Tim’s upcoming new album Tim Minchin Time Machine, will be out later this month! It’ll be available July 25th.
Four singles have been released already: ‘Ruby’, ‘The Song of The Masochist’, ‘I Wouldn’t Like You’ and ‘You Grew On Me‘.
You can pre-order ‘Tim Minchin Time Machine’ here including a limited number of signed art card options and various bundles.
Tim: “Tim Minchin Time Machine: Eleven tracks, all written in my 20s, re-imagined and – finally! – properly recorded and produced. Some songs you will know (including the first ever studio version of RocknRoll Nerd, which utterly bangs), and some songs you may not. It’s not a comedy record (though there’s plenty of joy and musical foolery), nor is it a chin-stroker (but there is plenty of loveliness). I’ll be dropping singles between now and then. Stay tuned, monkeys.”
TimMinchinTimeMachine Tracklist 1. Understand It 2. I Wouldn’t Like You 3. Ruby 4. The Song of The Masochist 5. You Grew On Me 6. Dark Side 7. Pop Song 8. Moment of Bliss 9. Rock n Roll Nerd 10. If All You Ever Had Was Love
All the released singles’ official videos, lyrics, and streaming/download links are available via the links above.
Kids often dream of becoming police officers or doctors. For “Jurassic World Rebirth” director Gareth Edwards, however, his childhood dream was a bit more specific: working with iconic director Steven Spielberg. And now it’s finally come true with the latest in the dinosaur action film franchise.
Edwards has found the Hollywood moviemaking sweet spot: directing major blockbusters that are also creatively satisfying.
He found geek boy superstardom when he made the first-ever spin-off in the “Star Wars” franchise, 2016’s “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” It’s gone on to be regarded as one of the best ever within the beloved galaxy far, far away (though he disagrees with that opinion).
He followed that up by creating an original idea out of the studio system, a rarity these days, when he released 2023’s “The Creator.” The movie stars John David Washington as a special forces agent hired to hunt down and kill an AI.
Now, Edwards is taking on the legacy IP genre by helming “Jurassic World Rebirth,” out now. Taking place decades after the events of “Jurassic World Dominion,” the story, penned by “Jurassic Park” screenwriter David Koepp, follows Scarlett Johansson as the leader of a team of operatives who travel to an island research facility to take genetic material from dinosaurs.
For Edwards, making the movie checked off a childhood dream of working alongside Steven Spielberg, who was heavily involved in the filmmaking process. And it shows as “Rebirth” features several hat tips to the master, ranging from “Jurassic Park” to “Jaws.”
“I hate the word IP, but there are only two franchises I would absolutely drop everything for and just do them. I already did one of them with ‘Star Wars,’ and this was the other one,” Edwards told Business Insider. “So when Steven gives you this script, you’re just checkmated immediately. The idea that you turn Steven Spielberg down is impossible.”
BI spoke with Edwards while he was in New York City about the hourslong conversations he had with Spielberg while making the movie, his thoughts on “Rogue One” as it nears its 10th anniversary, and whether he’d ever consider making another “Star Wars” movie.
“Jurassic World Rebirth” director Gareth Edwards.
John Nacion/Getty
Business Insider: So what led you to sign onto “Jurassic”?
After “The Creator,” I started the process of what am I going to do next. There was a thing in my mind that I was excited about. And in that process, a sequence from “Jurassic Park” entered my mind, and I forgot how they pulled it off, so I just put it on to get a refresher. I’m doing this with “Jurassic” and the next day my friend saw on the internet that Universal was looking for a director for a new “Jurassic” movie.
So I sent that to my agent, and I just typed in the text with the link to the story, “Is this stupid?” hoping he’d say, “Yes, stay away.” And hours later, my agent got back to me, and the ball started rolling. Be careful what you wish for.
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What I really enjoyed about “Rebirth” is its stand-alone feel. Was that intentional?
It was in David Koepp’s script. That’s why I really liked it. What the best sequels have in common is that the first one didn’t know it was part of a trilogy or the start of sequels. It was just this self-contained story. So that’s the way to go, to try to tell the best film you can.
It’s then a high-class problem after that. And I’m not joking, but I haven’t had a single conversation about a sequel with anyone from Universal or the producers.
That was my follow-up. Nobody tapped you on the shoulder and suggested a more heavy-handed way to tease another movie?
No. It was even a joke with the actors.
“Jurassic Park.”
Universal
But the movie also has a lot of nostalgia, with hat tips ranging from “Jurassic Park” to “Jaws. ” Did that come organically?
When I got the script, it felt like a magical ticket back to being a kid again. So a lot of that was already in there, and half of it I probably brought with me.
I mean, you’re making a movie for Amblin that features a giant creature in the water. Of course, you’re going to lean into “Jaws.”
Yeah. The script said, “They’re chasing a giant dinosaur in the water, on a boat, with a rifle leading out the front,” and you’re like, “Guys, I don’t know if you’ve ever seen this movie called ‘Jaws,’ but I don’t know how we escape those visuals.” So it was a difficult situation, and the only way I got through it was this being a giant love letter to Steven Spielberg. Whenever there’s a gap, I’m going to put something in that is a reflection of something from his movies that we love.
You have now worked with two faces on the Mt. Rushmore of American cinema, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. Compare and contrast working for them.
Well, George had retired when we started “Rogue One,” so he was totally happy for us to go do our thing. But I did have the more surreal moment of showing him around the set of “Rogue One.” But what I did to take the pressure off myself, seeing I was doing a “Star Wars” spin-off, I was competing with the likes of the holiday special and Caravan of Courage, the Ewok adventure. So I jokingly framed those movie posters in my office as a reminder to me that I just have to do better than those.
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Then, one day I was told George is here, and he just walked into the office, and I was blown away. And as I was talking to him, I realized the posters on the wall. So I’m trying to be as animated as possible so he wouldn’t look at the wall.
Steven developed the story with David, so he was fully engaged from the start. He was in the meetings during preproduction. He would call me when I started shooting. He watched the dallies every day. We even sent him the first cut of the movie. I would have hour and a half phone calls with him giving me feedback.
Were you prepared he’d be so hands-on?
It was definitely the right amount, but going in I didn’t know if I’d see him once or all the time. I didn’t know how it was going to play out. And I remember on day one, the first meeting at Universal, I get there early, and the next person who walked in was Steven Spielberg.
I’ll never forget the first interaction I ever had with him. It was right after “Godzilla.” I got an email from [“The Lord of the Rings” creator] Peter Jackson, and there’s a video attached. I hit play and it’s Steven Spielberg. Peter Jackson was filming Steven Spielberg at George Lucas’ birthday party. Steven had just seen “Godzilla” and was saying really nice things about it, so Peter sent it to me. I watched it and collapsed and burst into tears.
There are moments as a filmmaker where everything you’re doing in your life, you ask, Why am I doing this? What is the goal? You don’t know. That is the answer to why I’m doing this; for that moment, for that little video.
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
We’re coming close to 10 years of “Rogue One” coming out in theaters. Do you appreciate your contribution to “Star Wars”? It’s arguably the best “Star Wars” movie since Disney bought Lucasfilm, and it’s up there as one of the best out of all the movies. Can you appreciate that?
I don’t agree with it, but I appreciate it. I’m very grateful that people say nice things. But what’s super interesting about it, which you have to keep in your pocket as you go through making other films, is that it’s not about how people feel the day it gets released, it’s how people feel about it 10, 20 years from now.
When you make a movie, you’re living at least a year from now. You’re trying to imagine what it’s like, all these decisions you’re making, what they are going to be like a year from now when this movie is released. What’s the audience going to think? And as the movie comes out, you go, “I’m going to pretend I’m living 10 years from now and it doesn’t matter what people say in the moment.” It’s the kid who comes up to you 20 years from now and goes, “Oh my god, I loved that movie!” I think that’s the reward.
Would you ever go down that road of doing “Star Wars” again?
It’s the thing that was in my life before I knew what a film was. And so it’s like your mom; it’s like something so a part of you. I’m always fascinated by what they’re doing. I never stop loving that trilogy, but I’m very happy to move on and do my thing.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
Scientists are working on a project that can transform solar power in space with the help of lightweight cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar cells on ultra-thin glass. The technology can revolutionize energy systems for satellites and space-based manufacturing.
Researchers from Loughborough and Swansea universities revealed that the new CdTe-on-glass technology offers a lighter, cheaper, and highly radiation-resistant alternative, targeting 20% efficiency in space and already achieving 23.1% on Earth. The technology was first tested in space aboard the AlSat-Nano CubeSat.
Space missions currently rely on either silicon or multi-junction solar cells (MJSCs), with MJSCs dominating due to their high efficiency, but their complex manufacturing and high costs limit scalability.
Technology offers longer service life in space
“Swansea’s Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials (CISM) has previously focused on clean energy, efficient power and microelectronics, semiconductors in healthcare, and over-the-horizon semiconductors but more recently it has been expanding into the development of semiconductor technology for space applications through our UK-first Space Semi-Tech Foundry programme,” said Professor Paul Meredith, Director of CISM at Swansea University.
“This latest partnership is an example of this as it addresses a critical need and a unique opportunity to support the UK’s strategic vision to capture a significant share of the global space technology market.”
Meredith also pointed out that their technology offers higher specific power, longer service life in space, and significantly lower costs—key advantages for powering the next generation of space missions.
Global space industry booming
The latest partnership between the two universities comes at a time when the global space industry booming—valued at £17.5 billion in the UK alone. The demand for efficient, and scalable solar power is rapidly growing.
The European Space Agency predicts a leap from just 1 MWp/year to 10 GWp/year of space solar demand by 2035, driven by expansion of satellite constellations like SpaceX’s Starlink and the rise of space-based manufacturing, including semiconductors and fiber optics, according to a press release.
“Space technology is an exciting growth industry. Reducing the weight of the payload is critical to reduce launch costs,” said Michael Walls, Professor of Photovoltaics in Loughborough’s Centre for Renewable Energy Systems Technology (CREST).
“This project aims to develop a lower weight power source by depositing thin film solar cells directly onto the protective cover glass. The technology will also enable longer deployment in space because thin film cadmium telluride solar cells are exceptionally radiation-hard.”
The collaboration also reveals that the project benefits from strong industry backing, with six partners contributing technical expertise and in-kind support valued at £112,000. The partners are: 5N Plus Inc. (Canada); AIXTRON (UK); CTF Solar GmbH (Germany); Teledyne Qioptiq (UK); Manufacturing Technology Centre (UK), and Satellite Applications Catapult (UK).
The new three-year collaboration is supported by UKRI EPSRC funding and leverages world-class facilities at both universities. Swansea’s Centre for Integrative Semiconductor Materials (CISM) houses advanced tools like the AIXTRON CCS MOCVD system, while Loughborough contributes its National Facility for High-Resolution Cathodoluminescence Analysis, essential for studying solar and optoelectronic devices, as per the release.
Rescuers by Saturday had begun the grim task of recovering the bodies of children who were swept away in a deadly flash flood in Texas, caused by a powerful storm that killed dozens of people.
The exact number of missing people was not immediately known, but 24 of them were girls who had been attending Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp along the Guadalupe River. Torrential rain caused the river to rise 26ft (8 meters) in just 45 minutes before dawn on Friday, washing away homes and vehicles.
Some of the victims of the disaster have now been recovered and are being formally identified. One of the girls, Renee Smajstrla, who was nine years old, was confirmed to be among the dead by her uncle.
“Renee has been found and while not the outcome we prayed for, the social media outreach likely assisted the first responders in helping to identify her so quickly,” Shawn Salta wrote on Facebook. “We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life.”
A number of camps were situated along the river for the Independence Day weekend, and up to 25 of about 750 campers remain unaccounted for, according to Larry Leitha, sheriff of Kerr county, who said that “catastrophic” rains had devastated the area, located to the north of San Antonio.
Leitha said at least 27 people were confirmed dead, among them nine children. Authorities said about 850 people had been rescued, with roughly 400 people involved in the search-and-rescue operation.
Drone footage shows extent of deadly Texas flooding – video
Searchers used helicopters and drones to look for victims and rescue people stranded by flood waters. The confirmed death toll is almost certain to rise, although hopes remain that some of those affected will be found alive. “They could be in a tree, they could be out of communication,” said Dan Patrick, Texas’s lieutenant governor. “We are praying for all of those missing to be found alive.”
The danger was not over as more heavy rains were expected Saturday, with flash flood warnings issued for parts of central Texas. “This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION,” the National Weather Service (NWS) warned in a bulletin. “SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!”
Huge downpours like this are becoming more common around the world due to the climate crisis, with a warming atmosphere holding a greater amount of moisture. In eastern Texas, there has already been a 20% increase in the number of days with heavy rain or snow since 1900, with the intensity of extreme rain set to rise by another 10% in the next decade.
In the area affected by the floods in Texas, parents and families posted photos of missing loved ones and pleas for information. “The camp was completely destroyed,” said Elinor Lester, 13, one of hundreds of campers at Camp Mystic. “A helicopter landed and started taking people away. It was really scary.”
A raging storm woke up her and her cabin mates just after midnight Friday – and when rescuers arrived, they tied a rope for the girls to hold as they walked across a bridge with flood waters whipping around their legs, she said.
The flooding in the middle of the night on the Fourth of July holiday caught many residents, campers and officials by surprise. Officials defended their preparations for severe weather and their response but said they had not expected such an intense downpour that was, in effect, the equivalent of months’ worth of rain for the area.
One NWS forecast this week had called for only 3-6in (76-152mm) of rain, said Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas division of emergency management.
“It did not predict the amount of rain that we saw,” he said.
Saturday’s deaths renewed questions about whether it was wise for the Trump administration to implement deep budget and job cuts at the NWS – among other federal government agencies – since his second presidency began in January.
“After media reports & experts warned for months that drastic & sudden cuts at the [NWS] by Trump could impair their forecasting ability & endanger lives during the storm season, TX officials blame an inaccurate forecast by NWS for the deadly results of the flood,” Ron Filipkowski, editor in chief of the liberal news website MeidasTouch, wrote on X.
Trump addressed the deadly floods shortly before 11am eastern time on Saturday. On his Truth Social platform, he said that his administration was working with state and local officials – and that he and the first lady, Melania Trump, were “praying for all of the families” affected.
One river gauge near Camp Mystic recorded a 22ft (6.7-meter) rise in about two hours, said Bob Fogarty, meteorologist with the NWS’s Austin/San Antonio office. The gauge failed after recording a level of 29.5ft (9 meters).
“The water’s moving so fast, you’re not going to recognize how bad it is until it’s on top of you,” Fogarty said.
On the Facebook page of the Kerr county sheriff’s office, people posted pictures of loved ones and begged for help finding them.
In Ingram, Erin Burgess woke to thunder and rain in the middle of the night on Friday. Just 20 minutes later, water was pouring into her home directly across from the river, she said. She described an agonizing hour clinging to a tree and waiting for the water to recede enough to walk up the hill to a neighbor’s home.
“My son and I floated to a tree where we hung on to it, and my boyfriend and my dog floated away,” she said. “He was lost for a while, but we found them.”
Of her 19-year-old son, Burgess said: “Thankfully he’s over 6ft tall. That’s the only thing that saved me – was hanging on to him.”
Matthew Stone, 44, of Kerrville, said police came knocking on doors but that he had received no warning on his phone.
“We got no emergency alert. There was nothing” until suddenly there was “a pitch-black wall of death”, Stone said.
At a reunification center set up in Ingram, families cried and cheered as loved ones disembarked from vehicles loaded with evacuees. Two soldiers carried an older woman who could not climb down a ladder. Behind her, a woman clutched a small white dog.
Later, a girl in a white Camp Mystic T-shirt and white socks stood in a puddle, sobbing in her mother’s arms.
Barry Adelman, 54, said water pushed everyone in his three-story house into the attic, including his 94-year-old grandmother and nine-year-old grandson. The water started coming through the attic floor before finally receding.
“I was horrified,” he said. “I was having to look at my grandson in the face and tell him everything was going to be OK, but inside I was scared to death.”
The forecast had called for rain, with a flood watch upgraded to a warning overnight for at least 30,000 people.
The lieutenant governor noted that the potential for heavy rain and flooding covered a large area.
“Everything was done to give them a heads-up that you could have heavy rain, and we’re not exactly sure where it’s going to land,” Patrick said. “Obviously, as it got dark last night, we got into the wee morning of the hours, that’s when the storm started to zero in.”
Asked about how people were notified in Kerr county so that they could get to safety, Judge Rob Kelly, the county’s chief elected official, said: “We do not have a warning system.”
When reporters pushed on why more precautions weren’t taken, Kelly said: “Rest assured – no one knew this kind of flood was coming.”
The area is known as “flash flood alley” because of the hills’ thin layer of soil, said Austin Dickson, chief executive officer of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country, which was collecting donations to help non-profits responding to the disaster.
“When it rains, water doesn’t soak into the soil,” Dickson said. “It rushes down the hill.”
River tourism is a key part of the Hill Country economy. Well-known, century-old summer camps bring in kids from all over the country, Dickson said.
“It’s generally a very tranquil river with really beautiful clear blue water that people have been attracted to for generations,” Dickson said.
The Royal Box on Centre Court is always filled with stars, and on day six of Wimbledon 2025, it had a golden glow.
Twelve British Olympic champions were invited to the Royal Box, the most prestigious seats on the grounds of the Grand Slam tennis tournament, on Saturday (5 July).
Before the first match of the day, each athlete was celebrated with a special video montage of their Olympic highlights, before being presented to the crowd to a rapturous applause for their sporting achievements.
Among them were Paris 2024 gold medallists Alex Yee (triathlon), Toby Roberts (sport climbing) and Nathan Hales (shooting), almost a year on from their maiden individual Olympic titles earned in the French capital.
There were also plenty of Olympic heroes from Great Britain’s home Games of London 2012, where Wimbledon played host to tennis.
ZAGREB, Croatia — A concert by right-wing singer Marko Perkovic, notorious for his perceived sympathy for Croatia’s World War II pro-Nazi puppet regime, has drawn tens of thousands of his fans to Zagreb on Saturday.
Some 450,000 are expected to be in attendance at the Hippodrome later in the evening, the biggest concert in Croatia’s history, according to the police, viewed as a major security challenge.
Perkovic, also known as Thompson, has been banned from performing in some European cities over frequent pro-Nazi displays at his gigs, but he remains hugely popular in Croatia, frequently attending rallies and sports events.
Organizers said any display of any hate-fueling insignia is strictly banned at Saturday’s concert.
Some fans were seen wrapped in Croatian flags while others wore black Thompson-inscribed T-shirts.
“See you at Hippodrome,” Perkovic wrote on Facebook. “Take care of each other.”
In Zagreb, a city of nearly 700,000 people, the event has been virtually blocked and traffic suspended in various areas days before the event. Authorities deployed thousands of police officers and set up a special control center and a field hospital.
The state-owned HRT television said snipers were guarding the venue and helicopters were flying above as visitors streamed in.
Some fans told The Associated Press they expected good fun and were happy to be at such an event gathering so many Croats in one place.
“Thompson is a patriot. He does not insult anyone, he loves everybody,” said Ivica from eastern Croatia, who gave only his first name.
But not everyone was pleased.
Former Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor wrote an angry post on X, criticizing how “the state and the city have been put in service of one man.”
“Thrill and excitement as fans at downtown Zagreb already sing songs from the era of the criminal state,” Kosor wrote on X. “No media are reporting about that.”
Croatia’s WWII Ustasha regime ran concentration camps where tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs, Jews, Roma and anti-fascist Croats were brutally executed.
Some of Perkovic’s songs include the Ustasha salute, punishable by law in Croatia, and other references to the pro-Nazi regime. S ome Croatian nationalists view the leaders of the Ustasha regime as the country’s founders despite the recorded atrocities.
Perkovic first became popular during a bloody 1991-95 ethnic war that erupted after Croatia declared independence from former Yugoslavia, in which he fought.
Nicknamed “Thompson” after an antique machine gun he carried in the war, Perkovic has claimed that his songs only celebrate Croatia’s victory in that war and its independence.
Index news portal posted video footage Saturday of some fans performing the Ustasha salute in Zagreb before the concert.
Rapper alludes to Kendrick Lamar beef on first track from upcoming project potentially titled Iceman
Drake addresses fake friends and broken loyalties in the aftermath of his Kendrick Lamar beef on his new song “What Did I Miss?”
The rapper released the song Friday as part of a July 4th livestream dubbed “Iceman Episode One.” “Last time I looked to my right, you n—s was standing beside me / How can some people I love hang around pussies who try me?” Drake asks on the track.
While the track doesn’t mention Lamar or any of the former friends specifically, Drake does pinpoint one specific incident: Kendrick Lamar’s Juneteenth 2024 Pop Out concert in Los Angeles, where that rapper performed his Drake-dissing “Not Like Us” five times.
“I’m back in your city tonight, walkin’ around with my head high,” Drake says on the track. “I saw bro at the Pop Out with them but been dick riding gang since ‘Headlines.’” (Drake doesn’t clarify who “bro” is, but the internet is abuzz that he’s potentially talking about NBA stars and Pop Out guests LeBron James and/or DeMar DeRozan, the latter of whom formerly played for Drake’s beloved Toronto Raptors.)
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The single’s release Friday was preceded by a livestream where the rapper drove around Toronto in a van for a company called The Iceman — which, judging by its years-long social media activity, is an actual ice delivery service in Toronto — and talked about his love for the city and his fans (and even encountered one hater).
The livestream stunt suggests that a new album is on the way, with fans speculating that it will be titled Iceman. No firm details have been announced yet. The rapper last released Some Sexy Songs 4 U with PartyNextDoor earlier this year; his last solo album was 2023’s For All the Dogs.
WIMBLEDON — Clara Tauson’s first three visits to Wimbledon’s main draw all ended in the first round.
After Saturday’s 7-6 (6), 6-3 upset of 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, Tauson has now collected three wins in the span of a week.
Coming into this third-round match, Rybakina had the best record at the All England — 21-3 — of any woman in the field. As the match progressed, you could see the fearless Tauson accelerate through the steep learning curve on this tricky surface.
In the end, she scored one break against Rybakina’s serve (on 10 break opportunities) and did not get broken herself.
This was the 22-year-old Dane’s first Top 20 win on grass, and it sends her into the second week at the All England Club. She’ll play the winner of the later match between No. 8 seed Iga Swiatek and Danielle Collins in the fourth-round on Monday.
Some takeaways:
History all around: Tauson has already equaled her best-ever Grand Slam result — her Round of 16 run last year at Roland Garros. It ended with a loss to Ons Jabeur.
In the larger picture, a victory Monday would give her the best Wimbledon result achieved in the Open Era by a woman from Denmark. Caroline Wozniacki reached the fourth round six times but never took the next step.
A delicate touch: These two players came into the match at No. 1 and No. 2 in aces among Hologic WTA Tour players. For the record, Tauson clung to her narrow lead by adding three to her total of 250, Rybakina, with five aces, is at 249.
But it was Tauson’s extraordinary touch that ultimately won this match.
Serving at 4-5 and facing her first set point, Tauson hit the shot of the match — a gorgeous drop shot that took Rybakina by complete surprise.
Delaying tactics: For the second straight day, rain visited the All England Club. But unlike Friday, when play was delayed at the outset, this was far more invasive.
With the score tied 4-all in the first set, there was a two-hour rain delay on Court 2. When play resumed, Tauson found an equilibrium after saving two set points in her first service game and settled down in the tiebreak.
Then, with Tauson serving at the critical juncture of 4-2, 40-30 in the second, a light drizzle began. This time the players didn’t leave the court but were permitted to warm up after about 15 minutes of waiting.
With a single serve — and a Rybakina return into the net — Tauson forged a 5-2 lead.
An abrupt exit: It was a disappointing performance from Rybakina, who failed to take advantage of a main draw that had already lost six Top 10 seeds.
This was the first time in five appearances here that she’s failed to reach the fourth round.
Rybakina dropped only seven games in her first two matches, but dropped that many in the first-set tiebreak. It was 6-all when she hammered a backhand past the baseline and failed to land a forehand return.
Rybakina finished with 31 winners and 31 unforced errors. Tauson was just a little bit better, with 25 winners and 22 unforced errors.
THE ALL ENGLAND CLUB, LONDON — 19 minutes after rain fell on No. 2 Court for the second time, Clara Tauson stepped up to the line to serve against a former Wimbledon champion at 4-2, 40-30 in the second set. Having held all the momentum for most of the match, the Dane again had to summon it anew after a delay.
Tauson slammed down a first serve, and Elena Rybakina could only drill it into the net.
Two games later, Tauson delivered another upset in a tournament full of them, knocking out one of two former champions left in the draw 7-6(6), 6-3.
Rybakina’s 2022 title run showcased her natural affinity for grass. Her serve, the platform for everything else in her game, also wipes out her opponents’ hope. The easy acceleration on her groundstrokes sends the ball skidding through the baseline, cutting lines through the court. When she is on her game on grass, she plays with an ominous serenity. Everything just flows.
So Tauson put up as many dams as she could. From the early exchanges, the No. 23 seed sought to redirect and to disrupt. She changed patterns from crosscourt to down the line. She sliced off both wings. And most importantly, where Rybakina kept breaking the baseline, Tauson broke the sideline. Rybakina’s linear power is fundamental to her game, but Tauson’s biggest limitation is her movement, from side to side and up and down. Rybakina could not move Tauson sideways, but Tauson could move Rybakina out of her baseline encampment.
Tauson earned more break points than Rybakina in both sets, and moved ahead in the first-set tiebreak before Rybakina pegged her back. The tennis scoring system means that “deserving” a set is almost a non-factor, but Tauson deserved to eke out the tiebreak. Down the stretch, she dealt better with the disruptions and difficult, windy conditions than Rybakina, who missed a number of mid-court balls through not getting quite into position, including on the final point.
Tauson defended a heavy ball out of her backhand corner, slicing it short to the center of the court. Rybakina moved up onto the ball ready to dispatch a forehand into the open court, but lifted it long. She stared in disbelief as Tauson raised her arms, and Wimbledon opened up a little further.
‘One former champion left in the women’s draw’
As well as Tauson, the big winner from Rybakina’s exit is Iga Świątek, if she can get past Danielle Collins later on Saturday.
Świątek was due to play Rybakina in the next round, and has lost four of their previous nine meetings. When they met at the French Open a month ago, Rybakina won the first set 6-1 before Świątek came back to win a tight three-setter.
Świątek and Tauson meanwhile have only met once before — a three-set win for the former at Indian Wells in 2022.
Rybakina’s defeat also means there’s only one former champion left in the draw, the relatively unfancied No. 17 seed Barbora Krejčíková. This speaks to the unpredictability of the women’s event here, as well as the struggles former Wimbledon champions have had in recent times. Serena Williams, who won her seventh and final title in 2016, is the last woman to win it and then subsequently reach a final, while this is the first Wimbledon in the Open Era to have no former champions among the top 10 seeds.
Świątek would be a tricky matchup for Tauson, who is in the second week for the first time. Collins would be a straight shootout between two big hitters which might suit her, especially given the way she maneuvered Rybakina. Świątek however is a master of joysticking opponents in and out of the corners, and would test Tauson’s movement more significantly.
Whatever happens from here, this has been another really positive week for Tauson, who will climb into the world’s top 20 for the first time in her career.
Running out of juice when you’re on the move is a solved problem thanks to the many different portable power banks on the market. But you’re still going to need a cable to plug things in, and that can get messy. Cables get tangled at the best of times, but this Baseus retractable USB-C cable has the answer. It shrinks down to hide the cable when not in use, avoiding all those traditional wire problems we’re all so familiar with. And even better, Amazon’s Fourth of July sale has slashed the price of one of these cables to just $7.
The Baseus retractable USB-C cable is an excellent option to stock up on and keep in your bags and luggage because it’s so small that it takes up virtually no space. The best part is that it comes in four fun colors: black, white, blue and purple. This way, you can get a cable to match your phone color or pick your favorites.
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The Baseus Retractable Mini USB-C Cable comes in two lengths: 3.3 feet or 6.6 feet. However, for this lingering Fourth of July offer, only the 3.3-foot version has the most significant savings. This also makes it the perfect cable for use in the car, with a portable power bank, with a computer, plugged into a nearby outlet, or wherever and whatever else that doesn’t need more than three feet in length. And with its super compact size, this is the perfect cable to simply throw and stash away in your purse, backpack, luggage or car. Anywhere you may need a charging cable, this is the perfect one to stash away as a “just in case” option.
With Baseus, this little cable packs quite a punch. It supports 100-watt fast charging, so you can even use it for your USB-C laptop, like a MacBook Pro or even tablets. Though you might use it the most for your smartphone, it’s more versatile than that. According to Baseus, it can fully charge a 16-inch MacBook Pro in just 2 hours, an 11-inch iPad Pro in 2.4 hours, a Nintendo Switch in 2.5 hours, and a Samsung S22 Ultra in 58 minutes.
Since it is retractable, you need only pull it out as much as you need, which helps reduce cable messes on your desk. When you’re not using it, just retract both ends. Since it’s just 15mm thin and weighs only 50 grams, it can even slide into your pocket.
And again, with four colors to pick from, you can get one of each and stash them all over the place. They’re small enough to do so, after all.
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Why this deal matters
No one likes to be caught off guard with no charging cable. This one is super compact and retractable, simplifying the mess and excess. You can use it with your power adapters and power banks, and it works with all of your USB-C devices from your iPhone to your MacBook Pro. Although Amazon lists this currently at $13 not on sale, the original retail price is actually $17. So at just $7 a pop, there’s really no reason to not pick this up.
