Cameron Norrie criticised his own attitude and performance after his French Open campaign ended with a straight-sets loss to Lorenzo Musetti in the third round.

It is the third year in a row the British number one has fallen in the last 32, and he only managed to mount any real challenge in the third set before going down 6-1 6-2 6-4.

There is certainly no disgrace in losing to 21-year-old Musetti, who is ranked only five places below Norrie and whose best surface is clay, but the 14th seed was hugely disappointed by the manner of what is one of his worst grand slam losses in terms of scoreline.

The result, meanwhile, brings an end to British singles hopes at a tournament where only three players even made the start line.

“I came out very flat and I’m disappointed with the attitude in the first couple of sets,” said a very downbeat Norrie.

“It was very, very slow conditions, very heavy, and I was not prepared for it to be that slow. For me, I can play bad and everything, but I was just very flat and disappointed to have a performance like that.

“The first two sets he didn’t really do too much and he was up two sets to love. For a player like myself, I can’t afford to give that much of an edge.

“There is no excuses to play the level that I did today. I missed so many easy short balls and I lost so many points within a couple of shots where usually I can win a lot of those ones.

“I didn’t come prepared. I was changing rackets throughout the match. It was a bit colder today but I’m good enough to not let that bother me.”

Norrie lost to Musetti in Barcelona recently but spoke positively after his second-round victory over Lucas Pouille about what he had learned from that clash.

He was immediately on the back foot, though, dropping serve in the opening game against the stylish Italian and swiftly losing the opening set.

The second was no better, with Musetti too often finding an answer to everything Norrie could throw at him, and the 17th seed went a break up early in the third as well.

Norrie was staring at his worst slam loss but he at least made a fist of it, breaking Musetti, who had lost from two sets up on both of his previous appearances at Roland Garros, back and creating two chances to break for 5-3.

The Italian held firm, though, and drilled a forehand past Norrie to break again before serving out the victory.

Norrie is known for a relentless work ethic and never-say-die attitude so to hear him talk about a lack of preparation and unwillingness to stay in points is certainly concerning.

The 27-year-old has maintained a relentless schedule to help him get to and then stay at the top of the game so it would be understandable if he felt mentally fatigued, but he dismissed the suggestion.

“I’ve played a lot of matches,” he said. “I think I can use that to my advantage. I’ve played more matches maybe than anyone else on the tour in the last maybe three years. I can say that’s a good thing.

“And then even going into this match today, I was thinking I’ve won more matches than Musetti this year, I’ve won bigger matches than him. I think I’m playing better than him on the clay. I was really confident going into it.”

Norrie will now head back to London and turn his attention to the grass-court swing a year on from his run to the Wimbledon semi-finals.

Frankie Dettori credits the Betfred Derby with giving him the “biggest thrill” of his career as he prepares for one last roll of the dice at Epsom.

The Italian is one of the most successful and well-known jockeys of all time, but all good things must come to an end and this year will be his last before retirement.

As a result of that decision, his journey throughout the fixtures of the Flat season is naturally grabbing the headlines, and on Saturday all eyes will be on his ride in one of the oldest and most prestigious races in existence.

Dettori will partner John and Thady Gosden’s Arrest, a Frankel colt with a live chance of providing him with a third victory in the premier Classic.

Those two prior successes and the promise of retirement leave the 52-year-old rider feeling relaxed ahead of his final Derby performance – an emotion he was not familiar with when striving to get his name on the roll of honour in years gone by.

Dettori’s first Derby ride was Pollen Count in 1992, who finished 16th of 18, and he would have to wait 15 years before he could return triumphant from the Epsom Downs track to the tiny winner’s circle.

Incidentally that decade-and-a-half wait was something endured also by Sir Anthony McCoy, who had a similar barren spell in searching for his first Grand National.

In the meantime Dettori partnered several contenders who ultimately fell short – Tamure was second in 1995, Shantou was third in 1996, Cape Verdi was ninth as the 11-4 favourite in 1998, Dubai Millennium was also ninth as the 5-1 favourite in 1999, Tobougg was third in 2001, Snow Ridge was seventh as the 7-2 joint-favourite in 2004 and Dubawi was third in 2005.

Finally Authorized obliged in 2007 for trainer Peter Chapple-Hyam, winning by a wonderful five lengths as the 5-4 favourite and sweetening the sour relationship between Dettori and the race.

“It was a nightmare. Every time it came to the Derby it was a nightmare!” he said of the winless run.

“When I won in 2007 I was full of relief. Finally, it was the last piece of the jigsaw.

“It was a nightmare though, even more when I rode Authorized because he was a big favourite, it was a lot on me and it was a relief.

“Cape Verdi got beat, I rode Dubai Millennium, I rode loads of good ones that got beat.

“The point of the Derby is it’s only once a year – once it’s gone, it’s gone. At Ascot you’ve got 35 races, you’ve got the rest of the afternoon, but the Derby only comes once.”

Dettori would go on to win again in 2015, this time with the Gosden-trained Golden Horn, who struck as the 13-8 favourite and provided the rider with one of the most memorable days of his career.

“Golden Horn was a different thing because I really got to enjoy it, I was older and my kids were older,” he said.

“I didn’t have the pressure to try to win it for the first time either, so it was a lot more enjoyable. Probably my biggest thrill in one single race was that race.”

Though the racing industry has inevitably changed since Dettori first took to the track as a young man from Italy, he still considers the Derby the pinnacle of achievement in racing and credits it as the driving factor in the development of the thoroughbred breed.

“It’s the most important race, we have been breeding thoroughbreds for 350 years to win the Derby,” he said.

“For a jockey, when you start you want to win the Derby. Trainers, owners, breeders, the Derby is why we are breeding thoroughbreds, for this race.

“The tradition has been going for hundreds of years and it will be going for hundreds of years. It is the most important race.”

Frankie Dettori is as relaxed as ever and feels he has “nothing to prove” ahead of his last ever Betfred Derby ride aboard Arrest.

The veteran jockey – who will bring the curtain down on his glittering career at the end of 2023 – will join forces with John and Thady Gosden for the blue riband, an event he has won twice before aboard Authorized and Golden Horn, in 2007 and 2015 respectively.

Arrest is a son of Frankel who took an established Derby trial when landing the Chester Vase by six and a half lengths in May, though the soft going meant that race was run in significantly different conditions to those expected at the weekend.

Nevertheless, the Juddmonte-owned colt has undertaken a pleasing gallop since at Epsom, and his status as a Derby hopeful is a boon for Dettori as he did not expect to pick up a competitive ride in his final year in the saddle.

He said: “It’s my last year, I thought I’d find it hard to find a Derby ride, never mind a Derby ride with a chance. It’s actually surprising to me that I’m in this position and I have a shot at it, a proper shot at it. I’m very excited.

“When I said in December I was going to retire, I never thought I’d get the ride on a horse with a great chance to win the Derby, so it is a great position to be in.

“Arrest has filled out to be a good-looking horse, very strong, he’s improved throughout the spring and won his trial very well, even if it was a non-event on that ground. We know the distance is no problem, he’s full of himself and it looks a wide-open Derby. I would say I’ve got as good a chance as anyone.

“I wouldn’t like to swap him with anything else because I feel like I’m going in with as good a chance as anyone. He’s got a bit of a round action, a high knee action, we took him to Epsom and gave him a bit of a gallop round and he seems fine.”

With Auguste Rodin having a question mark after his eclipse in the Guineas, there is no runaway favourite for the race this year. But Dettori has an eye on Sir Michael Stoute’s Passenger, a maiden winner who suffered a luckless passage through the Dante before dead-heating for third.

“He’s the one that we still don’t know how good he is, he never got a fair crack at the Dante and he’s only run twice, so he could be anything,” he said.

Arrest is drawn in stall 13 of 14 runners and while the perceived wisdom is that a higher draw is generally beneficial at Epsom, Dettori does not think the stall position is as significant a factor as others believe.

He said: “There has been a lot of emphasis on it, but they’ve been winning from everywhere.

“To win the Derby you need a good horse, the draw makes no difference. Simple as that!”

Though he expects the emotion of hanging up his boots to catch up with him as his final rides loom, for now Dettori is enjoying his farewell tour and at ease going into one of the biggest weekends of racing anywhere in the world.

He said: “Believe it or not, I’m so chilled. Maybe it’s because I’ve got nothing to prove and if I do make a balls up of it, it doesn’t matter. I’m feeling very chilled, I’m embracing it, I’m super relaxed.

“I’m really enjoying it. It will be a different kettle of fish when I get to October and the last few days will be difficult, but at the moment I feel good.”

London Irish’s problems took a turn for the worse on Friday when HM Revenue and Customs filed winding-up petitions over an unpaid tax bill.

Proceedings were launched on Friday when petitions against London Irish Holdings Limited and London Irish Rugby Football Ground Limited were filed at the High Court.

The development came on the day that the Government appointed independent advisers to support rugby union chiefs as they attempt to preserve the future of the professional game after the failures of Worcester and Wasps last season.

Irish face suspension from the Gallagher Premiership unless a takeover has been completed or they can demonstrate they have the funding needed to operate for the entirety of the 2023-24 season by 4pm on June 6.

HMRC declined to comment on the matter but a spokesperson told the PA news agency: “We take a supportive approach to dealing with customers who have tax debts and only file winding-up petitions once we’ve exhausted all other options, in order to protect taxpayers’ money.”

The club was given a week-long extension to prove they have a future by the Rugby Football Union on Wednesday, and were ordered to ensure the May payroll for all staff and players had been paid in full after it was confirmed that only 50 per cent had been received.

An American consortium is in discussions to take over the Exiles, who have debts in the region of £30million, but has yet to provide proof of funds to the RFU, as well as other documentation needed for the purchase to be approved.

The club’s plight highlights the difficulties currently being faced by clubs in the post-Covid era which have prompted Government intervention.

The Department of Culture, Media and Sport has appointed former Rugby Football League CEO Ralph Rimmer and UK Sport’s Chris Pilling to help the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby Limited in their efforts to reshape the game’s “future strategic financial and sporting direction”.

A DCMS statement read: “The issues at Worcester, Wasps and London Irish have laid bare the challenges facing the sport of rugby union.

“The inability of rugby clubs to raise capital investment and the financial challenges at various levels within the game have contributed to the need for urgent work to help secure rugby union’s immediate future and advise on its future direction.”

The Government stepped in to support rugby at elite and grassroots levels during the Covid-19 pandemic, but many clubs are still dealing with the impact.

Sports Minister Stuart Andrew added: “This is a challenging time for rugby union and Ralph and Chris have agreed to utilise their experience to help the game develop a clear path for the future.

“We have seen several high profile clubs and their fans left devastated in recent times and this additional independent advice will be of huge benefit to the RFU and PRL as they look to implement a new strategic direction for rugby.”

RFU CEO Bill Sweeney welcomed further Government backing and called upon those involved in the game to set aside “self-interest” in the quest for a sustainable future.

He said: “The restructuring of the Professional Game Agreement into a strategic partnership provides a great opportunity for all stakeholders to set aside self-interest and collaborate to reset and secure the future long-term sustainable growth of the professional game including developing the strongest possible second tier.”

Mike Tindall has said he wishes animal rights activists would “go and spend a bit of time at professional yards” to see how well horses are looked after.

The former England rugby player will be joined by his wife Zara Tindall, daughter of the Princess Royal, at Epsom on Saturday.

The late Queen’s granddaughter competed in the London 2012 Olympics, winning a team eventing silver medal, which was presented by her mother Princess Anne.

When asked if he is hoping protesters stay off the track on Saturday, Tindall said: “Yes, of course.

“I wish they would just go and spend a bit of time at professional yards and have a look at how well the horses are looked after.

“I know how well my wife looks after her horses and how much she cares for them.

“They are like people.

“I’ve been to AP McCoy’s yard where he’s been having a birthday party for one of the horses.

“They are treated unbelievably well.

“Unfortunately, tragedy happens in the wild probably more than it does on the track and people forget this.

“All you can say is I know how well every trainer looks after their horse and every jockey cares about their horse, and you just wish they’d see that a bit more.”

Animal rights activists have pledged to “cancel or severely delay” the Derby on Saturday as police brace for disruption.

Writing on Twitter, activist group Animal Rising claimed it was willing to “put their bodies on the line”.

Novak Djokovic  admitted he is dealing with a number of physical problems after fighting off a terrific challenge from Alejandro Davidovich Fokina to reach the fourth round of the French Open for a 14th consecutive year.

The 7-6 (4) 7-6 (5) 6-2 victory took three hours and 36 minutes, with Djokovic twice a break down in the first set and forced to save a set point in the second.

The 22-time grand-slam champion looked unsettled in windy conditions, while he called the trainer before the third set to have his left thigh massaged, but, as he so often does, he found a way to come out on top.

Asked about the medical time-out, Djokovic said: “We don’t have much time to start to name the many injuries I have, and the list is quite long.

“I still kept on playing. These are the circumstances that you, as a professional athlete, have to deal with. Accept it. Sometimes you need help from (a) physio during the match. Sometimes you need pills. Sometimes you need help from the god or angels, or whoever.

“The reality for me nowadays is that my body is responding differently than it did a few years ago. I managed to finish the match.”

Djokovic, who again wore a nanotechnology device on his chest, had struggled in his opening set against Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday before breezing through the next two, and it quickly became clear Spaniard Davidovich Fokina would offer a real test.

The 23-year-old, ranked 34, saw a break for 3-2 swiftly erased but moved ahead again to lead 6-5 after Djokovic double-faulted three times and was given a time violation.

Again, Davidovich Fokina was unable to serve it out, though, and Djokovic made him pay for the wasted opportunities by winning a tie-break.

This time the challenge very much continued in the second set as the pair exchanged breaks of serve three times, with Djokovic unable to clinch it at 5-4.

Davidovich Fokina had one chance to level the match in Djokovic’s next service game but he could not take it and the Serbian again came out on top in a tie-break.

Djokovic let his emotions out, roaring and fist-pumping, but the toll the effort had taken became clear when he called the trainer, applying ice to his left thigh and gesturing sarcastically towards the crowd.

Djokovic looked distinctly uncomfortable at times in the third set but he forged ahead early on and did not let Davidovich Fokina back in, giving a weary celebration when the Spaniard’s resistance finally ran out.

“I knew that it’s going to be a very difficult match, a very physical match,” said Djokovic.

“He contested very, very well. He’s an amazing fighter, amazing player. Congratulations to him for fighting. Bad luck but he played a great match.

“Of course a win is a win, maybe a little bit too much, three hours for two sets. I thought, if I would lose the second set, we’d probably play for five hours.

“But you have to be ready. It takes a lot of effort but we all have to believe in ourselves. I’m proud of the performance today for sure.”

The behaviour of the crowd has come under the spotlight this week, with boos frequently ringing around Roland Garros.

Of his own reaction while he received treatment, Djokovic said: “I think the majority of the people come to enjoy tennis or support one or the other player. But there are people, groups or whatever, that love to boo every single thing you do.

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“That’s something that I find disrespectful and I frankly don’t understand that. But it’s their right. They paid the ticket.

“Actually 99 per cent of the time I will stay quiet. Sometimes I will oppose that because I feel, when somebody is disrespectful, he or she deserves to have an answer to that.”

It was another day of long matches, with Italian Lorenzo Sonego fighting back from two sets down to defeat seventh seed Andrey Rublev, while Austrian qualifier Sebastian Ofner saw off Fabio Fognini in five sets.

After his epic victory over Stan Wawrinka, Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis was involved in another lengthy battle with 11th seed Karen Khachanov but was unable to force a decider, losing 6-4 6-1 3-6 7-6 (5).

Russian Khachanov declined to answer questions about the war in Ukraine afterwards, saying: “I am a sportsman, I am not a politician. I don’t want to talk here about politics because, first of all, I am not good at it. And, second of all, it’s not my job.”

The Phoenix Suns are finalising an agreement with former NBA champion coach Frank Vogel to become their next head coach, according to multiple reports.

Vogel, who guided the Los Angeles Lakers to an NBA title during the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season, takes over a talent-laden Suns team that has compiled a 160-76 record over the last three regular seasons - the highest winning percentage in the league over that period - but still seeks the first championship of the franchise's 55-year existence.

The 49-year-old replaces Monty Williams, who was fired shortly after the Suns were ousted by the Denver Nuggets in six games in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs.

Williams was hired as the Detroit Pistons' head coach earlier this week. The 2021-22 NBA Coach of the Year went 194-115 over four seasons in Phoenix and led the Suns to the 2021 NBA Finals.

Vogel owns a 431-389 overall record over 11 seasons with three different teams along with a career 49-39 playoff record. His greatest success came during his first season in Los Angeles, where a Lakers team led by superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis went 52-19 before winning four playoff series in the Orlando bubble to earn the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

The Lakers failed to follow up on that success, however, losing to the Suns in the first round the following season. Vogel was then fired after the 2021-22 campaign in which Los Angeles went a disappointing 33-49 and missed the playoffs. 

Regarded as a defensive specialist, Vogel previously directed the Indiana Pacers to five playoff appearances - including two trips to the Eastern Conference finals - over a six-year stretch from 2010-16. He also served as the Orlando Magic's head coach from 2016-18.

Vogel will again be taking over a team with two bona fide stars in Phoenix with Kevin Durant and Devin Booker locked into long-term deals, though the Suns do have offseason decisions to make on two other key players. Veteran point guard Chris Paul turned 38 in May and has a partially guaranteed contract for next season, while center Deandre Ayton struggled in the playoff series against the Nuggets and sat out Denver's clinching victory with a rib injury. 

Scotland’s David Law produced a “pretty unbelievable” second round to lie a shot off the halfway lead in the Porsche European Open in Hamburg.

Law tamed a 7,455-yard course known as the Green Monster as he fired an eagle and eight birdies in a seven-under-par 66, a nine-shot improvement on his opening 75.

That drew high praise from the man at the top of the leaderboard, Germany’s Max Kieffer adding a 71 to his opening 69 to reach six under par, a shot ahead of Law, England’s Jordan Smith and Northern Ireland’s Tom McKibbin.

“First of all, seven under is pretty unbelievable,” Kieffer said when told of Law’s score. “That’s a crazy round of golf.

“It’s playing quite long, even though it’s a bit shorter this year than the last few years. There’s lots of water, the greens are quite undulated.

“If you hit a loose shot here and there, usually on every hole there’s a bit of trouble. It’s a very tough course.”

Law could easily have gone even lower than 66 after starting on the back nine and following six birdies in his first eight holes with an eagle on the par-five 18th to be out in 30.

A bogey on the second halted his momentum and although he birdied the fourth and seventh, Law bogeyed his last two holes of the day.

“I went out there just trying to play golf and make birdies and score as low as I can,” the 32-year-old said. “The brakes came on a bit on the back nine, but it’s a difficult course, it’s tough.

“The goal is to keep doing what we were doing. I tried hard on the back nine to keep in the present and make birdies like we were, but it didn’t happen. Barring the last two holes we played really nice on that second nine.”

Arguably the shot of the day belonged to Law’s compatriot Ewen Ferguson, who putted out of a bunker on the 14th and holed from 25 feet for birdie.

“The sand is very firm and compact,” Ferguson said after a 72 left him three off the lead.

“It was a narrow green and I thought if I didn’t get the strike right (with a sand wedge) it could have trickled into the water or I had to go left of the pin.

“I thought I’d putt it and it rolled nicely didn’t it? I’ve never had that before. You just have to go for it and see what happens. Just smash it out and get lucky.”

Cameron Norrie’s French Open campaign ended in disappointing fashion with a straight-sets loss to Lorenzo Musetti in the third round.

It is the third year in a row the British number one has fallen in the last 32, and he only managed to mount any real challenge in the third set before going down 6-1 6-2 6-4.

There is certainly no disgrace in losing to 21-year-old Musetti, who is ranked only five places below Norrie and whose best surface is clay, but the 14th seed will be disappointed by the manner of what is one of his worst grand slam losses in terms of scoreline.

The result, meanwhile, brings an end to British singles hopes at a tournament where only three players even made the start line.

Norrie lost to Musetti in Barcelona recently but spoke positively after his second-round victory over Lucas Pouille about what he had learned from that clash.

He was immediately on the back foot, though, dropping serve in the opening game against the stylish Italian and swiftly losing the opening set.

The second was no better, with Musetti too often finding an answer to everything Norrie could throw at him, and the 17th seed went a break up early in the third as well.

Norrie was staring at his worst slam loss but he at least made a fist of it, breaking Musetti, who had lost from two sets up on both of his previous appearances at Roland Garros, back and creating three chances to break for 5-3.

The Italian held firm, though, and drilled a forehand past Norrie to break again before serving out the victory.

Rory McIlroy bounced back from the nightmare finish to his opening round on day two of the prestigious Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village.

Just two days after tournament host Jack Nicklaus had lamented McIlroy’s occasional lapses in concentration, the four-time major winner carded a triple bogey on the 18th to card a level-par 72.

“I don’t know whether his is a constant lack of being able to keep that concentration for the whole thing or not, because sometimes he (goes) par, par, par, double, eight,” Nicklaus said in his pre-event press conference.

“He does that sometimes.”

It was not an eight on Thursday but a nevertheless destructive seven on the par-four 18th, where his drive finished in deep rough on a steep side slope.

McIlroy could only hack his ball almost sideways into more rough and he caught a flier with his third before taking four shots to get down from the back of the green.

“I felt good about everything that I did yesterday,” McIlroy said after carding six birdies and two bogeys in a second round of 68.

“I got one bad break on 18 with that ball finishing on the bank of the bunker. So I really feel like I’m one shot out of leading this golf tournament.

“(If) that rolls down into the bunker, hopefully I’m able to hit it on the green and make a four and instead of standing here at four under I would be at seven under and feeling really good about everything.

“I felt like I did a lot of really good things yesterday and I did a lot of good things right, so I can’t let that one sort of unlucky break sort of hide the fact that everything else was working pretty well.”

At four under par McIlroy was three shots off the early clubhouse lead held by Hideki Matsuyama, the former Masters champion carding a superb bogey-free 65 to lead by one from Patrick Cantlay and David Lipsky.

Hearts and Hibernian have been served with a notice of complaint by the Scottish Football Association after disorder among their players and staff at the end of last weekend’s fiery Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle.

At full-time, following a clash that ended 1-1, two skirmishes erupted on the pitch, one directly in front of the two technical areas and another just moments afterwards in the centre circle.

Hearts goalkeeping coach Paul Gallacher and substitute shot-stopper Ross Stewart as well as Hibs manager Lee Johnson and unused substitute Rocky Bushiri were all shown red cards for their part in the post-match chaos.

And on Friday it emerged that the two clubs have been charged, alleged to have breached disciplinary rule 204, which states that: “All clubs and recognised football bodies shall procure that its officials, team staff, employees and players conduct themselves in an orderly fashion at all times during and/or after a match.

“In particular, clubs and recognised football bodies are responsible for ensuring that its officials, team staff, employees and players refrain from any one or a combination of the following: (a) becoming involved in a confrontation; b) conduct that is likely to lead to or to exacerbate or prolong a hostile or argumentative situation with players and/or team staff from the opposing team and/or match officials; (c) conduct that may otherwise incite disorder.”

The hearing for both clubs is due to take place on June 29.