Sinner Crushes Rublev To Reach Roland Garros Last Eight

As Jannik Sinner cruised to a stunning victory over Andrey Rublev in the French Open last 16 on Monday, he sent a warning to his French Open title rivals.

Russian 17th seed Rublev appeared to be a challenging challenge for Sinner, but the world no. 1 fought it out to win 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 on Court Philippe Chatrier.

“Things can go very quickly in a bad way, especially the best of five,” Sinner said.

“I’m delighted to finish it in three,” she said. These Parisian night sessions are truly unique.

Also read: Djokovic wins the record-breaking 19th French Open Quarter-Final.

The Italian, who returned from a three-month doping suspension in Rome in May, will face Kazakh Alexander Bublik, who is unseeded, in the quarter-finals.

Sinner defeated Bublik 3-1 in their previous meeting on grass in Halle, but they did not win.

After winning the US Open last year and the Australian Open for the second time in a row in January, he now has a third successive Grand Slam title in Paris.

After falling to Rublev in the final 16 at Roland Garros in 2022, Sinner gained some reprieve from his third set injury.

He fired five aces and 25 winners past a confused opponent on Monday while being in top form.

You don’t want to show your opponent anything, Sinner said of his calm on-court demeanor, but there is a storm going on inside.

“The storm was not only inside but also outside in my young career.”

In the match’s opening game, the 23-year-old saved two break points from eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz, who had defeated him in the 2024 semi-finals.

However, he only missed one set point for a first-set bagel as he surged to a 5-0 lead and won the opener.

When Rublev dropped the serve once more, Sinner took a 2-1 lead into the second set.

Rublev, a 10-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist, raised his game in the third set with the audience firmly in his step.

But his only setback was when Sinner defended himself on serve before the top seed’s first match point, when a Rublev forehand hit the net and spun wide, was when Sinner held his serve.

Chelsea Sign Essugo In Time For Club World Cup

Portuguese international Dario Essugo was signed by Chelsea for £18 million ($25 million) on Monday.

The 20-year-old will be able to play for the Blues at the Club World Cup later this month after spending last season on loan at Las Palmas from Spain as they were relegated from La Liga.

At the age of 16, Essugo joined Sporting’s first team in March 2021, becoming the youngest player to do so through Sporting’s academy.

READ MORE: Man Utd Signs Brazil Forward Cunha From Wolves

Initial agreements for Essugo and Geovany Quenda were reached in March.

Quenda will join Sporting for £44 million before moving to the end of the 2025/26 season.

As Chelsea close negotiations on a £30 million deal for Ipswich striker Liam Delap, their squad is expected to grow even more.

Djokovic Cruises Into Record 19th French Open Quarter-Final

With a comfortable straight-sets victory over Cameron Norrie on Monday, Novak Djokovic slipped into a record-breaking 19th Roland Garros quarter-final.

After defeating Norrie 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 on Court Philippe Chatrier, the three-time French Open champion will face third seed Alexander Zverev in the final eight on Wednesday.

His 19 quarter-final appearances at Roland Garros set a new record for the most Grand Slam victories.

On day 9 of the French Open tennis competition at the Roland-Garros Complex in Paris on June 2, 2025, Novak Djokovic of Serbia serves to Britain’s Cameron Norrie. (Photo by Anne-Christine POUJOULAT/AFP)

“I feel good,” he said. I am aware of my ability to play better. But 12 sets played, 12 sets won, and so far, the 38-year-old described his 100th French Open victory as “a solid one.”

“Winner number 101 would be better, but it’s great.” I feel very honored, but I must move on.

Also available is a link to &nbsp’s Gauff Returns to French Open Quarters and Vows to “Keep Fighting.”

Djokovic and German Zverev have a 8-5 winning record, but they both lost in their previous encounter in the Australian Open semi-finals in January.

Norrie, a former top-10 player and current 81st, has lost all six of his professional matches to Djokovic.

The Serb dominated from the beginning, aiming to break the previous all-time Grand Slam record of 25 this week.

In a one-set, he broke serve three times before battling through a closer second to save a crucial break point before holding for a 3-2 lead.

Djokovic won on his first match point, but Norrie, who was playing for the first time in Paris, did not face much resistance in the third set.

Gauff Returns To French Open Quarters, Vows To ‘Keep Fighting’

Coco Gauff defeated Russian 20th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-0, 7-5, to reach the French Open quarter-final for the fifth time in a row on Monday.

Gauff fought through the first set, which was supported by three serve breaks. In the second set, Alexandrova battled more, but Gauff triumphed in 82 minutes.

“It feels great to be back in the quarters here, and I’m really happy with how I played today,” Gauff said.

On Wednesday, the 21-year-old Gauff will face Madison Keys, the current Australian Open champion, in an all-American quarter-final.

Read more about Swiatek’s victory at the French Open and Alcaraz Eyes Quarters.

On day 9 of the French Open tennis competition, US Coco Gauff celebrates her victory over Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova on Court Philippe-Chatrier in Paris on June 2, 2025. (Photo by Anne-Christine POUJOULAT/AFP)

Gauff, who is currently competing at Roland Garros, leads all other players with 15 wins on clay this year, just behind Elina Svitolina, who is also in contention.

Gauff, the former US Open champion, claims that regardless of the outcome, she can turn a game in her favor.

After losing in the finals in Madrid and Rome last month, she hopes to win the French Open third time.

Losing the opening set in the first round of both of those tournaments and making the final, as I’ve learned in the past two, particularly in Rome and Madrid, just proves that you must fight for every match and fight for every point, Gauff said.

“Because there is always room for error in a tournament.

So I believe I must continue to do that if I want to remain consistent on tour.

Gauff was just 18 years old when she reached her first Grand Slam final in Paris in 2022.

Iga Swiatek comfortably defeated her on that occasion, but she now feels like she is peaking at the right moment in her quest for a second major title.

Additionally, Swiatek has defeated Gauff twice in the last two Roland Garros matches, winning both in the quarter-finals in 2023 and the semi-finals a year later.

“I think I’m less nervous going into matches, for sure, and having a handle on the ups and downs of a tennis match,” Gauff said.

“I still feel the years here, and I think I get better with each game. I thought about doing that in my 22nd and last year’s as well, and I’m doing it right now.

“Yes, I believe that I can improve at least some of those things if I can continue to improve just a little bit,” he said.

Keys Defeats Baptiste To Seal French Open Quarter-Final Berth

Madison Keys, the Australian Open champion, defeated fellow American Hailey Baptiste in straight sets on Monday to reach the French Open quarter-finals for the first time since 2019.

The 70th-ranked Baptiste won 6-3, 7-5 at Roland Garros, putting an end to their run.

Read more about Swiatek’s victory at the French Open and Alcaraz Eyes Quarters.

After beating Ekaterina Alexandrova, the former US Open champion, Coco Gauff, who is also an American, will next face her for a semi-final spot.

Keys will play in the second week for the second time since he reached the semi-finals in Paris in 2018 and the final eight in the following year.

South Africa’s Klaasen Retires From International Cricket

Heinrich Klaasen, the batsman-wicketkeeper of South Africa, announced his retirement on Monday.

Klaasen, a 33-year-old batsman with big hitting, is regarded as one of the most destructive batsmen in white ball cricket.

In a statement released by Cricket South Africa, Klaasen said, “Playing for the Proteas gave me the opportunity to meet great people who changed my life.”

In his 60 one-day internationals, Klaasen managed to score a total of 2141 runs while maintaining a strike rate of 117.05. In 2023, he played 83 balls for Australia and recorded his highest score of 174.

Read more about a South African woman being sentenced to life in prison for selling her daughter.

Heinrich Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen celebrates his century (100 runs) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad at New Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium on May 25, 2025. (Photo by Money Sharma/AFP)

In 58 Twenty20 games, he scored 1000 runs at a 141.84 strike rate.

Before resuming red-ball cricket in 2024, he also participated in four Test matches.

His quickness to score quickly earned him a star in international franchise competitions.

Sunrisers Hyderabad’ record signing for the 2025 season was $2.69 million, according to the Indian Premier League.

He is anticipated to play franchise cricket as usual.

READ MORE: Tretchikoff’s sale of South Africa’s “King Of Kitsch” For a New World Record

Klaasen was described as “a true match-winner for South Africa,” according to Enoch Nkwe, director of national teams for South Africa. He was capable of altering a game’s course in a matter of overs.

Klaasen did not receive a contract with Cricket South Africa in April, and the organization’s management informed him that future discussions were raging.