World champions South Africa will face New Zealand in a 2023 Rugby World Cup warm-up at Twickenham in August next year, two weeks before the tournament in France kicks off.

The pair will meet at England's national rugby union stadium for just the second time as teams begin to firm up their preparations for the tournament, with the Springboks also booking a clash against Wales a week prior.

Having faltered in the semi-finals to England at Japan 2019, the All Blacks will be out to chase a first world title since 2015, when they defeated rivals Australia - with their last Twickenham meeting with South Africa coming in the last four of that tournament.

"The Springboks and All Blacks share one of the greatest rivalries in rugby, and to face them at Twickenham will be an exciting experience for the players and our fans," said Springboks director of rugby Rassie Erasmus.

"The match will take place shortly before we kick off our World Cup campaign, and both this encounter and the Test against Wales will be vital for us to measure ourselves before the competition and to put the final building in blocks in place so that we can enter the showpiece in the desired form."

South Africa will compete in Pool B alongside Ireland, Scotland, Tonga and Romania at next year's tournament, while New Zealand will fight it out in Pool A with hosts France alongside Italy, Uruguay and Namibia.

Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson hailed Bryce Harper's big-game mentality after he took the team to their first World Series since 2009.

2021 National League MVP Harper smashed a game-winning home run to left-field as the Phillies overcame the San Diego Padres 4-3 in Game 5 of the NLCS on Sunday, clinching a 4-1 series victory.

Harper's homer, which came at a crucial point of the contest after Padres pitcher Yu Darvish helped the visitors back into contention, means the Phillies will contest their eighth World Series, having previously won it all in 1980 and 2008.

Thomson compared Harper to New York Yankees legend and Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter after the win, describing the 30-year-old as a "superstar". 

"The superstar came and he played and that's why he's the MVP," Thomson said. "Incredible. A lot of times you don't see that. The stars just don't hit. But he hit.

"He's physically and mentally tough and he wants to win. When the moment hits, he doesn't get caught up in it. He just goes out and does his job.

"I saw it a lot in my years with Jeter doing the same thing. Their heart doesn't speed up as much as the guy who's throwing to them. They're even-keeled. They stay in the zone."

Harper, meanwhile, was simply relieved to have avoided another trip to San Diego as he dedicated his series-clinching hit to Philadelphia's fans.

"I just looked at my dugout," Harper said. "It's for all of them. It's for this whole team. It's for this whole organisation. We haven't been here for a long time. It's for every single fan that's here.

"I said it to K-Long [hitting coach Kevin Long], 'let's give them something to remember'. It could have been anybody. I don't care. I just wanted the moment for everybody.

"I was not getting on that flight back. I was not getting on that flight to San Diego. Five and a half hours. No chance."

Philadelphia will face the Houston Astros in the World Series, who are bidding to win it all for the second time after completing a 4-0 series sweep of the Yankees on Sunday.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone says being subjected to a clean sweep by the Houston Astros "stings" after they suffered an "awful ending" to their season.

The Astros will face the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series after beating the Yankees 6-5 to win the American League on Sunday.

Houston remain unbeaten in the MLB postseason, having seen off the Yankees 4-0 to pile the pressure on Boone.

The Yankees were missing DJ LeMahieu due to a toe injury and Andrew Benintendi, who is recovering from wrist surgery.

Boone reflected on a painful conclusion to the campaign and was left to rue the absence of key men.

"It's an awful day, just an awful ending. It stings. It hurts," Boone said. "Obviously we had some key contributors missing that I think would have been difference-makers for us potentially."

Aaron Judge may have played his last game for the Yankees, having turned down a seven-year contract to stay eligible for free agency.

Judge failed to deliver in the postseason, but Boone defended the outfielder.

He said: "It's baseball, man. I mean, it happens all the time where the greatest of greats go through a struggle. It's a game of failure. You’re going to have some ups and downs."

The Astros and the Phillies start the World Series at Minute Maid Park on Friday.

Chris Paul felt "privileged" to have played with some of the NBA's best shooters in his career after becoming just the third player to reach 11,000 assists in the league on Sunday.

Devin Booker's 35-point haul helped the Phoenix Suns beat the Los Angeles Clippers 112-95, with Paul bringing up the landmark against his former team by teeing up Deandre Ayton to dunk.

In doing so, Paul joined John Stockton and Jason Kidd in an exclusive club of players with 11,000 NBA assists, also becoming the first man to amass that many assists as well as 20,000 points in NBA history.

Speaking after the Suns' win, Paul credited the quality of his teammates and said he was unaware of his achievement until after the game. 

"I've been fortunate to play for a while now with a lot of great shooters, great players in general,'' he said. "I'm privileged.

"There's been a lot of firsts here at the Staples Center, well, Crypto Arena. I honestly didn't have a clue until I checked out of the game."

Suns coach Monty Williams added: "It's amazing. I look at him and I'm like, 'holy smokes, I get to coach Chris Paul'.''

Paul, who also has the most assists for the Clippers in the franchise's history, finished with seven points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.

The 12-time NBA All-Star has some way to go to top the league's assist charts, however, with his tally of 11,009 some way short of Stockton's record of 15,806.

Aaron Rodgers is "not worried" about the Green Bay Packers' slump after they were consigned to a 23-21 defeat by the Washington Commanders.

The Packers suffered a third consecutive defeat on Sunday and are 3-4 after the loss at FedEx Field.

Quarterback Rodgers was defiant after Green Bay fell short in the capital and believes they can stop the rot when they face the Buffalo Bills next weekend.

Asked if making the playoffs still seemed possible, he replied: "You're god damn right it does.

"I'm not worried about this squad. In fact, this might be the best thing for us. This week, nobody is going to give us a chance, going to Buffalo on Sunday Night Football, with a chance to get exposed. Shoot, this might be the best thing for us."

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur is backing his team to arrest their slide.

"I don't think anybody thought we'd be in this spot that we're in right now," said LaFleur. "We're going to find out what we're made of in terms of just how we attack Monday, how we attack Tuesday, Wednesday and every day in practice.

"I do believe that we've got the right kind of guys that will continue to battle."

LaFleur says it is not only down to Rodgers to step up and get Green Bay back on track.

He said: "I think it takes everybody. It takes everybody around him. You've got to have the protection in front of you to be able to hold up.

"You've got to have the guys making plays, too. I feel like we had a ton of drops. We had a lot of penalties that put us back behind the sticks."

Christian McCaffrey was disappointed to suffer defeat on his San Francisco 49ers debut after a "weird week", but wants to focus on what he can control.

McCaffrey only joined the 49ers at the end of last week in a trade from the Carolina Panthers, and was thrown straight into the action against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

The Chiefs ran out 44-23 winners at Levi's Stadium, with McCaffrey only involved in 21 snaps, making 38 yards from eight carries.

The 26-year-old All-Pro was clearly still getting used to the idea of swapping Carolina for San Francisco, but said after the game he wants to get up to speed quickly.

"This was a weird week for me and for [the team]," he told reporters. "I didn't know what to expect. I know I had a certain list of plays that were up.

"For me, mentally, this was just 'focus on everything I can control and get rolling'. Obviously losing's frustrating, but I'm still getting to know these guys, I gotta do my job, I gotta make a few more plays here and just learn the offense as quick as possible.

"I'm just trying to control what I can control right now and get going."

The Niners are 3-4, having lost their last two games, and tight end George Kittle warned that McCaffrey cannot be expected to "be the saviour".

"He's not going to be the saviour, but he's definitely going to help us out," Kittle said. "I think these next two weeks are going to be huge for Christian to understand our offense and be comfortable out there not to think at all, just go out and run because that's what he's really good at.

"Like I said, penalties, turnovers, giving up big plays on defense, we've got to be better than that. We weren't today. That's how you lose football games."

The New York Jets fear rookie running back Breece Hall could miss the remainder of the season after he suffered a suspected torn ACL on Sunday.

Hall was taken off in the second quarter of the Jets' 16-9 win over the Denver Broncos, and coach Robert Saleh said: "The initial diagnosis is not good," before confirming it was likely to be an ACL injury.

It puts a dampener on an excellent start to the season for the 5-2 Jets and for Hall, who has totalled 681 scrimmage yards and scored five touchdowns (four rushing, one receiving) in seven games.

That included a 62-yard TD run in the first quarter against Denver, making the 21-year-old the first Jets player since 2009 to have a rushing touchdown in four straight games.

However, just two carries later he was tackled near the sideline and appeared to land awkwardly, before being carted off the field for the remainder of the contest.

"He's a heck of a football player," Saleh said. "When you lose great football players, it's not good."

There were further injury concerns for Saleh as right tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker (elbow) and wide receiver Corey Davis (knee) were also unable to finish the game, with quarterback Zach Wilson saying afterwards: "I didn't even know what was going on, but I'm just in the huddle like, 'Where they at?'

"It's tough because all of those guys are great players. They're all balling. But unfortunately, it's part of the NFL, right?"

Zion Williamson left the New Orleans Pelicans' 122-121 overtime loss to the Utah Jazz on Sunday with a posterior hip contusion after a nasty fall and did not return in an injury worry.

The 2019 NBA Draft top overall pick fell hard on the court after Jordan Clarkson blocked his transition dunk attempt with 8:06 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Williamson writhed on the ground in pain after the heavy fall, checking out shortly after the incident and not re-entering the game.

The 22-year-old power forward did not seek medical treatment on the bench but was not used during overtime.

The Pelicans confirmed after the game that Williamson had "sustained a posterior hip contusion" but head coach Willie Green had no further update on the severity.

"I don’t know as of right now," Green told reporters. "We finished the game, I went right in the locker room and spoke to the team.

"I haven’t spoken to our medical staff yet. We'll get an update soon and talk to you guys from there."

When pressed on whether there was a discussion after Williamson re-entering, Green added: "The word that I got [was] that he wasn’t going back in."

Williamson missed all of last season due to a broken foot, having emerged in 2020-21 with an All-Star year averaging 27.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

The Pelicans also lost Brandon Ingram to a head injury, with the small forward evaluated for concussion-like symptoms after a collision with teammate Naji Marshall in the first quarter.

The Jazz won the game in overtime with Kelly Olynyk scooping in a go-ahead shot with three seconds to go.

The Houston Astros advanced to their fourth World Series in six years after completing an ALCS sweep of the New York Yankees with a 6-5 victory at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.

Alex Bregman delivered the go-ahead RBI in the seventh inning before Ryan Pressly closed it out for the Astros, who improved to 7-0 this postseason having already swept the Seattle Mariners.

Houston are only the third team to have swept both the Divisional and Championship Series in MLB history, following the Colorado Rockies (2007) and Kansas City Royals (2014) whom both lost in the World Series. The Astros will face the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series, after they completed a 4-1 NLCS triumph earlier on Sunday.

The Astros rallied from a 3-0 deficit after two innings, with Jeremy Pena's three-run blast over left field leading their four-run third-inning rally.

The Yankees regained their lead with Harrison Bader's two-out solo homer in the sixth inning - his fifth blast of the postseason - only for Houston to rally again with a two-run seventh from Yordan Alvarez's RBI single followed by Bregman's go-ahead RBI, with a shot into right-center field to drive in Pena.

It marked the fourth time the Yankees, who had a 99-win regular season, have been swept in a best-of-seven series in franchise history.

The Astros' pitching staff were pivotal again, as they have been all postseason, with starter Lance McCullers Jr having six strikeouts across five innings, while the bullpen was stingy.

Second baseman Jose Altuve, who had not had a postseason hit until Game 3, re-discovered some touch with two hits and a walk, scoring two runs.

Astros manager Dusty Baker has the chance to end his record of most games managed without winning the World Series.

Tua Tagovailoa returned as the Miami Dolphins snapped their three-game skid with a 16-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday night.

Tagovailoa had not played since suffering a concussion in Week 4, but threw a first-quarter touchdown for Raheem Mostert as the Dolphins raced to a 13-0 lead.

The Steelers rallied with 10 second-quarter points with rookie George Pickers pulling down a spectacular catch from a Kenny Pickett TD pass to make it 16-10 at half-time.

Miami's defense held firm to thwart two fourth-quarter Steelers' drives with interceptions, firstly by Jevon Holland and then Noah Igbinoghene, the latter settling a game where no points were scored in the second half. The win improved Miami's record to 4-3, sitting third in the AFC East, while the Steelers are 2-5 and last in the AFC North.

In the Steelers' last drive, Pickett had connected with tight end Pat Freiermuth and wide receiver Diontae Johnson for major gains in the final minute, before Igbinoghene's pick.

Miami's defense had only one interception all season but notched three in this game alone from Pickett's throwing with the Steelers QB completing 32 of 44 passes for 257 yards.

Tagovailoa made it four wins from four starts, with 21-of-35 passing for 261 yards with no interceptions, running four times for 15 yards.

Jaylen Waddle had four catches for 88 yards including a brilliant flying catch, while Tyreek Hill was a regular target with seven receptions for 72 yards. Touchdown scorer Mostert had four receptions for 30 yards along with 16 carries for 79 yards.

For a second straight week, an unexpected road loss and a struggling offense has Tom Brady and Tampa Bay Buccaneers searching for answers.

The preseason NFC South favourites dropped to 3-4 following Sunday’s 21-3 defeat to a Carolina Panthers team that was starting a third-string quarterback, while being led by an interim head coach.

The Brady-led offence failed to produce a touchdown one week after not reaching the end zone until late in the fourth quarter of a 20-18 loss to the-then 1-4 Pittsburgh Steelers.

"It’s still there," said Brady of Tampa Bay’s need to self-evaluate. "We talked about execution the other day and it still comes up. I think we all just need to do our job better.

"There’s no easy way about it. They’re trying to keep us from doing our job, we’re trying to do it, and they’re doing a better job than we are. Anytime you score three points, that pretty much sums it up."

Though the Bucs still reside in a first-place tie in what’s been a weak NFC South thus far, they’ve now lost four of their past five games to place Brady in a spot he’s rarely been in during his storied 23-year career. The future Hall of Fame quarterback hasn’t been under .500 seven games into the season since the 2002 New England Patriots started 3-4, and he’s never had a losing record at any time after eight games.

"We’re not playing well," head coach Todd Bowles admitted. "We’re not playing well as individuals, we’re not playing well as a team, we’re not coaching it well. All the way around – we’re not scoring enough on offence and we’re not stopping them enough on defence.

"We have to wear this on our sleeve. They’ve got to be grown men. We’re going to see what we’re made of, (see) how many people can handle adversity, and this is about as dark as it’s going be right now."

While a defence that’s now gone three straight games without forcing a turnover and surrendered 173 rushing yards to the Panthers has played in a role in Tampa Bay’s tough stretch, much of the focus has been centred around the offence’s continued problems to consistently generate points. The Bucs were held under 20 points for the fourth time this season in Sunday’s loss; they scored fewer than 20 only three times while going 13-4 and earning the NFC’s second seed in 2021.

"We’re plenty capable of making plays, we’re just not making them consistently enough to score points," said Brady, who’s averaged a mere 6.0 yards per pass attempt during the current two-game losing streak. "We make a big play, make a bad play, make a big play, make a bad play. In football that’s just not good enough.

"You can’t play like that. You’ve got to string enough good plays together to get the ball into the red area and score points."

With a Thursday night home game against Baltimore next on the schedule, the Buccaneers will have a short time to try to find solutions to their current problems.

"We’re going to see what we have going forward," said Bowles. "See how many crumble in the dark and see how many people step up and start playing better, and start coaching better."

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham says he cannot afford to waste any time managing players' feelings after benching Russell Westbrook late as they slumped to an 0-3 start on Sunday.

The Lakers surrendered a seven-point lead with 1:56 left, losing 106-104 to the Portland Trail Blazers at Crypto.com Arena, following up defeats to the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors.

LeBron James had a two-point attempt rim out on the buzzer as they missed four of their final five shots in the last two minutes.

Leading 102-101, Westbrook missed a 15-foot pull-up jumper with 27.3 seconds remaining in the game and 18 seconds left on the shot clock. He was then sent to the bench after Damian Lillard drained a three-point to put the Blazers ahead.

"We don't have time for feelings or people being in their feelings. Like, we're trying to turn this thing around," Ham told reporters. "For one person to be in their feelings about when and where and how they should be in the game, I don't have any time for that."

Westbrook finished with 10 points on four-of-15 shooting, adding six rebounds and six assists in 28 minutes, with no turnovers, having given away four in their opening loss to Golden State.

Ham was critical of Westbrook's shot location rather than his decision to take on his jumper with 27.3 seconds left trying to execute a two-for-one, to ensure two offensive possessions in the final moments.

"I just wish we would've attacked the rim directly," Ham said. "That's the one shot that teams want you to take and want to give up – long twos, contested twos.

"With his ability to explode and get to the basket still being at a high level, I wish he would've did that. Especially with Nurkic standing back there with five fouls… shot selection is something we have to work on."

James would not be drawn on Westbrook, proactively calling out reporters for their line of questioning on the nine-time All-Star, who has started the season averaging 10.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.0 steals per game.

"I feel like this is an interview of trying to set me up to say something," James said. "I can tell that you guys are in the whole Russell Westbrook category right now. I don't like to lose. I hate to lose at anything.

"I don't care what happens throughout the course of my season or throughout the course of my career, I hate to lose. And especially the way we had this game. But give credit to Portland.

"You guys can write about Russ and all the things you want to try to talk about Russ, but I'm not up here to do that. I won't do it. I've said it over and over. That's not who I am."

James finished with 31 points on 12-of-22 field shooting, with eight rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks, while Anthony Davis scored 22 points with 10 rebounds, two steals and six blocks.

The Lakers' woes from beyond the arc plagued them again, shooting six-of-33 from three-point range.