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Fourth seed Coco Gauff came from a set and a break down to beat Paula Badosa to reach her first China Open final.

The 20-year-old American dug deep to come through 4-6 6-4 6-2.

Spaniard Badosa, ranked 19th in the world but a former world number two, had looked in a good position when she served at 4-3 up in the second set.

But Gauff broke and rattled off the next four games to set up a decider, eventually wrapping up victory in two hours and 21 minutes.

She will face either unseeded Czech player Karolina Muchova or home favourite and fifth seed Qinwen Zheng in the final.

Badosa, who was as low as 140th in the world rankings in May, came into the semi-final meeting on a good run of form in Beijing which included victory over second seed and US Open finalist Jessica Pegula in the last 16.

And she took advantage of Gauff’s inconsistencies, particularly on her serve which produced 11 double faults, to win the opening set and break in the first game of the second.

Gauff is working with new coach Matt Daly after ending her partnership with Brad Gilbert last month following her fourth-round exit at the US Open, where she was defending her title.

She saved four break points to avoid going 4-1 down in the second set and from then the momentum was with the American, who regained her composure as Badosa dropped her first set of the week.

Gauff broke three times in the decider to seal the win as she bids to add to her only title of the year so far from Auckland in January.

“I tried to stay focused, it was tough but mentally I just tried to reset,” she said.

The Swifties have decided to become Caitlin Clark fans after an old tweet of the Indiana guard resurfaced.

The now-viral tweet from Clark was posted following Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship going public.

“Taylor Swift welcome to the good side,” Clark wrote in a post on X with the hashtag “Chiefs Kingdom.”

Clark has expressed her loyalty to the Kansas City Chiefs as she has called herself a lifelong fan of the franchise.

The Swifties have taken Clark’s tweet and reposted it through several fan accounts on social media in the last 24 hours.

The sudden buzz was sparked after Reese released her latest podcast episode with special guest, Kayla Nicole.

Nicole is the ex-girlfriend of Kelce. On the Unapologetically Angel Podcast, Nicole spoke about her prior romance with the Chiefs tight end and how their relationship has changed since he started dating the “Karma” singer.

“We’ve seen each other in public spaces before, but it’s — I think that we’re both aware of the nature of his new situation that there’s just no room really for us to communicate or acknowledge each other publicly without it being spun into something crazy,” Nicole said.

Nicole and Kelce dated for five years until they broke up in 2022. Since Swift and Kelce started dating the previous year, Nicole revealed she’s received hate.

“I would be lying if I said that that level of hate and just, like, online chaos doesn’t impact me,” Nicole said. “It does, even to this day. You can go to my most recent post, and it will be people debating each other why I am worthless, and I’ll never be a talented person and I have no career.”

Angel Reese

After the interview was released, the Swift Army immediately criticized Reese for hosting Nicole on her latest podcast episode. However, Reese was quick to respond to the criticism via her own social media.

“hating pays too,” she wrote in a post on X.

In response to Reese’s latest interview with Nicole, Swifties have dubbed Clark as the winner of the rivalry between herself and the Chicago Sky rookie.

Clark and Reese have been pitted against each other since the two were in college. Clark was the leading lady at Iowa and Reese was the same for LSU when the two programs faced off in the 2023 NCAA women’s basketball championship.

Since then, Clark and Reese were the most notable rookies people were rooting to win Rookie of the Year. After Reese sustained an injury during the latter half of the season, it became clear Clark would win the accolade.

NFL teams are going to want Angel Reese on their sidelines once they see this impressive stat about her support.

Chicago Sky superstar Angel Reese has leaned into her NFL fandom during this WNBA offseason.

The 22-year-old former LSU Tigers standout has attended NFL games in four consecutive weeks. Three weekends ago, Reese was present at the San Francisco 49ers vs. Los Angeles Rams game in Los Angeles. Two weekends ago, she attended the game between her hometown Baltimore Ravens team and the Buffalo Bills (where she was given impressive praise from Baltimore safety Marlon Humphery). And the “Chi Barbie” was at the Chicago Bears game against the Carolina Panthers last weekend.

Reese kept the train rolling by being at Baltimore’s game against the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

Baltimore emerged with a hard-fought 30-23 win over Washington with Reese watching. And after the game, an intriguing note about Reese’s NFL fandom was made apparent on social media.

Angel Reese

The Sporting News’ X account posted a photo of the scores at three of the four NFL games Reese has been to, showing that the team she supported (the Ravens in two of the games and the Chicago Bears in the third) at every one has won.

The aforementioned 49ers vs. Rams game isn’t included because she didn’t seem to be favoring either of the two teams. Therefore, Reese seems to be a good luck charm for her favorite squads.

Despite making her Baltimore allegiance clear, Reese also showed love to Washington Commanders star quarterback Jayden Daniels (both of whom went to LSU) and took a selfie video with Daniels’ mom.

While the Chicago Bears are on bye next week, perhaps we’ll see Reese try to keep her winning streak of support alive when the Ravens play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next Monday.

After wrapping up a rookie season to remember with the Chicago Sky, Angel Reese has been embracing her love for the NFL.

Growing up in Randallstown, Maryland, just 30 minutes from Baltimore, it’s no surprise that she’s a big Ravens fan. But recently, Reese has been expanding her football fandom. In Week 5, the WNBA star was spotted at Soldier Field, cheering on the team in her new city, the Chicago Bears.

This Sunday in Week 6, Reese returned back to Baltimore to root on her hometown Ravens against the Washington Commanders. She was wearing her purple jersey on the sideline when she ran into the mother of Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.

The two snapped a selfie, which Reese later shared on her Instagram story.

While Reese was at the game to support her Ravens, she also admitted she was there to cheer on the Commanders’ rookie star. Reese and Daniels share a connection from the two years they spent at LSU together.

“I’M HERE FOR THE RAVENS OF COURSE BUT WE HERE FOR 5 💋,” she captioned the post.

Just like Reese, Daniels is thriving in his rookie season. Both were drafted in the top seven of their respective drafts and have provided a major boost to their teams.

Reese averaged 13.6 points, a WNBA-lead 13.1 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game in 2024.

On the other hand, before Sunday’s game, Daniels had already accumulated 1,135 passing yards and four touchdowns in the air while rushing for 300 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

Angel Reese is no stranger to the spotlight.

The Chicago Sky rookie was thrust into superstardom during her time at LSU and has blossomed into an even bigger star since entering the WNBA. And while her Sky squad didn’t make the playoffs, Reese is still managing to generate a ton of discussion about her and her “Unapologetically Angel” podcast on Thursday, despite it being the same day as Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.

Thursday’s podcast episode featured Kayla Nicole, who is most known for being the ex-girlfriend of NFL star Travis Kelce (who is currently dating pop icon Taylor Swift).

One comment Nicole made about Kelce when speaking to Reese made major waves on social media — albeit not in a good way.

“I know there was a rumor that they were saying that you stopped messing with [Travis] at one point because [they were splitting bills 50/50]?” Reese asked Nicole. “Remember they were saying that you said he was cheap? What was the tea on that?”

“Do I look like anybody that would split anything?” Nicole responded. “So yeah, that was ridiculous. But he addressed that too, though… I don’t even know why people, how that even became a thing. That was never an issue in our relationship, but it was definitely a rumor on the internet.”

Angel Reese

While Taylor Swift’s name was never mentioned in this clip, her fanbase seemed to take issue with what Nicole said.

““Do I look like a girl that would go 50/50 with anybody” holy BRAIN ROT 🤣💀 shorty think she the catch when her man was Travis Kelce and turned around and got TAYLOR SWIFT 😭😭,” one X user wrote.

Another fan added, “Travis kelce made the right decision,” referencing Kelce now dating Swift.

“Bro turned around and bagged a talented billionaire and here you are still publicly commenting on a cooked relationship. Nooticing,” noted a third.

Clearly Swifties want Nicole to move on from talking about Kelce already.

The brace is off and Chi Barbie, Bayou Barbie, Baltimore Barbie, or whatever nickname Angel Reese wants to go by, is in full offseason mode.

Not that it stopped the Chicago Sky All-Star from enjoying her time off with her silly dance moves, her NSFW shirt, or her lucky NFL winning-streak outings in the first place.

The first thing the 22-year-old did when she ditched the hand brace was get a swanky nails makeover with all the glitz and glam you’d expect from Reese. Then she dropped her first picture with her left hand not hiding behind a designer bag in a month. She didn’t hide much else, either.

That definitely a bootylicious pic if there ever was one from Reese.

She also rocked the booty shorts with some boots with the fur. While still had the Louis Vuitton bag, Reese didn’t hide the hand this time around.

Reese also posted a bunch of waist-up selifes striking a pose on IG.

Reese had the surgery on her left wrist back on September 10. That’s a month she wore the brace.

The basketball star finished her rookie season averaging a double-double of 13.6 points and 13.1 points per game. She still has a few months off before joining her WNBA sisters in the new Unrivaled league in January in Miami.

Until then, expect a full on Barbie blitz of fun from Reese.

Novak Djokovic now has the best winning percentage for ATP Masters 1000 events as he has surpassed Rafael Nadal following his third-round win at the Shanghai Masters.

Rafael nadal and Novak Djokovic

The 24-time Grand Slam winner – already the record-holder for most ATP Masters 1000 titles with 40 – brushed Flavio Cobolli aside 6-1, 6-2 to book his place in the last 16 of the hard-court tournament.

The win was Djokovic’s 406th in Masters 1000 events and he edged past Nadal in terms of highest winning percentage as he now sits on 82.02% with Nadal on 82.00%.

Djokovic is also within striking distance of another Nadal record at Masters tournaments as the Spaniard holds the all-time record for most main draw wins with 410 while he has 90 defeats.

The Serbian has a 406-89 win-loss record while the retired Roger Federer is a distant third.

Rafael Nadal 

The 10 Players With Most Masters 1000 Match Wins:

1. Rafael Nadal – 410
2. Novak Djokovic – 406
3. Roger Federer – 381
4. Andy Murray – 230
5. Andre Agassi – 209
6. Tomas Berdych – 191
7. Pete Sampras – 190
8. David Ferrer – 189
9. Stan Wawrinka – 165
10. Andy Roddick – 157

Djokovic will look to move to 407 wins when he takes on Roman Safiullin in the fourth round after the Russian upset 17th seed Frances Tiafoe 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (7-5).

The Cobolli clash was only Djokovic’s second match on the ATP Tour since he was stunned in the third round of the US Open by Alexei Popyrin.

“From the beginning I had a clear game plan of what I needed to do, staying aggressive and trying to use every short ball to take the initiative in the point,” the former world No 1 said. “Cobolli was evidently exhausted after last night’s match [against Stan Wawrinka]. I think that has taken a toll, physically, on him today.

“I haven’t played too many matches, I think the positive in that is that I’m fresh, so I am happy to play every day [or] as long as it takes.”

Rafael nadal and Novak Djokovic

The Serbian took his record for the 2024 season to 34-8 while he has also closed the gap to seventh-placed Andrey Rublev in the Race For Turin with only the top eight qualifying.

Djokovic is currently eighth in the standings for the ATP Finals, but he is now only 220 points behind Rublev – who lost in the second round in Shanghai – with the sixth-placed Casper Ruud another 225 ahead.

This year, Glamour honors Serena Williams, Taraji P. Henson, Allyson Felix and Tina Knowles with its annual Women of the Year awards.

Serena Williams, Tina Knowles and Taraji P. Henson

What do Serena Williams, Taraji P. Henson, Tina Knowles, Allyson Felix and activist Kaitlyn Joshua have in common? Beyond their notoriety, they are all honorees in Glamour’s Women of the Year issue for 2024.

This week, the publication released the honorees featured in its annual list, highlighting women across industries — including four Black women. Each receiving exclusive covers and profiles, Glamour celebrated actress Henson who, beyond her stellar performance in “The Color Purple” and amplifying the dangers of Project 2025, went viral last year for speaking on the pay inequalities Black women face in Hollywood.

“I think I was triggered,” Henson told Glamour, reflecting on her viral moment. “This big movie is coming out, and I am Taraji P. Henson, and I have this incredible track record and all this work that I’ve done, and people are putting it all together, and people are telling you, ‘You’re so amazing!’ And it’s like, Yeah, but I still am struggling with the same thing I was years ago.”

Though Henson does not consider herself a spokesperson for the matter, her industry peers, like Gabrielle Union, commended the star for her bravery. In addition to her acting career, Henson juggles leading her nonprofit, the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation, a popular haircare line, and production company, TPH Entertainment — and most importantly, finding and protecting her peace.

Serena Williams, Tina Knowles and Taraji P. Henson

Like Henson, Williams, tennis legend, mother, and founder of Wyn Beauty, is trying to juggle it all. For the former tennis star, retirement looks different as she works on her growing beauty brand, partnerships, appearances, and a venture capital fund designed to support female and BIPOC founders while simultaneously raising her two young daughters, Adira and Olympia. In addition to being a businesswoman, Williams is known for her outspoken role in the public discourse about women, especially Black women’s maternal health.

It’s an issue fellow Women of the Year honoree and mother Kaitlyn Joshua can relate to. After experiencing a traumatic miscarriage following the Supreme Court’s abortion ban, Joshua’s decision to share her story led her to become an activist for reproductive justice and a part of the Harris-Walz presidential campaign.

In addition to honoring Williams and Joshua, this year, Glamour crowned the mothers of some of the world’s biggest superstars. Among the matriarchs selected was Tina Knowles, mother of Beyoncé and Solange. Sharing her experience raising two superstars, Knowles revealed that she was very protective of her children stepping into the entertainment industry.

“I started doing the girls’ hair to earn my keep so that I could travel with them because I wanted to protect them — not because I wanted to go and be on planes every day, because there was nothing glamorous about it, but it was to protect my kids,” she told the publication. “The industry can chew you up and spit you out. And I was determined that there were not going to be certain elements around them and that they weren’t going to get eaten up by that. It just became my mission. Those are your kids, and you want to protect them and they need protection.”

Serena Williams, Tina Knowles and Taraji P. Henson

Just as the Cécred chairwoman protected her daughters, she is now protecting her grandbabies as they are being raised in the spotlight. While she enjoys tapping into her inner child when around her grandchildren, she’s very serious about online trolls and critics attacking her family.

“You mess with my grandchildren, though, I’m coming,” she added. “Because they’re minors, and they didn’t ask to be in this. I have gotten [online] and let people have a piece of my mind several times, but I take a lot and then there’s certain things that I just have to draw the line on.”

This year’s Women of the Year honorees will be further celebrated at the Glamour Women of the Year gathering on October 8.

Rare and complicated moments the world number 1 is going through in recent weeks. Iga Swiatek has been withdrawing from each tournament after the US Open, missing almost the entire Asian tour. Now, the Polish player has announced that she will also not participate in the upcoming Wuhan WTA (October 7-13). The reason seems very clear after today Iga announced her separation from Tomasz Wiktorowski, the coach she had been working with for the past three successful years. “After a significant change in my sports team, I decided to withdraw from the Wuhan tournament. I am very sorry for the fans in China and for those who were expecting to see me play, but I hope they understand that I need some time,” said Iga, who is taking some time off while changes are happening in her team.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Swiatek explica el motivo por el que se baja del torneo de Wuhan

Iga Swiatek parted ways with her coach before withdrawing from the Wuhan WTA 1000.

After a strong start to the year, the wheels are starting to come off for World No. 1 Iga Swiatek. Earlier today, Swiatek announced that she was parting ways with her coach of three seasons Tomas Wiktorowski.

Swiatek announced the decision with a multi-part story on her Instagram. “After 3 years of the greatest achievements in my career, together with my coach Tomasz Wiktorowski we decided to part way. I want to start with a big thank you and appreciating our work together.”

She continued, “Coach Wiktorowski joined my team for three seasons, when I strongly needed changes and a fresh approach to my game. His experience, analytical and strategic attitude and enormous knowledge about tennis helped us to achieve things I’ve never dreamed of only a few months after we started working together.”

She concluded, “Coach, THANK YOU, I wish you all the best. I know that you would like to rest after these three years of hard work and traveling a lot and spending some well deserved time with your loved ones and I hope you’ll get what you need.”

However, Swiatek was not finished breaking news. A few hours later, she withdrew from the Wuhan Open WTA 1000 tournament, which starts on Saturday, October 5.

The tournament shared Swiatek’s statement, “After an important change in my sports team, I decided to withdraw from the tournament in Wuhan. I’m really sorry for fans in China and those who wait to see me play, but I hope you understand that I need some time.”

The decision for Swiatek to withdraw from Wuhan is not surprising. She recently withdrew from the China Open WTA 1000 in Beijing due to “personal reasons.” Earlier this year, Swiatek warned about playing too many tournaments causing injuries.

The success Swiatek and Wiktorowski shared is undeniable. She won 19 of her 22 WTA titles with him as her coach, including this year’s French Open. Swiatek has a record of 54-7 with five singles titles this year.

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