RUGBY UNION
Matfield returns to bench
South Africa have retained the same starting lineup and recalled veteran lock Victor Matfield to the bench to play defending champions New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup semi-finals. Matfield’s return to the bench, in place of Pieter-Steph du Toit, is the only change to the 23-man squad announced on Wednesday from the 23-19 win over Wales in the quarter-finals last weekend. The 38-year-old Matfield, a 125-Test veteran, has struggled all season with a hamstring strain and has not played since South Africa’s win over Samoa on Sept. 26.
TENNIS
Sock, Baghdatis advance
American Jack Sock and Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus advanced to the second round of the Stockholm Open with hard-fought wins on Tuesday, while Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen ended his singles career with a defeat against Nicolas Almagro. Seventh-seeded Sock hit 11 aces to beat Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain 6-3, 6-7 (1/7), 6-3 for a second-round match against Fernando Verdasco of Spain. The 2009 champion Baghdatis was taken to a first-set tiebreaker before beating Sam Querrey of the US 7-6 (7/2), 6-1 in a match lasting 77 minutes. He now faces fourth-seeded Bernard Tomic of Australia. Lucky loser Almagro beat Nieminen, making his 16th straight appearance in Stockholm, 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-4. Also, eighth-seeded Gilles Muller of Luxembourg saved eight of 10 break points and hit 16 aces in a 6-3, 6-7 (2/7), 6-1 win over qualifier Mischa Zverev of Germany. Steve Darcis of Belgium defeated Adrian Mannarino of France 7-6 (7/4), 6-4.
TENNIS
Sara Errani advances
Third-seeded Sara Errani of Italy advanced to the second round of the Luxembourg Open by beating Julie Coin of France 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 on Tuesday. Also, seventh-seeded Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic defeated Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium 6-4, 6-2, Denisa Allertova of the Czech Republic beat Jana Cepelova of Slovakia 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 and Johanna Larsson of Sweden defeated Andreea Mitu of Romania 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (3/7), 6-3.
BASKETBALL
NBA coach likely for US
An NBA coach will likely follow Mike Krzyzewski as US Olympic basketball coach. USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo on Tuesday said during an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio that the “odds are that it will be a professional coach.” Krzyzewski was hired as US coach in 2005 when Colangelo began the national team program and is to guide the US into the Olympics for the third straight time next summer in Rio de Janeiro. Colangelo said he hoped to unveil his plan to replace him sometime soon. The US had only been led by NBA coaches once pro players were allowed to be used starting in the 1992 Olympics.
RUGBY UNION
Castrogiovanni has surgery
Italy prop Martin Castrogiovanni has had a tumor removed from his back. Castrogiovanni, Italy’s most capped player with 115, took to Facebook shortly after his operation on Tuesday to post a photograph of him smiling in his hospital bed, and added “all good!!!” Castrogiovanni, who turned 34 yesterday, missed Italy’s third Rugby World Cup pool match against Ireland with a sciatic nerve problem and tests found a tumor pressing on his fifth vertebrae. Castrogiovanni pulled out of the remainder of the World Cup — his fourth — missing the Azzurri’s final match against Romania. He has been Italy’s first-choice tighthead for a dozen years, and plays for Racing Metro club.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
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