Philippine News

PARIS, France, November 11 ------ Novak Djokovic won the 101st title of his career when he came from behind to beat Lorenzo Musetti 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in the final of the ATP event in Athens on Saturday (Sunday, Manila time).   The Serb is one of just three men to have racked up a century of titles - he still needs two to equal Roger Federer's 103 while Jimmy Connors heads the list with 109.   At 38 years and five months old, the 24-time Grand Slam winner is the oldest tournament

November 10 ------ MERALCO found a gem in Sina Vahedi as the Asian import from Iran led the Bolts past the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots, 85-76, for their first win in the EASL Home and Away Season 3 in Ilagan, Isabela. The 24-year-old star point guard of the Iran national team finished with a team-high 22 points, seven assists, and two rebounds as the Bolts finally broke through the win column after losing their first two games on the road. Import Ismael Romero also had 22 points an

November 10 ------ JUST like the men’s and women’s teams, Alas Pilipinas Girls will also be bound for the world stage soon. The Philippines’ Under-16 girls’ volleyball national team routed Thailand, 25-23, 25-20, 19-25, 25-22, to finish fifth in the 2025 AVC Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship. That top five run in the continental meet landed Alas Girls the last Asian seat in the 2026 FIVB Volleyball Girls’ U17 World Championship in Santiago, Chile from August 5 to 16.

November 10 ------ ZUS Coffee stormed into the knockout quarterfinals of the 2025 PVL Reinforced Conference with a 25-20, 25-22, 24-26, 25-19 victory over Choco Mucho in Candon City. The unbeaten league leaders extended their franchise-best start to 6-0, marking their third playoff appearance in seven conferences. And they did so with a 6-0 match-clinching run from a 19-all deadlock in a nip-and-tuck fourth set. The Thunderbelles nearly melted down in the second set as a Madd

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, November 10 ------ Elena Rybakina capped a flawless week at the WTA Finals by stunning world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, 6-3, 7-6 (0), in the final for her first trophy in the season-ending championships and a record $5.235 million in prize money. The last stop of this season’s WTA Tour kicked off with four different Grand Slam champions in the field, but ultimately went to a player who did not even reach the quarterfinals of a major in 2025 and was the last

MANILA, Philippines, November 9 ------ Gilas plans to open training camp on Nov. 18 and head coach Tim Cone said everyone in the 15-man pool has a shot at making the final 12 roster for the FIBA World Cup Asia qualifying window against Guam at the Calvo Fieldhouse on Nov. 28 and the Blue Eagle Gym on Dec. 1. Cone had previously announced a 16-man pool, but Kai Sotto remains unavailable while recovering from ACL surgery. The other players are Japeth Aguilar, RJ Abarrientos, Ju

SEOUL, South Korea, November 9 ------ Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz will face off in an exhibition match in South Korea in January ahead of the Australian Open, organizers said. Italy's Sinner usurped his rival from Spain as world number one after winning the Paris Masters for the first time. The two best players in men's tennis will meet in the "Hyundai Card Super Match" on January 10 in Incheon, near Seoul. "For domestic tennis fans it will be the very first opportunity

November 8 ------ WILL Justin Brownlee be healthy enough to play for Gilas Pilipinas in the opening window of the FIBA World Cup qualifiers against Guam later this month. The question certainly begs asking amid unconfirmed news that the 37-year-old Gilas naturalized player is down with pneumonia. Brownlee apparently being sick is cited as the reason for his continued stay in the US and failing to suit up for Meralco in the Bolts' first two group games in the EASL Home and Awa

November 8 ------ Jalen Green scored 29 points and sank six 3-pointers in his season debut as the host Phoenix Suns beat the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers 115-102. Devin Booker added 24 points, Grayson Allen produced 18 points and four 3-pointers and Royce O'Neale had 17 points and five threes for the Suns, who made 19 treys, one short of a season high. Phoenix won for the third time in four games. Ivica Zubac amassed a season-high 23 points and 11 rebounds, Cam Christie

November 7 ------ COMPOSURE was once again on full display for Creamline, as it disposed of Nxled in four sets, 20-25, 25-13, 25-16, 25-18, in the 2025 PVL Reinforced Conference on Thursday at Playtime Filoil Centre. Despite again having to deal with skipper Alyssa Valdez playing limited minutes, the Cool Smashers imposed their will against the still-winless Chameleons, with Michele Gumabao leading the charge this time with 13 points on nine attacks, two blocks, and two aces.

November 7 ------ Luka Doncic out-dueled Victor Wembanyama and the Los Angeles Lakers edged San Antonio, 118-116 as the Portland Trail Blazers rallied to hand NBA champions Oklahoma City their first defeat of the season. In the highly anticipated first showdown of the season between Doncic and Wembanyama, Slovenian star Doncic delivered a masterful 35 points, nine rebounds and 13 assists. He added five steals and two blocked shots as the Lakers prevailed in a chaotic finish a

November 7 ------ Woman Grandmaster Janelle Mae Frayna overpowered Woman FIDE Master Batpelden Buyankhishig of Mongolia to boost her title campaign after five rounds in the 6th ASEAN Individual Chess Championships-Gov. Henry Oaminal Cup at the Misamis Occidental Resort and Aquamarine Park in Ozamiz. The second-seeded Frayna was all business from the start, claiming the victory after 38 moves of a Reti Opening against her 13-year-old rival to improve to four points at joint se

AMMAN, Jordan, November 7 ------ Alas Pilipinas girls couldn’t close out down the stretch and fell to Thailand in five sets, 25-23, 15-25, 25-23, 23-25, 8-15, in the 2nd AVC Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship at Prince Hamzah Sports Hall here. The Filipinos are now set to play in the classification phase, where they still have a chance for a fifth-place finish. They face the third seed of Pool E on Friday at 4 p.m. (Philippine time). After taking a 6-4 lead in the fift

MANILA, November 6 ------ Rain or Shine has gained the solo lead in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup. This, as the Elasto Painters remained perfect in a four-game stretch as they fended off Phoenix, 91-80 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. The Fuel Masters actually had a narrow 71-67 lead with more than nine minutes left in the last period, but a 13-0 run turned things around for Rain or Shine, anchored on the attack led by Adrian Nocum, Anton Asistio, and Jhonard Clarito. The Phoe

ATHENS, Greece, November 6 ------ Novak Djokovic battled through a tough opening set before pulling away to defeat Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo, 7-6 (3), 6-1, at the Hellenic Championship, the first top-tier tournament held in Greece in more than 30 years. Both players held their serve under pressure in the first set until Djokovic edged out the tiebreaker. The momentum shifted in the second set, where the top seed broke Tabilo twice and completed the match in just over 90 minute

MANILA, Philippines, November 6 ------ Annie Ramirez is a world champion at last. After dominating the continent at every level, Ramirez finally reigned in the Jiu-Jitsu International Federation World Championships, striking gold in the adult female -57kg division in Bangkok, Thailand. Ramirez, an Asian Games champion, earned a 2-0 win over Sweden’s Astrid Scholin in the final to capture the elusive title. “I’ve been trying to reach this gold since 2021. Last year, I finally

November 6 ------ Alas Pilipinas Girls’ spirited run in the 2nd Asian Women’s U16 Volleyball Championship came to an end after falling to a powerhouse Chinese Taipei side, 14-25, 21-25, 15-25, in the Final Eight round at the Prince Hamzah Sports Hall. Team captain Xyz Rayco once again led the young Filipinas’ offense, finishing with 12 points—all from attacks. Rayco sparked the team’s second-set rally that saw them take a 17-12 lead, but the Philippines could not sustain the

MANILA, November 5 ------ After tallying just its second sweep win in franchise history, Capital1 went on to follow it up with a 25-23, 26-24, 25-19 straight-set triumph over a more established Choco Mucho crew in the 2025 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. Coming from a 25-23, 25-23, 25-21 sweep of Cignal on Friday, the Bella Belen-led squad continued to strike, earning their third win in Pool A to finish third. The

MANILA, Philippines, November 5 ------ Ruelle Canino could be in line as the country’s next Woman Grandmaster. It came to be after the 17-year-old Woman FIDE Master from Cagayan de Oro pulled off the biggest victory of the second round against sixth seed WIM Bach Ngoc Thuy of Vietnam and seized a share of the top spot in the the 6th ASEAN Individual Chess Championships-Gov. Henry Oaminal Cup at the Misamis Occidental Resort and Aquamarine Park in Ozamiz. Canino sparkled in he

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, November 5 ------ Elena Rybakina punched her ticket to the WTA Finals last four with an impressive 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over second-seeded Iga Swiatek in round-robin play in Riyadh. After cruising past Amanda Anisimova in her opener, Rybakina claimed her second win of the week to guarantee herself the top spot in the Serena Williams Group. Also on Monday, Anisimova rallied back from a set and a break down to triumph 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in her all-American bat