The Guardian

American duo lose 6-3, 6-7(6), 7-6(7) to Maya Joint and Chan Hao-ching Serena and Venus crash out of women’s doubles in first round In the end, after so much toil and admirable fight, defeat came swiftly for one of the greatest doubles teams to ever share a tennis court. Upon their return to prime time in New York , Venus and Serena Williams fought desperately to overturn the various deficits the…

Australian returns on AU$4.9m contract after season on sidelines Former No 1 pick hopes to reignite basketball career with fourth club Australian former No 1 overall draft pick Ben Simmons has taken a significant step towards resurrecting his NBA career, agreeing a one-year deal with the Sacramento Kings. The Melbourne-born guard returns on a US$3.5m (AU$4.9m) contract after sitting ‌out the enti…

Australian beats Olympic champs Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Cole Hocker Pole vaulter Kurtis Marschall soars over 5.82m to finish third in Brussels Middle-distance runner Cameron Myers has become only the eighth Australian to win a Diamond League final crown with victory in the men’s 1500m in Brussels. The 20-year-old claimed one of the biggest wins of his career to date as he beat a star-studded field…

Seven years after springing one of the biggest upsets in boxing history, the Mexican Rocky is back with his old trainer for one final run at the heavyweight summit Seven years ago, Andy Ruiz Jr became the first fighter of Mexican descent to win the world heavyweight championship in one of the biggest upsets boxing has ever seen, stopping the undefeated Anthony Joshua inside seven rounds at Madiso…

Mbappé sees late penalty saved by Valles PSG are beaten by league leaders Monaco Real Madrid’s perfect start to the La Liga ⁠season ended on Friday when Real Betis beat them 1-0, with the ⁠substitute Troy Parrott ⁠scoring ​nine minutes from time and goalkeeper Alvaro Valles saving a stoppage-time ⁠penalty from Kylian Mbappé. The clash began at a high tempo but the pace ⁠dropped after the interval…

‘It’s tricky to handle when you’re trying to compete’ Alcaraz into fourth round after straight sets victory Aryna Sabalenka briefly stopped her match at the US Open to complain about the strong smell of cannabis on her court as she comfortably reached the fourth round in New York. Sabalenka, the two-time defending champion, continued her attempts to rebuild her form as she overcame a challenging …

Mas keeps hold of red jersey with 1min 45sec lead Kooij claims stage win at Tour of Britain Wout van Aert won his fourth career stage at the Vuelta a España amid scorching heat on Friday, while Enric Mas kept the red jersey. On a hot and sunny day in southern Spain, Van Aert beat fellow breakaway rider Valentin Paret-Peintre to claim the hilly 192km jaunt from Almuñécar to Loja. Continue reading.…

A first win for Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool, the introduction of the latest star signing in Bradley Barcola making for a successful Friday night. Better yet, continuing signs that Alexander Isak, last year’s model, is coming back to life, his two, well-taken early goals securing the three points. If Ipswich’s defending was less than watertight, Liverpool’s attackers were full of the speed and inven…

British sprinter finishes third behind Olympic 100m champion Pole vault superstar Mondo Duplantis pulls out with injury Britain’s Amy Hunt was given a jolting reminder of the gap between her and the world’s very best female sprinters as she finished nearly half a second behind Julien Alfred in the Diamond League 200m final. But afterwards Hunt insisted that coming third in a season’s best time of…

Leigh 48-10 St Helens Charnley scores and agrees confirms extension For the first time in over 60 years, an end-of-season playoff series in England’s top division will take place without St Helens after their miserable season was given the emphatic ending it deserved with a heavy defeat by Leigh. You have to go back to 1962 to find a playoff campaign that did not feature one of rugby league’s mos…

There are few scenarios since Millwall Lionesses broke away from Millwall and became London City Lionesses that would have felt more surreal than the idea of Alexia Putellas captaining the side to a statement win in a Women’s Super League season opener in Bromley just seven years later. Here we are though. Referees have to get used to the former Barcelona captain stooping to pick up the coin afte…

Before his home grand prix, the Mercedes driver opens up on his rocky debut season and quest to become the first Italian world champion since 1953 If Kimi Antonelli feels any pressure as the favourite to take the Formula One world championship at just 20 years old and in his second year in the sport, it is imperceptible. He admits F1 can be brutal but a thing of beauty too, a labour of love for t…

From record growth and a landmark media deal to expansion, labor battles and a fractured relationship with players, Engelbert’s tenure was rarely quiet WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert will retire from the role on 31 December, bringing an end to a tenure that began with her appointment as the league’s first commissioner in 2019. “After more than seven years at the WNBA and more than 40 total yea…

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Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! That icy wind rattling the rafters is the cold reality of what follows the closure of the transfer window, a hungover pall of regret. Despite £3.5bn shelled out in the men’s window, several things will not be happening in the Premier League when they might have been. When Arsenal host Chelsea for a most super of Sundays, Vinícius Júnior will not…