Three weeks ago, it appeared this season was shaping up to be like each of the previous 14 for the Sacramento Kings.
A 115-96 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on January 20 marked the sixth defeat in seven games for the Kings and dropped their record to 5-10 – third worst in the Western Conference.
A month into the season and it was already looking like Sacramento would match the Clippers' dubious record of 15 consecutive seasons without a playoff berth from 1976-77 to 1990-91 for the longest playoff drought in NBA history.
Now one-third of the way into their season, however, the Kings have pulled within a half-game of the eighth-placed Golden State Warriors in the West on the heels of a 7-2 stretch. on Friday night, they take on the Orlando Magic.
The turnaround began two nights after the blowout loss to the Clippers with a 103-94 victory over the New York Knicks. The Kings' performance that night was emblematic of how they've managed to climb back into the playoff picture, but is their formula for winning sustainable?
Against the Knicks, the Kings found themselves up 89-87 with just under four minutes remaining after New York went on an 8-0 run. Sacramento then went on a 7-0 run of their own, punctuated by a Tyrese Haliburton three-pointer with 2:35 to play to put the game away.
The Kings ended up scoring 14 of the game's final 21 points, and over the next few weeks displayed a proficiency for closing out tight games.
Prior to January 22, the Kings had the NBA's third-worst fourth-quarter point differential at minus-2.8 while ranking 23rd in fourth-quarter scoring with an average of 25.5 points. Since then, they are averaging 28.1 points over the final 12 minutes of games.
It's been in the game's final moments, however, that the Kings have really excelled. Their 10.0-scoring average in the final three minutes since January 22 is the best in the NBA.
The Kings are finding ways to grind out victories and have a league-high eight wins this season by five points or less, but this typically is not a blueprint for success in the NBA.
The Kings' 5.9-point differential in their wins is the lowest in the NBA, and no team have finished a season with a point differential of less than 6.0 in their victories since 2005-06, when the Portland Trail Blazers were at 5.6 and the Atlanta Hawks were at 5.8. Sacramento, however, do not want to be too closely linked to those teams, as Portland were a league-worst 21-61 while Atlanta were not much better at 26-56.
Winning close games rarely leads to long-term success, seeing as only one team in the last 30 years have reached the playoffs while having a point differential of less than 8.0 in their wins – the 2007-08 Cleveland Cavaliers at 7.8.
In fact, in NBA history only two teams have reached the playoffs while outscoring their opponents by fewer than 7.0 points in their wins and those instances came well before man even walked on the Moon – the 1954-55 Rochester Royals at 6.6 and the 1948-49 St Louis Bombers at 6.8.
Grinding out wins over the long haul of a full season takes its toll and it may have caught up with the Kings in their last time on the court.
In Tuesday's 119-111 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, the Kings seemed to tire down the stretch, missing seven straight shots over a three-minute stretch in the fourth quarter as the Sixers went on a 10-0 run to turn a two-point deficit into an eight-point lead with just over four and a half minutes to play.
Sacramento were playing for the third time in four days, so they were playing on tired legs, but it's also possible fatigue was setting in because each of their previous three games went down to the wire and the minutes are piling up for their stars.
De'Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield each played the entire fourth quarter on Tuesday and have regularly been playing in crunch time.
Since January 22, the Kings have four players ranking in the top 20 in fourth-quarter minutes – Haliburton (1st, 10.7), Fox (11th, 9.9), Hield (12th, 9.7) and Harrison Barnes (18th, 9.4).
The Nets are the only other team to have more than two players ranking in the top 20 in fourth-quarter minutes in that period.
Sacramento have counted on Fox down the stretch, as his 11 field-goal attempts in late and close situations since January 22 trails only the Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James (15) and the Phoenix Suns' Chris Paul (13) for the most in the NBA. Late and close situations here are defined as the last two minutes of the final quarter when the game is within four points.
Fox's shots, however, weren't falling on Tuesday.
Over a five-game stretch from January 30 to February 7, Fox led the league with an average of 13.2 fourth-quarter points (minimum three games) while shooting 57.8 per cent. He misfired on 10 of 13 shots, though, while scoring seven points in Tuesday’s fourth quarter.
Haliburton's fourth quarter – as well as his third quarter for that matter – was even more forgettable. His final points on Tuesday came on a three-pointer with 2:00 remaining before halftime.
It was a sub-par showing for someone who is shooting at a staggering clip when the game moves to the fourth quarter.
The 20-year-old rookie is making 60.6 per cent (40-of-66) on all fourth-quarter shots – tied for fourth in the NBA with the Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo among the 109 players with at least 50 shot attempts in the fourth – and has been connecting at an even higher percentage from beyond the arc.
Shooting an absurd 61.5 per cent on three-pointers (24-of-39) in the fourth quarter, Haliburton is on track to become the only player seeing regular minutes to shoot at least 60 per cent from deep in the final quarter in the last 15 seasons. Since 2005-06, Kyle Korver for the 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks has the highest fourth-quarter shooting percentage on three-pointers at 57.4, among players with at least 50 3-point attempts.
Haliburton has also made seven clutch three-pointers this season to trail only James (11), the Charlotte Hornets' Devonte’ Graham (eight) and the Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving (eight) for most in the league. Here, clutch is defined as the last five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime when a game is within six points.
Considering Haliburton is knocking down 44.1 per cent of his shots in the game's first three quarters, his fourth-quarter shooting has been especially baffling. His increase in shooting of 16.5 per cent from the first three quarters to the fourth is the biggest in the NBA this season (minimum 125 field goal attempts in first three quarters and 50 in fourth).
His shooting has been exceptional but hitting a rookie wall could be a concern. Tuesday marked the 22nd game of the season for Haliburton – the exact same number of games he played all of last season collegiately at Iowa State.
The fourth-quarter exploits of Haliburton and Fox have played a big role in Sacramento's climb in the standings, but the climb is just beginning. The season is only a little more than seven weeks old and time will tell if the Kings have the strength to continue their playoff push.
Robert Lewandowski claimed Bayern Munich's sextuple success is special not only for the Bundesliga giants but football around the globe.
Bayern scraped past CONCACAF champions Tigres UANL 1-0 in Qatar on Thursday to clinch their second Club World Cup title.
It marked the sixth trophy Bayern have won in Hansi Flick's tenure, with that list also including last season's Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League and this term's UEFA Super Cup and DFL-Supercup.
Lewandowski, who scooped The Best FIFA Men's Player award for 2020, has been integral and played a key part in Bayern's win over Tigres as he forced Nahuel Guzman to flap at a cross, allowing Benjamin Pavard to lash in the decisive goal.
"The six-pack is something special, a great story – not only for Bayern Munich, for all of football," Lewandowski told reporters.
"The way we played, that will stay for a long, long time."
Bayern are the first team since Pep Guardiola's Barcelona, in 2009, to complete a clean sweep of every trophy on offer.
"Congratulations to my team, they have achieved something historic with their sixth title," Flick said.
"This is also the best season for the successful Bayern. There was a lot of unrest in the last few days but they still played outstandingly well.
"We are all very, very proud of the team. It is outstanding what they have achieved."
Bayern had to overcome Tigres without a handful of key players; Javi Martinez and Leon Goretzka did not travel to Qatar as they recover from COVID-19, with Thomas Muller then returning a positive result, while Jerome Boateng has had to return to Germany for personal reasons.
Their performance was unconvincing at times, but they ultimately had the quality to get through, with Tigres only managing one attempt on target and failing to muster a single effort after half-time.
Joshua Kimmich turned in another star performance in the centre of the park, having a stunning goal harshly disallowed and creating a game-high four chances, but the Germany maestro regretted that Muller – who is isolating – was unable to take part.
"It was bitter for Thomas Muller that he wasn't there," Kimmich said. "We also got the win for him and all the others who couldn't be with us."
The Los Angeles Dodgers confirmed the signing of free agent Trevor Bauer on a three-year deal on Thursday.
Bauer, who was the National League Cy Young award winner with the Cincinnati Reds in 2020, confirmed last week he was joining the Dodgers instead of the New York Mets.
The 30-year-old pitcher will reportedly earn a record-breaking $40million in his first season with the World Series champions in 2021.
Bauer is set to then break that record again in 2022 as he earns $45m, although there are opt-out clauses after both years. It is said he will then take in $17m in the final year of his contract.
The ex-UCLA ace, who was presented at Dodger Stadium, is the first Cy Young winner to enter free agency since Greg Maddux in 1992.
Bauer led the NL in ERA (1.73), WHIP (0.795), opponents' batting average (.159), opponents' BABIP (.215), adjusted ERA-plus (276), hits per nine innings (5.1), shutouts (two) and complete games (two) in the coronavirus-shortened 2020 campaign.
The 2018 All-Star also ranked second in strikeouts (100) and strikeouts per nine innings (12.3).
Bayern Munich completed a year of dominance by collecting the Club World Cup on Thursday, beating Tigres UANL 1-0 in the final.
Victory in Qatar, courtesy of Benjamin Pavard's scrappy second-half goal, clinched a sixth trophy in under 12 months.
Bayern started a 23-match winning run in all competitions this time last year, winning the Bundesliga, DFB Pokal, Champions League and UEFA Super Cup in this time.
They added the DFL-Supercup immediately after seeing that streak ended in September, then completed the set by beating Tigres.
Hansi Flick's side went one better than Bayern's 2013 team, who collected five titles - losing to Borussia Dortmund in the domestic Supercup.
The Bavarian giants were dominant last season and have continued to collect results this term, led by a star-studded cast, as we can see with Opta data.
FLICK'S MEN ALMOST FLAWLESS
Going back 12 months to the start of that remarkable winning stretch, Bayern have played 53 matches in all competitions, winning 46 of them.
In fact, they lost games just twice in the last year, to Hoffenheim 4-1 and Borussia Monchengladbach 3-2, both in the Bundesliga, although there was also a penalty shootout defeat to Holstein Kiel that ensured they will not defend their Pokal crown this season.
While dominating, Bayern have mainly been a great watch, scoring 157 goals (2.96 per game) and conceding 51 (0.96 per game). Indeed, those 53 games yielded only 21 Bayern clean sheets.
The standout results were obvious, scoring eight in games against both Barcelona and Schalke, but they also netted six versus Hoffenheim and Salzburg, plus five in clashes with Eintracht Frankfurt (twice), Fortuna Dusseldorf and Mainz.
OLD GUARD THE STANDOUT STARS
Bayern have a wealth of exciting young talents, but they relied heavily on their experienced campaigners over this glorious stretch.
Thomas Muller (51), Manuel Neuer (50) and David Alaba (48) led Bayern in appearances over the past year. Neuer was named in the starting XI on the most occasions - every time he played.
Robert Lewandowski has been unsurprisingly the leading marksman with his 49 goals in 45 games, but Joshua Kimmich came to the fore in terms of assists, his 23 - along with nine goals - coming from 43 matches.
Kimmich had one more assist than Muller, despite the forward creating 141 chances to his team-mate's 108.
With Neuer playing all but three of the 53 matches, he accounted for 20 of Bayern's 21 clean sheets - Alexander Nubel earned the other - and made 139 saves.
Niklas Sule, at 91.9 per cent of 1,656, was the most accurate passer to start a game, although he trailed the team's most prominent passers by some distance; Alaba played 3,743 at 88.2 per cent accuracy.
Alaba (4,210) also led the way in terms of touches ahead of Kimmich (4,089), who was beaten in terms of tackles by the slightly surprising figure of Serge Gnabry (76).
Tammy Abraham scored his 12th goal of the season as Chelsea beat Barnsley 1-0 to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.
Abraham tucked in his first goal of the Thomas Tuchel era in the second half and also headed off the line at the other end as the Blues knocked the Championship side out at Oakwell.
A young, fit Barnsley team gave a great account of themselves on a cold night in South Yorkshire, but it is Chelsea who will play Sheffield United in the last eight.
Chelsea have now won four and drawn one of their five games under Tuchel after he replaced Frank Lampard as head coach last month, and although they were not at their best, a much-changed Blues side had enough to edge through.
Callum Brittain missed a golden opportunity to put the Tykes in front 10 minutes in when he shot straight at Kepa Arrizabalaga from close range.
Chelsea should have had a penalty when Toby Sibbick caught Abraham before making contact with the ball, only for referee Martin Atkinson to wave play on.
Atkinson was right not to point to the spot following a tangle between Mads Andersen and Abraham, before Brittain's strike looked like it might be heading in, only to deflect wide off team-mate Victor Adeboyejo late in the first half.
Tuchel replaced Andreas Christensen, who took a knock on the head, and Marcos Alonso, bringing on Antonio Rudiger and Reece James after the break following a somewhat flat first-half display.
Barnsley showed more intensity than Chelsea as they pressed the Blues high up the field, although the visitors' Callum Hudson-Odoi flashed a shot wide after cutting in from the left at pace.
Rudiger then headed Hakim Ziyech's free-kick just wide after 63 minutes, but Abraham broke the deadlock when he tapped in a James cross a minute later, with the hosts feeling the flag should have gone up.
Home substitute Michael Sollbauer almost scored with his first touch, but alert Chelsea striker Abraham headed off the line as Barnsley were unable to force extra-time.
Athletic Bilbao's Copa del Rey semi-final against Levante is finely poised after a 1-1 draw in the first leg at San Mames
Gonzalo Melero netted the opener midway through the first half when he swept in from inside the penalty area following some haphazard Athletic defending.
But Athletic, who are still to play the 2019-20 Copa final, got themselves back on level terms just before the hour as Inigo Martinez climbed highest inside the box to head home from a corner.
The match remained all square and the second leg - at Levante's Ciudad de Valencia on March 4 - must now produce a victor to advance and face either Sevilla or Barcelona in the April final.
Athletic Bilbao's Copa del Rey semi-final against Levante is finely poised after a 1-1 draw in the first leg at San Mames
Gonzalo Melero netted the opener midway through the first half when he swept in from inside the penalty area following some haphazard Athletic defending.
But Athletic, who are still to play the 2019-20 Copa final, got themselves back on level terms just before the hour as Inigo Martinez climbed highest inside the box to head home from a corner.
The match remained all square and the second leg - at Levante's Ciudad de Valencia on March 4 - must now produce a victor to advance and face either Sevilla or Barcelona in the April final.
Melero broke the deadlock following a cagey start when he received the ball from Jorge de Frutos near the penalty spot and slotted into the net.
Inaki Williams almost equalised two minutes later with Athletic's first chance, but his long-range effort was kept out by Daniel Cardenas, before he squandered the hosts' best opportunity of the first half with a header from Iker Muniain's corner.
Levante were indebted to goalkeeper Cardenas as Athletic applied pressure straight after the break, first saving Raul Garcia's diving header and then keeping out a low shot from Williams.
But Athletic deserved their equaliser as Muniain's outswinging delivery was met by Martinez, who escaped his marker and powerfully headed beyond Cardenas.
Only a superb block by Oscar Duarte denied Alex Berenguer and there was a final chance as another Muniain corner caused panic in the Levante box in the fourth minute of injury time, but Yeray Alvarez could not generate sufficient power with his header and Cardenas gathered.
For 12 months, Bayern Munich have won and won again.
This time a year ago, Bayern were just a point clear at the top of the Bundesliga with the knockout stages of the Champions League still to negotiate.
But an outstanding, record-breaking 23-match winning run – the longest by a German club since the formation of the Bundesliga – took in four titles: the league, the DFB-Pokal, a sixth European crown and the UEFA Super Cup.
Since the conclusion of that remarkable stretch, which started on February 16 and ended with defeat on September 27, Bayern have added the DFL-Supercup, three days after the Hoffenheim loss, and now, with victory over Tigres UANL on Thursday, the FIFA Club World Cup.
Hansi Flick's side have bettered the efforts of their class of 2013, who won a meagre five trophies, losing Pep Guardiola's first game in charge to Borussia Dortmund in the domestic Supercup.
Indeed, this Bayern team, beaten 5-1 at Eintracht Frankfurt last season prior to Flick's appointment, have set a standard never previously seen in German football.
Champions of Germany, of Europe and on top of the world, the challenge now is to stay there.
David Alaba would appear set to leave and there is uncertainty, too, surrounding Flick, while the team have not evolved on the pitch.
It has been easy, of course, for Flick to set his side out to do the same again, having swept past Tottenham, Chelsea, Barcelona and Lyon before edging Paris Saint-Germain in last season's Champions League.
They lost Thiago Alcantara and signed Leroy Sane, who started and struck the crossbar with the best effort of the first half on Thursday – Joshua Kimmich's disallowed goal aside – but Bayern might well have shown only one change from the win against PSG if not for Leon Goretzka's recent coronavirus battle, Thomas Muller's positive test and Jerome Boateng's grave personal matters.
Even then, Benjamin Pavard, only absent due to injury last term, would have replaced Thiago, with Kimmich now back in midfield.
Bayern are attempting to repeat last season; they have three trophies to their name, boast a seven-point advantage in the Bundesliga and are through in Europe, but the swagger is not quite there at this stage.
Falling short of the level of dominance in 2019-20, Bayern are averaging 16.8 shots per match, 6.7 shots on target, 615.8 passes and 62.2 per cent of the possession – across the board the lowest marks since Guardiola arrived in Bavaria.
Continuing at the helm, unlike Jupp Heynckes after Bayern's previous Champions League triumph, Flick has not followed Guardiola in boldly transforming the team.
The Catalan coach shifted Philipp Lahm into the middle of the pitch, where he was joined by a fit-again Toni Kroos and new signing Thiago. Bayern averaged 572.2 passes per game and 61 per cent of the possession in 2012-13 and 727.9 passes per game and 71 per cent of the possession the following year – complete control.
This time, Sane was supposed to take Bayern to another level but has struggled to build on a fine debut against former club Schalke. Alaba's exit would rob them of a more valuable asset.
And given the swashbuckling style of last season's success, even with their trophy haul still growing, anything other than a serious tilt at the Champions League would surely be considered a failure. The bounce of a ball in one of sport's most unpredictable competitions could well dictate the mood music in Munich.
Bayern were value for their victory on Thursday, even if it ultimately relied on a scruffy Pavard strike, and have enjoyed a truly historic year.
However, if they are to prolong their peak and make this more than a 12-month merriment, they might need to again show a little more. Another 23-match winning run ought to ease any concerns.
Fernando Alonso is "conscious and well in himself" after the two-time Formula One world champion was involved in a road accident while cycling.
Alonso, 39, is set to return to F1 with the Alpine team this season, after a two-year absence, though there will now be doubts over his participation at the first race in Bahrain next month.
The Spaniard won successive F1 world championships in 2005 and 2006.
On Thursday, Apline confirmed in a statement that Alonso had been involved in an incident while cycling in Switzerland.
However, the statement did not confirm if Alonso was in hopsital.
It read: "Fernando is conscious and well in himself and is awaiting further medical examinations tomorrow [Friday] morning.
"Alpine F1 Team will not make any further statement at this point in time. Further updates will be given tomorrow."
Scotland have made three changes to their XV for Saturday's Six Nations clash against Wales at Murrayfield.
Head coach Gregor Townsend has brought in back-row Blade Thomson, centre James Lang and winger Darcy Graham for injured trio Jamie Ritchie, Sean Maitland and Cameron Redpath.
Scotland are seeking consecutive over the Welsh for the first time since 2003 with Townsend in a confident frame of mind after their first Twickenham win over England since 1983 last time out.
"It was a very encouraging performance at Twickenham and the squad performed to a level which has to be the benchmark throughout the tournament," he told Scottish Rugby's website.
"Wales are also coming into this game after a win and will have the same objective, so it will be a tough challenge as always.
"Both teams were involved in physical contests last weekend, and that is evidenced by the injuries Wales and we ourselves have picked up.
"For us, we are able to bring in three quality players in Blade, James and Darcy. They have been training well and are highly motivated to make the most of this opportunity."
Wales began with a 21-16 win over Ireland in Cardiff and their injury-hit team is boosted by the return of Liam Williams after a three-match ban.
Williams replaces Hallam Amos, with Gareth Davies taking the number nine shirt and Aaron Wainwright called into the back row, as coach Wayne Pivac makes five enforced changes.
Nick Tompkins and Owen Watkin also come into midfield for George North and Johnny Williams with Dan Lydiate and Tomos Williams also dropping out through injury.
New Zealand-born Willis Halaholo could make his debut off the bench.
Pivac said: "We were pleased to kick the tournament off with a victory last weekend and to be heading to Scotland with a win behind us.
"We continue to build and to move forward and it is great to do that from a position of winning. It is a quick six-day turnaround this week but we are looking forward to getting back out there.
"We have picked up a couple of injuries but we see it as more of an opportunity for those coming into the side."
Scotland team in full
Stuart Hogg; Darcy Graham, Chris Harris, James Lang, Duhan van der Merwe; Finn Russell, Ali Price; Rory Sutherland, George Turner, Zander Fagerson, Scott Cummings, Jonny Gray, Blade Thomson, Hamish Watson, Matt Fagerson.
Replacements
David Cherry, Oli Kebble, WP Nel, Richie Gray, Gary Graham, Scott Steele, Jaco van der Walt, Huw Jones.
Wales team in full
Leigh Halfpenny; Louis Rees-Zammit, Owen Watkin, Nick Tompkins, Liam Williams; Dan Biggar, Gareth Davies; Wyn Jones, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis, Adam Beard, Alun Wyn Jones, Aaron Wainwright, Justin Tipuric, Taulupe Faletau.
Replacements
Elliot Dee, Rhodri Jones, Leon Brown, Will Rowlands, James Botham, Kieran Hardy, Callum Sheedy, Willis Halaholo.
Manchester City and Manchester United have been handed away draws against fellow Premier League sides in the FA Cup quarter-finals.
City, who won their sixth FA Cup in 2018-19 but were knocked out in the semi-finals by eventual victors Arsenal last season, will play Everton at Goodison Park.
While City claimed a serene 3-1 win over Swansea City in the fifth round on Wednesday, Carlo Ancelotti's team overcame Tottenham 5-4 after extra-time in an instant FA Cup classic.
The teams will have a dress rehearsal for the last-eight clash on February 17, when they face off at Goodison in a Premier League match which was due to be played in December but had to be rescheduled due to a coronavirus outbreak at City.
Like their local rivals, United also fell short of reaching last season's final, going down to Chelsea in the last four.
United beat West Ham 1-0 after extra time on Tuesday and now face a trip to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium. Brendan Rodgers' Leicester side are flying high in the Premier League along with United and leaders City, who are five points clear of their neighbours at the top.
Last season's runners-up Chelsea went into Thursday night's match at Barnsley knowing the winners would be rewarded with a home tie against Sheffield United, who beat Bristol City at the last-16 stage.
The other quarter-final tie throws up a south-coast clash, with Southampton travelling to Bournemouth.
Games are due to be played across the weekend of March 20 and 21.
FA Cup quarter-final draw in full:
Everton v Manchester City
Bournemouth v Southampton
Leicester City v Manchester United
Barnsley or Chelsea v Sheffield United
Benjamin Pavard's VAR-assisted goal proved decisive as Bayern Munich beat Tigres UANL 1-0 to clinch their second FIFA Club World Cup title.
Without the influential Thomas Muller and Jerome Boateng, Bayern laboured for much of Thursday's final in Qatar, with their usual efficiency in front of goal absent.
A harsh offside decision from the VAR denied Joshua Kimmich a first-half opener, but the technology came to Bayern's aid in the 59th minute when it instructed referee Esteban Ostojich to overturn the decision to disallow Pavard's goal for a Robert Lewandowski offside.
The first North American team to reach the Club World Cup final, Tigres had a hopeful penalty appeal dismissed shortly after Pavard's effort, but they failed to test Manuel Neuer as Bayern completed a clean sweep of six trophies over the course of the last 12 months.
Kingsley Coman's winner in last season's Champions League final ultimately booked Bayern's spot at this tournament, but the winger flapped at an early chance following a bright start from Tigres.
Kimmich thought he had put Bayern ahead with a thumping effort in the 18th minute, only for the goal to be disallowed for Lewandowski having been offside, despite hardly interfering with play.
Tigres were caught cold by a short corner after the half hour, with Leroy Sane's strike crashing against the angle of the post and crossbar.
Yet the pressure finally told just before the hour. Lewandowski beat the Tigres offside trap and went in for a header which Nahuel Guzman parried straight to Pavard.
His finish was initially disallowed, but VAR said the decision should be overturned.
Pavard almost turned from hero to villain minutes later when he blocked Luis Quinones' cross and it rebounded back onto his arm, but the officials fairly judged it was ball-to-hand.
Tigres pushed for an equaliser but only managed to come close to conceding again – Corentin Tolisso having an effort tipped onto the post before Guzman made a fine save to deny Douglas Costa and Kimmich, as Bayern wrapped up the trophy they previously lifted in 2013.
Jamaican Olympian Alia Atkinson opened her long- course season this past weekend in Plantation Florida, winning two gold and a silver medal at the Florida Gold Coast Senior qualifier.
Rafael Nadal said he felt pity for the woman who hurled abuse at him and flipped a middle-finger gesture before being thrown out of Rod Laver Arena at the Australian Open.
In the last match of the day on the main show court, the fan was ejected near the end of the second set, viciously taking issue with the time Nadal was taking before each serve.
She yelled out as Nadal repeatedly bounced the ball, readying himself to send down a serve to second-round opponent Michael Mmoh.
The fan appeared to call Nadal an "OCD f***", and he responded with bafflement and some amusement before looking up to the stands, with the spectator staring down at him, the middle finger on her right hand raised in an aggressive manner.
The umpire then spoke out to declare: "Thanks madam, you're delaying everything."
Moments later, security arrived to escort the woman out of the show court, to the roaring approval of the vast majority of the crowd.
"Yeah, it was to me I think," Nadal said of the gesture.
"Maybe she took too much gin or tequila. I don't know. But honestly it was a strange situation, but funny at the same time."
He had laughed at the bizarre nature of the incident when it happened, with the 20-time grand slam champion having been unused to facing any such sniping during his career.
"For me it was funny," Nadal added in his post-match news conference after tying up a 6-1 6-4 6-2 win.
"Honestly, somebody doing the finger to me. I don't know the reason, but yeah, I was surprised, but at the same time I was thinking, 'Poor girl'. Because probably she was drunk or something like this. I don't know."
Nadal will face Cameron Norrie in round three.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
