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'I want more aces against Konta - and not just for me'

Published in Tennis
Saturday, 31 August 2019 10:49

Third seed Karolina Pliskova is among the favourites to win the women's singles at the US Open but faces a tough test against Britain's Johanna Konta in the last 16.

In her latest BBC Sport column, the Czech reveals why she is keen to hit as many as aces as possible in a Grand Slam tournament - and not only to help herself.

Serving is my biggest strength so when I play Johanna Konta for a place in the quarter-finals I want to hit as many aces as possible - for two reasons.

Of course, the first is to help me win the match! The second is because I am giving $200 (£165) to charity for every ace I hit here at the US Open.

I started donating in this way two or three years ago and it has been very successful in raising money because I'm always sure I can hit a lot of aces every match. Well, normally I do, but not always!

In my first-round match I only hit four so I was thinking I needed to hit more. Then I managed nine in my second-round match and 10 in my last match so it is getting much better.

I donate $100 for every ace I hit at every Grand Slam and a local company in the Czech Republic then matches it with $100.

The total is then donated to a good cause in the Czech Republic and we decide where it will go after the tournament.

So far this has included hospitals with paediatric oncology departments, direct donations to children diagnosed with cancer, and helping provide housing and wheelchairs for elderly people.

The money has also helped fund tennis tournaments in Czech Republic and a kids' camp which I put on in Prague in the summer.

Giving something back to people back home is something which means a lot to me. I know I'm lucky to have the opportunities to give money and also ask people who can also help.

Everybody feels different about this but I feel better when I can help the people who need it.

That provides motivation because the more aces I hit the more chance I've got of winning the match - and it helps everybody!

'I knew Johanna when she was Australian!'

Playing Johanna will be a big test for me because she has a good record at the Grand Slams, having reached the French Open semi-final and the Wimbledon quarter-finals this year, and is always close to reaching the final.

She has had a great year, as she did in 2017, although she had a tough one last year. She can be a little bit up and down but of course she is a dangerous player.

Johanna has a lot of weapons, a good serve, good groundstrokes, and is playing with more variety here. So it will be very difficult.

Ons Jabeur, who I played in the third round, is a player who mixes things up a lot, playing a lot of drop-shots and slices, but I think with Johanna it will be more about baseline hitting.

I think it is better to play someone who plays with less variation and, although Johanna can hit a lot of big winners, I prefer to play that style because at least it is cleaner tennis.

We have played a lot of times and I'm aware I have a good record against her, including having beaten her in the Italian Open final in May.

It is something I'm aware of, of course, because I still have those matches in my mind, how we played and how I beat her.

But every match starts 0-0 and I won't be thinking too much about the past because that is when you can start losing quickly.

Of course Johanna also believes every time she is going to win so I have to be ready.

I don't know her personally, we haven't really hung out together. But we have been on the tour for a long time - I knew her when she was Australian before she changed to be British!

We even played each other in an ITF 25k back in 2011 - so I have known her for a very long time and we have both come a long way since then.

Johanna is a nice girl, friendly and always plays fair on the court.

For me it will be about focusing on my serve because maybe it is better than Johanna's.

I have hit 23 aces so far in the tournament but my serve has still not been at its best.

I know I can hit more aces and that comes when I'm relaxed, hitting clean without much energy and just swinging. I hope it will be like that on Sunday - and then everyone will be happy.

Karolina Pliskova was talking to BBC Sport's Jonathan Jurejko at Flushing Meadows

Teenager Andreescu reaches US Open fourth round

Published in Tennis
Saturday, 31 August 2019 11:21

Canadian 15th seed Bianca Andreescu beat former Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki in the third round of the US Open.

The 19-year-old, playing at Flushing Meadows for the first time, won 6-4 6-4 in a match featuring 10 service breaks.

Denmark's Wozniacki, 29, is a two-time US Open finalist.

Andreescu, who has won titles in Toronto and Indian Wells this year, will face American Taylor Townsend in the next round.

World number 116 Townsend knocked out Wimbledon champion Simona Halep in the second round and beat Romanian Sorana Cirstea 7-5 6-2 on Saturday.

Ireland self-belief restored with win - Schmidt

Published in Rugby
Saturday, 31 August 2019 10:22

Ireland coach Joe Schmidt says his side "restored a bit of self-confidence" in their 22-17 win over Wales.

After a 42-point drubbing against England a week ago, the victory in Cardiff provides Ireland with some much-needed momentum with their World Cup opener just three weeks away.

Ireland and Wales will meet again in Dublin next Saturday to conclude their World Cup preparations.

Schmidt will submit his provisional 31-man squad on Monday.

He will not confirm his panel until after next weekend's final warm-up game, and Ireland will go into the encounter with a renewed spring in their step as Schmidt admitted their loss at Twickenham had "created a lot of angst for people outside the environment."

With arguably only a handful a squad places still in the balance, a number of players strengthened their claim for a seat on the place with strong performances in Cardiff.

Prop Dave Kilcoyne was a dominant force while Andrew Porter impressed from the bench.

In the back three Andrew Conway and Will Addison, in his first game since January, both delivered eye-catching displays.

"It's a horrible couple of days ahead," said Schmidt.

"I know how hard these players are working and have worked for a number of years, this is the pinnacle."

With Jacob Stockdale, Rob Kearney and Keith Earls all but certain to travel, at least one of Addison, Conway and Jordan Larmour is likely to miss out on selection despite their ability to cover numerous positions.

Addison's accomplished performance against Wales came at full-back, although most of his Ulster appearances last season came at outside centre.

"He has such a balanced running style, he's accomplished at kicking," said Schmidt.

"But he'd underdone, he hasn't played a lot. His versatility is a huge strength for him."

Ireland's Pool A opener is against Scotland on Yokohama on 22 September.

Hutchinson scores twice as Scotland beat Georgia

Published in Rugby
Saturday, 31 August 2019 10:54

Centre Rory Hutchinson crossed twice on his first Test start as Scotland marked their final outing before the Rugby World Cup squad is named with a comfortable victory over Georgia.

Ben Toolis, Darcy Graham and Scott Cummings also scored as Gregor Townsend's side triumphed in the first visit of a Tier One nation to Tbilisi.

Greig Laidlaw added 15 points with the boot as Scotland recorded their first win on the road in 14 months - just three days before the 31-man squad is confirmed for the tournament in Japan.

The Tbilisi triumph followed a revenge victory over the French at Murrayfield last week after Scotland were humbled in Nice, and is followed by a rematch with Georgia in Edinburgh on Friday.

Townsend's 31-man squad then head to Japan before their World Cup opener against Ireland on 22 September.

Scots make case for inclusion

This was a big day for Georgian rugby. Their head coach Milton Haig spoke before the game about making a good impression on and off the field in the hope that if - and it's a big if - the Six Nations Championship is ever looking for a new member, Georgia will be the next cab off the rank.

It was slightly disappointing, then, to see the Dinamo Arena only around two thirds full, but those Georgians who did turn out brought more than enough colour and noise.

The Scots, having fallen into a damaging habit of going behind early, took control immediately. Laidlaw kicked two penalties before a superb team try strengthened their grip.

Graham almost broke through, Finn Russell sliced past the scrambling defence, and then some good hands from Matt Fagerson and Laidlaw put Toolis in for his first international try.

Hutchinson seems to be a man timing his run to perfection when it comes to World Cup selection. Russell's clever chip put Georgia on the back foot and the Northampton centre showed great footwork to step through the home defence for his first try in Scotland colours on his first Test start.

A 20-point lead at the break was everything Townsend would have wanted, but he resisted the temptation to wrap his key men in cotton wool just yet.

A training-ground move saw Hutchinson coming in on a beautiful line to glide over for his second try - 30-3 and game well and truly over.

Georgia were expected to give Scotland a stern test, especially up front, but this was serving as a reminder the gulf between Tiers One and Two in international rugby remains significant.

With any ideas of a famous upset long since gone, the Tbilisi crowd lowered their sights on simply crossing the try-line.

Georgia hammered at the Scottish line and were repelled by some strong defence until substitute Kakha Asieshvili finally blasted his way through, to the rapturous approval of the home support.

Scotland gathered their thoughts and started probing again. The variety of Russell's game was an unsolvable puzzle for the Georgian defence and his beautifully-weighted stab through was gathered by Graham to dive over.

Cummings came off the bench to batter his way over for try number five to give the scoreline an accurate reflection of Scotland's dominance.

A rare and impressive away win for the Scots, with the likes of Matt Fagerson and Hutchinson doing their cases for inclusion in the final World Cup squad - which Townsend names on Tuesday - no harm at all.

Georgia: Matiashvili; Modebadze, Dzneladze, Kacharava, Todua; Abzhandadze, Lobzhanidze; Nariashvili, Mamukashvili, Gigashvili; Sutiashvili, Mikautadze; Giorgadze, Saghinadze, Gorgadze.

Replacements: Chkoidze, Asieshvili, Chilachava, Nemsadze, Lomidze, Aprasidze, Khmaladze, Mchedlidze.

Scotland: Kinghorn; Graham, Hutchinson, Johnson, Maitland; Russell, Laidlaw; Dell, McInally (capt), Nel; Toolis, Gilchrist; Barclay, Watson, M Fagerson.

Replacements: Stewart, Bhatti, Z Fagerson, Cummings, Strauss, Price, Hastings, Jones.

F2 Racer Anthoine Hubert Dies In Spa Crash

Published in Racing
Saturday, 31 August 2019 10:47

STAVELOT, Belgium – Competitor Anthoine Hubert died Saturday after being involved in a crash in the FIA Formula Two event at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

Hubert, the 22-year-old reigning GP3 Series champion and son of French rally driver Francois Hubert, was battling for a place inside the top-10 on the second lap of the race when he was involved in a crash at Eau Rouge.

Giuliano Alesi lost control of his car in the incident, leading to Hubert to also crash. Hubert’s car was then struck by the car driven by Juan Manuel Correa at the exit of the Raidillon corner.

Hubert was extracted from his car and attended to by medical personnel, but he succumbed to his injuries more than an hour later according to a statement from the FIA, Formula Two’s sanctioning body.

Correa was taken to a local hospital and was in stable condition according to the FIA statement while Alesi was checked and released from the medical center. The remainder of the Formula Two event was canceled Saturday afternoon.

The full statement from the FIA can be found below:

The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) regrets to advise that a serious incident involving cars #12, #19 and #20 occurred at 17:07 on 31/08/19 as a part of the FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race at Spa-Francorchamps, round 17 of the season.

The scene was immediately attended by emergency and medical crews, and all drivers were taken to the medical centre.

As a result of the incident, the FIA regrets to inform that the driver of car #19, Antoine Hubert (FRA), succumbed to his injuries, and passed away at 18:35.

The driver of car #12, Juan-Manuel Correa (USA), is in a stable condition and is being treated at the CHU Liège hospital. More information on his condition will be provided when it becomes available.

The driver of car #20 Giuliano Alesi (FRA) was checked and declared fit at the medical centre.

The FIA is providing support to the event organisers and the relevant authorities, and has commenced an investigation into the incident.

Blaney Blisters Darlington For Xfinity Series Pole

Published in Racing
Saturday, 31 August 2019 11:00

DARLINGTON, S.C. – Ryan Blaney hopes to close his season tenure with Team Penske’s NASCAR Xfinity Series program with a bang this weekend at Darlington Raceway.

He got that mission off to a rousing start on Saturday afternoon by securing the pole for the Sport Clips Haircuts/VFW 200 at the historic 1.366-mile, egg-shaped oval.

Blaney toured the track in 28.696 seconds (171.369 mph) with the No. 12 Bodyarmor Ford Mustang to earn the top starting spot on the grid. It’s his first pole in three Xfinity Series starts at Darlington.

“It’s nice,” said Blaney of having track position. “Honestly, I didn’t think I got the best lap. I got … we got through one and two pretty good, but I thought I missed (turn) three. Going back to switching between cars, I kind of drove it in like a Cup car and I thought I really hurt myself, but it slid and stuck and I was able to keep going.

“I’m really proud of this (No.) 12 group. It’s my second (and) last race for them for this year, so it’s really cool to have a good start to the day,” Blaney added. “Hopefully we can end it just as good. Thanks to Bodyarmor for being part of this deal. It should be a fun one today.”

Christopher Bell will join Blaney on the front row, after a lap of 28.828 seconds (170.584 mph) with his No. 20 Rheem/Ruud Toyota Supra. Bell is a six-time race winner so far this season.

Cole Custer and Justin Allgaier will share the second row of the grid, while Chase Briscoe completed the top five.

Reigning Xfinity Series champion Tyler Reddick will start sixth, followed by Brandon Jones, Noah Gragson, Austin Cindric and Michael Annett.

Dale Earnhardt Jr., making his first Xfinity Series start since Richmond (Va.) Raceway last September, will roll off 14th in the No. 8 Hellmann’s Chevrolet Camaro, throwing back to his father’s Cup debut in 1975.

To view complete qualifying results, advance to the next page.

JEGS Renews Pact With NHRA

Published in Racing
Saturday, 31 August 2019 11:20

GLENDORA, Calif – JEGS, a high-performance automotive equipment retailer, has extended its NHRA sponsorships of the JEGS Allstars program and the JEGS NHRA SPORTSnationals event.

The multi-year extensions will keep the JEGS name on these tradition-rich programs tailored for sportsman drag racers. JEGS has been the title sponsor of the Allstars competition since 2002 and came on as the title sponsor of the SPORTSnationals in 2005.

“JEGS and the Coughlin family is excited to extend our partnership with the NHRA for both of these prestigious events for competitors in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series,” Scott “Woody” Woodruff, JEGS director of media & motorsports. “We take great pride in making these events better-and-better each year with the support and dedication of the racers and the NHRA. JEGS will be celebrating our 60th anniversary next year and the racing community has been with us every step of the way for all 60-years. This is another way to say thank you and show people the JEGS way.”

The JEGS Allstars event is a race-within-a-race bonus program for the very best in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series which takes place annually at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Chicago. It’s one of the most anticipated events of the season when these high-performing sportsman racers hit the track to face off in a battle for individual and team honors. It pits the top points earners from NHRA’s seven geographic divisions and four Top Alcohol regions against each other in the culmination of a yearlong points battle

The JEGS NHRA SPORTSnationals is a premier standalone event for competitors in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. This event awards national points to competitors and features three days of intense racing action from the top sportsman racers in the country. Widely regarded as one of the biggest and most prestigious weekends in sportsman racing, the 2019 event will take place at National Trail Raceway in Hebron, Ohio, Sept. 20-22.

“We appreciate our strong relationship with JEGS and are thrilled to see the continued support of sportsman racing through these two significant events,” said Brad Gerber, NHRA vice president and chief development officer. “We look forward to the coming years and more exciting racing action thanks to JEGS.”

Ansu becomes youngest Barca La Liga scorer

Published in Soccer
Saturday, 31 August 2019 12:36

Ansu Fati's goal in Barcelona's draw at Osasuna on Saturday saw him become the club's youngest-ever goalscorer in La Liga.

The teenage forward opened his account for the club in Pamplona just five minutes after coming on as a substitute. He got across his marker to head home and make it 1-1, with the game eventually ending 2-2.

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Aged 16 years and 304 days, his goal sees him take the crown from Bojan Krkic, whose first league goal for Barca came when he was 17 years and 53 days old. Lionel Messi's arrived at 17 years and 331 days old.

However, Ansu is not La Liga's youngest-ever scorer. Fabrice Olinga, playing for Malaga at the time, scored the winning goal against Celta Vigo in 2012 when he was 16 years and 98 days old. Next comes Athletic Bilbao's Iker Muniain, who was 16 years and 289 days old when his first league goal arrived, with Ansu now placing third on the list.

Ansu had become the youngest player to represent Barcelona in the league since the 1940s when he came on in last week's win over Real Betis.

He began preseason with the club's U19 team and coach Victor Valdes revealed he didn't even have a decent pair of boots when he turned up for a training camp in Russia.

"Ansu arrived at the camp with pain in his feet so I asked him to show me his boots," Valdes explained earlier this week. "They were a genuine disaster. The pain was coming from there. We went and bought him new ones.

"But I can't speak highly enough of him: he's strong, quick, daring... we have to give him complete freedom so that all flows. He's got character, too, and he's lethal around the box."

Ansu, who has been at the club since he was 10, is getting his chance in Ernesto Valverde's team due to injuries to Messi, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele.

His goal at El Sadar cancelled out Roberto Torres' opener, with Arthur Melo then firing Barca into the lead. However, Osasuna grabbed a point late on when Torres added his second from the penalty spot after Gerard Pique's handball.

Barca have now dropped points in two of their opening three league games this season, following their loss to Athletic in the opening round of fixtures two weeks ago.

Vinay Kumar's Hubli Tigers claim maiden KPL crown

Published in Cricket
Saturday, 31 August 2019 11:35

Hubli Tigers 152 for 6 in 20 overs (Aditya Somanna 47, Luvnith Sisodia 29, KP Appanna 2-19) beat Ballari Tuskers 144 all out in 20 overs (CM Gautam 29, Devdutt Padikkal 68; Abhilash Shetty 3-34, Aditya Somanna 3-24) by 8 runs.

Vinay Kumar may have moved on from Karnataka, but continued to make his presence felt as a leader, inspiring Hubli Tigers to their maiden IPL crown on Saturday. They beat Ballari Tuskers in the finale by eight runs in Mysore.

Tuskers started poorly in their chase of 153 but recovered through 19-year old Devdutt Padikkal (68) and CM Gautam (29), before the Tigers applied the choke through the pace duo of Abhilash Shetty (3 for 34) and Aditya Somanna (3 for 24).

Earlier in the evening, Vinay may have rued for a while his decision to bat as Prasidh Krishna and KP Appanna, the left-arm spinner, left their mark with some exceptional bowling. Tigers were then powered by a 62-run stand between Somanna (47) and Luvnith Sisodia (29). The late lift was provided by Praveen Dubey (26*) and Shreyas Gopal (14*).

Tuskers lost three wickets inside the first four overs. Then, Padikkal and Gautam added 75 in just 66 balls to come within 53 runs of victory off the last five overs, before stuttering again by losing the set pair. It proved to be costly, but Padikkal had some consolation as he walked away as the highest run-getter in the tournament with 310 runs.

F2 driver Hubert dies after crash at Belgium race

Published in Breaking News
Saturday, 31 August 2019 11:58

French driver Anthoine Hubert has been killed in an accident during the Formula 2 feature race at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.

Hubert, 22, lost control of his car on the second lap of the race at the top of the Raidillon corner, which follows the famous Eau Rouge section of the Belgian race track. Raidillon is a blind corner at the crest of a hill. After an initial impact with the barriers, Hubert's car came back onto the race track and was hit at upwards of 200 km/h by American driver Juan Manuel Correa. Hubert's car was split in two pieces by the crash.

A third driver, Giuliano Alesi, was involved but was unharmed after his car came to a halt without a rear wing and a punctured rear tyre.

TV cameras quickly cut away from the scene, and no replays were shown. The race was immediately red flagged and, once the other cars had returned to the pits, it was soon confirmed it would not restart.

F2 is the official feeder series to Formula One and the race was taking place shortly after qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, which is scheduled to take place on Sunday. There is also an F2 sprint race allocated on Sunday's schedule.

Just before 7 p.m. local time, the FIA confirmed Hubert had succumbed to his injuries. Correa is in stable condition in CHU Liège hospital.

"The Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regrets to advise that a serious incident involving cars #12, #19 and #20 occurred at 17:07 on 31/08/19 as a part of the FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race at Spa-Francorchamps, round 17 of the season.

"The scene was immediately attended by emergency and medical crews, and all drivers were taken to the medical centre.

"As a result of the incident, the FIA regrets to inform that the driver of car #19, Antoine Hubert (FRA), succumbed to his injuries, and passed away at 18:35.

"The driver of car #12, Juan-Manuel Correa (USA), is in a stable condition and is being treated at the CHU Liège hospital. More information on his condition will be provided when it becomes available.

"The driver of car #20 Giuliano Alesi (FRA) was checked and declared fit at the medical centre.

"The FIA is providing support to the event organisers and the relevant authorities, and has commenced an investigation into the incident."

Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton posted his condolances to Instagram shortly after the news was confirmed.

"This is devastating. God rest your soul Anthoine. My prayers and thoughts are with you and your family today."

In a follow-up post, he said: "If a single one of you watching and enjoying this sport think for a second what we do is safe your hugely mistaken. All these drivers put their life on the line when they hit the track and people need to appreciate that in a serious way because it is not appreciated enough. Not from the fans nor some of the people actually working in the sport.

"Anthoine is a Hero as far as I'm concerned, for taking the risk he did to chase his dreams. I'm so sad that this has happened. Let's lift him up and remember him. Rest in peace brother."

Hubert, the reigning GP3 champion, was part of the Renault F1 team's junior driver academy.

Born in Lyon, France, he started karting at age 12. Once he made his debut in single-seater racing in the French F4 championship in 2013, he rose through the ranks quickly. He won the French F4 series at the first attempt, before spending two seasons in Formula Renault 2.0. He stepped up to Formula 3, claiming a race win at the Norisring.

He moved up to GP3 with ART in 2017. His first season in the series was winless, but he followed it up with a championship-winning campaign in 2018. This year he stepped up to F1's official feeder series and claimed victories at sprint races in Monaco and France. Arriving at Belgium, hosting the 17th and 18th rounds of the 2019 season, he was eighth in the championship.

The last fatality caused by injuries sustained at a Formula One event was Jules Bianchi, who suffered severe head injuries at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix and died in July 2015.

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