Joint saves four match points to claim Eastbourne title
EASTBOURNE, England :Australia's Maya Joint saved four match points before beating Alexandra Eala 6-4 1-6 7-6(10) to win the Eastbourne title in a gripping final on Saturday.
Four times Eala, the first player from the Philippines to reach a WTA Tour final, was a point away from victory in the final-set tiebreak but Joint dug deep to prevail.
The 19-year-old Joint showed tremendous resilience to stay alive and when she earned her second match point at 11-10 made no mistake, drilling a backhand crosscourt winner.
While it was joy for Joint who claimed her second WTA title in her last four events having also won her maiden crown in Rabat on clay, the pain was too much for 20-year-old Eala, who went off court in tears to compose herself before the ceremony.
"We will definitely play in more finals," Joint said after the youngest Eastbourne final by combined age since 1981.
The men's final between Americans Taylor Fritz and Jenson Brooksby was taking place later at Devonshire Park.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Fritz beats Brooksby to defend Eastbourne title
EASTBOURNE, England :Three-times champion Taylor Fritz came out on top in an all-American decider, beating lucky loser Jenson Brooksby 7-5 6-1 in the Eastbourne Open final on Saturday to retain his title. Fritz has never lost a final at Eastbourne, also beating fellow Americans when winning in 2019 and 2022 and, having been taken to three sets in his three previous matches at this year's edition, the final was a more straightforward affair. "There's something about Eastbourne," said Fritz. "I just love it here. Every year I come here and it's such a good week. This year it's been different and I've had to fight through my matches. I feel like I've really upped my level." The top seed was made to battle in the opening set, with Brooksby breaking first, but Fritz responded immediately and broke a second time to clinch the set. Fritz had little trouble wrapping up the straight-sets win, even with Brooksby forcing two break points with the second set poised at 1-1, but the champion held firm and broke Brooksby's next two service games to win his fourth title. The 27-year-old Fritz will now go to Wimbledon full of optimism, having also won the Stuttgart Open earlier in June, and his tournament begins against Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard on Monday.
CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
And breathe...Britain's Draper calm before entering Wimbledon pressure cooker
LONDON :British tennis players come under the spotlight at Wimbledon like nowhere else and the full glare will be trained on world number four Jack Draper as he leads a sizeable home assault at the All England Club starting on Monday. The 23-year-old left-hander's rapid rise up the rankings means he is the highest British seed since two-time winner Andy Murray arrived as defending champion in 2017. Draper's run to the U.S. Open semi-final last year and his title this year at Indian Wells have raised expectations that he is ready to emulate Murray and win the title. The hype is already building up and should he avoid any early banana skins and make a deep run, Draper knows the weight of expectation will grow more heavy on his broad shoulders. Dealing with life in the Wimbledon pressure cooker will be a huge test for a player who has won only two matches in his three previous main draw appearances at the All England Club. But he says employing breathing coach Ann Coxhead has helped him to cope with the anxiety he experienced earlier in his career and which occasionally led to him vomiting on court. "It was important for me in tennis where there's such small margins, such small percentages," Draper told reporters at a sultry and tranquil Wimbledon on Saturday. "The work I've done with her has been invaluable. It's been a real asset to my tennis. I think I'm still a work in progress with it, but definitely my physicality and my general well-being on the court has improved." Draper faces dangerous 38th-ranked Argentine Sebastian Baez in the first round on Tuesday and things will not get much easier after that with former U.S. Open winner and Wimbledon runner-up Marin Cilic a likely second-round opponent. Seven-time champion Novak Djokovic is a potential quarter-final barrier and then it could be world number one Jannik Sinner and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the final. Sensibly, Draper is not looking too far ahead. "I look at my first round, who I have. I respect every person in the draw. Obviously I've got Baez on Tuesday, and I'm not looking further than that," he said. "I know he's a strong player. He's here off his own merit." Draper and British women's number one Emma Raducanu will lead a 23-strong home contingent in the singles draws, including eight wild cards, the most since 1984. While Draper is happy to talk up his chances, Raducanu, who stunned the tennis world by winning the U.S. Open as a teenaged qualifier in 2021, says she has lower expectations. "Truthfully I don't expect much from myself this year," she told reporters. "I know I've just been dealing with certain things. I just want to go out there and embrace the moment. I want to embrace the occasion." She will start on Monday against compatriot Mingge Xu, one of three British teenaged wild cards in the women's draw. "I think it's a very dangerous match, very difficult. I think Mimi is a really, really good player," Raducanu said.
CNA
4 hours ago
- CNA
Trading cards offer lifeline to low-income players
LONDON/NEW YORK :A nearly year-old initiative to sell tennis players' trading cards is generating vital extra income for lower earners struggling to make ends meet, its backers said. While the world's elite tennis players can earn fortunes, with Wimbledon for example offering a record 53.5 million pounds ($73.5 million) in prize money this year, those much further down the rankings often struggle financially. Winners Alliance, the commercial partner of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) which wants to address the financial disparities, said the new cards had generated around $20 million since they were rolled out in August. Some 70 per cent of the income has gone to the 400 players signed up. "You have the 100th best player in the world and they're struggling to make a living," Eric Winston, president of Winners Alliance, told Reuters. "That's not right." Winners Alliance has teamed up with the Fanatics-owned Topps brand to produce trading cards for the next 20 years, hoping to emulate the huge popularity of such initiatives in other sports such as soccer and U.S. basketball. The cards, featuring current and former players, are sold online, at hobby shops and on site at big tournaments including the U.S Open and Australian Opens. The latest release on May 15th sold out in 24 hours. Founded in 2022, Winners Alliance, chaired by hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, manages commercial opportunities for sports players and their agents. Its aim is to generate a recurring annual income of $100,000 for all ranked players from trading cards, video games and other income streams. "The level of players in the top 200 has never been so high... and some can barely make ends meet," said PTPA deputy executive director Romain Rosenberg, citing the example of a player near the top 100 who earned $25,000 one year after deducting taxes, coaching and other unavoidable costs. Rosenberg contrasted tennis with other sports such as football where even lower-tier players earn large salaries, often without the high costs tennis players face with coaching, travel and health expenses. "It is still early days but the aim is to emulate the success of U.S. basketball and baseball leagues... even reaching 10 per cent of their revenue in five to 10 years would generate meaningful passive income for players," Rosenberg added. The PTPA, co-founded by players Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil in 2020, has backed various efforts to level the playing field between the haves and have-nots of tennis, including legal aid and health programmes.
