Aryna Sabalenka has confirmed she will not compete at the Olympic Games in Paris next month in order to prioritise her health. 

The world number three retained her Australian Open title at the start of the year but suffered defeat in the quarter-finals of the French Open at Roland-Garros.

The Belarusian's loss was her first before the semi-final stage of a major tournament since 2022, and she intends to rest ahead of the for the hard-court season which begins at the US Open 22 games after the Olympics. 

"I prefer to have a little rest to make sure physically and health-wise I'm ready for the hard courts," said Sabalenka, who was the runner-up last year in New York. 

"Especially with all the struggles I've been struggling with the last months, I feel I have to take care of my health.

"It's too much for the scheduling and I made the decision to take care of my health."

Sabalenka is currently in Germany preparing for the Berlin Open, and faces Daria Kasatkina in the last 16 of the competition, having come from a set down to beat Marta Kostyuk on Monday. 

Roberto Martinez is daring to dream as Portugal prepare to open their Euro 2024 campaign, where ageing star Cristiano Ronaldo has been selected "on merit".

Portugal are the favourites to top Group F in Germany, opening their tournament against Czechia on Tuesday before facing Turkiye and Georgia.

Martinez's side were the only team to win 100 per cent of their games in the qualifying campaign (10/10), while they also scored more goals than any other team (36).

The former Belgium manager has major-tournament pedigree, too, guiding the Red Devils to third place at the 2018 World Cup and quarter-finals at Euro 2020.

Going further on this occasion remains at the forefront of the Spaniard's mind.

"We must believe, we need to dream big," the Portugal head coach said at Monday's pre-match press conference.

"If we don't dream big, then it will be tough. But we also owe it to everyone to play well.

"Tomorrow will be the right time to show that we're ready, that we can meet all the expectations. 

"I brought seven shirts, not three. But now we need to put it all out there on the pitch for these first three matches."

Portugal have the likes of Joao Felix, Diogo Jota and Goncalo Ramos to call upon in attack, though a familiar face remains in Ronaldo.

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner holds the record for most games (25), most goals (14), joint-most assists on record (six – since 1972) and most editions with at least one goal (five) at the Euros.

Indeed, since 1972, Ronaldo has scored/assisted twice as many goals as any other player at this tournament: 20 in total (14 goals, six assists). Michel Platini is second on 10 (nine goals, one assist).

Ronaldo is also the European player with the most appearances at major tournaments, World Cup and Euros combined (47), therefore his inclusion is hardly a surprise.

"Cristiano is in the national team on merit," Martinez added. "Nobody gets into the national team just by having a name.

"Cristiano scored 51 goals in 50 games [for Al-Nassr last season].

"For us he is a goalscorer, someone who can make that final move, someone who can really stretch defenders, really open spaces.

"Obviously, over the years Cristiano has changed his way of playing slightly, but I can only say that Cristiano is in the national team on merit and the numbers are there to back that up."

Ruben Dias says Ronaldo's influence spans further than his influence on the pitch, however.

"I would say he represents inspiration, he represents that everything is possible, he represents that you can dream and you can achieve it," the Manchester City defender said.

"It's obviously a pleasure to have him with us in this moment of his career. He represents to us that he really wants to win again and he's our captain and obviously we follow him to the end."

Romelu Lukaku saw two goals disallowed and Belgium squandered a glut of golden opportunities as Slovakia claimed a surprise 1-0 win in Euro 2024 Group E.

Lukaku twice thought he had restored parity in the second half, only for both goals to be ruled out after VAR checks.

Slovakia led from the seventh minute, with Ivan Schranz having thumped the underdogs into the lead with what was his nation's fastest goal at a major tournament, finishing calmly from a tight angle after Jeremy Doku's error had put Belgium in trouble.

That opener came after Belgium had missed two brilliant chances, with Lukaku not managing to beat Martin Dubravka from close range before Leandro Trossard failed to find the striker in acres of space in the area.

The trend continued after the restart – Lukaku seemed to have levelled when he tapped home from Amadou Onana's knockdown, only for a VAR check to deem he had strayed offside.

Johan Bakayoko had an effort cleared off the line before Lukaku drilled in from Lois Openda's cutback late on, only for the latter to be penalised harshly for handball as the world's third-best side suffered a shock defeat.

Data Debrief: Red Devils run out of Luk

Lukaku missed a glut of chances in the quarter-finals against Spain at Euro 2020, and he was guilty of spurning some fantastic chances, though he was also incredibly unfortunate to see those two goals ruled out.

Belgium mustered 1.9 expected goals, with Lukaku responsible for 0.8 of that, but the Red Devils' luck was out. They sit third in Group E, with Slovakia joining Romania on three points after causing the first big upset of Euro 2024.

It is the first time Belgium have lost since 27 November 2022, against Morocco in the group stage of the World Cup, marking an end to their second-longest unbeaten run ever of 15 matches (W10 D5).

Romania head coach Edward Iordanescu believes his current generation of players have limitless potential following their triumph over Ukraine in their Euro 2024 opener.

The 46-year-old watched on as his side claim their biggest win at an international tournament, building on their impressive qualifying campaign. 

Captain Nicolae Stanciu opened the scoring with a fine effort from distance, becoming the first player ever to score at the tournament while playing for a Saudi Arabian club. 

Razvan Marin and Denis Dragus would secure the triumph in the second half, with both strikes assisted by Dennis Man, the first Romanian to provide multiple assists in a major tournament match since Gheorghe Hagi at the 1994 World Cup. 

The sound of the full-time whistle sparked emotional scenes for the travelling Romanian contingent as they confirmed just their second win at the European Championships.

Iordanescu masterminded a landmark victory for his nation, but was quick to dismiss labelling the win as a victory of a lifetime, heaping praise on the current crop of talent within his ranks. 

"I'd like to thank every Romanian everywhere in the world. I know that they were with us today. It was a fantastic effort by my team. If you had any doubts, I think you can believe me now that this is a great team. Congratulations to the lads. It's just incredible.

"Since I joined the national team I've had difficult moments. It's not always been easy. We've had other big performances. We've had golden generations with big performances, but this generation represents the soul.

"This team has put the biggest effort into everything. As big a heart as this team, nobody has ever had. This generation is limitless."

Romania travel to Cologone to face Belgium in their penultimate group fixture before facing Slovakia on June 26. 

Daniil Medvedev secured his spot in the next round of the Halle Open after fending off a valiant Nuno Borges in straight sets.

The world number five prevailed 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 on Monday to bounce back from his round-of-16 exit to Alex de Minaur at Roland-Garros.

Medvedev found himself behind early on as Borges won an early break point, but the Russian roared back to win the tiebreak 7-4.

Borges continued to match his opponent in the second set, but the former world number one showcased his endurance and class, finishing the contest in style to secure his place in the round of 16. 

Medvedev will now face Zhizhen Zhang after his win over Sebastian Ofner earlier in the day. 

Data Debrief: Med goes two for two

This duo first met at this year's Australian Open, with Medvedev winning on that occasion too.

It was a tight encounter this time around, as Medvedev was forced to save five break points, while also striking nine aces, but he made it two straight wins against Borges.

A difficult spell for Holger Rune continued as the Dane was beaten by Jordan Thompson in the first round of the Queen's Club Championships on Monday.

Rune has fallen from a high of four down to number 15 in the ATP rankings and was unable to hold on to a lead in his match with Thompson in London.

Australian Thompson fought back to prevail 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 in an entertaining encounter against the seventh seed.

Rune made the semi-finals at Queen's and the quarter-finals of Wimbledon last year, but is now seriously lacking momentum as the third grand slam of 2024 fast approaches.

Elsewhere at the ATP 500 event, third seed Grigor Dimitrov is safely through after cruising past Adrian Mannarino 6-1 6-2 in only 63 minutes.

Dimitrov will face either Sebastian Korda or Karen Khachanov in the last 16. 

Top seed and defending champion Carlos Alcaraz starts his campaign against Argentine Francisco Cerundolo on Tuesday. 

That is also when Thompson’s compatriot and last year’s runner-up Alex de Minaur begins his tournament with what could be a testing clash against Italian Lorenzo Musetti.

Data Debrief: Thompson's serve sees off Rune 

In the first career meeting between the two players, both Rune and Thompson were strong on serve. The three sets only produced two breaks – one from each player – in a battle that topped the two-hour mark.

Thompson came into the tournament on a five-match losing streak, but has often impressed on grass, with this being his 64th career win on the surface.

He had eight aces to just one double fault and crucially won 69 per cent (20/29) of his second-serve points, affording Rune just one break-point opportunity across the whole match.

Thompson added 27 winners and could face home hope Andy Murray next round if the Briton can defeat Alexei Popyrin.

As for Dimitrov, he recorded 28 winners and only five unforced errors in his impressive win over Mannarino. Having made the quarter-finals at the French Open, the Bulgarian looks poised to enter Wimbledon in good form.

Belgium played at a major tournament without Thibaut Courtois for the first time since 2002 when they kicked off their Euro 2024 campaign against Slovakia.

Real Madrid goalkeeper Courtois was a big-name omission from Domenico Tedesco's squad.

Courtois endured an injury-hit campaign with Madrid, but returned to fitness in time to help Los Blancos win the Champions League final at Wembley on June 1.

However, that was not enough to see him make the Red Devils' squad, and it meant that when Belgium got their Group E campaign under way in Frankfurt on Monday, they played without Courtois at a major tournament for the first time since 2002.

Courtois played in every game of Belgium's campaigns at the 2014, 2018 and 2022 World Cups, while also featuring in each of their matches at Euro 2016 and 2020.

Koen Casteels, the Wolfsburg shot-stopper, deputised in Courtois' place against Slovakia.

Overcoming Cristiano Ronaldo is among the main motivations for Czechia ahead of Tuesday's Euro 2024 clash with Portugal, says head coach Ivan Hasek.

Portugal have been touted as serious contenders to lift the trophy on July 14, but they first face group-stage clashes with Czechia, Turkiye and Georgia.

They will once again be captained by Ronaldo, who enters his 11th major tournament as their undisputed first-choice striker after being surprisingly dropped at the 2022 World Cup.

Ronaldo holds the records for most games (25), most goals (14) and joint-most assists on record (six – since 1972) at the Euros, also scoring at a record five separate editions of the tournament. 

At World Cups and European Championships, the former Real Madrid and Manchester United man has made a total of 47 appearances, the most of any European player, while scoring 22 goals and assisting eight. 

Rather than playing down the significance of facing the five-time Ballon d'Or winner, Hasek used Monday's pre-match press conference to challenge his players to shut him out.

"We want to neutralise Ronaldo. Especially for our guys, they will remember this for their whole lives," Hasek said.

"Ronaldo is one of the best players and they will be able to say they played against him and maybe they will even be successful. 

"I do not want us not to say after the match that we played against Ronaldo, but that we defeated him."

Czechia are appearing at an 11th edition of the Euros (including participations as Czechoslovakia), including their eighth in a row.

That streak began with the 1996 tournament, where they were runners-up in England. Only Germany (14) and France (nine) are currently on longer runs of consecutive European Championship appearances.

With Czechia tipped by many to compete with Turkiye for second place in Group F, Hasek says the key will not be how they start the group stage, but how they finish it. 

"The most important thing at this tournament is the last game. So, the first game doesn't really decide anything," he said.

"All our 26 nominated players are ready, they are healthy, they are fit, and we cannot wait. We are really excited about tomorrow to start everything.

"When you see the pitches, when you see the stadiums, you see this is a really great footballing event."

Gary Neville believes Gareth Southgate will have major concerns about the balance of England's midfield following their Euro 2024 opener against Serbia. 

Jude Bellingham's fourth international goal was enough to kickstart ther Three Lions' campaign with a win, but the encounter in Gelsenkirchen was far from straightforward. 

England had Jordan Pickford to thank to preserve Southgate's record of winning the opening game of every major tournament he has managed at, producing a fine stop to deny Dusan Vlahovic in the second half. 

Much was made of who Southgate would deploy in central midfield ahead of the tournament, with Trent Alexander-Arnold given the nod to feature alongside Declan Rice. 

"The midfield is the major concern and the fluidity of the game that comes through there is one thing we need to try and work on in the group stage because when we play against a good team, we'll have to have it right," said Neville. 

"There are some small alarm bells around balance and having a good group of players that are very talented but are we as good a team?

"Last night, you start to think about the impact and influence of Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips. The best players don't make the best team sometimes.

"We're aware Kieran Trippier is right-footed at left-back and is playing there because of all the injuries in that position which creates a further imbalance. But in midfield, somehow we have to try and get that right. Gareth [Southgate] will be more than aware of that.

Alexander-Arnold completed 37 of his 42 passes against Serbia, averaging a pass accuracy of 88.1 percent, the joint-third lowest from those who started the game, with only Phil Foden and Harry Kane below him.  

The Liverpool full-back started brightly, showing glimpses of his wide passing range, but made one mistake late in the first half which allowed Aleksandar Mitrovic a shot on goal. 

"We know [Alexander-Arnold] can do it when he moves into midfield from right-back and then can deliver those crosses and passes. There were times when he found himself with his back to play and that is a different story," said Neville.

"I don't really want to focus on him being a problem in there. It was the balance of the entire midfield and I include Declan Rice in that as well - and what England need to have in there to be able to move forward in this tournament.

"All eyes will be on Trent Alexander-Arnold. His best position is right-back and having the ability to move forward on that side or coming inside and playing that quarter-back role. It doesn't look like we're going to do that, it looks like we're going to stick with Kyle Walker which is absolutely the right decision.

"Gareth will know he's got an issue with these talented players and how he gets them all into the team - and most importantly with the right balance."

Gary Neville believes Gareth Southgate will have major concerns about the balance of England's midfield following their Euro 2024 opener against Serbia. 

Jude Bellingham's fourth international goal was enough to kickstart ther Three Lions' campaign with a win, but the encounter in Gelsenkirchen was far from straightforward. 

England had Jordan Pickford to thank to preserve Southgate's record of winning the opening game of every major tournament he has managed at, producing a fine stop to deny Dusan Vlahovic in the second half. 

Much was made of who Southgate would deploy in central midfield ahead of the tournament, with Trent Alexander-Arnold given the nod to feature alongside Declan Rice. 

"The midfield is the major concern and the fluidity of the game that comes through there is one thing we need to try and work on in the group stage because when we play against a good team, we'll have to have it right," said Neville. 

"There are some small alarm bells around balance and having a good group of players that are very talented but are we as good a team?

"Last night, you start to think about the impact and influence of Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips. The best players don't make the best team sometimes.

"We're aware Kieran Trippier is right-footed at left-back and is playing there because of all the injuries in that position which creates a further imbalance. But in midfield, somehow we have to try and get that right. Gareth [Southgate] will be more than aware of that.

Alexander-Arnold completed 37 of his 42 passes against Serbia, averaging a pass accuracy of 88.1 percent, the joint-third lowest from those who started the game, with only Phil Foden and Harry Kane below him.  

The Liverpool full-back started brightly, showing glimpses of his wide passing range, but made one mistake late in the first half which allowed Aleksandar Mitrovic a shot on goal. 

"We know [Alexander-Arnold] can do it when he moves into midfield from right-back and then can deliver those crosses and passes. There were times when he found himself with his back to play and that is a different story," said Neville.

"I don't really want to focus on him being a problem in there. It was the balance of the entire midfield and I include Declan Rice in that as well - and what England need to have in there to be able to move forward in this tournament.

"All eyes will be on Trent Alexander-Arnold. His best position is right-back and having the ability to move forward on that side or coming inside and playing that quarter-back role. It doesn't look like we're going to do that, it looks like we're going to stick with Kyle Walker which is absolutely the right decision.

"Gareth will know he's got an issue with these talented players and how he gets them all into the team - and most importantly with the right balance."

Romania stormed to a 3-0 win over Ukraine in their Euro 2024 opener on Monday, with Nicolae Stanciu, Razvan Marin and Denis Dragus scoring in their first victory at the European Championships for 24 years.

Ukraine dominated possession early on but a loose pass from Andriy Lunin put them in trouble after 29 minutes. Dennis Man intercepted and found Stanciu on the edge of the area, and the Romania skipper shaped a wonderful first-time effort into the top-left corner.

Sanciu later clipped the crossbar directly from a corner as Romania grew in stature, and they had their second goal seven minutes into the second half.

Marin came onto a loose ball and struck a low shot from 25 yards out, which Real Madrid goalkeeper Lunin allowed to squirm under his dive and into the bottom-right corner.

Ukraine's problems worsened within another four minutes, as Dragus stayed onside to tap Man's cross into an unguarded net following a short corner routine.

Roman Yaremchuk hit the crossbar with a lobbed attempt in stoppage time, but that was as close as Ukraine came to a goal, as Romania recorded their first win at the Euros since a memorable 3-2 victory dumped England out of the 2000 tournament.

Data Debrief: Dennis is the Man

There were standout performances throughout the Romania lineup, with Dragus leading the line superbly and Tottenham's Radu Dragusin looking every inch the modern ball-playing centre-back. 

However, it was Man who played the starring role with two assists. He is the first Romanian player to tee up two goals in a major tournament game since the great Gheorghe Hagi against Colombia at the 1994 World Cup.

Bryson DeChambeau is looking forward to more final-round battles with Rory McIlroy following his second U.S. Open triumph at Pinehurst on Sunday. 

DeChambeau headed into the final round in North Carolina with a three-shot lead over the field, but soon found himself two behind the Northern Irishman three holes into the back nine. 

A birdie at the 13th regained the American's composure, with McIlroy making bogey in three of the last four holes, including an agonising miss on18 to hand DeChambeau the victory. 

The fifth major title continues to elude McIlroy, last winning at the 2014 PGA Championship, but DeChambeau labelled the world number two as one of the best to play the game and is excited for future tussles on the golf course. 

"Rory is one of the best to ever play," DeChambeau said. "Being able to fight against a great like that is pretty special. I'd love to have a lot more battles with him.

"I have nothing but respect for how he plays the game of golf... to be honest, when he was climbing up the leaderboard, I was like, 'Uh-oh', but luckily things went my way today.

"For him to miss that putt [on the 18th], I'd never wish it on anybody.

"I'm sure it will fuel Rory's fire even more. He's a strong-minded individual. He'll win multiple more major championships, there's no doubt."

McIlroy's missed putt at 18 opened the door for DeChambeau to capitalise, but a wayward drive left him hunched under a tree, forcing him to punch out to a greenside bunker to set up a nervy finish. 

However, the American would produce a moment of magic to place the ball within four feet of the hole, going on to say it was the shot of his life. 

"That bunker shot was the shot of my life," DeChambeau reflected.

"I knew where Rory was. After my tee shot, I was up there going, 'Man, if he makes par, I don't know how I'm going to beat him'. I just really didn't know.

"Then I heard the moans. It was like a shot of adrenaline got in me. I said, 'Okay, you can do this'. I'm so happy I got that shot up-and-down."