Ash Barty will plot a path to victory over Danielle Collins in the Australian Open final with the coach she describes as "a magician" and "a massive part of my life".

Australian home hero Barty has been a hot favourite for the title since before the first ball was struck in Melbourne, and to date she has justified all the hype and expectation.

Barty has dropped only 21 games across six matches to reach the final. Since 2000, only Serena Williams (16 games at the 2013 US Open and 19 at the 2012 US Open) and Venus Williams (20 games at Wimbledon in 2009) have lost fewer games to reach a grand slam final.

The last player to lose fewer games en route to the final in Australia was Monica Seles in 1993 (20 games), and she went on to beat Steffi Graf in a title match that went to three sets.

This is the level Barty is at now, as an established world number one and reigning Wimbledon champion, and a Collins victory on Saturday would be a major upset.

Yet Barty sees the 28-year-old American as a major threat, and the evidence of Collins' destructive performance against seventh seed Iga Swiatek in Thursday's second semi-final attests to that.

Collins won 6-4 6-1 and hit 27 winners and only 13 unforced errors, securing a place in her first slam final.

"She's an exceptional ball striker," said Barty. "She's someone who stands on the baseline and can hit all spots of the court from any position. I think the challenge is going to be trying to get her off balance.

"We'll do our homework and try to figure out a plan, and come Saturday try and execute. Danielle's done incredibly well here in Australia before. The way she's able to control the baseline and really take the game on, she's one of the most fierce competitors out here.

"She loves to get in your face and loves to take it on. It's going to be a challenge for me to try to neutralise as best as I can, but it's certainly nice to see her out here playing her best stuff."

Working out a strategy for the match, alongside Barty, will be veteran coach Craig Tyzzer. Barty trusts him implicitly to get the plan right.

"'Tyzze' is a magician; he's able to look at a lot of different matches, look at key matches, some recent and some old, and work our plan out in looking at different conditions and things like that," Barty said in a news conference after her thumping 6-1 6-3 semi-final win against Madison Keys.

"He's the man that does all the work. I just get to go out there and have fun with it."

Barty is understating her role there, but she has turned singles into a team game, relying on the likes of Tyzzer and mindset coach Ben Crowe to steer her on the right path.

She is attempting to become the first Australian player to win this title since Chris O'Neil in 1978, so the pressure is on, and it helps that those around her help to relieve the stress.

"Everyone is equally important. We're all equal, we all play our roles," Barty said. "The most amazing thing is we all communicate really well together and get along with each other and know when it's time to back off, relax, and then when it's time to switch on and really have a crack.

"'Tyzze' has been a massive part of my life since 2016. Before that, we'd done some work together, but the work he's done in setting up an amazing group of people around us has propelled my career for both of us. The experiences we've been able to share has been remarkable.

"It starts with my family, my sisters, obviously my professional team who contribute as much time and energy into my career and help me try and live out my dreams. I cannot thank them enough for the time and effort they put in to someone else.

"Being able to enjoy it all together and lighten up when we're not focused on the match is a really important part of that."

Barty's first serve has been a huge weapon, while Collins' return of the second serve has been a significant factor behind her run. So if Barty can land enough first serves on Saturday, that could prove telling. It has helped her to save 13 of 14 break points so far in this tournament.

Giving Collins a regular look at her second serve could be costly. Collins has won more points on the return of second serve (90) than any other woman in the tournament.

Barty ranks ninth on that list but is the leader on winning points when landing a first serve, achieving an 83 per cent success rate.

Erling Haaland has revealed he studies Jamie Vardy's game closely as he believes the Leicester City striker is "maybe the best in the world" at running in behind defenders.

Borussia Dortmund star Haaland has become one of the most sought-after players in world football after scoring 80 goals in 79 games during his two years at the Bundesliga club.

That is a tally bettered only by Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski (107) – who has played 11 more games – among players from teams in Europe's top five leagues.

Haaland has been linked with the likes of Manchester City, Real Madrid and Bayern, with reports suggesting he has a €75million release clause that will activate in July.

Despite his impressive exploits, Haaland acknowledges there are still areas of his game he can improve, with an unlikely player proving to be a source of inspiration.

"I've been watching a lot of players. Let's take for example the run in behind the centre-back when the number 10 has the ball," he told Sky Sports. 

"You have maybe the best in the world at that, Jamie Vardy. I've been looking a lot at him on exactly this. I have always been watching a lot of football and I still do. 

"When we play Saturday, I go home on Sunday and watch football all day."

Vardy has scored 122 goals in 227 Premier League appearances since the start of the 2015-16 campaign, which famously ended with Leicester winning the title.

The 35-year-old ranks 10th in terms of the most prolific strikers in Europe's top five leagues over that time, a metric that Lewandowski also leads with 209 goals in 208 games.

Vardy has also spoken of his admiration for ex-Arsenal and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie.

"Van Persie I watched a lot because he was also left-footed," Haaland said. 

"I watched him scoring a lot of goals and as a left-footer as well it was natural for me to watch him a lot. I've been watching a lot of players, especially strikers."

Of the 80 goals scored by Haaland for Dortmund, 64 have come via his left foot, nine with his right and the other seven from headers.

The former Salzburg striker has been likened to a number of iconic figures, Zlatan Ibrahimovic among them, but he is not interested in comparisons.

"Ibrahimovic is a cool guy, and I think he is also himself 100 per cent on the pitch. He does everything he can to win," Haaland said.

"I don't want to compare myself to anyone. I think I am a bit special, with my physical abilities. 

"My mother was really quick, my grandmother was really quick, my father was really quick, but not so quick."

Manu Tuilagi could be fit for England's second match of the Six Nations against Italy at Stadio Olimpico.

The Sale Sharks centre has been sidelined since suffering a torn hamstring when he scored a try in the Red Rose's win over South Africa at Twickenham in November.

Tuilagi is on course to make his return for Sale against Harlequins in the Premiership a week on Sunday, the day after England face Scotland in their Six Nations opener at Murrayfield.

And Sharks director of rugby Alex Sanderson says the 30-year-old powerhouse may be back in international action in Rome on February 13.

"Harlequins is the projected return, and then we will see how he feels for Six Nations," said Sanderson.

"It is a week-to-week thing for Manu, but England have total autonomy over when he plays and doesn't play, and if he looks really good and feels good, he will go straight through to England and it could be Italy."

Sanderson revealed a clash with his former club Leicester Tigers this Sunday came too soon for Tuilagi.

"He is training and looking good, but we think it is too much of a risk to push him this weekend," Sanderson added.

"He is an exceptional trainer and a quick healer, so all of his progressions are done on the back of hitting physiological markers and GPS speeds, re-scans and seeing the specialist, and we would never push him earlier."

England this week suffered a blow when captain Owen Farrell was ruled out of the Six Nations due to an ankle injury.

Tyson Fury has seemingly confirmed Dillian Whyte will be his next opponent after Eddie Hearn claimed the WBC heavyweight champion does not want to face Oleksandr Usyk.

Whyte is the mandatory challenger for Fury's world title, but the WBC this week granted a 48-hour extension for the two parties to negotiate a deal for a fight.

Purse bids for that all-British bout are now set to go in on Friday.

It was reported by The Telegraph that Anthony Joshua was prepared to step aside from a rematch with Usyk in order for Fury to do battle with the WBA (Super), IBF and WBO champion in a unification fight.

Joshua, who was dethroned by the Ukrainian last September, dismissed those claims and Fury appeared to clear up all the uncertainty on Thursday.

The 33-year-old tweeted: "Who else can't wait for the fight. The best of Britain."

Fury had earlier mocked Joshua and his promoter Hearn for supposedly rejecting a huge offer to step aside from a rematch with Usyk.

"Had to do this video. Eddie Hearn and Anthony Joshua have to be the worst damn businessmen in history! Today they lost $90m, goddamn sons of b****es, crazy!" he posted on social media.

Yet Hearn, also Whyte's promoter, says Fury is not prepared to fight Usyk next.

"There are four people in this mix – Tyson Fury, Oleksandr Usyk, Dillian Whyte, Anthony Joshua – and everybody has to be on board with the same proposal," Hearn told BBC 5 Live.

"Ultimately it's Tyson Fury who doesn't want to fight Oleksandr Usyk next in an undisputed fight, he wants to have an interim fight in March. There's no conversation to be had.

"As we stand here right now, Dillian Whyte against Tyson Fury will go to purse bids tomorrow [Friday] in Mexico City."

Hearn, however, knows nothing is set in stone.

"They're never over, up until those envelopes are open," he added.

"But there's no real negotiations for Fury against Whyte outside of purse bids. It would take Tyson Fury probably to say, 'Yeah, okay, look, maybe I'll fight Usyk', but you never know what he's going to do.

"Right now this morning he wants to fight Dillian Whyte. He hasn't really mentioned that before but right now that's what we're doing. We'll be ready to bid tomorrow."

The Chicago Bears are set to appoint Matt Eberflus as their new head coach, according to widespread reports.

Chicago have been looking for a new head coach since firing Matt Nagy, along with general manager Ryan Pace, earlier in January.

Their dismissals came on the back of another disappointing season, with Chicago finishing 6-11 for 2021.

The Bears appointed former Kansas City Chiefs executive Ryan Poles as the team's new general manager on Tuesday, and it seems that Eberflus, who has spent the last three seasons as the defensive coordinator at the Indianapolis Colts, will be the new coach.

Chicago considered the Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn and former Colts and Detroit Lions head coach Jim Caldwell, but NFL Network reported they settled on 51-year-old Eberflus as their preferred candidate.

It has also been reported that Quinn has told teams he wishes to stay at Dallas.

Amad Diallo has joined Rangers on loan from Manchester United until the end of the season.

The 19-year-old signed for United in January last year in a deal reportedly worth around £37million from Italian side Atalanta but has struggled for game time under both Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick.

The loan move to the Scottish champions does not have a purchase option included, as the Old Trafford club still have big plans for the tricky winger, and Rangnick believes the move will be good for his development.

Amad has a goal and an assist from his nine appearances in all competitions for United, though only three of those have been starts. His goal was a clever header in the 1-1 draw with Milan in the first leg of last season's Europa League round of 16.

The Ivory Coast international also made five substitute appearances while at Atalanta, scoring once.

Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst recently lost playmaker Ianis Hagi to a season-ending injury, meaning Amad has the opportunity to pick up some of the creative slack during his temporary stay in Scotland, and he goes straight into the squad for Saturday's game at Ross County.

After the deal was confirmed, Amad expressed his happiness at the opportunity, telling the club's website: "I am delighted to join Rangers until the end of the season.

"It is fantastic for me at this stage of my career to have the opportunity to come to such a big club that is challenging on a number of fronts and will give me some excellent opportunities to test myself in many environments."

Rangers are top of the Scottish Premiership, four points ahead of rivals Celtic, after a 1-0 win against Livingston at Ibrox on Wednesday.

The Denver Broncos are to appoint Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as their new head coach, according to reports.

The Broncos parted company with previous head coach Vic Fangio at the end of the 2021 NFL regular season, in which the team had a 7-10 record.

Fangio – who had been in position for the last three seasons – achieved a 19-30 record during his time with the franchise, failing to reach the playoffs throughout his tenure.

Other figures interviewed by the Broncos for the role were Eric Bieniemy from the Kansas City Chiefs, Brian Callahan from the Cincinnati Bengals, Jonathan Gannon from the Philadelphia Eagles, Luke Getsy from the Packers, Aaron Glenn from the Detroit Lions, Jerod Mayo from the New England Patriots, Kevin O'Connell of the Los Angeles Rams, and Kellen Moore and Dan Quinn from the Dallas Cowboys.

Hackett, who is the son of former NFL coach Paul Hackett, has been offensive coordinator at the Packers for the past three seasons. Green Bay's offense ranked first in the league in scoring and fifth in yards in the 2020 season, although they regressed to 10th in both categories this year.

Hackett is also a former playcaller for both the Buffalo Bills and the Jaguars.

The news will likely increase speculation that the Broncos could make a sensational play to bring superstar Green Bay duo Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams to Denver.

Milan have completed the signing of striker Marko Lazetic from Red Star Belgrade.

Lazetic, who turned 18 last week, joins the Serie A giants on a deal that runs through until the end of the 2025-26 campaign.

The Serbia youth international progressed through Red Star's academy and made his senior debut for the club in November 2020.

Following a loan spell with feeder club Graficar Beograd, Lazetic returned to Red Star at the start of this season and found the net once in 16 appearances.

Milan are reported to have paid an initial €4million to sign the youngster, who has been handed the number 22 shirt at San Siro.

Lazetic will link up with the Rossoneri's first-team squad and is effectively a replacement for Pietro Pellegri, whose loan deal was terminated earlier on Thursday.

Pellegri joined Milan from Monaco in August but featured just six times in the league in an injury-plagued campaign and will spend the rest of the season with Torino.

Il Toro have the option to sign the former Genoa striker at the end of the campaign.

Ben Roethlisberger, the great Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, has confirmed his retirement from the NFL after 18 seasons.

Thursday's announcement on Roethlisberger's official website's Twitter page had been expected at some point during the offseason.

The 39-year-old's comments around the Steelers' Wild Card Round defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs made clear his time with his only professional team was over and appeared to hint at the end of his career.

Reading a statement alongside his family in a social media video post, Roethlisberger said: "The time has come to clean out my locker, hang up my cleats and continue to be all I can be to my wife and children.

"I retire from football a truly grateful man."

Roethlisberger was a two-time champion in Pittsburgh, leading the Steelers to glory at Super Bowl XL and Super Bowl XLIII. They also made Super Bowl XLV, losing to the Green Bay Packers.

The 11th overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft, Roethlisberger won the Steelers starting job in Week 3 of his rookie season and never looked back.

He made 247 QB starts, the fifth-most of all time, with all of those coming as a Steeler.

Only the same four players again – legends Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Brett Favre – can top Roethlisberger for passing yards (64,088), although he ranks eighth for touchdown passes (418).

Sergio Garcia made a positive start to his year as a five-under-par 67 put him among the front-runners at the Dubai Desert Classic.

Spaniard Garcia had just two top-10 finishes on the European Tour last season, but one of those came at this event, and he showed his liking for the tournament he won in 2017 with another sparkling round.

It was not enough for the lead, with Denmark's Joachim B Hansen ahead of the field thanks to an impressive 65 that featured birdies at four of the first five holes.

Garcia held a share of third place through 18 holes, with South African Justin Harding nudging up to second on six under through 17 holes before darkness forced him to delay completing his round until Friday.

It was as a 19-year-old in 1999 that Garcia first won on the European Tour, which has been renamed as the DP World Tour this season, with that breakthrough triumph coming at the Irish Open.

He was a champion twice on the tour that year, landed six victories in the 2000s and added eight European Tour titles in the 2010s, including a Masters victory, which counted to his win list on both sides of the Atlantic.

Now, at the age of 42, Garcia is bidding to win on the tour in a fourth successive decade, and this was a strong start, as he made five birdies and did not drop a shot.

"It was good. I think obviously it got a little bit more challenging the last couple of holes with left-to-right wind," he said. "I made a couple of nice par saves at the right times and kept it in play for the most part. I hit a good amount of greens and when I didn't, my chipping and putting was there to help me. So that was good."

In an interview on the European Tour website, Garcia added: "I still have a lot of things I want to achieve. I want to keep trying, to get better, challenge myself to improve. That's never easy and as you get older it's obviously tougher, but I'll work hard and hopefully keep fighting."

Garcia had company on five under from fellow Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal, as well as Englishman Tommy Fleetwood, Italy's Andrea Pavan, Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee and Paraguayan Fabrizio Zanotti.

Open champion Collin Morikawa was in a group on four under, with defending Dubai champion Paul Casey two shots further back. Rory McIlroy was three under par through five holes of his round, having started on the back nine, but he fell away to a one-under 71 for a share of 46th place.

Novak Djokovic looks set to return to tennis at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in February.

The 20-time grand slam winner was deported from Australia on the eve of the Australian Open after his entry visa to the country was cancelled.

Djokovic, who told officials he was not vaccinated against COVID-19, believed he was still eligible to enter the country and compete after testing positive for coronavirus last month and making a full recovery.

Dubai does not have the same conditions for entry as Australia, and Djokovic will be free to compete at the tournament he has won five times previously provided that he can produce a negative PCR test result on arrival.

His place in the field was confirmed by tournament organisers on Thursday, with Djokovic joined by defending champion Aslan Karatsev and last year's beaten semi-finalists Andrey Rublev and Denis Shapovalov. The tournament runs from February 21 to 26.

After strong Australian Open campaigns, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Jannik Sinner and Gael Monfils have also entered the Dubai event, which will be staged for a 30th time.

Djokovic won a hat-trick of Dubai titles from 2009 to 2011, adding further triumphs in 2013 and 2020. Only Roger Federer, with eight titles, has had more success at the tournament.

Serbian superstar Djokovic is not entered for the ATP 500 events in Rotterdam or Rio de Janeiro that precede the Dubai tournament.

Unlike in Australia, the 34-year-old can likely expect the red-carpet treatment in Dubai, where Colm McLoughlin, CEO of tournament sponsors Dubai Duty Free, said: "We are delighted to see Novak back in Dubai for the 12th time when he will be seeking his sixth title and we wish him the best of luck."

The Singapore Grand Prix will be on the Formula One calendar until at least 2028 after a seven-year contract extension to stage the race was agreed.

There was no racing at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in the past two seasons due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the 2022 race is set to go ahead on October 2.

F1 on Thursday announced that a deal has been agreed with Singapore GP Pte Ltd (SGP) and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) for the event to remain on the calendar for at least another seven seasons.

"I am delighted that Formula One will continue to race in Singapore for another seven years," said F1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali.

"The Marina Bay Street Circuit hosted the first night race in F1 history in 2008, and Singapore has continued to thrill fans, teams, and drivers ever since. Singapore holds a special place on the F1 calendar, and this extension is part of our long-term commitment to continue to grow the sport in Asia.

"The plans that are in place to reduce the carbon footprint of the event are impressive and align with our plans to be Net Zero Carbon as a sport by 2030 and I look forward to continuing our successful relationship with Singapore GP and the Singapore Tourism Board as Formula One returns to this incredible city."

Singapore GP's chairman Mr Ong Beng Seng said: "We are very pleased that the night race will continue for seven more years.

"After more than a decade of celebrating this spectacular event on the racing calendar, we are looking forward to building on its success and working with Formula One as well as its partners to take the night race to greater heights. We are delighted that this marquee event will demonstrate how Singapore is open for business.

"We look forward to welcoming both local and overseas fans and visitors to the Marina Bay Street Circuit once again."

Kieran Trippier has confirmed he attracted "strong interest" from Manchester United last year before returning to the Premier League with Newcastle United.

Trippier swapped a LaLiga title defence with Atletico Madrid for a relegation battle with Newcastle this month, with the England full-back joining Eddie Howe's side for a reported fee of £12million.

The 31-year-old spent two-and-a-half seasons at Atleti after leaving Tottenham in 2019, helping Diego Simeone's side clinch a LaLiga title last year.

There were reports since early in 2021 that Trippier wished to return to England, and United were heavily linked.

Trippier has now confirmed that United and Atleti held discussions before the 2021-22 season, after England's run to the final of Euro 2020, but the potential move broke down over the Spanish club's demand that his release clause, reported at around £50m (€60m), was met.

"After the Euros, there was really strong interest," Trippier told Newcastle great Alan Shearer in an interview with The Athletic.

"I've got to be careful what I say because I don't want to get into trouble, but yeah, there was interest. We had conversations, but Atletico Madrid just wanted my release clause and it was a lot of money for a 30-year-old, so I understand why Man United didn't do that.

"There were other clubs interested too. Anyway, it's gone now, so it doesn't bother me."

Trippier hopes Simeone, who has established himself as one of world football's leading coaches during his decade-long stint at Atleti, follows him from LaLiga to the Premier League.

"I'd love to see him working in England. I know he was learning English about a year ago, and his partner speaks English," Trippier said.

"The thing about Simeone is that because he's so passionate when he's talking in the dressing room, I think it would get to him if he wasn't completely fluent. But I would love to see him in the Premier League. I think everyone would."

Simeone's pragmatic approach has sometimes come in for criticism, but there can be no doubting its success.

"It's a bit unfair, because Simeone has been so successful. He's won eight trophies," Trippier added, before referring to a comment Jurgen Klopp made about Atleti not playing "proper football" after Liverpool's defeat to Los Colchoneros in the 2019-20 Champions League knockout stage.

"I understand where Klopp is coming from, but if you're playing at Anfield you can't go toe-to-toe with [Liverpool] because you'll get punished.

"Everybody has their own system or set-up and Simeone's is different. It's worked for him."

Trippier's decision to leave Tottenham came after Mauricio Pochettino's side had reached the 2019 Champions League final, losing to Liverpool - ironically, at Atleti's Wanda Metropolitano stadium.

The former Burnley defender enjoyed a fine 2018 World Cup, but felt his form dropped off slightly afterwards. However, he also hit out at Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, who he claims was engineering a sale while the season was ongoing.

"f you look back to the last few months of my Tottenham career, I admit that I wasn't at the levels that I was at the World Cup and there's no excuse," he said.

"After the Champions League final, it felt like the right time to move on.

"What annoyed me, I know 100 per cent for a fact – and this is what I was most angry about – that two months before the end of the season, Daniel was offering me to other clubs.

"I knew for certain that was happening, so I knew my time there must be up. I was playing for my team-mates and the supporters, but I also knew I wasn't wanted."