Aussie teen stuns Raducanu in pre-Wimbledon upset
Australia's Maya Joint defeated former US Open champion Emma Raducanu at the pre-Wimbledon Eastbourne International.
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News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Wimbledon men's singles: Three talking points
Can anyone stop two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz or world number one Jannik Sinner lifting the Wimbledon men's title? The two standout players in the world have gobbled up the past six Grand Slams between them, earlier this month playing out a French Open final for the ages. Novak Djokovic is the last of the "Big Three" still standing, refusing to give up on his dream of a record 25th Grand Slam singles title, while Jack Draper shoulders British hopes. AFP Sport looks at three talking points ahead of the tournament, which starts at the All England Club on Monday. Alcaraz-Sinner show Alcaraz is aiming to become just the fifth man to win at least three straight Wimbledon titles in the Open Era after Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Djokovic. Alcaraz, who has beaten Djokovic in the past two finals, arrives at the All England Club fresh from winning Queen's for a second time, taking his grass-court trophy tally to four. After defeating Roberto Bautista Agut in Saturday's semi-final, the 22-year-old Spaniard said "grass-court mode is activated", a message that will send a shiver down the spines of his opponents. Sinner, 23, remains the world number one and has impressed since returning from a three-month doping ban, reaching the final of the Italian Open and the French Open, both of which he lost to Alcaraz. Alcaraz stormed back from two sets down to beat Sinner in an epic Roland Garros final, securing a fifth successive victory against his Italian rival. Sinner then lost early at the Halle grass-court tournament but does have a strong track record at Wimbledon, reaching the semi-finals in 2023 and the quarter-finals last year. Djokovic still eyeing history Djokovic is still dreaming of putting an exclamation point on his incredible career by becoming the most successful singles player in history. Currently the Serb is locked on 24 Grand Slams with the long-retired Margaret Court and has not won a major since the 2023 US Open. He came up short against Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final in 2023 and 2024, though he beat his young rival in a captivating Olympic final on clay last year. Djokovic also has the added incentive of drawing level on a record eight men's Wimbledon singles titles with the retired Federer, the king of Centre Court. The 38-year-old, who won his 100th tour-level title in May in Geneva, first lifted the Wimbledon trophy in 2011, with his most recent triumph coming in 2022. The question is whether Djokovic, now ranked sixth in the world, can get past Alcaraz or Sinner at their best -- he lost to Sinner in straight sets in the semi-finals at Roland Garros. Djokovic may need the current top two to stumble somewhere along the way but it would be foolish to write him off. Can Draper take on Murray's mantle? Wimbledon this week announced plans to honour two-time champion Andy Murray with a statue -- showing the esteem in which the retired Scot is held. The current British men's number one is Draper, who has enjoyed a breakthrough season, winning his first ATP Masters 1000 event at Indian Wells and reaching the final in Madrid. The 23-year-old world number four, who has an explosive game, can boast previous wins against Alcaraz and Sinner. But he has never been beyond the second round at Wimbledon and has only reached one Grand Slam semi-final, at last year's US Open. Draper, who lost to Jiri Lehecka in the Queen's semi-finals, goes into Wimbledon in good heart. "I've really felt the home support all week, it's a real advantage and it helps drive me on," he said. "But at the same time, I've got a job to do and I'm not thinking about pressures like that. "I'm going to go into Wimbledon feeling great about myself, and I'll go in at a position I've been dreaming of since I was a little kid."
News.com.au
8 hours ago
- News.com.au
Wimbledon: England's garden Grand Slam
Wimbledon head gardener Martyn Falconer is the only man at the All England Club who welcomes a drop of rain. While wet weather wreaks havoc with the tournament schedule, he is not disappointed with the occasional cloudburst to keep his spectacular flower displays in perfect condition. Falconer oversees the delivery of 27,000 plants for the Championships in leafy southwest London to add to thousands already in place in the immaculate grounds. Hydrangeas and petunias in blues, purples and whites tumble over the sides of hanging baskets and window boxes, filling herbaceous borders and floral installations. Roses are scattered throughout the grounds and Boston ivy creeps over the outside walls of Centre Court to create the picture-perfect Grand Slam event. Falconer, who has worked at the All England Club for 25 years, spending 11 years in his current role, says Wimbledon's ethos is "tennis in an English garden". He manages a team of 10 permanent gardeners and two apprentices, which expands by around 10 in the lead-up to the tournament, which this year starts on June 30. Falconer's team was this week applying the final tweaks as the club prepares to throw open its doors to thousands of tennis fans from Monday. "We're making sure it looks lovely and presentable for everyone," he said. "It's never-ending. And then from the Monday, once the public are in, we kind of take a little bit of a breath. "But then every morning it's watering and maintaining and deadheading and just making sure everything looks good for everyone coming on each day." The horticulture team keeps a stock of spare plants in reserve to replenish those that are damaged by the crowds that swarm the All England Club. "We've got a nice selection of bits and pieces just in case of an accident," said Falconer. "We do get a lot of bums sat on the planters. Where there's somewhere to park a bum, they will. "We've got what we call a Wimbledon twist, so we can get a couple of days out of a hydrangea or a few plants. And then when it gets to the point of no more twisting, we'll do a little swap around." Falconer's aim is to have the grounds looking as pristine on the final day of the Championships as they do on day one. - 'There's nothing like it' - Tradition plays a big role in the planting colour schemes but there is some room for innovation. "Obviously we've got our greens and purples and whites, which are very Wimbledon," he said. "For us it's more actually about the feel of being in an English garden. So that gives us a greater palette to work with, nothing too garish -- we won't go super bright oranges everywhere. But it allows us to bring in all those pastel colours, pinks, yellows." Wimbledon's planting plans are months in the making. "We can't get them in too late because they grow too much," said Falconer. "So we need to do most of that growing here. So the nursery will pot them on, get them started, and then they come to us." The team is continuously assessing the performances of specific plant varieties but plans are carefully calibrated to make sure the grounds are always saturated with colour. "We have enough variation that there's always something doing something," said Falconer. "And hopefully most of it's doing what we want it to do at the right time." Wimbledon's head gardener said one of the challenges is adapting to a changing climate. There have been weeks of warm, dry weather in the build-up to this year's tournament. "It's challenging," said Falconer. "I'm the only one walking around looking for a little bit of rain I think at Wimbledon." He and his team might breathe a sigh of relief when the last fan leaves after the two-week tournament, but managing the 42-acre site at the All England Club is a year-round task. "It's a big site, so there's a lot to do," he said. "Pruning, hedge-cutting, mulching, making sure it's good and ready for the springtime." Despite the pressure, Falconer still gets a buzz from his work even after so many years. "There's nothing like it," he said. "You work to get it delivered and that first day when the public walk through the gate there's a sigh of relief that it's done but then you almost start again."
ABC News
10 hours ago
- ABC News
Wimbledon: John McEnroe says Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner need third star to push them
The emergence of a third young star to challenge the supremacy of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner would push the duo's scintillating rivalry to new heights, according to tennis great John McEnroe. Alcaraz and Sinner are coming off a French Open final for the ages and head into next week's Wimbledon having evenly split the past six majors between them. It is reminiscent of the stranglehold Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer had on men's tennis for two decades, an era of dominance made even richer by the three-sided nature of the rivalry. "It's going to be an interesting time to see if there's another player or two who can break in with those two the way Novak did when he was trying to get to the same level as Roger and Rafa," McEnroe said. "It shows you what type of a player he was that he was able to do that. But right now, there's a void." In a Roland Garros showdown of unsurpassed quality, 22-year-old Alcaraz of Spain saved three successive match points to battle back from two sets down and beat the Italian in the longest French Open final in history. Miami Open champion Jakub Menšík, 19, and 18-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca are two teenagers McEnroe could envision breaking into the Alcaraz-Sinner rivalry, as well as big-serving American Ben Shelton. "One of those two guys or Ben would be my choice right now," seven-time grand slam champion McEnroe said. "I think it would be important to get another guy or two to add to the mix. That would be really helpful." McEnroe said the future of men's tennis was in great hands provided Alcaraz, who is seeking a hat-trick of Wimbledon titles next month, and world number one Sinner stayed healthy. "It was unheard of what we watched over the last 20 years and you can make the argument that what we're seeing now is even faster and different from what we saw even five years ago," he said. "I can't wait to see what it's going to be like in 10 years, or five years even." Reuters
