanu returned the serve, but Sabalenka scored with a forehand winner and held her serve. Raducanu was overheard querying the chair umpire: "You saw it out as well, right?" Post-match, a tearful Raducanu cast doubts on Wimbledon's electronic line-calling system (ELC), saying: "That call was for sure out. It's kind of disappointing, the tournament here, that the calls can be so wrong, but for the most part they've been OK. I've had a few in my other matches, too, that have been very wrong. Hopefully they can fix that." The ELC has become the norm, with the ATP Tour fully adopting it and many WTA events following suit, eliminating the need for line judges. This technology is also used at the Australian Open and the US Open. The French Open remains the exception, not employing any electronic systems. During the same match, Raducanu also had an issue with her racket. She explained: "In the first set as well, I was struggling with the tension [of the strings]. I felt like the ball was flying. "I had all my rackets strung up fresh for the match, and it just felt like it was pinging completely different. It could have been a little bit because the roof was on. I sent a couple rackets to be restrung." Sabalenka has had similar issues herself and stressed that preparation was key to avoiding problems in the future. She said: "That's more [reason] to have an extra racket, maybe not in your bag, but your team. "For example, my team, they always have like two extra rackets with the higher tension and two extra rackets with lower tension. They prepare it. You don't have to wait for another racket." Meanwhile, Raducanu has begun working with Rafael Nadal's ex-coach, Francis Roig. The 22-year-old has been working with fellow Brit Mark Petchey on an informal basis since March and has now added Roig to her team. Roig, who spent most of his career shaping Nadal's game alongside Rafael's Uncle Toni, contributing to 22 Grand Slam victories, is now lending his expertise to Raducanu. Speaking to Sky Sports about her collaboration with Roig before the Cincinnati Open, Raducanu said: "It's going really well, it's my second day here with him here, but I did a few days in London before I came out here. He's obviously got a bank of experience and I'm very excited to continue working with him and to have him on my side." Roig joins Raducanu's coaching team as she gears up for the US Open, which she memorably won in 2021.
Daily Mirror
6 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Newcastle captain had to apologise for comment after striker's record Liverpool transfer
Andy Carroll infamously parted ways with Newcastle to join Liverpool in 2011 in a then club-record £35million move, and their fans were far from happy with Kevin Nolan's response Kevin Nolan was forced to apologise to Newcastle United fans when Andy Carroll left Tyneside to join Liverpool. The 6'4" striker made a name for himself with his boyhood club before securing a move to Merseyside in January 2011. The transfer, which was for a club-record fee of around £35million at the time for Liverpool, was met with rejoice by fans of the Reds, while Newcastle fans were understandably upset to see their main man leave the north east. And Nolan inadvertently rubbed salt in the wounds of Geordies at the time by claiming that Carroll was joining a "great" club. The Newcastle captain said: "Well, Liverpool is a great club. I've not taken anything away from how great this club is, I've just said Liverpool is a great club with the history it has got and everything. "It's a great move for Andy and no one can deny that but I want to be playing for Newcastle. If fans don't like it I apologise. It was never meant to affect them. But Liverpool is a great club and everyone knows that." The outlook on Tyneside only worsened for Newcastle fans when their other striker, Shola Ameobi, picked up a cheekbone fracture which left him sidelined, while doubts emerging with regards to the suitability of alternatives Leon Best, Peter Lovenkrands and Nile Ranger at Premier League level. Carroll's departure ultimately didn't cause that big of a dent in Newcastle's prospects for the season, however, with the Magpies securing a respectable 12th-place finish in the Premier League before recruiting to replace the striker in the summer, bringing in the likes of Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba. Meanwhile, Carroll's tenure at Anfield was brief, scoring just 11 goals in 58 games for the Reds before he was sold on to West Ham United in the summer of 2013. Fast forward to 2025, and Carroll has enjoyed a second stint with Newcastle, played for the likes of West Bromwich Albion, Reading, Amiens and Bordeaux, and is currently representing Dagenham and Redbridge. It comes as the Toon Army may see history repeating itself in losing a valuable striker this summer, with Alexander Isak looking to explore his options away from the club. The Sweden international, who has racked up 62 goals and 11 assists for the Magpies since joining from Real Sociedad in 2022, has expressed his interest in leaving St James' Park this summer. While Newcastle have slapped a huge, British transfer record price tag on their talisman, that hasn't prevented big spenders Liverpool in attempting to lure him to Anfield ahead of the new Premier League season. The Reds officially submitted an opening offer of around £110m, only to see it swiftly rebuffed by Newcastle, who value Isak at nearer the £150m mark. As a result of his future in the north east looking shaky at present, given he failed to join Newcastle on their recent pre-season tour of Asia, the club have been set on finding reinforcements in the striking department, only to come up trumps thus far. Newcastle initially registered an interest in Hugo Ekitike, only for Liverpool to secure the Eintracht Frankfurt talisman in a move potentially totalling £79m, while it also looks as though the club have lost their recent tug of war with Manchester United over RB Leipzig sensation Benjamin Sesko who completed a medical in the north west on Friday. With William Osula sitting as the club's only other centre-forward outside of Isak, given Joelinton has transitioned into a midfield role, Newcastle will be desperate to recruit more firepower regardless of whether Isak is allowed to leave this summer. Although with strikers high in demand at present, and a lack of proven options available, it could be a case of searching far and wide for the Magpies.
The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
Victoria Mboko's Montreal magic: the Canadian teen who toppled four grand slam champions
Canada was still catching its collective breath from Summer McIntosh's record-breaking swims when 18-year-old Victoria Mboko grabbed the spotlight at the National Bank Open and never let go. In front of a sold-out crowd in Montreal, the 85th-ranked Canadian wildcard finished her Cinderella title run on Thursday night by beating former world No 1 Naomi Osaka 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 to win her first WTA Tour title. Prolonged cheers for Mboko interrupted play 30 minutes into the men's final being played concurrently 330 miles west in her hometown of Toronto. 'I guess the Canadian player won in Montreal,' chair umpire Fergus Murphy explained to the confused players. That's the Mboko effect. With wins over four-time grand slam champion Osaka, reigning Roland Garros champion, and world No 2 Coco Gauff, 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, and 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin, Mboko became just the third teen in the open era to oust four major champions at a WTA event. She's the youngest since Serena Williams ran the table to win the 1999 US Open. If you find yourself in a 'first since' or 'youngest since' Serena stat, you know you've done something special. 'I think my biggest takeaway is the sky's the limit,' Mboko told the Guardian after the win. 'I never would have thought I would win a WTA 1000 so soon, that this would be my first WTA title, too.' Mboko started the year ranked outside the top 300 and proceeded to win the first 20 matches she played, all in straight sets, and sweeping up five ITF titles in the first three months of the season. The bulk of her wins came at professional tennis' minor league equivalent, but that stretch of play showed what Mboko could do if she got on a roll. Maya Joint is a 19-year-old Australian who has already won two WTA titles in her breakout season. Along with Mboko and No 5 Mirra Andreeva, the trio are the only teenagers in the WTA's top 90. 'Winning titles gives you a lot of confidence that you can do it,' Joint told the Guardian, 'that you can win that many matches in a row and stay focused for that long.' Mboko's game has proven to be a difficult Rubik's Cube to solve, even for the game's best. It is as intelligent as it is physical, a potent blend of power and discipline. She can overwhelm her opponents with power or use her speed and defense to trap them into errors. The choice, on any given day, is hers. 'She's very athletic,' said top-seeded Gauff after Mboko handed her a 6-1, 6-4 exit in the round of 16. 'She's a great ball striker, and she seems pretty positive out there on the court, doesn't get really too negative.' 'I don't know her too well, but I've gotten to talk to her a little bit over the course since Rome. I think she has a great support system around her, and I think that's important when you're young and on tour.' Mboko's coach Nathalie Tauziat watched from the sidelines as her charge learned in real time how to compete and manage stress. So long as she kept her head, Tauziat told her, the talented teen was always in with a shot. Montreal proved to be her showcase. Her win over Osaka was her third come-from-behind win of the tournament. In the semi-finals, she saved a match point to stun No 3 seed Rybakina in a third-set tiebreak. 'In the beginning of the year when I was winning a lot of matches and tournaments, I just had a lot of confidence in myself, to be honest,' Mboko said. 'I don't know where that confidence came from, maybe it was just self-belief. I tried to carry that momentum as much as I possibly could.' Mboko's parents, Cyprien Mboko and Godee Kitadi, fled the Democratic Republic of Congo due to the political turmoil in 1999 and emigrated to the United States. Victoria was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, before the family relocated to Toronto. Her older siblings all played tennis, with her sister Gracia and brother Kevin being good enough to play at the collegiate level. She spent her summers running around the grounds at the National Bank Open chasing autographs and photos with her favorite players like Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils. She even has a photo of herself at eight years old holding a replica of the trophy. Ten years on, she's no longer a pretender. Hours after the trophy ceremony, Mboko still couldn't believe she had her hands on the real thing. She will leave Montreal as one of the 25 best players on the WTA Tour, ranked at an astonishing No 24. When asked whether she feels like one of the 25 best players in the world, Mboko's humility kicked in. 'I don't think I could say yes to that, to be honest,' she said. 'It happens, and I honestly think everything's been happening so fast that I don't really have time to process it, let alone look at the rankings. 'I feel like when I settle down a little bit and kind of realize what has just happened, so many things will change and I'll have a different perspective going forward.' That perspective now shifts to the US Open, a tournament that has been very good to the Canadians. In 2019, a 19-year-old Bianca Andreescu became Canada's first grand slam singles champion there. Two years later, Leylah Annie Fernandez stormed into the final. Could Mboko follow their well-worn path? She certainly isn't ruling it out. 'When I started playing on the WTA Tour, I never thought in my head if I belonged or not because I just thought, a match is just a match,' Mboko said. 'I always knew everyone was really good, but I felt that at the end of the day, anything is possible.'
