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Andy Murray's Wimbledon return began in ideal fashion as the Briton and his partner Pierre-Hugues Herbert thrilled the home fans with a late-night comeback win in the men's doubles.

Murray and Frenchman Herbert won 4-6 6-1 6-4 6-0 against Marius Copil of Romania and France's Ugo Humbert.

The first-round match finished at 21:22 BST on Thursday in front of a sizeable crowd under Court One's new roof.

"It was great to get the win and a nice atmosphere," said Murray, 32.

"I was a little bit nervous at the start but we got better as match wore on."

Fittingly, it was Murray who clinched the match with an overhead volley, warmly embracing Herbert before breaking out into a beaming smile as he took the acclaim of the jubilant British fans.

Scot Murray and Herbert will play Croatian sixth seeds Nikola Mektic and Franko Skugor next, with Murray's older brother Jamie and fellow Briton Neal Skuspki potential third-round opponents.

Murray and Skupski were forced off court because of the light when they led 6-2 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 against Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek of Slovakia.

Murray revels in Wimbledon comeback

Two-time singles champion Murray pulled out on the eve of the tournament 12 months ago, hampered by the pain in his hip which eventually led to a resurfacing operation in January.

He broke down in an emotional news conference at the Australian Open earlier that month, fearing the operation might force him to retire from an illustrious career which has also brought him a US Open title and two Olympic gold medals.

But here he was - 723 days since his last appearance when he lost in the 2017 quarter-finals to American Sam Querrey - rid of the pain and heavy limp which hampered him before he had the operation with Royal surgeon Sarah Muirhead-Allwood in January.

The former world number one returned to competitive action in the doubles at Queen's in June, going on to win the title alongside Spain's Feliciano Lopez.

Murray described the feat as "mental".

At Wimbledon, he has linked up with Herbert - a doubles expert who has won all four Grand Slam titles - in the men's event, and is playing with American 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in a blockbuster partnership in the mixed.

The pair started slowly in a first set where Murray struggled to land a first serve, which contributed heavily to his team's low first-serve percentage of 45%.

But they grew in rhythm and understanding as the match wore on, breaking six more times as their service games improved to complement their sharp play around the net.

With his wife Kim among the crowd, Murray began to enjoy himself and showed glimpses of his best shot-making with a couple of stunning backhand winners.

Darkening skies meant the new roof came into use for the second time before the fourth set began at 20:50, the brief break not halting the progress of Murray and Herbert as they raced away with the match.

"That's the one thing that's nice about the five-set doubles format, you have time to work things out," Murray said.

"Whereas with the sudden death deuce, like when I played with Marcelo Melo in Eastbourne last week, we didn't have any time to get used to each other.

"Here I think that was the case, and we got better as the match went on."

'Jamie is the number one son' - Andy jokes about mum watching his brother

Murray's match had not been assigned to a court as Wimbledon organisers waited to see how the day's play on Centre Court and Court One panned out before making a decision.

And once Murray's mixed doubles partner Williams edged past 18-year-old Slovenian qualifier Kaja Juvan, it was announced the returning Briton would shortly appear on Court One.

That drew raucous cheers when the news was delivered over the public address system, with another cacophony of noise when Murray walked out at about 18:45 and those reactions continuing throughout the match until it came to the conclusion which virtually everyone watching wanted.

But one person was not able to watch the match live - Murray's mother Judy, who was watching eldest son Jamie's match on court 18.

"Jamie is the number one son," joked Murray. "He used to get all the good presents. I got like the hand-me-downs always since we were young, so I'm used to that!

"Obviously when the schedule is like that, she can't watch both. She can't be in two places at once.

"There's many times here when she's been watching Jamie's doubles, rushed over to watch my singles. Vice versa.

"Maybe they can do my mum and dad a favour and put us on at slightly different times."

'An irresistible pair' - analysis

BBC tennis commentator Peter Fleming

Copil and Humbert certainly started out as a confident pair. They were terrific in the first set.

But Murray and Herbert managed an early break in the second and, from then on, they were an irresistible pair.

In the end, Copil and Humbert had no answer.

World champions in action

Start your day off in the best possible way by watching World champions Xu Xin and Liu Shiwen in mixed doubles action as the Chinese duo take on the host nation’s Lim Jonghoon and Yoo Eunchong on table no.1 from 10.00am local time.

Xu Xin will also feature in the men’s doubles draw, partnering Fan Zhendong – the sixth seeds face second seeds Ho Kwan Kit and Wong Chun Ting at the quarter-finals stage at approximately 11.15am on table no.3. Over on table no.2 Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto and Koki Niwa take on home favourites Jeoung Youngsik and Lee Sangsu.

Women’s doubles then follows with table no.1 featuring China’s Chen Meng and Wang Manyu against Japan’s Miu Hirano and Saki Shibata. The Slovak/Czech pair of Babora Balazova and Hana Matelova, seeded second, take to table no.4 where Korea’s Choi Hyojoo and Yang Haeun await in what should prove to be an exciting contest.

Battle of frenemies

From 12.35pm the attention turns to the men’s singles event: the home crowd will be put through somewhat of a difficult position as two of their own do battle with Jang Woojin and Jeoung Youngsik facing off on table no.1. This is one match where a Korean player won’t technically hold home advantage, but which one will handle the pressure better?

An all-Swedish contest is also on the cards as Mattias Falck meets Kristian Karlsson: this will be just the second time the two have met on the international stage with Falck holding the edge in their previous head-to-head at the 2018 Swedish Open – could we see the reverse outcome this time around?

Next up on the day’s schedule we have women’s singles round two encounters from 1.25pm. Ding Ning faces a dangerous opponent in the form of three-time Korea Open champion Feng Tianwei – also keep an eye out for Japan’s Miyu Nagasaki: at the 2019 Japan Open she successfully accounted for Zhu Yuling – in Busan can she condemn Wang Manyu to the same fate?

Star names to clash

Following semi-final contests from all three doubles categories we have some cracking matches from the women’s singles draw. Watch a repeat of the 2019 Japan Open final at 6.40pm as Sun Yingsha aims to get the better of Liu Shiwen yet again on table no.2 or why not check out Miu Hirano’s meeting with Chen Meng?

Then find out if Wong Chun Ting can beat Tomokazu Harimoto for the first time on the ITTF World Tour stage at 7.30pm and make sure to stick around for the closing fixtures of the day at 8.20pm, one of which sees Nigerian star Quadri Aruna attempt to overthrow World no.1 Xu Xin.

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De Angelis Leads Porsche GT3 Cup To CTMP

Published in Racing
Thursday, 04 July 2019 13:32

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The IMSA-sanctioned Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada by Yokohama series was at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park just two months ago for Victoria Day SpeedFest, and it returns for another equally big weekend with the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.

While CTMP hosted the opening rounds of the 2019 GT3 Cup Challenge Canada season, this weekend’s Mobil 1 Sports Car Grand Prix marks the fifth and sixth races in the series’ 12-round championship. The two most recent races were held at the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix in June at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal.

All eyes will be on Roman De Angelis, the 18-year-old who is riding a three-race win streak that started when he won Round 2 at CTMP. De Angelis then proceeded to sweep the doubleheader weekend in Montreal in his No. 79 Mark Motors Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, which will be one of 14 on the grid this weekend.

“I’d just like to start by saying what a performance by the team in Montreal,” said De Angelis. “It was a really important weekend for me, and for it to come off perfect is what I could have hoped for. I cannot wait for the upcoming back-to-back weekends with Mark Motors. I really hope we can keep the momentum pushing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.”

De Angelis has built a 15-point lead in the championship standings over Parker Thompson in the No. 3 Porsche for SCB Racing. One point separates the drivers in third and fourth place, with Patrick Dussault in the No. 77 Lauzon Autosport racecar having 112 points and Jeff Kingsley at 111 in the No. 16 Policaro Motorsport Porsche. Kingsley was the winner of round one at CTMP.

Seven drivers in the field are also competing for the Platinum Masters championship for drivers 45 and older. Again, a narrow one-point margin separates the top two contenders in that title hunt. Alan Metni in the No. 99 Kelly-Moss/AM Motorsport Porsche has 120 points and Marco Cirone with 119 in the No. 88 Porsche with Mark Motors.

It’s Cirone, though, that has claimed two of the four Platinum Masters wins so far this season and two overall podiums, making some competitors view him as one to beat.

One of those competitors is Michael Levitas in the No. 37 TPC Racing Porsche. Levitas joined the GT3 Cup Challenge Canada field at Montreal and scored a Platinum Masters victory of his own in round four.

“I’ve raced quite a few times at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park and I’m really excited to come up there and race,” said Levitas. “I just can’t say enough about being able to join the Canadian series and I feel really fortunate to be able to race with everybody. I’m looking forward to some great racing and maybe I’ll have something for that Marco Cirone.”

Keselowski Sends A Message In Daytona Practice

Published in Racing
Thursday, 04 July 2019 14:46

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Brad Keselowski sent a message to the entire Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series garage on Thursday at Daytona Int’l Speedway.

The message was simple, he’s not going to lift.

Keselowski delivered the message during the final practice ahead of Saturday’s Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona Int’l Speedway and the unfortunate recipient was William Byron.

Entering turn three, William Byron was in front of Keselowski in the draft and was running half a lane up from the bottom. Keselowski got a run on Byron and rather than back off, he ran into the back of Byron’s Chevrolet and turned him sideways.

Byron, somehow, managed to save his car from crashing and he returned it to the garage. However, his Hendrick Motorsports team decided that enough damage had been done to switch to the backup car for Saturday’s race.

Keselowski said after the incident that he was simply sending a message to Byron and anyone else who might try blocking in the draft.

“I had a big run and it put me in a position where I had to lift. I keep telling these guys I’m not lifting,” Keselowski said. “I hate it for his team and that they’ve got to work on their car and so do ours, but I’m just trying to send a message. I’m not lifting.”

The message that Keselowski sent was nearly the same message he delivered after he crashed out of the 2018 edition of the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.

“We’re not wrecking enough people. We need to wreck more people so they’ll stop throwing bad blocks,” Keselowski said in 2018. “That’s what is happening to me on the plate tracks. Everybody that is watching all them drivers out there throw another bad block, I’m just going to drive through you and wreck you.”

Byron said he felt like there was no reason for Keselowski to use his bumper the way he did.

“It’s practice, I get it, but I don’t think it was necessary to turn us there,” Byron said. “It wasn’t like I changed four lanes down the backstretch and blocked him. I was just kind of holding my lane and he just used his run to drive into my left rear.”

Looking at the speed charts Thursday, Kyle Busch led the opening round of Coke Zero Sugar 400 practice with a 200.754 mph lap. The second practice was paced by his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate Martin Truex Jr., who circled the 2.5-mile superspeedway with a fast lap of 205.935 mph in the draft.

Qualifying for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 is scheduled for Friday at 5:05 p.m.

LAHINCH, Ireland – Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington shot a 7-under 63 on Thursday to take a one-shot lead over Zander Lombard in the opening round of the Irish Open.

With Rory McIlroy skipping the tournament as he prepares for the British Open at Royal Portrush in his native Northern Ireland, the 47-year-old Harrington quickly became a crowd favorite in his national open, which he previously won in 2007.

Harrington, making just his eighth start worldwide this year because of a wrist injury, made eight birdies and a bogey at Lahinch, an Alister Mackenzie-designed links on Ireland's West coast. He closed out his round by blasting from a deep greenside bunker to 4 feet for birdie on the par-5 18th.

"I'd preferred to have shot 63 on Sunday, but the way I've been going this year, I haven't played that many Sundays, so I needed a good score in the first round," Harrington said.

Harrington hasn't won since the Portugal Masters in 2016.

"Out there today, I was in a good place. Head was in a good place. Good things were happening. Hit lots of nice shots. I know I don't have to play as well as that for the next three days. It would be nice if I did, but we'll just go out there and try and do more of the same," Harrington said. "If nothing good happens for the next three days, so be it. I know I'm on the right track."

Lombard closed with three straight birdies for a 64.

Wade Ormsby, Mike Lorenzo-Vera, Hyowon Park, Thorbjorn Olesen, Lee Slattery, Eddie Pepperell and Chris Paisley each shot 65. Shane Lowry of Ireland, who won the Irish Open as an amateur in 2009, was part of a group at 66 that also included Martin Kaymer, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood.

The top three finishers inside the top 10 who have not already qualified for the British Open will earn spots in the field at Royal Portrush.

Australia 218 for 6 (Perry 62, Mooney 43*) beat England 217 (Beaumont 114, Kimmince 5 for 26) by four wickets

Australia took an early grip on this Women's Ashes contest, completing a difficult chase with ominous efficiency to move 2-0 up in the ODI leg and claim another two points. Tammy Beaumont shone for England with a maiden Ashes hundred but England's innings listed badly as Delissa Kimmince claimed 5 for 26 and Australia then marched to victory on the back of Ellyse Perry's half-century and some composed finishing from Beth Mooney and Jess Jonassen.

It could have been worse for England, who saw Katherine Brunt helped from the field after twisting her ankle celebrating the wicket of Meg Lanning - though she was later able to return and bowl. However, they also might have had cause to question a tight stumping call that went Perry's way on 4, despite not seeming to have any boot clearly grounded behind the line. Had the decision gone in favour of wicketkeeper Amy Jones, deputising after Sarah Taylor was sidelined by a "niggle", Australia would have been 22 for 3.

Despite losing both openers inside three overs, Australia showed greater collective purpose on a used pitch that was never easy to score on but did not deteriorate significantly. Perry and Rachael Haynes put on 53 for the fourth wicket to ease concerns after Brunt had bowled captain Lanning with a perfectly executed slower ball, before the seventh-wicket pair of Mooney and Jonassen banished any thought of a nervous finish to match the first ODI with a brisk 60-run stand.

With Brunt limping off, England's confidence in their ability to defend a middling target seemed to ebb. Haynes took on the slow bowlers, lofting the only six of the match off Sophie Ecclestone and using her feet well to hit down the ground; Perry was more orthodox, waiting for anything short or overpitched to pounce on as she brought up her 27th ODI half-century.

Although Haynes fell to a smart caught-and-bowled by Laura Marsh, and Perry nicked a wide long-hop from Shrusbole, England could not quite force the door down. Ashleigh Gardner played around a cutter from Shrubsole to raise hopes again but Jonassen struck her third and sixth balls for four to signal her intent.

England now find themselves 4-0 down in the points-based Ashes, needing to win the series outright. "We've done it before, going to have to turn it around very quickly," Heather Knight, England's captain, said. "It's a massive game down in Canterbury [venue for the third ODI]."

That they were in this contest at all was largely down to Beaumont, who became the first Englishwoman to score a century in an ODI against Australia since Sarah Taylor in 2009 (and the first by anyone not called Taylor since 1993). Although she said afterwards she "never felt in", Beaumont managed to go at almost a run a ball while scoring more than half of England's runs; the only one of her team-mates to come close to matching her fluency was Danni Wyatt, who made 25 off 25 balls.

Although England again lost Jones in the second over to Perry, there was no repeat of the top-order collapse that undermined them in the first game. Knight struggled to find scoring opportunities in her 17 off 47, but she shored up one end as Beaumont found her groove during a partnership worth 65.

After Knight's dismissal, trying to hit Gardner over the top, Beaumont raised a half-century from 44 balls. Having used Perry's pace to get away several early boundaries, she lofted Jonassen down the ground and then took to relying on the paddle sweep against the spinners, scoring a significant proportion of her runs behind square on the leg side as Australia declined to plug the gap.

Nat Sciver became the first of Kimmince's victims, trapped lbw by one that skidded on, and Fran Wilson did not last long but Wyatt showed good purpose in helping put on another useful alliance with Beaumont. They had put England on course for what seemed like a score in the region of 250, but Wyatt was well caught by Alyssa Healy standing up to Megan Schutt and Beaumont fell in the following over, dragging on attempting a reverse-swat through the off side.

Two wickets in eight balls allowed Australia to squeeze in the field, with England unable to find the boundary after the 38th over. Kimmince returned to bowl a miserly line at the death, picking up Brunt and Shrusbole in the same over and then two in two balls to finish the innings with her maiden international five-for, as England lost their last four wickets for six runs and with 2.2 overs left unbowled.

Shaun Marsh is out of the World Cup with a fractured forearm. He was struck by a ball from Pat Cummins while batting in the nets at Old Trafford, two days before Australia's final round-robin match against South Africa.

Peter Handscomb will replace Marsh in Australia's squad. Handscomb is already in England with the Australia A team that is touring the country concurrently and is set to join up with the World Cup squad on Friday.

Marsh wasn't the only batsman to suffer a blow to the arm at Australia's training session. In the same net, Glenn Maxwell was hit on the right forearm by a short ball from Mitchell Starc. Both batsmen aborted their net sessions and went for scans immediately.

Australia coach Justin Langer has confirmed that while Marsh has been ruled out, Maxwell hasn't suffered extensive damage.

"Shaun Marsh has had scans on his right forearm after being struck while practicing in the nets at training today," Langer said. "Unfortunately, the scans have revealed Shaun has suffered a fracture to his forearm which will require surgery.

"This is obviously shattering news for Shaun and the squad. Throughout this tournament, his spirit, professionalism and the way he has competed has been typically outstanding. We are right behind Shaun in his recovery and rehabilitation.

"Glenn Maxwell also underwent scans after he was struck on his right forearm in the nets. The scans have cleared Glenn of any serious damage and we'll continue to monitor him over the coming days. We are hopeful he will be fit to perform for us on Saturday against South Africa.

"We have made the decision to call up Peter Handscomb to replace Shaun in our World Cup Squad of 15. Pete is a like-for-like player, in terms of batting in the middle order, and he performed very well for us during our recent tours in India and the UAE."

Handscomb narrowly missed out on a spot in Australia's original World Cup squad, showing impressive form in the lead-up to the tournament but having to make way for the returns of Steven Smith and David Warner from their ball-tampering bans.

Since the turn of the year, the wicketkeeper-batsman has scored 479 ODI runs at an average of 43.54 and a strike rate of 98.15, with three fifties and a match-winning century in a chase of 359 against India.

Phillies place RHP Nicasio (groin) on 10-day IL

Published in Baseball
Thursday, 04 July 2019 14:41

Philadelphia Phillies right-handed reliever Juan Nicasio has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a left groin strain.

Manager Gabe Kapler says Nicasio's strain is "pretty mild." Kapler says Nicasio needed the break because the pitcher also has been feeling tightness in his quadriceps.

Nicasio, who was acquired from Seattle in the offseason, has a 5.24 ERA in 34 1/3 innings pitched.

His roster spot will be filled by left-hander Austin Davis, who was called up from Lehigh Valley.

ChiSox 2B Sanchez leaves game with hand injury

Published in Baseball
Thursday, 04 July 2019 14:15

CHICAGO -- White Sox second baseman Yolmer Sanchez has left their game against the Detroit Tigers with a lacerated right hand.

It looked as if Sanchez was stepped on by Tigers first baseman Niko Goodrum when Sanchez went back to the bag after a leadoff single in the third.

Sanchez remained down for a minute before walking off the field with manager Rick Renteria and a trainer.

He was replaced by Daniel Palka, who remained in Thursday's game to play first base. Jose Rondon shifted from first to second base.

Seven-time Wimbledon champion Serena Williams recovered from being a set down to beat teenage qualifier Kaja Juvan and reach the third round.

Williams was surprised by the 18-year-old world number 133 from Slovenia, who twice broke serve to win the first set.

The 11th seed, 37, responded to take control in the second and eventually closed out the decider for a 2-6 6-2 6-4 victory in one hour 36 minutes.

"She played well and I started out a little slow," said the American.

"I like the pressure. I would rather be in this position than any other and I play best when I am down sometimes. I am a fighter."

Williams, who last won Wimbledon in 2016, will face German 18th seed Julia Gorges in the third round.

She is looking to equal Australian Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles but has struggled with a knee injury this year.

The American saw off Italy's Giulia Gatto-Monticone in straight sets in the opening round but was given a sterner test by a player who was not born when she claimed the first of her 23 major titles at the US Open in 1999.

Williams lost her opening service game of the match and slipped 0-3 behind, before sending a smashed overhead volley into the net on set point as Juvan clinched the opener in 27 minutes.

Williams recovered to dominate the second set as her opponent, who beat Czech Kristyna Pliskova to reach the second round of a Slam for the first time, appeared to tire.

After twice breaking in the final set, Williams looked to be in full control and served for the match at 5-2 - only for the resilient Juvan to respond with a break of her own.

But the Slovenian was unable to stop an ace on match point and Williams sealed her progression.

Williams will now begin her mixed doubles campaign alongside former British number one Andy Murray on Friday.

"I am excited to play with a British icon like Andy," she said.

"It's going to be incredibly amazing and I feel honoured to share the court with him. Maybe I can learn a thing or two."

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