Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon Trophy Keeps Him at No. 1. Marketa Vondrousova’s Lifts Her to No. 10 

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after beating Serbia's Novak Djokovic to win the final of the men's singles on day fourteen of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Sunday, July 16, 2023. (AP)
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after beating Serbia's Novak Djokovic to win the final of the men's singles on day fourteen of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Sunday, July 16, 2023. (AP)
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Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon Trophy Keeps Him at No. 1. Marketa Vondrousova’s Lifts Her to No. 10 

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after beating Serbia's Novak Djokovic to win the final of the men's singles on day fourteen of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Sunday, July 16, 2023. (AP)
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after beating Serbia's Novak Djokovic to win the final of the men's singles on day fourteen of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Sunday, July 16, 2023. (AP)

Carlos Alcaraz held onto No. 1 in the ATP rankings on Monday by virtue of his victory over No. 2 Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, and Marketa Vondrousova's first Grand Slam title pushed her all the way up to a career-high No. 10 on the WTA list.

Vondrousova jumped 32 places from No. 42 thanks to her 6-4, 6-4 win against Ons Jabeur in Saturday’s final at the All England Club. Vondrousova, a 24-year-old from the Czech Republic, was the lowest-ranked and first unseeded women's champion at the grass-court major.

Alcaraz's 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 defeat of Djokovic on Sunday marked the third time in the past four major tournaments that the men's title match determined who would be at No. 1.

At last September's US Open, Alcaraz became the first teenager to lead the ATP by beating Casper Ruud in the final. At January's Australian Open, it was Djokovic — who has spent more weeks atop the rankings than anyone in tennis history — who assured himself of being at No. 1 by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Alcaraz, a Spaniard who turned 20 in May, and Djokovic, a 36-year-old from Serbia, have been trading the highest spot this season. Alcaraz now enters his 29th week there.

“He’s proven that he’s the best player in the world, no doubt,” said Djokovic, who had won four consecutive titles at Wimbledon and was seeking a 24th Grand Slam trophy overall.

Iga Swiatek could have relinquished her 15-month hold on the WTA's No. 1 ranking to No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon but remained there Monday.

Swiatek lost in the quarterfinals; Sabalenka lost in the semifinals.

The top seven slots in the women's rankings stayed the same Monday, with 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina remaining at No. 3, followed by Jessica Pegula, Caroline Garcia, Jabeur and Coco Gauff.

Elina Svitolina, who made it all the way to the semifinals just three months after returning to the tour from maternity leave, rose 49 places from No. 76 to No. 27.

The big mover in the men's rankings was Chris Eubanks, a 27-year-old from Atlanta who played college tennis at Georgia Tech. His run at the All England Club allowed Eubanks to go from a career-high No. 43 to a new personal best of No. 31.

Making his Wimbledon debut, Eubanks eliminated No. 5 seed Tsitsipas and No. 12 seed Cam Norrie on the way to his first major quarterfinal before losing to No. 3 Daniil Medvedev.

There were no changes among the first 13 ATP ranking spots.



Iran Participating in World Cup, FIFA President Confirms

FIFA President Gianni Infantino attends an economic conference in Washington. Kent NISHIMURA / AFP
FIFA President Gianni Infantino attends an economic conference in Washington. Kent NISHIMURA / AFP
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Iran Participating in World Cup, FIFA President Confirms

FIFA President Gianni Infantino attends an economic conference in Washington. Kent NISHIMURA / AFP
FIFA President Gianni Infantino attends an economic conference in Washington. Kent NISHIMURA / AFP

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said Wednesday that Iran will "for sure" participate in the 2026 World Cup despite the Middle East war.

"Iran is coming for sure. We hope that by then the situation will be a peaceful situation, that would definitely help," Infantino told an economic conference organized by broadcaster CNBC.

"But Iran has to come, they represent their people, they have qualified, the players want to play," he said of the team's upcoming matches scheduled in the United States in June.

Infantino had made similar comments in March, when he attended an Iran-Costa Rica friendly in Antalya, Türkiye, even though US President Donald Trump had previously suggested that Iranian players might not be "safe" in the United States, said AFP.

Iran is scheduled to play its three Group G matches in the United States -- two in Los Angeles, one in Seattle -- with their base for the tournament in Tucson, Arizona.

- 'Outside of politics' -

Iran's participation in the global tournament being co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico had been thrown into doubt by the conflict launched by the United States and Israel on February 28.

Iran raised the prospect of a "boycott" of the competition before asking FIFA to move its matches from the United States to Mexico, a request the world governing body rejected.

After several weeks of air strikes on Iran and Iranian reprisals against Israel and other countries in the region, a fragile truce came into effect on April 8.

But Tehran has sealed off the strategic Strait of Hormuz and since Monday Washington has imposed a blockade on ships coming from or heading to Iranian ports.

"Sports should be outside of politics," Infantino said on Wednesday.

"If there's nobody else that believes in building bridges and keeping them intact and together, we are doing the job," he said.

The World Cup, the first to feature 48 teams, starts on June 11.


Report: France’s Ekitike Out of World Cup with Ruptured Achilles

 Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike lies injured during the Champions League quarterfinal second leg soccer match between Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain in Liverpool, England, Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (AP)
Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike lies injured during the Champions League quarterfinal second leg soccer match between Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain in Liverpool, England, Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (AP)
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Report: France’s Ekitike Out of World Cup with Ruptured Achilles

 Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike lies injured during the Champions League quarterfinal second leg soccer match between Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain in Liverpool, England, Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (AP)
Liverpool's Hugo Ekitike lies injured during the Champions League quarterfinal second leg soccer match between Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain in Liverpool, England, Tuesday, April 14, 2026. (AP)

France forward Hugo Ekitike suffered a ruptured Achilles during Liverpool's Champions League clash against Paris St Germain on Tuesday and will miss the World Cup, French newspapers Le Parisien ‌and L'Equipe ‌reported on Wednesday.

The ‌23-year-old ⁠pointed to his ⁠Achilles tendon as medical staff attended to him before he was carried off on a stretcher at Anfield, ⁠where Liverpool lost ‌2-0 ‌in their quarter-final second leg, ‌exiting the competition with ‌a 4-0 aggregate defeat.

The French football federation (FFF) was not immediately available for ‌comment.

Ekitike has 17 goals in all competitions this ⁠season ⁠since Liverpool signed him from Eintracht Frankfurt for 69 million pounds ($93.58 million) in July.

The World Cup is being held in the United States, Mexico and Canada from June 11-July 19.


Asia Cup Draw Set for May 9 in Saudi Arabia

A landmark is lit up in the colors of the national flag in Diriyah on the occasion of Saudi National Day. (SPA file)
A landmark is lit up in the colors of the national flag in Diriyah on the occasion of Saudi National Day. (SPA file)
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Asia Cup Draw Set for May 9 in Saudi Arabia

A landmark is lit up in the colors of the national flag in Diriyah on the occasion of Saudi National Day. (SPA file)
A landmark is lit up in the colors of the national flag in Diriyah on the occasion of Saudi National Day. (SPA file)

The draw for the 2027 Asian Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia next month, Asian football officials said on Wednesday, after being postponed when the Middle East war broke out.

The draw was supposed to take place on April 11 in Riyadh, but the event was moved "to ensure the full participation of all key stakeholders and participating member associations", the Asian Football Confederation said.

It will now be held on May 9 at the historic At-Turaif District in Diriyah, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Kuala Lumpur-based federation said.

The 19th edition of the Asian Cup is scheduled to take place from January 7 to February 5 next year, and 23 out of 24 participating nations have been confirmed.

The final berth is to be decided with a Group B tie between Lebanon and Yemen rescheduled to June 4, the AFC said.

Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar are the host cities.

The 24 teams will be divided into six groups of four.