Canadian teenager Mboko reaches semifinals in Montreal and will face Rybakina

MONTREAL (AP) — Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko advanced to her first career WTA Tour semifinal with a 6-4, 6-2 win victory over Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro on Monday night at the National Bank Open.

Two days after ousting No. 1 seed Coco Gauff in just 62 minutes, there was no letdown for the 18-year-old from Toronto.

After taking a back-and-forth — and error-filled — first set, Mboko was broken in a sluggish start to the second set but broke back in the fourth and sixth games to take a 4-2 advantage.

Mboko is the first Canadian to reach the WTA 1000 event’s semifinals since Bianca Andreescu’s title run in 2019. She’s also the youngest woman to reach the semis since Belinda Bencic’s 2015 win in Toronto.

Mboko will face Elena Rybakina, who led Marta Kostyuk 6-1, 2-1 when the Ukrainian was forced to stop playing because of an apparent arm injury.

Rybakina, the No. 9 seed from Kazakhstan, converted three of her 10 break-point chances in the quarterfinal matchup at IGA Stadium. The players shook hands at the 54-minute mark before the 24th-seeded Kostyuk exited the court in tears.

After the third game, Kostyu's trainers wrapped her forearm in medical tape.

In a breakthrough year, Mboko has surged from outside the top 300 to a career-high No. 85. That number is projected to climb to at least No. 55, according to WTA live rankings.

After two injury-plagued years, Mboko — who had shown promise as a junior — opened the season with a 22-match win streak and captured five titles on the lower-tier ITF Tour.

She then qualified for her first Grand Slam main draw at the French Open, reaching the third round, before stunning 25th-seeded Magdalena Frech in the first round at Wimbledon.

And the upsets keep coming.

In Montreal, Mboko has rattled off wins over 79th-ranked Kimberly Birrell, No. 23 seed Sofia Kenin, 39th-ranked Marie Bouzkova and Gauff, who is ranked No. 2.

Her latest victory boosted her record to 25-8 against higher-ranked players and 51-9 in all competitions.

In the other quarterfinals Tuesday, No. 6 seed Madison Keys — the highest-seeded player remaining — faces No. 16 Clara Tauson, and former No. 1-ranked Naomi Osaka meets No. 10 seed Elina Svitolina.

The tournament final is Thursday.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, reacts after forfeiting her match with Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, hits a return to Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Victoria Mboko, of Canada, celebrates her win over Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, of Spain, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Victoria Mboko, of Canada, reacts after her win over Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, of Spain, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, reacts after forfeiting her match with Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

Elena Rybakina, of Kazakhstan, hits a return to Marta Kostyuk, of Ukraine, during quarterfinal action at the National Bank Open women's tennis tournament in Montreal, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press via AP)

LONDON (AP) — Protests over the soaring cost of fuel spread disruption across Ireland on Saturday with many gas stations running dry as truck and tractor drivers staged a fifth day of blockades at the country's sole fuel refinery and several depots.

Vehicles blocking traffic led to closures of the main highway around the capital, Dublin, as well as six other major roadways.

More than a third of the 1,500 service stations in the republic are out of fuel and that number is expected to grow dramatically if the roadblocks remain, Fuels for Ireland chief executive Kevin McPartlan said.

Irish police put all its officers on notice they could be called to duty over the weekend and the military was on standby to help remove the vehicles as the government was due to renew talks Saturday to resolve the dispute.

Frustration over the soaring cost of fuel led to the protests that began Tuesday and have continued to grow as word spread on social media.

Government officials, who had already introduced measures to ease the burden of price rises, have been baffled over the rationale behind the protests because the price spike is global and due to the conflict in the Middle East that has restricted oil exports.

Prime Minister Micheál Martin said Friday that the country was on the brink of turning tankers away during a global shortage and was in jeopardy of losing its oil supply.

“It is unconscionable, it’s illogical, it is difficult to comprehend,” Martin told the national broadcaster RTE.

Truckers, farmers, and taxi and bus operators are among those who have staged the blockages and called for caps in fuel prices or cuts to excise or carbon taxes.

The government approved a range of measures two weeks ago to cut fuel prices, including a temporary reduction in excise taxes on motor fuels, expansion of a rebate for truckers and bus operators that use diesel fuel, and extension of a program that helps low-income people with their heating costs.

But those reductions were quickly overtaken as international prices continued to rise.

Protests began with slow-moving convoys that restricted access to some of the busiest streets in Dublin and blocked fuel depots that supply half the country. Some protesters slept in their vehicles overnight, demanding that the government speak with them.

Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said Thursday that outsiders were manipulating the demonstrators to advance their own agendas or “really want to damage our country.”

A man crosses a road where vehicles are parked on O'Connell Street, on the second day of a national fuel protest against rising fuel prices, in Dublin, Ireland, Wednesday April 8, 2026. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)

A man walks in between vehicles parked on O'Connell Street on the second day of a national fuel protest against rising fuel prices, in Dublin, Ireland, Wednesday April 8, 2026. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)