Ilya Ivashka clinched his first ATP Tour title after cruising past Mikael Ymer at the Winston-Salem Open.
Ivashka became the first Belarusian to win a trophy at ATP Tour level since Max Mirnyi in 2003 thanks to Saturday's crushing 6-0 6-2 victory.
The unheralded 27-year-old, who needed just 56 minutes to claim silverware, also became the eighth first-time winner on Tour this season and the sixth champion ranked outside the top 50 in 2021.
"This week, I had everything," said Ivashka, who won 90 per cent of points on his first serve against Swedish opponent Ymer in the final of the ATP 250 event.
Ivashka, who stunned top seed and 2016 champion Pablo Carreno Busta en route to glory, added: "In the second round, I was booking my flights to New York. I was two points away from losing and now I am standing here.
"It is incredible how things can change in one match. It was an unbelievable pleasure to play here. I feel amazing to play in front of such a nice crowd and I really enjoyed it."
Elina Svitolina claimed her first title of the year with a hard-fought victory over Alize Cornet at the Chicago Women's Open.
Svitolina won in straight sets in tough conditions, though she needed two hours and two minutes to record a 7-5 6-4 triumph over her French opponent.
Cornet had won their previous meeting at Eastbourne in 2019 but the world number 68 was unable to pull off a repeat result against the tournament’s top seed in Illinois.
A see-saw contest saw 10 breaks of serve, starting with the second game as Svitolina struck an early blow while racing into a 3-0 lead.
However, Cornet clawed her way back to get on level terms and a tie-break looked likely until she was broken in a lengthy 12th game.
The second set followed a similar pattern as Svitolina again won the opening three games. After a medical timeout, Cornet cut the deficit to 3-2 but was not able to get back on level terms, the pair exchanging six breaks through to the conclusion.
Having failed to serve out for the victory, Svitolina finally secured a first tournament triumph since Strasbourg in 2020 thanks to a superb backhand.
It is her 16th title overall and comes as ideal preparation ahead of the US Open, where the Ukrainian will face qualifier Rebecca Marino in the opening round in New York.
George Russell earned a front-row spot for the Belgian Grand Prix as it was revealed Mercedes have decided whether to recruit him for next season.
The young British driver defied expectations of what the Williams car could achieve by producing a stunning qualifying lap in the rain at Spa.
Only a last-ditch effort by title hopeful Max Verstappen denied Russell a first career pole, while Lewis Hamilton took third place on the grid.
It may be that Hamilton and Russell become team-mates next season, if Mercedes decide to part ways with Valtteri Bottas.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff revealed on Saturday that the team have chosen their line-up for 2022, but that they will keep it private for now.
According to multiple reports, Wolff twice replied "Yes" in a media call when asked if that big call had already been made.
"Today doesn't make any difference," Wolff said. "We know what we have with George."
Russell is a part of Mercedes' young driver programme and was recalled to his parent team to replace a COVID-19 affected Hamilton for the Sakhir Grand Prix last season, an indication of Wolff's high regard for his ability.
Wolff said of Mercedes' recent quandary over Bottas and Russell: "If it would have been an easy decision, we would have made it earlier, because we know what we have with Valtteri and we know what we have with George.
"Both of them deserve being looked after. Both deserve to be looked after in the best possible way, because both of them are part of the family, and we hold them up high."
Russell said there "probably should be" points awarded for qualifying performance, as he reflected on the fact he has taken no such reward yet this weekend. But the 23-year-old believes he can be a force in Sunday's race, particularly if the track is again wet.
He said: "We've obviously got to be realistic, we've got incredibly fast cars behind us, but if the conditions stay the same, we've got a car that's probably quick enough on merit in the top 10.
"But if we're starting from the front row, there's no reason why we can't try to hold that position for the majority of the race. I don't think I’m going to do anything stupid with the cars around me that are clearly going to be faster than us – but there's no reason why we can’t finish, if conditions are like this, top five, and just maximise it. Points is an absolute minimum."
Verstappen said: "This track is amazing to drive in the dry and when you then have a wet qualifying, it's pretty ... I wouldn't say scary but it's really interesting and quite extreme in Q3 when you know that you have to push and try to go to the limit in the wet here."
Championship leader Hamilton said the Mercedes race pace "should be a little bit stronger" than in practice. "But I still think it's going to be a handful, particularly if it's going to be these conditions," he added.
The season broke for summer after the Hungarian Grand Prix at the start of August, and Saturday marked a return to the thrills and spills of the sport.
The conditions were particularly tough in the third and final stage of qualifying as heavy rain arrived at the circuit, with Lando Norris crashing out early and leaving his McLaren a heavily damaged heap.
Norris, who had shown excellent pace up to that point, was given the all-clear after an elbow X-ray in hospital and looks set to race.
He had complained of aquaplaning moments before crashing badly, his car sliding into the barrier on the left side of the track at Eau Rouge and spinning out of control across the track.
He said over the team radio: "I let you down, my bad."
However, four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel had wanted the session red-flagged before the crash happened and told his team on hearing of the crash: "What did I say, red flag? It's unnecessary. Is he OK?"
Vettel was quickly on the scene and stopped to check Norris was safe before driving on past the damaged McLaren.
There was succour for McLaren as Daniel Ricciardo took fourth on the grid, just ahead of Vettel, but it was a shocker of a day for Ferrari as Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz qualified in 10th and 12th respectively.
Ferrari racing director Laurent Mekies said: "Our qualifying performance was well below our usual standard and so far this whole weekend has proved very difficult for us."
Anett Kontaveit ended a four-year title drought by beating Irina-Camelia Begu to win the inaugural Tennis in the Land event on Saturday.
Kontaveit had failed to win a tournament since her maiden WTA Tour triumph in 's-Hertogenbosch back in 2017 before defeating Begu 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.
The world number 30 from Estonia had lost two finals this year, but she was not to be denied in Cleveland.
Begu fought back from 5-2 down in the first set to force a tie-break, but one mini-break was enough for second seed Kontaveit to take a big stride towards an elusive title.
The composed Kontaveit did not face a break point in a tight second set, not allowing her Romanian opponent a look-in as she served superbly.
Kontaveit only had one break-point opportunity of her own, but grasped it to lead 2-1 and went on to seal a confidence-boosting triumph ahead of the US Open.
Sam Stosur will be Kontaveit's opponent in the first round at Flushing Meadows, while Begu faces Andrea Petkovic.
Pol Espargaro will hope to be celebrating at the end of Sunday's British Grand Prix, yet the Spaniard already feels like a winner after surprising even himself by claiming pole position.
Espargaro had arrived at Silverstone after struggling in the previous two rounds of the MotoGP season in Austria, failing to score any points by recording successive 16th-place finishes.
However, the 30-year-old belied his recent lack of form with a stunning qualifying performance, securing his first pole for Repsol Honda as he squeezed out Francesco Bagnaia by just 0.022 seconds.
Jorge Martin initially appeared to have set a new fastest lap in the closing stages of the final session, only for his time to be wiped out after it was discovered he had cut the Vale chicane. He will instead start from fourth position.
Championship leader Fabio Quartararo will begin from third, but this was a memorable day for Espargaro as he looks to get back scoring points again, having not gone three in a row without collecting something since he was at KTM in 2018.
"Yeah, it's a little bit shocking after how tough Austria was, how we've been able to come back here," Espargaro said in his post-qualifying interview.
"It's difficult to believe, but there are different ways to take these bad moments – in a sad way, or in an angry way. We opted to take the second option.
"I tried to be every day a little bit better. I’ve been working so much, but unluckily the results were not coming.
"Here, everything is coming much easier. Sure, the track, the weather is cold, the extra grip we have in this track gives me the feelings, I have to apply my riding style and maybe to forget a little the problems we have in the pit box with the bike.
"Also, this place has been good to Honda in the past years, so let's enjoy today. Today this pole felt like a victory."
Quartararo admitted the choice of soft tyres had initially caused him some issues on Saturday, though he was happy enough after a switch helped him achieve his target in qualifying.
"Today I've been struggling so much with the soft tyre," the Frenchman, who is the only MotoGP rider to claim points in every race so far this season, told the media. "I was not feeling great on the bike, but with the medium tyre I was immediately feeling better.
"I was struggling so much in acceleration. The main goal was to be on the front row, and we will not touch anymore the soft tyre. I’m happy about my pace – and also the tyres."
Marc Marquez and Aleix Espargaro join Martin on the second row, while Valentino Rossi, who has finished on the podium in four of his five most recent appearances at the British GP, ended up in eighth, sandwiched between Jack Miller and Johann Zarco.
Joan Mir, meanwhile, has work to do from 11th place. The reigning world champion sits level with Bagnaia in second place in the standings on 134 points, 47 adrift of leader Quartararo.
Lando Norris has been cleared to race in the Belgian Grand Prix after crashing during a wet qualifying session on Saturday.
Norris spun into the barriers at Raidillon in Q3 and was taken to a local hospital for a precautionary X-ray of his elbow.
McLaren later revealed the 21-year-old has been given the green light to get back behind the wheel at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit on Sunday.
The team posted on Twitter: "Following precautionary checks after an accident during qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix, Lando Norris has been cleared to compete in the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix by the trackside doctor and FIA medical delegate."
Norris had been quickest in each of the first two segments of qualifying before spinning off at high speed in challenging conditions.
Max Verstappen nipped in with a magnificent lap to take pole ahead of George Russell, who took a shock place on the front row with a stunning drive.
Championship leader Lewis Hamilton will start the first race following the mid-summer break in third place.
Romain Bardet's late attack paid dividends as he took stage 14 of the Vuelta a Espana in Saturday's potentially pivotal mountain route.
Bardet pushed off with just under 7km remaining of the final ascent up the 14.7km Pico Villuercas climb.
Having been part of an 18-man breakaway, Bardet – of Team DSM – could not be caught and crossed the line 44 seconds ahead of Jesus Herrada, while Jay Vine came third despite crashing into his team car around midway through the stage.
Odd Christian Eiking kept hold of La Roja, though was unable to keep pace with Primoz Roglic, who edged ahead of Miguel Angel Lopez to gain 20 seconds on the race leader.
Enric Mas, Egan Bernal and Jack Haig managed to stay with two-time defending champion Roglic, who will be looking to make his prowess in the mountains count during a gruelling stage on Sunday.
"It's been a long wait. It means a lot. I've been second too many times," said Bardet, who has now taken the king of the mountains jersey, after claiming his first stage win at a Vuelta.
"Today I went full gas to be in the good break. I know that taking the polka-dot jersey it'd be a double victory. It's fantastic.
"I think we played it smart with my sports director and he told me exactly when to attack on the steepest part of the climb and go for it as if the finish was there in front of me.
"I opened a good gap and made it to the finish. Everyone is tired but the spirit is so high in the team, so the moral is high. We're all focused and I'm so happy to be part of a good group of guys.
"We're enjoying ourselves and trying to do our best for the team. It's an amazing Vuelta."
STAGE RESULT
1. Romain Bardet (Team DSM) 4:20:36
2. Jesus Herrada (Cofidis) +0:44
3. Jay Vine (Alpecin-Fenix) same time
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Odd Christian Eiking (Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert) 55:3:17
2. Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) +0:54
3. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) +1:36
Points Classification
1. Fabio Jakobsen (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) 200
2. Magnus Cort Nielsen (EF Education–Nippo) 114
3. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 106
King of the Mountains
1. Romain Bardet (Team DSM) 50
2. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) 31
3. Michael Storer (Team DSM) 17
What's next?
Four categorised climbs await the riders on Sunday, across a mammoth 197.5km route from Navalmoral de la Mata to El Barraco.
Max Verstappen took pole position at a soggy Belgian Grand Prix – and incredibly it will be George Russell alongside him on the front row.
A stunning final lap from Russell looked set to give the Williams driver a first career pole, but Formula One title hopeful Verstappen pipped him in the closing seconds.
British 23-year-old Russell, who has been tipped for a move to join Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next season, said he was "absolutely buzzing" about his performance, defying the limitations of his car with a supreme drive.
Hamilton took third on the grid and saluted Russell's performance, with Daniel Ricciardo fourth.
The qualifying session was disrupted by heavy rain and a heavy crash for Lando Norris – Ricciardo's McLaren team-mate – which caused a hold-up in Q3 of close to 45 minutes.
Moments before smashing into the barriers, Norris complained about the conditions, and Sebastian Vettel had called for the session to be red-flagged before the crash made it an inevitability. Norris was taken to hospital for a precautionary elbow X-ray.
The drivers returned to the wet track eventually, with Hamilton quick to point out that spray remained a problem. He set an early target of 2:01.552 but Russell producing a stunning lap to go quicker.
Verstappen and Hamilton were both out on the track and chasing the new target as the clock ran down, with only the former able to achieve that.
After three weeks since the last race, the Hungarian Grand Prix, this was a return to the thrills and spills of the sport.
"I'm super happy to have a qualifying like this after the break and to have a pole position again," said Verstappen.
Russell has been on the front row once before, but that came in a Mercedes when he stood in for Hamilton last season at the Sakhir Grand Prix. He said getting out of Q1, the initial stage of the qualifying session, had been his primary target at Spa, with anything else a bonus.
"The car was feeling great and I had so much confidence," Russell said. "I was in a fortunate position where I had nothing to lose. We were in Q3 which is not the norm for us and we just had to go for it.
"I'm buzzing, absolutely buzzing. Tomorrow's the important one but it's been mega today. I'm delighted for everyone. If the weather is the same and it's there for the taking tomorrow, we'll go for it."
Hamilton, who edged ahead of Verstappen in the drivers' standings by finishing second in Hungary, said it had been "a very difficult day for everyone" due to the inclement weather.
"Well done to Max and to George," Hamilton added. "If it's like this tomorrow it's going to be tricky to balance straight line speed and downforce."
PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:59.765
2. George Russell (Williams) +0.321secs
3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +0.334
4. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) +1.099
5. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) +1.170
6. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) +1.399
7. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +2.347
8. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) +2.737
9. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) +3.748
10. Lando Norris (McLaren) no complete lap in Q3
Defending US Open champion Naomi Osaka believes she could have better handled her decision not to participate in media conferences at the French Open.
Osaka withdrew from the French Open having won her first-round match, after she was fined and threatened with further punishment – and possible expulsion from the grand slam – for skipping obligatory media duties.
The four-time grand slam champion had confirmed before Roland Garros that she would not be taking part in post-match news conferences, suggesting her mental health was not helped by having to attend the mandatory interviews.
Osaka, the world number three, stated she has had "long bouts of depression" since winning the 2018 US Open title.
The 23-year-old subsequently pulled out of Wimbledon, but returned as one of Japan's great hopes for the Tokyo Olympics.
However, she suffered a surprise defeat to Marketa Vondrousova, while her preparation for Flushing Meadows also took a hit with a last-16 loss to Jil Teichmann in Cincinnati earlier this month.
Reflecting on her decision in Paris, Osaka, who won her second US Open title in 2020, told reporters: "I feel there's a lot of things that I did wrong in that moment.
"But I'm also the type of person that's very in the moment.
"I think there's a lot of things that I learned to do better. Of course, I don't feel the same situation will happen again.
"Whatever I feel, I'll say it or do it. I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing.
"I would say, maybe think it through a bit more, in the way that I didn't know how big of a deal it would become."
A few days prior to her defeat to Teichmann, Osaka broke down in tears during her first news conference since she pulled out of Roland Garros.
Yet the Queens-raised star was more composed during her media duties on Friday, as she aims to cap off what has been a difficult 2021.
"I think the biggest memory that comes back to me is being a little kid, running around the entire site," said Osaka, who will take on Marie Bouzkova to get her title defence started.
"I don't know if that may be the reason why I play so well here, but there's definitely a lot of nostalgia.
"I know I haven't played that many matches. But actually I feel pretty happy with how I'm playing."
The Atlanta Braves opened a series between National League division leaders by rallying for a 6-5 win over the San Francisco Giants that improved the home side's August record to 17-5.
The NL East-leading Braves trailed 3-0 and 4-2 to the NL West-leading Giants before Ozzie Albies' RBI double in the seventh inning brought Atlanta within one and Jorge Soler's three-run homer later in the inning put the Braves on top for good.
Adam Duvall also homered for the Braves, while Buster Posey and Wilmer Flores went deep for the GIants in the first and ninth innings, respectively.
Joc Pederson sealed the win by leaping to rob Tommy La Stella of extra bases for the final out.
Cole, streaking Yankees cruise past A's
Gerrit Cole pitched six shutout innings and reached 200 strikeouts for the season in his 24th appearance, the fastest ever for a Yankees pitcher to hit that milestone, as the Yankees defeated the Oakland Athletics 8-2. The Yankees supported him with home runs from Giancarlo Stanton, Luke Voit, Aaron Judge and Kyle Higashioka as they won their 13th successive game – their longest winning streak since 1961.
The Philadelphia Phillies blew a two-run lead in the ninth, then rallied from a two-run deficit in the 10th to defeat the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-6 and keep pace with the Braves in the NL East. After Christian Walker's two-run homer sent the game to extra innings and Ketel Marte's shot gave Arizona the lead, Brad Miller kept the Phillies alive with a 10th-inning homer before Jean Segura won it in the 11th with a walk-off single.
In his first game since July 5, Yasmani Grandal hit two homers and drove in eight runs as the Chicago White Sox rallied from a 6-0 first-inning deficit to defeat the Cubs 17-13 in an intra-city showdown.
Wade Miley pitched seven shutout innings as the Cincinnati Reds blanked the Miami Marlins 6-0 with Tyler Naquin and Mike Moustakas hitting solo home runs for the victors.
The San Diego Padres picked up only their third win in the last 15 games, shutting out the Los Angeles Angels 5-0 as Joe Musgrove allowed only three hits and struck out nine in a compete-game shutout.
Indians lose despite allowing just three hits
Cleveland Indians pitchers held the Boston Red Sox to three hits but still managed to lose 4-3 thanks to Jonathan Arauz's first home run of the season, a three-run shot in the eighth after a walk by Christian Vazquez and a single by Jarren Duran. Boston's only other run crossed the plate on a double play in the fifth.
Reyes runs Tigers into a win
Victor Reyes blazed around the bases after his sinking liner eluded Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Josh Palacios in the eighth inning, his inside-the-park home run providing the winning margin in the Detroit Tigers' 2-1 triumph.
Friday's results
Tampa Bay Rays 6-3 Baltimore Orioles
Detroit Tigers 2-1 Toronto Blue Jays
Boston Red Sox 4-3 Cleveland Indians
Cincinnati Reds 6-0 Miami Marlins
St Louis Cardinals 4-3 Pittsburgh Pirates
Washington Nationals 2-1 New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies 7-6 Arizona Diamondbacks
Atlanta Braves 6-5 San Francisco Giants
Houston Astros 5-4 Texas Rangers
Chicago White Sox 17-13 Chicago Cubs
Minnesota Twins 2-0 Milwaukee Brewers
San Diego Padres 5-0 Los Angeles Angels
New York Yankees 8-2 Oakland Athletics
Colorado Rockies 4-2 Los Angeles Dodgers
Kansas City Royals 8-7 Seattle Mariners
Giants at Braves
The San Francisco Giants (83-45) look to bounce back from Friday's defeat as they send Logan Webb to the mound against Huascar Ynoa and the Atlanta Braves (69-58).
The Winston-Salem Open will produce a first-time ATP Tour winner as Mikael Ymer and Ilya Ivashka each advanced to their first Tour-level final Friday.
Ymer upset the only player among the four semi-finalists who previously had reached a final, 15th seed Carlos Alcaraz, by a score of 7-5 6-3 as he contested his first ATP semi-final at the North Carolina event.
The 22-year-old Swede, ranked number 90 in the world, knocked off Alcaraz in the second round at this year's Australian Open in their only prior meeting.
Ymer converted all three of his break points against the Spanish teen, who is ranked a career-best number 54 this week.
Ivashka had no trouble disposing of Emil Ruusuvuori 6-2 6-1 in the first semi-final.
The Finn had won 93 per cent of his service games this week entering the match but was broken in four of eight Friday.
Ivashka, meanwhile, did not face a single break point on his own serve as he cruised to victory in 68 minutes.
Elina Svitolina is in position to win her first title of 2021 after outlasting Rebecca Peterson to reach the Chicago Women's Open final.
After dropping just one game in her quarter-final win over Kristina Mladenovic, Svitolina needed nearly two and a half hours to dispatch Peterson 6-1 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 on Friday.
The top seed will seek her 16th career WTA Tour title against ninth-seeded Alize Cornet, who rallied to defeat Varvara Gracheva 4-6 6-1 6-0 in the other semi.
Gracheva's capitulation after winning the first set was understandable, as earlier in the day she had finished off a quarter-final upset of eighth seed Marta Kostyuk in a match that had been suspended due to darkness Thursday.
Gracheva prevailed 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 6-4 in that contest, with play on Friday beginning late in the second set, but did not have enough to pull out another win.
The final will feature the eighth head-to-head meeting between Svitolina and Cornet, with the Ukrainian holding a 4-3 edge.
At Tennis in the Land, second seed Anett Kontaveit defeated seventh seed Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-4 6-4 in one semi-final.
She will meet Irina-Camelia Begu in the final of the Cleveland tournament after the unseeded Romanian upset sixth seed Magda Linette 7-6 (7-5) 6-2.
Kontaveit won her first WTA title at Guadalajara earlier this year, while Begu will be seeking her fifth Tour title and first since 2017.
Florian Senechal powered to victory during a dramatic climax to Stage 13, while Odd Christian Eiking retained his grip on the red jersey at the Vuelta a Espana.
Deceuninck-Quick-Step rider Senechal claimed his maiden Grand Tour stage win at Villanueva de la Serena on Friday.
Senechal's team-mate – and green jersey holder – Fabio Jakobsen looked poised for the victory heading into the twisty last 5 kilometres, but slipped off the pace at the vital moment.
The Frenchman subsequently held his nerve during the final sprint as he pipped Matteo Trentin to the line.
"I don't realise yet that I’ve won a Grand Tour stage," he said.
"It's crazy. At first, I thought Demare was going to pass me, or [Michael] Matthews. But nobody did.
"I don't know how to thank my team-mates. They did a crazy job to put me in the perfect position. A thousand thanks.
"I am lucky today and I'm very happy for my family, my friends and my wife. It’s a good present."
Meanwhile, GC leader Eiking survived the day in the valley to maintain his hold on the red jersey ahead of a brutal summit finish at Pico Villuercas on Saturday.
Although, the Norwegian is expecting defending champion Primoz Roglic to pose a significant threat to his chances of retaining La Roja.
"I'm happy I didn't lose too much time [on Friday]," he said.
"I want to try and keep the red jersey tomorrow, but it depends mostly on Roglic.
"If he decides to stand up and go for it, it's going to be difficult but if I'm lucky and if I have the legs, I can keep fighting for the jersey."
STAGE RESULT
1. Florian Senechal (Deceuninck-Quick Step) 4:58:23
2. Matteo Trentin (UAE Team Emirates)
3. Alberto Dainese (Team DSM) +0:02
CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS
General Classification
1. Odd Christian Eiking (Intermarche-Wanty-Gobert) 50:31:52
2. Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) +0:58
3. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) +1:56
Points Classification
1. Fabio Jakobsen (Deceuninck-Quick-Step) 200
2. Magnus Cort Nielsen (EF Education–Nippo) 114
3. Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma) 106
King of the Mountains
1. Damiano Caruso (Bahrain Victorious) 31
2. Romain Bardet (Team DSM) 27
3. Michael Storer (Team DSM) 17
What's next?
The riders return to the mountains on Saturday for Stage 14, which will run 165.7km between Don Benito and Pico Villeurcas.
It was a clean sweep for Team Puerto winning all team divisions at the CGA’s 64th Caribbean Amateur Golf Championships (CAGC). Six Caribbean countries sent their best 47 golfers to compete August 24-26 at the Country Club at Grand Reserve, Rio Grande, in Puerto Rico.
Chris Sale joined Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax as the only pitchers in MLB history with three immaculate innings after helping the Boston Red Sox past the Minnesota Twins 12-2.
Red Sox ace Sale pitched 5.2 innings, striking out eight batters while allowing two runs on two hits in Boston on Thursday.
Sale stole the headlines with his nine-pitch third inning after striking out Twins trio Nick Gordon, Andrelton Simmons and Rob Refsnyder on three pitches each.
"Today was probably the best my mechanics have been start-to-finish. I really felt like I was staying on top of the baseball. I really kind of found it out in the bullpen before the game," Sale said.
Boston team-mate Bobby Dalbec homered twice for the Red Sox, driving in seven runs.
Judge lifts Yankees to 12th straight win
The New York Yankees extended their winning streak thanks to Aaron Judge's tie-breaking single with two outs in the ninth inning as they edged the Oakland Athletics 7-6. The Yankees have won 12 games in a row – their best run since 1961.
Another day and another win for World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers, who beat the San Diego Padres 4-0 for a three-game sweep behind Max Scherzer. Dodgers star Scherzer gave up just two hits and one walk while striking out 10. The Dodgers have now gone 11 consecutive seasons without a losing record – their longest streak since the team moved to Los Angeles.
Salvador Perez became the first American League (AL) catcher with 35-plus homers in a season since 1999. Perez's grand slam run helped the Kansas City Royals to a 6-4 victory at the Seattle Mariners.
The Washington Nationals lost 7-5 to the Miami Marlins but Juan Soto joined an exclusive club. The Nationals star recorded his second season of 100-plus walks – becoming only the third player to do so through their age-22 season along with Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Mel Ott.
Angels grounded again
Despite Shohei Ohtani's lead-off homer, the Los Angeles Angels were humbled 13-1 by the resurgent Baltimore Orioles, who snapped a 19-game losing streak 24 hours earlier. Elvis Peguero was charged with five of the six runs the Angels allowed in the fifth inning.
Grand slam!
Struggling for form before Wednesday, the Orioles celebrated back-to-back wins on Thursday. Pedro Severino fuelled Baltimore with a grand slam and six RBIs.
Thursday's results
Baltimore Orioles 13-1 Los Angeles Angels
Cincinnati Reds 5-1 Milwaukee Brewers
Chicago White Sox 10-7 Toronto Blue Jays
Arizona Diamondbacks 8-7 Philadelphia Phillies
Pittsburgh Pirates 11-7 St Louis Cardinals
Boston Red Sox 12-2 Minnesota Twins
San Francisco Giants 3-2 New York Mets
Cleveland Indians 10-6 Texas Rangers
Miami Marlins 7-5 Washington Nationals
Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 San Diego Padres
New York Yankees 7-6 Oakland Athletics
Kansas City Royals 6-4 Seattle Mariners
Cubs at White Sox
Bragging rights will be on the line when the White Sox (74-55) host city rivals the Cubs (56-73) on Friday. Dallas Keuchel will toe the mound for the White Sox as the Cubs counter with Keegan Thompson.
Pablo Carreno Busta headlined the casualties at the Winston-Salem Open, where the top seed was shocked in straight sets by Ilya Ivashka.
The 2016 champion, Carreno Busta had his sights set on the semi-finals of the ATP 250 tournament but he suffered a surprise 7-6 (7-2) 6-3 loss on Thursday.
"Of course it's a great feeling. I had a great match today. These conditions suit me," Ivashka said. "I think he had more pressure because he's the top seed so for me it was a good challenge to see what my level is and to compete with these guys, so for me it was a great match."
Carreno Busta – who trumped world number one and 20-time grand slam champion Novak Djokovic to win bronze at the Olympic Games – was not the only seed to fall.
Richard Gasquet and Frances Tiafoe also crashed out in the quarter-finals following defeats to Emil Ruusuvuori and Mikael Ymer.
The only seed to advance to the semis was 15th seed Carlos Alcaraz, who saw off Marcos Giron.
Australian Open chief Craig Tiley is confident the season-opening grand slam will be held in Melbourne next year, despite coronavirus concerns.
COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc around much of Australia, with Victoria and New South Wales both locked down due to outbreaks in the states.
The 2021 Australian Open went ahead, albeit in February instead of January, amid the coronavirus pandemic and without fans for most of the tournament following a snap lockdown of Melbourne.
Novak Djokovic was among the players critical of the conditions athletes endured prior to this year's Australian Open, with strict quarantine measures introduced.
Players, however, as set to spend two weeks in a biosecure bubble prior to the 2022 event, according to Tiley.
"There's a lot of time between now and when we get going but, at this point in time, we're planning on having a two-week bubble, where the players will be able to move freely between the hotel and the courts," Tiley said.
"They're protected, they're kept safe among themselves and safe from the community as well.
"And after those two weeks, they'll come out and be able to compete in the Australian Open in front of crowds."
Stefanos Tsitsipas faces Andy Murray and Ash Barty will take on 2010 finalist Vera Zvonareva in the first round of the US Open.
French Open runner-up Tsitsipas and 2012 champion Murray is one of the standout matches in the opening round at Flushing Meadows.
Top seed Novak Djokovic will start his quest for a calendar Grand Slam against a qualifier in New York and could face a repeat of the Wimbledon final versus Matteo Berrettini in the last eight.
World number one Djokovic, a strong favourite for a record 21st major title with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer absent due to injury, could do battle with Alexander Zverev at the semi-final stage.
Daniil Medvedev, the second seed, is in the bottom half with Tsitsipas, who he could come up against in the semi-final. Medvedev's first test will come against Frenchman Richard Gasquet.
Barty could come up against Iga Swiatek in the last eight and Karolina Pliskova if she makes it through to the semi-finals.
Simona Halep's encounter with Camila Giorgi is a mouthwatering first-round match, while defending champion Naomi Osaka returns to grand slam action against former US Open junior champion Marie Bouzkova.
Angelique Kerber could be a tough fourth round opponent for Osaka. Close friends Madison Keys and Sloane Stephens meet in another eye-catching first-round match.
There will be no Serena or Venus Williams at the final major of the year due to injuries.
Valtteri Bottas and George Russell on Thursday stated there was "no news" of who will partner Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year.
Silver Arrows boss Toto Wolff this week affirmed his desire to finalise his driver line-up for 2022 in September.
Williams driver Russell stepped in for Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix last year after the seven-time Formula One world champion tested positive for coronavirus.
The 23-year-old Brit also conducted a Pirelli tyre test for Mercedes ahead of the mid-season break, adding further fuel to suggestions he could take Bottas' seat.
Bottas and Russell were paired for media conference duties ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix this weekend, with neither driving giving much away over their futures.
"There's no news to share yet,” said Bottas. "Maybe I know something, maybe I don't but like I said there's no news to share."
Russell said: "No news to share at this stage.
"There's obviously been discussions over the summer break, but there's nothing to announce one way or another this weekend, and probably not next weekend either to be honest, which I think is no problem. Do things right, rather than quickly, let's say.
"I think we're both fortunate that we're both looked after in ways by Mercedes and we both trust them to look after our futures, one way or another.
"From my side, speaking for myself, there's no real problems and whether it's tomorrow, whether it's after Abu Dhabi, I guess you have to trust the people that are looking out for you."
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