Kathryn Dane has vowed to appreciate every moment of her rugby career after fighting her way back from a stroke at the age of 26.

The Ireland and Ulster scrum-half suffered a brain haemorrhage in November last year while training at the Irish Rugby Football Union’s high performance centre in Abbotstown, where the prompt actions of medical staff and early treatment at Connolly and Beaumont Hospitals gave her the best possible chance of making a full recovery.

Eight months on, Dane, who also works a physiotherapist in Dublin, is back in light training and completing her PhD with a fresh perspective on rugby and life in general.

She said: “Before it, I used to just kind of go through life at 100mph and not really appreciate the good things or the achievements or the learnings that I’ve had.

“Since the stroke, I have just kind of realised that when you’re in those dark places, that’s when you start to see all the light that you have in your life.

“I have so many opportunities through sport and through my PhD that I never really appreciated before, and now I’m going to be properly grateful for what I have and enjoy rugby and enjoy all the moments that I have because I think I did take it a little bit for granted before.”

Dane became unwell when an arteriovenous malformation – a cluster of blood vessels – in her brain ruptured as she prepared for an early-morning gym session with her strength and conditioning coach Ed Slattery.

She said: “I was in at 7am doing some warm-up sets of hip thrusts with my coach Ed Slattery and just got this massive pain behind my right eye in the back of my head and I didn’t feel great.

“Ed noticed straight away that my face had dropped – I didn’t notice it had dropped, but I didn’t feel great and he quickly got the team doc, who was actually in the gym at the time, to have a look at me and they knew straight away I’d had a stroke of some description.”

Dane was rushed to Connolly Hospital, where an MRI scan confirmed the medical team’s worst fears, and later transferred to Beaumont Hospital to undergo procedure to seal the damaged blood vessel.

She spent two weeks in hospital before being allowed home to Fermanagh to start the process of working her way back to health under the watchful eye of an NHS brain injury team.

Dane said: “I was really, really lucky it happened where it happened because it could have happened on a rugby pitch in France or Italy somewhere. It was just by chance it happened there, and I do really believe that it was supposed to happen.

“I know it’s a s*** card to be dealt with, but it’s just a chapter in my story that I’ve had to overcome.”

Asked if her medical background, which had involved working with stroke patients, had proved a help or a hindrance, Dane said: “I’ve never lived in fear before, but when something like this happens to you out of the blue, you think, ‘Gosh, I’m vulnerable for the first time in my life’.

“It is beneficial to have that knowledge, but then at the same time ignorance is bliss sometimes.”

Initially having to battle fatigue and the left-sided weakness with which she had been left, has eased her way back to health and fitness, a process aided in part by a conversation with former Ireland back row Chris Henry, who returned to rugby after suffering a mini-stroke.

Asked about her own future in the game, she said: “I just want to make sure that I’m in the best place physically before I even begin to make that decision about returning to contact and returning to play.”

Liverpool’s LGBGT+ fans group Kop Outs are “appalled and concerned” club captain Jordan Henderson is considering a move to Saudi Arabia side Al Ettifaq.

The England midfielder is understood to be a target for the team now managed by Steven Gerrard, the man Henderson assumed the armband from at Anfield, with reports suggesting the 33-year-old is close to accepting an eye-watering £700,000-plus-a-week offer.

Henderson has been a significant supporter of both the group and LGBGT+ issues – he is a Rainbow Laces ambassador – and so suggestions he is ready to move to Saudi Arabia, whose human rights record has long been criticised, has prompted an angry response from Kop Outs.

“Kop Outs have valued the allyship shown by @Jhenderson,” said a statement on Twitter.

“We are appalled and concerned that anyone might consider working for a #sportswashing operation for a regime where women & LGBT+ people are oppressed & that regularly tops the world death sentence table?”

“Gerrard’s participation in this sportswashing is particularly galling given his previous support for LA Galaxy team-mate Robbie Rogers (who came out as gay in 2013).

“When someone’s made a fortune, should money tempt them to go to work? Maybe they should be asking themselves those questions.

“We hope that Jordan Henderson proves to be a man of his word and stays true to the values of our club, which so far he has been an absolute embodiment of.”

It is understood Liverpool have yet to receive an approach from Al Ettifaq and the player still has two years to run on his contract, which in itself means any potential move would involve a transfer fee more significant than the nominal amount being suggested in the Middle East.

Liverpool’s midfield is undergoing a revamp this summer with the experienced James Milner leaving for Brighton and the contracts of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita expiring and they have been replaced by Argentina World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister and Hungary captain Dominik Szobozslai for a combined £95million.

That may mean reduced playing time for Henderson, who has lifted every elite trophy during his captaincy of the club, but there is no appetite within the club to lose such an experienced player and integral part of the dressing room.

Former team-mate Jamie Carragher said if Henderson does accept a deal then he also has to take the criticism which will inevitably come his way.

“The money is difficult to turn down hence why virtually no one has, a great servant & player for Liverpool,” the ex-defender-turned-pundit wrote on Twitter when asked about Henderson.

“Not a player in his prime but again a big statement to get the Liverpool captain to the Saudi league.

“He will get criticism because he got a lot of praise for his stance on LGBT+ in the past.”

Ollie Robinson has given England a boost with the declaration he expects to be “100 per cent fit” for the fourth Ashes Test at Emirates Old Trafford next week.

The seamer sent down just 11.2 overs at Headingley before suffering a back spasm, and while he had a six-ball cameo with the bat and fielded in Australia’s second innings, he did did not bowl again.

Robinson was told a heavy workload in the second Test at Lord’s – where he bowled 50.4 overs across two innings – plus just a four-day turnaround between matches was likely responsible for his injury.

But England defied his absence to record a three-wicket win, which means they trail 2-1 in the five-match series, and Robinson is hopeful of keeping his spot next time out after being included in a 14-strong squad for Manchester.

“It was so frustrating to get that back spasm on day one,” Robinson wrote in his column for Wisden.com. “I was really looking forward to bowling and it was coming out nicely, but these things happen.

“Normally when I’ve had back spasms before, they’ve built up and I would feel it coming on. Whereas this was on landing, it was just a sudden, quick stabbing feeling in the back.

“I think we caught it earlier than I have done in the past. I had some acupuncture, a bit of treatment, and I was fine after that. I was available to bowl on the third day if I’d been needed.

“The medical team said that it’s likely to have happened because I played back-to-back Test matches, and bowled 15 overs of bumpers at Lord’s. So sometimes these things come around, but then they go just as quickly as well. I’m 100 per cent fit for Manchester.”

Robinson, who had an injection in his lower back before the start of the county season, faces a battle to retain his place as James Anderson is pushing to be involved on his home ground for the penultimate Test – which starts next Wednesday – while the extra pace of Josh Tongue is also a consideration.

Stuart Broad and Chris Woakes are expected to stay in the XI, as is express fast bowler Mark Wood, who topped out at 96.5mph, took seven wickets at Headingley and contributed 40 with the bat off 24 balls.

“I’ve never seen a spell like Woody’s on that first morning,” Robinson said.

“After the first over I went to fine leg and I was standing no more than 15 yards behind (wicketkeeper) Johnny (Bairstow), thinking, literally, ‘this is the fastest thing I’ve ever seen’. It was crazy.

“The fact he was consistently getting the shape and movement on it as well – at that speed – was just unbelievable bowling. It was just amazing to watch and be a part of.”

Robinson added of his quirky team-mate: “Woody’s just got this mad, unique energy. There’s no one else like him.

“This is a bloke who, 10 minutes before we went out, literally at 10:50am, was on all-fours barking on the changing room floor, going, ‘there’s a dog in the dressing room. There’s a dog in here, lads’.”

The New York Jets and Quinnen Williams agreed Thursday to a four-year, $96 million extension that will make the 2022 All-Pro the NFL's second-highest paid defensive tackle, according to multiple reports.

Williams' new deal, which NFL.com reports contains $66 million in guaranteed money, will run through the 2027 season and is surpassed only by Los Angeles Rams superstar Aaron Donald's six-year, $135 million contract as the largest for an interior defensive linemen.

It's also the largest contract guarantee in Jets history, eclipsing the $51 million the team granted to linebacker C.J. Mosley in 2019.

Williams was entering the final season of his rookie contract and is coming off an outstanding 2022 campaign in which he recorded a career-high 12 sacks along with 55 tackles in 16 games, earning first team All-Pro honours for the first time in his four-year career.

The 25-year-old was selected by the Jets with the third overall pick of the 2019 draft, behind only Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray and San Francisco 49ers star pass rusher Nick Bosa. Williams has compiled 191 tackles and 27.5 sacks in 57 career games, including 53 starts.

Williams is the fourth prominent defensive lineman to agree to a big new contract this offseason. The Tennessee Titans signed Jeffrey Simmons to a four-year, $94 million contract in April, while the Washington Commanders' Daron Payne received $90 million over four years and the New York Giants gave Dexter Lawrence $87.5 million over four years.

SImmons' extension also contained $66 million in guarantees.

Ons Jabeur believes her new-found patience helped propel her into another Wimbledon final.

The Tunisian sixth seed, last year’s runner-up, came from a set down to beat Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-3 on Centre Court.

Sabalenka, banned from Wimbledon last year over the role of Belarus in the war in Ukraine, was a point from going a set and 5-3 up.

But Jabeur’s rousing comeback spared Wimbledon chiefs the uncomfortable situation of the Princess of Wales handing a trophy to, and shaking hands with, a player from Russia’s allied nation Belarus in the women’s final.

Instead of a politically-charged clash between Sabalenka and Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, Centre Court will host Jabeur against Czech Marketa Vondrousova on Saturday.

Jabeur was devastated after losing to Elena Rybakina in last year’s final, but believes she is a different player 12 months on.

“Maybe the old me would have lost that match today,” she said. “Probably 12 months ago, for sure. Maybe also a little bit before, like six months ago. It’s a different player.

“I’m working on myself like crazy. You have no idea what I’m doing. Every time there is something, I’m very tough with myself, try to improve everything. Very impatient sometimes, which is not good.

“Maybe my injuries slowed me down and teach me to be patient and accept what’s going on.”

A set and a break down, Jabeur came out fighting on the Sabalenka serve and it finally paid off.

“I was like, honestly, I’m not going to give a s***, I’m just going to go in and hit my return,” she added.

“Yeah, it was coming. I was returning much better. She missed some shots that did help me stay in the game. I was fighting every point. We just wait for a little bit of chance sometime to get the game, and that’s what happened.”

Sabalenka has reached four consecutive semi-finals but only won one of them, when she took the Australian Open title earlier this year.

“I didn’t play my best tennis today. It was just, like, a combo of everything. A little bit of nerves, a little bit of luck for her at some points,” she said.

“I mean, she just played really well. She played unbelievable tennis. In those key moments, she got a little bit more lucky, and I didn’t play the way I was supposed to play.”

Victory would have elevated Sabalenka above Iga Swiatek to become world number one.

“I wouldn’t say that I was thinking about that. I mean, for me it’s more about how you finish the year than during the year you’re first, second, you just go back and forth,” she added.

“For me it’s more about the finish to the year. I’ll keep pushing myself and do everything I can to finish this year as world number one.”

Middlesex’s first century of the season courtesy of Sam Robson was not quite enough to secure victory after their LV= Insurance County Championship Division One match at home to Northamptonshire finished in a scores-level draw.

The top-flight’s bottom two served up a thriller as Robson’s 126 not out, sharing a fourth-wicket stand of 150 with John Simpson (75), saw the hosts close in on their 323 target.

Ten was required from the last over and three from the last ball but Robson could only scramble a two to the on-side and the draw did little for either struggling side’s prospects.

At the other end of the table leaders Surrey’s draw at home to Nottinghamshire was less dramatic with proceedings called to a halt with the visitors 118 for one in their pursuit of 297 in 52 overs.

Brett Hutton’s fifth five-wicket haul of the season was the highlight as the Nottinghamshire seamer took his Championship tally to 41, level with Durham’s Chris Rushworth at the top of the wicket-taking standings.

Leg-spinner Calvin Harrison chipped in with three for 99 to bowl out the hosts for 340 40 minutes after lunch but there was not enough time left in the day for either side to fashion a victory.

Essex moved into second place with a 46-run win at Lancashire as Rob Jones’ 111 proved in vain for the hosts, who were bowled out for 383 with 11 balls remaining in pursuit of what would have been the county’s record run-chase of 430 to win.

Luke Wells (75) and Josh Bohannon (68) contributed half-centuries after the visitors’ overnight declaration on 292 for eight but Matt Critchley and Doug Bracewell both claimed three wickets apiece.

Nick Gubbins’ four-hour defensive masterclass earned Hampshire an unlikely draw after they had slipped to 115 for seven still needing needing 55 to avoid an innings defeat against Somerset at Taunton.

Gubbins scored 50 not out off 241 balls and shared in a match-saving stand of 100 with Liam Dawson (68no) either side of tea, Hampshire closing on 215 for seven.

In Division Two, Derbyshire captain Leus du Plooy made a magnificent 128 but the bottom side came up 19 runs short as they came agonisingly close to chasing down a target of 380 in 58 overs against Sussex.

Du Plooy’s third hundred of the campaign makes him the division’s leading scorer with 979 runs but when he was caught in the deep Derbyshire still needed 54 from 41 balls, and when the eighth wicket fell with 11 balls remaining the hosts settled for the draw.

A total of 552 runs were scored in the day at Hove as 19-year-old James Coles was last out for a career-best 180 as Sussex declared 25 minutes after lunch on 384 for nine.

Yorkshire’s victory push was thwarted by the weather and Worcestershire’s third-wicket pair of Jake Libby (64no) and Gareth Roderick (34no) at New Road.

The home side began the day on 22 without loss in their second innings and had been reduced to 49 for two – still 116 runs short of avoiding an innings defeat – when play was halted for bad light and then rain.

Play resumed three hours later when the Libby and Roderick put on an unbroken stand of 110.

Rishi Patel scored his fourth century of the summer – a career-best 179 – but his Leicestershire side had to settle for a draw in a heavily-curtailed game of just two innings at Glamorgan.

Leicestershire, starting the day 28 for none, posted 451 for six in reply to their hosts’ 403 for nine.

Britain’s Henry Searle is being cheered on to junior success at Wimbledon by his football-supporting mates.

The 17-year-old from Wolverhampton reached his first junior grand slam semi-final in the boys’ singles with a 7-6 (3) 6-3 victory over Brazilian eighth seed Joao Fonseca.

Searle’s loud fan club certainly made themselves heard on Court Three, and he said: “It’s great knowing I have so much support from home. I don’t think there’s many of the players here that have that sort of environment.

“They’re all avid Wolves supporters so they’re used to a good crowd. I don’t think it’s intentional, it’s just their normal reaction, but they enjoy it.”

Searle reached the quarter-finals of the French Open and has built on that here, beginning his campaign by knocking out top seed Juan Carlos Prado Angelo and going on to set up a semi-final clash with American fourth seed Cooper Williams.

“It’s definitely given me confidence playing against some of the top juniors at this level, knowing going into any match that I can play any player and giving it my best will hopefully make me come out on top,” said Searle, who trains at the Lawn Tennis Association’s national academy in Loughborough.

“It was a really cool experience being able to play on Court Three and I managed to put in a good performance against a very good opponent. It’s a dream from a young age to win at Wimbledon and to have a few wins this week is pretty amazing.”

Liam Broady and Jack Draper both reached junior finals at Wimbledon in recent years but no British boy has won the title since Stanley Matthews, son of the famous footballer, in 1962.

“That was a long time ago. I don’t really know too much about him but I’m just focusing on the match tomorrow, not thinking too far ahead,” said Searle.

Draper’s run in 2018 was much more recent, and Searle has been inspired by his fellow lefty.

“I remember watching bits of it,” he said. “I like to think he plays a little bit similar to myself. I take a few things from him and try to implement them into my game. He’s doing extremely well.”

Ranah Stoiber and Mika Stojsavljevic were both hoping to join Searle in the semi-finals but neither could progress beyond the last eight in the girls’ singles.

Fourteen-year-old Stojsavljevic has had a memorable week on her Wimbledon debut and fought back from 5-2 down in the second set to force a decider against Slovakian fifth seed Renata Jamrichova only to lose out 6-2 6-7 (6) 6-1.

Stoiber, 18, also took the opening set against Czech Nikola Bartunkova, who is in the top 350 of the women’s rankings, but fell to a 1-6 6-1 6-2 defeat.

British duo Isabelle Lacy and Hannah Klugman, meanwhile, are through to the semi-finals of the girls’ doubles.

Rory McIlroy set his sights on heading to Hoylake on the back of victory in the Genesis Scottish Open after enjoying a superb start to the £7million event.

McIlroy recorded an eagle and six birdies in an opening six-under-par 64 at The Renaissance Club that left him three shots off the lead held by South Korea’s Ben An, whose flawless 61 equalled the course record.

“It’s a really good start,” McIlroy said. “I’ve not had particularly great results around this course the last couple of times but I feel like my game is definitely in better shape now.

“I feel like I’m coming in here playing really good golf, producing good results and getting myself in contention and I’m just really trying to do the same things and adapt to the different conditions we’re going to face over the next couple of weeks.”

Next week is, of course, the 151st Open Championship at Royal Liverpool, where McIlroy won the third of his four major titles nine years ago.

“My mind is pretty much on this week,” the 34-year-old added. “I’ve got myself off to a great start and I would love to win the Scottish Open.

“That’s a massive deal in its own right and what that could give me going into the summer… look we’ve got the Open Championship next week but thinking ahead to FedEx Cup and Race to Dubai and all that, it’s an important week.

“I’m focused on this week but it’s great that by playing this week I should be getting a little bit more prepared for links golf again next week as well.

“I didn’t touch my clubs for 10 days after the Travelers but I’ve got some really good feelings in my swing that I think are quite consistent and even if I do take a bit of time away I feel really comfortable getting back into it.

“It was a nice reset but after today it feels like I came back where I left off.”

An, who was the youngest ever winner of the US Amateur as a 17-year-old in 2009, carded nine birdies to enjoy a two-shot lead over American Davis Riley, with Thomas Detry alongside McIlroy on six under.

“I feel like I’m back home,” said An, who won the 2015 BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth by six shots but now plays primarily on the PGA Tour.

“This is the Tour I started my professional career. It’s been great coming back and playing links golf. I couldn’t play any better today, I drove it well and hit it well and chipped it well and putted well. That’s a clean scorecard.”

Detry came agonisingly close to winning one of the sponsor’s cars for himself and his caddie with a hole-in-one on the 17th, but was delighted to be back at one of his favourite venues.

“It was inches away so I’m looking forward to seeing the highlights of that shot,” said Detry, who finished 10th last year and lost out in a play-off with Matt Fitzpatrick and eventual winner Min Woo Lee in 2021.

“It’s my playground here. I always play well. I have a lovely little cottage out here on the golf course. I’m staying here with my family and everybody is happy. I feel good.”

Scotland’s Ewen Ferguson led the home challenge following a four-under-par 66, with world number one Scottie Scheffler two strokes further back.

Defending champion Xander Schauffele had to birdie two of his last four holes to return a level-par 70.

Ons Jabeur will meet the unseeded Marketa Vondrousova in Saturday’s women’s final at Wimbledon.

Jabeur, last year’s runner-up, earned a shot at redemption by upsetting world number two Aryna Sabalenka after Vondrousova crushed the dreams of Ukrainian Elina Svitolina in the first semi-final.

Elsewhere at the All England Club, Britain’s Neal Skupski secured a place in the final of the men’s doubles.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at how day 11 of the Championships unfolded.

Ons-toppable?

Ons Jabeur was devastated after losing to Elina Rybakina in the 2022 final but believes she is a different player 12 months on.

The sixth seed defeated Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-3 to the delight of the Centre Court crowd – and likely to the relief of the All England Club and Buckingham Palace.

Australian Open champion Sabalenka, banned from last year’s tournament due to the war in Ukraine, was a point from going a set and 5-3 up.

But Jabeur’s rousing comeback spared Wimbledon chiefs the uncomfortable prospect of the Princess of Wales handing a trophy to, and shaking hands with, a player from Russia’s allied nation Belarus in the women’s final.

Instead of a politically-charged clash, the gutsy Tunisian will bid to make it second time lucky, with underdog Vondrousova standing in her way.

Tweet of the daySvitolina unable to mount mother of all comebacks

Elina Svitolina’s inspiring run ended as Czech world number 42 Vondrousova reached her maiden Wimbledon final.

Svitolina’s efforts amid war in her homeland of Ukraine and only nine months after giving birth to daughter Skai have been one of the stories of the tournament.

But she was quickly on the backfoot in her quest to reach a first major final and was unable to battle back against 24-year-old Vondrousova, who broke three times in the opening set en route to a 6-3 6-3 success.

Far more at home on clay than grass, Vondrousova is enjoying her first significant grand slam run since she made the final at the French Open in 2019 as a teenager before losing to Ashleigh Barty.

She had beaten Svitolina comfortably in their last meeting in the semi-finals at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and it was the same story on Thursday.

Flying the British flag

Neal Skupski is one win away from a Wimbledon hat-trick after reaching the men’s doubles final with partner Wesley Koolhof.

The Liverpudlian won the mixed doubles in 2021 and 2022 and will have a shot at his first men’s title after a 7-5 6-4 win over Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden on Court One.

One break of serve in each set was enough for top seeds Skupski and Koolhof to get the job done as they booked a Centre Court spot on Saturday.

Shot of the dayQuote of the dayPicture of the dayStat of the day

Ken Skupski has opted to go on his family holiday in Ibiza instead of watching his brother Neal in the Wimbledon men’s doubles final.

Ken, who retired last year, is now coaching his younger sibling and had a conundrum after booking a family getaway to Ibiza that clashed with the finals weekend in SW19.

Neal revealed on Thursday that Ken was contemplating staying at the tournament for as long as he and partner Wesley Koolhof were in it but headed home after their 7-5 6-4 semi-final win over Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden.

He will now provide tactical analysis on their final opponents Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos from the Balearic Islands.

“He has just left,” Neal said of his brother. “His flight is 5am in the morning so he is driving back now and has a 2.30am taxi to the airport so he won’t be here.

“I’m perfectly fine with it, I knew the situation well in advance. He will be on the phone and doing all the homework tomorrow. We are a very good team together so I don’t think it will affect us.

“He has been waiting for this holiday for a couple of years now, Covid pushed it back a little bit, they changed the date twice.

“He doesn’t get to go on holiday often with his family because he is always away with me so I am not going to begrudge him a holiday with his kids. It is just one of those things.”

Skupski is going for a hat-trick of Wimbledon titles after winning the 2021 and 2022 mixed doubles crown.

Winning the men’s would mean more to him and he would become the first Briton to do so since fellow Liverpudlian Jonny Marray did it in 2012.

“It is always nice to have a Brit at the end of the tournament at Wimbledon, luckily it’s been myself over the last couple of years in the mixed doubles,” he said.

“This is the one we want, this is the pinnacle achievement if we are able to get over the line.

“It’s not easy to win a grand slam. It will be nice to have another Liverpool fan win Wimbledon.

“I saw Jonny earlier and asked him if he had any tips for me going into the semi-final. He didn’t give me any, he just laughed and said, ‘You’re number one, you’ll be fine’. So those are the words of wisdom he had for me.

“It is not easy to get over the line. We played US Open final last year and hopefully we can take some experience from that. We are looking forward to it, it’s a chance to get our first grand slam together. We’ll embrace the pressure.”

Seventeen-year-old Henry Searle reached his first junior grand slam semi-final in the boys’ singles at Wimbledon.

Searle, from Wolverhampton, has gone one better than his run at the French Open last month thanks to a 7-6 (3) 6-3 victory over Brazilian eighth seed Joao Fonseca.

Liam Broady and Jack Draper both reached junior finals at Wimbledon in recent years but no British boy has won the title since Stanley Matthews, son of the famous footballer, in 1962.

Ranah Stoiber and Mika Stojsavljevic were both hoping to join Searle in the semi-finals but neither could progress beyond the last eight in the girls’ singles.

Fourteen-year-old Stojsavljevic has had a memorable week on her Wimbledon debut and fought back from 5-2 down in the second set to force a decider against Slovakian fifth seed Renata Jamrichova only to lose out 6-2 6-7 (6) 6-1.

Stoiber, 18, also took the opening set against Czech Nikola Bartunkova, who is in the top 350 of the women’s rankings, but fell to a 1-6 6-1 6-2 defeat.

British duo Isabelle Lacy and Hannah Klugman, meanwhile, are through to the semi-finals of the girls’ doubles.

Ons Jabeur is through to a second consecutive Wimbledon final after coming from a set down to beat Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka.

The Tunisian sixth seed, last year’s runner-up, won 6-7 (5) 6-4 6-3 to the delight of the Centre Court crowd, and likely to the relief of the All England Club and Buckingham Palace.

Sabalenka, banned from Wimbledon last year over the role of Belarus in the war in Ukraine, was a point from going a set and 5-3 up.

But Jabeur’s rousing comeback spared Wimbledon chiefs the uncomfortable situation of the Princess of Wales handing a trophy to, and shaking hands with, a player from Russia’s allied nation Belarus in the women’s final.

Instead of a politically-charged clash between Sabalenka and Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, Centre Court will host Jabeur against Czech Marketa Vondrousova on Saturday.

Jabeur was devastated after losing to Elina Rybakina in last year’s final, but believes she is a different player 12 months on.

She said: “I’m working a lot with my mental coach who’s been helping me a lot and I might be writing a book about it.

“I’m very proud of me, the old me maybe would have lost that match but I’m glad I kept digging deep and finding the strength.

“I’m learning to transform bad energy into good energy. After the anger of the first set I just tried to stay focused. I’m accepting it, digging deep to go and win this match, and hopefully this tournament.”

Jabeur led the first-set tie-break but dumped a backhand into the net and then sent a forehand long as Sabalenka forged ahead.

She seemed set to capitulate at 2-2 in the second, slipping to 0-40 before a double fault put Sabalenka in control.

But Sabalenka tightened up horribly and a double-fault gave Jabeur break point which she converted for 4-4.

With the Centre Court crowd right behind her, Jabeur somehow saved a break point by staying in a ridiculous rally until Sabalenka smashed a forehand wide, and then levelled the match with an unstoppable return on to the baseline.

The 28-year-old piled the pressure on the Sabalenka serve and won a nerve-jangling game with a third break point to go 4-2 up in the decider.

Sabalenka saved two match points on serve but Jabeur finished the job behind her own with an ace before raising her arms in triumph.

Ion Izagirre took a superb solo victory at the end of an explosive stage 12 of the Tour de France to Belleville-en-Beaujolais.

Eleven days after Victor Lafay ended a 15-year wait for a stage win for the Cofidis team, Izagirre doubled up with a perfectly-timed attack from the breakaway, also giving him his second career Tour stage victory seven years after his first in Morzine.

The Basque rider, 34, went solo during the final climb, still with 31 kilometres remaining of the 169km stage through wine country from Roanne that was again raced at a ferocious pace.

The much-reduced peloton came in more than four minutes after Izagirre. Jonas Vingegaard retained his 17-second lead over Tadej Pogacar as the Alps loom this weekend, but only after putting a big effort in over the first part of the stage which he admitted could come with a price to pay in the days ahead.

The stage was always seen as one for the breakaway, but it was a war of attrition from the off as the peloton was quickly whittled down to a few dozen riders by a series of attacks.

With his Jumbo-Visma team-mates Wout van Aert and and Tiesj Benoot seemingly determined to be in any move, Vingegaard was repeatedly left isolated in the yellow jersey, forced to chase down moves as Jai Hindley, third overall, followed the wheels to protect his own position.

It was not until 85 kilometres to go that a 15-strong group got away, but their lead over a peloton reduced to just 39 riders never grew rapidly – fatigue seemingly having set in for everybody.

And having taken half the stage to form, the break lasted less than 40km as a fighting force. Mathieu van der Poel attacked from that front group along with Andrey Amador on the penultimate climb of the Col de la Croix Montmain, soon leaving Amador behind to set out alone with 47km left.

But it was too much for the Dutchman, who was caught midway up the final climb of the Col de la Croix Rosier as the front group swelled to eight.

Izagirre had led the chase, but still had the power left to launch the stage-winning move as others did not react, instead eyeing his team-mate Guillaume Martin.

By the time they did consider a counter, Izagirre had gone, winning the stage by 58 seconds from Mathieu Burgaudeau and Matteo Jorgenson.

When Pello Bilbao won Tuesday’s stage 10, it was a first Spanish stage winner in five years. Two days later there was another, both from Basque riders thriving in a race which began in their home region.

“I felt strong in the last kilometres,” Izagirre said. “Many things went through my mind. It’s all very emotional. It’s a very Basque Tour de France. It started at home for us and we took two stage wins. I’m happy to follow the line drawn by Pello Bilbao.”

The Ineos Grenadiers had done much to pace the main contenders in the latter part of the stage, ensuring that Thibaut Pinot’s presence in the breakaway did not threaten Tom Pidcock’s eighth place overall as the Frenchman moved up as far as 10th.

The Tour now heads into the Alps with Friday’s stage a 138km test that ends with the climb of the Grand Colombier, where Vingegaard may find out if there is anything to pay for Thursday’s efforts.

“Every race day is full on, and today’s was no exception,” the Dane said. “From your perspective, I’m sure this is being a great Tour de France. Today’s stage has been very hard.

“The consequences of this difficulty will be seen in the third week. Everything is building up for a very hard Tour de France. I’m ready for a big battle tomorrow and hope for having my best legs.”