Archive July 3, 2025

When play in his second-round match against Rinky Hijikata at Wimbledon was suspended due to bad lighting, American Ben Shelton was furious.

Shelton, the 10th seed, was in command of the third set after winning the first two sets 6-2, 7-5, and was possibly on the verge of a full recovery.

However, the umpire on court two announced that there would be no more play that evening, much to Shelton’s shock, as the clock was approaching 21:30 and the sun was starting to fade.

The 22-year-old, who has previously reached the Grand Slam semi-finals, yelled bitterly to officials about the decision, which could result in him playing only one game on Friday, which would prevent him from getting a full day off.

First round leaderboard for the Women’s Irish Open

-5 A Swayne (USVI), -6 B Fernandez (Esp), -5 C Tamburlini (Swi), -5 A Screen (Eng), L Pettersson (Swe), M Sagstrom (Swe), and M Rhodes (Eng)

class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>Selected others: class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-3 C Hull (Eng), class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-2 G Hall (Eng) class=”ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3″>-1 L Maguire (Ire), + 2 A Nordqvist (Swe).

After the opening round of Carton House, Spain’s Blanca Fernandez and Switzerland’s Chiara Tamburlini shared the Women’s Irish Open lead.

A group that includes English trio Lottie Woad, Mimi Rhodes, and Hannah Screen is one shot back, but home favorite Leona Maguire is five points clear.

Fernandez and Tamburlini made the most of the challenging circumstances, which included a swirling wind and a few showers.

Both golfers recorded seven birdies and one bogey during the round, with Tamburlini chipping in once on three of the final four holes.

World number one amateur Woad and Screen on five under, along with world number one amateur Alexandra Swayne, Madelene Sagstroem, and Lisa Patterson, who represents the United States Virgin Islands, were joined by Order of Merit leader Rhodes. The sextet is only one shot off the pace in a crowded leaderboard.

Indeed, only two strokes separate the top 19 players from Emma Fleming, who won the Victorian Amateur Championship last month, with 11 more a shot back.

Maguire finished day one with a 72, which put her and three other Irish players on one-under-par despite a frustrating day on the greens.

Sagstrom scored the best round of the five, while England’s Charley Hull (-3) and Georgia Hall (-2) are in good shape heading into day two, which means a number of Maguire’s Solheim Cup team-mates had a strong start.

British no. 1 Jack Draper insists a subpar performance was not due to increased pressure at this year’s tournament, but that he was not “good enough” in a shocking second-round exit to the Wimbledon.

Draper fell to 36-year-old Marin Cilic, who was seeded fourth at the All England Club, 6-4, 6-3, 1-6, 6-4.

The 23-year-old was the highest-ranked home player since Andy Murray won the men’s title in 2017 and was the highest seeded player there.

Murray won Wimbledon for the first time in 77 years in 2013, and he added his second title three years later. He retired last year.

“It makes me believe that Andy’s success in winning here twice was just unbelievable,” Draper said.

“It’s not the pressure,” he said. I didn’t intend to go out there because I felt a lot of pressure. You [journalists] frequently mention it.

Draper now looks like a real Wimbledon contender thanks to his incredible rise over the past year.

The Englishman has reached two additional ATP Tour finals, the semi-finals of the US Open, and the prestigious Indian Wells title in a year.

Many experts believed his game could be transferred to the Wimbledon grass after winning a title on the Stuttgart grass last year and making it to the Queen’s semi-finals last month despite being ill.

In all truth, Draper said, “I’ve been really disappointed with the way my game’s been on the grass this year.

On the grass, I really struggled. On the hard courts and the clay, I had a great time.

The left-hander’s serve and forehand were praised as the key positions, but Cilic, who finished second overall in 2017, pushed him too far in the court, causing his veteran to lose his game as he regressed through the years.

“I think the hole in my forehand definitely appeared,” Draper said.

“I couldn’t handle the ball he threw into my forehand.” I was overspinning a lot.

I believe that because I can create the speed and spin I want, and the effectiveness of that, a lot of my success this year with my forehand comes from having more time.

Todd Woodbridge, a 1997 Wimbledon singles semi-finalist and nine-time champion, appeared on BBC TV.

I didn’t believe Jack Draper had any nerves; instead, I felt good about his actions.

Just as I expected, I didn’t like how things turned out for him. Because Cilic’s beautiful ball-striking return was impacted by the left-handed serve, the matchup was awkward.

Cilic then used his forehand to dictate when he returned the ball in a deep direction. He dispensed all of Draper’s weapons, and he [Draper] never actually had the freedom to dictate play.

Draper didn’t return well enough if you went over all the statistics.

Although I thought he received a lot of balls, Cilic had the ball to dictate. Cilic had to dominate him in that area when Cilic was serving second.

Draper’s backhand was used far too frequently, and that wasn’t his weapon.

After the German club confirmed a deal had been reached, Chelsea are expected to complete the signing of Borussia Dortmund winger Jamie Gittens.

The 20-year-old England Under-21 player will cost £48.5m plus £3.5m in add-ons.

The clubs met in Fort Lauderdale to discuss the transfer, which is taking place simultaneously in the United States for the Club World Cup.

Dortmund claim that their contract terms are still being worked out, but Gittens and Chelsea already signed a seven-year deal in June.

“Jamie is a fantastic player who has enriched our lives.” We wish him the best of luck and success as he enters the next phase of his Chelsea career.

Gittens, who left Manchester City for Dortmund in 2020, has a total of 107 goals and assists.

He wouldn’t be able to play for the Blues until after the Club World Cup.

This summer, Chelsea has already signed Strasbourg defender Mamadou Sarr, Brighton forward Joao Pedro, and midfielder Dario Essugo.