Category: 6. Sports

NEW YORK — Born in Jakarta, Indonesia, Janice Tjen started playing tennis when her friend Priska Madelyn Nugroho invited her on court.

“My parents just like, ‘Yeah, just go play the sport, just having exercise,’” Tjen told reporters at the US Open. “So I’m not going to be in my room just doing nothing.”

Fast forward to last Friday, when Tjen did something special, throwing down a 6-1, 6-2 win over No. 3 qualifying seed Aoi Ito to secure a spot in the main draw. She became the first Indonesian player to compete in a major since Angelique Widjaja at the 2004 US Open. And then she upset No. 24 seed Veronika Kudermetova in a three-set, first-round match, equaling Widjaja’s effort at the 2023 Wimbledon championships.

The Unisphere, symbolizing the vast world we live in, is an iconic stainless steel sculpture dominating the entrance at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. But as we’ve seen, the world today is shrinking at the elite levels of tennis. Once upon a time, the United States, Australia and Great Britain dominated the game. 

Now, we’re seeing some distinctly non-tennis nations creeping into the mix — and their players are bringing a new, non-traditional flavor to the game. Beyond Tjen, consider the events of the past three days at this US Open:

• Alexandra Eala defeated No. 14 seed Clara Tauson 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (11), becoming the first woman from the Philippines to win a main-draw match at a Grand Slam.
• Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, a former junior No. 1, was the first Andorran ever in a Grand Slam main draw before falling to Maya Joint on Tuesday.
• Renata Zarazua stunned No. 6 seed and reigning Australian Open champion Madison Keys, becoming the first Mexican woman to beat a Top 10 seed in three decades.

“I think definitely tennis is becoming a bit more popular, more global,” Zarazua said after her shocking win over Keys. “I would say a lot of people are watching a bit more than before maybe.”

Safe to say, they’ll be watching Wednesday when Tjen meets Emma Raducanu in a high-profile, second-round match. Raducanu is another nod to the game’s growing diversity. She was born in Toronto, Canada, while her father Ion is from Bucharest, Romania and her mother Renee hails from Shenyang, China. Raducanu was raised in Bromley, England, the country she represents.

Tjen was playing for Pepperdine University when Raducanu won the 2021 US Open.

“I was injured at the time, so I get to watch a lot of tennis,” Tjen said. “Just seeing her doing it makes me, like, inspired me, like, to be able to do it, as well.”

The Minister of Happiness

The recent patron saint of global tennis is Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur.

When she reached the Wimbledon final three years ago, Jabeur became the first Arab or African woman to contest a major final. It was a highlight in a stirring string of firsts, including rising to the World No. 2 ranking.

Jabeur has always taken her role as a role model very seriously.

“Sometimes I really doubt myself and the fact that I would be letting people down, that will affect me more than anything else,” she once said. “I know part of Ons Jabeur playing is being Tunisian and that blood will help me play and make history.”

Jabeur, currently taking a break from professional tennis, played with an undeniable joy, leading to her memorable nickname. With a diverse game as eclectic as her roots, Jabeur demonstrated what was possible for so many young girls around the world.

Eala was one of them.

Still a teenager at the Miami Open, she set off on a stunning run to the semifinals, defeating Grand Slam champions Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek along the way. Her ranking soared to No. 72 — from No. 140 — and she was granted direct entry into the US Open main draw.

Trailing Tauson 5-1 in the third set, Eala produced a furious comeback and forced a tiebreak, ultimately converting her fifth match point.

“To be Filipino is something I take so much pride in,” Eala, now 20, said afterward. “And you know, I don’t have a home tournament, so to be able to have this community here at the US Open, I’m so grateful that they made me feel like I’m home.”

Playing against an American in Arthur Ashe Stadium, Zarazua didn’t enjoy that advantage. Previously, she was 0-6 against Top 10 players and Keys couldn’t have been a more imposing opponent.

And yet, the 5-foot-3 Mexican — continuously scrambling on defense — retrieved Keys’ powerful groundstrokes and, ultimately, outlasted her.

Before the match, Zarazua said she was so nervous she was nearly in tears.

“I didn’t want the nerves to be what let me down in the match,” she explained. “Yeah, the fear, the nerves, all of that, just tried to leave them on the side and just focus on my game and what I had to do.”

A talent for tennis

To understand Jimenez Kasintseva’s extraordinary journey to New York, it helps to know a little geography.

Andorra — officially it’s the Principality of Andorra — is a tiny, land-locked nation nestled in the Pyrenees Mountains, which straddle the border between France and Spain. It is the16^th smallest country by land (181 square miles) and 11^th smallest by population (87,486). For context, Billings, Montana, Edison, New Jersey and Lakeland, Florida all have similar populations.

Jimenez Kasintseva’s Andorran father Joan was a former ATP Tour player and continues to oversee her training in Barcelona. The family moved from Andorra to Kentucky for three years when Victoria was four and began to develop a talent for tennis.

At 14, she was the youngest player in the Australian Open girls’ singles draw — and won the title. She was the first Andorran to win a junior major crown and the youngest to win a junior championship since Coco Gauff at 2018 Roland Garros.

She’s the quintessential global athlete, speaking Spanish, French, English and Russian — all fluently — as well as her native Catalan.

Here in New York, the 20-year-old has been a revelation. Jimenez Kasintseva won three qualifying matches against opponents from traditional tennis powers, including a pair of promising 17-year-olds. She was leading Joint — a 19-year-old Australian already ranked among the Top 50 in the PIF WTA Rankings — 5-1 in the second set of their first-round match, but fell 6-4, 7-6 (6).

Tjen, meanwhile, made it to Wednesday’s second-round collision with Raducanu, a featured 11 a.m. match in Louis Armstrong Stadium.

After graduating from Pepperdine with a degree in sociology last May, she’s gone from being unranked to No. 149 by finding success at the ITF level. She had a 27-match, 42-set winning streak earlier this year and has a total of 13 titles. Tjen has a pleasingly diverse game of slices and net play that reminds people of Ashleigh Barty.

After qualifying, to make some Indonesian history, followed by the upset of Kudermetova, the magnitude hadn’t registered.

“I think I’m still not processing the emotion,” Tjen told reporters. “Yeah, I’m very happy being able to advance and got a little bit emotional there. Very happy.”

What does it mean to win for Indonesia?

“It means a lot,” Tjen said. “I feel proud to be able to do this for my country. Hopefully, by me making appearance here, will help, will inspire more tennis players, younger kids to play tennis and also believing that they can be here, too.”

 

Editor’s Note: Power Rankings is a feature after every NTT INDYCAR SERIES race in which INDYCAR.com staff writer Eric Smith ranks the top-10 current drivers in the series based on objective recent and season-long performance statistics and the subjective “eye test” of what he sees during race weekends.

Christian Rasmussen earned his first career NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory in Sunday’s Snap-on Milwaukee Mile 250, holding off 2025 series champion Alex Palou in a thrilling finish. Teammate Alexander Rossi placed fourth as Ed Carpenter Racing put two drivers in the top five at the finish for the first time in team history.

Despite the loss, Palou retains the No. 1 spot in Power Rankings following the 16th race of the 17-race season.

Here’s how the rest of Power Rankings shape up heading into the final race of the season at Nashville Superspeedway (2 p.m. ET, FOX, FOX Deportes, FOX One, FOX Sports app, INDYCAR Radio Network):

↓10. Colton Herta (No. 26 Gainbridge Honda; Last Rank: 5)

Herta (photo, above) had a quiet weekend but maintained consistency with his fourth straight 11th-place finish. He earned the Jostens Hard Charger award after climbing from the 24th starting position.

↑9. David Malukas (No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)

Malukas returns to the Power Rankings after missing out post-Portland. He impressed with a second-place start at Milwaukee but dropped to 18th and a lap down following a slow second pit stop due to a malfunctioning air gun. Malukas rallied to finish eighth, his third top-10 in the last five races.

↔8. Scott Dixon (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 8)

Dixon (photo, above) logged his 10th straight top-11 finish with a ninth-place result at Milwaukee. The only drawbacks are he has not led a lap in the last six races and is averaging a 9.8 qualifying position in that span.

↓7. Marcus Armstrong (No. 66 St. Thomas University Honda; Last Rank: 6)

Armstrong extended his strong season with a 10th-place finish in Milwaukee, his 11th of the year and ninth in the last 10 races.

↑6. Alexander Rossi (No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)

Rossi (top photo, left) makes his first Power Rankings appearance since being ranked ninth after Barber in May and earned his best ranking in the last 21 races. After going without a top-five finish in the first 14 events, he’s now posted two in a row after placing fifth at Portland and fourth in Milwaukee.

↑5. Christian Rasmussen (No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet; Last Rank: NR)

Rasmussen (top photo, right) became the 302nd driver to win an NTT INDYCAR SERIES race and the first Ed Carpenter Racing winner since Rinus VeeKay in the Sonsio Grand Prix in May 2021. With four top-10 finishes in his last six races, he’s earned a career-best ranking. Despite having the third-most oval points this season, his 20th-place rank on road and street circuits has held him back.

↑4. Scott McLaughlin (No. 3 Sonsio Vehicle Protection Chevrolet; Last Rank: 9)

McLaughlin (photo, above) jumps back into the top five for the first time since ranking third after the Sonsio Grand Prix on May 10. He’s on a roll with three consecutive top-10 finishes, improving each week from 10th at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, to seventh at Portland and third at Milwaukee.

↓3. Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 2)

Lundgaard drops one spot despite finishing sixth in Milwaukee, marking his third top-seven finish in five oval starts this season. He’s logged four top-six finishes in his last five races, including three consecutively. He and Armstrong are tied for the fourth-most top-10 finishes this season.

↑2. Pato O’Ward (No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet; Last Rank: 4)

O’Ward (photo, above) rebounded from a mechanical failure at Portland with his 10th top-five finish of the season – second most in the series this season. He has recorded six top-five finishes in the last seven races and has clinched a second-place points finish.

↔1. Alex Palou (No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda; Last Rank: 1)

Palou led 199 of 250 laps from the pole but finished second at Milwaukee. Still, he boasts 13 top-five finishes and 14 top-10s in 16 starts, including seven top-five finishes in the last eight races.

This time last year, Boutler was a seeded player at Flushing Meadows but is now in danger of slipping out of the world’s top 50 after a difficult season.

The powerful baseliner has never reached the second week of a major and seemed to lack confidence at times against Kostyuk – seemingly systematic of her lack of her form.

Despite only winning once in her past eight matches, Boulter said she had regained her “buzz”.

Boulter believed she had found a new perspective after taking “days off away from the sport” following the Canadian Open last month.

“You can look at the results and think ‘she’s having a tough time’, but I’m actually really excited,” she said.

“I lost it a couple of weeks ago in Montreal and I’d say that is a pivotal moment in my career.

“It was a full reset in the middle of the US hard-court swing and I think I’m in a good place to move forward.”

Saving five match points as she served at 5-3 illustrated how Boulter will not stop fighting and helped her create three break points in the 10th game.

However, Kostyuk recovered to serve out the match and move into the second round.

Boulter coped fine with the hotter conditions and put her struggles down to the tweaks she has been trying to make to her serve.

“I’m trying to find rhythm and don’t fully commit to the serve I’m going for,” added Boulter, who was broken four times.

“At this level, putting the serve in the court is not going to get it done.

“Otherwise, on the court, I matched Marta well and returned decently well. Considering my form it was a relatively competitive match.”

Elsewhere, eighth seed Amanda Anisimova made it safely through to the second round by beating Australian Kim Birrell 6-3 6-2.

American Anisimova, playing her first Grand Slam match since being beaten 6-0 6-0 by Swiatek in the Wimbledon final, hit 17 unforced errors in the opening set but improved markedly in the second.

She won the last five games of the match to set up a second-round meeting with another Australian, teenager Maya Joint.

However, her compatriot Danielle Collins made an early exit for the second consecutive year, winning just two games as she was beaten by Jaqueline Cristian of Romania.

World number 50 Cristian prevailed 6-2 6-0 against 2019 Australian Open semi-finalist Collins, who was hampered by a back injury.

Meanwhile, two-time champion Naomi Osaka – seeded 23rd – cruised past Belgium’s Greet Minnen in a 6-3 6-4 win.

Russian Diana Shnaider, the 20th seed, also went out after Germany’s Laura Siegemund secured a 7-6 (7-3) 2-6 6-3 victory over the 21-year-old.

The same points keep cropping up when people who know Ngumoha talk about him: he has a great mentality, is a top dribbling talent, and that his brother James has been crucial to his development.

Ngumoha, who has represented England U15s, U16s and U17s, played at the Ole Futsal Academy in small-sided matches alongside his development in Chelsea’s academy.

Ole Futsal owner Alfie Brooks told BBC Sport: “Rio was outstanding and the same player now as when he was on television last night.

“His footwork and first touch were outstanding from an early age but what set him apart was his ability to execute those skills at speed. He can beat players with ease, he is very technical.

“If he stays in the same pathway, he can reach any level he wants.”

Saul Isaksson-Hurst was both Ngumoha’s coach at Under-9s level and worked with him in a private capacity later in his career.

“We managed to get him from the clutches of Arsenal,” he said. “He was a phenomenal talent at U9s.

“I don’t say it lightly, he is one of the best academy talents I have come across, and I have seen some top players become superstars.

“What makes him stand out is his one-v-one ability on the ball – he can break lines, drive at players, beat players on either side and end product.

“I told his brother I expect him to see him on the Ballon d’Or list one day, I believe he can do that.”

Isaksson-Hurst has one particular standout memory:

“I remember we went to a tournament in France and all the biggest academies were there like Juventus, Ajax and Anderlecht and we went out in the group stage,” he said.

“But Rio won player of the tournament and that never happens in youth football. It usually goes to the winner who wins the competition.

“He stood out that much that he was the outlier not just in England but across Europe. He is a top talent, good mentality and with the potential to go all the way.”

It’s surreal to be here at Rugby World Cup 2025 but to be honest these last 12 months have been surreal. Life-changing, even. Being on the journey to winning a silver medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games and then to be here for this major tournament is an honour, but it’s also a challenge physically and mentally to be switched on for a whole year.

We took time to celebrate our silver medal and to allow it all to sink in, because we knew we had accomplished something a lot of people said we wouldn’t accomplish in Paris. You also have to process the emotions of winning silver because it’s bittersweet in the sense that you’re second in the world and that’s massive, and you’ve made history for Canadian rugby, but at the same time you also know you’ve fallen just seven points short of gold.

So we soaked all of that in but with a ‘What’s next?’ mentality, and our focus very quickly shifted to us coming here and winning this Rugby World Cup.

One thing I’m getting better at as I get older is figuring out the balance between rugby and life. Earlier on in my career it was just rugby, rugby, rugby, and obviously that’s put me in a good position. But there’s a balance to be struck between trying to enjoy the off-field stuff a little bit more, and just being able to connect with other people and fully shutting off when it’s not rugby and not feeling guilty for doing that.

For me, spending as much time as possible at home this last year was important. We got some good chunks off so I was able to be at home with family and friends and just… breathe.

I come from a place called Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island, which is the smallest province in Canada. It’s surrounded by beautiful beaches, so when I’m home I’m hanging out on the beach, I’m eating lobster rolls, I’m hanging out with my niece, I’m hanging out with my friends and I’m just chilling. That’s how I relax and unwind from rugby.

But as much as I like my down time, I also love the chance to get onto the rugby pitch and switch back on. Unlike for our sevens campaign at the Olympics, there’s been a lot more chat about Canada at this World Cup and it’s been awesome to have so much media and eyes on us.

We came fourth at the last World Cup but since then we’ve only grown, so absolutely there’s pressure on us to perform now, but we’ve worked so hard for that pressure so we aren’t going to shy away from it.

We’re coming into this World Cup with a sense of confidence and with the knowledge that every week there’s a job to be done. You can get ahead of yourself by looking at the media and who they’re picking as their top contenders, but our pressure comes from within. We have goals that we need to check off every week in order to continue growing as a group. We have a squad of 32 that, on any given day, any person can be on that field and help us win a game. We take pride in that.

Sure, there’s pressure but there’s as much pressure really as you want to put on yourself. We have a group with a lot of confidence and we’re super excited for the challenge.

We know there’s much more at stake than just rugby bragging rights. In Canada alone, we’ve already seen changes since the last time Canada was on the podium at a World Cup, with two Olympic medals. It just keeps growing and that goes to show that every time Canada has a good performance at a major tournament, the buzz around the sport in the country has just grown.

You can see it on our team right now. The people who are going to their fourth World Cup have paved the way, they are the ones who inspired us to pick up a rugby ball. Now they are our team-mates. If we can do that to the younger generation and have them as part of the group at the next World Cup, or the one after that, it would be massive for growing the game in Canada, and hopefully helping this team collect more silverware.

RIGA (Latvia) – The first day of play at the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 is ahead of us with the event tipping off in Tampere and Riga.

Six games await in what promises to be an action-packed curtain-opener, with the 12 teams from Groups A and B getting their campaings underway.

Who is going to start off strong and who’ll have to wait until Friday to get on the right track?

Key Storylines

• Lithuania and Great Britain get the action underway in first game;

• Porzingis and Sengun clash in Riga, as hosts Latvia welcome Türkiye;

• Neighbors clash in Tampere with red-hot Markkanen taking on Sweden.

Hosts Latvia are headlining the opening day in Group A with arguably the biggest matchup of the day as the host Türkiye in what will be a sell-out crowd in Arena Riga. Kristaps Porzingis and Alperen Sengun will be the ones in the spotlight, with the hopes of their nations resting on their broad shoulders. Tournament favorites Serbia are will get their campaign up and running against Estonia, while the stakes in the game between Czechia and Portugal will reach fever levels with somuch on the line.

Did you know?

• Kristaps Porzingis is back at the FIBA EuroBasket after taking part in 2017. That year, he had the best scoring average among players averaging under 30 minutes per game with 23.6 PPG.

• Serbia have won 14 of their last 15 games in the Group Phase of the FIBA EuroBasket whereas Estonia have lost the opening game in each of their last three entries.

• Vojtech Hruban has scored 205 points at the EuroBasket and with just four more he will overtake Lubos Barton
  as Czechia’s third best FIBA EuroBasket scorer since gaining independence.

_{All information has been provided by Opta.}

Group B: Can anyone stop the Finnisher?

Lauri Markkanen is the hottest hand in Europe. At least that’s what the friendly games seem to suggest, with the Finnish superstar dropping not one, but to 40+ performances in the exhibition circuit. The EuroBasket hosts begin their journey in Tampere against Sweden. World champions Germany will be aiming sky-high, but face a tough challenge from Nikola Vucevic and Montenegro, while Lithuania and Great Britain will do the honors of lifting the curtain in the very first game of the event.

Did you know?

• Nikola Vucevic will take part in his fourth FIBA EuroBasket, a Montenegro record that he’ll share with his teammate Vladimir Mihailovic.

• Lauri Markkanen has scored 312 points in just 13 FIBA EuroBasket games. The only player who reached 300 or more points faster is Radivoj Korac who did it in 11 games.

• Lithuania’s Jonas Valanciunas needs just eight more rebounds to reach the fourth spot at the FIBA EuroBasket all-time list since FIBA collects this data.

_{All information has been provided by Opta.}

FIBA

India’s Bindyarani Devi, Muthupandi Raja and Sneha Soren secured silver medals at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2025 in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, while 17-year-old Koyel Bar stole the spotlight with youth world records.

Bindyarani Devi, competing in the women’s 58kg, lifted 206kg (91kg snatch+115kg clean and jerk) to claim silver.

She progressed through 85kg, 88kg, and 91kg in snatch and cleared 110kg and 115kg in clean and jerk before failing her final 122kg attempt. Australia’s Kiana Elliott took gold with 212kg (100kg+112kg).

Bindyarani Devi won the silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in the 55kg division. She is a former Commonwealth champion, having won gold in 2019 and silver in 2021.

In the men’s 65kg, Muthupandi Raja came agonisingly close to the gold medal, finishing with 296kg (128kg+168kg), just shy of Malaysia’s Muhamad Aznil Bin Bidin, who lifted 297kg (125kg+172kg).

Papua New Guinea’s Moria Baru claimed bronze with 292kg (127kg+165kg).

The day also belonged to Koyel Bar, who impressed in the women’s 53kg youth category with a total of 192kg (85kg + 107kg), setting new youth world records in total and clean and jerk.

In the senior women’s 53kg, Nigeria’s Omolola Onome Didih took gold with 197kg (90kg+107kg), while India’s Sneha Soren lifted 185kg (81kg+104kg) for silver.

The 30th edition of the championships features over 300 lifters from 31 nations.

Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Mirabai Chanu had kicked off India’s campaign on Monday, winning gold in the women’s 48kg and securing qualification for the next year’s Commonwealth Games. Only winners in each senior category earn automatic spots for Glasgow 2026.

No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek continued her 2025 resurgence by cruising through her US Open first round 6-1, 6-2 over Emiliana Arango in exactly an hour.

US Open: Draws | Scores | Order of play

Swiatek snapped a 13-month title drought in July by capturing her first Wimbledon title — her sixth Grand Slam crown in total — and backed that up by lifting the Cincinnati trophy for the first time two weeks ago. Having fallen to No. 8 in the PIF WTA Rankings in June, she’s already returned to No. 2 this week. The 2022 champion at Flushing Meadows, a second title here this fortnight would make Swiatek the first player to win both Wimbledon and the US Open since Serena Williams in 2012 — and could potentially mean she reclaims the World No. 1 ranking from Aryna Sabalenka.

Swiatek will next face No. 66-ranked Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands, who defeated 18-year-old wild card Valerie Glozman 6-4, 6-2. Lamens, who claimed her first WTA title last October in Osaka, has played the main draws of all four majors for the first time this year, making the second round of the Australian Open, Wimbledon and now the US Open.

More to come…