04/07/2026

SPORTS SATURDAY | JULY 4, 2026 26 Zverev stands tall French Open champion see off Royer to reach Wimbledon third round F RENCH OPEN champion Alexander Zverev continued his pursuit of a second successive Grand Slam title as the German eased into the Wimbledon third round with a 6-1, 6-3, 7-6(3) victory over French quali fier Valentin Royer yesterday. Zverev quickly took complete control, reeling off the next nine games with a blend of powerful serving and clean hitting from both wings. The second seed wrapped up the opening set in just 25 minutes before maintaining his momentum to take the second with a forehand winner on set point.

TRAMLINES Dimitrov enjoys redemption

TWELVE months after the most painful loss of his career, Grigor Dimitrov wept tears of joy after a cathartic Wimbledon second round win against Czech rising star Jakub Mensik yesterday. Dimitrov defeated 15th seed Mensik 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 on Court One to banish the demons of his agonising exit last year. The 35-year-old celebrated his redemptive success with an out pouring of joy and disbelief so touching that the crowd rose to give him a standing ovation. Dimitrov will play former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini for a place in the last 16, but regardless of how long his run in the grass-court Grand Slam lasts, he has finally expunged the bitter taste of his exit against Jannik Sinner last year. The Bulgarian had been forced to withdraw due to injury within touching distance of a shock victory over Sinner in after taking a two-set lead against the Italian in the fourth round. “I’m very emotional and a little bit overwhelmed at the moment,” Dimitrov said before briefly halt ing his on-court interview as his tears flowed.“All I wanted to do is just come out and fight, that was my goal. I didn’t even think about winning or losing. I thank my team, my friends, my family and my girlfriend, everyone that has been with me through that path. The path here has been so difficult. It is all about conquer ing myself and playing tennis like I did today, regardless of the outcome.” Anisimova sees off Kenin A S HOWDOW N between two American 20-somethings born to Russian immigrants turned into an almighty scrap at Wimbledon as Amanda Anisimova displayed her powers of resilience to subdue Sofia Kenin 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(10-3) in the second round yesterday. A year after becoming the first player in more than a century to lose a Wimbledon final 6-0, 6-0, the sixth seed looked like she was heading for another heartbreak ing defeat at the hands of an opponent she had been expected to beat. When she sur rendered her serve en route to falling 3-1 behind in the deciding set, Anisimova resorted to the only thing that could get her out of the rut – yelling out her frus trations. That release allowed her to get her A-game back on track and stormed through the tie break to seal victory when Kenin netted a service return. “Some moments were really awful. I’m just happy to be through to the next round,” said Anisimova. “I’m really happy with my perform ance, especially with the end. Shout out to Sofia, she’s such a good opponent, a real fighter. I was down and told myself to keep fighting. I really tried to bring myself back to the present moment. I try to remind myself – have fun, you’re playing at Wimbledon. These are the matches I train for, the tough ones, the fun ones.”

waiting for a big result. If I play like this, it can happen this year.” The victory keeps alive Zverev’s hopes of becoming the first man since Novak Djokovic in 2021 to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season. Having finally ended years of Grand Slam frus tration in Paris, the German said he had quickly turned his attention to the grass-court major. “You need to have a short-term memory in tennis – good or bad – because the next tourna ment is around the corner,” he said. “I won the French Open, I’d been waiting for a long time and it was such a relief, but here we are at Wimbledon two weeks later.” Zverev will next face American Marcos Giron, who defeated Quentin Halys in straight sets, as he looks to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon for the fourth time in his career. – Reuters/Agencies

Fresh from capturing the first major title of his career at Roland Garros, the world No. 2 pro duced an assured display on Court One, dominat ing for long periods before overcoming a brief third-set wobble to seal his 50th tour-level victory on grass. “For 2½ sets I played an almost perfect match but I lost focus and concentration,” Zverev said. “He made it interesting, but I’m happy to be through in straight sets. Even though I love to play here, it’s nice to win easier in the beginning of the week.” Royer held serve in the opening game, but

An early break in the third appeared to have put Zverev on course for another comfortable set, but a lapse in concentration, highlighted by a double fault and an untimely forehand error, allowed Royer to level at 4-4. The Frenchman forced a tiebreak, but Zverev quickly regained his composure, racing through it to complete victory in two hours and 12 minutes. “I’m not old yet, but I’m getting to an age where you need to save energy,” Zverev joked. “It builds confidence to win easily, especially at Wimbledon. I love this tournament but I’m

DEFE N DI N G champion Iga Swiatek cleared a potentially dangerous early hurdle with ease as she defeated former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova to reach round three at Wimbledon yesterday. Czech 34-year-old Pliskova, back on the rise after an ankle injury almost ended her career, landed some heavy artillery on Centre Court but was no match for Swiatek, who won 6-1, 6-3. Swiatek, aiming to break the so called champion’s curse and become the first woman for a decade to retain the Wimbledon crown, looked sharp in the sunshine, taking the opening set in 25 minutes before being forced to work a bit harder. She has now reached the last-32 stage at 26 successive Grand Slam tournaments dating back to the 2019 US Open – a record only bettered by Martina Navratilova and Conchita Martinez. “I’m feeling more stable today – and that’s good. The first round was really emotional for sure,“ Swiatek, who was pushed to three sets in her opener by Taylor Townsend, said on court. “Today I felt like it was another day in the office. Even when she was playing fast and flat, I knew that my spin gives me control.” Pliskova missed the entire 2025 season after rupturing ankle ligaments at the 2024 US Open and began the year ranked 1,054 but has battled back up into the top 100. She reached the Wimbledon final in 2021 and there were flashes of the pulverising ground strokes and powerful serve as she occasionally managed to knock six-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek out of her comfort zone. Pliskova even led 2-0 at the start of the second set but double-faults gifted Swiatek successive service breaks and the Pole needed no second invitation to race to victory. Told that Navratilova, who was commentating on the match, had given her an A+ for her performance, Swiatek said there was still some room for improvement. “I felt like I played so many dirty shots in that final game especially, I wasn’t able to control them that much,“ she said. “So maybe not A+, more like B I would say.” – Reuters Swiatek too sharp for Pliskova

Philippines’ Alexandra Eala in action during her second round match against Australia’s Maya Joint (not pictured) yesterday at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London. – REUTERSPIC

Eala writes history for Philippines

ALEXA N D R A EALA became the first player from the Philippines to reach the third round of a Grand Slam in the Open era, beating Maya Joint in an “electric” atmosphere at Wimbledon yesterday. The 21-year-old fought back to defeat Serena Williams’ first-round conqueror Joint 3-6, 6-2, 6-0, roared on by hundreds of Filipino spectators on Court Three. “It’s obviously an amazing thing for me to do that for my country,” she said after booking a last-32 tie with reigning Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek. “I really appreciate that I’m able to share this with the nation, but I think first and foremost it makes me super proud because of the work that I’ve put in.” There was an unmistakably Filipino feel to the small arena yesterday, and not just provided by her legion of enthusiastic fans waving the Southeast Asian archipelago nation’s flag. Her team and family were wearing t-shirts bear ing a picture of the sampaguita , the national flower of the Philippines. “I think the atmosphere today was amazing, it was electric, respectful and all that I could have

hoped for,”said Eala, who stayed on court for as long as possible to sign autographs. “Of course I also want to give them time, my time,” Eala told reporters of her fans. “It’s extremely hard to get tickets here at Wimbledon so I’m very happy with the support.” The world’s 12th most populous country has not had many female sports stars to cheer in recent years, with men’s boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and gymnast Carlos Yulo flying the flag on the global stage. Eala was sporting a custom Nike visor bearing a phrase in Tagalog which translates to: “Every dream begins as a seed. Once it grows, it cannot be stopped.” “I think it’s so sentimental to be able wear things or to carry parts of my culture with me on court, because of course it’s a huge reason as to who I am,” added Eala, the 29th seed. “And for me to be able to represent the Philippines in Wimbledon, I guess, and in the big gest stages in the world, it means so much to me.” – AFP