Andy Murray expected to miss playing tennis after putting his racket down for the final time last month but said retirement has been "the complete opposite" to what he anticipated.

Murray, who won three grand slam titles across a glittering 19-year career, saw his time on the court come to an end at Roland-Garros in the Paris Olympics.

The 37-year-old competed alongside Dan Evans in the men's doubles, reaching the quarter-finals of the competition to eventual bronze medallists Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul. 

Murray withdrew from Wimbledon ahead of the Games after picking up a back injury against Jordan Thompson at the Queen's Club Championship, the latest of many injury setbacks towards the latter stages of his career.

"Since I've stopped, I feel really free and have got lots of time to do whatever it is I want," Murray told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"I can dedicate time to my children and have free time to play golf or go to the gym on my own terms.

"It is really nice and I didn't expect that. I was expecting to find retirement hard and be missing tennis a lot and wanting to get back on the tennis court on tour.

"So far it has been the complete opposite to what I was thinking."

The 37-year-old won his first grand slam in 2012 at the US Open before ending Britain's 77-year wait for a men's Wimbledon champion in 2013, winning it again in 2016.

During his career, Murray played 1,001 singles matches in his career, earning his landmark victory against Alexei Popyrin in three sets at Queen's.

After his injury in W14, the Scot vowed that the 2024 Olympic Games would be where his career ended, a competition he won two gold medals in 2012 and 2016.

While there was no perfect ending in the French capital, Murray revealed he was now spending some quality time with his family. 

"The thing that I always found difficult in recent years was that there was always a guilt associated with what I was doing," Murray said.

"If I was going away for a trip of like three to four weeks I would feel guilty leaving my children at home or being away from my wife for a long time with them, so missing the kids I found hard.

"But if I was at home with the kids then I was running around and spending a lot of my time on my feet after training.

"I was then thinking 'is this going to affect my training or performance the next day, should I have my feet up?' I found that stuff difficult over the last few years."

Lee Carsley said he understands his role as interim England head coach for the next three camps, insisting the best person should get the job on a full-time basis.

Carsley kickstarted his Three Lions tenure with a comfortable 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland last weekend, with Declan Rice and Jack Grealish on the scoresheet.

England continue their Nations League campaign on Tuesday against Finland at Wembley, an occasion they will be looking to mark with a win on Harry Kane's 100th international appearance.

Carsley could also become the first manager since Fabio Capello in 2008 to win his first two competitive games in charge. 

The only managers to win their first two England games at the helm without conceding a goal are Steve McClaren (2006), Ron Greenwood (1977) and Joe Mercer (1974).

Despite his impressive start, Carsley said he was not thinking about taking on the job permanently just yet.

"I feel like we are a step closer as a team. I try not to think about it too much. The best person should get the job," Carsley said.

"I know my role for the next three camps, and I am comfortable with that."

Carsley also explained his role for the next three camps, saying his full focus remained on the team.

"I think it's quite clear I am doing the three camps," Carsley added.

"I'm really happy with that, if it changes also I'm happy with that. I'm very privileged in the position I'm in, in terms of the Under-21s. I have enjoyed it so far.

"The important thing is the team as opposed to the coaches - they should be the ones in the spotlight and getting the attention."

England's next appointment will be a crucial one, having improved their recent tournament results by reaching the final of the last two European Championships under Gareth Southgate. 

Carsley's relationship with the Under-21 team was a pivotal factor in replacing Southgate, having led the side to Euro Under-21 Championship glory last year.

However, the likes of Graham Potter, Eddie Howe and Pep Guardiola have all been linked with the permanent role as the Three Lions look to end their wait for an international honour.

And after England supporters got a glimpse of Carsley's style of play at the Aviva Stadium last weekend, the former Republic of Ireland midfielder is aiming to continue that same attacking tempo on his Wembley debut.

"It's important that we are exciting to watch," Carsley said.

"I think when fans come and watch England play at home, they expect attacking football, they expect chances to be created and to play with a tempo."

Fred Vasseur left the door ajar to a potential Ferrari return for the "mega professional" Carlos Sainz, ahead of his impending departure at the end of the season. 

Sainz, who will join Alex Albon at Williams in 2025, is being replaced by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, ending his three-year stint with the Italian team. 

During that time, the Spaniard has won three times, the latest of which came at the Australian Grand Prix in March, and currently sits fifth in the drivers' championship. 

Of his 82 races, Sainz has accumulated 794.5 points, needing 63 points from the final eight races of the campaign to better his highest total in the competition (246 in 2022).

Vasseur said that he would “for sure” like to work with Sainz again in the future, as he repeated that the call to replace him with Hamilton “was not an easy one”.

“I’m more than pleased to have Carlos [in the team] and I will keep a very good relationship with him,” said Vasseur.

Ferrari's success at the Italian Grand Prix, a race that Charles Leclerc emerged victorious in, marked Sainz's last as a Ferrari driver at Monza. 

The Spaniard has not been on the podium since a third-place finish at the Austrian Grand Prix, but will be aiming to continue his impressive qualifying form in Baku. 

Sainz has improved his qualifying position in the last three Grand Prix's, and if he can do so in Azerbaijan, will equal his second-best streak for Ferrari.

But speaking after the Italian Grand Prix, Vasseur took a moment to reflect on Sainz's contribution to the Maranello outfit.

“I have huge respect for Carlos, for what he did for the team in the last years, but mainly the last two years with me [as team boss],” Vasseur commented.

“I can perfectly see what he did last year, mainly when we had trouble, he was able to push the team to come back with the pole in Monza, to win in Singapore.

"This pushed a little bit probably also Charles to react and he did [many] first rows [on the grid] in a row.

“He was clearly part of the recovery of the team last year and this season he’s doing a very good job.

"I know perfectly that the situation was not easy at the beginning of the season, but he’s mega professional.

“We had a discussion last winter and we agreed together to push until the last corner of the last lap [of the season] and he’s doing very well.”

The Carolina Panthers not only suffered a 47-10 blowout defeat to the New Orleans Saints in their 2024 opener on Sunday, but they also may have lost Pro Bowl defensive lineman Derrick Brown for the remainder of the season due to a knee injury.

NFL Network reported Monday that Brown will undergo surgery to repair a meniscus injury, and a timeline to return will be determined following the procedure.

Brown was a bright spot for the league-worst Panthers last season, leading all NFL defensive linemen with 103 tackles and tying for fourth with six passes defenced to earn his first Pro Bowl selection.

In April, the seventh overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft was rewarded with a four-year, $96million contract extension through the 2028 season.

Brown’s only missed game of his NFL career came in 2021. He’s started 64 of 67 contests while recording 248 tackles, eight sacks, two interceptions and 21 passes defenced.

Harry Kane feels at his peak ahead of his landmark England appearance on Tuesday, taking inspiration from Cristiano Ronaldo's latest goal-scoring achievement.

Kane is set to make his 100th England appearance at Wembley in their Nations League fixture with Finland, becoming only the 10th player to reach that milestone. 

His landmark appearance will see him awarded with a golden cap ahead of kick-off, the first player to receive one since Wayne Rooney did so in November 2014.

The Bayern Munich striker has made 86 starts for the Three Lions and has 83 goal involvements (66 goals - an England record - and 17 assists) to his name.

He averages a goal every 117 minutes, having 3.5 shots and 1.6 shots on target per 90, creating an average of 1.1 chances per 90.

Since his international debut in 2015, Kane has won 61 of his matches for England, giving him a 61.6% win ratio while also captaining the side to two major tournament finals.

At 31-years-old, many believe his time on the international stage may come to an end soon, but Kane has taken inspiration from Ronaldo, who, at 39-years-old, netted his 900th career goal against Croatia last week.

"I feel in really good shape, both physically and mentally, at a peak in my career," Kane said.

"Watching other players, [Cristiano] Ronaldo scoring his 901st goal, seeing him compete at 39 years old inspires me to play for as long as possible.

"I love this game, I love representing England - more than anything and I don’t want it to end any time soon.

"For me, personally, now it’s about continuing to improve and being consistent both in an England shirt and at club level.

"I’m hungry for more. I’m determined to keep pushing the boundaries."

81 of Kane's 99 caps came under former England head coach Gareth Southgate, with the others coming under Roy Hodgson, Sam Allardyce, and most recently, Lee Carsley. 

Carsley got his reign as the Three Lions' interim boss with an impressive 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland on Saturday, with goals coming from Declan Rice and Jack Grealish. 

Kane managed the most shots (four) and touches in the opposition box (nine) at the Aviva Stadium and is enjoying life under the 50-year-old.

"It has been really good. A new energy into the place especially after the disappointing end to the summer," Kane said.

"It has been great to work with the boss so far. He's brought his ideas, how he wants us to play. I think the lads have enjoyed it.

"We've got a good mixture of youth and experience in the team. You're seeing the excited faces of some of the new players."

Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva labelled his side's triumph over England as "special" following their eight-wicket win in the final Test at The Oval. 

Pathum Nissanka's unbeaten century led the tourists to victory, having started day four needing just 125 runs with nine wickets in hand. 

Despite the loss of Kusal Mendis (39), Sri Lanka were able to halt their seven-match losing streak in Tests against England, claiming their first win against them since June 2014.

Nissanka's unbeaten 127 from 124 deliveries also made him only the fourth batter to log a strike rate of more than 100 when scoring a ton in men's Tests.

De Silva hailed Sri Lanka's resilience in claiming the deserved victory, believing his opening batsman is the best in the business for the Lions.

"It is very special, winning in England. The boys were tough enough to handle the pressure and get into some scenarios," De Silva told BBC Sport.

"It is not comfortable. There was hard work put in by the bowlers and batters. We were there in every match - had positive points. The boys wanted to win in the end.

"Credit to all of the bowlers. They have been on target from ball one. In the second innings, they were spot on.

"He [Nissanka] was in form the last couple of years and doing well in white-ball format. He has proved he is the best opener in Sri Lanka right now."

Kamindu Mendis, who struck 113 from 183 deliveries in the Lions' five-wicket defeat in the first Test, was handed Sri Lanka's Player of the Series after the triumph.

Mendis was consistent with the bat throughout the series, scoring 267 runs across the five innings he was in at the crease. 

"It's a good win in these conditions. We did really well, especially the seamers and the batters did really well today," Mendis said.

"In these conditions, you have to face very difficult situations but I just wanted to enjoy it. That's it.

"I just made small changes, not big ones. It's a big deal but you have to be confident in your ability and enjoy your game.

"It's always a challenge facing seamers in England."

Sri Lanka's attentions will now turn to a two-match Test series on home soil against New Zealand, starting on September 18 at the Galle International Stadium.

England have much to be positive about despite losing the final Test of their three-match series against Sri Lanka.

That is the view of Joe Root, who was named England's Player of the Series.

England were firmly second best as they lost by eight wickets at The Oval in the third Test, with Sri Lanka picking up just their fourth win in the longest format on English soil.

Yet after winning the first two Tests, and their three matches against West Indies earlier in the summer, England have plenty to be happy with, so says Root, who used a musical comparison to emphasise his point.

"Not so much this week, but it has been a good summer," Root told BBC Sport.

"We have played some really good cricket along the way. We have had new faces come into the team and some really exciting prospects off the back of that. We are constantly learning and evolving as a group, and it is nice to contribute to that.

"I don't think we played our best cricket this week and that is going to happen from time to time. Coldplay can't be number one every week.

"My point being is we are always trying to move the game forward. We wanted to keep our catchers in and as batters want to find ways of putting the opposition under pressure.

"We are not always going to get it right all of the time. For 90% of the summer we have. We have shown what a good team we can be when we play in that matter.

"It is important we are authentic to what we are as a team and what brings out the best in our individual players."

Root plundered 375 runs across six innings in the series, including two hundreds in the second Test.

However, only scoring 25 in the third Test means he is 14 runs short of 1,000 for 2024.

He will likely get the chance to surpass that milestone, and equal Alastair Cook as the only other English player to score 1,000+ runs in five calendar years, when England tour Pakistan in October.

"You can laud it when it comes off," Root continued on England's approach. "When it doesn't always come off it might not look like traditional dismissals, but [Pathum] Nissanka was hitting over mid-on and mid-off last night.

"When you are 127 not out you can look back and say what a brilliant innings it was. He was brave enough to take the challenge on and that is what we pride ourselves on as well - how can you knock bowlers off a length, how can you make it difficult for them to build pressure on you.

"Some of our guys have a different method to how I would do it and that is what makes us such a good team when we are at our best, because we compliment each other really well and find a different way of getting teams to bowl away from where the danger is.

"Over the last couple of years, that is what has made us have the success we have had."

England's focus now switches to an ODI series against Australia, with bowler Gus Atkinson having been rested after sustaining an injury at The Oval.

Caoimhin Kelleher is ready to leave Liverpool in search of first-team football.

Kelleher, 25, has been Alisson's back-up for several seasons at Anfield, though did play in some big games during Jurgen Klopp's time in charge.

That included starring in the EFL Cup final against Chelsea in 2022.

However, with Liverpool having signed Giorgi Mamardashvili, who will join next season, Kelleher believes the time is right to move on.

And the Republic of Ireland goalkeeper suggested he could have left this summer, if Liverpool had not rejected offers.

"I made it clear in the last few years I want to go be a number one and play week in, week out," said Kelleher ahead of Ireland's Nations League clash with Greece.

"The club made the decision to get another goalkeeper.

"From the outside looking in, it looks like they have made a decision to go in another direction.

"My ambition has always been clear the last few seasons that I want to be a number one, playing week in week out.

"At times it is not always in my hands. My mission was to go out and play, and be a number one.

"It has been reported that Liverpool had rejected a few bids as well. It is not always in my hands to make the decision. My ambition is to prove I am good enough to play week in, week out."

Kelleher made seven saves from nine shots against England on Saturday, and could do little to prevent either Declan Rice or Jack Grealish scoring to hand the Three Lions a 2-0 win.

Pathum Nissanka's unbeaten century guided Sri Lanka to an eight-wicket win over England in the final Test of the three-match series.

Sri Lanka went into day four at The Oval in a commanding position, needing just 125 for victory with nine wickets to spare.

And despite Shoaib Bashir taking a fantastic catch in the deep to dismiss Kusal Mendis (39), the tourists ultimately cruised to just their fourth Test win on English soil.

Nissanka's hugely accomplished innings was the highlight, as the opener clipped his way to 127 not-out.

Angelo Mathews (32) provided a steady pair of hands at the other end, but the day belonged to Nissanka, as he fittingly struck the winning runs when he sent Bashir for four.

England may have won the series 2-1, but Brendan McCullum's team were well below their best in the third Test, and attention will now turn to the ODI series against Australia, which starts on Wednesday.

Data Debrief: Take two for Nissanka

Nissanka was in excellent form throughout this match, and followed up his excellent 64 with a sublime knock in the second innings, sealing his second Test ton in the process.

His performance helped Sri Lanka snap a seven-match losing run in Tests against England, and claim their first win since a 100-run victory back in June 2014. It had been England's longest winning run against Sri Lanka in the format.

Dak Prescott has set his sights on Super Bowl success after signing a bumper new deal with the Dallas Cowboys.

Dallas struck an agreement with Prescott just prior to their opening game of the season on Sunday, with the new contract, which runs through the 2028 season, worth $240million with $231m guaranteed.

That makes Prescott the highest-paid player in NFL history.

"A little emotional call," Prescott said when reflecting on receiving the video call from his agent while he was warming up for Sunday's clash with the Cleveland Browns.

Prescott went on to lead the Cowboys to a 33-17 victory, completing 19 passes for 179 yards and one touchdown.

And the 31-year-old knows the pressure is on for him to deliver this season.

"It's my only motivation," Prescott said.

"Hold up my part of this deal. Just deliver that. That's my motivation.

"Right now it's about celebrating this win tonight. Hell of a win with these guys, excited for this plane ride back with them, but then turning the page tomorrow, getting on to the [New Orleans] Saints and taking it one game at a time.

"That is what is at the forefront of my mind. Not the money. It's about holding up my end of the deal. And I want to do it here."

Prescott failed with 13 of his passes against the Browns, and insists he must improve on that level.

"I put the most pressure on myself. Simple as that," he said.

I'm not happy with my performance and that's what motivates me. That's what pushes me. You try to be bummed about it in the locker room, but you know it's a win on the road, which is good for the team and then you got teammates telling you it was a hell of a day for you.

"I put the most pressure on myself. Nobody's a bigger critic than I am personally, and I expect greatness out of myself with my standards, my expectations and the same for this team."

Rodrygo believes he deserved to be in the reckoning for this year's Ballon d'Or, and thinks his versatility may have worked against him.

The Real Madrid attacker was a notable omission from the shortlist of 30 names that was announced last week.

The 23-year-old scored 17 goals and registered nine assists in 51 appearances for Los Blancos in all competitions last season.

However, while team-mates Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham, Dani Carvajal, Federico Valverde, Antonio Rudiger, new Madrid star Kylian Mbappe and even the now-retired Toni Kroos were nominated, Rodrygo was snubbed. 

"I was upset, I think I deserved it," Rodrygo told ESPN.

"I don't want to belittle the players who are there, I think they deserved it also.

"But I think I had a place in the 30. It was a surprise but there is not much I can do as I'm not the one who decides these things."

Rodrygo has played on the right flank and up front under Carlo Ancelotti, and he suggested that does not always get the best out of him.

"Often, I'm just filling spaces," Rodrygo added.

"Is someone missing there? Put Rodrygo in. Is someone missing on the right? Rodrygo. Is someone missing as number nine? Rodrygo. That's it.

"It may get in my way a little, but I'm a team player."

Only three players – Ilkay Gundogan (211), Valverde (211) and Iago Aspas (193) – contributed to more shots in open play in LaLiga last season than Rodrygo (171), who created 80 chances for his team-mates.