Tennis: Osaka conquers Flushing Meadows
Nonetheless, Leeds fans will take heart from this performance, said Chris Bascombe in The Daily Telegraph. Not since Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle entered the top flight in 1993 has a “promoted club provoked this level of romantic fascination”, and on the evidence of their “courage and intensity” at Anfield, they will be highly competitive this season – though the true test will
Two years ago, Naomi Osaka’s maiden grand slam title was overshadowed by the antics of her opponent, Serena Williams, who challenged officials after receiving a code violation for “coaching”. Thankfully, when the 22-year-old claimed her second US Open title, at Flushing Meadows last Saturday, “nothing” detracted from her victory, said Stuart Fraser in The
Sunday Times. Her opponent, Victoria Azarenka, dominated the early stages, winning the first set in 27 minutes and breaking Osaka early in the second. A rout looked inevitable, said Kevin Mitchell in The Observer. But midway through the second set Azarenka’s form dipped, and Osaka’s “poise returned in a rush”. Using the “flat-out power” that is her trademark, she fought her way to a 1-6 6-3 6-3 victory.
Osaka, who overtook Williams earlier this year as the world’s best-paid female athlete, is still in the “infancy of her career”,
White ball cricket these days tends to be about “the big scores and the big hits”, said Steve James in The Times. But sometimes low-scoring contests are just as “compelling”.
And so it proved with England’s “extraordinary and thrilling” victory over Australia in the second oneday international at Old Trafford.
With his team trailing 1-0 in the series, Eoin Morgan opted to bat on a “tricky pitch” and, before Chris Woakes began the fightback with 26 from 39 balls, England were soon “truly in the mire” on 117 for five. Then, a “remarkable” ninthwicket partnership of 76 between Tom Curran and Adil Rashid took England to 231 for nine, a total that had seemed “beyond their wildest dreams”.
After the match, Jürgen Klopp “could afford to chuckle”, said James Pearce on The Athletic. “Wow, a proper spectacle,” the Liverpool boss declared. Yet had it not been for Salah, who “sparkled throughout”, he would have been less sanguine, as this was an “unconvincing”, sloppy performance. Roberto Firmino was uncharacteristically profligate in front of goal; more worryingly, there was further evidence of the defensive failings that have dogged the Reds of late. Liverpool’s success last season was founded on an extraordinary frugality in front of goal: in their opening 26 matches, they conceded just 15 times. Recently, however, a “significant shift” has occurred, and they’ve now conceded 21 goals in their last 13 league matches. If they are to retain their crown, they’ll need to recover their “steely edge”.
Osaka is also rare among athletes in displaying a “propensity for deep thought”, said Simon Briggs in The Daily Telegraph. During lockdown, she “used her time away from the game to consider her role in society” – and became a vocal supporter of Black Lives Matter. In each of her seven rounds at Flushing Meadows, she wore a different customised face mask featuring the name of a victim of “police brutality or racism in the US”: her coach, Wim Fissette, said it gave her extra motivation to win. In claiming her third major title, the young star has shown beyond doubt “that politics and sport can mix successfully”.
Cricket: England’s “miraculous” win
said Tumaini Carayol in The Guardian – and worryingly for her opponents, she is likely to get better. She’s still learning how to play on grass and clay courts, and how to maintain her form across several tournaments. Once she does so, a “sustained period” of dominance looks inevitable.
Even so, Australia looked set for a comfortable victory when Aaron Finch (73) and Marnus Labuschagne (48) took them to 144 for two, said Ali Martin in The Guardian. But it was at this point that Morgan turned to his two key pace bowlers – Woakes and Jofra Archer – and was sensationally “rewarded with a game-breaking burst of four wickets in 21 balls”. After this “jaw-dropping intervention”, Sam Curran and Rashid skilfully subdued the tail, and Australia finished 24 runs short. The last time England “lost a bilateral one-day series at home” was five years ago, said Scyld Berry in The Daily Telegraph. Thanks to this “miraculous victory”, they have a chance of keeping the streak going.