CRICKET
Ashes Test too close to call
England extended their lead beyond 150 on the fourth morning of the opening Ashes Test against Australia as Ben Stokes’ risk-taking side again dictated a fast and furious tempo at a sunny Edgbaston in Birmingham yesterday. A compelling session ended with England on 155-5, 162 runs ahead at lunch, but with Australia only having played their first innings. With Joe Root and Harry Brook both falling just short of half centuries Australia were very much in the hunt with the opening match of the series delicately poised. The pressure was on for England’s sixth wicket partnership of Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow, both of whom survived reviews before lunch. Stokes was 13 not out with Bairstow on one.
TENNIS
Tiafoe breaks into top 10
Frances Tiafoe became only the third African-American man to reach the top 10 in the world rankings, joining Arthur Ashe and James Blake, after the 25-year-old captured the third title of his career in Stuttgart on Sunday. The US Open semi-finalist survived a championship point in the third-set tiebreak to seal a thrilling 4-6, 7-6 (7/1), 7-6 (10/8) win over German Jan-Lennard Struff for his first grass court crown. Tiafoe was born to immigrant parents who eventually settled in the US after fleeing civil war in Sierra Leone in the 1990s. He was exposed to the sport when his father worked as a caretaker at a tennis center in Maryland. “I’m a guy who shouldn’t even really be here doing half the things he’s doing, and now when you say his name, you can say he’s top 10 in the world. So [that is] something that no one can take from you, and I’m going to remember that forever,” Tiafoe said.
GOLF
Clark wins US Open
Wyndham Clark on Sunday held his nerve to win the 123rd US Open, capturing his first major title and denying four-time major winner Rory McIlroy his first in nine years. Clark, whose previous best finish in six prior major starts was a tie for 75th, shrugged off two late bogeys to close with a pair of confident pars for an even-par 70 to seal victory with a 10-under-par total of 270 at Los Angeles Country Club. That was good enough for a one-shot win over McIlroy, who also closed with a 70. Clark, ranked 32nd in the world, broke through for his first US PGA Tour victory at Quail Hollow just last month. “I just feel like it was my time,” he said of Sunday’s win.
CYCLING
Bike thefts mar tours
Stolen bikes prevented the Euskaltel-Euskadi and Baloise Trek Lions teams from completing the final stages of the Tour of Slovenia and the Tour of Belgium respectively, the teams said on Sunday. “Euskaltel-Euskadi suffered the robbery of a vehicle with all its bicycles in it at the Tour of Slovenia so we can’t start the fifth and final stage,” the Spanish team wrote on Twitter. The Belgian Baloise Trek Lions team suffered the same fate on the Tour of Belgium. “Last night we fell victim to a theft of bicycles and wheels,” the team said in a statement on Instagram. Bicycle theft is a common problem for cycling teams. Women’s Dutch team SD Worx had several of their bikes stolen in November last year, while earlier in the year Israel Cycling Academy were robbed of bikes at a training camp in Spain.
Manchester City have reached do-or-die territory in the UEFA Champions League earlier than expected ahead of what Pep Guardiola has described as a “final” against Club Brugge today. City have disproved the suggestion a new format to Europe’s top club competition would remove any jeopardy for the top clubs as Guardiola stares down the barrel of failing to make the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in his career. The English champions have endured a torrid season both in their English Premier League title defense and on the continent. A run of one win in 13 games, which included Champions League
Sumo is walking a “tightrope” as it prepares to stage events outside Japan for the first time in 20 years while also trying to preserve its ancient traditions, experts say. The sport is to hold exhibition tournaments in London in October and in Paris in June next year, the first time the Japan Sumo Association has been abroad since Las Vegas in 2005. Sports such as soccer, baseball and football play domestic games overseas in a bid to gain new fans in emerging markets. John Gunning, a former amateur sumo wrestler who commentates on the sport in English on Japanese television, says its
Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday poured in 35 points as the Thunder grabbed a bounce-back 118-108 victory in Portland to push their NBA-best record to 37-8. The Thunder, surprised by the short-handed Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, fended off a late surge from the Trail Blazers to snap their four-game winning streak. Jalen Williams scored 24 points and Isaiah Joe added 16 off the bench. Center Isaiah Hartenstein, back after a five-game absence with a calf injury, added 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a big block. The Western Conference leaders were under pressure late as Portland, trailing by 15 heading
The Golden State Warriors on Wednesday withstood Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 52-point outburst to beat the Western Conference leading Thunder 116-109. Andrew Wiggins scored 27 points and Warriors superstar Stephen Curry scored 17 of his 21 points in the second half as Golden State erased a double-digit deficit and pulled away late for the victory. “We just stayed solid,” said Curry, who entered the contest mired in a shooting slump and had just four points on one basket in the first half. “Just all-around effort.” The Thunder, fueled by 31 first-half points from Gilgeous-Alexander, led by as many as 14 in the
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