Defeating Tabur stretched Sinner’s winning streak to 30 matches, which has already yielded clay-court titles in Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome.
His most recent triumph in Rome meant he completed the full set of nine ATP Masters 1000 titles – known as the ‘career Golden Masters’.
Sinner dominated the opening two sets, with winners flowing from his racquet while unforced errors were kept to a minimum.
Tabur did not have a break point in the match as Sinner wrapped up victory in two hours and eight minutes.
Sinner’s path to the Coupe des Mousquetaires is already without one major obstacle because Alcaraz is absent – and seeds tumbled in his half of the draw on Tuesday.
Sixth seed Daniil Medvedev and ninth seed Alexander Bublik were defeated in the first round, while fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime needed a fifth-set tie-break to beat world number 57 Daniel Altmaier.
Auger-Aliassime is the next highest-ranked player in Sinner’s half of the draw, but the Canadian has lost his past five matches against the four-time major winner.
Up next for world number one Sinner is Argentina’s 56th-ranked Juan Manuel Cerundolo, who knocked out Great Britain’s Jacob Fearnley on Tuesday.
Frank Lampard has been named the League Managers Association manager of the year after guiding Coventry back to the Premier League.
Lampard’s Sky Blues finished 11 points clear at the top of the Championship to clinch the title and return to the top flight for the first time since the 2000-01 season.
The former England midfielder, who has previously managed Derby, Everton and had two spells in charge at Chelsea, was presented with the Sir Alex Ferguson award by England manager Thomas Tuchel.
The award, named after the former Manchester United manager, is voted for by managers throughout the leagues and takes into account success and the resources available.
Tuchel read out a letter from Ferguson, who said Lampard’s Coventry play “great football with confidence and belief”.
“I have enjoyed watching you. Best of luck in the Premier League next season,” he added.
Brentford‘s Keith Andrews, Arsenal‘s Mikel Arteta, Aston Villa‘s Unai Emery, Bournemouth‘s Andoni Iraola, Manchester City‘s Pep Guardiola, Lincoln City’s Michael Skubala and Bromley’s Andy Woodman were also shortlisted.
Manchester City‘s Andree Jeglertz won the Women’s Super League award after leading them to the title.
Arteta, who led Arsenal to their first Premier League title in 22 years, won the Premier League award while Lampard also took the Championship equivalent.
Skubala, who won League One with Lincoln, took the award for the third tier and Woodham won the League Two award after he led Bromley to the title.
The WSL2 award was taken by Karen Hills, who led Charlton to the WSL for the first time.
Steve Bruce and Martin O’Neill were inducted into the Hall of Fame after each reaching 1,000 games as a manager.
The award for Lampard is the most significant individual honour in his coaching career.
His Derby side lost in the Championship play-off final in 2019 and he was then appointed at former club Chelsea, where he spent 13 years as a player.
He was sacked after 18 months in charge in 2021 but later returned as a caretaker.
In between, he spent less than a year in charge of Everton during which he oversaw an escape from relegation but was later sacked.
This season his Coventry side were the Championship’s highest scorers with 97 goals in 46 games. They also had the best defence.
Chris Wilder, who won the award while in charge of Sheffield United in 2019, and Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna, the 2024 winner, are other recent managers to receive the LMA’s top award while managing outside of the Premier League.
Wander Franco is guilty of sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl in 2023, a judge in the Dominican Republic made clear Monday.
Yet in his next breath, the same judge ruled that the former Tampa Bay Rays star shortstop will not be sentenced to prison because he was a victim of blackmail and extortion by the girl’s mother.
Celebrity justice in the D.R. can be perplexing, and Judge José Antonio Núñez admitted as much. But he also contended that the judicial pardon he granted Franco was the result of “logical and legal reasoning.”
“It seems contradictory to declare criminal responsibility and, at the same time, exempt him from punishment,” Núñez said. “The court has granted Wander Franco a judicial pardon due to the particular circumstances that made him a material victim, but not a legal one.”
The court found that the girl’s mother extorted thousands of dollars from Franco. The woman was sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of commercial sexual exploitation of a minor and money laundering.
The odds are long that Franco will return to Major League Baseball any time soon. The fact that the court found him guilty of repeatedly having sex with a minor puts him squarely in violation of MLB’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy.
The league is in the midst of an investigation into Franco’s conduct.
“We respect the legal process and the decision issued by the court,” the Rays said in a statement. “This is a serious matter, and our thoughts remain with those affected by the case.
“The Rays will continue to cooperate fully with Major League Baseball as it completes its review under the league’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy. Out of respect for the legal process and all parties involved, we will have no further comment at this time.”
Franco’s situation serves as a cautionary tale for MLB teams that hand out long-term contracts years before players become free agents. The Rays signed a 20-year-old Franco to an 11-year, $182 million deal in November 2021 after he batted .288 with 30 extra-base hits in 70 games as a rookie.
Franco appeared on his way to stardom during a stellar 2023 season, but according to court filings he carried on a relationship with the 14-year-old victim for several months.
An investigation was launched in August 2023. Franco was arrested Jan. 1, 2024, after failing to appear before Dominican authorities who sought to interview him.
Tampa Bay placed him on the restricted list early in the 2024 season, voiding his contract.
Franco was found guilty in a June 2025 trial. Although prosecutors sought a five-year prison sentence, he was given only a two-year suspended sentence by Justice Jakayra Veras.
“Look at us, Wander,” Veras said in open court. “Do not approach minors for sexual purposes. If you don’t like people very close to your age, you have to wait your time.”
An appeals court in December ordered a new trial, which took place Monday and resulted in his pardon.
“Thank God for everything,” Franco said as he embraced his mother, Nancy Aybar, after Judge Nuñez announced the pardon.
As he departed the courthouse, Franco was asked by a reporter how he felt.
Victor Wembanyama is making news these days as a third-year player who has led the San Antonio Spurs to a 2-2 series tie with the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference finals.
A sports card from the 7-foot-4 French star’s rookie season has also made headlines. Wembanyama’s 2023-24 Panini Prizm one-of-one Black parallel card recently sold for $5.11 million in a private deal brokered by Fanatics Collect.
It’s the highest known price paid for a non-autographed NBA card and the fourth-highest for any NBA card, according to price guide website Card Ladder. The buyer told the Athletic that he believes it will remain the best card for a player whose superstar potential is practically unlimited.
“There’s a sort of obvious ceiling for him, just as an athlete, that I think is higher than most people that are like the ordained superstars, like the next guy that we anticipate them being pantheon people,” said the buyer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “… If you take all these players and you say, ‘What’s their ceiling?’ I think Victor Wembanyama’s [ceiling] is substantially higher.”
Professional Sports Authenticator graded the card a Gem Mint 10, which the PSA site says is reserved for “virtually perfect” cards.
The previous record amount spent on a Wembanyama card was $860,100 paid for his rookie Panini Prism Nebula Choice one-of-one card in early 2025, according to Fanatics Collect. That card had a PSA 9 grade.
The grade for the recently purchased card came with controversy. Collector Cavelle McDonald pulled the card from a pack he purchased at NorCal Sports Cards in Roseville, Calif. A video posted to the store’s YouTube account in 2024 shows McDonald and NorCal Sports Cards owner Thomas Lindenthal getting the card graded.
After learning the card’s grade, Lindenthal gave “a huge shout-out” to Kurt’s Card Care. “Your product is phenomenal,” he said.
According to its website, Kurt’s Card Care makes “100% handmade Cleaning sprays and polishes free of artificial colors and scents. Perfect for cleaning and restoring your card collection.” PSA says on its website that it “will not grade cards that bear evidence of trimming, re-coloring, restoration, or any other forms of tampering” and lists “evidence of cleaning” as a factor in the company returning a card without a numeric grade.
Some people in the video’s comment section speculated that Lindenthal’s shout-out may have indicated that the Wemby card had been tampered with in a way that should have disqualified it from being graded. NorCal Sports Cards did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Times.
McDonald told the Athletic that “Kurt’s Card Care has nothing to do with me or the card.” The new buyer told the publication that he was unaware of the situation before purchasing the card, but said it wouldn’t have made any difference if he had known.
Wembanyama had 41 points and 24 rebounds in the Spurs’ double-overtime victory against the Thunder in Game 1 of the conference finals and 33 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three blocked shots in San Antonio’s Game 4 victory on Sunday. Game 5 is Tuesday in Oklahoma City, with the winner of the best-of-seven series advancing to play the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.
Mauricio Pochettino knows the joy of making a World Cup roster. But he also knows the misery of being left off one.
In the first case, you want to celebrate; in the second, you want to be left alone.
The U.S. coach said he kept both emotions in mind when informing players they had — or had not — made the roster for next month’s tournament, a roster that was formally announced Tuesday during a sun-splashed, made-for-TV rally in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge, about 13 miles from where July’s World Cup final will be played.
“The most important event is to be in any single roster,” said Pochettino, who made Argentina’s team for the 2002 World Cup after being passed over four years earlier.
So when Pochettino decided which 26 men would be on his team this summer, each of them got a WhatsApp message, followed by a video, sent out at 1 p.m. Eastern Time Friday. Defender Tim Ream said he received the message as he walked to his car after training with his club team in Charlotte, N.C.
“It made me stop in my tracks and immediately call my wife to let her know,” he said. “We both had been anxious and excited for the announcement.
“I’m not overly emotional, but it was definitely a relief and there was a little bit of bit of quivering, for sure, with my family when I found out.”
Christian Pulisic was alone in Milan, where he plays in Italy’s Serie A, when his phone lit up.
“I was just relaxing. Then I saw the message pop up and got excited,” he said.
The 29 players from the provisional roster who didn’t make the cut? They each got a simple email. And no explanation.
“I know it is so painful. It was so painful for me,” Pochettino said.
“When I didn’t make the roster, I didn’t want my coach to call me,” he added. “Because we care a lot, we don’t want to say nothing to confuse the player. A player who didn’t make the roster, they don’t want to hear me say, ‘Oh [too bad].’”
Christian Pulisic holds up his U.S. jersey during a rally Tuesday in New York.
(Adam Hunger / Getty Images)
Ream and Pulisic are two of 13 players who are returning to the World Cup after making the team in Qatar four years ago, part of a list that includes midfielders Tyler Adams, Gio Reyna and Weston McKennie and defenders Sergiño Dest and Antonee Robinson. They will be joined by defenders Miles Robinson and Chris Richards, both of who missed the last World Cup because of injury, and forward Ricardo Pepi, one of the final cuts in 2022.
Richards was chosen despite tearing two ligaments in his left ankle playing for Crystal Palace earlier this month. Pochettino had no new information on the injury Tuesday but said the final World Cup roster doesn’t need to be filed with FIFA until Sunday; after that, teams can replace players up to 24 hours before their opening match in the event of injury or illness.
Reyna’s inclusion was also a minor surprise since he has played just one full 90-minute game for club or country in the last four years. In the last World Cup in Qatar, he was nearly sent home for a perceived lack of effort in training after he learned he wouldn’t be a starter in the tournament.
But Pochettino said picking him was an easy decision.
“I really trust in him,” Pochettino said. “He’s a different player. A different talent. The roster needs to have a player like him.”
There were also notable omissions, among them midfielders Diego Luna and Tanner Tessmann. Luna, who plays in MLS for Real Salt Lake, has been a regular under Pochettino, playing in 17 of the U.S. team’s 18 games in 2025. But he missed time earlier this season with a knee injury and sat out of his club team’s last two games with a muscle problem
Tessmann had been called into six training camps under Pochettino and was seen as a potential starter for the U.S. before being shut down by his French club, Lyon, at the end of the season, leaving his fitness for the World Cup in question.
Pochettino declined to talk about either player — or anyone else left off the team.
“We are not going to talk about the players that are not on the roster,” he said. “That’s disrespectful to the players who are on the roster.”
Raising questions about who should have been included, the coach said, necessarily leads to questions about who should have been left off.
“That was my decision to pick that 26,” he said
Pochettino said he didn’t settle on a roster until the day before players got the WhatsApp videos — or the simple email.
“We wanted the right balance with the right players,” he said.
Among the first-time World Cup selections are midfielder Malik Tillman, the German-born brother of LAFC midfielder Timothy Tillman; Mexican-born attacker Alejandro Zendejas, who plays for Club América in the Liga MX; and Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter, son of Gregg Berhalter, the U.S. coach in the last World Cup.
Berhalter said he was in Qatar four years ago, cheering on his dad’s team. This year, his dad will be cheering for him.
“If you believe in your dream and put in the work, you never know what might happen,” he said from the stage after being introduced to the crowd at Tuesday’s rally.
The team will open training camp in Atlanta on Wednesday ahead of friendlies with Senegal in Charlotte, N.C., on Sunday and against Germany on June 6 in Chicago. The team will then move to the Orange County Great Park in Irvine for final preparations for its World Cup opener against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on June 12.
ROSTER
Goalkeepers: Chris Brady (Chicago Fire), Matt Freese (New York City), Matt Turner (New England Revolution)
Defenders: Max Arfsten (Columbus Crew), Sergiño Dest (PSV), Alex Freeman (Villarreal), Mark McKenzie (Toulouse) Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati), Joe Scally (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Auston Trusty (Celtic)
Midfielders: Tyler Adams (AFC Bournemouth), Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Gio Reyna (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Cristian Roldan (Seattle Sounders), Malik Tillman (Bayer Leverkusen)
Forwards: Brenden Aaronson (Leeds United),Folarin Balogun (AS Monaco), Ricardo Pepi (PSV), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Tim Weah (Marseille), Haji Wright (Coventry City), Alejandro Zendejas (Club América)
As part of the audit, they are considering numerous factors to work out why it has become such a problem.
For example, Spurs are analysing the “bounce” on the club’s home pitch in comparison to that at rival grounds and their Enfield training centre.
At present, the club have found there is no major difference between the conditions of other pitches in comparison to their home ground, but testing is ongoing.
There is a view that certain knee injuries are unavoidable – Odobert for instance damaged his ACL following an awkward landing.
It is also understood Spurs are confident the on-field treatment of Simons’ injury did not result in additional damage to the Dutchman’s knee.
There has been criticism from supporters after footage showed medics allowing the attacker to put weight on his knee despite having suffered a serious injury.
One of the key improvements Lewindon has recommended is to make medical support more individually tailored – based on factors including strength, fatigue and robustness.
Medical staff will compile bespoke profiles for each player that will include personal insights as well as physical and psychological information to ensure they can deliver expert individual support to treat – but also prevent – injury.
There is also set to be greater leeway for injured players to conduct part of their rehabilitation away from the club’s training facility.
Players across the Premier League are increasingly relying on external medical practitioners to aid their fitness and recovery, while many overseas footballers even return to their homeland for treatment.
That dynamic often causes friction but moving forward Tottenham are open to letting players leave their direct care provided all parties involved agree to one shared recovery plan – though Spurs would ultimately take responsibility for any problems that arise during the process.
The medical team will work closely alongside head coach Roberto de Zerbi and his staff over the summer amid concerns changing managers three times in under 12 months has contributed to their injury problems.
Tottenham will look to introduce an integrated structure that will ensure De Zerbi, or a member of his staff, the medical department and the player are involved in deciding when a player can accelerate their rehabilitation plans.
Psychology is also a key component of the ongoing review with the club set to employ a full-time head of psychology to work with the players and staff.
Los Angeles is getting another pro women’s volleyball team.
Major League Volleyball announced it will expand to L.A. in 2027, adding another team to the growing professional volleyball market.
The team will be co-owned by billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, who also owns the Los Angeles Times and is a minority owner of the Lakers. He will operate the team alongside Ben Priest, a former investor of MLV’s Omaha Supernovas, one of the league’s first teams.
Sportico reported the duo are paying an expansion fee around $15 million-$20 million to join the five-year-old operation.
The L.A. team will be the 11th franchise in MLV, which merged with the Pro Volleyball Federation before last season to consolidate the competition. However, League One Volleyball, known as LOVB, is still operating and has nine teams, including one joining the L.A. market in 2027.
MLV will also expand to Northern California, Minnesota and Washington D.C. in 2027.
Soon-Shiong joins a contingent of billionaire investors in MLV. Several NBA, NHL and MLS owners have ownership stakes in teams across the startup.
“From my perspective, this is really a feeling like when the Lakers started many, many decades ago,” Soon-Shiong told Sportico. “The opportunity in women’s sports is growing, and Los Angeles is obviously a very important market.”
The two volleyball leagues have vastly different models. MLV is looking to establish itself in the fabric of the pro sports markets like other leagues, while LOVB has ties to youth volleyball clubs and feeder teams.
MLV and PVF merged after sharing a similar vision and joining forces to avoid cannibalizing the market. LOVB has teams in or projected to be in six markets. MLV lost its San Diego franchise, which ceased operations after the 2026 season.
The two volleyball teams coming to L.A. will join the WNBA’s Sparks and NWSL’s Angel City FC as local pro women’s sports teams. Los Angeles also has a team in the upstart Women’s Pro Baseball League, but it will play the entire 2026 season in Springfield, Ill.
Dean Harrison set the fastest time in Tuesday’s first qualifying session for the Isle of Man TT.
The Honda Racing rider topped the Superbike leaderboard with a speed of 133.925mph, a time of 16 minutes 54.206 seconds.
The five-time TT winner had earlier posted a lap of 133.222 from a standing start on his opening lap before shaving more than five seconds off his lap time on his second circuit.
The Yorkshireman, now based on the Isle of Man, was a double winner in the Superstock class last year, his first race victories since 2019.
Michael Dunlop was second quickest in the Superbike class on his Hawk Racing Honda at 130.341, almost 28 seconds slower than his rival.
Manx rider Nathan Harrison, Ian Hutchinson, David Johnson and John McGuinness completed the top-six leaderboard.
Australian Josh Brookes led the Superstock qualifying leaderboard thanks to a lap of 130.197 on his DAO Racing Honda, with 14-time winner Peter Hickman second behind the double British Superbike champion with 129.42, followed by Jamie Coward at 128.702.
Dunlop was best of the Supersports on 126.922 on his V2 Ducati, the Northern Ireland rider making a strong start in his bid to extend his run of eight consecutive race wins in the class.
Brookes was second at 124.271 on a Suzuki, then Hickman on his Triumph on 123.584.
Paul Jordan topped the Sportbike speeds thanks to a lap of 120.208 on an Aprilia, with Coward (119.199) and Browne (119.097) second and third respectively.
The concluding sidecar session was ended prematurely because of a red-flag situation.
An update from Race Control said they were “managing an incident that occurred at Brandish”.
The opening practice session of the 2026 event on Monday was red flagged following a crash on the northern section of the 37.7-mile (60km) Mountain Course, leading to the abandonment of the remainder of the day’s schedule.
Two spectators have been subsequently flown to the UK for specialist medical care after a competitor crashed into the crowd.
Event organisers said six other spectators and the motorbike racer had been discharged from hospital.
Coco Gauff overcame an “eventful” start to her French Open title defence – dealing with a “mini car accident” and a dress malfunction before securing a first-round win.
The American fourth seed opened her campaign with a routine 6-4 6-0 victory over compatriot Taylor Townsend.
But it was the drama off the court that left Gauff with the more memorable story.
“We got in a mini car accident on our way to the site today,” she told TNT Sports.
“There was this pole thing and it was supposed to go down and the police told him [the driver] to go and we ran into it.
“You felt an impact, I spilled my juice all over the car.”
Gauff said the car was “not driveable” afterwards and her team had to make alternative travel arrangements to get to the Roland Garros site.
The 22-year-old, who came from a set down to beat Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s final, said the accident – along with other incidents – felt like a “good omen”.
Gauff and Townsend were on Court Philippe Chatrier earlier than planned, with the men’s match before coming to an abrupt end when Alexandre Muller retired injured after 50 minutes against Stefanos Tsitsipas.
“The retirement happened and right before the match my dress got stuck so my physio was in the bathroom trying to help me take it off,” Gauff said.
“It was an eventful day, but whenever that happens it lets you not think about the match.”
Captain Rajat Patidar thrashed 93 not out from just 33 balls as defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru powered into the final of the 2026 Indian Premier League with a 92-run victory over Gujarat Titans.
RCB were 94-3 in the ninth over, veteran Virat Kohli out for 43, but Patidar hit nine sixes in addition to five fours to power his side to 254-5.
The total was the highest in an IPL play-off with 126 runs coming from the last seven overs.
Gujarat, who were only pipped to top spot in the league phase on net run-rate by RCB, lost key openers Sai Sudharsan and India Test captain Shubman Gill in the third and fourth overs respectively.
Sudharsan, the tournament’s leading run-scorer, was out hit wicket after his bat slipped from his hands playing a cut shot and bounced onto the stumps.
Afterwards, England wicketkeeper Jos Buttler hit four fours and two sixes but was bowled by Australia’s Josh Hazlewood for 29, continuing a sorry slide.
From 88-8, Gujarat limped on to 162 before being dismissed in the final over. Rahul Tewatia made 68 but the match was long decided.
Gujarat still have a second chance to reach Sunday’s final.
They will play the winner of Wednesday’s eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals.
Scotland striker Lawrence Shankland says he is fulfilling his “dream” of joining “boyhood club” Rangers after completing his transfer from Scottish Premiership rivals Heart of Midlothian.
The 30-year-old, who has agreed a two-year deal at Ibrox with the option of a further 12 months, scored 88 goals in 171 appearances across four campaigns at Tynecastle.
And he captained the Edinburgh side to second place this season, missing out on the title to Celtic on the final day, with Rangers in third, eight points behind Hearts.
Shankland will miss out on Champions League qualifiers with Hearts but told Rangers TV: “Rangers is my boyhood club and it has always been a dream to play here, so I was really keen to get it done.
“The club are in a position where they want to get back to winning silverware more regularly and I want to be a big part of that, so that’s what I have come here to do.”
Shankland was out of contract at Hearts last summer – and was linked with a move to Ibrox then – before signing a three-year deal in late June.
The former Queen’s Park, Aberdeen, Ayr United, Dundee United and Beerschot forward went on to hit 20 goals in 34 games in all competitions, including four against Rangers, as Derek McInnes’ side chased a first title since 1960.
Rangers head coach Danny Rohl said: “He is a player with proven quality, leadership and work ethic – and his goalscoring record in Scotland speaks for itself.
“He understands the demands and expectations that come with playing for Rangers and we believe his character and experience will be a huge asset for the group.”
Immediately after completing his transfer, Shankland, who has scored four times in 18 Scotland outings, will join Steve Clarke’s squad for the World Cup.
“I wish him well at the World Cup this summer and look forward to welcoming him back to Glasgow during pre-season,” Rohl added.
“The thoughts of everyone at the club go out to Victor’s loved ones at this extremely difficult time.”
Udoh joined Antwerp’s academy in 2023 and played 27 times for their ‘Young Reds’ team, scoring 12 goals, and went on to make his first team debut in the same season.
“Our thoughts are with Victor’s family, friends, and loved ones. We wish them much strength, support, and warmth during this particularly difficult time.”
There is a growing expectation Anderson will leave the City Ground this summer.
United are unwilling to overpay, or get drawn into protracted negotiations.
No deal has been struck between Forest and City and the clubs are far apart on their valuation for the 23-year-old, meaning the situation could still change.
There is a sense at Forest that if there is a big sale this summer it will be Anderson, and a fine World Cup with England would put them in a stronger bargaining position.
Following Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth, Forest manager Vitor Pereira said Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White deserve “the top of the world”.
He would prefer to keep both players but it is Anderson who is the more likely to leave currently, especially with no European football at the City Ground next season after they finished 16th in the Premier League.
“I believe if we want to compete for different goals, we need to keep the best players,” said Pereira.
“If not, if you change every season, it is difficult to be consistent and difficult to build something stronger.
“We cannot control the market, of course, but I think we are aligned; what I think and what the club thinks is to try to keep most of them and to try to control the market.”
Anderson, who won the 2025 European U21 Championship with England last summer, joined Forest from Newcastle in 2024 for £35m and has played 92 times, scoring six goals.
Sunday’s game against Bournemouth was his 50th appearance of the season and he was given a standing ovation when withdrawn in the second half.
Norrie’s fitness and stamina have been among his biggest assets during his career – as well as his desire to play as much tennis as possible.
However, after playing in the back-to-back Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Rome across April and May, Norrie opted to go to the Geneva Open in the week leading in to Roland Garros.
He lost his opening match to Argentina’s Mario Navone on Wednesday and said afterwards he “probably should have retired” from it.
“I overdid it with the preparation and not listening to my body and my mind,” he told BBC Sport on Saturday.
“I kept pushing because I had never retired before in a match in my career, so I wasn’t sure what to do.”
That run is now over, but former British number one Annabel Croft believes Norrie made the right choice.
“It’s far better not to exacerbate the injury problem and get back to the UK, have rest and treatment on it, and then start building up to Queen’s Club and Wimbledon,” she said on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra.
“We’ve heard from [Novak] Djokovic that his body doesn’t respond as well as it used to and into his thirties it was getting more difficult for his body to respond.
“This sport is so demanding and I can see why Norrie would have overtrained.”
BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller added: “It is in Norrie’s DNA – he just can’t really leave it alone.
“That is what’s made him the player he is today. He loves being out there.”
Norrie was the last British singles player standing at 14 Grand Slams over the past five years, including the Australian Open in January.
Fearnley begins his French Open campaign later on Tuesday, while Katie Boulter and Francesca Jones have reached the second round in the women’s singles.
The Southern Section finalized its championship schedule for softball this week, and the Division 1 final between La Mirada and JSerra will take place Friday at 7 p.m. at Bill Barber Park in Irvine.
La Mirada is 26-4 and will be facing JSerra pitcher Liliana Escobar, the best in the Southland. La Mirada lost to JSerra 5-2 on March 7. The Matadores have been led by Riley Hilliard, who’s hitting .577 with 10 home runs.
JSerra (24-8), which began the school year winning the Southern Section flag football championship, is trying to end the year on top behind the arm of Escobar, who has 252 strikeouts in 146 innings. The top hitter has been sophomore catcher Annabel Raftery.
The Division 2 final will match Mater Dei against Whittier Christian on Friday at 4 p.m.
The Southern Section is waiting for the baseball semifinals to be played on Tuesday before announcing dates and times. The only certainty is the Division 1 final will be played on Friday at 7 p.m. at Cal State Fullerton unless either of the finalists has a scheduling issue on that date.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
Dodgers ride Kiké Hernández’s emotional comeback, late surge to beat Rockies
Dodgers third baseman Kiké Hernández rounds third during the fifth inning of a win over the Rockies at Dodger Stadium on Monday.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
From Liana Handler: In his first big-league game back since Game 7 of the World Series, Kiké Hernández received playoff-level cheers at Dodger Stadium on Monday night, nearly drowning out his walk-up song as he stepped into the batter’s box against the Rockies in the bottom of the third inning. Some fans tipped their hats. Others joined the rising “Kiké!” chants.
After taking a ball, Hernández sent a four-seam fastball hopping down the left-field line for an RBI double that scored Hyeseong Kim. The crowd of 48,778 exploded.
It was shaping up to be a happy return, but it wasn’t until the seventh inning that the rest of the Dodgers lineup found its footing, taking advantage of some shaky relief pitching to rally for a 5-3 victory over the Colorado Rockies.
Hernández reached on an infield single in his second at-bat before being lifted for a pinch-hitter as the Dodgers began to rally in the seventh.
Hernández’s journey back to the big leagues has been an arduous one. Throughout his two-month stint last year on the injured list, he received seven injections in his left elbow. None worked.
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No. 1 UCLA baseball to host Saint Mary’s; USC and UC Santa Barbara earn NCAA bids
UCLA players celebrate at home plate as Jack O’Connor rounds the bases during the Big Ten tournament.
(Courtesy of UCLA Athletics)
From Joaquin Ruiz: The UCLA baseball team (51-6) is hosting the Los Angeles Regional as the nation’s No. 1 overall seed, and USC (43-15) is headed to the College Station Regional hosted by 12th-seeded Texas A&M, the NCAA announced Monday.
After walking off Oregon 3-2 on Sunday in Omaha to claim their first Big Ten tournament title, the Bruins will defend Jackie Robinson Stadium and push to make their second consecutive College World Series run. UCLA faces Saint Mary’s (seeded fourth in the L.A. regional) in the Westwood opener at noon Friday on ESPNU, while No. 2 Virginia Tech and No. 3 Cal Poly will face off at 5 p.m on ESPN+ to complete the Los Angeles Regional.
If the Bruins advance, they will host a super regional against the winner of the Morgantown Regional hosted by West Virginia.
USC is making its second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance for the first time since 2002. The Trojans are seeded second at College Station and will face 36-24 Texas State at 6 p.m. PDT on Friday at Texas A&M’s Blue Bell Park on ESPN+. The Aggies will face Lamar at 1 p.m. PDT on the SEC Network to open the College Station Regional.
“When you start in August, the goal is to play in Omaha,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said, alluding to the home of the College World Series. “But before you get in Omaha, you got to get to a regional. And so, here we are. [We’d] certainly love to be hosting a regional, but it’s OK. We’re on our way to Texas to tee it up against some really good Texas teams. That’s the goal, to be ready to play. Our boys are up here working right now, and they’ll get ready for a great weekend.”
Inside U.S. soccer’s World Cup camp at Orange County Great Park
An aerial view of a U.S. Soccer banner hanging on the exterior of a Great Park balloon ride as crews prepare the training area for World Cup training.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
From Kevin Baxter: On a recent spring morning, Championship Soccer Stadium, which sits in a corner of the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, was quiet and empty save for the dozen sprinklers quenching a newly laid grass carpet.
Normally the well-used stadium is a buzz of activity. But its main tenant, the Orange County Soccer Club, which plays in the second-division USL Championship, has been temporarily evicted, left to train in the nearby park and play its final home game before the World Cup at Eddie West Field in Santa Ana, 12 miles away. (Not that it was necessarily a bad thing since the club drew a home-record crowd of 7,651 to its 3-2 win over Oakland on Saturday, which allowed it to hold onto second place in the Western Conference table.)
During the next month, the nine-year-old venue will have just one occupant, the U.S. national soccer team, which has chosen the stadium as its main training base for the World Cup. The temporary change in ownership is heralded by a giant orange orb the size of a hot-air balloon, adorned with the U.S. Soccer logo and tethered to a rise just outside the stadium.
Why and how the federation wound up in Irvine is unknown; U.S. Soccer declined to respond to multiple requests for comment. But it’s safe to say location was a factor since the Orange County Great Park is the closest World Cup training base to SoFi Stadium, where the U.S. will play two of its three group-stage games.
Lakers hire former Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas amid front office expansion
From Thuc Nhi Nguyen: The Lakers hired former New Orleans Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas to fill one of two new assistant general manager roles, The Times confirmed Monday.
Ramadas previously worked as the vice president of basketball operations and strategy for the Pelicans and will be involved in managing the salary cap, analytics and data for the Lakers, who are retooling their front office and basketball operations under new ownership this summer. Speaking at an end-of-season newsconference, GM Rob Pelinka said the Lakers will hire two new assistant general managers, with the other position focusing on pro scouting, draft scouting and player development.
Ramadas, who received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in astronautical engineering from USC, worked at El Segundo-based The Aerospace Corporation for 12 years before jumping to the NBA full-time in 2024.
Knicks return to NBA Finals for first time since 1999 after sweeping Cavaliers
Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns and teammates celebrate after winning the Eastern Conference finals Monday in Cleveland.
(Tim Phillis / Associated Press)
From the Associated Press: Karl-Anthony-Towns had 19 points and 14 rebounds, OG Anunoby scored 17 and the New York Knicks routed the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-93 Monday night to complete a four-game sweep of the Eastern Conference finals and advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
Landry Shamet scored 16 off the bench while Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson had 15 apiece for the Knicks, who became the fourth team to have an 11-game winning streak during their postseason run. The last to do it was Golden State, which had a 15-game run en route to its second title in three seasons in 2017.
All but one of the Knicks’ wins have been by double digits, with an average margin of victory of 23.7 points.
1925 — In Detroit’s 8-1 win over the Chicago White Sox, Ty Cobb becomes the first to collect 1,000 career extra-base hits. He finished his career with 1,139.
1959 — Harvey Haddix of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches 12 perfect innings before losing to the Milwaukee Braves, 1-0 in the 13th on an error, a sacrifice and Joe Adcock’s double.
1963 — French Championships Men’s Tennis: Australian Roy Emerson beats home favourite Pierre Darmon 3-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.
1963 — French Championships Women’s Tennis: Australian Lesley Turner wins the first of 2 French titles; beats England’s Ann Jones 2-6, 6-3, 7-5.
1972 — Joe Frazier TKOs Ron Stander in 5 for heavyweight boxing title.
1982 — 26th European Cup: Aston Villa beats Bayern Munich 1-0 at Rotterdam.
1983 — LA Lakers set NBA playoff game record of fewest free throws.
1985 — Danny Sullivan misses almost certain disaster and holds off Mario Andretti and the rest of the fastest field in auto racing to win the Indianapolis 500. On the 119th lap, Sullivan spins his racer 360 degrees, narrowly avoiding both the wall and Andretti.
1987 — Boston’s Larry Bird steals an inbounds pass from Detroit’s Isiah Thomas and feeds over his shoulder to a cutting Dennis Johnson for the winning basket as the Celtics pulls out an improbable 108-107 win over Detroit in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
1988 — The Edmonton Oilers, with MVP Wayne Gretzky leading the way, beat the Boston Bruins 6-3 to complete a four-game sweep and win their fourth Stanley Cup in five years.
1991 — Rick Mears passes Michael Andretti with 12 laps to go and wins his fourth Indianapolis 500, by 3.1 seconds. Mears joins A.J. Foyt and Al Unser as the only four-time winners.
1993 — In Major League Baseball, Carlos Martinez famously hits a ball off Jose Canseco’s head for a home run.
1993 — 1st UEFA Champions League Final: Marseille beats Milan 1-0 at Munich.
1994 — Haiti’s Ronald Agenor wins the longest match since the French Open adopted the tiebreaker. Agenor takes the 71st and final game of a second-round match with David Prinosil of Germany. His five-hour, 6-7 (4-7), 6-7 (2-7), 6-3, 6-4, 14-12 victory involves the most games in a French Open match since 1973.
1999 — 7th UEFA Champions League Final: Manchester United beats Bayern Munich 2-1 at Barcelona.
2000 — New Jersey finishes the greatest comeback in a conference final when the Devils win the last three games of the series, beating the Flyers 2-1 in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final. Patrik Elias scores his second goal of the game with 2:32 to play for the win.
2004 — Andy Roddick loses at the French Open — to Frenchman Olivier Mutis, who is ranked 125th. With the five-set loss, Roddick joins Andre Agassi and eight other compatriots on the way home, making it the first Grand Slam tournament in more than 30 years without a U.S. man in the third round.
2005 — Americans Andy Roddick, James Blake and Vince Spadea fail to make it through the opening week at the French Open. For the second year in a row — and the second time at a Grand Slam event in more than 30 years — no American man makes it out of the second round.
2008 — Syracuse wins its 10th NCAA men’s lacrosse championship, beating defending champion Johns Hopkins 13-10 behind three goals from Dan Hardy. The crowd of 48,970 at Foxborough, Mass., is the largest to see an NCAA championship outdoors in any sport — the BCS football championship game isn’t an NCAA event.
2009 — NHL Eastern Conference Final: Pittsburgh Penguins beat Carolina Hurricanes, 4 games to 0.
2012 — Toronto FC ends its MLS record nine-game losing streak to open a season with a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Union on a late goal by Danny Koevermans.
2013 — Tony Kanaan ends years of frustration by finally winning the Indianapolis 500. Kanaan drives past Ryan Hunter-Reay on a restart with three laps to go, then coasts across the finish line under yellow when defending race winner Dario Franchitti crashes far back in the field. The Brazilian finished second in 2004 and twice finished third.
2013 — Senior PGA Championship, Bellerive CC: Kōki Idoki of Japan wins his lone PGA event by 2 strokes from Jay Haas and Kenny Perry.
2015 — Cleveland Cavaliers win the NBA Eastern Conference.
2018 — UEFA Champions League Final, Kiev: Real Madrid beats Liverpool, 3-1 for third straight title. Zinédine Zidane first manager to win 3 consecutive titles.
2019 — Indianapolis 500: 2016 IndyCar Series champion Simon Pagenaud of France finishes just two-tenths of a second ahead of Alexander Rossi for Team Penske’s record-extending 18th victory in the event.
2019 — Senior PGA Championship, Oak Hill CC: American Ken Tanigawa wins his first career major title by 1 stroke ahead of Scott McCarron.
Compiled by the Associated Press
This day in baseball history
1916 — Benny Kauff of the Giants was picked off first base three times by Boston’s Lefty Tyler. The miscues didn’t hurt as New York won its 14th consecutive road victory beating the Braves, 12-1.
1925 — In Detroit’s 8-1 win over the Chicago White Sox, Ty Cobb became the first to collect 1,000 career extra-base hits. He finished his career with 1,139.
1929 — Pinch-hitters Pat Crawford of the Giants and Les Bell of the Boston Braves hit grand slams in New York’s 15-9 victory.
1930 — Joe Sewell of the Cleveland Indians, who fanned only three times in 353 at-bats during the season, was struck out twice in the same game by Pat Caraway of the White Sox.
1937 — Billy Sullivan and Bruce Campbell appeared for the Cleveland Indians as pinch hitters. Each hit a home run, making this the first time two American League pinch hitters hit home runs in the same game. The Indians beat the Athletics, 8-6.
1956 — Cincinnati Reds pitchers John Klippstein, Hershell Freeman and Joe Black combined for 9 2-3 hitless innings, but lost 2-1 in 11 innings to the Philadelphia Phillies.
1959 — Harvey Haddix of Pittsburgh pitched 12 perfect innings before losing to Milwaukee 1-0 in the 13th on an error, a sacrifice and Joe Adcock’s double.
1962 — Sandy Koufax struck out 16 Phillies to lead the Dodgers to a 6-3 victory.
1969 — Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hits his 500th career double, becoming only the third major leaguer to reach 500 doubles and 500 home runs.
1995 — Southern California and Fresno State combined for an NCAA postseason baseball record of 39 runs in the Trojans’ 22-17 win in the West Regional. USC scored three runs in the top of the ninth to break the record of 37 set by the Trojans and Houston in 1990.
1996 — The Chicago White Sox became the 16th team in AL history to hit four homers in one inning in their 12-1 win over Milwaukee. Frank Thomas, Harold Baines and Robin Ventura hit consecutive homers and Chad Kreuter added another in Chicago’s seven-run eighth.
1997 — Chicago’s Sammy Sosa and the Pirates’ Tony Womack hit inside-the-park homers in the sixth inning of the Cubs’ 2-1 win. It was the first time two inside-the-park homers had been hit in the same inning in 20 years.
2004 — Daryle Ward hit for the cycle and tied his career best with six RBIs in Pittsburgh’s 11-8 win over St. Louis.
2006 — Derek Jeter gets his 2,000th career hit, becoming the eighth player in Yankees history to reach the milestone.
2008 — Chase Utley tied the National League lead with his 16th homer and drove in six runs as Philadelphia routed Colorado 20-5. The Phillies batted around three times and had season-highs in hits (19) and runs.
2011 — The hot-hitting Boston Red Sox routed the Detroit Tigers 14-1 in an eight-inning, rain-shortened game. The Red Sox, who beat Cleveland 14-2 the previous day, scored at least 14 runs in back-to-back games for the first time since 1998.
2016 — Major League Baseball hands out a suspension of 82 games to Braves OF Hector Olivera, following a domestic violence incident in April. It is by far the most severe penalty yet handed out under baseball’s new domestic violence policy.
2018 — Mike Trout has the first five-hit game of his career and drives in 4 runs to lead the Angels to an 11-4 win over the Yankees.
2021 — Commissioner Rob Manfred issues his ruling following the completion of the investigation of allegations of improper behavior towards a number of women against former manager and coach Mickey Callaway. Callaway is found guilty of violating Major League Baseball policies and is declared ineligible for the remainder of this season and all of 2022, after which he may apply for reinstatement. For their part, the Angels fire him from his position of pitching coach, from which he has been suspended since the allegations surfaced in February, and the Indians, who were Callaway’s employer when some of the offensive incidents took place, state that they will take steps to ensure a more respectful environment in which employees feel empowered to denounce workplace harassement in the future.
2023 — Craig Kimbrel becomes the eighth pitcher to record 400 career saves in Philadelphia’s 6 – 4 win over the Braves, barely two weeks after Kenley Jansen became the seventh.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
Like Wales, Romania missed out on World Cup qualification after losing their play-off semi-final in March.
The match in Bucharest will be the first meeting between the teams since 1993 when Wales lost at home to Romania to agonisingly miss out on the 1994 World Cup.
This will also be a first home match in charge for the great Gheorghe Hagi, the former Barcelona and Real Madrid playmaker who scored in Cardiff 33 years ago.
Hagi was appointed Romania’s manager for the second time in April, taking over from Mircea Lucescu, who died at the age of 80 following a heart attack.
Ghana, meanwhile, will be facing Wales for the first time and include Manchester City’s Antoine Semenyo in their squad.
Former Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz was appointed as Ghana’s head coach last month.
The 73-year-old Portuguese has replaced Otto Addo, who was sacked in March after friendly defeats by Germany and Austria.
The Black Stars, who are in the same World Cup group as England, Croatia and Panama, also failed to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations under Addo.
The matches against Ghana and Romania will serve as preparation for Wales’ return to the top flight of the Nations League in September, where they have been drawn with Portugal, Norway and Denmark.
On a recent spring morning, Championship Soccer Stadium, which sits in a corner of the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, was quiet and empty save for the dozen sprinklers quenching a newly laid grass carpet.
Normally the well-used stadium is a buzz of activity. But its main tenant, the Orange County Soccer Club, which plays in the second-division USL Championship, has been temporarily evicted, left to train in the nearby park and play its final home game before the World Cup at Eddie West Field in Santa Ana, 12 miles away. (Not that it was necessarily a bad thing since the club drew a home-record crowd of 7,651 to its 3-2 win over Oakland on Saturday, which allowed it to hold onto second place in the Western Conference table.)
During the next month, the nine-year-old venue will have just one occupant, the U.S. national soccer team, which has chosen the stadium as its main training base for the World Cup. The temporary change in ownership is heralded by a giant orange orb the size of a hot-air balloon, adorned with the U.S. Soccer logo and tethered to a rise just outside the stadium.
Why and how the federation wound up in Irvine is unknown; U.S. Soccer declined to respond to multiple requests for comment. But it’s safe to say location was a factor since the Orange County Great Park is the closest World Cup training base to SoFi Stadium, where the U.S. will play two of its three group-stage games.
Crews work to prepare the training area for the U.S. soccer team at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The U.S. team’s first training session there, on June 8, will be the only practice open to the public. Four days later, the team will open its World Cup schedule against Paraguay in Inglewood, a 45-mile bus ride away. The Americans are one of seven World Cup teams to choose base camps in California. Australia and Paraguay will train in the Bay Area; Switzerland and New Zealand will be in San Diego; and Austria and Qatar will stay in Santa Barbara.
For the Orange County Soccer Club, which has just a humble spot on the U.S. soccer landscape, even a temporary association with the World Cup and the national team is worth celebrating.
“How can you not be excited about the host nation training in your facility when you are a club who prides itself on developing young talent,” said Dan Rutstein, the team’s president of business operations. “Sharing a stadium with the U.S. national team is a great opportunity.”
One that comes with great perks. FIFA, which vetted the location for World Cup teams a couple of years ago, has replaced the stadium’s grass field with one the Orange County team could never have paid for itself and will install security fencing in the next week or so, as it will at all 48 tournament training fields. U.S. Soccer is also expanding and improving the team’s tiny locker room and adding a media work room.
Alvaro Leon, Brian Biniasz, and Joesph Frausto install rubber flooring in the U.S. Soccer World Cup locker room.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The Orange County Soccer Club is paying for those perks with a little inconvenience, however. The players will have to dress at home for practice, which will be held in the adjoining park. And the club’s next six games will all be on the road. The team also had to take down any signs or placards that mentioned the Orange County Soccer Club; they were replaced with USMNT signage.
“It’s their stadium now,” Rutstein said.
“If you look at what the club is trying to achieve and where we are as an organization, any short-term pain is more than offset by the medium- and long-term benefits of being associated with the World Cup and the U.S. national team,” he added.
The team is trying to sell naming rights to the stadium, for example, and its association with the national team and the World Cup could be a big help in that.
When FIFA first released potential World Cup training sites two years ago, Championship Soccer Stadium was on the list and Rutstein said about a dozen national teams sent representatives to have a look. How many bid on the site is unknown but FIFA rules say if two or more teams make a claim on the same venue, the team with the lowest FIFA world ranking gets first dibs.
The U.S. is ranked 16th, which clearly gave it an edge.
An aerial view of crews preparing the training area for the U.S. soccer team at Championship Soccer Stadium in Irvine.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Besides, Orange County is no stranger to world-class soccer. The only other time the World Cup was hosted in the U.S., in 1994, the American team trained in Mission Viejo. And when European champion Paris Saint-Germain came to Southern California for last summer’s Club World Cup, it trained at UC Irvine.
“Being away from the glare of a big city is appealing,” Rutstein said.
“The World Cup is going to do wonders for soccer in this country, as it did over 30 years ago,” he continued. “And we’re excited to make the most of that growth.”
Do you honestly think Max will quit F1 at the end of the season if the engine changes aren’t coming? – Paddy
There is no questioning the fact that Max Verstappen is being genuine when he says he doesn’t think he can face another year driving the cars as they are.
In Montreal, he made it pretty clear that he does not fancy sticking around if the engine rules don’t change. “It’s just mentally not doable for me to stay like this,” he said. “It’s really not.”
After the race, he admitted he had “enjoyed a lot” his battle with Hamilton. But he also expanded on why he doesn’t like the new cars or, more precisely, the new engines, with their need for constant energy management.
Verstappen said that racing in the Nurburgring 24 Hours had reminded him “how pure motorsport can be”.
In F1, this year, he said: “For me, while driving, it’s all a bit confusing. It’s not what Formula 1 should be about. It’s way too complex.
“Most of the rules, the fans don’t even know what we are dealing with while driving, what is allowed when you’re behind or when you’re the car ahead, what we have to do on a formation lap or what we have to do in an out-lap, or how much battery that we’re allowed to charge.
“It’s just such a shame that we have to deal with all these things. F1 just needs to be more pure and I really hope that what they try to do [for] next year will go through because I think that is necessary, the minimum necessary, to make it a bit more natural and a bit more back to normal, or at least a bit more pure racing.
“As drivers, give us any kind of car, we’ll always race and give good entertainment or a good show. Doesn’t matter that people say, ‘Oh, but look now, the show is great, the cars were fighting.’ But it has nothing to do with the car. It just needs to be more pure.”
Verstappen is the most outspoken, but all the drivers basically feel the same way.
Antonelli said after the race that “still sometimes it triggers you a little bit how the system works”.
And Hamilton said: “It still continues to be a weird feeling”, adding: “You go on the power, you open up the [straight-line mode], and then the power dies halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping.
“It doesn’t feel what motorsport should be. The engine should be ringing its neck right to the end of the straight and just pulling and pulling.”
Verstappen is referring to the current attempt by F1 bosses to change the split between internal combustion and electrical power to 60:40 next year rather than the nominal 50:50 (in reality about 54:46) at the moment.
This is likely to be done by increasing the fuel-flow limit, and would reduce the need for energy management, especially in qualifying, and make the driving more “on the limit” again.
The regulators also have a chance to address some of the peculiarities of the new rules which are making the cars and engines extremely difficult to handle on warm-up laps because of the requirement not to go over a particular energy limit.
I won’t go into that here because it’s incredibly complex – but when you hear about what the drivers are having to do, the reaction is to scratch your head and wonder how on earth F1 ended up in this mess.
Although the FIA said more than two weeks ago that there was an “agreement in principle” on the 60:40 move, there has so far not been enough support from engine manufacturers for the changes to go through.
However, bosses are trying to lean on the companies opposed – Ferrari, Audi, Honda and Cadillac. And there is hope that an agreement, with suitable compromises addressing the concerns of, particularly, Ferrari and Audi, can be reached this week.
It’s worth mentioning that the rules have had some superficial positives, mainly to do with racing.
The new cars are lighter, smaller, and more nimble. And ‘overtake mode’ – which gives a car behind an extra 0.5MJ of electrical energy per lap if within a second of the car in front – has led to the multi-lap battles in which cars pass and repass a number of times that have become a feature of this year’s racing.
The hope is to be able to retain this while addressing the concerns about the way the new engines have negatively affected the purity of driving.
A former world junior number one and three-time Grand Slam junior champion, Monfils, by his own admission, perhaps did not fully fulfil his potential in the senior ranks, but he insists his “bucket list is full”.
Over the course of his 23 seasons in professional tennis, he has won 13 ATP titles, reached at least the last eight at three of the four majors – Wimbledon is the exception – and achieved a career-high ranking of sixth in the world.
There were 38 wins over top-10 ranked players, including multiple victories over both Federer and Nadal, and two Davis Cup finals with France.
Such is his longevity, this was his 70th appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam and 19th at the French Open. He holds the record for most Slam match wins by a male French player in the Open era, even if a major title has been elusive.
But Monfils will be best remembered for his on-court showmanship, athleticism and outrageous shot selection. His near physics-defying slides along the baseline and basketball-like hangtime before smashes have cemented his status as a fan favourite.
“I was never quite good enough to win a Grand Slam,” reflected Monfils before the French Open. “But maybe I won something more important than that – a tennis career I’m proud of.”
In a testament to his popularity on and off the court, the farewell festivities began last Thursday with a charity event on Philippe-Chatrier – fittingly named ‘Gael & Friends’ – featuring appearances from stars such as Jannik Sinner, Djokovic and Naomi Osaka, as well as fellow Frenchmen – both retired – Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Gasquet was also in attendance for Monfils’ final bow against Gaston, as were French tennis royalty Mauresmo – the tournament director – and Henri Leconte.
Watch the trailer for a new BBC Sport documentary offering unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to Manchester United and England star Ella Toone as she prepares for her wedding.
Launching on BBC Sport’s YouTube channel and BBC iPlayer on Friday 29 May, 24 Hours With Ella Toone is the first episode of a new BBC Sport digital series which captures a defining 24-hour chapter with some of sport’s most fascinating characters.
Watch on Friday 29 May from 18:00 BST on BBC Sport’s YouTube channel, external, 19:00 on BBC iPlayer and BBC Three. The YouTube Premiere page will be available from 18:00 on Wednesday to set a reminder.
