Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka to resume rivalry in bid to secure place on Wimbledon merry-go-round
BENGALURU: The Wimbledon women's throne has turned into tennis' version of musical chairs with new champions in the last seven years and all signs point to another one as
Aryna Sabalenka
and
Coco Gauff
resume their simmering rivalry on the pristine lawns of London.
The All England Club has not crowned a repeat champion since 2016 when Serena Williams captured the 22nd of her 23 Grand Slam trophies and the chances of injury-hit holder Barbora Krejcikova rediscovering her miraculous level from 12 months ago are slim.
Elena Rybakina
and
Marketa Vondrousova
, whose names precede Krejcikova on the iconic honours board, remain dangerous players on the sport's fastest surface but all eyes will be on the women who contested an error-strewn but enthralling French Open final.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
The Simple Morning Habit for a Flatter Belly After 50!
Lulutox
Undo
American Gauff prevailed in this month's Roland Garros title clash against Belarusian Sabalenka and the 21-year-old will head to the venue of her breakthrough as a teenager in 2019 eager to finally conquer grass after claycourt and hardcourt success.
Gauff did not enjoy a good start to the grass swing after suffering a stunning second-round loss to Wang Xinyu in Berlin, but former Wimbledon quarter-finalist CoCo Vandeweghe said the two-time major champion will learn from the experience.
Live Events
"I don't think this shakes her confidence," Vandeweghe told the Tennis Channel.
"This isn't going to be her best surface, but you know what she's going to do? She's going to take this loss and really work on herself. That's what we've seen time and time again from Gauff. She's the ultimate competitor.
"That's what we always see from Coco, as much as we talk about the negative aspects of what goes wrong in her game, what we don't talk about enough is what goes right."
POINT TO PROVE
Sabalenka, who was beaten by Gauff in another long final at the U.S. Open two years ago, will also have a point to prove in London with the three-time major winner looking to make up for lost time after missing last year's Wimbledon with injury.
Since then she has contested three successive Grand Slam finals, triumphing in New York last September but failing to add to her major trophy haul with runner-up finishes in Melbourne and Paris.
Despite being one of the most consistent players over the last two years, marked by a rise to the top spot in the world rankings, Sabalenka has yet to solve the puzzle that grass poses having lost both of her finals on the surface.
The 27-year-old reached the Berlin semi-finals before crashing to eventual champion Vondrousova and will be eager to quickly rediscover the form that can devastate her opponents.
"The grass season is a short one, only a few tournaments before Wimbledon," Sabalenka said after beating Rybakina in the Berlin quarter-finals.
"I wanted to play some matches, I wanted to remember how to play on grass and I'm happy I got what I did."
Madison Keys became the latest entrant into the
Grand Slam champions
' club with an inspired run to the Australian Open title earlier this year and the stage is set for the big-hitting American to prove she is no one-hit wonder.
Vondrousova will have a similar mindset after the former world number six, ranked 164 at the start of the Berlin tune-up event, became the lowest-ranked champion in the tournament's history after dismantling Keys and Sabalenka along the way.
Iga Swiatek
will also hope for the rub of the green after a torrid spell following her short ban for a doping violation last year as she looks to go past the quarter-finals of Wimbledon for the first time and add to her collection of five major titles.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
43 minutes ago
- Time of India
Carlos Alcaraz loves playing on grass and is trying to win a third Wimbledon title in a row
Carlos Alcaraz, a quick learner on grass, begins his Wimbledon title defense against Fabio Fognini, aiming for a third consecutive championship, a feat achieved by only four men in the Open era. Alcaraz, known for his fondness for grass and aggressive playing style, enters the tournament on an 18-match winning streak. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads LONDON: Carlos Alcaraz 's first match on a grass court came just six years obviously a quick Wimbledon gets started Monday, the 22-year-old from Spain will play in the first Centre Court match of this fortnight, an honor reserved for the previous year's men's champion. The contest against Fabio Fognini will open Alcaraz's bid for a third consecutive championship at the something only four men have achieved in the Open era, which began in 1968: Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Not bad already is 5-0 in Grand Slam finals, which includes going 2-0 at the French Open - which he won three weeks ago via a comeback from two sets down against No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the final - and 1-0 at the U.S. year, the No. 2-ranked Alcaraz became the youngest man to win a major trophy on each surface: grass, clay and hard he's got a fondness for the green stuff."The most beautiful tennis that we can watch is on grass. The style that the people bring to the court when they play on grass. ... The sound of the ball," said Alcaraz, who will go into Monday on a career-best 18-match winning streak, including a title at the Queen's Club tournament on grass last weekend. "The movement is really tough, but when you get it, it's kind of (as though) you're flying."He loves that it allows him to show off the variety in his game and all of the skills he players smile as much as Alcaraz does while in the thick of things, no matter what challenges might be presented by the foe across the net or the tension of the moment. He is as creative as it gets with a racket in hand, sometimes to his own detriment, and admits enjoying seeing replays on arena video screens after some of his best deliveries (that technology isn't used at the All England Club, but perhaps it should be)."I really want to hit slices, drop shots, going to the net all the time, playing aggressively," said Alcaraz, who said he lost to two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray during a round of golf early in the week. "I think on grass it's the style that you have to play, so that's what I like the most."Other Grand Slam champions in action on Day 1 - when the temperature is expected to be around 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius) - include No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka against a qualifier making her Grand Slam debut, Carson Branstine; No. 6 Madison Keys, the Australian Open champion in January, against Elena-Gabriela Ruse; 2023 Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova against No. 32 McCartney Kessler; and 2021 U.S. Open champ Daniil Medvedev against Benjamin Bonzi. Others in action: 2024 Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini, 2024 U.S. Open runner-up Taylor Fritz, and three-time major finalist Alexander instructive to hear what Djokovic had to say about Alcaraz after a straight-set loss in last year's final at the All England Club."He just was better than me in every aspect of the game," Djokovic said. "In movement, in the way he was just striking the ball beautifully, serving great. Everything."Those words carry weight. Djokovic has won seven of his men's-record 24 Grand Slam trophies at Wimbledon but was the runner-up to Alcaraz in 2023 and it comes to the idea of joining an elite group by completing a three-peat two weeks from now, Alcaraz insisted that isn't the sort of thing he really cares about or spends time wants the title, yes. But where it would place him in history? Leave that to others."I really want to lift the trophy," Alcaraz said. "But right now, I'm not thinking about who I could join if I win three Wimbledons in a row."
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
Whites on greens: on Wimbledon 2025
Tennis loves its traditions, and The Championships at Wimbledon more so. In the recent past though, the sport's most prestigious Major has progressively cut out many of its famed anachronisms. The bespoke grass-court seeding formula, the Middle Sunday holiday and best-of-five set doubles matches have all been done away with. Now, for the first time in the 148-year history of the tournament, there will be no line judges, and electronic calling will take effect on all courts. Yet, when the first ball is struck on Monday, there will be no dearth of the verdant pomp and splendour. If anything, a less clustered court, with its glazed green grass, may lead to a better visual experience, and give the best players, clothed in pristine white, a broader canvas to work their magic on. Chief among them will be Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the world's top two men who have now established an engaging rivalry reminiscent of the Roger Federer-Rafael Nadal duels. Alcaraz, in fact, is the two-time defending champion at SW19 and has won four of his last five tournaments, including the Queen's Club Championships. World No. 1 Sinner does not have similar grass pedigree, but his first-ever Slam semifinal was at the All England Club in 2023, and he won the only meeting with Alcaraz on grass, at Wimbledon 2022. However, 24-time Major winner and seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic is not to be discounted. The 38-year-old Serb is not in Slam-winning shape but grass presents the best chance. He finished runner-up in 2024 just weeks after a knee operation and the last time he exited Wimbledon before the final was in 2017. Among women, No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, despite the bitter French Open final loss to Coco Gauff, remains the player to beat and there is no reason why her power-packed game cannot triumph in southwest London. But the last eight editions have seen eight different victors, pointing to an open field. For Gauff and five-time Major champion Iga Swiatek, Wimbledon has been the least rewarding Slam and they will be hoping to crack the code. American Gauff has not gone past the fourth round while Swiatek's best showing is quarterfinals. Defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini and 2022 winner Elena Rybakina are among the other notable names. The Indian presence will again be limited to doubles with Rohan Bopanna, Yuki Bhambri, Sriram Balaji and Rithvik Bollipalli competing. As the country's tennis remains stuck in a vicious cycle of a shrinking talent pool, administrative apathy and endless litigation, it will be up to these players to keep the flag flying.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Samarth shines at nat'l chess championship for disabled
Mangaluru: Samarth J Rao has secured second place at the 5th National Chess Championship for Specially Abled Players, organised by Fire Chess School, in Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh. The tournament, held from June 24 to 28, was conducted on behalf of the Chess Federation of Physically Disabled (CFPD) and the All India Chess Federation (AICF). Rao, who completed his MCom, is employed at Honnavar Post Office as a postal assistant under the sports quota. He remained undefeated across nine rounds, finishing with 7 points (five wins and four draws). The championship witnessed participation from 101 disabled players representing over 13 states. A two-time national gold medallist (2022 and 2024), Samarth narrowly missed a hat-trick of titles this year. Nevertheless, he earned a spot to represent India at the 24th IPCA World Chess Championship for the Differently Abled, which will be held in Goa from July 21 to 31, said Jagadish Rao BS, his father. Dhananjay Acharya, superintendent of post offices, Karwar division; MS Gonda, Honnavar postmaster, and fellow postal staff have extended their support to Rao for his outstanding performance. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch vàng CFDs với mức chênh lệch giá thấp nhất IC Markets Đăng ký Undo Samarth is the son of Jagadish Rao BS, a retired bank employee, and Vinutha Bhat, a Training Officer at govt ITI, Honnavar. Over the years, he was mentored by Prof VR Shastri (Honnavar), Jyotiprakasam (Madurai), Srinidhi Sripati (Chennai), Swaraj Palit (Jharkhand), Prasad Hegde (Sirsi), Vinay Kumar Hiremutt (Sirsi), and Kapil Lohan (Pune). He is currently being coached by Ajith MP (Mysuru).
