Nigeria began their bid for another TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title with a dominant 3-0 win over Tunisia in Group B on Sunday at Stade Larbi Zaouli in Casablanca.
The Super Falcons showed their intent from the outset, with Asisat Oshoala opening the scoring in the fourth minute with a powerful header after Omorinsola Babajide’s cross found her perfectly in the box.
Nigeria maintained control throughout the first half, pinning Tunisia deep with relentless pressure and wide play.
Despite spirited defending from the North Africans, Nigeria doubled their lead just before the break.
Babajide, who was a constant threat down the left, latched onto a pass and buried her shot into the bottom corner to make it 2-0—her effort confirmed after a brief VAR review.
The nine-time African champions made a triple substitution at half-time, bringing on Chinwendu Ihezuo, Esther Okoronkwo and Christy Ucheibe, all of whom injected fresh energy.
Nigeria’s dominance continued into the second half, with Okoronkwo and Ashleigh Plumptre going close, and Michelle Alozie causing problems with overlapping runs from fullback.
Tunisia showed resilience and nearly pulled one back when Salma Zemzem struck the crossbar in the closing minutes.
But their resistance was finally broken again in the 84th minute, when Ihezuo coolly slotted home from close range after good work by Okoronkwo to seal the win.
The Super Falcons’ pace, physicality, and experience overwhelmed a youthful Tunisian side who were hoping to build on their quarter-final finish from 2022.
Nigeria, who had not won their opening WAFCON match since 2016, were eager to stamp their authority early—and they did so with a commanding display.
With this result, Nigeria top Group B heading into their next fixture, while Tunisia will need to regroup quickly if they are to reach the knockout stages.
Lando Norris won a thrilling, rain-hit British Grand Prix, sweeping to victory after championship-leading team-mate Oscar Piastri was penalised for an infringement behind the Safety Car. The Australian was left with second place at the flag ahead of Nico Hülkenberg who rose from 19th on the grid to take his first F1 podium at the 239th attempt.
On a wet, but rapidly drying track, the formation lap got underway behind the Safety Car and when it left the track so too did a number of drivers who pitted to swap the Intermediate tyres all had fitted for slicks.
At lights out on the partially empty grid, polesitter Max Verstappen made a good getaway and after shrugging off a brief challenge from front row rival Piastri, the Red Bull driver settled into the lead. Behind the top two, Norris held third ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly who powered through to take P5.
However, further back there was contact between Haas’ Esteban Ocon and Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson and the New Zealander was bounced off track and out of the race. The VSC was swiftly deployed, and the pace froze.
When the caution ended, Verstappen held the lead but behind the leaders another incident was unfolding. Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto crashed and though he was able to get going again he eventually had to stop on track and the VSC was deployed for a second time.
The second neutralisation ended on lap 7 and this time Verstappen could do nothing to keep Piastri at bay and on lap 8, with the aid of DRS, the Australian swept past on the Hangar Straight to steal the lead.
Soon afterwards, rain began to fall and struggling on “really bad inters” the Red Bull driver slid off track at Chapel and Norris swept past. Piastri pitted and he was followed by Norris and Verstappen. Norris had a slow stop, however, and Verstappen was able to get out ahead of the Briton to steal back second place.
Piastri now led the Red Bull driver by 12 seconds, with Norris just half a second behind the Dutchman. Lance Stroll, who had started 17th and put in a brief, massively advantageous stint on Softs, rose to fourth ahead of Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg who also profit from the incidents and the conditions after starting 19th. However, with the conditions rapidly deteriorating the Safety Car was sent out on lap 14 and the race was neutralised.
The Safety Car left the track at the end of lap 17 and Piastri controlled the restart to hold his lead ahead of Verstappen and Norris. Behind them, Stroll and Hulkenberg maintained position.
The Safety car was almost immediately out again, however. In heavy spray, Hadjar failed to see Kimi Antonelli ahead of him and on the way up to Copse the Racing Bulls drove into the back of the Mercedes. Remarkably, the Italian was able to carry on, despite being deprived of a rear diffuser, but Hadjar pirouetted off track and into the barriers.
Just ahead of the Safety Car leaving the track, Piastri suddenly braked hard, dropping from 218km/h to just 52km/h. Verstappen shot past the McLaren and had to brake hard himself to allow the race leader past. The incident was quickly placed under investigation and Piastri was later handed a 10-second time penalty for erratic braking behind the SC.
The Safety Car peeled off track at the end of lap 22 and struggling for grip in Stowe Verstappen spun off track. He rejoined in P9 and slipped to P10 as he was passed by Williams’ Carlos Sainz.
At half distance, Piastri led his team-mate by 3.6s and Stroll was now up to third place ahead of Hülkenberg and Gasly. Behind them, Hamilton got past Russell to take P6. Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso sat in P8 ahead of Sainz and Verstappen.
On lap 35 Hülkenberg passed Stroll take P3 and soon after Hamilton muscled his way past to demote the Canadian to fifth. Further back, Verstappen was also beginning to recover, and he made his way past Sainz to take ninth place behind Alonso.
On lap 38 the Spaniard was the first to make the move to slick tyres and he pitted from seventh. Russell was the next in. Both struggled for grip, however, with Russell spinning and rejoining and Verstappen was boosted to seventh. With the conditions steadily improving, the Dutchman passed Gasly to claim rose to sixth as he too cycled through the pits for slick tyres.
Piastri pitted from lead on lap 44 and after serving his penalty and fitting Mediums, he rejoined in P2, ahead of Hülkenberg who was now also on Medium tyres. Norris headed in at the end of the following lap and with Medium tyres on board the Briton rejoined in a lead he would hold until the end of the race.
Behind them McLaren pair Nico Hülkenberg took his first ever podium in his 239th race start, with Hamilton in fourth place. With two laps to go Verstappen closed right up to Stroll and when the Canadian made a slight error the Red Bull driver pounced to take P5 at the flag. Gasly also made his way past Stroll on the final lap to take P6. The Aston Martin driver managed to cross the line in seventh, ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon, Alonso and Russell.
2025 FIA Formula 1 British Grand Prix – Race 1 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 52 – 2 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 52 6.812 3 Nico Hülkenberg Sauber/Ferrari 52 34.742 4 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 52 39.812 5 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda RBPT 52 56.781 6 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Renault 52 59.857 7 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 52 – 8 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 52 – 9 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Mercedes 52 – 10 George Russell Mercedes 52 – 11 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 52 – 12 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 52 – 13 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 52 – 14 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 52 – 15 Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull/Honda RBPT 51 – 1 lap Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 23 – Retirement Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 17 – Retirement Gabriel Bortoleto Sauber/Ferrari 3 – Retirement Liam Lawson Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 0 – Retirement Franco Colapinto Alpine/Renault 0 – Retirement
Max Verstappen has given his take on a “very difficult race” at the British Grand Prix, with the Red Bull driver admitting that he had “no pace” on an afternoon that saw him recover to P5 following a spin at the second Safety Car restart.
After lining up in pole position, Verstappen initially led before being overtaken by McLaren’s Oscar Piastri on Lap 8 of 52.
While a second Safety Car phase closed the gaps again – amid changing weather conditions – the Dutchman spun shortly after the restart, dropping him down the order.
From there Verstappen embarked on a recovery drive and crossed the line in fifth place, while Lando Norris took victory ahead of Piastri and Kick Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg.
“It was just a very difficult race for us, but even after that spin I had no pace,” the four-time World Champion conceded when reflecting on his race.
“I was just stuck with that group and it was just very difficult to drive, and naturally of course we knew that it was going to be difficult in the wet with that [low downforce] rear wing that we had on the car.
“But even then I think we were still struggling a lot, and even also in the last few laps on the slick tyres were quite a handful to drive.
“[It was] just very difficult. A few things to look at of course, but we were no match anyway with the McLarens, and on the other hand when we have a difficult day we try to of course collect the points. To see Nico on that podium, for me at least, it’s nice to see.”
In terms of what the approach would be going forward – after a weekend in which a strong Qualifying performance was followed by a tougher race day – Verstappen said: “Just go to the next one.
“We have nothing to lose, nothing to gain – we are not in the fight for the championships, so we tried to just… see every race as a one-off and try to maximise everything.”
Sonay Kartal took Wimbledon by storm as the last British player standing in the women’s singles, after Emma Raducanu’s exit. The Brighton native calmly went about her business in the first week, defeating the world No 21, Jelena Ostapenko, in the first round before dominant straight-set wins against Viktoriya Tomova and Diane Parry to reach the fourth round at a grand slam for the first time.
But the fairytale run came to a halt as the unseeded Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s greater experience told, the 34-year-old winning 7-6 (3), 6-4 to return to the Wimbledon quarter-finals after nine years.
“Obviously I’m finished here,” said Kartal. “For the rest of the day I’ll be a bit sad. But tomorrow I’ll wake up, and look back on this week and be super proud. I can step back and think: ‘Fourth round of a slam.’
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova reaches for a return against Sonay Kartal. Photograph: Rob Newell/CameraSport/Getty Images
“Hopefully I have inspired some people. It’s not easy coming out on Centre Court as a Brit.”
It was a match not without its controversies, with the electronic line-calling system failing at a crucial point for the Russian in the first set, an embarrassing moment for Wimbledon, which has received pushback for getting rid of line judges.
Pavlyuchenkova made it to the last eight here in 2016, losing to the eventual winner, Serena Williams. “I always thought grass was very tricky for me,” said the Russian. “I’ve played a really good match today, considering this was Centre Court – my first time in many years – and facing such a tough opponent. She didn’t give me any free points.”
Her compact swings helped her hold to love in the opening service game and she followed it up with a break, forcing Kartal on the run for a second break point. Pavlyuchenkova responded to a lob with some great skill, stretching out and flicking her high backhand on the baseline.
Three unforced errors by Pavlyuchenkova made it 0-40 on her serve and led to Kartal breaking back after the Russian mistimed a drop shot. Another hold and a break put her ahead.
The frustration began to build for the Russian as her unforced errors racked up to 12 but she managed a forehand down the line to take it to deuce. She then earned the break by forcing Kartal to scurry across the baseline before finishing the point with a drop-shot winner, leaving the Briton staring in disbelief.
The pair then each survived a nervy service game to make it 4-4 before a loud “stop, stop” from the line-calling system halted play. The chair umpire, Nico Helwerth, confirmed the system did not call a shot from Kartal that was clearly long, when Pavlyuchenkova had game point.
After a call from the line-system team, Helwerth said the system was “unable to track the last point so we will replay the point”, a disappointing decision given the Russian had technically won the game. It was particularly stinging after Pavlyuchenkova’s forehand volley into the net gave Kartal a 5-4 lead on the replay. At the change of ends she told Helwerth he “stole the game from her”.
Nico Helwerth, the umpire, on a call to the line-system team after it broke down. Photograph: BBC
“I just thought the chair umpire could take initiative,” said Pavlyuchenkova. “That’s why he’s sitting on the chair. He saw it go out; he told me after the match … I don’t know if it’s because she’s local.
“[Wimbledon] did explain it to me [afterwards]. They said the system was down. I understand, but it’s a big match. We should probably look into something else to have better decisions.”
The Russian, feeling hard done by, put her emotions to one side, breaking Kartal with a firm forehand into the corner after the Briton squandered set point. Pavlyuchenkova then held to 15 before Kartal took it to a tie-break with a swift ace. A blasting forehand and an overhead smash later and the set was Pavlyuchenkova’s.
Kartal lost serve in the opening game of the second set after Pavlyuchenkova dragged the Briton to the net with a drop shot before finishing with a lob. Kartal broke back and, much to the delight of the Centre Court crowd, the Briton needed only 60 seconds in a perfect service game to hold to love.
Pavlyuchenkova roared in celebration after her own hold with her hard hitting. The Russian then sealed another break, the ninth of the match, after the 23-year-old dragged the break point long. Her good passage of play continued with two strong forehands to go 40-0 on her serve as Kartal tried – unsuccessfully – to out-hit her. Kartal did not allow herself to fall away in a must-win game though, with some strong first serves.
With seven return winners to Kartal’s none, Pavlyuchenkova continued to hit looping forehands and clinched victory with a strong first serve and a winner down the line.
Despite the end of her Wimbledon run, Kartal said she would be ready “for the American swing” after a couple weeks off. “I think this week I’ve proved to myself I can go deep into slams. I can beat some of the best players on tour. I’m going to go away with a lot of motivation.”
+++ England’s Daniel Brown (-22) triumphs in Munich, ahead of Jordan
Smith (ENG) and Kazuma Kobori (NZL) +++ Matti Schmid is the best
German in seventh, amateur Tim Wiedemeyer impresses in 17th
place +++ € 73,000 for “Eagles for Education” and the Philipp Lahm
Foundation +++ 58,000 golf fans flock to Golfclub München Eichenried +++
Munich. Englishmen Daniel Brown and Jordan Smith,
teeing off in the final group, began the final round with a
spectacular flurry of birdies that delighted the crowds in Munich.
Smith came into the Sunday one shot behind his compatriot, but
overcame that deficit with five birdies on the first nine holes.
Brown, for his part, hit back with four birdies. However, unlike his
playing partner, he did not drop a single shot and was ultimately a
worthy winner of the only DP World Tour event in Germany. The
30-year-old carded rounds of 70, 65, 65 and 66 to end the tournament
on 22 under par (266 shots) and claim his second title on the DP World Tour.
“At the end of a fantastic tournament week, it is my pleasure, on
behalf of BMW, to congratulate Daniel Brown on his deserved title at
the 36th BMW International Open,” said Jochen Goller, Member of the
Board of Management of BMW AG, Customer, Brands, Sales. “The
atmosphere around the course was sensational. It was great to see so
many fans, customers and friends of the game of golf here. We are also
delighted with the many eagles that were carded, namely 73, meaning
the BMW Group will donate € 73,000 to the Philipp Lahm Foundation for
Sport and Education.”
This year, the BMW Group donated €1,000 for every eagle scored over
the course of the tournament to the Philipp Lahm Foundation for Sport
and Education. The shared goal is to give children and young people
skills and knowledge in the areas of exercise, nutrition and personal
development. This is the third time that the BMW Group has used its
“Eagles for Education” initiative at the BMW International Open to
work towards equal opportunity and better prospects for children and
young people who have a difficult start to life. The 73 eagles at this
year’s tournament is a record for “Eagles for Education”.
Making his 69th appearance on the DP World Tour, Brown
became the eighth Englishman to win the iconic German tournament. In
doing so, he followed in the footsteps of Matt Wallace (2018), Danny
Willett (2012), David Horsey (2010), Nick Dougherty (2009), David
Howell (2005), Lee Westwood (2003) and Russell Claydon (1998). Brown
had his low error count to thank for the victory – over the course of
the whole tournament, he only dropped three shots – as well as a
nerveless final round. Smith carded three bogeys on the final nine
holes and must consequently – as he did last year – settle for second
place, despite having had a very good tournament.
“It means an awful lot to me. I did not really take it all in when I
claimed my first victory but today hit me straight away. I lost a
friend last weekend. This is for him. All day, it felt as though I was
not playing in my own body. I could feel the tension and then I
started to think what it would mean to win a golf tournament like
this. That repressed what happened a little. I believe he was with me,
and that made it a bit easier,” said a visibly emotional Brown.
Third place went to Japan-born New Zealander Kazuma Kobori (-18), who
thrilled the 17,500 golf fans on Sunday with a round of 63 (9 under
par) – the best of the week, together with Davis Bryant (USA, round
two). A total of 58,000 visitors flocked to Golfclub München
Eichenried over the course of the week. Bryant, Joost Luiten (NED) and
Kristoffer Reitan (NOR all -16) ended the tournament tied in fourth place.
The best-placed German at this year’s BMW International Open was
Matti Schmid (-15, T7). The man from Regensburg, who predominantly
plays in the USA on the PGA TOUR, said: “The atmosphere was more than
mega all week. I hope everyone comes back again, as it is nice to have
a full house here. I am obviously happy with the result, as the top
ten is always a super outcome. My performance was mixed. On the whole,
there was more there for me – however, I assume everyone feels that
way. I felt very good on the greens. At some point, everything will
come together at the same time.”
Munich-born Tim Wiedemeyer also gave an outstanding display. He made
the cut without any problems and ended the week as the top amateur.
The 20-year-old did not stray above par on any of his four rounds (72,
66, 69, 69) and finished tied in an impressive 17th place.
Wiedemeyer said: “It was really cool. I missed out a few times, and
could definitely have done better, but I am very happy with the
result. I could take something from the tournament in all areas of the
game. The walk to the 18th green on the final day was the best moment
of the week.”
Seven German players made it to the weekend: Martin Kaymer (-11,
T19), Marcel Schneider (-10, T26), Marcel Siem (-4, T58), Yannik Paul
and Hurly Long (both Even Par, T66).
The full final result of the 36th BMW International
Open can be found in the PDF document attached.
With Jørgen Eriksen co-driving his Hankook-equipped Opel Corsa Rally4, Swede Carlberg headed into Sunday’s final leg 7.8sec in front of Peugeot-driving Sergi Pérez.
Although the ADAC Opel Rally Junior Team driver’s path to Rally di Roma Capitale glory was eased when Pérez hit a rock in the road on SS9 and dropped out of contention, Carlberg revealed that his strategy was vital to his success on the Italian asphalt fixture.
“The plan has always been to really try to be fast on the first loop of the first day to try to decide [the result] on the first day,” Carlberg said. “Here we took a bit longer but when you can manage for sure it’s much easier than having to push for the whole rally.
Jasper Vaher in Junior ERC action at ERC Rally di Roma Capitale
“After Sergi had a problem sure it was very difficult [with a big lead] but we’ve been through this two times already, having to go slowly to make it to the finish. We were counting on how much time we could lose without being at risk and we did exactly that.
“Exactly after the finish my brother sent me a calculation he’d done with AI to know what I need to do on the Barum Rally and it’s looking really good [for the championship] but we still have a job to do.”
“Exactly after the finish my brother sent me a calculation he’d done with AI to know what I need to do on the Barum Rally and it’s looking really good [for the championship] but we still have a job to do.”
After slipping back from second to ninth, Pérez was forced to retire prior to SS11 due to the damage sustained earlier in the day.
“It was going well but in the second stage we hit a rock in the middle of the road,” Pérez said. “There was nothing to do, only bad luck, just unbelievable. We had a puncture, we damaged the rim as well and the suspension on the front left.”
With Pérez out of luck, a thrilling battle for the final two podium places raged for much of the final day with less than 10 seconds covering positions two to five across several stages.
Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy’s Craig Rahill at Rally di Roma Capitale
Jaspar Vaher, driving a Lancia Ypsilon Rally4 HF, eventually bagged the runner-up spot, just 3.1sec ahead of Motorsport Ireland Rally Academy’s Craig Rahill. Ioan Lloyd was a further 1.2sec back with Junior ERC rookie Yohan Surroca 4.3sec adrift of Lloyd despite a spin on the penultimate stage.
While Vaher has been a podium visitor before in the Hankook-supplied category, it was a first top-three finish for Rahill. “I’m absolutely over the moon,” said Rahill. “It’s mad after 200 kilometres there’s only four or five seconds between third and fifth. It just shows you how tight the racing is.”
ACI Team Italia-supported Francesco Dei Ceci finished sixth and was followed home by Tuukka Kauppinen, Keelan Grogan, Leevi Lassila, Aoife Raftery and Kevin Sariva.
Barum Czech Rally Zlín hosts the fifth round of the Junior ERC season from 15 – 17 August. Visit FIAERC.com on Wednesday for the Junior ERC round-up.
Cameron Norrie held off a spirited fightback from Chilean qualifier Nicolas Jarry to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals and keep alive British interest in the singles.
British number three Norrie led by two sets – and held a match point in the third-set tie-break – before finally securing a 6-3 7-6 (7-4) 6-7 (7-9) 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 win under the Court One roof.
After missing his first opportunity, the 29-year-old left-hander regrouped admirably to seal his progress – almost two hours later – at the second opportunity.
The piercing roar which greeted victory indicated Norrie’s delight at coming through a bruising battle where he needed all of his characteristic determination and endurance.
His win came a couple of hours after fellow Briton Sonay Kartal – the final home player in the women’s singles – was beaten on Centre Court.
Norrie is ranked 61st in the world after a difficult couple of seasons, but is now one more victory away from replicating his run to the SW19 semi-finals in 2022.
To do that, he may have to come through one of the most difficult tasks in the sport – beating reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz in the last eight.
Spain’s Alcaraz, seeded second, faces Russian 14th seed Andrey Rublev in their fourth-round match on Sunday.
Captain Joe Clarke thrashed a fourth half-century of this season’s Vitality Blast before 17-year-old Farhan Ahmed helped Notts Outlaws seal a thrilling one-wicket derby-day win over Leicestershire Foxes at Trent Bridge.
With two runs needed in pursuit of 189 and nine wickets down, last man Ahmed dug out a Logan van Beek yorker and scampered a nerve-shredding two to give Notts their first-ever one-wicket win in T20 cricket.
To add to the drama, Ahmed was short of the crease when coming back for two as Tom Scriven’s throw arrived, only for wicketkeeper Ben Cox to drop the ball and allow Ahmed in.
Clarke had earlier set up the chase by hammering 50 in 24 balls inside the powerplay, including eight boundaries, while Tom Moores’ innings of 42 came off 30 and contained six boundaries.
Within the Foxes’ innings, Calvin Harrison and Daniel Sams claimed the wickets of Sol Budinger and Rishi Patel, respectively, as they posted 188-2 after winning the toss.
However, their score proved narrowly not enough, as the Outlaws powered through tricky conditions before sensationally holding their nerve to seal victory with one ball to spare.
Having initially enjoyed a confident start in restricting the visitors to 18 from the first three overs, the Outlaws were forced to fight their way back into the contest.
Patel and Budinger remained unbeaten through the first half of the innings, posting their century partnership in 62 balls, before Harrison produced the breakthrough.
Finding some turn to beat the bat, Harrison teamed up effectively with Moores, whose rapid wrists behind the stumps saw Patel stumped for a 34-ball 51.
Moments later, one brought two as Sams then struck to see off Budinger for 56, splattering the opener’s furniture to end a 45-ball knock and throwing in a roar of delight in celebration.
That was as far as the hosts got in the wickets column, as Sams finished with 1/34 and Harrison collected 1/37, but the run rate did remain consistent as the Outlaws battled hard with the ball.
Ultimately, the Foxes were kept below 200 as Pakistan batter Shan Masood struck 40 not out and Rehan Ahmed added a further unbeaten 30.
In response, Clarke slammed another half-century at the top of the order to kickstart the Outlaws chase and see them to 62-2 after six overs.
Spinners Liam Trevaskis and Louis Kimber put the brakes on somewhat following the end of the powerplay to drag the visitors back into the contest, with the Outlaws requiring another 112 to win from the final ten overs.
However, Moores and some crucially colossal hitting from Daniel Sams, who added 33 from just 12 balls, put the chase back on track as the latter stages approached.
The duo shared in a stand worth 54 from just 24 balls for the fifth wicket as, at one point, 51 runs came off just 18 balls, meaning that with four overs to go, the Outlaws required 34 more.
Regular wickets stretched out the drama even as Moores hammered van Beek for back-to-back sixes to start the 18th over of the innings, before his wicket ramped up the nerves.
Dillon Pennington and Liam Patterson-White added a priceless further four runs for the ninth wicket across the first three balls of the final over to take the Outlaws to within two.
However, the tension then reached white-knuckle levels once more as the latter fell to a Sam Wood catch off van Beek, leaving the equation at two off two.
The prodigious Ahmed, though, once again displayed skill and maturity beyond his years to partner Pennington in seeing the Outlaws over the line in the most dramatic of circumstances.
*******
The Outlaws are back in action on Friday 11 July, as Durham visit Trent Bridge (6.30pm) as part of a Vitality Blast double-header. Secure your seats here…
Tennis players often say it’s hard to play against a friend, the killer instinct never quite as easy to call on as it might be against someone else. Aryna Sabalenka, the world No 1, has rarely had that problem, but she was pushed hard by her former doubles partner Elise Mertens before winning through 6-4, 7-6 (4) to reach the quarter-finals.
Mertens had won just two sets in their past nine matches but played as good a match as she has ever done at Wimbledon, and still came out on the wrong side. Sabalenka hit 36 winners and made just 18 unforced errors, coming from 3-1 down in the second set to set up a quarter-final against Laura Siegemund of Germany.
“It’s tough to play against someone you know quite close,” Sabalenka said. “She’s a great player, great person. It’s tricky facing her. I know how smart she is, I know she’s going to fight til the very end and she will be trying to find something. She really challenged me today, I’m super happy with the win.”
This is the only grand slam event in which Sabalenka has yet to make the final, but the Belarusian said her belief was growing. “I always dreamed of winning it. Every time on this court, I’m trying to give my best tennis, trying to fight for every point and really hope for the best.”
Challenged by Emma Raducanu in the previous round, Sabalenka broke in the fourth game on her way to a 4-1 lead. But Mertens, returning sharply and using her forehand slice when out of position to make life awkward for Sabalenka, hit back and levelled at 4-4. But every time it seems as if Sabalenka is on the back foot, she takes back control. A good hold of serve put her in front again and she ripped a backhand winner to take the set.
Aryna Sabalenka waves to the crowd after her victory against Elise Mertens. Photograph: Visionhaus/Getty Images
Mertens continued to play with poise, mixing nice touch with crisp groundstrokes and good serving and the Belgian claimed a 3-1 lead in the second set. Again Sabalenka dug deep, breaking back for 3-3 and taking command of the tie-break to win it 7-4 and take her place in the last eight.
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Siegemund reached the quarter-finals here for the first time, following up her win over Madison Keys in the previous round with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Solana Sierra, the lucky loser from Argentina who took out Katie Boulter in round two.
