Casper Ruud called facing off against Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final with the world number one ranking also on the line "the ideal situation" after successfully navigating the challenge of Karen Khachanov in Friday's semi-final.
Ruud needed just over three hours to defeat the Russian 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 5-7 6-2, becoming the first Norwegian man to ever reach the US Open final.
With Alcaraz outlasting Frances Tiafoe in a five-set battle of attrition, the 23-year-old Ruud and 19-year-old Alcaraz will both be seeking their first ever grand slam title in Sunday's decider.
Speaking to the media before Alcaraz's match, Ruud said he hoped it would be the Spaniard who made it through so they could play off for the number one ranking.
"I think what's most fair is if we both reach the final and whoever wins the final reaches the world number one," he said. "That would be, I think, the ideal situation."
He then dove into some strategy about what it takes to beat the teenage sensation, saying "I will seek my revenge" for the two losses he has suffered at the hands of Alcaraz in Miami and Marbella this season, both in straight sets.
"I think if I want to beat Carlos, I'll need to play very precise with all the shots that I hit," he said. "Especially trying to keep him a little bit further back in the court, to play with good depth and length on all my shots.
"If he steps in, he can do anything with the ball. He can rip a winner. He also has great touch with the dropshot. I think he has one of the best dropshots on tour. He can do both shots back and forth, it will sort of get you off guard sometimes with the dropshot.
"If you play with good depth and good length, it's tougher to hit dropshots. That will be something that I will try to focus on.
"We're playing for the tournament and also to be world number one – of course, there will be nerves and we will both feel it.
"I hope it will be a good match. He has beaten me a couple times and I will seek my revenge."
One advantage Ruud will have over Alcaraz is the fact that this is not his first rodeo, having made the French Open final this year where he lost to Rafael Nadal, but he feels that experience can only help him.
"I mean, Roland Garros, the final, [Nadal] obviously gave me a good beating," he said.
"After the final I said, If I ever reach one again, I hope it is not Rafa on the other side of the court in Roland Garros because it's sort of an impossible task I think for any player. I'm happy that it's not Rafa on clay.
"I hope it can have prepared me a little bit. At least I know a little bit of what I'm facing when I'm stepping on the court, seeing the trophy on the back of the court, seeing tons of celebrities.
"Even in Roland Garros, there was royal families there watching. That was a little bit of a new experience for me – I hope I can be more ready for that on Sunday."
Carlos Alcaraz is having a remarkable breakthrough season, and he has a chance to put an exclamation point on it after defeating Frances Tiafoe 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 in Friday's US Open semi-final.
It will be 19-year-old Alcaraz's first appearance in a grand slam final, and with a win against Casper Ruud he will also become the youngest world number one in men's tennis history, beating out Lleyton Hewitt (20 years and nine months old) by over a year.
In a tight first set where both players failed to capitalise on their break point opportunities, Tiafoe saved an Alcaraz set point to force the tiebreaker, where he would finally secure the opening frame with the fourth set point of his own.
With such fine margins deciding the outcomes, some sloppy serving would flip the script in the second set. After Tiafoe had no double faults in the first and Alcaraz had three, it was Alcaraz cleaning things up to post zero for the rest of the match.
Meanwhile, Tiafoe had a pair of costly double faults in the second, which ultimately led to the only break in the set, as Alcaraz converted one of his four opportunities, while saving the three break points he faced.
Tiafoe's vaunted serve continued to meltdown in the third frame, dropping his first-serve accuracy from 67 per cent to 30 per cent, which led to him winning just 35 per cent (seven-of-20) of his service points as Alcaraz lifted.
Alcaraz needed only 34 minutes to wrap up the third set, thanks in large part to Tiafoe committing 12 unforced errors with only six winners, as the Spaniard finished the set with just one ace and four winners.
As the double faults and unforced errors faded away, Tiafoe rediscovered the kind of form and fight that saw him stylishly handle the challenge of Rafael Nadal earlier this week. Tiafoe and Alcaraz traded breaks in four consecutive games in the fourth set, with the American having to save a match point to force another tiebreaker where he would prevail.
But Alcaraz would not be denied, grabbing a crucial break in the opening game of the fifth set, and when Tiafoe snatched it back, his joy was short-lived as Alcaraz re-broke in the very next game to-love, and once more to finish the match.
Data Slam: Alcaraz way ahead of schedule
If he defeats Ruud in the final, Alcaraz will become the second-youngest men's US Open champion ever at 19 years and four months old, trailing only Pete Sampras (19 years, 28 days).
Both the third and fourth-youngest champions – Oliver Campbell (19 years, six months) and Richard Sears (19 years, 10 months) – won their titles in the late-1800s.
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Alcaraz - 6/3
Tiafoe - 15/6
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Alcaraz - 59/37
Tiafoe - 51/52
BREAK POINTS WON
Alcaraz - 9/20
Tiafoe - 3/7
The Tampa Bay Rays activated star shortstop Wander Franco from the injured list on Friday as they begin their biggest series of the season against the New York Yankees.
Franco, 21, last played July 9 and went on the injured list the next day with a right hamate bone injury that required surgery.
He was batting second in Friday night’s series opener at New York with Tampa Bay trying to cut into a four-and-a-half game deficit in the American League East.
"We're excited to get him back here. He's such a big part of our club,'' Rays manager Kevin Cash said. ''He makes us better in the lineup. He makes us better defensively, and we'll just see how it goes.''
Franco has battled two separate injuries this season, also missing nearly all of June with a strained right quadriceps. He is batting .260 with five home runs and 23 RBIs in 58 games this season.
"I'd be shocked if he doesn't feel it. He's going to feel it,'' Cash said. ''I don't think that'll go away until maybe next spring training rolls around. It's a surgery that removed a bone so it makes sense that he's feeling it. Now it's just how he can manage it and how we can help him manage it.''
Franco is amongst the game’s brightest young stars and agreed to an $182million, 11-year contract in November after he finished third in AL Rookie of the Year voting.
Casper Ruud is through to his second career grand slam final after emerging triumphant 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 5-7 6-2 in Friday's semi-final against Karen Khachanov.
Ruud, 23, will be searching for his first major title after losing to Rafael Nadal in the French Open decider in June, and he will face the winner between Carlos Alcaraz and Frances Tiafoe.
By defeating Khachanov, Ruud has now won 13 of his past 15 matches, and while it is usually his return game that dictates his effectiveness, against the Russian it was about his ability to win points on serve.
A tight first set saw the two players exchange breaks, securing two each before Ruud took the only point against serve in the tie-break
Whatever he figured out in the breaker carried into the second set, as he did not drop a single point (16-of-16) while serving in the frame. In a near-perfect set, Ruud tallied 12 winners and two unforced errors, while Khachanov shot himself in the foot with three double faults.
With his back to the wall, Khachanov responded well in the third, finding his range with his ground strokes to post 15 winners and four unforced errors, while winning 83 per cent (24-of-29) of his service points.
But that would be his last piece of resistance before Ruud took over down the stretch, rattling off five consecutive games in the fourth set to turn a 0-1 deficit into a 5-1 lead, serving it out to love.
Data Slam: Ruud reaches new heights
Ruud is guaranteed to leave the US Open with a new career-high ranking, and with a win in the final, he will become world number one first the first time.
The only player with a chance to overtake him this week in the race for the number one spot is Alcaraz.
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Ruud – 52/34
Khachanov – 43/39
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Ruud – 10/1
Khachanov – 15/3
BREAK POINTS WON
Ruud – 6/13
Khachanov – 3/5
UFC 279's scheduled main event between Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev is in doubt after the latter missed weight by 7.5 pounds on the eve of the fight.
Chimaev and Diaz are scheduled to go toe-to-toe on Saturday in Las Vegas but that bout is in jeopardy after the Swedish fighter hit the scales at 178.5 pounds, above the non-title welterweight limit of 171 pounds – which Diaz weighed at.
Further complicating the matter is the fact 37-year-old Diaz will become a free agent following the weekend, with Saturday's fight scheduled as his last with UFC, and it is unknown what would happen with his contract if the fight was cancelled.
It continues a week that has been far from what UFC planned, with Thursday's press conference having been cancelled after Chimaev got into a skirmish with Kevin Holland, who is due to face Daniel Rodriguez on the card.
Co-main event fighters Tony Ferguson and Li Jingliang both made weight for their bout, with Holland and Rodriguez also meeting weight.
With the main card featuring four fights outside of Chimaev v Diaz, the show could go ahead without the main event, though Ferguson has been touted to fight Diaz instead.
A further eight bouts are scheduled on the early preliminary card and the preliminary card.
Primoz Roglic has blamed Fred Wright for causing the crash that led to his withdrawal from the Vuelta a Espana, labelling the incident "unacceptable".
Roglic was sent sprawling after touching wheels with Wright with just 150 metres remaining at the end of a dramatic stage 16 on Tuesday, and withdrew from the race the following day.
Three-time reigning champion Roglic had been second in the overall standings, and his withdrawal leaves Remco Evenepoel as the overwhelming favourite to clinch victory when the race concludes in Madrid on Sunday.
Speaking to Jumbo-Visma's team website on Friday, Roglic expressed his displeasure at the way his race ended and singled out Wright for blame.
"I can walk a little bit. I am happy with that for the moment," Roglic said. "After the crash, it took me time to straighten things out. I asked myself, 'how can this be?'
"My conclusion is that the way this crash happened is unacceptable. Not everyone saw it correctly. The crash was not caused by a bad road or a lack of safety but by a rider's behaviour.
"I don't have eyes on my back. Otherwise, I would have run wide. Wright came from behind and rode the handlebars out of my hands before I knew it."
Jumbo-Visma director Richard Plugge was equally unhappy with Wright's behaviour, adding: "Ten years ago, the older riders were sounding the alarm because the younger ones showed less respect, took irresponsible risks, and pushed their way through everything.
"The younger ones of yesteryear are the older riders of today. But you still hear the same discussion, even though we are a generation ahead. So that has to change.
"I'm glad that Primoz is speaking out, looking in the mirror and naming the behaviour of riders as well."
Bahrain Victorious rider Wright is second in the Points Classification standings, but is some 205 points adrift of Mads Pedersen after losing out to the Dane across Friday's 19th stage.
Roglic's withdrawal marks his latest setback during a difficult year. He was forced to leave the Tour de France ahead of the final rest day after suffering injuries sustained in a crash with a stray hay bale on stage five in July.
Mads Pedersen brought up a hat-trick of stage wins across the 2022 Vuelta a Espana, claiming stage 19 with a powerful sprint in Talavera de la Reina.
Pedersen, who was also victorious over stages 13 and 16, saw off challenges from Fred Wright and Gianni Vermeersch over a 138.3-kilometre stretch on Friday, adding to his lead in the Points Classification.
Remco Evenepoel, meanwhile, retained La Roja and is closing in on an overall victory after a long downhill ride to the line prevented any challengers from gaining time on the race leader.
Brandon McNulty, Jonathan Caicedo and Ander Okamika led a three-man breakaway at the outset of the twin-mountain stage, comprising two laps of a circuit containing the Puerto del Pielago climb, but they were hauled back with 49 kilometres remaining.
Pedersen's Trek-Segafredo team then fended off several attacks as the stage built towards a bunch sprint, in which Pedersen turned on the style to beat Wright to another important triumph.
"It was definitely really hard to control the bunch today but man, the team did so impressive. Everybody was so dedicated and working really hard," Pedersen said after crossing the line.
"It's never easy in a final like this, it's a lot of good guys in the peloton in the end. I was really happy with the speed the boys could keep at the end.
"Three wins is of course super, super nice. Tomorrow we have to finish the day and then in Madrid we'll see how it goes. But I think no matter what, we can be really happy with these three weeks in Spain."
Pedersen secures treble
As well as extending his commanding lead in the Points Classification standings, Pedersen's win made him the first rider to bring up three stage victories in this year's race. The Dane moves clear of Sam Bennett, Jay Vine, Evenepoel and Richard Carapaz, who have two wins apiece this year.
Pedersen had managed just one stage victory at Grand Tours ahead of the Vuelta, taking stage 13 at the Tour de France in July.
STAGE RESULT
1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 3:19:11
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) same time
3. Gianni Vermeersch (Alpecin-Deceuninck) same time
4. Ben Turner (INEOS Grenadiers) same time
5. Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma) same time
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Remco Evenepoel (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) 73:18:23
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) +2:07
3. Juan Ayuso Pesquera (UAE Team Emirates) +5:14
Points Classification
1. Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) 379
2. Fred Wright (Bahrain Victorious) 174
3. Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) 133
King of the Mountains
1. Richard Carapaz (INEOS Grenadiers) 50
2. Enric Mas (Movistar) 26
3. Thymen Arensman (Team DSM) 23
The Baltimore Ravens and quarterback Lamar Jackson have ended negotiations for a long-term contract extension with their season poised to kick off on Sunday.
Jackson will play for just over $23million on the fifth-year option of his rookie contract. Earlier this week he said he would not continue to negotiate during the season.
"Despite best effort on both sides, we were unable to reach a contract extension with Lamar Jackson," Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said in a statement.
"We greatly appreciate how he has handled this process and we are excited about our team with Lamar leading the way.
"We will continue to work toward a long-term contract after the season, but for now we are looking forward to a successful 2022 campaign."
While talks will resume next offseason, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that Jackson is likely to receive the franchise tag in 2023.
Dak Prescott played the 2020 season for the Dallas Cowboys under the franchise tag before the sides agreed to a four-year, $160m deal before last season.
The quarterback market has been booming this offseason, with Deshaun Watson, Kyler Murray and Russell Wilson each signing contracts with an average annual value of at least $46m and with total guarantees over $165m.
Watson's $230m contract with the Browns is fully guaranteed, and Jackson could be looking for something similar.
Watson's contract could further complicate the Ravens' situation, with his scheduled $55m cap hit for next season inflating the value of the franchise tag, which is the average of the top five salaries at the position.
Even if no other quarterbacks sign lucrative deals in the meantime, tagging Jackson would cost the Ravens $45.4m in 2023 and $54.4m in 2024.
Play will resume at the BMW PGA Championship on Saturday after a day's pause following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Event organisers halted play late on Thursday and all day Friday following news of Her Majesty's passing at the age of 96.
However, the DP World Tour has confirmed play will resume at Wentworth on Saturday, with the tournament to be contested over 54 holes rather than 72.
"The decision to restart on Saturday has been taken in accordance with Official National Mourning guidance and in consultation with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)," the DP World Tour's statement read.
"The Wentworth event will give players, caddies, staff, volunteers and spectators the opportunity to come together across the weekend, not only to express their condolences but also to celebrate the extraordinary life of Her Majesty.
"The second round of the BMW PGA Championship will resume at 6.40am on Saturday morning and all original second round tee times will remain the same.
"Those players who are yet to complete their first round will do so from 7.30am onwards from the place on the golf course where they stopped on Thursday afternoon.
"Across the weekend at Wentworth, black ribbons will be made available for people to wear and flags will continue to fly at half-mast."
"In addition, there will be a two-minute silence at 9.50am on Saturday morning across the venue to commemorate the life of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, with the proclamation of King Charles III being shown on the television screens in the Championship Village from 10am."
Tommy Fleetwood, Andy Sullivan and Viktor Hovland held a joint-lead with an eight-under par 64 when play came to a stop on Thursday.
England's third Test against South Africa at The Oval will also resume on Saturday, while the Super League clash between Huddersfield Giants and Salford Red Devils will go ahead as planned.
Friday's meeting between Catalans Dragons and Leeds Rhinos had already been given the green light to take place as it is being held in Perpignan in the south of France.
However, all Premier League and English Football League fixtures this weekend have been called off, as has Saturday's undisputed middleweight championship bout between Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall.
The fight at the O2 Arena in London has been provisionally postponed until October 15.
Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz are among five drivers set to receive grid penalties for Sunday's Italian Grand Prix, joining Lewis Hamilton.
Mercedes confirmed on Thursday that Hamilton would be subject to penalties after taking a fourth power unit of the season, the seven-time world champion to start from the back of the grid having taken a new engine component everywhere barring control electronics and energy store.
Red Bull duo Verstappen and Perez will face penalties for exceeding their allocations of internal combustion engines, Verstappen now on his fifth, landing a five-place penalty, and Perez on his fourth, resulting in a 10-place penalty.
Ferrari's Sainz will receive an 20-place penalty after taking new gearbox components and an energy store, while AlphaTauri's Yuki Tsunoda will add to his penalties with an array of new power unit components, having already been given a 10-place penalty for accumulating five reprimands over the course of the season.
Finally, Alfa Romeo's Valtteri Bottas will join former team-mate Hamilton and Tsunoda at the back of the grid after taking new engine components.
Ahead of Friday's practice session, a minute's silence was held following the passing of the Queen on Thursday and all 10 teams posted messages on their social media channels after the news was announced.
Porsche have withdrawn from their planned Formula 1 collaboration with Red Bull, citing an inability to engineer an "equal" relationship between the two.
The German car manufacturer had been expected to enter the sport in 2026 as the team's engine partner following, with the latter currently using Honda power.
But they have now confirmed the plug has been pulled on any deal, citing an inability to agree over their commercial position, having wanted to influence team operations, against Red Bull's wishes.
"The premise was always that a partnership would be based on an equal footing, which would include not only an engine partnership but also the team," Porsche issued in a statement.
"This could not be achieved. With the finalised rule changes, the racing series nevertheless remains an attractive environment for Porsche, which will continue to be monitored."
Audi, the company's sister brand under the Volkswagen Group, are still set to enter F1 in 2026, with a reported takeover of Sauber anticipated.
The first week of the 2022 NFL season is here, with all the possibilities a new campaign brings.
Things kicked off on Thursday with the Buffalo Bills beating the Los Angeles Rams 31-10 thanks to a starring role from quarterback Josh Allen, who threw three touchdowns against the defending champions.
There are even more enticing games to look forward to over the weekend, with last season's Super Bowl runners up the Cincinnati Bengals hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers, Patrick Mahomes and the much-fancied Kansas City Chiefs facing Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals, and it will be Aaron Rodgers v Kirk Cousins as the Green Bay Packers go to the Minnesota Vikings.
Stats Perform dives head first into Opta data to preview those games and more of the opening weekend of NFL action.
Pittsburgh Steelers @ Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals have won their last three games against the Steelers (27-17 in December 2020, 24-10 and 41-10 last season). It is the Bengals' longest winning streak versus the Steelers since they won six consecutive games from 1988 through 1990.
Mitch Trubisky will be the first quarterback other than Ben Roethlisberger to start a season opener for the Steelers since Dennis Dixon in 2010 (Roethlisberger was suspended). Trubisky is 1-2 in season openers, losing to the Packers twice and beating the Detroit Lions (all when he was with the Chicago Bears).
The Bengals played a league-high seven games decided by exactly three points during the 2021 regular season (won three, lost four), the highest single-season total by an NFL team since the 2012 Steelers (seven). Three of Cincinnati's four postseason games were also decided by exactly three points, including the 23-20 Super Bowl loss to the Rams.
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 67 of 85 passes for 971 yards, eight touchdowns and no interceptions over his final two games in the 2021 regular season (Week 16 against the Ravens, Week 17 against the Chiefs). Burrow's passing yardage is the second-highest two-game total by one player in NFL history, trailing only Dak Prescott's 974 passing yards over a two-game span in 2020.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Arizona Cardinals
The Chiefs have won their division in six consecutive seasons, which is three more than the next longest active streak (Green Bay). Only two teams in NFL history have had longer streaks (New England - 11, 2009-2019 and LA Rams - seven, 1973-1979).
Patrick Mahomes has won 50 of his 63 career starts as Kansas City's quarterback. The only QB in the Super Bowl era to reach 50 wins in fewer career starts than Mahomes was Kenny Stabler, who earned his 50th win in his 62nd start.
Arizona scored 30 or more points in nine different games in 2022, tied for the most in a single season in team history. Since a 56-14 win over the Vikings in Week 4 of 1963, the Cardinals have gone 903 games without scoring 50 points, which is the longest streak in NFL history (Broncos, 761 straight games from 1963-2013).
Cardinals QB Kyler Murray will not want to be upstaged by Mahomes, and is the only player in NFL history to have at least 70 passing touchdowns and 20 rushing touchdowns in the first three seasons of his NFL career.
Green Bay Packers @ Minnesota Vikings
In their 22 road games against the Vikings this century, Green Bay has scored 30 or more points in 10 of them. That is tied for most 30-point games by an NFL team at a single opponent in that time with the Patriots at the Bills.
No NFL head coach has won more games over his first three NFL seasons than Matt LaFleur (39; George Seifert had 38). A win Sunday would make LaFleur the third coach in NFL history with 40 wins through 50 career games as head coach, joining Paul Brown (41) and Chuck Knox (40).
Kirk Cousins has thrown for at least 3500 yards and 25 TDs in seven consecutive seasons, the longest active streak in the NFL. He is the fifth QB in NFL history to have more than five straight, joining Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers and Tom Brady.
Since becoming Green Bay's starter in 2008, Aaron Rodgers has thrown 169 TDs against division opponents, compared to 25 interceptions. The Vikings have a total of 121 passing touchdowns and 73 interceptions against the NFC North in that span.
Elsewhere...
When Carolina host Cleveland, with Baker Mayfield starting for the Panthers and Myles Garrett starting for the Browns, they will become the second pair of number one overall draft picks for the same team to go on to play against one another. The others were Jeff George and Steve Emtman in 1995.
The Eagles head to the Lions, with no team targeting their receivers less frequently than Philadelphia last season (239 targets), which led to the acquisition of A.J. Brown. The fourth-year WR has scored a TD on 13.0 percent of his career catches, third-highest rate among active players (min. 150 receptions).
The New Orleans Saints will need to beware of Foye Oluokun, who led the NFL last season with 192 total tackles, becoming the first Atlanta Falcon to lead the league in that category since Jessie Tuggle in 1995 (152). Oluokun's 192 total tackles were the most in a season by an NFL player since Chris Spielman had 195 in 1994 for the Lions.
Tom Brady is back for Tampa Bay Buccaneers after a very brief retirement as they travel to the Dallas Cowboys. The 45-year-old's last two seasons mark the first time in NFL history a QB has had 40 or more TD passes and a passer rating of 100.0 or better in back-to-back seasons.
Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay admitted it was a "humbling experience" to lose 31-10 to the Buffalo Bills in the opening game of the new NFL season.
The Bills looked strong throughout at SoFi Stadium, with quarterback Josh Allen putting in a sensational performance as he threw three touchdowns, rushed for one of his own, and completed 26 of 31 passes for a total of 297 yards.
After unveiling their Super Bowl LVI banner, the Rams struggled in front of their own fans as all 10 of their points came in the second quarter, with Buffalo shutting them out in the second half.
"When you look at a lot of the ways that this game unfolded, [I] feel a huge sense of responsibility to this team," McVay said after the loss.
"We weren't ready to go. I take a lot of pride in that, and that's on me. I've got to do better. There were a lot of decisions that I made that I felt didn't put our players in good enough spots.
"So it was a humbling experience, but we're going to stay connected. We're going to all look inward. We're going to do a better job moving forward."
Allen became the first QB in NFL history to record 250+ passing yards, 50+ rushing yards, three or more passing TDs, a rushing TD, 80 per cent completions and a win in the same game.
Speaking to NBC after the victory, Allen said: "We knew if we came out and tried to execute the way we know we can execute, we were going to move the ball the ball and score. Our defense played a hell of a game.
"Defense's job is to get the ball back, but the offense can help and let them go and pin their ears back by getting up and putting them in legit passing situations and letting them go.
"We got a bunch of dawgs up front. [Former Ram Von Miller] is the leader of that D-line and they played outstanding."
The Bills play the Tennessee Titans at Highmark Stadium in Week 2, while the Rams will look to put their opening defeat behind them as they host the Atlanta Falcons.
Iga Swiatek is relishing what she expects to be "a great battle" with Ons Jabeur in the US Open final.
The world number one came from behind to defeat Aryna Sabalenka 3-6 6-1 6-4 in Thursday's semi-final to set up a shot at a third grand slam title.
Swiatek will now face Tunisia's Jabeur, who is yet to win a major and suffered defeat in this year's Wimbledon final.
Asked about the task of taking on the world number five in Saturday's showpiece, Swiatek said: "There are a lot of challenges because she's a really solid player and she's second in the race right now.
"You know, Wimbledon final. She didn't get [ranking] points for that, but it shows how much progress she has made.
"She has a different game style than most of the players. She has a great touch. All these things mixed up... she's just a tough opponent.
"That's why probably our matches are always kind of physical and really tight.
"She's just a tough opponent and fully deserves to be in the final. I think it's going to be a great battle."
The Pole conceded she was still lacking trust in her ability on hard courts, with clay her favoured surface, as evidenced by two French Open titles.
But she is delighted to have overcome that in order to push on to a maiden final at Flushing Meadows.
"I just feel like the work that I did pays off," she said. "I feel like even though I lost in Toronto and Cincinnati pretty early, it gives you a chance to prepare and you have to be ready during that time to actually use that.
"I'm pretty happy that on this tournament I was fresh mentally to actually use the chances. I'm pretty happy that even though maybe I wasn't feeling 100 per cent perfectly from the beginning of the tournament, I was still able to get better and better and to play a really solid game."
From her past 50 matches, Swiatek has a record of 46-4, and coming into this tournament she had 8605 ranking points – with second-placed Anett Kontaveit down at 4360.
She is also the first number one seed to reach the US Open final since Serena Williams did it back in 2014, snapping the equal-longest drought on that front at any grand slam in the Open Era.
The Chicago White Sox dominated with bat and ball on Thursday as they hammered the Oakland Athletics 14-2.
AL Cy Young Award co-favourite Dylan Cease was on the mound for the White Sox and was at his dominant best, keeping the Athletics scoreless through the first six innings as he racked up nine strikeouts while giving up just three hits and two walks.
His six shut-out innings lowered his ERA for the season to 2.06, trailing only Houston Astros ace Justin Verlander, but with Verlander currently out injured, Cease has now made four more starts, and could pull away in the race for the league's best pitcher if his rival cannot return soon.
On offense, it was clearly the best game in the season for White Sox third-baseman Yoan Moncada as he went five-for-six at the plate. He had home runs in each of his first two at-bats, before following them with a single, a double and another single, getting out for the first time in the ninth inning.
Second-baseman Romy Gonzalez also proved to be a tough out, with his first four at-bats resulting in two singles, a double and a home run on his way to finishing four-for-five at the dish.
Seby Zavala, Elvis Andrus, Jose Abreu and A.J. Pollock also finished with multiple hits as the White Sox racked up 21 as a team, while the Athletics could only muster six.
With the win, the White Sox are now one-and-a-half games behind the Cleveland Guardians for the lead in the AL Central.
Molina turns back the clock in Cardinals loss
Future Hall-of-Fame catcher Yadier Molina hit two home runs in the St Louis Cardinals' 11-6 home loss to the Washington Nationals – doubling his total for the season.
Molina only had two home runs from 219 at-bats heading into the contest, but went two-for-four at the plate, hooking two balls over the left-field wall.
But the Cardinals pitching staff could not keep the Nationals off the board, with six Washington players collecting at least two hits each, led by the ninth batter in their lineup, Alex Call. Call finished four-for-five at the plate, including a home run and a double as he drove in five runs.
Burnes burns the Giants
Milwaukee Brewers ace Corbin Burnes had his way with the San Francisco Giants as he carried his side to a 2-1 victory in the first leg of Thursday's double-header.
Burnes pitched eight of the nine innings, allowing just three hits and no walks, while striking out 14 batters. It is the ninth time Burnes has struck out at least 10 batters in a game this season, and while it is a season-high, he finished one off his career-high of 15.
Back-to-back doubles in the fourth inning was the source of all Milwaukee's runs, with Christian Yelich bringing home Jace Peterson, before Yelich scored on a Hunter Renfroe hit.
Ons Jabeur feels she is more prepared emotionally to handle the task of a grand slam final the second time around, after being upset in the Wimbledon final earlier this year.
Jabeur defeated Caroline Garcia in Thursday's semi-final, needing only 67 minutes to storm through 6-1 6-3 to reach her second consecutive grand slam decider.
Her loss to Elena Rybakina in July's Wimbledon final was her first time making it to the final match of a grand slam, but after winning the first set in that match, Jabeur fell apart, losing the next two sets 6-2 6-2.
Speaking to the media after earning another chance at a major title, the 28-year-old said she is more focused this time around after being almost starstruck at Wimbledon.
"It feels more real [this time], to be honest with you," she said. "At Wimbledon I was kind of just living the dream, and I couldn't believe it.
"Even just after the match [today], I was just going to do my thing, not realising it was an amazing achievement already… I hope I'm getting used to it.
"I'm just happy about the fact that I backed up the results in Wimbledon and people are not really surprised I'm in the finals… now maybe I'll know what to do in the final."
Touching on what lessons she learned from that experience, she said she feels she will not be overwhelmed if she is faced with the prospect of being one set away from a grand slam.
"From Wimbledon, just, you know, a lot of emotions," she said. "Just going to that final was really tough for me, especially the second set. I think I handled things very well coming to the court and playing the first set.
"But then I feel like this final, I'm going full in, I'm going for everything. Definitely also learning from Rome's final [lost to Iga Swiatek], Madrid [defeated Jessica Pegula] and other ones.
"I feel very positive about this one. You know, the most important thing is not to regret, because I'm going to give it all on this one. Even if this one is not going to happen, I'm very sure that another one will come."
When asked if her preparation has changed at all from Wimbledon to now, she said minor tweaks to her mindset are the key.
"Will I do things differently? Probably yes," she said. "Some things maybe in the match, for sure, but I think I'm definitely going to think about [Wimbledon] and think about how I played, and the emotions and my focus more than tactically.
"At certain times I think I played not the right way in the final, so it didn't help me much. But always, it's always nice to stick with the same plan.
"You know, when you get stressed sometimes, you just don't know how to think. I think that I'm going to use [that experience] very well… I think it's going to be great."
The Buffalo Bills were too strong for the reigning Super Bowl champions in the NFL's season kickoff on Thursday night, shutting the Los Angeles Rams down in the second half to run away 31-10 winners on the road.
It was a stylish start for the Bills as they received the opening kick and marched down the field in nine plays, culminating in a 26-yard touchdown pass from Josh Allen to Gabriel Davis for the first score of the season.
That set the table for what looked like it may be a shootout, but the rust was still clearly not shaken off as the next five combined possessions resulted in three turnovers and two punts.
A beautiful throw from Matthew Stafford found Cooper Kupp in the back corner of the endzone late in the second quarter, and after Allen's second interception of the game, a 57-yard field goal as time expired from Matt Gay had things tied at 10-10 going into halftime.
There were warning signs for the Rams as they needed three Bills turnovers to remain competitive, and when the visitors cleaned things up in the second half, the hosts had no answer.
The first three Bills drives of the second half all resulted in touchdowns, with Allen rushing for one score, finding Isaiah McKenzie for a short-range touchdown, and heaving long for a 53-yarder to Stefon Diggs to complete the rout.
Stafford could only find success throwing to star receiver Cooper Kupp, who finished with 13 catches for 128 yards and a touchdown from his 15 targets, while the five other players to catch a pass combined for 16 catches for 112 yards on 25 targets. He also had three interceptions after one more in garbage time.
Allen finished 26-of-31 for 297 yards with three touchdowns and two picks, adding 10 rushes for 56 yards and a score on the ground. Diggs was his top receiver with eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown from nine targets.
Iga Swiatek will have a chance to win her third career grand slam after defeating Aryna Sabalenka 3-6 6-1 6-4 in a gutsy come-from-behind win in Thursday's semi-final.
Poland's Swiatek, who has also won the French Open in 2020 and 2022, will play Ons Jabeur in the decider after the Tunisian won her semi-final against the in-form Caroline Garcia in straight sets earlier on.
It continues a remarkable season for the 21-year-old Swiatek, having also reached the semi-final at the Australian Open, before rattling off a 37-match winning streak that saw her claim six titles in a row and put a massive gap on the field as the world number one.
Belarus' Sabalenka was impressive in the opening set, attacking Swiatek's second serves to generate plenty of break points. She won 10-of-12 opportunities against Swiatek's second serve in the first frame, creating six break point chances and taking three.
Things flipped in the second set, and it was all about Swiatek making the adjustments, increasing her first serve accuracy from 64 per cent in the opener to 94 per cent in the second.
She won 14-of-17 points in those situations in the second frame, and converted all three of her break point opportunities as Sabalenka got sloppy, committing 15 unforced errors with only six winners.
Sabalenka threatened to run away with things late – twice managing to go up a break in the third set – but Swiatek showed composure beyond her years as she continued to fight back.
From 4-2 down in the decider, Swiatek rattled off the next four games in a row, going up 40-0 against Sabalenka's serve in the final game and finishing things off with her second match point.
Data Slam: Swiatek continues historic season
From her past 50 matches, Swiatek has a record of 46-4, and coming into this tournament she had 8605 ranking points – with second-placed Anett Kontaveit down at 4360.
She is also the first number one seed to reach the US Open final since Serena Williams did it back in 2014, snapping the equal-longest drought at any grand slam in the Open Era.
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Swiatek – 2/3
Sabalenka – 4/7
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Swiatek – 24/31
Sabalenka – 22/44
BREAK POINTS WON
Swiatek – 7/10
Sabalenka – 5/10
The New York Yankees’ lengthy injury list got a little longer Thursday with infielder D.J. LeMahieu placed on the 10-day IL due to a nagging toe injury.
LeMahieu has been dealing with inflammation of his right second toe for several weeks, but had managed to play through the pain until recently. He missed the first three games of New York’s series against the Minnesota Twins this week and the team decided to put him on the injured list Thursday.
"It's just been sore, and I think it's just prevented him from really getting off his swing," manager Aaron Boone said. "I talk about these guys, they're like race cars. A little something's off and it prevents you from being that race car."
With the move retroactive to Monday, LeMahieu could return September 16 at Milwaukee. While Boone was cautiously optimistic, he did not set a timetable for LeMahieu's return.
"I'm concerned about it obviously because D.J.'s been dealing with this now for a few weeks where I think it's clearly compromised him," Boone said. "So yeah, there's that concern, but there's also hope with that."
LeMahieu is a two-time batting champion, but has struggled recently, batting just .143 (10 for 70) with no extra-base hits in his past 18 games. He is hitting .262 with 12 home runs and 46 RBIs this season.
He becomes the 15th Yankees player currently on the IL, joining the likes of Anthony Rizzo (lower back), Giancarlo Stanton (left foot), Matt Carpenter (left foot) and pitchers Zack Britton (left elbow surgery), Aroldis Chapman (lower leg) and Luis Severino (lat strain).
Despite the injuries, the Yankees entered Thursday with a five-game lead over the second-place Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
