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Telegraph
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Telegraph
BBC fails to show Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter match
The BBC faced complaints from tennis fans after failing to show Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter's doubles match at Queen's on Monday. Britain's top two women's players were allocated a secondary court at Queen's but the match against Wu Fang-hsien and Jiang Xinyu was not readily available on BBC platforms, prompting heavy criticism. BBC Two showed live coverage of British No 3 Sonay Kartal's match against Daria Kasatkina, while on iPlayer two channels showed that same match while the other hosted highlights of Czech player Petra Kvitova's three-set defeat by Brazil's Beatriz Haddad Maia. Raducanu and Boulter's match only featured briefly as part of BBC Two's coverage before it cut away back to Kartal's encounter. Instead of being allocated a doubles slot on the newly named 7,700-capacity Andy Murray Arena, the British pair instead had to play on Court One, with a capacity of just 1,000. One fan said she was 'outraged' at the decision. It meant her Centre Court ticket did not allow her to watch the game. The smaller capacity Court One was therefore standing room only, while some took to the overhanging stand on the Andy Murray Arena to catch a glimpse of the action. Spectators, who had queued for more than an hour to get in, had been told before the match that they would not be allowed to return if they left their seats. Those who had tickets for the main arena were peering over the back of the stand to watch Raducanu and Boulter in action at the end of the first game. It was not until midway through the second set in their match that a large television camera appeared at the side of the court, in an area which had been allocated to the media for standing. The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), who host Queen's, could not move the game to the main arena because of the tournament's contractual obligations with the organising partner, the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). The WTA mandates that four singles matches are shown on Centre Court per day to satisfy its standing as international rights holders. It means there was no room for a doubles match to be moved despite the interest from spectators. When asked about playing on Court One rather than the main arena, Raducanu said: 'I think sometimes on the smaller courts you get a bigger feel for the match and the atmosphere and the environment because it's a lot closer, more intimate, and you hear the support more. 'For me, I love playing on those smaller, outside courts where you really feel the support and the crowd gets into it. I was filling my bottle up, and I was literally having a chat in the stands, because that's how close it is. But I think it puts a really nice feel to it. 'The Andy Murray Arena, hopefully we'll get to play on it for our matches tomorrow.'
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tennis world rocked by 'awful' drama at French Open as Aussie handed boost
French Open fans were left stunned after Casper Ruud played through injury and showed class after he was knocked out in the second round to open up a path for Aussie Alexei Popyrin. Ruud is a Roland Garros finalist and recently won the Madrid Open as he entered the grand slam in excellent form. However, he appeared to be hampered by a knee injury in just the second round as he succumbed to Nuno Borges as the Portuguese ran away with the match in four sets. After dropping the first set, Borges was way too strong winning 2-6 6-4 6-1 6-0 with Ruud calling for the trainer having battled throughout the contest. Ruud never gave up and won the respect of tennis fans as he battled through the pain in tough conditions with the rain causing havoc. However, fans claimed it was 'awful' watching Ruud break down as he offered little fight in the fourth set when he was bagelled. Speaking after the shock loss, Ruud admitted he has been carrying a knee injury since the start of the clay court season. But didn't want to give up. "As we know, it's a hectic clay season, and I decided to kind of push through it doing some anti-inflammatory pills and painkillers to try to get rid of it, which has helped to a certain degree but not enough. "I will have some more time now to let it heal and rest for a long time." Unfortunately, Ruud was left frustrated with the current system for players having claimed it's hard for them to withdraw from events when they are fighting for points and money. "It's kind of like a rat race when it comes to the rankings as well," he said. "You feel you're obligated to play with certain rules that the ATP have set up with the mandatory events." Fans felt for Ruud having watched the tennis favourite struggle in a grand slam that has seen him reach the final in 2022 and 2023. It was awful to watch, awful conditions and very sad for Ruud being injured. — Elaine 🇦🇺🐊 24 428🥇💯 (@GmaElaine6) May 28, 2025 Casper Ruud earned my respect today, clearly injured after the 1st set, but he played out the whole match out of respect for his opponent and the fans. Way to go Casper and hope it's nothing serious 🙏 — thefedexpress (@thefedexpresss) May 28, 2025 The balls do look soooo muddy in the Ruud-Borges match, but I think Casper is allowing it to get into his head too much. That last service game looked unfocused, as Borges goes up a break in the second set! — AllAboutTennisBlog (@TennisBlogger1) May 28, 2025 But Ruud's loss opens up the path for Popyrin. Before this year, Popyrin had never been past the first round of the French Open having struggled on clay. However, the No.25 seed has now advanced to the third round after defeating Alejandro Tabilo in straight sets. Popyrin has endured an up-and-down season in 2025, but his backhand has improved under new co-coach Wayne Ferreira. And he is looking confident in Paris as he takes on World No.42 Borges in the third round. "I've always had that confidence. On my day I can beat anybody, but that's not important to me. What's important to me is bringing a consistent level day in, day out. That's what I've struggled with in the past," he said. As a junior Popyrin enjoyed playing on clay having won the boys' championship at Roland Garros eight years ago. And he has finally translated his form to clay in 2025 having made solid progress to reach the quarter-finals in Monte Carlo and Geneva. While Alex de Minaur will be hoping to join him, Popyrin became the first Australian to advance to the last 32 this year. And he has done it without dropping a set. And he will be hoping he can continue his form against Borges in the next round.
Associated Press
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
How a free Nadal tribute T-shirt turned into a $500 resale frenzy
PARIS (AP) — A day after the French Open honored Rafael Nadal on court, dozens of spectators began selling the clay-colored 'Merci Rafa' T-shirts handed out at Sunday's tribute — with some listings reaching up to €500 ($540). The shirts, marked with the French phrase for 'Thank You Rafa' and the date '25.05.2025,' were given to fans attending the ceremony on Court Philippe-Chatrier to celebrate the 14-time French Open champion. Distributed in varying shades of clay, the T-shirts were part of a coordinated tribute. Fans were asked to wear them, creating a giant mosaic in the stands that spelled out 'RG14' — a nod to Nadal's 14 titles in Paris. Within minutes of the event, listings began appearing on resale platforms, including the clothing marketplace Vinted, which had 30 shirts listed as of Monday. One seller, Maxime Berthuis, listed his shirt for €500, shipping fees excluded. 'I'm not going to wear the T-shirt anyway,' Berthuis told The Associated Press, adding he bought a ticket to the ceremony for less than €40 ($43). 'Honestly, I don't know how I'll spend the money yet.' He said he had received several offers since posting the listing yesterday — along with a slew of angry messages from Nadal devotees. Another user who listed a 2XL size T-shirt for €150 (170$) said it was simply much too big for her. The president of the French Tennis Federation, Gilles Moretton, said he was stunned by how much the T-shirts were being sold for. 'Some of the prices I saw scared me,' he said on Monday. 'It's a bit sad to see people profit off the 'Merci Rafa' shirts. We weren't going to collect them after the ceremony. We created something unique — and maybe that uniqueness explains why this is happening.' Moretton said he had not received a shirt himself, despite standing just a few feet from Nadal during the tribute. 'I'm also looking for a T-shirt, but I'm not about to go on Vinted,' he said. ___ More AP tennis:
