Canada's Victoria Mboko stuns No. 1 seed Coco Gauff to reach NBO quarterfinals
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The Canadian rolled to a 6-1, 6-4 win over No. 1 seed Coco Gauff of the United States, winning the women's singles match in just 62 minutes to advance to the quarterfinals at the WTA 1000 tournament.
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Mboko, a rising star who has climbed from a No. 333 ranking to 85th in the world this year, saved all four breakpoints against the world No. 2 Gauff, who committed 22 unforced errors at IGA Stadium.
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The 18-year-old from Toronto is the last Canadian standing in the singles draw, both in Montreal and at the 96-man Masters 1000 event in Toronto.
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After major support for Eugenie Bouchard early in the tournament, the buzz in Montreal shifted around Mboko as the teenage sensation took centre court at the hometown tournament — and she delivered before a sellout crowd.
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Mboko looked ready to meet the moment early, flashing the powerful groundstrokes and blistering serve that have made a mark on the pro tour this season.
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Gauff, meanwhile, made unforced error after unforced error, firing some shots long and many more into the net during a swift, 25-minute first set.
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She double-faulted on the third point of the match, leading to an early break for the Canadian, who rattled off seven straight points into the next game.
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Mboko broke again in the fifth and seventh games while holding serve. In the seventh game, Gauff doubled-faulted and sent two shots into the net in succession to lose the set.
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Gauff found a rhythm early in the second set and earned three breakpoint chances with the match tied 3-3, but committed an error each time as Mboko hung on to win the game.
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With Mboko leading 5-4, Gauff doubled-faulted twice to set up two match points for the Canadian.
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Gauff, this year's French Open champion, scraped by with three-set wins in Rounds 2 and 3. She struggled with her serve, striking a whopping 37 double faults in the two matches combined _ adding six more on Saturday.
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Mboko and Gauff met once before in May, when the Canadian won the first set but lost a three-setter on clay at the Italian Open.
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Mboko will play the winner of Saturday's late match between Zhu Lin of China and Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain.
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Playing in only her seventh WTA main draw, she advanced to the quarterfinals of a 1000-level tournament for the first time, knocking off higher-ranked opponents at each step.
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Mboko opened with a win over 79th-ranked Kimberly Birrell, then upset 23rd seed and former Grand Slam champion Sofia Kenin before snapping Marie Bouzkova's seven-match winning streak with a relentless comeback and taking down Gauff, dropping one set the whole way.
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Toronto Sun
38 minutes ago
- Toronto Sun
Zurkowsky: Outmatched Alouettes suffer embarrassing defeat to CFL-leading Roughriders
QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson continues to struggle for Montreal in lopsided 34-6 loss. Published Aug 03, 2025 • Last updated 2 days ago • 4 minute read Saskatchewan Roughriders' A.J. Ouellette, left, gets by Alouettes' Wesley Sutton (37) during first half CFL football action in Montreal on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025. Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press The slaughter on Pins Ave. began with a 46-yard kickoff return by Dohnte Meyers — and got progressively worse from there. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account It would be easy to pile on the Alouettes, and criticize them extensively, following Saturday night's humbling 34-6 defeat to the Saskatchewan Roughriders before 21,654 Molson Stadium spectators, who endured an approximate 25-minute delay at halftime because of lightning in the area, not to mention the ensuing downpour. There are plenty of holes to fill on the Alouettes, and plenty of blame to mete out, following this embarrassing performance. 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Montreal already is without starting quarterback Davis Alexander (hamstring) and two starting receivers — Tyson Philpot (knee) and Austin Mack (ankle). Alexander is already on the six-game injured list and it appears the frequently injured Mack is headed there as well. He has a walking boot on his left ankle and must manoeuvre on crutches. While pro football teams will never use injuries as an excuse, and head coach Jason Maas always has adopted a next-man-up mentality, it's hard to believe the Alouettes can remain competitive with so many players sidelined. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Injuries are part of the season, part of the game,' a remarkably calm Maas said. 'Obviously, at times, they're harder to overcome than others. I thought our guys kept fighting and dealing with them. Obviously, you never want to start a game losing a guy, then losing a couple of extra guys. That's hard. No one has that depth. At the end of the day, you've got to keep playing and find a way. We just didn't do that tonight. There's never going to be an excuse. No question it's never easy and makes it more difficult.' As Maas, a former CFL quarterback, went to bed Saturday night, he undoubtedly contemplated a dilemma his team has at that most important position without Alexander. Namely, can this team win with veteran McLeod Bethel-Thompson? It might be a moot point for now, since there doesn't appear to be a viable alternative. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After finally winning his first start in three games last week at Calgary, the 37-year-old took a huge step backward against Saskatchewan. Bethel-Thompson completed 15 of 26 passes for 126 yards. He was intercepted once, should have been pilfered at least once more, and fumbled after being sacked by defensive-end Shane Ray. 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Global News
42 minutes ago
- Global News
Canadian teen sensation Victoria Mboko advances to NBO semifinals in Montreal
Two days after ousting top seed Coco Gauff in 62 minutes, there was no letdown for Victoria Mboko — even if she needed to dig a little deeper to keep her dream run alive. The Canadian teenage sensation booked her place in the National Bank Open semifinals with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Spain's Jessica Bouzas Maneiro on Monday night. The first set, despite her win, was messy and filled with errors for both players. The second got off to what Mboko called a 'slow, rocky start,' with the 18-year-old from Toronto down 2-0 and a break early. View image in full screen The crowd cheers for Victoria Mboko of Canada during her game against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain during quarterfinal tennis action at the National Bank Open in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi Then the momentum shifted. The rising star who rarely seems to lose finished strong, winning six straight games to close out the match. 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Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'So excited to be in a semifinal here, I want to thank everyone for your support once again,' Mboko, who trained in Montreal as a junior, told the crowd. 'It's been an unreal experience and I couldn't be more grateful.' Mboko is the first Canadian to reach the WTA 1000 event's semifinals since Bianca Andreescu's title run in 2019 — and the first to do so in Montreal in the Open Era. She's also the youngest woman to reach the semis since Belinda Bencic's 2015 win in Toronto. And there's more: Monica Seles (1995) and Simona Halep (2015) are the only other women to make the final four after entering the tournament as a wild card. Story continues below advertisement It's been a breakthrough year for Mboko, who has surged from outside the top 300 to No. 85 in the world rankings. 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After two injury-plagued years, Mboko — who had shown promise as a junior — opened the season with a 22-match winning streak and captured five titles on the lower-tier ITF Tour. She then qualified for her first Grand Slam main draw at the French Open, reaching the third round, before stunning 25th seed Magdalena Frech in the first round at Wimbledon. And the upsets keep coming. In Montreal, Mboko has dropped just one set, rattling off wins over 79th-ranked Kimberly Birrell, 23rd seed Sofia Kenin, 39th-ranked Marie Bouzkova and Gauff, the world No. 2. 'I was really happy to have won that day, but at the end of the day, I'm still in the tournament,' Mboko said of her milestone win over Gauff. 'It's not like I went to celebrate or anything. I was still locked in like I normally am in a tournament. You play a tournament because you want to win it.' Story continues below advertisement This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 4, 2025.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
WDRA Canadian Nationals celebrates 25 years at Grand Bend Motorplex
Drag racing fans packed the Grand Bend Motorplex over the Civic Holiday weekend to celebrate the 25th WDRA Canadian Nationals. 'Hat's off to them, they've got a clean, beautiful facility and the racetrack is like second to none,' said London's Paul Noakes, who runs a Nostalgia Funny Car and has raced since the inaugural event. 'They just know how to bring in the right cars and the right amount of people. The parking lot was full and the grandstand was full for first night of qualifying. I couldn't believe how many people were actually here.' Immaculate weather drew approximately 10,000 people to the track to see the Pro Mod, Top Sportsman/Dragster, Nostalgia Nitro Funny, and Alcohol funny cars, as well as the Jet Truck. WDRA Canadian Nationals in Grand Bend Canadian Top Fuel Dragster Todd Paton on the starting line in Grand Bend (Source: Tetanus1948) 'So many new fans that come here that have discovered the sport of drag racing and have discovered the Grand Bend Motorplex,' said Todd Paton, and they come here now year after year, saying they can't believe that they didn't do this before. 'It's a phenomenal facility. We were here for like, the very first time it reopened back in the mid 90s. Ran our alcohol funny car here. And then over the years, coming back with the fuel dragster and all that. It's just, there's a lot of racing history here. There's been a lot of big moments here.' One of those came during the first ever Canadian Nationals. Clay Millican taking on Shirley Muldowney in the Championship final. 'It seems like yesterday and Paul (Spriet, track owner) had to remind me who I ran in the final and what the results were,' said Muldowney, 85, who was acting as Grand Marshal Saturday in Grand Bend. WDRA Canadian Nationals in Grand Bend Paul Noakes (left) and his father Brian with their Nostalgia Nitro Funny Car in Grand Bend on Saturday Aug. 3, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) The 'First Lady of Drag Racing' was on hand to sign autographs and meet fans. 'The area is beautiful, and it makes me kind of want to leave the States sometimes,' she told CTV News. 'I used to kind of come through this area, on my way to New York to sneak through Ontario. I love Canada. I got to spend two months at the Montreal General Hospital, and that's some time I'll never forget. The Canadians treated me royally.' That hospital trip was in 1984 after her car veered off the track at 250 mph due to front-tire failure at the Molson Grand Nationals. She suffered broken legs and required multiple surgeries and extensive physical therapy. Muldowney said, 'Once you've been to a live event, you can't stay away.' WDRA Canadian Nationals in Grand Bend Drag racing legend Shirley Muldowney signs an autograph at Grand Bend Motorplex on Saturday Aug. 3, 2025 (Brent Lale/CTV News London) That is true for many who make it a family affair. Whether its attending races with your family members or racing with them like Noakes. His daughter Brooklyn runs in the Top Dragster series locally and the NHRA Super Comp class. His father Brian attends the races by their side. 'My dad's now involved with me with the race car and my daughter gets to play with that car now a full time, so we just love it as a family,' said Noakes. 'My father's been driving me on getting a car again, so we wanted to go the Nostalgia route rather than the Alcohol (Funny Car). We wanted to get back in a little slower pace and have fun. It's a little less maintenance involved but we at least go fast.'
