分类： sports

On a tense, emotion-charged afternoon at Wimbledon’s Centre Court, 21-year-old Czech rising star Linda Noskova delivered one of the most dramatic women’s singles finals in recent Grand Slam history, battling back from the brink of collapse to defeat close friend and compatriot Karolina Muchova 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 and claim her maiden major title.

Noskova, the tournament’s ninth seed, appeared set for a straight-sets rout just an hour into the match, holding a commanding 6-2, 5-2 lead and earning five consecutive championship points to close out the win. But as the finish line came into view, nerves got the better of the first-time Grand Slam finalist, allowing 10th seed Muchova to storm back with five straight games to force a deciding third set. The 15,000-strong Centre Court crowd watched in stunned silence as Noskova’s seemingly unassailable lead slipped away, leaving the young contender facing an unexpected battle for the Venus Rosewater Dish.

What followed was a masterclass in mental resilience. Rather than letting the collapse derail her, Noskova reset her focus, held steady through the decider, and earned a sixth championship point when she stepped up to serve for the title once again. This time, she did not falter: an ace set up match point, and she sealed the win with a clinical service winner that sent her collapsing to the grass in a flood of relief. Muchova, her doubles partner at the 2024 Paris Olympics, was quick to embrace her compatriot at the net, joking post-match that she was now “my ex-friend” before praising Noskova’s mental toughness. “The way you handled it and the way you played was unbelievable. You deserve it,” Muchova said.

In her emotional on-court victory speech, Noskova paid tribute to her family, and to her mother Ivana, who passed away on the eve of the Wimbledon tournament two years prior. “I wouldn’t be here without her,” she told the crowd, before blowing a kiss to the sky that earned a standing ovation from the stands. She also thanked her father, who traveled to London for the match, saying “I know you don’t like flying so I appreciate it” as she teared up. She later added of her opponent and the milestone: “I’m glad I played my first major final with you and I think we made history today.”

Noskova’s win cements the Czech Republic’s ongoing dominance at the All England Club, making her the third Czech women’s singles champion in four years, following Marketa Vondrousova in 2023 and Barbora Krejcikova in 2024. Her triumph was watched from the stands by two of Czech tennis’ biggest icons: nine-time Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova, and two-time winner Petra Kvitova, one of Noskova’s childhood idols.

Long touted as one of the sport’s most promising young talents, Noskova has lived up to the hype years after she first emerged as a top-ranked junior. She became the youngest player in the WTA top 100 back in 2022, and a run to the quarterfinals of the 2024 Australian Open confirmed her ability to compete at the highest level. Entering this year’s Wimbledon, she had already built momentum by winning the grass-court title in Berlin last month, and her run to the fourth round at the 2023 Wimbledon left her feeling confident on the All England Club’s turf.

This title run was far from easy, even before the dramatic final. Noskova had to save match point against Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in the third round to keep her tournament alive, making her only the third woman in history to win the Wimbledon women’s singles title after surviving match point earlier in the tournament, following Venus Williams in 2005 and Serena Williams in 2009.

Along with lifting the iconic Venus Rosewater Dish, Noskova walks away with a £2 million prize purse and a new career-high WTA ranking of seventh in the world, confirming her place among the sport’s elite as she begins what looks set to be a storied Grand Slam career.

BERGERAC, France — The 2025 Tour de France delivered another dramatic day of racing Saturday, as Belgian sprinter Tim Merlier notched a fifth career Tour de France stage victory and a second consecutive win with a perfectly timed sprint finish on Stage 8, while defending champion Tadej Pogačar retained the overall race lead and the iconic yellow jersey. The 180-kilometer route stretching from the southwestern French town of Périgueux to southeastern Bergerac played out under sweltering, record-breaking temperatures, part of the ongoing heatwave that has gripped western Europe during this year’s race.

Four-time Tour champion Pogačar finished safely within the main peloton alongside his biggest overall contender, two-time winner Jonas Vingegaard, and preserved his commanding 2-minute 42-second advantage over Vingegaard in the general classification. Pogačar’s young teammate Isaac del Toro remains in third place overall after eight days of racing.

Speaking on the grueling heat conditions that tested every rider in the peloton, the Slovenian champion emphasized the extreme challenges of racing in high temperatures. “Just like every day, a lot of water and keep cooling the body down,” Pogačar said after finishing the stage. “The body gets tired in the heat. Definitely we need to be careful and keep cooling down, take care of nutrition, hydration.”

The sprint finale mirrored the dynamics of Stage 7, with Dutch star Mathieu van der Poel putting in a hard early effort to position his teammate Jasper Philipsen for the run to the line. However, the team’s attack launched too soon, opening the door for Merlier to navigate a chaotic sprint that nearly ended in a crash, before timing his finishing kick to perfection to cross the line first.

“I needed to fight for my position all the time … I almost crashed, thought it was over,” Merlier told reporters after the stage. “In this heat it was a really difficult effort.”

Eritrea’s Biniam Girmay claimed second place in the stage, while Dutch rider Olav Kooij finished third. All three top sprinters clocked the same official stage time of 3 hours 52 minutes and 50 seconds.

The extreme heat has already forced changes to the race’s upcoming schedule. Tour organizers announced Saturday evening that Sunday’s Stage 9, originally planned as an 185.5-kilometer hilly route from Malemort to Ussel in central France, will be shortened by 30 kilometers to 155.5 kilometers. The adjustment comes after the local department hosting the stage was placed on red heat alert, prioritizing rider safety amid dangerous high temperatures. This year’s Tour de France will conclude with its traditional final stage finish on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on July 26.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand’s national rugby union team, the legendary All Blacks, secured their second consecutive victory at the inaugural Nations Championship on Saturday, grinding out a 47-17 win over Italy after a shaky opening half that exposed persistent flaws in their game plan. Though the final scoreline was lopsided, the match highlighted a growing gap between the team’s high offensive ambitions and their inconsistent on-field execution, leaving questions ahead of their much-anticipated next matchup against Ireland in Auckland.

From the opening whistle, repeated errors from the All Blacks handed Italy an early advantage. Just days after a narrow 34-32 win over France that was also marred by unforced mistakes in handling, aerial defense, and discipline, the All Blacks gifted Italy the opening try. Italian center Tommaso Menoncello crossed the line after capitalizing on an All Blacks turnover, putting the visitors out to an early lead.

The All Blacks responded within five minutes to narrow the score, with lock Sam Darry touching down for his first try of the match. But Italy’s tight defense denied New Zealand both space and possession, holding the All Blacks to a 14-10 lead at the halftime break.

The turning point of the first half came in the 30th minute, when Will Jordan scored his first try of the match against the run of play. The try, set up by a perfectly placed chip kick from Jordie Barrett and a deft offload from Leroy Carter, gave the All Blacks their first lead of the game. More importantly, it marked the first of three tries that would cement Jordan’s place in All Blacks history.

Two debutants made the most of their opportunities after coming off the bench to turn the tide of the match in the second half. Winger Josh Moorby made his first test appearance on his 26th birthday, entering the game in the 31st minute before lighting up the pitch after halftime. Backrower Anton Segner, the first Germany-born player ever selected for the All Blacks, also made his debut coming off the bench at the start of the second half, with his parents flying in from Frankfurt to witness the historic moment.

Moorby was the star of the second half, playing a key role in three of the All Blacks’ five second-half tries that turned a narrow deficit into a comfortable win. Just two minutes after the resumption of play, he broke down the left wing and combined with his Hurricanes teammate Cam Roigard to score. He then won an intercept that nearly put him over the line before prop Ethan de Groot crashed over for a try in his 42nd test. Finally, he outpaced Italy’s cover defense to set up Jordan’s second try of the match, which equaled the All Blacks’ all-time test try record of 49 set by Doug Howlett.

Just 10 minutes later, Jordan claimed the record outright when he scored his third try, created by a quick-tapped penalty from Jordie Barrett. Jordan finished the match with 50 career test tries from just 56 appearances, a new milestone for New Zealand rugby. Reflecting on the record after the match, Jordan called the achievement humbling. “I think back to when I was a kid practicing my chip and chase in the back yard. To think I’d be here today, it’s hugely humbling,” he said. “I guess as a winger on the end of the chain I’ve been part of some great teams over the last seven years.”

Italy captain Michele Lamaro acknowledged that his side could not match the All Blacks’ second-half intensity, after a strong opening 40 minutes put the world-famous side on the back foot. “I think we started really well and we were putting them under pressure,” Lamaro said. “They were trying to compete around the breakdown and we were really strong in that area. They came back on the field after halftime with another gear and we couldn’t hold them.”

Italy was forced to play most of the final quarter with 14 men, after a yellow card given to Niccolo Cannone for an attempted head butt on Roigard was upgraded to a red card. Despite being a man down, Italy still crossed for a second try through Leonardo Marin in the 57th minute. The All Blacks were also reduced to 14 men late in the match, when flyhalf Ruben Love was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on in the 71st minute, his second yellow card in two matches.

Italy entered the match still reeling from an opening-round loss to Japan in Tokyo, leaving them winless after two rounds of the new tournament. For the All Blacks, while the win keeps their tournament record unbeaten at 2-0, head coach Dave Rennie will likely have plenty to address ahead of next weekend’s clash with world number one ranked Ireland. Persistent unforced errors at both ends of the pitch throughout the match have emerged as a worrying pattern for the side after similar problems plagued their opening win over France.