Alexei Popyrin overcame Andrey Rublev in straight sets to win his maiden ATP 1000 title at the Canadian Open.

Popyrin won 6-2 6-4 to complete a remarkable run in Montreal, becoming the fourth-lowest-ranked player to win an ATP 1000 title in the process.

The Australian saved the three break points he faced in set one and, despite dropping a game in the second set, immediately hit back to take the impetus away from Rublev, who had stunned world number one Jannik Sinner en route to the final.

It marked Popyrin's third victory over a top-10 opponent at the tournament, while he also snapped Sebastian Korda's eight-match winning streak in the semi-finals.

Data Debrief: Popyrin ends Aussie wait

Popyrin became the first Australian since Lleyton Hewitt to win a Masters 1000 trophy.

That victory for Hewitt came at Indian Wells in 2003, when Popyrin was only three years old.

Jessica Pegula successfully defended her Canadian Open crown by beating Amanda Anisimova in Monday's final.

Pegula, who was seeded third, prevailed 6-3 2-6 6-1 against her fellow American in Toronto.

The 30-year-old ended Anisimova's hopes of a shock title, and a fifth top-20 win of the tournament.

Pegula was on fire in the opening set, dominating on her serve, but Anisimova responded with a swift break in the second as she rallied to draw the match.

Yet two breaks in quick succession put Pegula firmly on top in the decider, and though Anisimova clawed back two match points, her opponent got the job done at the third time of asking.

Pegula has now won six Tour-level titles, with three of these being WTA 1000 events (Guadalajara 2022, Montreal 2023 and Toronto 2024).

Data Debrief: Pegula's Canadian comforts

Hailing from Buffalo, just south of the border, Pegula has certainly enjoyed a fine run in Canada over the past two years. 

She is only the second player this century to secure the title at the Canadian Open in both Toronto and Montreal, along with Simona Halep, while she became the seventh player in the Open Era to defend her title at the Canadian Open after Chris Evert, Evonne Goolagong, Martina Navratilova, Regina Marsikova, Monica Seles and Martina Hingis.

No player had successfully defended a WTA 1000 title since Iga Swiatek did so at Rome in 2022, and no player had done so on hard court since Ashleigh Barty, who defended her Miami crown in 2021.

Mookie Betts went 2 for 4 with a homer and three RBIs in a dazzling return from the injured list that sparked the Los Angeles Dodgers to a key 5-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday.

In his first game since fracturing his left hand on June 16, Betts hit a two-run homer that broke a scoreless tie in the third inning and later added a run-scoring single to lead Los Angeles in the opener of this four-game series between National League division leaders.

Shohei Ohtani also had a two-run homer, his NL-leading 36th of the season, to help Clayton Kershaw earn his first win since September in the three-time Cy Young Award winner's best start of the season.

Kershaw (1-2) held the Brewers to one run and three hits through 5 2/3 innings in his fourth start since returning from offseason shoulder surgery.

The Dodgers have now won four straight and moved a half-game ahead of the East-leading Philadelphia Phillies in the race for the NL's best record. Milwaukee dropped to 2 1/2 games behind Los Angeles and has lost two in a row following a five-game winning streak.

Betts stepped to the plate with Teoscar Hernandez aboard in the third inning and drove a 2-1 pitch from Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta over the left field wall to stake Kershaw to a 2-0 lead. 

Ohtani made it 4-0 two innings later by following a Kevin Kiermaier single with an opposite-field homer off Peralta (7-7), who was tagged for four runs on five hits in six innings.

Kershaw departed with two out and a runner on in the sixth in favour of Joe Kelly, who was greeted by a home run by William Contreras that brought the Brewers within 4-2.

Betts struck again in the seventh, however, with a two-out single that plated Ohtani, who drew a walk and advanced to second with his 33rd stolen base of the season.

Three Dodger relievers then combined to keep the Brewers scoreless over the final three innings, with Daniel Hudson working a perfect ninth to notch his ninth save. 

Valdez stars again as Astros win sixth straight

Framber Valdez and the Houston Astros both extended their unbeaten runs as the American League West leaders opened a three-game series with the Tampa Bay Rays with a 6-1 victory.

Valdez (12-5), who lost a no-hit bid with two outs in the ninth inning in his previous outing, struck out nine while yielding just one run and three hits over 5 2/3 innings to improve to 7-0 with a 2.68 ERA over his last nine starts. The Astros have won all of those appearances.

Yainer Diaz supplied the big blow in Houston's sixth consecutive win with a three-run homer in the third inning. Alex Bregman added a solo shot to help the Astros move a half-game ahead of the Seattle Mariners for sole possession of the AL West lead.

Bregman's blast off Taj Bradley in the first inning put Houston ahead quickly, and the Astros broke the game open with four runs in the third.

After Bradley walked Chas McCormick and gave up a single to Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez drove in McCormick with a two-out hit to increase the margin. Diaz then belted the first pitch he saw into the left field seats for a 5-0 advantage.

The Rays got on the board in the bottom of the third when Taylor Walls tripled and scored on Jose Caballero's sacrifice fly, but managed just two hits off Valdez and two Houston relievers the rest of the way en route to their fifth loss in seven games.

Houston tacked on one more run in the fifth as Alvarez doubled, advanced to third on Jeremy Pena's infield single and scored on a fielder's choice groundout off the bat of Jake Meyers.

Bradley (6-7) lost his third straight start after allowing six runs and eight hits over 4 1/3 innings.

Braves score in 10th to win duel of aces with Giants

Travis d'Arnaud drove in the game's lone run with a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning as the Atlanta Braves earned a needed 1-0 win over the San Francisco Giants in the opener of a four-game series.

The game featured a matchup of standout pitchers that lived up to its advanced billing, as both Atlanta's Chris Sale and the Giants' Blake Snell turned in dominant performances despite neither factoring in the final outcome.

Sale racked up a season-high 12 strikeouts while permitting just three hits over seven scoreless innings, while the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Snell fanned 11 Braves and surrendered two hits in 6 1/3 shutout innings.

The Braves finally broke the deadlock with Orlando Arcia placed as the designated runner to start the 10th. Sean Murphy then singled off Taylor Rogers to move the go-ahead run to third before d'Arnaud's fly ball to right was deep enough to enable Arcia to score.

Raisel Iglesias was able to strand the Giants' designated runner in the bottom of the inning by recording two strikeouts before getting Patrick Bailey to fly out and end the game. The Atlanta closer also pitched a scoreless ninth to keep the contest at 0-0.

The lack of run support prevented Sale from becoming the majors' first 14-game winner this season, though his outstanding effort helped the Braves increase their lead over the rival New York Mets to one game for the NL's final wild card spot.

Atlanta entered the series having gone 7-14 over its previous 21 games to fall out of the top spot in the wild-card race.

The Giants have now dropped two straight following a 12-3 stretch that got them back into the play-off picture. San Francisco is now 2 1/2 games behind Atlanta in the standings.

Scott Parker hailed his Burnley players for delivering a statement result in his first game at the helm as they thrashed Luton Town 4-1 in their Championship opener.

Parker took over as Clarets boss in July following Vincent Kompany's move to Bayern Munich, tasked with masterminding an immediate return to the Premier League after they finished 19th last season.

His reign began with a trip to Kenilworth Road to face Luton, who were relegated alongside Burnley last term and have also been tipped to compete for promotion.

Goals from Josh Brownhill, Wilson Odobert, Dara O'Shea and Vitinho saw the visitors record an eye-catching win, taking them second in the early-season Championship standings, behind Sheffield Wednesday.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, Parker expressed pride in his players for the way they carried out his gameplan, saying: "A lot of hard work goes in, but you never really know until you reach this point where you are. 

"This week has been intense in terms of our gameplan and how to get a result.

"I've got nothing but praise. As a coach it was very enjoyable to see. This is a big result, it's a tough place to come. 

"We had to show a different side to us in certain moments. I said to the players, at times, we're going to have to revert back to men. I was proud of that."

Luton boss Rob Edwards, meanwhile, was left to lament defensive shortcomings after seeing a youthful Hatters backline cut open time and again. 

"I'm not going to sugar-coat it. We have to deal with our vulnerabilities better," Edwards said.

"There wasn't much in the game first half, we conceded from two poor moments and then obviously the scoreline affects everyone's emotions.

"We'll progress, get better, some key players will return and we'll get one or two in as well. We've got to accept it and appreciate we're going to improve in the coming weeks."

Pep Guardiola has described Jack Grealish suffering an injury on the eve of the season as a "blow", but he has not given up hope of the Manchester City man facing Chelsea on Sunday.

Grealish was absent as City beat Manchester United to win the Community Shield on Saturday, triumphing 7-6 on penalties after Bernardo Silva's late header salvaged a 1-1 draw.

Guardiola has now revealed Grealish suffered from discomfort in training ahead of the match, in another blow after he was left out of Gareth Southgate's England squad for Euro 2024.

That omission came after Grealish endured an injury-hit 2023-24 campaign, making just 10 starts across all competitions after playing a key role in securing the treble one season earlier.

However, Guardiola has given Grealish a chance of facing Chelsea in City's Premier League opener at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, and is confident he will be fit for their first home game against Ipswich Town six days later.

"Apparently it's not much. In the last two days, he didn't feel good, he had discomfort," Guardiola told reporters.

"We trained with the lineup, the starting XI and he was training but in the last two days, the feeling was not good.

"We talked with the doctors and he was not fine and that's why we didn't want to take a risk. I don't think it's a big issue but he could not be there.

"It's a blow because he did pre-season and had rhythm and was aggressive, in the third and fourth game he was really, really good and Jeremy [Doku] was on holiday, Savinho as well.

"It is what it is. During the season, it happens many times with discomfort and injuries. Maybe against Chelsea, he will be ready. I am pretty sure for Ipswich he will be ready."

Grealish contributed to just four goals in all competitions last season (three goals, one assist), his worst tally since joining City in 2021 (six in 2021-22 and 12 in 2022-23).

Scott Parker enjoyed a fine start to his reign as Burnley head coach as the Clarets opened their Championship campaign with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Luton Town. 

Josh Brownhill’s low finish opened the scoring inside six minutes before Wilson Odobert added a second before the break. 

Tahith Chong halved the deficit early in the second half and the hosts pushed for an equaliser against one of the sides they joined in being relegated from the Premier League last term.

However, Dara O'Shea headed in a third to kill off any hopes of a comeback, then Vitinho's late strike added a further flourish to the scoreline. 

The win takes Burnley up to second – behind Sheffield Wednesday – in the table at the conclusion of matchday one, while Luton sit 23rd, only above Wayne Rooney's Plymouth Argyle.

Data Debrief: Clinical Clarets make flying start

The full-time scoreline did not tell the entire story of Monday's game, with Burnley only slightly edging the expected goals (xG) battle by 1.21 to 1.07.

Parker's men also spent long periods chasing the ball with Luton enjoying 57.9% of the possession, yet the Hatters could not make that count.

They only hit the target three times throughout the match while creating two big chances to Burnley's four.

Barcelona saw their 11-year run of victories in the Joan Gamper Trophy come crashing to a halt on Monday as Monaco trounced Hansi Flick's side 3-0 at Montjuic.

Flick was without several big names from the start as the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys played host to Barca's traditional curtain-raiser, though Robert Lewandowski started and the likes of Lamine Yamal, Ilkay Gundogan and Ferran Torres featured as substitutes.

Any hopes of a positive start to his reign were dashed by an impressive Monaco side after a goalless first half, Lamine Camara pouncing on a loose pass from Inigo Martinez to slot home a 50th-minute opener.

Breel Embolo added a second just seven minutes later, the Switzerland international timing his run to perfection before lifting a clipped finish past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Adi Hutter's visitors then added further gloss at the death, following a spate of Blaugrana changes. Substitute Christian Mawissa latched onto a loose ball on the right side of the area, then curled a delicate finish into the bottom-left corner to cap a poor night for Barca.

Data Debrief: Barca's long reign ends

Not since a 2012 defeat to Sampdoria had Barcelona been beaten in the Joan Gamper Trophy, with an 8-0 rout of Santos and victories over Juventus, Arsenal and Tottenham among their standout results through an 11-year winning streak.

Barca may have been without several big names, but Flick now has food for thought ahead of his first game in charge in LaLiga, at Valencia on Saturday. 

This is the first time they have lost by three or more goals without scoring in the Joan Gamper Trophy since 1981, when they were beaten 4-0 by Koln.

Haason Reddick was acquired by the New York Jets in a trade this past March.

Just over four months later, the star edge rusher has now requested to be traded from the Jets before ever playing a game with them.

Reddick informed the Jets on Monday he wants to be traded, according to multiple reports.

The Jets, however, have made it clear they have no plans to deal him.

Shortly after the news of Reddick's trade demand broke, the Jets announced they won't honour his request.

"We have informed Haason that we will not trade him, that he is expected to be here with his teammates, and that he will continue to be fined per the CBA if he does not report," Jets general manager Joe Douglas said in a statement. "Since the trade discussions back in March we have been clear, direct and consistent with our position. Our focus will remain on the guys we have here as we prepare for the regular season."

New York acquired Reddick from Philadelphia in late March after he had initially asked the Eagles for a new contract.

Since passing his physical with the Jets, he has not joined his new team for any activities. He skipped both their voluntary and mandatory mini-camp and has been holding out all of training camp.

Due to make $14.25million in 2024 in the final year of his deal, Reddick is facing more than $1million in mandatory fines by skipping the first three weeks of camp.

Drafted 13th overall by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2017 draft, Reddick has emerged as one of the league's premier pass rushers over the last four seasons.

Since 2020, his 14 forced fumbles are the most in the NFL, while his 50 1/2 sacks rank fourth.

The 29-year-old was named to his second Pro Bowl team last season when he registered 11 sacks and 13 tackles for loss.

In 2022, his 16 sacks trailed only Nick Bosa's 18 1/2 for the most in the NFL.

Pedro Neto has declared he wants "to make history" at Chelsea after completing his move from fellow Premier League side Wolves.

The Portugal international joined Chelsea in a £51.4million deal on Sunday, becoming the Blues' ninth senior signing of the transfer window.

Neto was paraded to supporters at Stamford Bridge at half-time of the 1-1 pre-season friendly with Inter later the same day.

And the 24-year-old is raring to make his mark at Chelsea after bringing an end to his five-year stay with Wolves.

"It's a big club, with big ambitions," he told the club's official website. "I know the history the club has. 

"I'm really looking forward to meeting my teammates, meeting the staff, and meeting everyone else, because I want to make history with the club.

"It's a young squad with really talented players. I played against Chelsea last year and I know the team we have. 

"I can’t wait to meet them and work with them because we can do great things."

Neto is coming off the back of his most productive campaign yet in the Premier League, having tallied nine assists in 20 appearances in 2023-24.

That is despite being limited to just 1,518 minutes of playing time owing to two hamstring injuries, with those the latest of numerous setbacks during his time in England.

Indeed, the Portuguese has not played over 20 league games in a single season since 2020-21 when featuring 31 times.

Neto's 0.53 assists per 90 minutes in the Premier League was the sixth-best return of any player to have played at least seven times.

Despite his injury issues, Neto declared in the same interview that he is feeling in "peak" form and raring to go at his new club.

"I want to do my best, help the team achieve their goals, and put Chelsea where they deserve to be: at the top," he added.

"My expectations for myself are always high. The expectations here are high, so I'm looking forward to showing people why I'm here, and that I deserve to be at the very top level."

Neto is in line to make his Chelsea debut against reigning Premier League champions Manchester City next Sunday on the opening weekend of the new season.

Paulo Dybala's absence from Roma's starting line-up against Everton had nothing to do with the rumours regarding his future, head coach Daniele De Rossi has said.

The Argentina international was brought on for the final 15 minutes of Saturday's 1-1 pre-season friendly draw at Goodison Park, with De Rossi fielding a strong side in Roma's final warm-up game.

Dybala has been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League during the close season, but De Rossi is adamant he was not left out for that reason.

"The line-up does not depend on rumours," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport. "Nothing influenced my decisions. I deployed the team that I wanted to see against Everton. 

"The start of the season is near, and we must be more similar to what we want to be. I experimented, like in other games. Those who came to England are all Roma players, then we'll see what happens. 

"This is true not only for Dybala but for everyone. When I was asked if there were players who should stay at all costs, I said no. Whoever wants to leave is free to do so."

Dybala scored 16 goals in 39 appearances in all competitions for Roma last season - a tally bettered only by Romelu Lukaku, who scored 21 goals in 47 outings.

No Roma player, meanwhile, was directly involved in more goals than Dybala's 26, having set up 10 for his team-mates.

The 30-year-old also led the way for chances created (61) and big chances created (15) among Roma players in all competitions in 2023-24.

Twenty-two of those combined goals and assists came in Serie A, which only Olivier Giroud (23) and Lautaro Martinez (27) of Milan and Inter Milan respectively could better.

Lautaro Martinez has signed a new five-year deal with Inter Milan, the Italian club announced on Monday.

Martinez, whose previous deal was due to expire in a little under two years' time, is now tied to the reigning Serie A champions until 2029.

Inter confirmed the news on their official website, five days out from the start of their Scudetto defence away at Genoa.

Argentina international Martinez has scored 129 goals in 282 appearances for the Nerazzurri since joining from Racing Club in July 2018.

The 26-year-old topped the scoring charts in the Italian top flight last season with 24 goals in 33 games - 31 of those being starts.

That was eight goals more than next-highest top-scorer Dusan Vlahovic, who netted 16 times in 33 appearances for Juventus.

Inter captain Martinez's 24 league goals came from an expected goals (xG) return of 17.64, highlighting his importance as the focal point of Inter's attack.

Indeed, the forward's 0.81 goals per 90 minutes was the best of any player in the division to have played at least 20 times.

Martinez also created 36 chances - seven of those defined as 'big chances' - for his team-mates and registered three assists.

He will head into the new season on a high after scoring the extra-time winner for Argentina in their Copa America final clash with Colombia last month.

Martinez only played 221 minutes in the tournament yet still scored five times to clinch the Golden Boot, scoring every 44 minutes on average and outperforming his 3.26 xG.