Leylah Fernandez reached the quarter-finals of the Monterrey Open with a battling three-set win over Qinwen Zheng.

Last year's US Open runner-up came through 6-1 4-6 7-6 (7-3) in two hours and 42 minutes to continue the defence of the title she won last March.

Fernandez won a marathon second game on her eighth break point and consolidated that break with a second to go 5-1 ahead in a one-sided first set.

She served out the opener at the third time of asking, but Zheng was beginning to find her feet in the contest and threatened the Fernandez serve early in the second set.

Zheng's first break points finally came at 5-4 and she took her chance to level the contest against the 19-year-old.

But Fernandez outlasted Zheng in a tense decider that went the distance after both players held serve, the second seed aggressively attacking her opponent to take the tie-break 7-3.

Fifth seed Camila Osorio ended the challenge of home hope Marcela Zacarias, meanwhile, the Colombian winning 7-6 (7-3) 6-3.

She will next face either top seed Elina Svitolina or Viktoriya Tomova in the last eight.

Brazil's Beatriz Haddad Maia was a 6-2 6-2 winner against Xinyu Wang and will contest a quarter-final against either Marie Bouzkova or Petra Martic.

Sara Sorribes Tormo was also a straight-sets winner in Wednesday's action, the fourth seed easing past Harmony Tan 6-2 6-2. 

James Harden continued his impressive start to life with the Philadelphia 76ers by dazzling in Wednesday's 123-108 victory against the New York Knicks on his home debut.

The 10-time NBA All-Star starred with 26 points, nine assists and nine rebounds to make it three wins from three since arriving from the Brooklyn Nets last month.

Joel Embiid led the scoring with 27 points, while Tyrese Maxey added 25 as the 76ers won for a fourth game in a row and improved to 38-23 for the season.

Doc Rivers' side now sit two games back of the Miami Heat for the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings after the latter lost 120-119 to the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Heat led by 14 points with six minutes to play but could not see out a fifth victory in a row, with Jrue Holiday's driving layup with 1.9 seconds to go completing the comeback.

Defending NBA champions Milwaukee had Giannis Antetokounmpo to thank for the much-needed win, the two-time MVP registering 28 points, 17 rebounds and five assists.

Suns reach milestone mark

The Phoenix Suns became the first team to reach 50 wins this season by easing to a 120-90 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at Footprint Center.

Cam Johnson scored 20 points and Deandre Ayton added 18 as the Suns made light work of being without Chris Paul and Devin Booker, the latter entering the league's health and safety protocols.

Portland briefly put up a fight and were ahead early in the second quarter, but the hosts rallied to lead 63-48 at half-time and pulled further ahead to keep a two-game lead over the Chicago Bulls atop the Eastern Conference.

Pelicans show unity with Ukraine

The New Orleans Pelicans wore yellow socks for their 125-95 win over the Sacramento Kings in a show of solidarity with Ukraine after the country was invaded by Russia.

"It's a big mess," said Lithuanian center Jonas Valanciunas, who had 17 points and 14 rebounds. "We're just trying to bring more attention. The enemy is still out there. Innocent people are still dying. 

"The whole world is talking about sanctions, support, prayers – but something else has to be done because the war is still going on. It's been a tough seven days."
 
Elsewhere on Wednesday, injury-depleted Oklahoma City Thunder pulled off a surprise 119-107 win over the Denver Nuggets, while Donovan Mitchell scored 37 points as the Utah Jazz held off the Houston Rockets 132-127.

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost for a fifth time in six games with a 119-98 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, despite the return of Darius Garland from injury, and the Indiana Pacers beat the Orlando Magic 122-114 thanks to Malcolm Brogdon's 31 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.

Jose Bordalas dedicated Valencia's victory over Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey semi-finals to the club's "incredible" fans.

A spectacular strike from Goncalo Guedes sealed a 1-0 win at Mestalla on Wednesday and a 2-1 aggregate triumph for Valencia, as they reached the final for the second time in four seasons.

Athletic, who had lost the past two finals, only managed a single shot on target in the match as the home side, roared on by the Mestalla crowd, kept them comfortably at bay.

Valencia have won just eight of 26 LaLiga games under Bordalas this season but will now face either Real Betis or Rayo Vallecano in the final for the chance to lift a trophy and qualify for the Europa League.

"It's a feeling of enormous, incredible satisfaction," said the former Getafe boss.

"It was a case of be in the final or don't be. The little they created against us, we solved in a remarkable way. We were the fair winners of this semi-final. We're in the final on our own merit.

"These fans and this pitch are incredible. I always wanted to manage Valencia and getting to the final will give us a lot of confidence and will unite us.

"What I experienced when I arrived, I was very surprised. I couldn't explain it. I've experienced similar moments, but not like this.

"The fans all deserved that we went through. On the pitch, I couldn't even communicate with the players. Everything was shaking. This gave us incredible strength and energy."

Marcelino was in charge of Valencia for their Copa triumph in 2019 and took Athletic to the 2019-20 and 2020-21 finals, where they were beaten by Real Sociedad and Barcelona.

After falling short in his quest for a fourth consecutive final, the Athletic boss said his side had been punished for a lacklustre performance in the first leg.

"Firstly, we have to congratulate Valencia," he said.

"It was a very even tie, but in the first leg we weren't at a good level, and we paid for it. Here, we stood up really well, and we were superior to Valencia in the first half, but a great goal from Guedes decided the tie.

"In the second half, we maybe lacked freshness, a reading of the game. We were losing our positional play as the minutes went by and maybe our best men, or the most decisive in the second half, didn't have their best night.

"We did everything possible to reach the final. We just needed one goal to go to extra time until the 95th minute, but we didn't hit the opposition goal, and we were penalised for that.

"We would have liked to have had a final with fans. Now, we ask that they continue to support us. The team deserves it because it was only small details that decided the tie."

Tua Tagovailoa will be the starting quarterback for the Miami Dolphins going forward and there will be no trade for Houston Texans star Deshaun Watson, according to general manager Chris Grier.

As Tagovailoa has been inconsistent since the Dolphins selected him with the fifth overall pick in the 2020 draft, there had been talk Miami would be interested in bringing in a different quarterback. 

Miami did take the first steps towards acquiring Watson last year, with owner Stephen Ross being granted permission to talk to the Texans quarterback.

However, no trade was finalised for Watson, who is facing 22 civil lawsuits that remain unresolved as the NFL conducts its own investigation into sexual assault and misconduct allegations against him.

Mike McDaniel was hired as Miami's new coach early last month after five seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, serving last season as the team's offensive coordinator. 

"I think the door is shut on Deshaun," Grier said Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine.

"At the end of the day, Mike and the staff have come to do a lot of work and studied Tua and they feel good about his developmental upside, what he can be and then the fit in the offense. I think we're good with Tua."

There are questions about exactly how high a ceiling Tagovailoa has, and Grier was asked whether he thinks he can be an elite quarterback.

"I can't say he can't be," Grier said. "It's a situation now where this will be built around his skill set and what the offense can be and Mike's vision of how he fits.

"So, I wouldn't say he can't be. It's too early. He's played 20 games maybe. The first year was in and out and missing games this year, but I know he's won games even this last year, and it's hard to win games in this league.

"I know people want to say he doesn't throw the ball downfield, but he's incredibly accurate, and that's the real exciting part for Mike and the coaching staff, his accuracy."

Tagovailoa completed 67.8 per cent of his passes last season and threw 16 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. 

"I will say Mike and the offensive staff watched every game, every throw and put together this tape of the roster, and it was pretty cool," Grier said.

"Mike's vision for how Tua fits into this scheme and what he can do, they're all every excited about it.

"So, I think at the end of the day, probably Tua is going to have to come in and work with him and do it on the field, but right now there's a very good comfort level with how they feel he fits into what Mike wants to do with our offense."

Matt LaFleur intends to give Aaron Rodgers time and space to decide his future rather than "annoying" the Green Bay Packers quarterback.

For the second straight offseason, the Packers are waiting to learn if the reigning MVP will return next year.

Despite a long-running saga prior to the 2021 season and then a coronavirus controversy during the campaign, Rodgers excelled again for Green Bay.

The 38-year-old then promised "a decision in the near future", but a series of cryptic social media posts and quotes followed.

While the Packers face uncertainty again, head coach LaFleur is determined not to interfere with Rodgers' thought process.

"I told him: I don't want to be overbearing and tell him every day how much we love him and how much we want him back," LaFleur said at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

"So you just want to be respectful of his space and allow him to think through everything clearly without being annoying, I guess."

Meanwhile, LaFleur confirmed Rodgers had a "significant role" in Tom Clements returning to the team as quarterbacks coach.

Clements was previously with the Packers between 2006 and 2016, including working with Rodgers as QB coach for the Super Bowl season of 2010.

He has been credited with having a key role in Rodgers' development by the player himself.

Massimiliano Allegri called on Dusan Vlahovic to be more unpredictable after his limited impact for Juventus on his return to former club Fiorentina.

Emotions were high as Vlahovic received a hostile welcome from the home fans back at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final.

Vlahovic, who followed a well-worn path in trading Fiorentina for hated rivals Juve in January for an initial fee of €70million, saw his influence restricted in a pulsating game.

Fiorentina dominated possession and wasted several chances to take the lead, while at the other end Vlahovic registered just 36 touches, the lowest of any Juve player to start and finish the game, with only two of those coming in the opposition box.

He was thwarted by Pietro Terracciano with one of his two shots, but the Fiorentina goalkeeper could do nothing as Juve clinched a 1-0 victory in stoppage time, the hosts punished for their profligacy when Lorenzo Venuti inadvertently deflected Juan Cuadrado's cross into his own net.

That meant an ineffectual performance from Vlahovic was immaterial, with Allegri focusing on his strengths while delivering a pointer to the man who scored 33 times in Serie A in 2021, equalling the competition's calendar-year record set by Cristiano Ronaldo – the man he was bought to replace in Turin.

"Vlahovic is very good at playing with the team, we have more of a link now between the midfielders and forwards, so that too is progress," Allegri told Mediaset.

"It's important to move around and be more unpredictable, as the simplest and toughest thing in football is to avoid marking."

"We have to congratulate Fiorentina on a good performance," he added. 

"We suffered with two counter-attacks in the first half, again in the second, and fortunately we didn't concede because they made mistakes.

"I liked the way we were organised today and only ran risks on counter-attacks. We knew Fiorentina liked to overlap on the flanks and put crosses in, so there wouldn't be a threat through the centre.

"We should've kept the ball in their half more, but I saw progress."

Jurgen Klopp hailed Takumi Minamino's performance in Liverpool's 2-1 FA Cup win over Norwich City as the winger's "best game" for the club.

Minamino scored both of Liverpool's goals before half-time to help the Reds into the quarter-finals of the competition for the first time since Klopp took over as manager in 2015.

Japan international Minamino has scored three goals in this season's FA Cup, to add to his tally of four goals in five games from Liverpool's triumphant EFL Cup campaign.

Klopp acknowledged the 27-year-old's importance to his side, telling ITV Sport: "Taki is an incredible player - a big part of it tonight was for sure the best game he had for us.

"He played a super game and was a constant threat, kept all the balls. I'm really happy for him.

"Without him we wouldn't be in the quarter-final, and we wouldn't have been in the final of the EFL Cup."

Norwich pulled a goal back through Lukas Rupp in the second half at Anfield, but could not prevent Liverpool from progressing in one of three competitions they are hoping to win in addition to the EFL Cup this season.

Veteran Reds midfielder James Milner echoed Klopp's sentiments regarding Minamino, describing him as a hugely popular character in the dressing room.

"He's a great guy," said Milner. "He's been patient. There's competition all over the field but every time he comes in he's ready and he delivers.

"He's such a nice guy you're delighted for him every time he scores.

"Every single day he's at that level. He's brilliant in training, great temperament no matter what's happening, you can rely on him.

"He keeps bagging important goals and I'm absolutely delighted for him to get those two."

Thomas Tuchel says he does not know what impact Roman Abramovich's announcement that he will sell Chelsea will have on the club after his side overcame Luton Town 3-2 in the FA Cup.

Abramovich on Wednesday confirmed he will sell up after 19 years as owner of the European champions, saying the decision is "in the best interest of the club".

The Russian stated that he will ask for any loans to be repaid and has instructed his team to set up a charitable foundation, where all net proceeds from the sale will be donated. Abramovich revealed the foundation will be for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine.

Tuchel's side were later caught cold on the pitch at Kenilworth Road on a huge day for the Blues, as Reece Burke and Harry Cornick edged Championship Luton ahead either side of Saul Niguez's equaliser.

However, Timo Werner's second-half strike restored parity before Romelu Lukaku delivered the decisive strike.

But the focus after the game turned back to Abramovich's announcement, and Tuchel stated that it would be impossible for him to know what will happen following what the club's owner described as "an incredibly difficult decision" for him.

"Maybe I heard it a little bit earlier than you, but still it was close to kick-off," Tuchel told the BBC when asked about the situation at the Premier League club.

"We heard the rumours throughout the day, of course, it is on television when we have team meetings and the guys are talking about it, everybody talks about it - it is big news.

"Let's wait and see, hope for the best and see what the day brings. Every decision he takes for the club is the right decision, it's his choice, it's his club and it's not on me to comment."

When pushed for an answer on what the news could mean in the short term, Tuchel responded: "Even if I want to [tell you], I don't exactly know. 

"In the very short term, for us as a team, staff and players, hopefully it won't mean too much and maybe change nothing but the situation is now out there, it's a big situation. 

"I can understand that there will be a lot of reports, but we try to cancel the noise, as we always do, and to stay focused, which is not always easy.

"We showed again that we can do it and we will try again on Saturday [against Burnley]."

A much-changed Chelsea were largely unconvincing against Nathan Jones' Championship side but Tuchel was delighted with a performance that meant more in the circumstances.

Asked if the result was of greater significance with the ongoings off the field, Tuchel added: "Yeah I think so, we're not living on an island - the guys have an internet connection, the TV is running and we see the news and the rumours.

"It is not normal to be so attached to something and play on the same day in a match where focus is absolutely key, to win is not so easy but it makes it a bigger performance and that is why I'm very happy."

Kevin Durant will make his return from injury when the Brooklyn Nets face the Miami Heat on Thursday.

The 12-time NBA All-Star has been out since suffering an MCL sprain of his left knee on January 15.

Steve Nash's side have struggled in Durant's absence and are eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 32-31 record this season.

Superstar Durant will give Brooklyn a huge lift when he is back on court against Eastern Conference leaders the Heat at Barclays Center. He is averaging 29.3 points per game, the most since his MVP campaign with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2013-14 (32).

The Nets on Wednesday confirmed Durant has been taken off the NBA's injury report following over six weeks on the sidelines.

Nantes returned to the Coupe de France final for the first time since 1999-2000 after Monaco's big names failed from 12 yards in a 4-2 shoot-out reverse on Wednesday.

Les Canaris have not played in French football's showpiece match since winning the cup in consecutive seasons at the turn of the century, but they can now look ahead to a date with Nice.

Poor defending at both ends had seen Nantes and Monaco play out a 2-2 draw at the Beaujoire, with Guillermo Maripan and Myron Boadu scoring headers either side of two home goals – Djibril Sidibe's first-half own goal and then a scrappy Samuel Moutoussamy strike.

The tie was therefore settled on penalties, and Wissam Ben Yedder was denied by Remy Descamps before Aurelien Tchouameni missed the target to give Nantes a two-goal advantage they would not cede.

Valencia reached the Copa del Rey final for the third time this century as Goncalo Guedes' strike secured a 2-1 aggregate semi-final win over Athletic Bilbao.

The Portugal international's powerful effort two minutes before half-time sealed a 1-0 second-leg win at Mestalla to send Los Che through.

Winners in 2008 and 2019, Valencia will now contest the final against either Real Betis or Rayo Vallecano, who meet in the second leg of their semi-final on Thursday.

Athletic had eliminated Barcelona and Real Madrid from this season's competition but could not lift themselves after Guedes' goal and were unable to reach the final for the third year running.

After 40 tense minutes of few chances, Inaki Williams was played through on goal by Iker Muniain but dithered on the ball and was denied by goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala.

Just two minutes later, a free-kick was cleared to Guedes 25 yards from goal, he took a touch into space and blasted a superb strike well beyond the reach of Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Athletic pushed for a way back in the second half, but their final product was lacking. Williams miscontrolled at just the wrong moment, and Muniain cut inside and curled a shot a yard over.

A fierce free-kick from Inigo Martinez was well held by Mamardashvili, who had mostly been protected superbly by a disciplined back three.

Athletic had a few late set-pieces to send towards the Valencia box, but there was little to unnerve the jubilant home fans.

What does it mean? Valencia seize chance to rescue season

Valencia are ninth in LaLiga, 11 points outside the European places, so the Copa has represented one of the few bright spots in their season.

The chance to win the trophy for the ninth time and qualify for next season's Europa League is therefore a hugely welcome one for Jose Bordalas.

For Athletic, who had performed so well to eliminate Barca and Madrid in the previous rounds, this will feel like a missed opportunity.

Guedes' golden touch

In a contest of few clear-cut chances, it fell to Guedes to settle things with a spectacular effort from outside the box.

It was one of just four shots on target throughout, but it was worthy of winning any match.

More Copa misery for Muniain

Athletic's captain and inspiration, Muniain was exceptional in the earlier rounds to drag his side towards a possible third final in a row.

However, he could not influence proceedings at Mestalla, creating only one goalscoring chance throughout and failing to test Mamardashvili.

What's next?

Valencia host Granada in LaLiga on Saturday, while Athletic are at home to Levante next Monday.

Liverpool reached the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time under Jurgen Klopp after Takumi Minamino scored a brace in a 2-1 victory over Norwich City at Anfield.

Minamino scored his second and third FA Cup goals of the season to give Liverpool a 2-0 half-time lead without influential trio Mohamed Salah, Fabinho or Virgil Van Dijk.

Lukas Rupp pulled a goal back after 76 minutes but Norwich failed to deny the Reds a fourth win over the Canaries this season, having already beaten them twice in the Premier League and once in the EFL Cup.

Norwich boss Dean Smith can now devote his full attention to trying to keep the club in the Premier League, while Klopp pursues silverware on three fronts having already won the EFL Cup last Sunday.

The opening goal came after 27 minutes, when Divock Origi controlled Konstantinos Tsimikas' cross and deftly squared to Minamino, who lashed the ball past a helpless Tim Krul from just outside the six-yard box.

Minamino scored his second six minutes before the interval, blasting high into the net from the corner of the six-yard box after Ben Gibson failed to clear a corner.

Norwich substitute Josh Sargent sent a header wide of Liverpool's goal after 18 minutes of a more balanced second half.

Sargent's vision then carved Liverpool open as he played Rupp in for a fine goal, driving the ball low into the net from the edge of the box after Joe Gomez failed to make a block.

Jon Rowe, on as a second-half substitute for the visitors, burst into the box with six minutes left and sent a shot across goal towards the top corner of the net, forcing a fingertip save from Alisson that ensured Liverpool advanced.

What does it mean? Klopp in unchartered territory

Given all Klopp has achieved at Liverpool it's hard to believe they will contest their first FA Cup quarter-final under the German following this triumph.

Indeed, this was only Klopp's second fifth-round tie as Reds boss, the first ending in defeat to Chelsea.

Liverpool last reached the quarter-finals in 2014-15, eventually losing to Aston Villa in the semi-finals.

Minamino up for the cups

Minamino's brace means he has scored eight goals in domestic cup competitions since the start of 2020, twice as many as any other Liverpool player in this period.

Painful night for Placheta

Smith replaced Przemyslaw Placheta at half-time, after the winger suffered a painful looking fall over the advertising hoardings, having been unable to make an impact before that nasty tumble.

What's next?

Liverpool's Premier League title chase resumes on Saturday when West Ham visit Anfield, while Norwich continue their battle for survival at home to Brentford.

Dusan Vlahovic was kept at bay by old club Fiorentina but Juventus claimed a dramatic late 1-0 win in the first leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final.

Emotions were high as Vlahovic made his return to Florence following his January transfer for an initial fee of €70million, the Serbian talisman frequently whistled by a raucous home crowd.

The noise at the Stadio Artemio Franchi inspired Fiorentina, who were the better side throughout a pulsating contest, and they would be taking an advantage to the second leg in Turin had Jonathan Ikone not spurned a pair of gilt-edged chances.

They were ultimately made to pay for their profligacy in stoppage time when Juan Cuadrado's wicked right-wing delivery cannoned off an unfortunate Lorenzo Venuti and over the line to give Juve the advantage going into next month's return leg in Turin.