Top-seeded teenager Tokito Oda added to his growing list of impressive feats with a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (13-11) triumph over Argentina's Gustavo Fernandez in the US Open men's wheelchair singles final.
Oda's victory ― which he clinched with a forehand winner after a Fernandez serve ― gave the 19-year-old his third Grand Slam title of 2025. And at the same time on Saturday, September 6, in New York, World No 1 Oda secured what's known in tennis parlance as a career Grand Slam.
Before his 20th birthday, he has now won each of the four Grand Slam tournaments. Indeed, it's a sensational feat. He also triumphed at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, and is the youngest player to win the four Grand Slam titles and the Paralympic tournament.
And Oda's celebration after defeating Fernandez left no doubt that it's a big deal to him.
"He roared, he howled, he screamed," Sports Hochi reported. "When his forehand return clinched match point, Oda exploded with joy."
'I'm Really Happy,' Tokito Oda Says
Already, the Aichi Prefecture native has collected singles titles at the French Open (2023-25), the Australian Open (2024) and Wimbledon (2023, '25). And now the US Open is his latest conquest
"It's been exactly one year since the Paralympics ended, and I didn't have a match where I felt I had surpassed [the Paralympics]," Oda said during the trophy presentation ceremony in New York, tennis365.net reported. "Now, I feel like I've truly surpassed that match, and I'm really happy."
Britain's Alfie Hewett, who is ranked No 2 in the world (trailing only Oda), said his younger rival has energized the sport of wheelchair tennis.
"He's brought a new energy and a new sort of style to wheelchair tennis and we've all had to adapt," the 27-year-old Hewett said, according to Agence France-Presse.
Hewett added, "He's pushed a lot of us to be better."
Additional Insights on Tokito Oda
Oda owns a 7-1 record against four-time US Open champ Hewett in their last eight singles matches. He's the recognized top star now. (Japanese compatriot Shingo Kunieda was the dominant force in the sport before his retirement in 2023.)
So what's the essence of Oda's greatness?
Retired French wheelchair tennis player Stephane Houdet offered a revealing portrait of what makes Oda such a difficult player to compete against.
"His game is all about early ball reception and heavy spin," Houdet, a former world No 1, was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse. "He serves at 175-180 kph (about 109-112 mph) — it's incredibly impressive."
Kamiji Beats Li in the Women's Wheelchair Final
Also Saturday, in the women's wheelchair singles final, top-seeded Yui Kamiji rebounded from a poor start against Chinese No 3 seed Xiaohui Li, winning 0-6, 6-1, 6-3.
Kamiji, 31, previously won US Open singles titles in 2014 and 2017.
Saturday's victory clinched Kamiji's 11th career Grand Slam singles crown. In singles play, she's had her greatest success at the French Open, capturing five titles in Paris. She's also a prolific winner in doubles competition, having won each of the Grand Slam events at least four times.
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- Tokito Oda Rallies to Win His 2nd Wimbledon Singles Title
- [JAPAN SPORTS NOTEBOOK] Yui Kamiji Snaps Grand Slam Singles Title Drought
Volleyball
Japan Falls to Turkey in the Women's World Championship Semifinals
In Bangkok, Turkey defeated Japan 16-25, 25-17, 25-18, 27-25 in the 2025 FIVB Women's Volleyball World Championship semifinals on Saturday, September 6.
Turkey advanced to the final for the first time.
Japan, the world champion in 1962, 1967 and 1970, will meet Brazil in Sunday's third-place match. Captain Mayu Ishikawa and her teammates will vie for Japan's first world championship medal since 201, when it claimed the bronze.
"We lost the match today, but we still have a chance to get a medal," Ishikawa said, according to Volleyball World. "Unfortunately, at the end of the sets we couldn't score the points we needed to win, and that's an area where we need to improve for tomorrow."
Against Turkey, outside hitter Yukiko Wada had a team-best 22 points, including 19 attack points, and Ishikawa finished with 19.
Turkey chalked up 12 blocks, exactly twice as many as Japan.
Cuban-born standout Melissa Vargas, a dominant 194-cm presence on the frontline, led Turkey with 28 points, including 26 kills.
In Game 4, Yoshino Sato tied it at 25-25 on a strong spike as Japan staved off match point. But Turkey closed out the match by scoring the final two points.
Italy advanced to the title match by beating Brazil 22-25, 25-22, 28-30, 25-22, 15-13 in the other semifinal.
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Swimming
Paralympic Legend Narita Dies at 55
Mayumi Narita, affectionately known as "The Queen of the Water," died on Friday, September 5 in Kawasaki. She was 55.
The cause of death was intrahepatic bile duct cancer, according to published reports.
Narita made her Paralympic debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games and won a pair of freestyle gold medals.
In 2000, she grabbed six golds at the Sydney Paralympics, ranging from backstroke and freestyle to individual medley and freestyle relay.
The Kawasaki native collected seven gold medals at the 2004 Athens Paralympics, reminding the world of her all-around excellence as a swimmer. In Greece, she set six world records and seven Paralympic records.
Narita made her final Paralympic appearance at the Tokyo Games in 2021. She amassed 20 medals (15 gold, three silver, two bronze) in her outstanding Paralympic career.
In a prestigious honor celebrating her long list of achievements in the pool, the International Paralympic Committee presented its Best Female Athlete award to Narita in 2005.
Narita became paralyzed in her lower body at age 13 due to spinal cord inflammation, and she used a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
She became involved in swimming at the age of 23, later telling media outlets that friends encouraged her to participate.
"Sports have helped me to grow. People often tell me that seeing me swim encourages them, and I gain strength when I see them cheer," Narita said in 2016, according to SwimSwam.com. "Sports have an amazing power that cannot be expressed in words."
Baseball
Mets Send Struggling Senga to Triple-A Syracuse
New York Mets right-hander Kodai Senga has not been pitching up to his or the team's expectations since he returned to the starting rotation on July 11.
As a result, Senga will be sent down to the Triple-A Syracuse Mets.
The MLB club made the announcement on Friday, September 5.
After sustaining a hamstring injury on June 12 on a play at first base, Senga was sidelined for a month. He's made eight starts since mid-July, and in that span, he has a 6.56 ERA in 35⅔ innings, allowing 39 hits, including eight home runs, and walking 22 batters.
Senga isn't pleased with the quality of his post-injury pitching performances.
"There's definitely some frustration," Senga was quoted as saying by SportsNet New York (SNY) on August 31 after giving up seven hits and five runs in 4⅔ innings against the Miami Marlins. "I've never experienced something like this for this extended period of time."
He continued: "There's some confusion [about] why I'm not able to perform. But at the same time, when I'm able to prepare well and [be] able to do what I'm capable of out there, I know that I'm able to put up a good performance."
Mendoza Outlines Plan for Senga
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza addressed the plan for Senga's minor league assignment before the team's game on Friday against the Cincinnati Reds.
"The plan is for him to go and throw a couple of [bullpen sessions] before we put him in a game," Mendoza said, according to SNY. "So we're looking at potentially a game over next weekend. [And] so for him to work on his mechanics, we got to get him back in sync."
Senga, who is in the third year of a five-year contract with the Mets, had a 12-7 record with a 2.98 ERA in 2023. He was limited to one game in the 2024 season due to multiple injuries.
This season, he's 7-6 with a 3.02 ERA in 22 starts.
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Murakami Continues Power Tear for the Lowly Swallows
Munetaka Murakami bashed a fourth-inning grand slam in the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' 12-1 rout of the Yomiuri Giants on Thursday, September 4 in Gifu.
A day later, Murakami smacked a three-run homer in the ninth inning off Yokohama DeNA BayStars reliever Taisei Irie. The Swallows' late rally fell short, as they dropped the Central League series opener, 7-6, at Yokohama Stadium.
Yakult ended the day with NPB's worst record (44-69-6).
Murakami has 18 home runs in only 35 games (through Friday) and 100 total bases in his injury-shortened season. He's batting .303.
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Soccer
Mito Hollyhock Atop the J2 Standings
Entering September, Mito Hollyhock are in first place for the 2025 season in the 20-team J.League second division. Manager Naoki Mori's squad has 15 wins, eight draws and five defeats (53 points).
Veteran forward Arata Watanabe is Hollyhock's top playmaker. He has 13 goals and six assists, team-high totals in both categories, this season.
JEF United Chiba (15-6-7) and V-Varen Nagasaki (14-9-5) both have the second-most points (51).
In 2024, Mito finished in 15th place.
Briefly…
The Asia League Ice Hockey's 2025-26 season got underway on Saturday, September 6. In the day's only game, the Yokohama Grits defeated the visiting Tohoku Free Blades 1-0. Grits newcomer Tyler Rockwell, a Michigan Tech University alum, scored the lone goal in the second period, assisted by Yuto Taneichi and Kenta Matsukane.
Quotes of the Week
"I'm deeply saddened by the loss of Davey Johnson, a remarkable leader who transformed the Mets franchise into a winning organization. His ability to empower players to express themselves while maintaining a strong commitment to excellence was truly inspiring. Davey's legacy will forever be etched in the hearts of fans and players alike."
―Former New York Mets outfielder Darryl Strawberry, on the team's 1986 World Series-winning manager Davey Johnson, in an Instagram post. Johnson died on September 5 at age 82. A former MLB second baseman, Johnson also played for the Yomiuri Giants in 1975 and '76. He managed five MLB clubs (the Mets, Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Dodgers and Washington Nationals, compiling a 1,372-1,071 win-loss record.)
"It was my first game in a while, but I felt good about how things went. I hit a 3-pointer early on and was able to get into a rhythm. I'm grateful to all the fans who came out to the arena. We'll keep proving what we can do as a team, rallying more people behind us as we push toward our goals."
―Ryukyu Golden Kings guard Ryuichi Kishimoto, on his return to the lineup in a preseason exhibition game against the Korean Basketball League's Changwon LG Sakers on September 4 at Okinawa Suntory Arena. The Golden Kings won 93-69. Kishimoto missed the playoffs in the 2024-25 B.League campaign due to a foot injury.
Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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