Casper Ruud is looking to follow in the footsteps of compatriot Erling Haaland by putting Norway "on the map" ahead of his US Open final appearance.

Ruud is the first Norwegian male player to appear in the championship match at Flushing Meadows, where he will play Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday, with the winner also set to become the new world number one.

Runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the French Open in June, the fifth seed would become only the fourth player from Scandinavia to top the ATP rankings should he prevail at Arthur Ashe Stadium - after Bjorn Borg, Mats Wilander and Stefan Edberg.

Ruud is not the only Norwegian sportsman to be enjoying an impressive spell of form. Indeed, compatriot Haaland has made a blistering start to life at Manchester City.

The former Borussia Dortmund striker has already scored 12 goals in his first eight appearances across all competitions - including successive hat-tricks - since swapping Bundesliga for the Premier League.

Ruud hailed Haaland's red-hot streak at City, and said he takes immense pride in representing the Norwegian flag every time he steps out onto the court.

The nine-time ATP title winner said: "Erling Haaland has had an unbelievable season so far. And we all hope he keeps going. It's a joy to watch him score goal after goal.

"So, he's obviously the biggest star we have in Norway at the moment, and he'll probably continue to be so for many more years. 

"I'm just focused on my career and hope I can, of course, win more tournaments in my career.

"Everywhere I go, I represent Norway - whenever I play on the ATP Tour or in a grand slam, because the Norwegian flag is always behind or in front of my name.

"So, I want to represent Norway in a good way, and put Norwegian tennis a little bit more on the map than what it's been in previous years.

"I hope I can represent Norway and the Norwegian people in a good way when I'm travelling around and playing, and hopefully winning more matches."

Mercedes reserve driver Nyck de Vries is set to make his Formula One debut in Monza, filling in for Williams' Alex Albon after he was ruled out of contention.

Albon travelled to a local hospital for treatment for appendicitis on Saturday and it was announced he would not race in the Italian Grand Prix.

Instead, De Vries will drive for Williams in his place in an opportunity for him to impress ahead of a potential spot on the grid in 2023.

"Williams Racing can confirm that, after feeling unwell this morning and seeking medical advice from the FIA and local hospital, Alex Albon is now undergoing treatment for appendicitis," the team's statement said.

"Following on from this, we can confirm that the team's reserve driver Nyck de Vries will drive in place of Alex for the remainder of the Italian Grand Prix weekend.

"Alex is in good spirits and the team wishes him a speedy recovery."

De Vries had already been involved in the week's events at Monza, driving for Aston Martin in the first free practice session, and has said he feels he deserves an opportunity to drive next season.

"Obviously, it's a dream and I think I would deserve a chance, but ultimately it's not up to me to decide a driver line-up," he told reporters.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has also previously backed De Vries for a seat in 2023, though conceded he is unable to help and the team may have to let him go with George Russell and Lewis Hamilton on their books.

"If we are not able to provide him [De Vries] with an interesting Formula One project, in a way we need to let him go," he told Sky Sports during the French Grand Prix weekend.

"He's looking at various options - sportscars and maybe Formula E, but you must never give up on the opportunity that one day a Formula One door can open. He has been very good and I can't really help him."

Alpine, Williams, Haas, Alfa Romeo and AlphaTauri are all yet to confirm their full driver line-up for 2023, leaving five spots on the grid.

Carlos Alcaraz will "give everything" to win the US Open and become world number one as he prepares to face Casper Ruud in Sunday's final.

Alcaraz overcame home favourite Frances Tiafoe in a thrilling five-set semi-final at Flushing Meadows on Friday, winning 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3.

The 19-year-old will take on Ruud for the title after the Norwegian beat Karen Khachanov in four sets earlier in the day.

The honour of becoming world number one will also be on the line for both, after current holder Daniil Medvedev was eliminated in the round of 16 by Nick Kyrgios.

Speaking on-court after his victory against a spirited Tiafoe, Alcaraz said: "To be honest in the semi-final of a grand slam you have to give everything. 

"We have to fight until the last ball. It doesn't matter if we are fighting for five hours, six hours. It doesn't matter. You have to give everything on court. Frances gave everything on court. This is amazing."

The winner of Sunday's final will seal his first career grand slam, while Alcaraz will create history if he wins as it will make him the youngest world number one since the ATP rankings began in 1973.

It will be the Spaniard's first grand slam final, while his opponent appeared in a losing effort to Rafael Nadal in June's French Open final.

Alcaraz will need to recover from his third consecutive five-set match at the US Open, but insisted he will "give everything" to win.

"It's amazing to be able to fight for big things. First time in the final of a grand slam. I can see the number one in the world, but at the same time it's so far away," Alcaraz added.

"I have one more to go against a player who is unbelievable. He deserves to play a final. He played the final of a grand slam in Roland Garros. This is my first time. 

"I'm going to give everything that I have. I will have to handle the nerves of being in a final of a grand slam, but obviously I'm really, really happy and as I said before every match, I'm going to enjoy the moment."

Frances Tiafoe insisted he will return and win the US Open "one day" after coming up short in an enthralling five-set semi-final against Carlos Alcaraz.

The home favourite won the first and fourth sets on tie breaks, only to lose the decider as his 19-year-old opponent sealed a 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 victory on Friday.

Tiafoe was emotional after his loss as an appreciative crowd at Flushing Meadows acknowledged his efforts.

"I gave everything I had," he said during his on-court interview. "Too good from Carlos tonight.

"I gave everything I had for the last two weeks. I came here wanting to win the US Open and I feel I let you guys down."

The 24-year-old had an impressive run in the tournament, beating higher seeds Diego Schwartzman, Rafael Nadal and Andrey Rublev to reach the final four.

"This one hurts. This one really, really hurts," he added. "Too good from Carlos, you're gonna win a lot of grand slams, you're a hell of a player, hell of a person.

"I'm happy I got to share the court and such a big stage with you. 

"I'm going to come back and I will win this thing one day. I'm sorry guys."

Alcaraz will face Casper Ruud in Sunday's final after the Norwegian beat Karen Khachanov in four sets in Friday's other semi-final.

The NBA is expected to raise the salary cap by over $10million for the 2023-24 season, while also increasing the tax level.

The salary cap for the upcoming 2022-23 season has been set at $123.65m, with a tax level of $150.26m.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the league told teams on Friday that the cap is projected to rise to $134m, and the tax level to $162m, a significant rise.

It is also around $1m higher than previous projections made by the NBA in June.

The new NBA season gets underway on October 18 when the Boston Celtics host the Philadelphia 76ers.

One of the most chaotic lead-ups to a UFC pay-per-view card culminated with the three top-billed fights all swapping opponents, with Nate Diaz now facing Tony Ferguson in the main event of UFC 279 on Saturday night.

UFC president Dana White already had called it an unprecedented situation when he was forced to cancel the traditional fighters' press conference on Thursday due to an uncontrollable brawl backstage between multiple fighters and their entourages, before further shenanigans took place at the weigh-ins.

Needing to weigh within one pound of the 170lbs welterweight limit, Khamzat Chimaev – in his first main event – came in at a staggering 178.5lbs, missing weight by seven-and-a-half pounds. 

While fighters are given an extra hour to try and shed the extra weight – usually one or two pounds at the most – Chimaev was so far away that there was no point, all but cancelling his fight against Diaz as he refused to concede the massive advantage to his already favoured opponent.

While a few pounds may not seem like it would decide an outcome, competitors who have missed weight have been known to thrive on fight night due to the fact they did not have to drain themselves all the way down to the required number. 

It raises questions about the validity of cutting weight at all, with other promotions such as top Asian brand ONE Championship outright banning the practice by forcing fighters to pass hydration tests in the lead up to the fight to ensure they are not dangerously dehydrated in the effort to shed the last few pounds.

With the main event off, the call was made to Ferguson to step in on short notice, having been booked in the co-main event against Li Jingliang.

With Ferguson making the weight at 170lbs and accepting the bump up to the main event – and almost certainly a significant pay increase to save the card – it left Li without a fight.

So, with Chimaev still willing to fight at a higher weight, he will now face Kevin Holland, with those two said to be at the centre of the backstage scuffle that ended the press conference. Holland had been preparing for a catchweight bout at 180lbs against Daniel Rodriguez, so he will not be outweighed by Chimaev when they contest the new co-main event.

That left Li and Rodriguez as the two remaining fighters to match up, but the problem is that Li had weighed in at 170, and Rodriguez came in at 180. In an Instagram post, Li said it is "no problem", and accepted the extremely tough upgraded opponent.

The Tampa Bay Rays welcomed back star shortstop Wander Franco to the lineup after a two-month injury absence, and he returned in style with three hits in a 4-2 road win against the New York Yankees on Friday.

Franco, 21, was rewarded for his stellar rookie season with an 11-year, $182million contract extension, but his second year has been derailed by a fracture in his wrist before finally getting the all-clear Friday morning.

Batting second in the Rays' lineup, Franco hit a double in his first at-bat, and after a pop-out in the second inning, he stepped back to the plate in the fourth frame and doubled again. A single in the sixth inning would complete a three-for-five day at the plate, with two runs scored and two RBIs.

Also going three-for-five at the plate with two doubles and two RBIs was Franco's teammate Randy Arozarena, with the duo combining to drive in all of the Rays' runs.

They had some breathing room early thanks to an excellent start on the mound by Drew Rasmussen, who held the Yankees scoreless through the first six innings, finishing with 10 strikeouts while only allowing six hits and no walks.

An Aaron Judge single in the seventh frame, after Rasmussen had been pulled, gave the Yankees their first run of the contest, with a Kyle Higashioka home run in the ninth proving to be a consolation.

For Judge, the AL MVP favourite, the RBI was his 119th of the season, which is 10 more than any other player. He also has 19 more home runs than any other player (55) and 36 more total bases than any other player (339).

With the win, the Rays have cut the Yankees' lead in the AL East to three-and-a-half games, and they will play twice more over the weekend.

Bo Bichette's bat stays hot

Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette is in the midst of one his best ever hot streaks with the bat, hitting his fifth home run from his past four games in his side's 4-3 win against the Texas Rangers.

Bichette, 24, had three home runs on Monday against the Baltimore Orioles, and followed it up with a home run the very next day in a game where he went four-for-five at the plate. 

Against the Rangers, Bichette opened the scoring with an RBI ground ball in the first inning, and in his next at-bat, he took advantage of star teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr getting on base and knocked a ball 385 feet over the right-field wall.

Bichette now has five home runs from his past 18 at-bats, after totaling 18 homers from his first 536 at-bats his season.

Cron launches the season's longest home run

C.J. Cron hit a ball he will never forget as his Colorado Rockies defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-10 in a high-scoring shootout.

In a game with eight home runs – with six of them traveling at least 418 feet in the altitude-assisted Coors Field – one stood above the rest as Cron connected on a 504-foot nuke to left-field. 

It is the longest home run this season, and ties him for the 10th-longest home run ever recorded.

UFC 279's scheduled main event between Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev is in doubt after the latter missed weight by 7.5 pounds on the eve of the fight.

Chimaev and Diaz are scheduled to go toe-to-toe on Saturday in Las Vegas but that bout is in jeopardy after the Swedish fighter hit the scales at 178.5 pounds, above the non-title welterweight limit of 171 pounds – which Diaz weighed at.

Further complicating the matter is the fact 37-year-old Diaz will become a free agent following the weekend, with Saturday's fight scheduled as his last with UFC, and it is unknown what would happen with his contract if the fight was cancelled.

It continues a week that has been far from what UFC planned, with Thursday's press conference having been cancelled after Chimaev got into a skirmish with Kevin Holland, who is due to face Daniel Rodriguez on the card.

Co-main event fighters Tony Ferguson and Li Jingliang both made weight for their bout, with Holland and Rodriguez also meeting weight.

With the main card featuring four fights outside of Chimaev v Diaz, the show could go ahead without the main event, though Ferguson has been touted to fight Diaz instead.

A further eight bouts are scheduled on the early preliminary card and the preliminary card.

Casper Ruud called facing off against Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open final with the world number one ranking also on the line "the ideal situation" after successfully navigating the challenge of Karen Khachanov in Friday's semi-final.

Ruud needed just over three hours to defeat the Russian 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 5-7 6-2, becoming the first Norwegian man to ever reach the US Open final.

With Alcaraz outlasting Frances Tiafoe in a five-set battle of attrition, the 23-year-old Ruud and 19-year-old Alcaraz will both be seeking their first ever grand slam title in Sunday's decider.

Speaking to the media before Alcaraz's match, Ruud said he hoped it would be the Spaniard who made it through so they could play off for the number one ranking.

"I think what's most fair is if we both reach the final and whoever wins the final reaches the world number one," he said. "That would be, I think, the ideal situation."

He then dove into some strategy about what it takes to beat the teenage sensation, saying "I will seek my revenge" for the two losses he has suffered at the hands of Alcaraz in Miami and Marbella this season, both in straight sets.

"I think if I want to beat Carlos, I'll need to play very precise with all the shots that I hit," he said. "Especially trying to keep him a little bit further back in the court, to play with good depth and length on all my shots.

"If he steps in, he can do anything with the ball. He can rip a winner. He also has great touch with the dropshot. I think he has one of the best dropshots on tour. He can do both shots back and forth, it will sort of get you off guard sometimes with the dropshot.

"If you play with good depth and good length, it's tougher to hit dropshots. That will be something that I will try to focus on.

"We're playing for the tournament and also to be world number one – of course, there will be nerves and we will both feel it. 

"I hope it will be a good match. He has beaten me a couple times and I will seek my revenge."

One advantage Ruud will have over Alcaraz is the fact that this is not his first rodeo, having made the French Open final this year where he lost to Rafael Nadal, but he feels that experience can only help him.

"I mean, Roland Garros, the final, [Nadal] obviously gave me a good beating," he said. 

"After the final I said, If I ever reach one again, I hope it is not Rafa on the other side of the court in Roland Garros because it's sort of an impossible task I think for any player. I'm happy that it's not Rafa on clay.

"I hope it can have prepared me a little bit. At least I know a little bit of what I'm facing when I'm stepping on the court, seeing the trophy on the back of the court, seeing tons of celebrities. 

"Even in Roland Garros, there was royal families there watching. That was a little bit of a new experience for me – I hope I can be more ready for that on Sunday."

Carlos Alcaraz is having a remarkable breakthrough season, and he has a chance to put an exclamation point on it after defeating Frances Tiafoe 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3 in Friday's US Open semi-final.

It will be 19-year-old Alcaraz's first appearance in a grand slam final, and with a win against Casper Ruud he will also become the youngest world number one in men's tennis history, beating out Lleyton Hewitt (20 years and nine months old) by over a year.

In a tight first set where both players failed to capitalise on their break point opportunities, Tiafoe saved an Alcaraz set point to force the tiebreaker, where he would finally secure the opening frame with the fourth set point of his own.

With such fine margins deciding the outcomes, some sloppy serving would flip the script in the second set. After Tiafoe had no double faults in the first and Alcaraz had three, it was Alcaraz cleaning things up to post zero for the rest of the match.

Meanwhile, Tiafoe had a pair of costly double faults in the second, which ultimately led to the only break in the set, as Alcaraz converted one of his four opportunities, while saving the three break points he faced.

Tiafoe's vaunted serve continued to meltdown in the third frame, dropping his first-serve accuracy from 67 per cent to 30 per cent, which led to him winning just 35 per cent (seven-of-20) of his service points as Alcaraz lifted.

Alcaraz needed only 34 minutes to wrap up the third set, thanks in large part to Tiafoe committing 12 unforced errors with only six winners, as the Spaniard finished the set with just one ace and four winners.

As the double faults and unforced errors faded away, Tiafoe rediscovered the kind of form and fight that saw him stylishly handle the challenge of Rafael Nadal earlier this week. Tiafoe and Alcaraz traded breaks in four consecutive games in the fourth set, with the American having to save a match point to force another tiebreaker where he would prevail.

But Alcaraz would not be denied, grabbing a crucial break in the opening game of the fifth set, and when Tiafoe snatched it back, his joy was short-lived as Alcaraz re-broke in the very next game to-love, and once more to finish the match.

Data Slam: Alcaraz way ahead of schedule

If he defeats Ruud in the final, Alcaraz will become the second-youngest men's US Open champion ever at 19 years and four months old, trailing only Pete Sampras (19 years, 28 days). 

Both the third and fourth-youngest champions – Oliver Campbell (19 years, six months) and Richard Sears (19 years, 10 months) – won their titles in the late-1800s. 

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Alcaraz - 6/3

Tiafoe - 15/6

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Alcaraz - 59/37

Tiafoe - 51/52

BREAK POINTS WON

Alcaraz - 9/20

Tiafoe - 3/7

The Tampa Bay Rays activated star shortstop Wander Franco from the injured list on Friday as they begin their biggest series of the season against the New York Yankees.

Franco, 21, last played July 9 and went on the injured list the next day with a right hamate bone injury that required surgery.

He was batting second in Friday night’s series opener at New York with Tampa Bay trying to cut into a four-and-a-half game deficit in the American League East.

"We're excited to get him back here. He's such a big part of our club,'' Rays manager Kevin Cash said. ''He makes us better in the lineup. He makes us better defensively, and we'll just see how it goes.''

Franco has battled two separate injuries this season, also missing nearly all of June with a strained right quadriceps. He is batting .260 with five home runs and 23 RBIs in 58 games this season.

"I'd be shocked if he doesn't feel it. He's going to feel it,'' Cash said. ''I don't think that'll go away until maybe next spring training rolls around. It's a surgery that removed a bone so it makes sense that he's feeling it. Now it's just how he can manage it and how we can help him manage it.''

Franco is amongst the game’s brightest young stars and agreed to an $182million, 11-year contract in November after he finished third in AL Rookie of the Year voting.

Casper Ruud is through to his second career grand slam final after emerging triumphant 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 5-7 6-2 in Friday's semi-final against Karen Khachanov.

Ruud, 23, will be searching for his first major title after losing to Rafael Nadal in the French Open decider in June, and he will face the winner between Carlos Alcaraz and Frances Tiafoe.

By defeating Khachanov, Ruud has now won 13 of his past 15 matches, and while it is usually his return game that dictates his effectiveness, against the Russian it was about his ability to win points on serve.

A tight first set saw the two players exchange breaks, securing two each before Ruud took the only point against serve in the tie-break

Whatever he figured out in the breaker carried into the second set, as he did not drop a single point (16-of-16) while serving in the frame. In a near-perfect set, Ruud tallied 12 winners and two unforced errors, while Khachanov shot himself in the foot with three double faults.

With his back to the wall, Khachanov responded well in the third, finding his range with his ground strokes to post 15 winners and four unforced errors, while winning 83 per cent (24-of-29) of his service points.

But that would be his last piece of resistance before Ruud took over down the stretch, rattling off five consecutive games in the fourth set to turn a 0-1 deficit into a 5-1 lead, serving it out to love.

Data Slam: Ruud reaches new heights

Ruud is guaranteed to leave the US Open with a new career-high ranking, and with a win in the final, he will become world number one first the first time.

The only player with a chance to overtake him this week in the race for the number one spot is Alcaraz.

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Ruud – 52/34

Khachanov – 43/39

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Ruud – 10/1

Khachanov – 15/3

BREAK POINTS WON

Ruud – 6/13

Khachanov – 3/5

UFC 279's scheduled main event between Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev is in doubt after the latter missed weight by 7.5 pounds on the eve of the fight.

Chimaev and Diaz are scheduled to go toe-to-toe on Saturday in Las Vegas but that bout is in jeopardy after the Swedish fighter hit the scales at 178.5 pounds, above the non-title welterweight limit of 171 pounds – which Diaz weighed at.

Further complicating the matter is the fact 37-year-old Diaz will become a free agent following the weekend, with Saturday's fight scheduled as his last with UFC, and it is unknown what would happen with his contract if the fight was cancelled.

It continues a week that has been far from what UFC planned, with Thursday's press conference having been cancelled after Chimaev got into a skirmish with Kevin Holland, who is due to face Daniel Rodriguez on the card.

Co-main event fighters Tony Ferguson and Li Jingliang both made weight for their bout, with Holland and Rodriguez also meeting weight.

With the main card featuring four fights outside of Chimaev v Diaz, the show could go ahead without the main event, though Ferguson has been touted to fight Diaz instead.

A further eight bouts are scheduled on the early preliminary card and the preliminary card.