Novak Djokovic has no doubt in his own mind he is the best tennis player in the world, regardless of what the rankings say.
After clinching a record-equalling sixth ATP Finals title by downing Casper Ruud in Turin, Djokovic reflected on a turbulent 2022 season in which he was unable to play in two of the four grand slam events.
His refusal to accept a COVID-19 vaccination meant Djokovic was denied permission to compete at the Australian Open and US Open, while the various tennis authorities' reaction to the Ukraine crisis meant no ranking points were on offer at Wimbledon.
Indeed, Djokovic successfully defended his title at the All England Club, but in doing so he lost all of his 2,000 points for being the 2021 champion.
As such, he entered the ATP Finals as the world number eight, with his unbeaten run at the tournament seeing him collect 1,500 points and jump up to fifth on the ATP ranking list.
Carlos Alcaraz is the number one for now, after a stellar season for the 19-year-old Spaniard in which the highlight was his US Open victory, but Djokovic will be the favourite with many for the Australian Open, with authorities expected to allow him to play next year.
Asked if he was the world's best player, Djokovic said: "I'm not. I'm fifth."
That came with a smile from the Serbian, who added: "This week I probably am [the best]. Overall the rankings are showing who had the best year, and Alcaraz is the number one in the world. Not much to say about that.
"But in my mind I always see myself as the best player in the world, of course. I have that kind of mentality and that kind of approach. Regardless of who is across the net, regardless of what the surface is, regardless of what season it is, what number of the professional season in my career we're facing, I mean, it's always the same. The ambitions are as high as possible.
"That kind of approach, I feel it brought me to where I am sitting here today as a 35-year-old, holding one of the biggest trophies in the sport."
The 21-time grand slam winner, one behind Rafael Nadal on the men's all-time singles list, said the prospects for future success come down to his "love and passion" for tennis.
"As long as that's there I'll do anything in my power to challenge the young guys for the biggest trophies," Djokovic said.
"I don't know what the future holds, but I know that what I hold in my mind is a huge hunger still to win trophies, make history of this sport, compete on the highest level all around the world, bring good emotions to sports fans, tennis fans."
Djokovic was greeted after the final by Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, another sporting evergreen at the age of 41, albeit very much in his career twilight.
The same cannot be said yet for Djokovic, who may have several seasons left at this high level.
His coach, former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, watched on admiringly as Djokovic won 7-5 6-3 in Turin against Ruud on Sunday.
According to Croatian Ivanisevic, the key to Djokovic's success in his mid-thirties is his relentless work rate.
"He's practising even harder than when he was 22," said Ivanisevic. "That's why he's still so good and that's why he's still going to be even better.
"The will to practise, the will to improve, the will to be better is amazing. He's taking care of his body. In my time we stopped tennis at 30, 31. You were already an old guy ready to leave.
"They all talk about, yes, young players are coming. It's great for tennis. You have the youngest number one in the world who made unbelievable things this year, Carlos. But look at Novak. He's still hungry, he's still winning the tournament, playing unbelievable tennis. He's still already thinking now about preparation for next season.
"Till he's like that, in his mind he's going to be always competitive, favourite to win majors and the big tournaments."
New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh made it clear Zach Wilson's status as starting quarterback is not under threat, despite a woeful offensive display against the New England Patriots.
Wilson had just nine completions for 77 yards in the 10-3 defeat, the Jets losing on a last-second punt return, with the team combining for just 103 yards overall and having more punts (10) than first downs (6).
In the second half, the Jets remarkably gained just two net yards on offense and Saleh gave a blunt description of his side's showing post-game, describing it as "dog s***".
While Saleh also conceded there was never a point where he thought the offense would get going, he retains faith in under-fire quarterback Wilson.
Asked about the status of the 2021 second overall pick, he said: "That's the furthest thing on my mind.
"I've told you guys before, Zach's our quarterback and we're going to, we've got to, find ways to help him get better."
Despite a poor showing that will see criticism on the second-year quarterback increase, Wilson said he does not feel he let down the defense.
"No. It sucks to lose, but we have a lot of season left," he replied.
Defeat leaves the Jets 6-4 for the season in the extremely tight AFC East, with the Patriots having the same record while the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills are 7-3. The Jets host the 3-8 Chicago Bears in Week 12.
Sadio Mane is backing Senegal's Lions of Teranga to show they still have sharp claws without him in Monday's World Cup opener against the Netherlands.
Bayern Munich forward Mane was set to spearhead the team's quest in Qatar, but a cruel leg injury has ruled him out of the tournament.
On paper, it seems the team are significantly weakened by his absence, but Mane says the reality could be rather different, backing the group he left to rise to their challenge.
The former Liverpool star wrote on Instagram: "This Monday, our dear country will compete in the World Cup, Qatar 2022. I am sure the Lions will transcend and approach every game as a true final.
"I am also convinced that all Senegalese will be in front of the small screen to support and encourage our valiant national team.
"Like all supporters of the 'Taniere' [lions' den], I am convinced that my team-mates will fight as one man and as they usually do to honour our dear Senegal. Long live Senegal, come on the Lions."
Senegal were surprise quarter-finalists in 2002, and as reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions they were considered by many as the continent's biggest hope for World Cup success this time around.
Losing Mane will change that perception for many observers.
The 30-year-old had a tendon reattached to the head of his right fibula after being ruled out of Senegal's squad, and he could face several months on the sidelines.
Mane thanked well-wishers, writing: "Many of you have sent messages of support following my injury. Thank God, the surgery I had in the middle of the week went well. I want to take this opportunity to thank and show my appreciation to you all."
Qatar head coach Felix Sanchez says his side felt "backed and supported" despite a mass exodus from fans during a 2-0 defeat to Ecuador in their first ever World Cup match.
Enner Valencia spoiled the party with a first-half double in the opening match of the tournament at Al Bayt Stadium on Sunday.
Valencia also had an early goal contentiously disallowed by the VAR for offside, but Qatar were well beaten and failed to register a shot on target in a lacklustre display.
They become the first home nation to lose the opening match of a World Cup, and many members of the crowd were clearly not impressed as they made an early exit in the second half.
Sanchez is focused on trying to made Qatar more competitive rather than bemoaning fans not sticking with their side, with Group A encounters against the Netherlands and Senegal to come.
"Truth be told, I have enough work to do to take a look at it," the Spaniard said.
"We felt backed and supported and we hope for the next game, people will feel prouder and keep supporting us to the end of the tournament.
"The atmosphere was great, people were very much looking forward to this game."
“We knew [a loss] could happen and the result can sometimes be difficult. We will try to learn from today and I'm completely sure we will make people feel more happy with our performance."
Qatar never got going and Sanchez offered no excuses for such a flat performance.
"There's no excuse, we want to congratulate our opponents, they deserved to win," he added.
"There is a lot of room for improvement. Maybe the responsibility and nerves got the best of us. We didn't start well. It was a terrible start."
President Joe Biden phoned the United States team in Qatar to urge Gregg Berhalter's players to "shock 'em all" at the World Cup.
Ahead of their opening game against Wales on Monday, the team gathered to listen to Biden offer words of encouragement to a group he acknowledged were outsiders.
The United States men's team took third place at the inaugural 1930 World Cup but have never gone further than the quarter-finals since, only reaching that stage once, in 2002.
By comparison, the US women's national team are four-time World Cup winners, and will be chasing a hat-trick of consecutive titles at next year's finals in Australia and New Zealand.
Biden, who turned 80 on Sunday, told Berhalter: "Coach, put me in, I'm ready to play."
He added: "You guys, I know you're the underdog, but I'll tell you what, man, you got some of the best players in the world on your team, and you're representing this country, and I know you're gonna play your hearts out, so let's go shock 'em all.
"Keep trusting in one another, play as hard as you can, for you and your families, your team-mates, and the whole country is rooting for you."
Berhalter replied: "That's a very nice message, Mr President, the whole team is here right now and we really appreciate your support and we're ready to go."
The United States also face England and Iran in Group B, returning to the World Cup stage after missing out on the Russia 2018 finals.
Biden added: "I wish I were there to see you, I really do, go get 'em guys, just play your hearts out. I know you will, I know you will."
The surprisingly successful Utah Jazz will be without veteran point guard Mike Conley for at least the next two weeks after he was diagnosed with a sprained knee.
Conley, 35, is averaging just 10.2 points per game this season for his lowest figure since his rookie season back in the 2007-08 season, but his 7.9 assists per game is setting a new career-high.
His leadership and ball distribution have helped the Jazz to 12-6 record – the best in the Western Conference – in a season where they were expected to bottom-out after trading away max-contract talents Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell in the offseason.
During Utah's 118-113 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday, Conley left the game after playing only eight minutes, going down awkwardly with a non-contact knee injury.
Usually a sign of significant damage, Conley dodged a bullet when it was revealed on Sunday by The Athletic's Shams Charania that he had only suffered a knee sprain, and could be back in as little as two weeks.
His absence could lead to increased opportunity for Collin Sexton, who has been relegated to a bench role since arriving from the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of the trade for Mitchell.
Italy head coach Roberto Mancini has conceded that his 3-4-3 formation did not work as intended against Austria, as he criticised his side's poor first half display against the hosts.
The European champions finished 2022 with defeat in Vienna, where two first half goals from Xaver Schlager and David Alaba put the hosts in control.
A poor showing in the first period was improved upon after the break, but Italy could not break Austria's defence, though Mancini believes his side did enough to deserve praise.
"We were better in the second half, in the first half we had the ball and we had to score. After that we suffered, making so many technical mistakes. In the second half, all we were missing was a goal," he said post-match.
"The formation didn't go very well, we did little pressing with the strikers conceding too many spaces.
"The team was too long, we did badly and this penalised us a bit, but in the second half I saw a very good team. We were unlucky and a bit inaccurate."
Italy are not scheduled to be back in action until March, where the defence of their European crown begins with the first qualifying match against England in a rematch of the 2020 final.
Marcus Jones scored the first punt return touchdown of the NFL season in the final seconds as the New England Patriots continued their hoodoo over the New York Jets.
The AFC East rivals appeared destined to take a game severely short on offensive production into overtime.
However, with the game locked in a 3-3 tie, rookie Jones took Braden Mann's punt back 84 yards to clinch a 10-3 win for New England and spark delirium at Gillette Stadium.
The dramatic ending was in stark contrast to the nature of a game that saw field goals from Nick Folk and Greg Zuerlein in the second quarter as the only scoring prior to Jones' decisive touchdown.
His return means the Patriots have won their last 14 games against the Jets, who were held to 2.1 yards per play in an offensive performance likely to spark significant questions about second-year quarterback Zach Wilson.
Had they ended their drought against New England, the Jets would have sat atop an ultra-competitive AFC East.
Instead, their defeat, combined with the Buffalo Bills' win over the Cleveland Browns, means drops them to the bottom of the division at 6-4.
Eagles survive scare
The Philadelphia Eagles lost for the first time on Monday, suffering defeat at the hands of the Washington Commanders, and they narrowly avoided a second successive loss on Sunday.
Philadelphia trailed the Indianapolis Colts, playing their second game under interim coach Jeff Saturday, 13-3 going into the fourth quarter.
But Jalen Hurts threw a 22-yard touchdown to Quez Watkins to set a comeback in motion, and eventually broke Indianapolis hearts with a seven-yard touchdown run with 80 seconds left, improving the NFC-leading Eagles to 9-1 with a 17-16 win.
Philadelphia also gained extra breathing room in the NFC East as the New York Giants dropped to 7-3 with a home loss to the Detroit Lions.
Patterson makes history in Falcons win
The Atlanta Falcons are still in the mix in the NFC playoff picture after coming through a thrilling game with the Chicago Bears 27-24.
It is a win Cordarrelle Patterson will remember forever after he took a kick return 103 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. Patterson's score marked the ninth kick return touchdown of his career and saw him claim the outright record for the most in NFL history
Atlanta's NFC South rivals, the Carolina Panthers, lost 13-3 to the Baltimore Ravens, who are now 7-3 at the top of the AFC North.
David Alaba scored a stunning free-kick as Austria swept past Italy in comfortable fashion with a 2-0 friendly victory on Sunday.
On the day the World Cup started in Qatar, two nations who failed to qualify for the tournament locked horns at Ernst-Happel-Stadion.
Austria came out the blocks flying and Xaver Schlager gave them an early lead before Alaba fired home a fierce free-kick to double the advantage before the break.
Roberto Mancini made numerous changes at the break, but it did not change the European champions' fortunes as they were beaten in Viennna.
The hosts took the lead after just six minutes, Schlager winning possession from Marco Verratti and exchanging passes with Marko Arnautovic before smashing a shot past Gianluigi Donnarumma.
Austria continued to apply the pressure, Nicolas Seiwald and Junior Adamu firing efforts off target, the latter then striking the post after Francesco Acerbi failed to clear the ball away.
Ten minutes before the interval, Austria's assault on the Italy goal paid off again when Alaba thundered an unstoppable free-kick from 20 yards in off the crossbar.
The second half began in the same fashion as the first, Marcel Sabitzer forcing two fine saves from Donnarumma, while Italy offered little until Giacomo Raspadori tested Heinz Lindner from close range.
Italy continued to dominate possession but could not pose enough of a threat in the final third, as Ralf Rangnick's side saw out another victory.
Adam Svensson played the weekend of his life to claim his maiden PGA Tour victory, fighting back from a one-over opening round to win the RSM Classic with a score of 19 under.
Canadian Svensson the competition on the Plantation Course at Sea Island Resort and struggled, but he found much more success on the Seaside Course following his opening round.
After posting a 64 on Friday, he followed that with the best round on Saturday, two strokes better than anybody else with his eight-under 62.
He continued that momentum on Sunday, going bogey-free with six birdies to equal the day's top round again, including back-to-back birdies on the 16th and 17th holes to turn a four-way tie atop the leaderboard into a two-stroke lead.
Svensson, 28, had not secured a top-10 finish on the PGA Tour until last season, collecting three, and with a par on the 18th hole he secured the first win of his career in his 70th start.
Speaking to the media after stepping off the final green, he was emotional as he reflected on his journey to this point.
"To be honest, it's not even real right now," he said. "I'm just so happy, I put so much work in. To win on the PGA Tour – it means everything to me.
"It's been an up-and-down journey, I've had lows, I've had highs, but I kept believing in myself, and here I am."
In a three-way tie for second was England's Callum Tarren, along with American duo Sahith Theegala and Brian Harman.
Recent winner of the Bermuda Championship, Seamus Power, was two further back at 15 under in a tie for fifth, and he was joined by a group that included 23-year-old Cole Hammer, who rode the opening-round lead to the best finish of his career.
Novak Djokovic ended his "roller coaster year" on a roaring high with victory at the ATP Finals, matching Roger Federer's record of six titles by sinking the hopes of Casper Ruud.
The Serbian said he had spent the season "on the needles", his colourful way of describing the nervousness and discomfort he had experienced during a campaign which saw him prevented from playing in Australia and North America.
Djokovic, who has refused to take a COVID-19 vaccination, has seen his career suffer because of that firm stance. He was thrown out of Australia in January, a humiliating way to begin the year.
Yet there is little doubting the 35-year-old remains the pre-eminent player on tour heading towards the 2023 season, even with the rise of Carlos Alcaraz, who ends the year as world number one.
A first ATP Finals triumph for Djokovic came in 2008, and he then won four in a row from 2012 to 2015, and now he has carried off the trophy once more, plus a cheque worth $4.74million, the biggest prize ever paid out in tennis.
"Seven years, it's been a long time. At the same time, the fact I've waited seven years makes this victory even sweeter and even bigger," Djokovic said.
Speaking on Amazon Prime, Djokovic said the win after all he has gone through felt "huge".
"I probably talked about this season and how unusual it is 1,000 times prior to this interview, so I'm not going to repeat what most people who follow tennis know," he said.
"[It's] just a big relief and satisfaction, and also I look forward to having a couple of weeks off, because I've been on the needles the entire year, whether for tournaments or waiting for permissions to go somewhere, so I'm really glad I managed to end it in a positive way."
He is the oldest champion in the tournament's 53-year history, breaking a record held by Federer, who was 30 when he won in 2011.
Djokovic said it was "really, really impressive" for Ruud to have reached grand slam finals in Paris and New York, and the ATP Finals title match, in a stellar year for the 23-year-old Norwegian.
But Djokovic was ruthless in Sunday's final, emerging a 7-5 6-3 winner thanks to a break of serve in each set, earning a fifth title of his disrupted year following wins at Wimbledon, Rome, Astana and Tel Aviv.
Thanking his team and supporters during the trophy presentation for "going through some tough times" with him, Djokovic said there were moments where he had needed "a shoulder to lean on, a shoulder to cry on".
The 21-time grand slam winner added: "It's been a roller coaster year really, something I've never experienced ever before in my life, and only we know what we've been through."
Former Trinidad and Tobago gymnast Thema Williams has opened a gym intended to be a safe space for all-rounded childhood athletic development.
The talented gymnast said her aim is to “create initiatives that foster teamwork through sport and culture.”
“We envision an environment in sport built on the pillars of accountability, equity, integrity, knowledge and transparency,” she in an interview with T&T newspaper Newsday.
“I started by offering private gymnastics classes during the pandemic, and word quickly spread throughout a network of reputable people. Before I knew it, I had five clients weekly.”
She has poured a lot of sweat into making her idea into reality even making her own equipment. She revealed that she made a balance beam, her first, from wood from her home storage unit and used foam and glue to fashion mats.
The demand for her teaching was so great that she had more than 100 students enrolled by the end of 2021, which then prompted her decision to open a gym.
In 2018, Williams won a court battle against the Trinidad and Tobago Gymnastics Federation that was deemed to have discriminated against the gymnast when they withdrew her from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Brazil. In her place, the TTGF selected Canadian-born gymnast Marisa Dick.
She was awarded damages amounting to more than $TT200,000. However, the TTGF did not turn over the cash until a few weeks ago when a high court judge ordered Republic Bank where the gymnastics federation held an account, to cut a cheque for more than $230,000 to pay the athlete.
Christian Pulisic has accepted being his "best self" is all the United States want from him after spending years obsessing about being the team's talisman.
The Chelsea forward is set to play a big part when the USA launch their Qatar World Cup campaign against Wales on Monday.
Gregg Berhalter's team later face games against England and Iran, and their presence at the finals comes as a huge relief after the team surprisingly missed out four years ago.
The US missed out on the Russia 2018 finals after losing 2-1 against Trinidad and Tobago in their final qualifier, described by Pulisic as a "freak game".
All the results that had to go against the Americans did just that, and they were left despondent and distant from the action that unfolded.
Pulisic says he used that failure as "a lot of motivation" this time around, explaining his disappointment by saying: "A lot was going on in my head. One of my biggest dreams was to be playing at a World Cup."
He was just 19 at the time of the finals in Russia, starring as a teenage breakout star in Germany for Borussia Dortmund, and has since relocated to the Premier League.
The acclaim that was coming his way was tough for the young Pulisic, and he said: "To be honest, I took a lot of that weight on my shoulders at that time because I felt it was my job to help the team and score goals to put us in a position to qualify for that World Cup.
"That whole process was definitely tough on me and in the end not qualifying was one of the biggest disappointments of my life."
Pulisic explained, in an interview released by US Soccer, how initially he felt "a little chip on my shoulder throughout the qualifying process" this time around.
"I felt like I had to really perform and be the main man at times," he said.
"But there came a point when I realised I don't need to be that with this team. There's so many unbelievable players in this team now that I can just be my best self and be a part of the teams and that's enough.
"I used my team-mates and leaned on them at times and the guys did an unbelievable job."
He feels "incredibly proud" to qualify this time around.
"Playing in the World Cup would obviously mean everything for me," Pulisic said.
"Knowing a lot of these guys for so long, and being able to do it with them by my side, is definitely special and hopefully a moment we're going to cherish for the rest of our lives."
Edin Terzic and Sebastian Kehl are "100 per cent" the men to lead Borussia Dortmund, according to the club's CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke.
Terzic replaced Marco Rose as head coach in May while former Dortmund midfielder Kehl took over from long-term sporting director Michael Zorc at the end of the 2021-22 season.
Dortmund began the 2022-23 campaign steadily, winning four of their first five games in the Bundesliga, and they qualified from their Champions League group to reach the last 16.
However, an inconsistent run in the league ended with back-to-back defeats to Wolfsburg and Borussia Monchengladbach just before domestic football halted for the World Cup in Qatar, and Dortmund found themselves in sixth place after 15 games, nine points behind leaders Bayern Munich.
“The World Cup break should have come a week earlier, after the Bochum game [3-0 home win prior to the Wolfsburg loss]," Watzke told members at the club's general meeting on Sunday. "Then we would all be in a better mood.
"That's why I can't spare the team the reproach. The two games, especially the one in Gladbach [a 4-2 defeat], weren't what we expect from Borussia Dortmund.
"But we made the decision to change with full awareness. In the team. In the position of sports director with Sebastian Kehl, after 24 years with Michael Zorc, and in the position of coach with Edin Terzic. That is the way of Borussia Dortmund.
"Both are excellent professionals, and what is particularly important to me – and I am sure to you as well – is that you work with full passion for BVB.
"We are 100 per cent convinced of this solution, and we will be successful with it. Because both of them are great – and real Borussians. We need people who have dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to the club."
Due to the World Cup – which kicked off on Sunday – Dortmund do not play another competitive game until January 22, at home to Augsburg, giving plenty of time for Terzic to work with his players, even the ones at the tournament once they return such as Jude Bellingham and Giovanni Reyna.
With Bellingham in particular likely to be courted by most of Europe's big clubs at the end of the season, if not sooner, qualifying for next year's Champions League would give the club a stronger hand in negotiations, and Watzke is confident they will.
"I am 100 per cent convinced that we will qualify for the Champions League again at the end of this season," he added. "And anyone who knows me knows that I am not the greatest optimist."
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