Paul Authurs won the Lindy Delapenha Golf Classic held at the Caymanas Golf Club recently. The charity event was in its fourth staging following a one-year absence due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The tournament that is sanctioned by the Jamaica Golf Association (JGA) was first staged by the Munro College Old Boys Association (MCOBA) to commemorate the life of celebrated sportsman and broadcaster Lindy Delapenha, who was a student at Munro College.
Authurs scored 41 points to be crowned the overall champion in the tournament contested by the Stableford method. Meanwhile, Jodi Munn-Barrow emerged the winner among the women while Diane Hudson, Yadires Fonseca and Jennifer Mendes were second, third and fourth, respectively.
In the male category, Erik Gutierrez was first, Jose Melo finished second while Gordon Munn was third.
Clive Newman won the Male Senior category and Bela Szabo and Nigel Davy were second and third, respectively. Former Sportsmax President and CEO, Oliver McIntosh, was fourth and former Cricket West Indies president, Dave Cameron, was fifth.
Fred Sutherland was first in the Male Super Senior category followed by Dave Lyn and Peter Chin, the latter being Jamaica Golf Association President and CEO of Alliance Investments.
Nearest to the Pin Winners were Jodi Munn-Barrow (Hole #3), Dale Wanliss (Hole #8), Dennis Atkinson (Hole #10) and George Wright (Hole #17).
The Lindy Delaphena Golf Classic that serves as a major fundraiser for Sports and Academic Programmes at Munro College, this year raised a record $1.5m, with more than 40 sponsors coming onboard including Alliance Investment, the title sponsor, as well as platinum-sponsors Keller Williams Realty, JMMB Bank, Jamaica Inn, Spanish Court Hotel, ATL Motors (Audi, VW, Honda, Kia) and several other Tee Hole Sponsors.
“This flagship event was a major success. With so many sponsors supporting the vision and raising the profile of the event and more so realizing record revenues to assist our beloved alma mater, Munro College, we are absolutely blown away,” said Tournament Manager, Telroy Morgan, who hailed the event as a major success.
During the tournament, Delaphena’s ashes were sprinkled by a palm tree near the ninth hole as per his last request. His family and the MCOBA erected a headstone nearby that was unveiled by the Minister of Sports, Olivia Grange.
MCOBA President, Victor Tomlinson, was delighted with all aspects of the event and thanked the many golfers, sponsors and donors, and more so the management and organizing committee of the event.
“There is tremendous potential for the event and plans are afoot to grow the event to attract golfers and sponsors regionally and internationally,” he noted.
The third full day of the Tokyo Olympics sees 21 gold medals up for grabs during a packed programme.
Plenty of eyes will be on the Tokyo Aquatics Centre, where four swimming golds will be on the line, while the first women's skateboarding champion will be crowned.
The rugby sevens event gets under way and the men's triathlon will also take place.
Stats Perform picks out some of the standout action.
LEDECKY STEPS UP GOLD QUEST
After winning four golds in Rio five years ago, Katie Ledecky has the chance to add four more to her collection in Tokyo, starting with the women's 400m freestyle.
The United States competitor set a world record time in the event in 2016, but she will face a big challenge from Australia's Ariarne Titmus this time.
Titmus was marginally faster than Ledecky in the heats, though whether that edge will count for anything on the day remains to be seen.
WILL IT BE ANOTHER PEATY BLINDER?
Great Britain's Adam Peaty is nothing short of a phenomenon in the world of swimming and will be looking to retain his 100m breaststroke title.
Peaty qualified for the final in a dominant manner, his time of 57.56s just two hundredths of a second off his own world record pace.
Arno Kamminga of the Netherlands is expected to be Peaty's biggest threat, having produced a personal best of 57.80s in the previous heat.
MORE SEVENS HEAVEN FOR FIJI?
Fiji's triumph in the men's rugby sevens was one of the more remarkable stories of the Rio Games and the islanders will now be out to retain their title in Tokyo over the coming weeks.
They begin their group campaign on Monday with games against tournament hosts Japan and then Canada later in the day.
MEN'S TRIATHLON WIDE OPEN
The men's triathlon is a tough one to call, with back-to-back champion Alistair Brownlee not taking part in this year's event.
The likes of Alex Yee, Kristian Blummenfelt, Morgan Pearson and Tyler Mislawchuk are among those to watch in one the standout events at any Games.
BILES SURVIVES, NOW MEN MUST THRIVE
After Simone Biles struggled to find top gear in her Games entrance on Sunday, albeit making it through to each of her finals, Monday's gymnastics event is the men's team final.
Japan are the defending champions and led the way in qualifying, but they are expected to face stiff competition from China and the Russian Olympic Committee team. Watch out for Russian maestro Nikita Nagornyy and Japan's Daiki Hashimoto among a star-studded cast.
OSAKA BACK IN ACTION
It is proving to be a busy Games for Naomi Osaka, who followed lighting the Olympic cauldron on Friday with a first-round tennis win on Sunday.
Japan's four-time grand slam winner is back on court on Monday, looking to inch closer to the women's singles final. Awaiting her is Swiss world number 50 Viktorija Golubic, and it will be their first match encounter. Men's title hopefuls Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev are among those also due in action.
WOMEN'S SKATEBOARDING MAKES ITS DEBUT
Japan's Yuto Horigome made history on Sunday by winning the first Olympic gold in men's skateboarding. On Monday, it is the turn of the women.
Among those competing in the event are Kokona Hiraki of Japan and Team GB's Sky Brown, who are aged 12 and 13 respectively.
After plenty of falls and drama in the men's equivalent, expect more of the same in this inaugural event.
Maryna Zanevska fought back from a double-break down in both sets of the Poland Open final to claim her first WTA Tour title at the expense of Kristina Kucova.
Zanevska twice found herself trailing 3-0 in the battle between two first-time WTA singles finalists, but rallied to win 6-4 7-6 (7-4) on the clay in Gydnia on Sunday.
World number 165 Zanevska had never played in a quarter-final on the main tour before making the last four in Lausanne last week and the in-form Belgian now has a first title to her name.
The 27-year-old was granted a special-exempt entry into the Gdynia main draw due to her run in Switzerland and is now projected to re-enter the top 120 in the rankings.
Kucova was left to reflect on what might have been, having started both sets so strongly before failing to press home her advantage in a topsy-turvy championship match.
The Czech, ranked 150th, saved four match points before forcing a tie-break but was beaten in an hour and 51 minutes.
It did not end as they might have hoped, but the 2020-21 NBA season was undoubtedly one to remember for the New York Knicks.
Playoff basketball returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time in eight years, even if a typically passionate crowd could not carry their team beyond the first round. The subsequent show of strength from the Atlanta Hawks – the fifth seeds behind the Knicks – should cast a 4-1 series defeat in a slightly different light, though.
And New York's progress under Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau, led by Most Improved Player Julius Randle, can only encourage optimism. The 25.1 improvement in win percentage from the previous campaign (31.8 to 56.9) was the largest in the franchise's history.
But Thibodeau and the front office have work to do this offseason if they are to ensure the Knicks do not fall short when it really matters again next year.
Time to assess the franchise's situation with the campaign now over...
Randle raises the level
Well established as a leading defensive coach in the NBA, it came as little surprise that Thibodeau's influence was most clearly seen on that end of the floor. The Knicks had given up 112.3 points per game in 2019-20, ranking 18th in scoring defense. That improved to a league-best 104.7 last season.
On offense, though, Randle's ascension to All-Star selection and the fringes of the MVP debate made all the difference. The former Kentucky forward joined New York for the 2019-20 season and contributed 19.5 points per game – his total of 1,248 making up a team-high 17.9 per cent of the Knicks' points. Marcus Morris Sr (12.0 per cent) was the next most influential Knick despite leaving for the Los Angeles Clippers after 43 games.
Pessimism at that stage was understandable. Randle had also scored the most points on his previous teams across the prior two years – the pre-LeBron James Los Angeles Lakers and a New Orleans Pelicans outfit Anthony Davis decided was not worth sticking around for – and neither of those came close to making the playoffs. It was a miserable trend that seemed certain to continue.
However, Randle was determined not to let that happen and put in the work to improve his game heading into the new season, focusing particularly on his three-point shooting. "Obviously, the big thing was the three," Thibodeau said in May. "It stood out right away during the summer, but you're in the gym where there's no defenders. It looked a lot better coming off his hand, the arc was better, and he looked real comfortable with it." The Knicks' leading scorer went from shooting 27.7 per cent from three the previous year to 41.1.
Randle's free-throw percentage also improved by nearly eight points to 81.1 per cent. "I thought he would have a good year, but I didn't see this level," his coach added.
While Randle's increased output (24.1 points per game) saw him supply 22.2 per cent of his team's points – ranking sixth in the league in that sense – and his usage rate rose to 29.3 per cent, he also provoked better performances from his team-mates.
"That was a big concern, the three-point shooting for our team," said Thibodeau. "Not only for Julius, but that was huge for him and our team. All the other guys put in the extra time as well. Julius set the tone for that. You see him work on it every day. He's in early, he stays late. He comes back at night, and we have a number of guys that do that. If you put the time into it, usually you’ll get a good result."
No team improved their accuracy from beyond the arc as dramatically as the Knicks, up from 33.7 to 39.2 per cent.
With increased options around him – including RJ Barrett shooting 44.1 per cent from the field and 40.1 per cent from three in his second year – Randle also had a career-high 6.0 assists per game. Of his 427 assists, 115 were for Barrett and 117 for Reggie Bullock. Considering he was assisted by Barrett on 68 occasions and then a further 55 from Elfrid Payton, Randle was involved in the Knicks' four most common assist-scorer combinations.
Following a narrow late-season defeat to the Lakers, Davis said of his former Pelicans team-mate: "I think he's an MVP candidate, he for sure should win Most Improved, what he's doing, got this team in the playoffs right now for a team who hadn't been in the playoffs for a while. He's playing his a** off and you can do nothing but respect him."
Julius just too important?
Of course, this reliance on Randle is all well and good so long as the former seventh overall pick is delivering. Worryingly, though, a debut postseason series prompted an apparent regression to the mean – or worse.
Although that three-point practice kept his shooting from dipping below 33.3 per cent from beyond the arc, Randle slumped to an alarming career low from the midrange, a miserable 14.7 per cent. He was also 44.4 per cent at the rim as the Knicks struggled to get points in the paint – Hawks center Clint Capela averaged a double-double for the series, his 13.4 rebounds including 10.4 on the defensive end – and ended up with just 18.0 points per game in 36.0 minutes, even as the usage rate ramped up even further to 31.8 per cent.
No team can afford for their superstar to go missing in the playoffs. Randle had posted 28, 44 and 40 in three wins over the Hawks in the regular season, but he was swiftly stifled in round one. Meanwhile, Trae Young, revelling in the role of villain in New York, established himself as one of the league's most exciting scorers.
Young's 29.2 points against the Knicks set the standard for his postseason as a whole, the Hawks beating the Philadelphia 76ers and only losing to the Milwaukee Bucks after their point guard was injured, having repeatedly risen to the occasion. The contrast with Randle was stark.
Randle had entered the playoffs all but certain to be the subject of a hefty contract offer from the Knicks one year out from unrestricted free agency. Now, that deal is not quite so secure, with the team perhaps pondering their options.
Big spenders or big savers
As in 2020-21, when Thibodeau and the front office chose not to gamble, the Knicks are set to have the most cap space in the NBA, projected at $51.3million. With money to spend in a big market, New York will – yet again – be the subject of speculation involving the league's top free agents heading into the new season, especially if a Randle deal is delayed.
This is a somewhat underwhelming free agency class, though, with two notable exceptions. Kawhi Leonard and Chris Paul both have player options – the latter an interesting name given the Knicks' issues at point guard.
Thibodeau finally lost patience with Payton after 13 playoff minutes, one point and one assist, while Frank Ntilikina appeared fleetingly in three games. That meant Derrick Rose starting at the point; although he led the team with 19.4 points per game in the postseason, they lost all three of his starts and badly missed his consistent contributions from the bench. The trio are all on expiring contracts and only Rose is likely to be retained. It is a position that must be reinforced.
Despite their repeated attempts to strike a blockbuster deal, a move for Paul or similar would represent a step into the unknown. The Knicks are far more familiar with blooding draft picks and will hope Barrett (2019), Immanuel Quickley and Obi Toppin (both 2020) will be boosted by getting a taste of the playoffs, albeit if the experience was brief.
Ideally, third-year center Mitchell Robinson would also have had that opportunity. He has the best career field-goal percentage on record among NBA players with 400 or more attempts all-time (70.5) but fractured his right hand in February and his right foot in March.
A rare watching brief
The free agency rumour mill might continue to churn, but Knicks fans have this year at least been spared the pain of sitting through another draft lottery.
While not be able to take Cade Cunningham, just as they were not able to select Zion Williamson in 2019, this time that is due to their own on-court achievements, rather than the luck of the draw. Two first-round picks – 19 and 21 – should still see New York able to bolster their roster.
Verdict: Evolution
Why would the Knicks do anything but build on the foundations of a popular, hard-working, fast-improving team? Whether Randle signs or not, whether a player like Paul can be tempted to MSG or otherwise, the bulk of this roster will remain the same. They have enough room under the cap to bring back a number of key pieces regardless of any expensive, eye-catching additional business.
A new man running point would allow Rose to return to leading the second unit. Another way to add scoring depth might see the arrival of a wing who can compete for minutes with Bullock, whose accuracy from the field, three-point range and the foul line tailed off in the postseason.
Up the middle, despite the team's struggles against Capela and Co, Robinson remains under a team option and both Nerlens Noel ($6m last year) and Taj Gibson ($1.7m) should be cheap and useful enough to return. In 1,547 regular season minutes, Noel had the third-best block percentage (8.7) and 23rd-best steal percentage (2.3) in the league.
New York may still be some way off contention, but this must be a patient process. Another playoff campaign should be regarded as a success, particularly if they can be more competitive. That will require tweaks, not a drastic overhaul.
Quade Cooper has been called up to train with Australia ahead of the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship.
A Rugby Australia spokesman confirmed fly-half Cooper will link up with the Wallabies squad on Monday.
The 33-year-old, who won the last of his 70 caps in June 2017, will reportedly play a mentoring role as he is not an official member of the 42-man party.
It had been reported that Cooper could make a sensational international comeback with James O'Connor having suffered with injuries.
Head coach Dave Rennie named Izack Rodda and the uncapped Duncan Paia'aua in his squad on Sunday.
New Western Force lock Rodda is back in the Wallabies set-up after returning from a spell with Lyon.
Toulon back Paia'aua is the first player to be picked under the amended 'Giteau's Law', which enables those with under 60 caps to be selected with other players unavailable to join the group in Queensland and overseas due to current border restrictions.
Pone Fa'amausili, Lalakai Foketi, Feleti Kaitu'u, Ryan Lonergan, Andy Muirhead, Nick Frost and Rob Leota are the other uncapped players selected.
Nic White (knee) and Scott Sio (hamstring) along with Jordan Petaia (quad) have recovered from injuries to be included.
The Wallabies secured a 2-1 series win over France this month and head coach Rennie is eager to build on that – starting with a Bledisloe Cup opener against New Zealand at Eden Park on August 7.
Australia squad for the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship :
Allan Alaalatoa, Tom Banks, Angus Bell, Pone Fa'amausili, Lalakai Foketi, Nick Frost, Jake Gordon, Reece Hodge, Michael Hooper (captain), Len Ikitau, Feleti Kaitu'u, Andrew Kellaway, Marika Koroibete, Rob Leota, Noah Lolesio, Lachlan Lonergan, Ryan Lonergan, Tate McDermott, Fraser McReight, Andy Muirhead, Isi Naisarani, James O'Connor, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Duncan Paia’aua, Hunter Paisami, Jordan Petaia, Matt Philip, Tom Robertson, Izack Rodda, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Pete Samu, Scott Sio, James Slipper, Darcy Swain, Lachlan Swinton, Matt To'omua, Taniela Tupou, Jordan Uelese, Rob Valetini, Nic White, Harry Wilson, Tom Wright.
Casper Ruud secured back-to-back titles by beating Hugo Gaston in straight sets to be crowned Swiss Open Gstaad champion on Sunday.
Ruud won the Nordea Open last weekend and added a fourth ATP Tour title of his career with a 6-3 6-2 defeat of Frenchman Gaston.
The Norwegian took his tally of tournament victories on clay this year to three, having also won the Geneva Open in May, and the 22-year-old will rise to ninth spot in the ATP Race To Turin on Monday.
Ruud saved nine of the 10 break points earned by first-time ATP Tour finalist Gaston, who only won 51 per cent of points behind his first serve.
Gaston, who had never been beyond the second round at an ATP Tour event before this week, was broken twice in each set as the 20-year-old was unable to halt Ruud's brilliant run on clay.
Left-hander Gaston broke straight back after Ruud went 3-1 up in the opening set but failed to back that up with a hold.
Ruud had as many as 16 break-point opportunities but got the job done in an hour and 34 minutes.
Dave Rennie says Australia have a great opportunity to build further momentum in the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship after naming Izack Rodda and the uncapped Duncan Paia'aua in a 42-man squad.
New Western Force lock Rodda is back in the Wallabies set-up after returning from a spell with Lyon.
Toulon back Paia'aua is the first player to be picked under the amended 'Giteau's Law', which enables those with under 60 caps to be selected with other players unavailable to join the group in Queensland and overseas due to current border restrictions.
Pone Fa'amausili, Lalakai Foketi, Feleti Kaitu'u, Ryan Lonergan, Andy Muirhead, Nick Frost and Rob Leota are the other uncapped men in the party.
Nic White (knee) and Scott Sio (hamstring) along with Jordan Petaia (quad) have recovered from injuries to take their places in the squad.
The Wallabies secured a 2-1 series win over France this month and head coach Rennie is eager to build on that – starting with a Bledisloe Cup opener against New Zealand at Eden Park on August 7.
Rennie said: "The connection this group is forming is growing every day and we’ve picked a squad of players here who are willing to work hard for each other.
"We know we’ve still got a way to go to get to where we want to be but that challenge is exciting and something we're looking forward to.
"We have a great opportunity coming up in the Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup Tests to build on the momentum we picked up during a tough French Series."
Australia squad for the Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship:
Allan Alaalatoa, Tom Banks, Angus Bell, Pone Fa'amausili, Lalakai Foketi, Nick Frost, Jake Gordon, Reece Hodge, Michael Hooper (captain), Len Ikitau, Feleti Kaitu'u, Andrew Kellaway, Marika Koroibete, Rob Leota, Noah Lolesio, Lachlan Lonergan, Ryan Lonergan, Tate McDermott, Fraser McReight, Andy Muirhead, Isi Naisarani, James O'Connor, Brandon Paenga-Amosa, Duncan Paia’aua, Hunter Paisami, Jordan Petaia, Matt Philip, Tom Robertson, Izack Rodda, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto, Pete Samu, Scott Sio, James Slipper, Darcy Swain, Lachlan Swinton, Matt To'omua, Taniela Tupou, Jordan Uelese, Rob Valetini, Nic White, Harry Wilson, Tom Wright.
The New York Yankees piled on four eighth-inning runs to claim a thrilling 4-3 win over the Boston Red Sox in MLB on Saturday.
Trailing 3-0 after seven innings from Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, Brett Gardner drove in Estevan Florial with a line drive to right field.
Adam Ottavino stepped up on the mound but Rougned Odor hit a two-run score off the Green Monster to tie it up.
Odor scored when the in-form Gleyber Torres skied one to shallow right-field in a dramatic turnaround.
The result means the Yankees improve their record to 51-46, while the Red Sox are 60-39.
Sandoval's near no-hitter, Haniger double
Los Angeles Angels' pitcher Patrick Sandoval almost had a no-hitter, going eight and a third innings with no hits before Brent Rooker's double in the ninth as the Minnesota Twins won 2-1.
Mitch Haniger continued his exceptional 2021 season with two home runs, taking his season tally to 25, as the Seattle Mariners defeated the Oakland Athletics 5-4.
New recruit Rowdy Tellez also hit two homers as the Milwaukee Brewers won 6-1 over the Chicago White Sox. Tellez joined the Brewers from the Toronto Blue Jays earlier this month.
George Springer produced an incredible diving catch in the outfield as the Blue Jays won 10-3 over the New York Mets.
Phillies pitching woes
The Atlanta Braves piled on the runs late against the Philadelphia Phillies to win 15-3. The Braves scored eight runs in the final two innings as in-fielder Ronald Torreyes stepped up to the mound, allowing six hits, after starter Vince Velasquez was pulled. Freddie Freeman, Abraham Almonte, Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley and Joc Peterson all homered for the Braves.
Tatis make slugging history
Fernando Tatis Jr made history with his 30th home run of the season in the San Diego Padres' 3-2 loss to the Miami Marlins. Tatis' 409-foot homer means he becomes the youngest Padre, at 22-years-old, to reach 30 home runs. It only took Tatis 82 games, which is the fewest for any player his age or younger.
Saturday's results
Arizona Diamondbacks 7-3 Chicago Cubs
New York Yankees 4-3 Boston Red Sox
Atlanta Braves 15-3 Philadelphia Phillies
Miami Marlins 3-2 San Diego Padres
Baltimore Orioles 5-3 Washington Nationals
Cincinnati Reds 5-3 St Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers 6-1 Chicago White Sox
Toronto Blue Jays 10-3 New York Mets
Los Angeles Angels 2-1 Minnesota Twins
Tampa Bay Rays 8-2 Cleveland Indians
Kansas City Royals 9-8 Detroit Tigers
Houston Astros 4-1 Texas Rangers
Pittsburgh Pirates 10-2 San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0 Colorado Rockies
Seattle Mariners 5-4 Oakland Athletics
Blue Jays at Mets
The New York Mets (51-44), leaders in the National League East, will host the Toronto Blue Jays (49-45) with both sides needing to find some consistent form.
World number 30 Cameron Norrie has claimed his maiden ATP title after defeating Brandon Nakashima in straight sets in the final of the Los Cabos Open on Saturday.
British top seed Norrie triumphed 6-2 6-2 in one hour and 23 minutes as he marks another milestone in his career-best season.
Norrie, 25, now has the most wins on the ATP tour this year, going past world number one Novak Djokovic with 35.
The 19-year-old American could not handle Norrie's first serve, while the Briton converted five of his eight break points.
Norrie served for the match with Nakashima pressing him in a tight final game but the top seed rounded out a breakthrough win.
Norrie won 21 of 29 points on his first serve, going at 72 per cent, with Nakashima breaking him once.
Cam Tringale moved into the lead ahead of the final day at the 3M Open in Minnesota after carding a five-under round including an eagle on Saturday.
The American raced up the leaderboard as overnight joint leaders Ryan Armour and Adam Hadwin and slid, with an even round and two-over respectively at TPC Twin Cities.
Tringale's surge was set up after becoming only the third player to reach the par-five 12th in two, sitting at 12 under after 54 holes.
He enjoyed a bogey-free third round, birdieing his first two holes, with only Beau Hossler, who is joint for 12th, bettering his round on Saturday with a six-under-65.
Gary Woodland and Maverick McNealy are joint in second on 11 under after strong third day rounds.
Pat Perez, Cameron Champ, Jimmy Walker and Charl Schwartzel are all 10 under. Champ looms large having carded 10 under from his past 27 holes.
Rickie Fowler appeared set to contend again but carded an eight on the 18th hole to finish six off the lead having found the water.
He was not alone in struggling on the 18th which saw five bogeys, three double bogeys and seven triple bogeys or worse.
Warren Gatland knows South Africa will be "hurt" by their defeat to the British and Irish Lions in the first Test and expects the world champions to bounce back stronger.
The Lions roared back in the second half of a brutal contest at Cape Town Stadium to win 22-17 after going in at the break trailing 12-3.
Luke Cowan-Dickie crashed over just after the interval before Dan Biggar took his tally from the tee to 14 points and Owen Farrell added a late penalty.
Faf de Klerk scored a somewhat contentious try soon after Cowan-Dickie touched down, while South Africa felt a Willie le Roux try - which was ruled out for offside - should have been allowed to stand.
Damian de Allende also had a second-half score chalked off a knock-on, while Handre Pollard - who booted 12 points - missed a conversion attempt and a penalty as the Springboks' seven-match winning run came to an end.
Lions head coach Gatland told Sky Sports: "They will be hurt from this because they are an incredibly proud nation and world champions.
"The message to the players, it wasn't just about the 23. This is an incredibly tight group of players and the non-23 did a good job this week of helping prepare. The victory was about the whole squad."
He added: "A bounce of the ball could have gone either way, and a couple of calls as well.
"If they had been different it might have affected the result. We are happy with how we defended and we don't think they created a lot of attacking opportunities.
"Winning the game means, whatever happens, the series will go to the last weekend which keeps everyone engaged."
South Africa's preparation for the three-match series has been badly affected by coronavirus cases in the camp and this was only their second Test since winning the 2019 World Cup.New Zealander Gatland thinks they will be a different proposition next Saturday.
"They have had their own challenges with players not taking a full part in training," he said."A little like us, with two games a week it is quite hard to prepare for an international. I expect that they will be a lot stronger in the next two matches."
The British and Irish Lions roared back in the second half to beat South Africa 22-17 in a gripping first Test at Cape Town Stadium.
Four penalties from Handre Pollard, playing his 50th Test, gave the Springboks a 12-3 half-time advantage as the struggling Lions were made to pay for indiscipline.
Luke Cowan-Dickie crashed over early in the second half, but a somewhat contentious Faf de Klerk try extended the world champions’ lead.
Dan Biggar took his tally from the tee to 14 points with a couple of penalties to put Warren Gatland’s side in front for the first time with 18 minutes to play and Owen Farrell put them five points up late on.
The Springboks had two second-half tries ruled out and they could not provide a late twist, with Pollard missing a penalty and conversion attempt.
The tackles flew in and high kicks galore were sent up in a frantic start and the Springboks struck a psychological blow when they had the better of the first scrum.
Pollard put the world champions in front with a 13th-minute penalty and he doubled their advantage to punish Tom Curry for a late hit on livewire fly-half Faf de Klerk.
Biggar got the Lions on the board soon after with a great strike from long range midway through a breathless first half, but another two clean strikes from the tee from Pollard made Gatland's side pay for yet more indiscipline with relentless South Africa winning the battle.
The Lions struggled at the lineout and Biggar pulled a penalty wide, while Elliot Daly was just short with a shot at goal from inside his own half before Willie le Roux kept his side nine points in front late in the first half with a great tackle on a charging Robbie Henshaw.
South Africa came out after the break with a new front row and they were pushed back by an unstoppable driving maul only three minutes into the second half, with Cowan-Dickie touching down and Biggar adding the extras.
Le Roux had a try ruled out for offside moments later, but TMO Marius Jonker was in the spotlight again when he saw no issue with a score awarded to De Klerk, which the Lions thought should have been overturned for a Pieter-Steph du Toit knock-on.
Biggar's penalty made it a one-point game and the fly-half put the Lions in front with another clean strike from the tee.
Pollard had failed to convert De Klerk’s try and he missed a penalty after Hamish Watson was fortunate to escape without a card for a tackle on Le Roux.
There was further drama when Damian de Allende’s try was chalked off for offside with eight minutes to go and the Lions clung on to take a series lead following a late Farrell penalty.
Hugo Gaston is one win away from securing his maiden ATP Tour title, but he must overcome in-form Casper Ruud at the Swiss Open Gstaad.
Gaston, ranked 155th in the world, booked his place in his first tour-level final with a 3-6 6-3 6-3 victory over Laslo Djere of Serbia on Saturday.
The 20-year-old had never advanced past the second round at an ATP Tour event before this week. He has now won three matches in a row in a third set.
"I tried to take more time with my game," Gaston said. "I made a lot of mistakes in the first set, so I tried to change my game. My serve was better in the second and third set.
"I am really happy to be in the final. It is going to be a good match, but I will try to enjoy [this] moment."
Ruud, meanwhile, enjoyed a rather more straightforward procession in his semi-final, with world number 249 Vit Kopriva little match for the 22-year-old Norwegian.
The world number 14 needed just 74 minutes to win 6-3 6-0, reaching his second final in as many weeks following his success in Bastad.
Ruud has won 23 clay-court matches already in 2021 and is in the hunt for his fourth career title.
Whatever the Boston Red Sox had in mind heading into Friday's showdown with Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees, it did not include their own starting pitcher leaving the game after recording just three outs.
Even after Eduardo Rodriguez was forced to leave the game in the second inning due to what the team described as migraine symptoms, the Red Sox had enough firepower to defeat their rivals 6-2 at Fenway Park.
After Rodriguez's unexpectedly early exit, Phillips Valdez stepped in to get out of a second-inning jam and strike out seven in three scoreless innings of relief on the day he was called up from the minor leagues.
Rafael Devers gave the home side the lead with a two-run homer off Cole in the fifth and added a three-run shot against Nestor Cortes in the seventh to put the game away. The latter was the 100th home run of Devers' career.
Mets blank Blue Jays
Pete Alonso accounted for all of the New York Mets' runs with a pair of homers and Tylor Megill had the best start of his career with six shutout innings in a 3-0 defeat of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Colorado Rockies picked up their 10th road win in 44 games away from Coors Field this season, rallying to defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-6 as Charlie Blackmon had three hits incluing the extra-inning homer that sealed the victory.
Nelson Cruz homered in his first game after being traded to Tampa Bay and Ji-Man Choi's three-run homer in the ninth blew open a close game as the Rays beat the Cleveland Indians 10-5.
Rangers pounded again
Kolby Allard surrendered a three-run homer to Kyle Tucker to cap a five-run third inning for the Houston Astros that helped send the Texas Rangers to a 7-3 loss, their 10th consecutive defeat. The Rangers have been outscored 73-18 in that span and have not held a lead for 86 straight innings. According to Stats Perform, that drought is the longest since the Atlanta Braves went 96 innings without a lead in April and May 1977.
Brewers slam White Sox
In a matchup of NL and AL Central division leaders, the Milwaukee Brewers got a boost from Tyrone Taylor's seventh-inning grand slam to down the Chicago White Sox 7-1.
Friday's results
Chicago Cubs 8-3 Arizona Diamondbacks
Tampa Bay Rays 10-5 Cleveland Indians
Philadelphia Phillies 5-1 Atlanta Braves
Boston Red Sox 6-2 New York Yankees
New York Mets 3-0 Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles 6-1 Washington Nationals
San Diego Padres 5-2 Miami Marlins
Cincinnati Reds 6-5 St Louis Cardinals
Kansas City Royals 5-3 Detroit Tigers
Minnesota Twins 5-4 Los Angeles Angels
Milwaukee Brewers 7-1 Chicago White Sox
Houston Astros 7-3 Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners 4-3 Oakland Athletics
Pittsburgh Pirates 6-4 San Francisco Giants
Colorado Rockies 9-6 Los Angeles Dodgers
White Sox at Brewers
A pair of All-Star pitchers go head-to-head as Carlos Rodon and the Chicago White Sox (58-39) continue their series against Corbin Burnes and the Milwaukee Brewers (57-41).
The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees have faced each other more than 2,000 times dating back to 1901, but they have never had a game end quite like Thursday's.
Four wild pitches by New York reliever Brooks Kriske in the 10th inning brought home the tying run and set up the winning run as Boston prevailed 5-4 at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox had trailed 3-1 with two outs in the ninth inning when Kike Hernandez ripped a two-run double to left-center off Chad Green to tie the game and send it to the 10th.
Thanks to MLB's second-year rule that puts a runner on second base to start each extra inning, New York was able to take a 4-3 lead on a groundout and a Brett Gardner sacrifice fly in the top of the inning, but Boston did them one better.
Two wild pitches by Kriske brought Rafael Devers home from second to make it 4-4, and after Xander Bogaerts drew a walk, two more wild pitches moved him to third.
After J.D. Martinez struck out, Hunter Renfroe lifted a sacrifice fly to right field to drive home Bogaerts with the winning run – all without benefit of a hit.
According to Stats Perform, Kriske is the first pitcher in MLB history to throw at least four wild pitches in one extra ininng.
"There's a lot of guys battling their butts off and it sucks to be the one to blow it for the team," Kriske told reporters.
The Yankees sent him to the minor leagues after the game.
Giants stun Dodgers late
The San Francisco Giants scored four runs in the ninth inning for a shock 5-3 victory over the rival Los Angeles Dodgers as they opened up a three-game lead over LA in the National League (NL) West division.
Down 3-1 with two out in the ninth, the Giants loaded the bases and earned a reprieve when video replay overturned a call at second base that would have been the final out of the game. Darin Ruf then walked on a controversial checked-swing call to force in the tying run before LaMonte Wade's two-run single off Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen broke it open.
The Tampa Bay Rays pulled out another late victory, scoring twice in the ninth inning and again in the 10th to defeat the Cleveland Indians 5-4. Entering the ninth trailing 4-2, the Rays got a leadoff homer from Yandy Diaz and a two-out double by Brandon Lowe to tie the game, then brought home the go-ahead run on Austin Meadows' single in the 10th.
The Detroit Tigers remain undefeated since the All-Star break, getting a three-run first-inning homer from Eric Haase and going on to beat the Texas Rangers 7-5 to complete a four-game sweep and extend their winning streak to seven games. The Tigers were 9-24 on May 7 but are 38-27 since.
Sean Manaea struck out a career-high 13 for the Oakland Athletics in a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
Braves get to Moore
After allowing six earned runs over his last four outings combined, Philadelphia Phillies starter Matt Moore gave up six in the first four innings of a 7-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves. Dansby Swanson's third-inning grand slam was the big blow for Atlanta.
Another robbery by Bader
St Louis Cardinals center fielder Harrison Bader made a maximum-effort play to end the top of the seventh inning, robbing Nico Hoerner of a bloop single to help the Cardinals hang on to a lead and eventually defeat the Chicago Cubs 3-2.
Thursday's results
Detroit Tigers 7-5 Texas Rangers
Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 Cleveland Indians
Atlanta Braves 7-2 Philadelphia Phillies
Boston Red Sox 5-4 New York Yankees
San Diego Padres 3-2 Miami Marlins
St Louis Cardinals 3-2 Chicago Cubs
Los Angeles Angels 3-2 Minnesota Twins
Oakland Athletics 4-1 Seattle Mariners
San Francisco Giants 5-3 Los Angeles Dodgers
White Sox at Brewers
The Chicago White Sox (58-38) and Milwaukee Brewers (56-41) both have healthy leads in their divisions heading into a week-end showdown in Milwaukee.
The Tampa Bay Rays made a high-impact move ahead of MLB's July 31 trade deadline, acquiring veteran slugger Nelson Cruz from the Minnesota Twins on Thursday in a four-player deal.
Locked in their perennial struggle with the big-money Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees atop the American League (AL) East division, the Rays swooped for one of the most reliable power bats on the market.
Winner of the AL's Silver Slugger award at designated hitter the last two years, Cruz was named to the All-Star Game for the seventh time in his career this season.
Despite turning 41 on July 1, Cruz had 19 home runs and 50 RBIs along with a .294 batting average and .537 slugging percentage for the last-place Twins.
Heading into Thursday's game, Rays designated hitters had 13 home runs and a .395 slugging percentage, third-worst in the American League ahead of only the Texas Rangers (.380) and Detroit Tigers (.265).
Austin Meadows has been the primary DH for the Rays, starting 48 games there including Thursday's contest against the Cleveland Indians, but he can play the outfield.
Cruz, however, is purely a hitter. He has not made a defensive appearance since playing four games in right field for the Seattle Mariners in 2018.
Entering Thursday, the Rays were 57-39, one game back of the Red Sox in the division and two and a half games ahead in the AL wild card standings.
In addition to Cruz, Tampa Bay landed minor league pitcher Calvin Faucher in the trade while sending minor league pitchers Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman to the Twins.
Heading into the season, MLB.com ranked Ryan as the Rays' 10th-best prospect and Strotman number 17 in the organisation.
After waiting half a century for a title, Milwaukee Bucks fans turned out by the thousands on Thursday to celebrate their team's NBA championship.
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and the rest of Milwaukee's players and staff received a hero's welcome as they paraded through the city atop busses and trucks.
Two days after closing out the Phoenix Suns 4-2 in the NBA Finals for their first championship since 1971, the Bucks and their fans did not appear to have returned to earth.
"Milwaukee, we did it, baby! We did it!" Antetokounmpo told the adoring crowd. "This is our city, man. We did it. It's unbelievable."
Earlier, Antetokounmpo looked overwhelmed as thousands chanted "MVP!" while his bus rolled down the parade route.
"I'm proud of my team-mates, proud of the whole organisation for everything we did all year," Antetokounmpo said.
"We put in extremely unbelievable work, we believed in ourselves, we went out there ready to compete, and right now I'm extremely happy. I still can't believe this is happening, but I'm trying to be in the moment, trying to enjoy it as much as possible with you guys, with my team-mates, and with everybody."
While Milwaukee's fans had waited a lifetime for a title, the players realised lifelong dreams as well.
None of them had previously won an NBA championship, and some, like Middleton, had lived the other end of the spectrum.
His first season with the Bucks was 2013-14, when they went a league-worst 15-67.
"It's just been a long time coming," Middleton said. "I've been here eight years, struggled, been through a lot of ups and downs, but we finally got the job done, for sure."
That they did, despite losing the first two games of the Finals to the Suns - just as they had to the Brooklyn Nets in the Eastern Conference semi-finals before rallying to win in seven games.
"Each time we were down 0-2, all we did was get closer," Middleton said. "Some teams separate, some teams point fingers. We never pointed fingers, we never quit on each other. All we did was come closer and find a way to try and figure it out."
The New Orleans Pelicans have appointed former Phoenix Suns assistant Willie Green as their new head coach.
Green's appointment was delayed due to his commitments with Phoenix, who made it to the NBA Finals before Giannis Antetokounmpo ended their hopes to claim Milwaukee Bucks' first title since 1971.
Before joining the 2021 Western Conference champions, Green enjoyed a three-year spell at the Golden State Warriors, where he worked as an assistant coach under Steve Kerr as they won back-to-back NBA Championships in 2017 and 2018.
Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations David Griffin praised Green for his "tireless work ethic and authenticity of character" as he announced the new head coach on Thursday.
"He brings a vast amount of basketball knowledge and experience to our team as both a coach and former player, along with exceptional leadership qualities and an innate ability to connect with players, staff and fans alike," Griffin said.
"We could not be more excited to welcome Willie and his family to New Orleans."
Green spent 12 years as a player in the NBA and appeared in 731 regular season games between 2003-15, reaching the playoffs seven times.
In his previous role with Phoenix, the Suns' defensive coordinator oversaw the NBA's sixth-best defensive rating, while he worked as head coach for the NBA Summer League in 2019, where he managed a 3-1 record in Las Vegas.
"I want to thank Mrs. Benson [Pelicans governor], David Griffin and the entire Pelicans organisation for having faith in me to lead this talented group of players moving forward," Green added.
"It's a blessing and an honour to get this opportunity in a special place like New Orleans. I look forward to getting to work and immersing myself and my family into the local community."
Green takes over from Stan Van Gundy, who mutually agreed to leave the Pelicans despite spending just the one year in charge.
Van Gundy's side disappointed last campaign as they went 31-41 to quash any playoffs hopes they may have had at the start of the year.
Green, who becomes the third-youngest coach in the NBA, may now look to build his team around first-round NBA 2019 Draft pick Zion Williamson, who has endured a tumultuous start to life in New Orleans.
Top seed Denis Shapovalov's Swiss Open Gstaad campaign came to an abrupt end as Vit Kopriva provided a second-round shock to eliminate the Wimbledon semi-finalist.
The world number 10, who has recently been praised by both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, took the first set 6-2 with ease before Kopriva, making his ATP Tour debut this week, emphatically fought back 6-3 6-2 to secure a memorable comeback victory.
Number three seed Casper Ruud battled past Dennis Novak 6-4 7-6 (7-5), while Benoit Paire, who only had two ATP wins in 2021 before the Hamburg European Open last week, was 6-4 to the good before Tallon Griekspoor was forced to retire due to injury.
Ruud, who has already won two ATP events in 2021 and three in his career, will now meet sixth seed Paire in the quarter-final stage.
But eighth seed Feliciano Lopez did not enjoy similar success as the world number 96 Mikael Ymer fought past the Spaniard to win 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (9-7) 6-4 and set-up a quarter-final clash with Kopriva.
At the Umag Open in Croatia, third seed Filip Krajinovic breezed past Radu Albot to record a 6-4 6-2 win.
Krajinovic's countryman and number two ranked player Dusan Lajovic also went through with a 7-5 6-4 win against Bernabe Zapata Miralles.
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