Didier Deschamps vowed the show must go on for France after the latest crushing blow to their World Cup hopes saw Karim Benzema ruled out of the tournament.

Pain in the quadriceps of his left thigh – a femoral rectus injury to be exact – means Real Madrid's Ballon d'Or winner will play no part in the Qatar 2022 finals.

Benzema, who missed Les Bleus' triumph at Russia 2018 while out of favour amid an ongoing blackmail investigation, was hoping to play a big part in the trophy defence this time.

He was battling to prove his fitness after recent injury strife with Madrid, and Saturday's training session was his first full on-pitch activity with the France squad of this camp.

The 34-year-old could not make it through unscathed though, pulling out after feeling discomfort. He had been bothered by muscular fatigue in the left quadriceps while with his club, and this may be a recurrence of that problem.

Benzema underwent an MRI at a Doha hospital, the French Football Federation said, and he faces three weeks of recovery. He has been withdrawn from France's squad, with Deschamps able to call in a replacement.

Deschamps said: "I'm extremely sorry for Karim who had made this World Cup a major objective."

World Cup holders France begin their defence on Tuesday against Australia, before also going up against Denmark and Tunisia in Group D.

Deschamps has Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud as outstanding forward options, but the loss of Benzema is nevertheless a significant blow. It follows France also losing RB Leipzig's prolific Christopher Nkunku this week due to knee ligament damage sustained in training.

They are also without star midfielders Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante because of injury, and must be wondering what the coming weeks have in store for them.

Deschamps is determined to strike a positive note, saying: "Despite this new blow, I have every confidence in my squad. We are going to do everything to meet the immense challenge that awaits us."

A late penalty from Ross Byrne gave Ireland a 13-10 victory against Australia, as their 12th home win in a row came despite the absence of captain Johnny Sexton.

The fly-half was removed from the starting line-up just minutes before kick-off due to injury, but the hosts emerged triumphant from a low-scoring affair.

An early Nic White try for Australia was disallowed by the TMO for a neck roll, with a Jack Crowley penalty sending Ireland into the break with a 3-0 advantage after Bernard Foley was guilty of missing a kick of his own.

The second half began in similar low-scoring fashion, Jamison Gibson-Park seeing an Irish try disallowed as Mack Hansen's foot was in touch before his pass, with Foley then levelling the scores with a penalty.

A first try finally came in the 67th minute, with Bundee Aki going over on his return from an eight-game suspension, but the visitors responded five minutes later through Jordan Petaia.

Three minutes from the end, Byrne kept his nerve from 45 metres to split the posts and seal the win for the hosts.

Karim Benzema will miss the World Cup after the France striker suffered an injury blow on the eve of the tournament.

The Real Madrid captain, who missed Les Bleus' triumph at Russia 2018 while out of favour amid an ongoing blackmail investigation, was set to play a big part this time for Didier Deschamps' team.

Benzema won the Ballon d'Or last month after a spectacular 2021-22 season that saw him score 44 goals in 46 games for Madrid, helping the Spanish giants win LaLiga and the Champions League.

However, he has been troubled by physical setbacks this term and the most untimely and crushing of all blows for the 34-year-old came on the day before Qatar 2022 was set to get under way.

Benzema only resumed full training with France on Saturday, after recent muscle trouble, but he could not complete the squad session due to injury.

He underwent tests that produced results ruling him out of the tournament.

The French Football Federation said in a statement: "Karim Benzema has pulled out of the World Cup with a thigh injury. The whole team shares Karim's disappointment and wishes him a speedy recovery."

The former Lyon frontman was troubled by a knee blow earlier this season before missing further fixtures for Madrid after suffering from muscular fatigue in his left quadriceps, with Saturday's blow seemingly a recurrence of that.

World Cup holders France begin their defence on Tuesday against Australia, before also tackling Denmark and Tunisia in Group D on November 26 and 30 respectively.

Benzema's absence from the tournament is the latest in a line of major setbacks for France, even though coach Deschamps also has the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud as forward options.

RB Leipzig's prolific Christopher Nkunku was forced to pull out of the squad this week after suffering knee ligament damage in a training collision with Eduardo Camavinga.

They also lost star midfielders Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante, who would have been central to Deschamps' plans.

Casper Ruud swept through to a showdown with Novak Djokovic at the ATP Finals, making light work of Andrey Rublev to reach the trophy match.

The 23-year-old Norwegian has enjoyed a stunning season, reaching two grand slam finals, and his 6-2 6-4 semi-final dismissal of Russian Rublev was impressively authoritative.

After Ruud coasted through the opening set, the occasion fell wholly flat when Ruud broke serve in the first game of the second, and did so again in the third game.

Rublev sat shaking his head at his chair in the break between games, also shrugging his shoulders towards his support team and looking lost for ideas.

He only began to make an impact after slipping 4-0 behind, and at 5-2 he broke Ruud's serve to narrow the gap and give the Turin crowd hope the contest could take off.

At 5-4, it was briefly tense, but Ruud served for the match for a second time and this time made it count, sealing victory with a brilliant backhand winner to become the first Scandinavian finalist at the ATP Finals since Stefan Edberg in 1990.

Ruud will overtake Rafael Nadal and end the year at number two in the ATP rankings should he carry off the title on Sunday; however, he has a 0-3 career record against Djokovic. Djokovic earlier battled past Taylor Fritz by winning a pair of tight tie-breaks to earn a straight-sets victory in the first of Saturday's semi-finals.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Ruud – 10/0
Rublev – 9/0

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Ruud – 20/0
Rublev – 19/1

BREAK POINTS WON

Ruud – 4/4
Rublev – 1/1

Lewis Hamilton is looking forward to a final race in the Mercedes W13 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, admitting it is a car he never wants to drive again.

Having fought Max Verstappen all the way for the title last year, only losing in controversial circumstances in the final moments of the season at the Yas Marina Circuit, Hamilton has not been a threat in 2022 as the Red Bull star waltzed to a second consecutive championship.

Instead, Hamilton was battling with 'porpoising' issues early in the campaign and, after some respite from the issue following the mid-season break, he saw those problems emerge again in Saturday's qualifying session.

Mercedes' campaign has been a frustrating one for Hamilton, and he is eager to bring his spell at the wheel of this particular car to a close.

"We definitely weren't expecting to see such a big gap, but we are losing 0.6secs on the straight," Hamilton told the BBC.

"Kind of reminiscent of some of the previous races before, like Austin. And bouncing is back, so that's not been easy.

"I am looking forward to the end of Tuesday, which is the last time I have to drive this thing. I don't ever plan to drive this one again. It won't be one of the ones I request to have in my contract.

"We have some downforce. We just need a much more efficient car and everybody in the team knows exactly what are the problems and where we have gone wrong, so I'm pretty confident they are not going to build the next car with any of those characteristics."

A disappointing showing in qualifying leaves Hamilton fifth on the grid for Sunday's race, ahead of team-mate George Russell. It makes the experienced Briton highly likely to finish the 2022 season without a race win – which would be the first time in his career he has gone without.

Team principal Toto Wolff has insisted the lack of a win is not something that has been in the mind of Hamilton.

"He says that the one victory a year isn't really a record that bothers him," Wolff said. "If I'm trying to put myself in his shoes, where I was before Brazil, it didn't particularly bother me whether we would win a race this season, because all our eyes are already on next year.

"But having won one, it felt pretty good. At least nobody could say you didn't win a race."

Russell got that win last week, with Hamilton taking second place.

Looking at setting up seven-time champion Hamilton for a title tilt in 2023, and banishing this season's winless run, Wolff said: "I don't think this particular record is an important one for him, but we need to provide him with a car next year in which he can fight for victories and championships. That's most important and he knows that."

Hamilton heads into next season, his last contracted campaign with Mercedes, level with Michael Schumacher for the most career world titles in Formula One.

Sunday's Abu Dhabi race sees the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez on the front row, followed by the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, with the Mercedes cars occupying row three.

Eric Garcia believes Spain's "spectacular" blend of exuberant youngsters and experienced veterans could see them beat any team at the World Cup in Qatar.

Between 2008 and 2012, Spain lifted two European Championship titles and also won their first World Cup as they dominated international football, boasting stars such as Andres Iniesta, Iker Casillas and David Villa.

However, since that Euro 2012 triumph, Spain have not made it back to a major tournament final and the majority of their key players from those glory years have retired.

Just Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba remain from that Euro 2012 squad, but the emergence of exciting young talent such as Ansu Fati and Pedri has reignited hopes of success returning under the stewardship of Luis Enrique.

Defender Garcia feels Spain's mix of senior figures, such as Busquets and Alba, and their electrifying tyros could lead to a successful tournament in Qatar.

"For me, we have a perfect combination between young and old," Garcia told SPORT. "In the end, youngsters continue to learn every day, and other more experienced players try to teach us.

"I think that this combination has many benefits in many aspects, because this group is spectacular.

"We have to be ourselves. We know what we are capable of when we are ourselves, we can compete and beat any team. That is the first step, first Costa Rica and then the rest, with the intention of going far, which is what we want.

"Maybe we don't have a [Lionel] Messi or a Neymar, but we have players who individually contribute a great plus, like Pedri, Gavi, Busquets, [Marco] Asensio at the level he is. Having these players will help us."

Qatar will be Garcia's first taste of World Cup action with Spain, and he is thrilled to be part of the team, explaining how he watched past tournaments since childhood.

"As you get older, you're thinking, 'I wish I could be there one day'," he said. "It is a privilege to be able to be here, living an experience that everyone would like to live, so it must be appreciated and valued."

Garcia hopes to be selected in Luis Enrique's line-up for Spain's opening game against Costa Rice on Wednesday, adding: "The competition in each position is very high, but in my head is to work as much as possible in training and if the coach counts on me, be at the highest possible level every minute I play."

After the meeting with Costa Rica, Spain will take on Germany and Japan in Group E.

Jordan Henderson believes England's men should take inspiration from the Lionesses' Euro 2022 success as they chase Qatar World Cup glory.

Sarina Wiegman's side secured England's first major trophy since the men's World Cup in 1966 after a 2-1 extra-time victory over Germany in July.

Gareth Southgate's Three Lions reached the semi-finals at Russia 2018 before suffering penalty shoot-out heartbreak in the Euro 2020 final loss to Italy.

Henderson was named as part of England's 26-man squad who will look to go one step further in Qatar, and the midfielder referenced the success of Wiegman's women as an inspiration.

"The Lionesses have done a fantastic job and the whole country was behind them," Henderson told the BBC.

"Hopefully we can take inspiration from that and perform like they did. If we do that then I'm sure we'll have a good tournament."

The Liverpool captain is expected to play a back-up role in Southgate's midfield, with the likes of Jude Bellingham, Kalvin Phillips and Declan Rice being probable contenders for the starting XI.

Henderson will provide much-needed experience, though, as a Premier League and Champions League winner with Liverpool.

England will need such know-how if they are to go deep in the Middle East, where they are the only European team to have reached at least the semi-finals in each of the last two major tournaments.

Southgate's side start their Group B campaign against Iran on Monday before clashes with the United States and Wales.

Roberto Mancini has tipped Argentina to win their third World Cup as Lionel Messi and team-mates chase glory in Qatar.

Mancini's Italy side will not be involved after a shock 1-0 play-off defeat to North Macedonia in March.

Italy's absence from Qatar comes despite them being the reigning European champions, having beaten England on penalties in the Euro 2020 final.

That triumph subsequently saw them face off against Argentina in the UEFA/CONMEBOL Finalissima at Wembley in June, after Lionel Scaloni's men won the Copa America.

Argentina comfortably beat Italy 3-0, and Mancini says that performance plays a part in him ranking them as favourites for the World Cup.

"There are many strong teams," Mancini told reporters. "If I had to choose one, I'd go for Argentina.

"They really impressed when we played each other."

Italy have won their last three matches as they look to get over World Cup disappointment, most recently seeing off Albania in a 3-1 friendly victory on Wednesday. They face another game against Austria on Sunday.

Mancini is still upset about the failure to reach Qatar, but he has been pleased with his team's reaction, saying: "We immediately showed a desire to fight back, winning a Nations League group that was by no means easy ahead of Germany, Hungary and England.

"Unfortunately, we’ll have to keep this suffering until mid-December when the tournament is over. Next time, we need to be more precise."

Daniel Ricciardo has explained his decision not to pursue a race seat in Formula One for 2023, as he closes in on a non-racing role with Red Bull.

The Australian is poised to rejoin the team he left in 2018 in a position that may include reserve, promotional and simulator duties, with Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix being his last with McLaren.

Although not confirmed, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has stated that Ricciardo will be joining the team, with Christian Horner welcoming the potential return of the driver on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.

A non-racing role with Red Bull does not necessarily mean Ricciardo's time on the F1 grid is over, though he feels it was the right move in order to take a break from competition.

"I knew that I wanted some time off next year from a race seat and just from competition," he told Motorsport.com.

"It's obviously been pretty tiring the last couple of years with the struggles, so it was pretty clear to me shortly after the summer break that that was what I wanted, and what was going to be best for me.

"So then it was: 'Okay. What's the next best thing?' And the more I thought about it, to obviously be involved to some degree with a top team, that was obviously the preference.

"But it's not done. So that's why I haven't come out and confirmed it, because that's still the truth: it's not done. But I can obviously look you in the eye now and say it's the most likely option at this stage."

Ricciardo also feels this is the right move to assess where he wants to go long-term, giving him the ability to decide without affecting his week-to-week performances on the grid.

"Honestly, I think that's also in a way the beauty with this," he said. "It'll either fuel the fire and make me hungry and more motivated than ever, or it will actually be like 'oh, this is the right thing for you', and in that case then I must be really happy.

"Because as much as you go through highs and lows of racing, I'm still very happy with life, and am privileged to live a good one. So if next year I'm not interested in coming back, then I must be doing some really cool s***."

England scored three tries in the final eight minutes to fight back from 18 points down and earn a barely believable 25-25 draw against New Zealand on Saturday.

The All Blacks led by 14 points inside 10 minutes and extended that lead further in the second half, yet somehow they missed out on a seventh successive victory.

Beauden Barrett was yellow carded in the 71st minute and that proved a huge moment as replacement Will Stuart crossed over twice either side of Freddie Steward in a remarkable finale.

After England fans attempted to drown out the Haka, Dalton Papali'i got New Zealand off to a flyer as he intercepted Jack van Poortvliet's pass and ran in unchallenged.

Codie Taylor added a quickfire second try when bundling over from a lineout towards the corner, with Jordie Barrett successfully converting for a second time.

Owen Farrell, making his 100th appearance for England, and Marcus Smith registered a penalty apiece for England either side of three more points from the boot of Barrett.

But Caleb Clarke popped the ball to Ioane after a cross-kick caught England cold, and he ran three-quarters the length of the pitch to round off an impressive New Zealand move.

A drop goal from Beauden Barrett put New Zealand 19 ahead, only to then get sin-binned for failing to release Marcus Smith.

Stuart drove over the line in the immediate aftermath and Steward did likewise two minutes later after being fed by Ben Youngs.

England looked like falling just short of a memorable comeback, but Stewart had other ideas as he powered over in the final seconds, allowing Smith to convert and level up.

James Tedesco pinpointed the "special bond" within the Australia squad as the driving factor for Saturday's Rugby League World Cup triumph.

Australia captain Tedesco crossed over for two tries, as did Latrell Mitchell, in a 30-10 victory over Samoa as the Kangaroos cruised to a 12th world crown at Old Trafford.

The Australians have won their last 19 matches on English soil in the competition, in which they have reached every final since 1957, and Tedesco lauded the unity between his side after victory.

"It is pretty unbelievable. This group of blokes came over here six or seven weeks ago and we've got such a special bond," he told BBC Sport.

"COVID-19 has killed us for three years, not being able to play for our country, but we came here early and got along straight away.

"We created that connection from the start and wanted to work hard for each other."

Samoa missed the chance for a second-half fightback after Angus Crichton was fortunate to only be sin-binned for a high tackle on Chanel Harris-Tavita.

Cameron Murray extended the lead despite the one-man disadvantage as late tries for Brian To'o and Stephen Crichton proved a mere consolation for Samoa, who were playing in their first World Cup final.

Australia head coach Mal Meninga says he never had any doubts his side would hold off Samoa's advances to secure more silverware.

"It's fantastic. It's one of those games and you sit up there," Meninga said. The first half was expectational, we did what we needed to do.

"In the second half we scrambled well, a man down but we still scored points. It's what you do, you work for each other. I wasn't nervous, I'm confident in this footy team.

"Defensively, we only had 12 against a Samoa side who threw everything, I was still comfortable."

Meninga hailed the "exceptional" Tedesco as a "worthy man of the match" before praising the togetherness of his World Cup-winning side.

"They're committed to each other. There is respect and humility for our jersey, for the opposition," he added.

"We brought our best game tonight. We've had a long year but have been rewarded for effort tonight. What a way to finish our 2022 season."

Karim Benzema has suffered an apparent injury setback on the eve of the Qatar World Cup, French media reported on Saturday.

The Ballon d'Or winner and Real Madrid superstar only resumed full training with Les Bleus this weekend but could not complete the session with Didier Deschamps' team.

L'Equipe and RMC Sport reported Benzema was forced out by injury, with no initial indication of how serious the problem might be.

Benzema was troubled by a knee injury earlier this season before missing further fixtures for Madrid after suffering from muscular fatigue in his left quadriceps.

World Cup holders France begin their defence on Tuesday against Australia, before also tackling Denmark and Tunisia in Group D on November 26 and 30 respectively.

Benzema's absence from the tournament, should it come to that, would be a major blow to France, even though coach Deschamps also has the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud as forward options.

RB Leipzig's prolific Christopher Nkunku was forced to pull out of the squad this week after suffering knee ligament damage in a training collision with Eduardo Camavinga.

Youssouf Fofana says he "will do everything" possible to earn a place in France's starting line-up at the World Cup in Qatar.

Fofana only made his France debut against Austria in September, but his impressive form in Ligue 1 for Monaco was enough to earn him a spot in Didier Deschamps' 26-man squad for the tournament.

Injuries to fellow midfielders Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante mean he may even start for the reigning world champions, potentially alongside former team-mate Aurelien Tchouameni.

The 22-year-old says he will do all he can to receive a place among France's starters for their opening match against Australia on Tuesday.

"As a newcomer [to the squad], we come to discover this great competition," Fofana told reporters. "Whether you are 23 or 30, the first World Cup is always important.

"As a competitor, I will do everything to earn my place in the 11, like the 26, but always with respect for my teammates."

Fofana's late charge into the squad may induce questions of whether he is up to the required standard to play at a World Cup for France, but the 22-year-old feels his performances speak for themselves.

"As I said, it's on the field that speaks," Fofana added. "The coach validated me. After the first game [debut against Austria], everyone validated me too!

"I no longer have time to tell myself whether I am happy or proud. The competition starts in two days.

"Two major players are absent [Pogba and Kante], but they also started in the France team one day. There is a beginning for everything."

France received a boost on Saturday as Raphael Varane returned to full training on Saturday.

After their match with Australia, Deschamps' men will take on Denmark and Tunisia in Group D as they look to retain their World Cup crown.