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Gauff and Pegula reach historic all-American Cincinnati final in 56 years | Other Sports News

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Jessica Pegula beat defending champion Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff defeated Sara Bejlek on Saturday to set up the first all-American women’s final at the Cincinnati Open in 56 years.


Pegula rallied from down a break in the third set to get past Swiatek, 7-5, 4-6, 6-4, for her tour-leading 45th win this year. It was the 300th tour-level victory of Pegula’s career, and it snapped Swiatek’s 10-match winning streak.


Pegula’s best finish in Cincinnati came in 2024, when she lost to Aryna Sabalenka in the final.


Gauff, the 2023 champion, beat Bejlek, 6-4, 6-1. The 20-year-old Czech upset top seed Aryna Sabalenka and Madison Keys en route to the semis.

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The last time two American women played in the Cincinnati final was in 1970, when Rosie Casals beat Nancy Richey.


“I’m always rooting for American tennis,” Pegula said. “I like to play someone that I get along with and have a lot of respect for, like Coco. I didn’t realize it was so long since we’ve had a double American final. The crowd can just go out there and enjoy the match.” 
Tiafoe and Fils to meet in men’s final 
On the men’s side, Frances Tiafoe defeated fellow American Brandon Nakashima, 7-5, 6-3, to set up a final against Arthur Fils of France.


It will be the first time two Black players have met in an ATP Masters 1000 final.

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Sunday’s winner will be the third Black man to win a Masters 1000 title, joining Ben Shelton, who won Canada twice, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who won Paris in 2008 and Canada in 2014.


“It’s awesome for, you know, for a bunch of kids looking up to us and want to be in our position,” Tiafoe said. “That’s what it’s about. It’s always nice to be a part of history. Hopefully we can have more big finals like this having people of color, and I’m super pumped about it.” 
Tiafoe reached the 2024 final in Cincinnati, losing to Jannik Sinner in three sets.


Fils defeated 10th-ranked Flavio Cobolli, 6-3, 6-4, on Saturday. He became the second French player to reach the Cincinnati final, joining Guy Forget in 1991.


The 22-year-old beat Tiafoe in three sets last year in Miami, in their only prior meeting.

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“Frances is Frances,” Fils said. “I mean, whenever he has to show up on the big stage that’s where he plays his best. It’s going to be a nice final to play against an American, so the crowd’s going to be against me, but I think I’m going to enjoy it.

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Raphinha talks Spiderman celebration, Barcelona’s No. 9 hunt after Elche win

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Barcelona captain Raphinha faced the media after scoring twice in an impressive 5-0 win for Hansi Flick’s side against Elche on Sunday night.

The Spanish champions opened up their campaign in style, with Raphinha opening the scoring from the penalty spot and then producing a Spiderman celebration – leading many to think about Julian Alvarez.

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Raphinha was quizzed on his celebration after the game but insisted it was for his son and not the Atletico forward.

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“The Spiderman? It’s for my son , and he asked me to make it because he really likes it now,” he said after the game.

After seeing Barcelona win 5-0, Raphinha was also asked if Barcelona really need a No. 9 and answered: “This is up to the president, Deco, and the manager. We’ll do whatever he says with determination. We have the ability to play in any position.”

Barcelona are still believed to be keen to sign a new striker before the transfer window closes.

Yet Flick’s side showed on Sunday that goalscoring is not a problem with the likes of Raphinha, Karim Adeyemi, Anthony Gordon, Fermin Lopez and Lamine Yamal around.

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BGMS S5 Super Weekend 1: Overall standings and highlights

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The Super Weekend 1 of the BGMI Masters Series (BGMS) Season 5 concluded on August 23, 2026. The top eight teams have advanced to the Super Weekend 2. Team Tamilas secured first place in the overall standings with 267 points and two Chicken Dinners in the first weekend. The squad showed its gameplay consistency across the three days of the stage and ended up in the prime spot.

Wyld Fangs came second with 229 points and one Chicken Dinner. The Sensei-led squad saw an average start to the first weekend but managed to improve its gameplay in the last 12 games and jumped to the second rank on the scoreboard. Team Soul also had a fantastic run, as the Nakul-led lineup ranked third with 227 points, including 113 kills.


Overall standings of BGMS S5 Super Weekend 1

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  1. Team Tamilas – 268 points
  2. Wyld Fangs – 229 points
  3. Team Soul – 227 points
  4. Nebula Esports – 218 points
  5. Elite Nova – 200 points
  6. Myth Official – 197 points
  7. Team Outrage – 189 points
  8. GodLike Esports – 185 points
  9. Apex Gaming – 181 points
  10. Gladiators Esports – 176 points
  11. Orangutan – 174 points
  12. Reckoning Esports – 173 points
  13. Genesis Esports – 166 points
  14. Rapid Chaos – 156 points
  15. Zero Ark – 150 points
  16. Epigrotive Gaming – 124 points

Nebula Esports, led by Aadi, ended up in fourth place with 218 points at the end of the BGMS Super Weekend 1. The team faltered a bit on Day 3.

Elite Nova came fifth with 200 points and two Chicken Dinners. Myth Esports secured the sixth position with 197 points despite winning four Chicken Dinners. Team Outrage, led by Omega, came seventh with 189 points, including 98 eliminations.

GodLike saw a nice start to the BGMS Super Weekend 1 but stumbled subsequently. Still, the Manya-led lineup improved its performance and secured 185 points by the time the phase ended. These eight teams have advanced to the Super Weekend 2.

Team Apex Gaming, led by Jelly, ended up in ninth place with 181 points and two Chicken Dinners. The team struggled on the last day and failed to qualify for the next Super Weekend from this stage. Gladiators Esports was inconsistent, as it finished 10th with 176 points and three Chicken Dinners.

Orangutan and Reckoning were 11th and 12th with 174 and 173 points, respectively. Genesis ranked 13th with 166 points. Rapid Chaos came 14th with 156 points. Zero Ark and Epigrotive were in the bottom two spots with 150 and 124 points, respectively, when the BGMS Super Weekend 1 ended.

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