Lifestyle
Britain’s Emma Raducanu beaten by second seed Aryna Sabalenka
Britain’s Emma Raducanu was beaten in straight sets by Belarusian world number two Aryna Sabalenka in the third round at Indian Wells.
Raducanu, who reached the fourth round in California last year, lost 6-3 7-5 to two-time major winner Sabalenka as she continues her comeback.
The 21-year-old, ranked 250 in the world, was a wildcard at the tournament following an injury-disrupted 2023.
“It was a good success, I would say,” Raducanu said of her week.
“I think I have handled myself a lot better on the match court. I was a lot more positive and hungry to play, and that showed I think in the tennis that I did play.”
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Norrie beaten by Monfils at Indian Wells
Raducanu’s second-round victory over Dayana Yastremska, who retired with illness, was the first time the English player had recorded back-to-back wins since successfully coming through three in a row at Indian Wells 12 months ago.
The shock 2021 US Open champion made her return to the tour in January following an eight-month absence, during which she had operations on both of her wrists and surgery on her ankle.
She said she was “not too concerned” about recent results – having won just three matches in the four tournaments she had played before Indian Wells – as the priority this year is to develop her game.
Testing herself against Sabalenka, who successfully defended her Australian Open title in January, Raducanu will be pleased with the progress she showed.
A single break of serve in the sixth game was enough for Sabalenka to take the first set, but only after Raducanu dismissed two set points on serve before putting her opponent under pressure with three break points as she served for the set.
Sabalenka moved a step closer to victory by claiming the first break five games into set two.
Raducanu produced an immediate response to stay in contention and continued to trouble the second seed by creating a break point after holding serve to lead 4-3.
Sabalenka struck what proved to be the decisive blow when she broke for a 6-5 lead, eventually serving out the contest with her fourth match point after Raducanu again missed three break points as she fought hard until the end.
The Belarusian will next play American Emma Navarro, who beat Elina Svitolina of Ukraine 6-1 4-6 6-3.
What can we expect from Raducanu in 2024?
American third seed Coco Gauff defeated Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-2 7-6 (7-5) and the US Open champion will play Elise Mertens in the last 16.
Belgian Mertens progressed with a 7-5 6-4 victory against Japan’s four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.
Maria Sakkari, of Greece, beat France’s Caroline Garcia 6-3 6-4, while Russian Daria Kasatkina beat American Sloane Stephens 2-6 6-4 6-4 and China’s Yue Yuan was a 1-6 6-4 7-6 (7-2) winner against American Caroline Dolehide.
Lifestyle
Revealed: Alex Eala revealed Greatest lesson she learned from Rafael Nadal
LITERALLY living inside the Rafa Nadal Tennis Academy in Mallorca, Spain for three years and counting, Filipina ace Alex Eala observed firsthand how tennis champions are made.
In fact, in some way, the 15-year-old sees herself treading the same ground and facing the same challenges as World No. 2 Rafael Nadal himself, who again bagged another Slam in his pocket today, after defeating World No. 1 Novak Djokovic in straight sets, in the French Open tournament.
It also helped, too, that she literally sees him on the court.
“Oftentimes, he plays beside me or on the court next to me. It’s so inspiring, even if you’re just watching him play from afar, you can learn a lot,” Eala said during a virtual press conference with the Philippine media on Sunday night.
Aside from being an oustanding athlete and tennis coach, she also considers the 34-year-old Nadal as an inspiring mentor.
“One of the biggest things I can take away from Rafa is his humility. [He’s] so grounded. He’s achieved more than I can dream of, and the fact that he’s achieved so much and he’s still very nice to everyone here, so down-to-earth, it’s very admirable for him,” she said.
It’s from him that Alex takes inspiration in celebrating her success in a very modest way. Just last Friday, she made the whole country proud after a gallant semifinals finish in her French Open stint.
Eala lost to Elsa Jacquemot, conceding the home ground to the French netter, 6-3, 6-2
Entertainment
Austin Butler reflects on Paul McCartney’s house party with Taylor Swift
Austin Butler just shared the details of his wild night at Paul McCartney’s house party.
The star-studded affair was not only the most “insane” time Butler’s had in a while, but it was the most glamorous, being surrounded by his childhood icons and legendary music artists like Meryl Streep and Bruce Springsteen.
Butler, 32, reflected on the experience while speaking with Jimmy Kimmel, who was also lucky enough to be at the party. During the June 17 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live, the two gushed about having last seen each other at McCartney’s house.
“Last time I saw you was at maybe the craziest party I’ve ever been to in my whole life,” Kimmel, 56, admitted before Butler agreed: “That was insane.”
Kimmel noted: “It was like a party where Tom Hanks is going: ‘Oh my God, can you believe who’s here?!’”
Emblem rockers like Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, and Ringo Starr graced McCartney’s home, leaving Hollywood’s elite to mingle with music royalty, the pair said. Even Taylor Swift was there, according to Butler and Kimmel.
The Elvisstar said the “Anti-Hero” singer wasn’t a normal guest, she was the DJ. “Yeah, she was DJing at one point,” Butler told Kimmel, who then quipped about how Swift isn’t booked and busy enough, she must oversee the music for McCartney’s party, too.
While Swift’s appearance may have been cause for celebration among some of the other guests, Butler confessed a different idol sent him into complete awe. He couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Meryl Streep in the same room as him.
“She’s just the greatest. I felt like, you know in high school when you have a crush on somebody and they’re across the room and you don’t really know how to say hello to them?” he said. “That’s how it was. I saw her there and I couldn’t believe I was in the same room.”
Too star-struck to approach the It’s Complicatedlead himself, Butler headed into McCartney’s kitchen to bide his time and eat some vegan pizza. Thankfully, his friend offered to introduce him and Streep.
“I couldn’t believe I was meeting Meryl Streep with Paul McCartney’s vegan pizza in my mouth,” Butler confessed.
He was then pulled into a circle of people he couldn’t pass the opportunity to spend time with. Butler was invited to “have tacos with Snoop Dogg and Robert De Niro.”
“I dropped everything I was doing and I was there in a heartbeat,” he told Kimmel.
Another crazy conversation Butler had was with Bruce Springsteen. The 74-year-old recounted a time when he was fearless, hopping the fence at Graceland to sing Elvis Presley a song.
Butler had heard rumors that Springsteen had done that but wasn’t sure it was true until he confirmed. Of course, Presley wasn’t there when Springsteen approached his front door.
Entertainment
Paige Spiranac gives hack for golfers with big boobs as she shares video of her swing in slow motion
PAIGE SPIRANAC gave fans a hack for golfers with big boobs and shared slow motion video. The American has become a popular sports influencer since she stopped competing in 2017.
She has since carved out a successful career on social media with over 4million Instagram followers.
In a recent post on X, Paige gave tips for players on the course who have bigger busts.
She wrote: “I’ve been doing these slow mo videos and in all seriousness it’s wild seeing what my chest has to do through the swing so my arms can clear lol I can totally understand why women with larger chests who pick up the game feel stuck and uncomfortable.
“My tip is under on the right arm and over the chest on the left at set up. Also stand a little farther away from the ball!”
Paige had just a brief year playing career but is now making huge amounts through social media.
Research from Vegas Insider suggests the 31-year-old earns as much as FOUR TIMES more per post than Scottie Scheffler.
The study estimates that Paige earns between $8,477 (£6,692) to $12,716 (£10,000) per post.
Scheffler, on the other hand, earns $2,000 (£1,578) to $3,000 (£2,368) per post.
Paige is also now inviting followers to join her on Passes, where her memberships run from £4 to £80 a month.
She announced the news on Instagram alongside some trademark racy photos.
A glimpse inside Paige Spiranac’s glamorous life…
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