Tennis

Arthur Fery becomes first British wild card to reach Wimbledon quarterfinal

Arthur Fery used to come to Wimbledon when he was a kid to watch Roger Federer on Centre Court. He grew up only five minutes away from the All England Club. On Monday, the tables were turned when Federer was in attendance watching Fery on the sport's most famous court as he became the first British wild card to reach the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam in the professional era (since 1968). Fery beat fellow wild Grigor Dimitrov - a former top-five player - 7-5, 3-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7). When it was over Fery, dropped his racket to the grass and held his hands up in disbelief. "We've got probably the greatest of all time watching in the front row over there," Fery said, nodding in Federer's direction. "And now playing here in front of all you guys, having the support and winning, it's unbelievable." Fery's quarterfinal opponent will be Flavio Cobolli, who beat Alex de Minaur. Fery beat Cobolli in straight sets in the first round of this year's Australian Open after coming through ...

Alexandra Eala remains Philippines' ray of hope despite Wimbledon 2026 exit

Despite falling short of reaching the quarterfinals, Alexandra Eala still made a lasting impact at Wimbledon. The 21-year-old Filipina had ousted defending champion Iga Swiatek but couldn't solve Jasmine Paolini on Monday, losing 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 on Centre Court. For Filipino fans - both at watch parties back home and at the All England Club - it's not always about wins and losses. "She's like a ray of hope for the Philippines," fan Roberto Ocampo Jr. said Monday at Wimbledon. "Especially at her age. She made history. That's one thing that we can tell to the next generation." Eala, who lost in the first round a year ago in her Wimbledon debut, became the first player from the Philippines to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam singles tournament in the Open era, the women's professional tour said. "Setting foot here is already a big achievement," said Ocampo, a London-based nurse. The left-handed Eala talked this week about Filipino pride and being a role model for kids back home.

Ronaldo-inspired Cobolli headlines Italy's memorable day at Wimbledon

On his first match point, Flavio Cobolli stepped up and unleashed a 135 mph first serve down the T that landed on the line and sent a puff of chalk into the air on No. 1 Court at Wimbledon. Fifth-seeded opponent Alex de Minaur could barely touch the serve and the Australian's weak return didn't even go past his own service line. Cobolli reacted by leaping into the air and pumping his fist. He launched a ball into the crowd before moving forward to shake hands with De Minaur. Then the Italian moved on to the performance he'd been waiting for. Cobolli put his racket down and went back out into the center of the court and launched himself into the most iconic celebration in soccer: twirling in mid-air like Cristiano Ronaldo, he then landed on the grass with his feet planted wide and jerked his arms down by his side. The mostly English crowd knew just what was going on and shouted "Siuuu" along with Cobolli. "I love his celebration. I love him," said Cobolli, who was once a promising

Wimbledon 2026: Fery sparks British dream with fairytale run at home

In Arthur Fery's boyhood neighborhood, they could probably hear the cheers from a raucous Court 18. Fery grew up just five minutes from Wimbledon. On Saturday, the British wild card extended his improbable run into the fourth round at the All England Club with a 2-6, 7-5, 2-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (5) victory over Zizou Bergs of Belgium. Wimbledon itself calls it a " Ferytale " - after all, Fery did play in front of Princess Kate earlier in the week on the same court. The 23-year-old Fery, who is ranked No. 114, has never been this far before at a Grand Slam tournament, and he's the only British player remaining in either men's or women's singles. "A lot of first times today for me. Just so proud of how I handled everything. First five-setter (win), longest match that I've ever played, first time breaking into the top 100, first second week in a slam, all at home, five minutes from where I grew up," Fery said. "It's a great story for me." For Britain, too. Especially after the country's

Jannik Sinner's skiing background aids his movement: Lindsey Vonn

Clay, grass, hard court - or even snow. The surface underfoot doesn't seem to make any difference for Jannik Sinner. The top-ranked player - who is currently attempting to defend his title at Wimbledon - was one of Italy's top junior skiers before he turned his attention full time to tennis. Now Sinner excels on every type of court and his background as a skier might have helped his tennis game. Just like an elite slalom skier perfectly shifting their weight back and forth from one gate to the next, Sinner hardly ever seems off balance as he rushes back and forth across the baseline - despite his tall and lanky 6-foot-3 (1.91-meter) frame. Fellow tennis player Casper Ruud agreed that the most impressive thing about Sinner is his movement. "He's strong also in balance and flexible to get to certain positions," Ruud said. "He has good hip movement and knows how to slide (into) both corners." Skiing standout Lindsey Vonn also pointed to Sinner's ability to stay in balance. "He has

Defending champion Swiatek, world No. 2 Rybakina crash out of Wimbledon

Defending champion Iga Swiatek was knocked out by 21-year-old Alexandra Eala, who scripted the biggest win of her career with a 7-6 (9), 6-2 victory on Centre Court

ATP faces backlash as doubles players oppose prize money cut proposal

Doubles players fear for their tennis future after being told by the ATP Tour that prize money and tournament sizes will decrease significantly starting in 2028. A group of leading doubles players issued a statement Friday saying they are not "a carnival sideshow", and that it will be impossible for anyone outside the top 30 in the ATP doubles rankings to make a living if the new proposals are adopted. The statement comes after doubles players met with ATP officials at Wimbledon this week to discuss the future of a format that is struggling to draw an audience. "The ATP is proposing to slash doubles draws, gut doubles prize money, and hand Challenger entry to singles players ahead of specialists who have built their careers in this discipline," the players' statement said. They said the proposal would give doubles players just 10 percent of the prize money at ATP tournaments - down from 20 percent - while halving the size of the doubles fields. At the premier Masters tournaments,

Wimbledon's £64.2 mn prize fund tests its tradition-first business model

The men's and women's singles champions of Wimbledon 2026 will each receive £3.6 million (about $4.93 million), while first-round losers are guaranteed £80,000 (about $109,600)

The Wimbledon Debenture: A front-row seat and a winning investment

Each Debenture provides the holder a premium seat on Centre Court or No.1 Court for The Championships for five years, along with the use of exclusive restaurants and bars.

Serena Williams' return headlines Wimbledon as demand soars for seats

Anticipation is building at Wimbledon for Serena Williams' first singles match in nearly four years. The 44-year-old Williams is scheduled to play an opponent less than half her age, 20-year-old Maya Joint of Australia, in the third match Tuesday on Centre Court - the patch of grass where the American standout won seven of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles. "I think everyone's feeling the same way: Cannot wait to be watching Serena back on Centre Court again," Sally Bolton, the chief executive of the All England Club, said Monday. Wimbledon organizers took the unusual step of holding up an eighth and final wild card spot for Williams until she accepted the invitation at almost the last possible moment the weekend before qualifying began. "We were all sitting there sort of quietly keeping our fingers crossed that that's what would happen," Bolton said when asked by The Associated Press how anxious the club was while Williams pondered her decision. "She is such an icon of the sport a

Asics, Rohan Bopanna academy join hands to nurture young tennis players

The partnership will provide product access, performance education, clinics, masterclasses and support to tennis professionals at Rohan Bopanna Tennis Academy (RBTA)

Serena Williams to make stunning Wimbledon singles return aged 44

It's been talked about ever since Serena Williams announced nearly three weeks ago that she was returning to professional tennis after almost four years away from the sport. Still, seeing the single-sentence announcement from The All England Club that the 23-time Grand Slam champion will play singles at Wimbledon was stunning nonetheless. "Serena Williams (USA) receives the final ladies' singles wild card," read the key line in Sunday's announcement, which was issued eight days before the grass-court Grand Slam begins. At 44, Williams will actually play both singles and doubles at Wimbledon after already accepting a wild card for the doubles competition with older sister Venus. "This is not a drill," Wimbledon said on its social media accounts Sunday. Commented the WTA Tour, "Name a more iconic returnwe'll wait." Wimbledon held open the eighth and final women's singles wild card spot until Williams made up her mind. As recently as earlier this week after losing a doubles match in

French Open 2026: Alexander Zverev secures first Grand Slam crown

Alexander Zverev is no longer one of the best players never to win a major title. He's finally a Grand Slam champion. In his fourth major final, Zverev beat Flavio Coboll 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1 for the French Open title on Sunday. It was a unique opportunity for Zverev without Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz across the net and the third-ranked German took full advantage on the red clay of Roland Garros. When Cobolli missed an overhead on the second championship point after more than four hours of the five-set encounter, Zverev dropped on his back to the clay and covered his face with his hands as he began sobbing. When he got up, with his shirt and arms covered in clay, Zverev put his hands back on his face before he lifted both arms in celebration. Zverev has now joined an elite group of players that captured their first major in their fourth final: Eight-time major champion Andre Agassi, 2001 Wimbledon winner Goran Ivanisevic and 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem. No

19-year-old Mirra Andreeva claims first Grand Slam with French Open triumph

Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva was already a tennis phenom at age 15. At 19, she's a Grand Slam champion. The eighth-ranked Andreeva ended the run of 114th-ranked Polish qualifier Maja Chwalinska by 6-3, 6-2 in the French Open final on Saturday. Andreeva became the youngest player to win the women's singles title since Monica Seles, who was 18 when she landed her third straight French Open in 1992. "You're so young and talented. It's so annoying," Chwalinska told Andreeva during the awards ceremony. When Andreeva executed a backhand cross-court winner on her first match point, she threw her racket into the air and dropped on her knees to the clay to celebrate. During the trophy presentation, Andreeva took the unusual step of thanking herself "for believing in myself, always giving my 100%, even when it's tough, trying every day to be better as a person and as a player, believing that I can do this, fighting so many demons inside of me. "Only I know how tough it was for me," And

French Open: World number 1 Aryna Sabalenka knocked out by Schnaider

Shnaider recovered from a set down to defeat Sabalenka 3-6, 7-5, 6-0, ending the Belarusian's hopes of improving on last year's runner-up finish at Roland Garros.

Kalinskaya outlasts Potapova in epic contest to reach French Open 2026 Q/F

Anna Kalinskaya of Russia made it to the quarterfinals of the French Open for the first time by defeating Anastasia Potapova of Austria 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (10-7) on Monday. Their contest on Court Suzanne-Lenglen stretched to almost three hours after Potapova failed to serve out the match twice in the decider and Kalinskaya overturned a 4-1 deficit in the super tiebreak. It will be 22nd-ranked Kalinskaya's second quarterfinal at a major after she advanced that deep at the 2024 Australian Open. Despite pre-tournament men's favorite Jannik Sinner losing in the second round, Italian fans will have at least one player in the quarterfinals. Tenth-seeded Flavio Cobolli advanced to the second Grand Slam quarterfinal of his career - and also his first here - after beating American Zachary Svajda 6-2, 6-3, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5). His next opponent will be the winner of a fourth-round match later Monday between No. 4 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and unseeded Alejandro Tabilo. Big-serving Matteo Berretti

Serena Williams makes long-awaited tennis return at 44 after retirement

- Serena Williams is coming back to professional tennis at the age of 44, returning to the sport she dominated for two decades before famously "evolving" away from the daily grind of competition. First up for the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion is the doubles tournament at Queen's Club. But Wimbledon and the U.S. Open could be next. "It seems like she's trying to work her way up maybe to the U.S. Open, and those fans would be so ready to see her back on a singles court there," former No. 1 Lindsay Davenport said at the French Open after the WTA Tour announced Monday that Williams has accepted a wild-card invitation to play doubles at next week's grass-court tournament in London. Williams won seven Wimbledon titles and six at the U.S. Open before stepping away from the game in 2022. In doubles, she won six titles at Wimbledon and two at the U.S. Open - all with her older sister Venus Williams. "She's a legend. It's inspiring to see," top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka said. "I'm excited

French Open 2026 May 31 Matches: Zverev, Swiatek look to secure Q/F berths

Alexander Zverev and Casper Ruud headline the French Open 2026 Day 8 schedule, with both players aiming to maintain their title challenge

Gauff's French Open title defense ends in 3rd-round loss, Osaka through

Coco Gauff finally met a player in Paris who could match her court coverage in long baseline rallies. Anastasia Potapova ended Gauff's French Open title defense in the third round with a 4-6, 7-6 (1), 6-4 victory over the American on Saturday. The match was played before mostly empty stands inside Court Philippe-Chatrier as French fans stayed away to watch the Champions League soccer final. Gauff's second Grand Slam title came with a victory over top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the final at Roland Garros a year ago. The 30th-ranked Potapova, who was born in Russia but now represents Austria, improved to 3-2 in her career against Gauff. She's having quite a clay season after reaching a final in Linz, Austria, and the semifinals of the Madrid Open as a qualifier. The fourth-ranked Gauff was coming off a run to the Italian Open final. She waved to the crowd and quickly walked off court when the match was finished. When Gauff shanked a forehand wide on Potapova's first match point, Pot

French Open 2026 May 25 Matches: Sabalenka, Sinner continue Round 3 action

The women's singles draw at the French Open 2026 promises an exciting day of third-round action, with several leading contenders looking to book their spots in the last 16