The PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf have agreed to merge commercial operations under common ownership, the PGA Tour has announced.
The shock announcement comes after a year of unprecedented disruption in the men’s professional game following the launch of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit.
“After two years of disruption and distraction, this is a historic day for the game we all know and love,” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said.
“This transformational partnership recognizes the immeasurable strength of the PGA Tour’s history, legacy and pro-competitive model and combines with it the DP World Tour and LIV – including the team golf concept – to create an organization that will benefit golf’s players, commercial and charitable partners and fans.”
Brian Meehan’s French 2,000 Guineas runner-up Isaac Shelby is on course for the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot on June 20.
Winner of the Group Two Superlative Stakes at Newmarket last July, the Night Of Thunder colt began his three-year-old campaign with a three-length success in the Greenham at Newbury, before being short-headed by Marhaba Ya Sanafi in France.
The St James’s Palace is shaping up into one of the races of the meeting with English and Irish Guineas winners Chaldean and Paddington as well as Charlie Hills’ unbeaten Cicero’s Gift lying in wait.
Though Isaac Shelby initially held an entry in the 10-furlong Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, the Manton handler is keen to keep him at a mile for now.
Meehan said: “He is heading to Ascot and he’s in great form. We have been very happy with him. He goes to the St James’s Palace, but he won’t go to the Eclipse.
“We’ll see how he comes out of Ascot before making any plans. He is in everything, but we’ll play it by ear.
“He’s in good form, we couldn’t be happier with him really.”
Double Olympic 100 metres breaststroke champion Adam Peaty is recovering after undergoing surgery to remove his tonsils.
The 28-year-old revealed he had had the procedure in a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday.
Peaty said: “Tonsillectomy went well and on the road to recovery. Something that was affecting me for quite a long time with a lot of antibiotics to keep under control.
“Thank you to all the great doctors and nurses at Nuffield Leicester Hospital, you were all exceptional.”
Peaty, who won goal in Rio in 2016 and then defended his title in Tokyo five years later, also has six individual world titles to his name.
He has revealed in the past his struggles with depression and alcohol and recently admitted he had been in a “self-destructive spiral”.
Peaty pulled out of the British Championships in April citing mental health issues.
Jockeys Callum Shepherd and Joanna Mason are facing more time on the sidelines, having both recently just returned from injury.
Shepherd, who broke a wrist in November, aggravated his old injury when the Charlie Fellowes-trained Trois Vallees fell in a five-furlong handicap at Nottingham on Sunday.
He said: “I’ll be on the sofa for a little while. The horse sadly had a heart attack and the wrist started swelling up in one place, the same wrist I broke in November.
“It is fractured, but not too bad. The concern was it had opened up the old fracture again, but it hasn’t. I have a radial styloid fracture.
“It is hard to say when I will be back. I spoke to Dr Jerry Hill (the British Horseracing Authority’s chief medical officer), having sent him the X-ray. It is a case of getting a CAT scan to see the full extent of it, but I think it will be a case of weeks, rather than months. That seems to be the expectation at the moment. Hopefully, that will be the case.
“It’s a tough one, but at the same time it could be a lot worse – it’s not your spine or your head.”
Mason, who was sidelined for 10 days last month when kicked in the knee by Jazz Samba following his win at Beverley on May 1, faces a lengthy absence.
She suffered a leg fracture on Monday when three pigeons flew out of bushes adjacent to the gallops at her grandfather Mick and his son David Easterby’s , spooking a filly she was riding and unseating her.
Mason said: “I was riding a filly down the gallop and three pigeons flew out and she was just gone from underneath me.
“I just landed a bit funny on my ankle. I got up, hobbled down the gallop until my granddad picked me up. I put ice on it, went to Jack Berry House and they looked at it.
“I thought it was ligaments or a strain, I wasn’t really in much pain, so I thought I had stretched or whatever, but they said to go to Malton Hospital for an X-ray to rule everything out.
“It is a spiral fracture on my lower (distal) fibula. They say I’ll be off between four to six weeks, but I’m aiming for four.”
Adding insult to injury, Mason missed a winning ride on Menelaus, who took the mile-and-a-half handicap at Thirsk on Monday.
She added: “I was 10 days off after my knee was kicked at Beverley. I was getting on a roll and the horses are going well.
“But I feel like I’ve probably been quite lucky, because I’ve not had many injuries. Maybe it is just my time.
“My knee is still niggling me a little bit – there’s still quite a bit of swelling in it, but that’s the least of my worries now.”
Elina Svitolina was booed again by the French Open crowd after her memorable Paris run was ended by Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals.
In her first grand slam since the birth of daughter Skai last October, the Ukrainian has enjoyed one of her best grand slams but Australian Open champion Sabalenka was too strong in a 6-4 6-4 victory.
Having hit away the winning forehand, Belarusian Sabalenka stood at the net waiting for a handshake she must have known would not come, and there were loud boos as Svitolina walked straight past her without acknowledging her.
The 28-year-old had received loud support during the match but she left Philippe Chatrier to a mixture of jeers and cheers.
Svitolina had beaten two consecutive Russian opponents, both times offering a thumbs up at the end, but this was probably the highest-profile sporting clash between competitors from opposing sides of the war since it began.
Svitolina has been more measured in her criticism of Russian and Belarusian players than compatriots like Marta Kostyuk, who Sabalenka beat in the first round.
The Belarusian again declined to speak to the press ahead of the contest following tense exchanges with a Ukrainian journalist but said before the Kostyuk match that the surrounding circumstances had added to her nerves.
She need not have worried about the reaction walking out on to Philippe Chatrier as, although a few Ukraine flags were evident, the crowd was sparse and both players received warm welcomes.
The pair matched each other game for game until Sabalenka forced a first break point at 4-4 and crunched away a return off a weak second serve.
Svitolina made a fast start to the second set, moving 2-0 ahead, but could not convert a game point in the next game and Sabalenka began to really make her extra power count, moving into a 4-2 lead.
With the patrons now having finished their lunch and fully engaged, they tried to will Svitolina – who was watched by husband Gael Monfils – into a comeback, but Sabalenka held her nerve.
In the last four Sabalenka will meet unseeded Karolina Muchova, who earlier defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her second grand slam semi-final.
The Czech, who also made the last four at the Australian Open in 2021, matched her best slam result with a 7-5 6-2 victory on Philippe Chatrier.
Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her Australian run that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.
With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “I don’t know what to say. It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad I’m still in the competition.”
Pavlyuchenkova has also found form here after knee surgery kept her out for most of last season but the 2021 runner-up is now set to miss the grass-court season because her ranking was not high enough to get her into Wimbledon.
Andrew Balding has no concerns about the prospect of Chaldean tackling quicker ground at Royal Ascot.
The Dewhurst and 2000 Guineas winner remains on target for what looks a stellar renewal of the St James’s Palace Stakes on the first day of the meeting, June 20.
For Balding, with the Guineas already in the bag, he can approach the meeting with the pressure slightly lifted.
“The Classics are a big deal, particularly the Guineas. To get it early in the season is a huge effort,” he said.
“Having won the Dewhurst, you spend the whole winter with high expectations. You then get there and it was more of a relief than a feeling of ecstasy. It was a great one to get on the board and everyone was rightfully very happy with themselves.
“The St James’s Palace is the intended target. Chances are he is going to have to encounter some faster ground at some stage. I haven’t got a concern myself; it was quite fast when he won at York and I think at Ascot, the round track there should really play to his strengths, we’re looking forward to it.”
Chaldean is one of two major chances for the trainer in two of the feature races as he will also saddle Coltrane, the Sagaro Stakes winner, in the Gold Cup on the Thursday.
Balding told Tattersalls: “He’s a bit of a star, he wasn’t an expensive yearling (50,000 guineas). He has been a pleasant surprise from day one in everything he’s done. He looked stone cold useless as a two-year-old to be honest. He could hardly get up to the top of the gallop and just improved and improved.
“He had improved with racing but had a setback at the beginning of his four-year-old career. He missed a lot and the way he’s come back is an absolute tribute to his steel. He’s just a fabulous horse to train and I thought he was very impressive in the Sagaro Stakes.
“If he can produce that sort of a performance at Ascot on Gold Cup day, then he’s got to be a player.
“I think the last run suggests he is better than ever. I thought he was very impressive. He put in a similar performance at Sandown last year where he looked very good, and we were just thrilled with the way he won at Ascot.
“It was obvious that we didn’t need to be running again before the Gold Cup because there’s a busy time after that as well so hopefully, if we can get him there in the same form, he should have a great chance.”
Passenger, who disappointed in finishing 12th of the 14 runners in the Betfred Derby on Saturday, will be given a break by Sir Michael Stoute.
Supplemented at a cost of £85,000 just days before the Classic on the strength of a luckless run when a close-up third in the Dante at York, Richard Kingscote was never at ease aboard the 8-1 shot.
Bidding to give the trainer and jockey a second success in the blue riband in as many years after Desert Crown’s victory last June, the son of Ulysses was keen early and did not see out the mile-and-a-half trip, which he was trying for the first time.
A late developer, he saw the racecourse for the first time in April, scampering to a three-length victory in the Wood Ditton, a maiden over mile at Newmarket.
Passenger, owned by the Niarchos family, made a taking debut when scoring in a mile maiden at Newmarket on April 20.
He was withdrawn from the Dee Stakes at Chester due to heavy ground so connections paid £14,000 to supplement the colt into the Group Two Dante, where he was keen early on and had his path blocked when attempting to mount a challenge approaching two furlongs out.
Now with three runs in the space of 45 days, connections are keen to give him more time to develop before bringing him back, starting over a shorter trip.
The Niarchos family’s racing manager, Alan Cooper, said: “It was unfortunate he used up a lot of energy going up the hill and he was a bit free, so emptied out coming down and that was that, unfortunately. We don’t know why he did, but he did.
“It is hard to know why. One goes forward and we can’t re-do the race. He’ll have a nice break and see what Sir Michael would like to do.
“The horse has had a very quick career with three races since mid-April, so we will give him a nice break and freshen him up, then look at a suitable 10-furlong race and take it from there.
“He is a late-maturing horse and we hope he will develop as he matures.
“A lot of people will be re-grouping after Saturday. I think there were a lot of good horses in the race. Every Derby is a good Derby in terms of winners.”
Karolina Muchova defeated Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach her second grand slam semi-final at the French Open.
The Czech, who also made the last four at the Australian Open in 2021, matched her best slam result with a 7-5 6-2 victory on Philippe Chatrier.
Muchova, 26, suffered an abdominal injury during her Australian run that kept her out for seven months and she was ranked outside the top 200 as recently as September.
With her run here, Muchova is set to return to the top 20, and she said: “I don’t know what to say. It’s been an incredible two weeks and I’m just glad i’m still in the competition.”
The Czech was never behind in the match but was twice pegged back in the opening set, with Pavlyuchenkova breaking when she served for it at 5-4.
However, Muchova broke again, took her second chance and did not look back.
Connections of Big Rock will be in no rush to take on Ace Impact again after he was caught in the latter stages of the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly on Sunday.
Ace Impact came from way off the pace to take the Group One laurels with a scintillating burst of speed, which resulted in a new track record over the extended 10 furlongs.
Big Rock was sent off favourite on the strength of four unbeaten starts since joining trainer Christopher Head. Those victories included a Listed success and a pair of Group Three contests.
Having made much of the running under Aurelien Lemaitre, Big Rock looked to have the race in safe keeping with a furlong to race, but had no answer as Cristian Demuro’s mount swept past and went on to record a three-and-a-half-length success.
While defeat may have been bitter-sweet, Head was far from despondent at the Rock Of Gibraltar colt’s first run beyond an extended nine furlongs.
“I am very happy, because the horse has come a long way,” said the handler.
“He has won a bunch of races already and it is possible he gets beaten by good horses in the Jockey Club. In terms of the (front-running) strategy, it was pretty straightforward.
“Of course you can be vulnerable when you are trying to go a longer distance with that strategy.
“It’s fair enough. I’m very happy. If it wasn’t for the horse who beat us, we would have won the Jockey Club by four lengths and everybody would be amazed.
“The jockey did everything right. He kicked at the right time and I thought we had it won.
“When I saw that horse (win) from so far back, you have to think it is probably a very top-class horse, one we are probably not going to encounter again.
“The track record was broken and certainly they are two good horses. Usually we don’t have that kind of pace and usually you don’t get to see the true quality of the horses. I’m pretty happy with that result.”
Head has not ruled out the possibility Big Rock will cross the Channel at some point, although it is unlikely he will be seen at trips beyond 10 furlongs again.
He added: “We still have to discuss with the owner where we go and there are a few nice options.
“Pretty much we are going to try to put him over a mile or 2000 metres (10 furlongs), but we will see. That will probably be the top of his distance, I would think.
“It is a possibility you will see him in Britain. I have a few options with a few races back there and it would be nice.”
Meanwhile, Blue Rose Cen, who gave the trainer a breakthrough Classic success in the French 1,000 Guineas, will bid to secure another when she heads for the French Oaks at Chantilly on Sunday week.
“She is doing very well and we are heading for the Prix de Diane,” added Head. “She is beautiful and came out of the race well.
“She is really a wonderful filly, as she has been a very nice two-year-old and now it seems she is capable of winning both the French Guineas and probably the Oaks.
“I don’t see the limit of her and we will see after that race what we do about her programme for the next part of the season.
“She looks very stable and that’s what we want. I’m very happy with her.”
White Birch will take on Auguste Rodin in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh, with trainer John Murphy insisting “there’s no hiding now”.
The grey son of Ulysses had advertised his Classic credentials when he flew down the York straight to get within half a length of The Foxes in the Dante after previously landing the Ballysax Stakes.
Though having plenty left to do at the halfway stage under Colin Keane on his first try over a mile and a half in the Betfred Derby, he stayed on well again to finish just over five lengths behind the impressive winner at Epsom on Saturday.
Murphy is now anticipating a rematch with Aidan O’Brien’s winner on July 2, for which White Birch is the 8-1 joint-third favourite with Paddy Power, with Auguste Rodin the 4-6 favourite.
“It was a relief. We were absolutely delighted. He came home safe and sound, not a bother on him,” said Murphy.
“We’re happy out, very happy.
“He is on the cards for the Irish Derby – that’s Plan A. He’s come back 100 per cent and all is good.
“He’s progressive. Every run seems to be better, so we hope that curve continues. He’s in very good shape.
“The first plan is the Irish Derby and he will have loads of other entries in the meantime, but we will just play it by the horse.
“We have to take on the winner now. There’s no hiding now – you have got to do it. Hopefully one of these good races will go his way. You never know.”
Olympic BMX silver medallist Kye Whyte feels grassroots clubs can continue to help guide youngsters on a safe pathway through any socio-economic challenges within their communities.
Whyte, 23, grew up in south London where his father Nigel was a co-founder of the Peckham BMX Club in Burgess Park, which aims to steer young people away from gang culture and crime.
The youngest of three brothers, Whyte also went on to represent Great Britain, winning silver at the 2018 European Championship in Glasgow before finishing second in the BMX final at the Tokyo Olympics.
Whyte – who has since taken silver in the 2022 UCI BMX World Championships as well claiming the European title in Belgium last summer – recently returned to his Peckham roots to help launch the ‘Play Their Way’ campaign by the Children’s Coaching Collaborative which is funded through Sport England and the National Lottery.
Having seen first hand how such projects have helped young people develop, Whyte is in no doubt of the important impact they can have – both on and off the track.
“We have had kids and teenagers come here who are on a troubled path, but want to go on to a different path,” Whyte told the PA news agency.
“They have then become volunteer coaches, helping clean the bikes and pack them away. It is a great way to keep kids off the streets and doing something fun.”
Whyte added: “Getting kids into racing is no problem, but if they want their own bike it can be hard to finance that.
“If they can’t afford it (to buy), we can help them by lending bikes and providing helmets for training or even if they need them for racing events as well.”
In Tokyo, Whyte won Britain’s first BMX medal since the event’s introduction to the Olympic programme in 2008.
There was more success shortly afterwards at the Ariake Urban Sports Park when Beth Shriever claimed gold in the women’s race.
As Shriever collapsed in tears following her victory, a jubilant Whyte scooped his team-mate up and held her aloft in what was one of the most memorable moments of the delayed 2020 Games.
“All we want for the sport is for it to be more enjoyable and better for the future,” said Whyte.
“While we are in it, that is all we can do – to push it as much as we can.
“Having gone to the Olympics to get a medal, we have put the sport onto the map and at a bigger level.”
Whyte is working his way back to full fitness after suffering a broken shoulder blade during a BMX European Cup event in Latvia last month.
The 23-year-old is firmly focused on a return to form ahead of the World Championships in Glasgow during August.
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“I am on the mend, keeping the physio up. We will push through and get there in the end,” he said.
“If you are thinking about it (injuries), then it will probably happen, just because you are riding more wary or cautious.”
Whyte added: “When we were in Glasgow in 2018 (for the European Championships), they had grandstands up and I am pretty sure that nobody there had a clue what BMX was.
“But the crowd was absolutely mental, so I think it will be a great event again.”
Serena Williams overcame illness to win her 20th grand slam title after beating Lucie Safarova in the French Open final on this day in 2015.
The American, who won her first major 16 years previously, beat Safarova 6-3 6-7 (2) 6-2 in a dramatic showdown at Roland Garros.
Williams, 33 at the time, was the clear favourite as the world number one and reigning US Open and Australian Open champion, but she had been struggling with illness prior to the final and revealed she almost withdrew from the match.
And she was then given a fright by Safarova, who was playing in her first grand slam final in the French capital.
Williams won the first set 6-3 and looked to be heading for a routine victory when she led 4-1 in the second.
However, the left-handed Safarova battled back to force a second-set tie-break, which she won comprehensively.
A major shock was on the cards when Safarova led 2-0 in the decider, only for Williams to show her prowess by winning six successive games and claim a third French Open title.
Williams said after the match: “Is it the most difficult grand slam I’ve ever won? For sure.
“When you have the flu your whole body aches. That’s kind of what I have been dealing with.
“Even now I just really don’t have any energy and I just want to go to bed.
“It’s been a nightmare 48 hours.”
She added: “I talked to all the doctors here and the physios here. I even told the physio, ‘I’m not sure I’m going to be able to play because this is just not looking good’.
It was her 20th grand slam singles title, which left her two behind Steffi Graf and four behind Margaret Court.
Williams went on to take her tally to 23, but history continued to elude her as she lost her last four grand slam finals, two at Wimbledon and two in the US Open.
In August 2022, Williams announced her impending “evolution” away from professional tennis and played what was expected to be her final match at the 2022 US Open.
Williams announced she is pregnant with her second child in May this year.
Jonathan Marchessault had two goals and an assist and the Vegas Golden Knights put on another dominant performance en route to a 7-2 rout of the Florida Panthers in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Monday.
Brett Howden also scored two goals as Vegas took a commanding 2-0 series lead and moved within two victories of the franchise's first Stanley Cup title. Four other Golden Knights players finished with two points as the Western Conference regular-season champions recorded at least five goals in a third straight game, a stretch in which they've outscored their opponents by a whopping 18-4 margin.
Vegas also cooled off one of the NHL's hottest goaltenders of this postseason for a second consecutive game, as Florida's Sergei Bobrovsky was pulled 7:10 into the second period after yielding four goals on 13 shots.
Bobrovsky entered this series having won 11 of his last 12 starts while compiling a stellar 1.95 goals-against average and .942 save percentage over that time frame.
The Knights got to Bobrovsky early in Game 2 as Marchessault scored on a power play 7:05 in. The forward picked up an assist later in the period on Alec Martinez's goal that staked Vegas to a 2-0 lead entering the first intermission.
Nicolas Roy extended the margin to 3-0 when he beat Bobrovsky less than three minutes into the second period. Howden then scored his first of the night just over four minutes later to chase the Panthers netminder.
Anton Lundell got Florida on the board just 14 seconds into the third period, but Marchessault answered with his 12th goal of this postseason - a Vegas franchise record - to push the lead to 5-1 with just over two minutes elapsed in the session.
Michael Amadio put Vegas up by five goals midway through the third. Florida's Matthew Tkachuk responded with his team-leading 10th goal of the postseason just over two minutes later before Howden closed out the scoring with a power-play goal with 2:08 remaining.
Adin Hill finished with 29 saves for Vegas, which will try to maintain its momentum when the series shifts to Florida for Thursday's Game 3.
The Jamaica Boxing Board (JBB) and J. Wray and Nephew Overproof Rum have partnered to stage an eight-month boxing series for amateur and professional boxers with the first bout on Saturday, July 1, 2023, at Cling Cling Oval in Kingston.
The program is designed to create a dynamic platform that enables elite amateur boxers to refine their skills in preparation for international competitions while simultaneously providing professional athletes an opportunity to launch and cultivate their careers in front of their home crowd.
Stephen Jones, President of the Jamaica Boxing Board (JBB) believes the initiative will help re-invigorate the sport in the country.
“By combining our shared vision and expertise, we are confident that this partnership will facilitate the growth and development of boxing in Jamaica, create exciting opportunities for our boxers and continue to positively impact the communities we serve,” Jones said.
“It is only natural to align ourselves with the company that not only helped kick-start this movement but also possesses the means, vision, and determination to actualize our goals of expanding the footprint of boxing both locally and worldwide.”
Meanwhile, J. Wray & Nephew Limited’s Marketing Manager Pavel Smith is elated that the partnership will provide an opportunity for Jamaicans to support the careers of local boxers.
“Jamaica has a love affair with boxing and Wray & Nephew remains a bedrock in the advancement of the sport in Jamaica,” he said.
“This series gives our talented boxers more opportunities to increase their visibility and fight counts that will, in turn, make them contenders for larger global opportunities.”
The new boxing platform offers talented boxers more than just local recognition. It aims to empower participants to chart a course that leads them all the way to the prestigious world titles. In addition to showcasing boxing talent, the series will foster community cohesion as the fights will be held in communities on a rotational basis every six weeks.
The JBB’s overarching vision has always been to establish Jamaica as a hub for international boxing.
Jones explained that, “We firmly believe that once this endeavor takes flight and garners momentum, ProAm shows will become an enduring fixture in our annual calendar, further solidifying Jamaica's reputation as a global boxing destination.”
Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff will meet in a rematch of last year’s French Open final.
The pair both moved through to the quarter-finals, with Gauff beating Anna Karolina Schmiedlova and Swiatek leading 5-1 when Lesia Tsurenko retired through illness.
There will also be a rematch between Holger Rune and Casper Ruud, who engaged in a fiery battle in the last eight a year ago, while Alexander Zverev continued his strong form in the night session with victory over Grigor Dimitrov.
Picture of the dayQuote of the dayShot of the dayTweet of the day
Former top-10 player Carla Suarez Navarro announced the birth of twins.
Stat of the dayFallen seeds
Men: Francisco Cerundolo (23), Yoshihito Nishioka (27), Grigor Dimitrov (28)
Women: None
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Aryna Sabalenka takes on Elina Svitolina in the highest-profile clash between a Belarusian or Russian athlete and a Ukrainian since the war began.
The night session sees the biggest clash of the men’s tournament so far between top seed Carlos Alcaraz and former finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Novak Djokovic takes on Russian 11th seed Karen Khachanov while Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova meets Karolina Muchova in an all-unseeded match.
A tearful Miyu Kato returned to Court 14 at the French Open a day after her controversial disqualification.
The Japanese player and her women’s doubles partner Aldila Sutjiadi were defaulted during their third-round clash with Marie Bouzkova and Sara Sorribes Tormo after Kato accidentally hit a ball girl with a ball.
The 28-year-old was allowed to continue in mixed doubles with German partner Tim Puetz and, back on the same court, the pair defeated Brazilians Luisa Stefani and Rafael Matos to reach the semi-finals.
There has been a lot of support for Kato since the incident from within the locker room and, as the crowd gave her and Puetz a prolonged round of applause, the Japanese player began to cry before being consoled by her partner.
Kato, who apologised on Twitter on Sunday evening, was in tears again in the press room and had to briefly leave her press conference before answering questions only in Japanese.
It is believed she has appealed against the disqualification in the hope of keeping her prize money and ranking points, which would normally be forfeited in such situations.
Puetz said: “I think, first and foremost, we’re all, including Miyu, happy that the ball girl is OK, because obviously she got hit. It’s a little girl on Court 14. For them they’re very excited to be there. I think you saw she was distraught.
“Besides that, I’m sure Miyu feels terrible about what happened. This was just very unfortunate for everyone, especially for her and the girl.”
Kato was returning a ball to the other end of the court after a point had finished but the ball girl reacted too late and it struck her on the neck.
The umpire initially gave a warning but, with Bouzkova and Sorribes Tormo pointing out the distress of the ball girl, the supervisor and referee were called and, after lengthy discussions, opted to default Kato and Sutjiadi.
The decision has drawn widespread criticism from within tennis, but Puetz had sympathy for the officials, saying: “All they see is a crying ball girl who got hit with a ball. In that moment, to make that decision is very difficult.
“While I don’t necessarily agree with it, I think I can understand how you would get to that decision. It’s much easier now looking at the pictures and then comparing to some other instances in the past years. Yeah, I think it’s very easy to say, ‘No, she should not have been defaulted’.”
Bouzkova and Sorribes Tormo have faced heavy criticism on social media for appearing to try to force the default, but the Spaniard insisted they did nothing wrong.
“It’s a very bad situation that happened yesterday,” said Sorribes Tormo. “Also, for Marie and for me, it’s tough to have all this kind of things that people are saying.
“It’s not easy because the only thing we’ve done yesterday was going to the referee and explain to him what happened.
“So, first of all, we were saying that the ball kid was crying because we were scared, because we were, ‘Oh, something happened’. Then we were saying that the ball was direct because he didn’t see the ball.
“All the rest, the decision was taken by the supervisor, and I think it’s not our thing or we haven’t done anything bad.”
Puetz now hopes Kato can write a happier ending to her fortnight at Roland Garros.
The German said: “I was happy yesterday when we got the call that we will be allowed to play mixed. Not because I care too much about the mixed, it’s just because hopefully she can kind of move on.
“I’m happy that we can still play a couple of matches here and just hopefully add some good memories to kind of get over it as well instead of just leaving Paris with that really crappy feeling with what happened yesterday.”
The Buffalo Bills have upgraded their pass rush, agreeing to a one-year deal with veteran outside linebacker Leonard Floyd.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network was the first to report the agreement on Monday.
Drafted with the ninth overall pick by the Chicago Bears in 2016, the 30-year-old Floyd is entering his eighth NFL season after spending the last three with the Los Angeles Rams following his first four years with the Bears.
He won a Super Bowl with the Rams two years ago while playing on the opposite side of the defense as Von Miller, who he'll be reunited with in Buffalo.
The Bills were tied for 14th in the NFL in sacks last season with 40, but their production dipped after Miller tore the ACL in his right knee in November and missed the rest of the season.
Following Miller's injury, Buffalo had two or fewer sacks in five of their final seven games.
Floyd had nine sacks while playing in all 17 games last season and has 47 1/2 sacks in his career.
Since the start of the 2020 season, his 29 sacks rank 10th in the league.
The Bills have lost in the divisional round of the playoffs each of the last two seasons, and hope the addition of Floyd will help them get back to the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1993 season.
Buffalo opens the 2023 season with a highly anticipated Monday night showdown against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets on September 11, and Miller is optimistic he'll be able to play.
Bills agree to terms with OLB Leonard Floyd on a 1-year deal. (via @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/4NKBxj1Lcr
— NFL (@NFL) June 5, 2023Coco Gauff is gunning for revenge against Iga Swiatek when they clash in the quarter-finals of the French Open.
Gauff reached her first grand slam singles final here last year and was handed a heavy beating by Swiatek, who claimed her second Roland Garros title.
Their rivalry is a one-sided 6-0 to the Pole, with Gauff yet to win a set, but the teenager said: “Honestly, since last year I have been wanting to play her, especially at this tournament.
“I figured that it was going to happen because I figured I was going to do well and she was going to do well. Didn’t know what side of the draw we were going to be on, obviously.
“But I’m the type of mentality, if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. I think also, if you want to improve, you have to play the best.
“I feel like, the way my career has gone so far, if I see a level, and if I’m not quite there at that level, I know I have to improve. I think it would be almost cowardly to say that I want to not face the noise and not face the challenge, but I think that I’m up for it.
“I have improved a lot since last year, and she has too. I think it would be a great battle for us and for the fans, too.”
Gauff is again showing excellent form in Paris and she reached the quarter-finals for the third successive year with a 7-5 6-2 victory over Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
Swiatek, meanwhile, has lost only nine games in her four matches, although she was given a helping hand when Ukrainian opponent Lesia Tsurenko retired through illness trailing 5-1 in the opening set.
Swiatek again raced out of the blocks, moving into a 4-0 lead before her run of 23 straight games across three matches came to an end.
Tsurenko called the doctor and trainer after getting on the board but played only one more game before calling it a day.
Seventh seed Ons Jabeur eased into the last eight with a 6-3 6-1 victory over American Bernarda Pera.
The Tunisian, who reached the final at both Wimbledon and the US Open last year, has struggled with injury in 2023 but is through to the quarter-finals here for the first time.
“It was the only grand slam missing,” said Jabeur. “I’m very happy with the performance, with the way I was, playing, especially coming back after an injury.
“I was just taking it one match at a time, trying to make it to the second week. Now I’m going to push more for the next few matches.”
In the last eight she will meet Beatriz Haddad Maia, who needed a mammoth three hours and 51 minutes to get past Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo 6-7 (3) 6-3 7-5.
It was the longest women’s match of the year and the longest at Roland Garros since 1995, with Haddad Maia becoming the first Brazilian to reach the women’s singles quarter-finals since Maria Bueno 55 years ago.
“All the matches that I play I prepare myself for the toughest moments,” said the 14th seed. “So I know that Sara will bring the balls. She defends very well. I knew that the ball was coming again.
“I had to be aggressive. So I was prepared for that. I was trying to be as aggressive as I could to finish the point, to go to the net. I work very hard on my body, as well, so I believe in myself when we have tough moments.”
Holger Rune survived a fifth-set tie-break against Francisco Cerundolo to set up a French Open quarter-final rematch with Casper Ruud.
Their encounter at the same stage last year descended into acrimony when Rune accused Ruud of celebrating in his face in the locker room and showing a lack of class, which was fiercely denied by the Norwegian.
For a while it looked like they might not meet again, with Argentinian Cerundolo battling back from two sets to one down to force a decider and then holding three break points at 4-3.
Dane Rune saved all of them, broke serve himself then failed to serve it out but put the disappointment behind him to clinch a 7-6 (3) 3-6 6-4 1-6 7-6 (7) victory after just short of four hours.
Rune felt it was just deserts after his loss at the same stage of the Australian Open to Andrey Rublev, saying: “I had a heart-breaking loss in Australia where I could serve for it and I lost it in a match tie-break like this.
“I told myself when we started the tie-break just to relax and enjoy it. Moments like this stay with you whether you win or you lose. I enjoyed every moment.”
There was another moment of umpiring controversy in the third set when, like in the clash between Cameron Norrie and Lucas Pouille on the same court, the umpire failed to spot a double bounce.
This time Cerundolo was the victim and, to compound matters, umpire Kader Nouni awarded Rune the point after his opponent gestured that it should have been stopped.
Ruud edged three tight sets against Chilean Nicolas Jarry, coming through 7-6 (3) 7-5 7-5 to keep alive his hopes of making back-to-back finals.
The Norwegian is slowly coming back into form after a disappointing start to the year, and he said: “This year I felt a little more pressure, obviously, because I needed to try to defend my final spot.
“That’s been on my mind. And I haven’t done as well in other tournaments, so I know every match that I can win and points on the rankings that I can try to gain can be important for the rest of the year.
“So I don’t feel like I have played my best tennis yet but, at the same time, I’m playing many opponents who play very aggressively and they play fast and give me no rhythm.
“I think my next match is going to be a little more playable from the baseline and I think the game will be a little bit different from this match. I’m going to try to prepare for that and hopefully bring my A game.”
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