Tennis-Briton Evans stuns Tiafoe, Rune cruises into Queen's second round
Tennis - Queen's Club Championships - Queen's Club, London, Britain - June 16, 2025 Britain's Dan Evans reacts during his round of 32 match against Frances Tiafoe of the U.S. REUTERS/Toby Melville
LONDON (Reuters) -Briton Dan Evans upset American seventh seed Frances Tiafoe 7-5 6-2 on Monday to book his place in the last 16 at the Queen's Club Championships.
The 35-year-old, ranked 199th in the world, was handed a wildcard and responded with his first win over a top-20 player since 2023, earning a standing ovation from the crowd when he wrapped up victory in straight sets.
After edging a tight opener, in which he battled back from 5-4 down, Evans carried the momentum into the second set with a five-game winning streak before securing a double break with a touch of fortune when his forehand clipped the net cord and dropped in.
"I didn't know he was top 20, but I knew he was very good. I'm happy to play some good tennis because it has been few and far between," Evans said.
"Days like this are why I've been carrying on playing... It has been a long year so far. I've been playing the lower (challenger) tournaments, but this is why I'm hanging around to try and get some wins on the grass."
Fourth seed Holger Rune began his campaign with a solid 6-3 6-4 win over Australia lucky loser Christopher O'Connell.
Denmark's Rune, the world number nine, is seeking his first grasscourt title ahead of Wimbledon, where his best result was a quarter-final run in 2023.
Roberto Bautista Agut saved a match point before beating Portugal's Nuno Borges 6-7(6) 7-5 6-4. Borges led 4-1 in the second set, but the experienced Spaniard fought back strongly to advance.
(Reporting by Shifa Jahan in Bengaluru, editing by Ed Osmond)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
31 minutes ago
- The Star
Cocktails, canapés and million-pound horses set scene for Royal Ascot
LONDON (Reuters) -In the gardens of a royal palace, Swiss billionaires, Qatari royals and the odd former footballer gathered on Monday night for a one-off chance to bag a racehorse ready to run at Royal Ascot the next day. Over 7.5 million pounds ($10.2 million) changed hands as bidders vied to secure one of 28 thoroughbred horses, 18 of which are due to compete this week for a chance to win a portion of Royal Ascot's 10 million pound prize pot. The Goffs London Sale, now in its 11th year, is an exclusive auction held in the grounds of Kensington Palace where anyone, providing they have a minimum 150,000 pound credit clearance, can bid for front-row access to one of the world's most prestigious sporting events. "You could be standing in the grounds of Kensington Palace at six o'clock and by two o'clock the next day, you could be at the parade ring alongside the British Royal Family with your own runner and your own colours," Henry Beeby, chief executive at the 160-year-old Goffs auction house, told Reuters. Top lot Ghostwriter, who holds an entry for the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot on Saturday, went for 2 million pounds to football agent Kia Joorabchian of Amo Racing while the second most expensive horse, Woodshauna, sold for 625,000 pounds to John Stewart of Resolute Racing - two of the biggest buyers in the sport. Joorabchian, who is known to be a big spender after dropping over 24 million pounds at a single sale last year, said his son had picked out the horse and that it had a good chance in the Hardwicke Stakes, a prestigious Group 2 race held at Royal Ascot. Danish entrepreneur and hotelier John Christensen said he bought Super Soldier for 390,000 pounds so his friends would have something to cheer on at the races on Tuesday. Last year's sale turned over almost 8.5 million pounds ($11.54 million) though Beeby conceded that was an exceptional year. Most years the London sale raises 3–6 million pounds, he said. Horses bought at the sale have some history of success at Ascot, though this is by no means guaranteed. The last time a graduate of the London ring won at Royal Ascot was in 2021 when Oxtedwon the Group 1 King's Stand Stakes while others, like Givemethebeatboys, sold in 2023, have been well-placed. JACKPOTS The most expensive horse ever sold there was the French mare, Sparkling Plenty, who had won a Group 1 in Chantilly just days before. She was sold outside the ring in 2024 for 5 million pounds, beating the previous top price of 1.3 million pounds. The sale acts as an unofficial curtain raiser for Royal Ascot where trainers and top horses from around the world will compete over five days in races worth up to a million pounds. Highlights include the marathon two-and-a-half-mile Gold Cup on Thursday as well as numerous top-grade races featuring some of the world's best racehorses. Horseracing may contribute 4.1 billion pounds to the British economy annually, but it's often a game of risk and chance. While jackpots, - like the 9,000-euro ($10,402) colt, Kodi Bear, who returned 500,000 euro when sold again around 9 months later - do happen, for most buyers, owning a racehorse is a luxury. And it can go badly wrong. An American-bred horse, St James Square, was sold for $2.4 million in 2018 and never finished better than sixth in five starts. "We're dealing in luxury items, nobody needs to have a racehorse," Beeby said. Like all commodity markets, thoroughbred sales are not immune to global trade headwinds and tariffs. And like many trading houses, Goffs is navigating trade tensions with the United States – Goffs' trade with the United States was around 10 million euro worth of horses last year --and the fallout from Brexit, which ended a tripartite agreement on the free trade of horses between Britain, France and Ireland. "We are indelibly linked to the worldwide economy but by the same token, this is an extraordinarily resilient global business," he said. "We could do without [tariffs], we're hoping they're a distraction rather than a barrier." ($1 = 0.8652 euros) ($1 = 0.7366 pounds) (Reporting by Virginia Furness Editing by Sandra Maler)
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Golf-McIlroy first to qualify for Team Europe at Ryder Cup
Jun 15, 2025; Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA; Rory McIlroy plays his shot from the 12th tee during the final round of the U.S. Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images (Reuters) -Rory McIlroy became the first player to qualify for Europe for the 2025 Ryder Cup, the team announced on Monday, with the Masters champion set to make his eighth consecutive appearance in the biennial event. McIlroy sealed his spot through the European Points List, a qualification pathway based on performances in DP World Tour and co-sanctioned events, as the Northern Irishman has enjoyed four victories so far since last August. The 35-year-old completed a long-sought career Grand Slam at Augusta National in April, on top of victories at the Dubai DP World Tour Championship in November, the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and The Players Championship. A top-20 finish at the U.S. Open over the weekend was enough to mathematically guarantee his place on the team. The 2025 Ryder Cup will be held at Bethpage Black in New York from September 26–28, with European captain Luke Donald set to round out his 12-man squad later this year through six automatic qualifiers and six captain's picks. "It's always a huge honour to represent Europe in the Ryder Cup, so it means a great deal to have qualified for my eighth in a row and to be part of Luke's team again at Bethpage," McIlroy said. "Winning a Ryder Cup away from home is one of the biggest challenges there is in golf. We know it is going to be tough in New York, but we are all looking forward to that challenge in September and the opportunity to potentially do something special." McIlroy has been a Ryder Cup mainstay since his debut in 2010, helping Europe to five victories in seven appearances. (Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico CityEditing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Tennis-Tauson through in Nottingham, Danilovic defeated in first round
FILE PHOTO: Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 28, 2025, Denmark's Clara Tauson reacts during her second-round match against Netherlands' Arantxa Rus REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo (Reuters) -Danish second seed Clara Tauson is safely through to the second round of the Nottingham Open after a 7-5 6-2 win over Australian Kimberly Birrell on Monday, while ninth seed Olga Danilovic's tournament ended with defeat by Dayana Yastremska. Tauson, who reached her first WTA 1000 final in Dubai earlier this year where she knocked out world number one Aryna Sabalenka along the way, made a winning start to her grass season and will face Russia's Anna Blinkova next. Blinkova had a comfortable 6-2 6-3 win over compatriot Kamilla Rakhimova. Ukrainian Yastremska won a second set tiebreak to down Danilovic 6-4 7-6(4) and now meets Croatian qualifier Antonia Ruzic who beat Lucia Bronzetti 6-0 6-4. The only Briton in action on the opening day, wildcard Hannah Klugman, lost 6-2 6-2 to fourth seed Yulia Putintseva while Canadian fifth seed Leylah Fernandez beat Suzan Lamens 6-3 4-6 7-5. Czech seventh seed Linda Noskova beat Romanian lucky loser Anca Todoni 6-4 3-6 7-6(6), and will face a British wildcard next, meeting the winner between Francesca Jones and Harriet Dart. (Reporting by Trevor StynesEditing by Christian Radnedge)
