Rivalries in sport are more often than not, just that - sporting rivalries.

Off the field of play, athletes are civil, courteous and even in some cases, mates.

However, the antagonism between 18-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal and the so-called "bad boy of tennis", Nick Kyrgios, seems to go a little deeper.

The pair will face each other in the second round at Wimbledon on Thursday in the must-watch tie of the men's draw so far (and the third match on Centre Court).

But where did the rivalry come from, and why do these men really not get on?

A rivalry is born

Back in 2014 at Wimbledon, Nadal faced the fresh-faced and a little gangly 19-year-old Kyrgios in the last 16.

The Australian was already gaining his 'swaggering showman' reputation and had earned a wildcard spot at the tournament.

Ranked 144 in the world, Kyrgios stunned the Centre Court crowd hitting a staggering 37 aces, and became the first man outside the top 100 to beat a world number one at a Grand Slam since 1992.

The Aussie even pulled off the precocious 'hot-dog' lob, on his way to defeating Nadal 7-6 (7-5) 5-7 7-6 (7-5) 6-3.

Now, we may be making assumptions here, but that particular move - humiliating the great Nadal, and showing little regard for his then 14 Grand Slam titles - was perhaps what set off the chain reaction for their future rivalry.

After bursting onto the scene in that entertaining style, Kyrgios has faced Nadal five times since.

The wins have been shared equally between the two men but controversy just keeps on coming.

A Mexican stand-off

The latest was down in Acapulco in February 2019, where Nadal was incensed by Kyrgios' cheeky underarm serving.

After their second-round match at the Mexico Open, in which Kyrgios beat Nadal 3-6, 7-6, 7-6, Nadal accused Kyrgios of lacking respect.

"He is a player who has enormous talent," said Nadal having played his part in what appeared to be a frosty handshake with his opponent at the net.

"He could win grand slams and fight the top positions of the ranking, but there is a reason why he is where he is [then at a world ranking of No. 72]."

Ouch.

After the match, Kyrgios provided further evidence that he sees the Spaniard as his bitter adversary in a hostile Instagram post, showing the video of said frosty handshake.

"Don't doubt yourself, there are plenty of people who will do that for you. I can smell the blood when I play this dude", he wrote.

During a 'No Challenges Remaining' podcast interview published a few weeks later, Kyrgios also had this to say about the two-time Wimbledon winner:

"He's my polar opposite. Literally my polar opposite. And he's super salty.

"When he wins it's fine, he won't say anything bad, he'll credit the opponent - 'he competed well today, he's a great player' - but then as soon as I beat him, it's just like 'he has no respect for me, my fans and no respect to the game'. I'm like 'what are you talking about? I literally played this way that I beat you the other previous times and nothing changed'."

Polar opposites?

Nobody can argue the players have opposing temperaments - Nadal's measured, clinical and perfectionist ways seem the polar opposite to Kyrgios' unpredictability - not to mention his trademark short fuse.

Already in 2019, Kyrgios has had to hand over a few chunks of his earnings in the form of fines.

During the second round of the Italian Open, he was in the deciding set when he was given a game penalty, reportedly for swearing.

He then kicked a bottle, threw down his racquet, hurled a chair on the court, picked up his bag and walked off.

He was fined 20,000 euros (£17,461) for unsportsmanlike conduct and also lost his prize money.

Just a few weeks ago at Queens Club, he was once again fined £13,766 ($17,500) for unsportsmanlike conduct.

He accused a line judge of "rigging the game" and mocked the chair umpire for his headgear.

"It's a joke, man. It's a serious joke," he said. "Like your hat looks ridiculous, also. It's not even sunny."

Frenemies reunited

Kyrgios told the press he had been looking forward to this match-up since the draw was made last week.

"I was super happy that I saw him in my section. When you're a kid, you want to play the best players in the world on the best court in the world."

Nadal however, was a little less than pleased with the All England Club's draw policy, which takes into account player's performances on grass, as opposed to following the world rankings.

The world number two, who is seeded third behind Roger Federer (world number three), has said it "doesn't seem fair" as it means he has a tougher run to the final.

Asked in his post-match news conference on Tuesday, if he had a "good relationship" with Nadal, Kyrgios said: "Uhm, not sure that me and Rafa could go down to the Dog & Fox (a pub in Wimbledon Village) and have a beer together."

"I don't know him at all. I know him as a tennis player. I just don't - no, I don't know him very well."

Asked if he found it easier to talk to other players on tour, he added: "Yeah, 100%. That's just how it is. I get along with people, some people I don't get along with. We have a mutual respect and that's about it I think."

We will have to wait and see how "mutual" that is when they face each other on Thursday.

HOLLY, Mich. – Troy DeCaire will make his homecoming to the Must See Racing Sprint Car Series presented by Engine Pro on Friday night when the tour visits Michigan’s Birch Run Speedway and Event Center.

DeCaire, who won the first two points championships in series history, will drive for veteran owner Wayne Stickney in the iconic, white-and-orange No. 99s at the four-tenths-mile oval as he chases his seventh-career series victory and first since Berlin Raceway in August of 2014.

The Tampa, Fla., driver and current Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series point leader will fill in behind the wheel of Stickney’s mount for Tyler Roahrig, who piloted the car during the season opener at Anderson (Ind.) Speedway in May but has late model obligations keeping him from racing at Birch Run.

It’s a reunion of a pairing that has produced two victories in DeCaire’s prior two starts for Stickney.

“I drove for Wayne in 2014 at Sandusky (Ohio) Speedway – the last race of the season, actually, when I was living up in the Midwest still – and we sat on the pole, won the race and he won the championship,” DeCaire recalled. “We all said after that one that if we ever got the chance again, we’d get back together and go racing. He tried to have me come race for him a couple of times after that, but I was always busy doing stuff … and it just seemed like we could never get things to quite line up how they needed to.

“Last year, he finally got me back up to run at Kalamazoo (Speedway) and Toledo (Speedway), and we won at Kalamazoo, but broke the motor and couldn’t even start at Toledo,” DeCaire added. “We figured now, we’re undefeated in races that we’ve run together, so when he called me this year and offered me the races in his car that Tyler (Roahrig) couldn’t run, I figured it was a no-brainer to go ahead and do it.”

DeCaire is riding a six-race win streak in asphalt sprint car competition, encompassing three different regions of the United States, in his first season back regularly behind the wheel in several years. His day job consists of selling RVs in his home state of Florida.

“My current car owner in Florida kind of forced me back into racing, because I was pretty much content with taking time off, building shocks and not being so eaten up with racing,” DeCaire noted. “We struggled at the start, but once we put a new motor in, things really took off and we started winning a bunch. I went out to Seattle and won a race out there, too. It’s been a lot of fun lately.

“I don’t ever go to the race track to run second. If I’m showing up, it’s because I feel confident that I have a chance to win,” said DeCaire. “We know we’re capable; we’ve done it before. I just have to shake the rust off as far as running on the American Racer tires and see if I can’t keep this run going.”

To extend his run of success to seven-straight victories, DeCaire will have to top a field that includes Canadian star Ryan Litt, National Sprint Car Hall of Famer Jeff Bloom and four-time defending series champion Jimmy McCune, who won the season opener on May 4 and has 30 Must See Racing victories.

With their decorated asphalt resumes, a battle between DeCaire and McCune at the front of the field at Birch Run appears imminent, and it’s one that DeCaire is eagerly looking forward to.

“Jimmy knows how I race and I know how Jimmy races. He’s obviously on a pretty good run himself, right now, but I think there’s a lot of mutual respect between the two of us,” explained DeCaire. “I’m looking forward to racing him, just like I am everyone else at the front of the field. It’s going to be fun.

“I believe we can win,” DeCaire noted. “It’s all about seeing how it shakes out Friday, now.”

In addition to the Must See Racing sprint cars, the Midwest Compact Touring Series, VROA modifieds and Birch Run Pure Stocks will also be on the racing card. The night will also include a fireworks show in celebration of the Fourth of July holiday.

Pit gates at Birch Run are scheduled to open at 2 p.m. on July 5, with hot laps starting at 4 p.m., qualifying beginning at 6 p.m. and racing kicking off promptly at 7:30 p.m.

A rain date of Saturday, July 6 has been established, if necessary.

SPEED SPORT has been covering auto racing for 85 years, and over that time, tens of thousands of stories from all forms of motorsports have been told in its pages, as well as online.

Did you know that sprint car mainstay Kraig Kinser won an ARCA Menards Series event back in 2005? We look back at that race in this week’s edition of Torn From The Headlines.

TALLADEGA, Ala. — He may be the son of soon-to-be 20-time World of Outlaws sprint car champion Steve Kinser, but Kraig Kinser left his mark on the stock car world Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway.

The MB2 Motorsports development driver and second-generation racer dominated the Food World 300, leading 83 of 113 laps en route to his first ARCA ME/MAX Series victory.

After winning the pole in qualifying on Thursday and leading final practice on Friday, Kinser asserted his dominance during the 300-mile race despite a miscue that forced him to rally back mid-race.

“We were definitely strong,” said Kinser. “I think we had to prove that when we made a mistake coming out of the pits. I didn’t use the blend line, so I had to go to the tail end of the longest line. It definitely was a lot more experience, going through the field and feeling the draft a little bit more.”

Kinser led all but two of the first 51 laps, then came charging through the field after his penalty to win in just his second ARCA start. His previous appearance came at Michigan Int’l Speedway back in August.

The second-generation driver retook the lead from Erin Crocker on lap 80 and never gave up command again after that. He beat Kyle Krisiloff to the checkered flag by .168 seconds.

Kinser’s crew chief, Doug Randolph, collected the SK Hand Tool Crew Chief of the Race Award.

Krisiloff, who finished second, piloted a No. 7 Chevrolet for NASCAR owner Rick Hendrick on Saturday.

Bobby Gerhart led 23 laps on the day and was the dominant driver for much of the middle stages of the event, following Kinser’s penalty. He came home third, but Gerhart’s chances of victory were dashed by overheating problems.

“Certainly, the plan was obvious,” said Gerhart, a three-time winner at Daytona (Fla.) Int’l Speedway. “He (Krisiloff) was going to the front and I pushed him up past as many cars as I could before I had to drop down and get some clean air. Conditions were hot. No matter what, restrictor plate racing puts tremendous heat on the floor. I guarantee I’ve got blisters everywhere.”

Crocker crossed the line in fourth after being out front for seven laps, with Frank Kimmel rounding out the top five and securing his sixth straight ARCA RE/MAX Series championship.

Kimmel’s seventh title overall broke a tie with Iggy Katona for the most crowns in ARCA history.

Joey Miller, who finished 38th after he was involved in a multi-car crash on the second lap, was named the 2005 ARCA Rookie of the Year. He finished second in points to Kimmel.

The finish:

Kraig Kinser, Kyle Krisiloff, Bobby Gerhart, Erin Crocker, Frank Kimmel, Burney Lamar, Michael Guerity, David Ragan, Christi Passmore, Dexter Bean, Craig Butts, Brian Tyler, Erik Darnell, Ken Weaver, Brandon Knupp, Mike Harmon, Darrell Basham, Todd Bowsher, D.J. Richardson, Norm Benning, Justin Marks, Jason Jarrett, Jeremy Clements, Steve Bramley, Tim Mitchell, Jason Hedlesky, Mark Gibson, Billy Venturini, Johnny Leonard, Robert Richardson Jr., Keith Murt, Walt Brannen, Andy Belmont, Tim Turner, Brack Maggard, Bobby East, Aric Almirola, Joey Miller, Roger Williams, Brad Smith, Chad McCumbee.

DRESDEN, Ohio – Wednesday night’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series stop at Muskingum County Speedway was rained out due to late-afternoon showers and thunderstorms.

The $12,000-to-win event will not be rescheduled.

Anyone who purchased advanced tickets are subject to a full refund. Tickets may also be used at any other event at Muskingum County Speedway during the 2019 season.

The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series returns to action on Thursday at Portsmouth (Ohio) Raceway Park.

A long-range strike from Jackie Groenen sent European Champions Netherlands into their first Women's World Cup final as they edged Sweden 1-0 after extra time in their semifinal on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old midfielder scored in the 99th minute when she collected a deflected pass outside the box and struck it expertly into the bottom right corner of the goal to put the Dutch into Sunday's final against holders the United States.

The game marked the first time a Women's World Cup semifinal had gone to extra time and it proved a tight contest between the two sides, who last met in the quarterfinals of Euro 2017 when the Dutch won 2-0 before going on to win the competition.

The match build-up had focused on the talented Netherlands forwards such as all-time top scorer Vivianne Miedema (60 goals) and the pacy attack of 2016 Olympic silver medallists Sweden, featuring Stina Blackstenius who had scored the winner against Germany in the previous round.

- FIFA Women's World Cup: All you need to know
- Full Women's World Cup fixtures schedule

However, it was the goalkeepers who found themselves the busiest players throughout the regulation 90 minutes.

Sweden were the brighter side in the first half but could not find a way past Netherlands stopper Sari van Veenendaal.

The captain routinely tipped over dangerous inswinging corners and instinctively saved with her foot a close-range toe poke from Lina Hurtig shortly before halftime.

The match opened up a bit more in the second half. Sweden defender Nilla Fischer hit the post 10 minutes after the restart and Miedema had her header tipped on to the bar by the fingertips of Hedvig Lindahl.

The 36-year-old keeper, who most recently played for Chelsea in England, was equal to the threat of a Dutch side who grew in confidence, particularly with the introduction of Shanice van den Sanden who flew down the right wing.

Lindahl tipped over a fierce strike from the pink-haired Van den Sanden in second-half stoppage time. However, her resistance was finally broken by an excellent quickfire strike from Groenen in the first period of extra time.

The midfielder, who will feature for Manchester United in England's top flight next season, chose the perfect time to register her first shot on target and first goal of the tournament.

Despite playing in only their second World Cup, the Netherlands keep their incredible journey going with a final date against the record three-time world champions on Sunday in Lyon.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Back on June 8, at an otherwise run-of-the-mill pregame news conference ahead of a friendly against Venezuela, U.S. men's national team manager Gregg Berhalter said that when forward Jozy Altidore "is fit and strong, there's not a better striker than him in America."

If that's the case, Berhalter's assessment hasn't always been in alignment with how he's doled out minutes at the Gold Cup. Gyasi Zardes has been the preferred starter for much of the tournament, while Altidore has officially logged 99 minutes. There was a 16-minute garbage-time stint in the 6-0 hammering of Trinidad and Tobago, then 83 minutes in a relatively meaningless group-stage finale against Panama in which he nonetheless bagged the winning goal.

To be fair, Altidore was carrying the remnants of a hamstring injury when he first arrived at U.S. training camp at the beginning of June. But one would have thought he had proved his fitness in the Panama match. When it came time to name his lineup for the quarterfinal against Curacao, Berhalter persisted with Zardes.

When asked about Altidore's availability for Wednesday's semifinal against Jamaica, Berhalter called the hamstring injury "irrelevant" and added, "Jozy is exactly where we need him to be." When pressed if that meant the forward is ready to play against the Reggae Boyz, Berhalter said, "Yeah, he's been ready to play."

-- Berhalter: U.S. needs to win Gold Cup for it to be a success

-- Carlisle: U.S. takes step back in unconvincing win over Curacao

Whether that means Altidore will actually start is another matter altogether. But there seems to be little doubt that his presence up top, and his ability to act as an auxiliary playmaker to Christian Pulisic, would provide a boost to the U.S. attack.

That is by no means the only attacking issue, as Berhalter admitted that against Curacao, the team's spacing "became disconnected."

"A lot of times in buildup you saw [a 4-1-5] or something like that where Michael [Bradley] would drop on the other side of the line and have only Weston [McKennie] central, or Michael would be central and we would have five guys high, and that's just not proper spacing," he said. "It becomes very difficult to get any kind of offensive flow when that's what your shape looks like."

That spacing had a ripple effect defensively in that Bradley and McKennie were out of sync and unable to prevent passes into Curacao's attacking players. Given Jamaica's ability on the counter, the U.S. midfield will need to be much better positioned in transition moments Wednesday.

"I think their wingers are high-quality players," Berhalter said. "I think they have a different gear of speed than we've seen in this tournament and in the beginning of June."

One player the U.S. will need to keep an eye on is winger Leon Bailey. The Bayer Leverkusen attacker has yet to score for Jamaica in the tournament, but the U.S. will be no less wary.

"[Bailey is] very left-footed. He wants to come in and shoot from the top of the box area," U.S. defender Tim Ream said. "He's very pacy and likes to work in transition."

Just how much the U.S. can take from last month's 1-0 friendly defeat to the Reggae Boyz is up for debate. Only three U.S. players who started that match will likely take the field Wednesday. But seven Jamaica starters from that match played in the 1-0 quarterfinal victory Sunday over Panama, so in terms of style and personnel there might be a bit more carryover against the U.S.

In that match, the Reggae Boyz certainly showed there is more to their game than just attacking on the break. Jamaica was judicious in terms of when it applied pressure in midfield, with Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Michael Hector in particular proving adept at determining when the U.S. was vulnerable as it tried to play out of the back.

Of course, the U.S. midfield that takes the field Wednesday will be completely different from the one that played Jamaica a month ago, with Bradley and McKennie relied upon to provide a shield in front of the back line. Jamaica manager Theodore Whitmore is more than aware of this change, going so far as to say his biggest concern is "in the middle of the park."

Pulisic will be available as well, and his ability to threaten in the open field will do plenty to keep Jamaica from being too adventurous with its defensive pressure.

Teams have had success in the past by focusing on Pulisic and daring some other U.S. attacker to beat them, though Whitmore insisted that his team will be mindful of other American attacking threats.

"We don't want to concentrate on any one player," he said. "We see that we analyze the U.S. as a team. You have experience. Bradley, he can damage your team, so we don't want to pay attention to any one player and get hurt on the other side."

Keeping Jamaica honest in terms of its defensive focus will require getting more out of wingers Tyler Boyd and Paul Arriola, who were largely ineffective in the quarterfinal against Curacao. If they can deliver, that should ensure that the U.S. will move one step closer to its tournament goal.

"We've said all along the success of this team will be measured by if we're going to win this tournament or not," Berhalter said. "We want to get to the final. We want to win the final."

The U.S. is two wins away from accomplishing that goal, but first Jamaica stands in the way.

England will be seeking a vastly improved batting performance when they go into Thursday's second ODI against Australia 0-1 down in the Ashes.

A top-order collapse which saw England crash to 19 for 4 and then 44 for 5 proved the difference between the sides - with Ellyse Perry claiming 3 for 43 - the hosts failing to recover despite their bowlers putting Australia under pressure in a nervy, but ultimately successful, chase.

England's batting woes came down somewhat to poor shot selection and, were it not for No. 5 Natalie Sciver's fighting 64 and tailender Sophie Ecclestone's valuable 27-run cameo off as many balls, the defeat could have been much heavier. As it happened Australia won by two wickets with 45 balls to spare after making hard work of reaching the target.

Alyssa Healy's 66 was their only real batting performance of note as Ecclestone claimed three wickets and Laura Marsh two as part of a strong all-round performance from England's bowling unit in which Sciver and quicks Katherine Brunt and Anya Shrubsole also claimed one wicket each.

Shrubsole said England wouldn't be making wholesale changes to their approach which saw them go unbeaten in 14 matches across all formats immediately before meeting Australia.

"We just need to be clear in our decision-making and commit with bat and ball," Shrubsole said. "There were a lot of positives from the game, despite the defeat, and I think we threw a few punches back - especially with the ball. We were excellent with the ball as a unit, Soph and Katherine especially were threatening and really troubled Australia. Hopefully we can keep that going."

One England wicket which fell through no fault of their own was that of Fran Wilson, who was given out lbw despite replays showing the ball had hit her glove first as she attempted a sweep off Jess Jonassen. With no DRS in this series, Wilson left the ground in furious disbelief, while England captain Heather Knight later said the players would prefer to have the review system in place. Healy and Australian coach Matthew Mott also supported the inclusion of DRS.

Shrubsole said: "One or two decisions were slightly frustrating, but umpires are human and they're allowed to make errors. It would be nice to have DRS but it's the same for both teams and it was the same in the last Ashes.

"Going forward I'm sure DRS will become part of the women's game on a regular basis like it is in the men's and that's obviously a step in the right direction. It's come into ICC tournaments so bilateral series like this are the logical next step."

DRS was not brought in for this series because of cost and resource consraints, however it will be in place for every home England women's international from 2020.

Australia will also be looking to improve, particularly with the bat, and especially against an England side determined to do better.

"We never really know when we're beaten and we've made a habit of fighting back into games and that's a good quality in this team," Shrubsole said. "We didn't really get enough runs - and it's always hard to come back from a start like we did - but we took it pretty deep and that was impressive.

"It did look as if we might steal the win at a couple of points but we didn't get there in the end. As a team it was a really good effort to take it that far and we can take a lot from that."

The second match will be played in Leicester on Thursday, followed by the third and final match of the ODI series in Canterbury on Sunday. The one-dayers will be followed by a four-day Test and three T20Is.

Mark Wood admitted he "got lucky" to dismiss Kane Williamson in freakish fashion in Durham.

Williamson was well set and averaging over 100 in the tournament when Ross Taylor punched a delivery from Wood down the ground only to see the bowler stick a hand out and, in attempting to stop the ball, gain only the slightest of deflections onto the stumps at the non-striker's end. Williamson, backing up in anticipation of a run, was out of his ground and out of the game.

And while Williamson generously suggested England's tight bowling might have played a part in forcing him to back-up so aggressively - "the English bowlers put us under pressure," he said, "I don't know whether the run-out came from that" - Wood accepted luck was a more pertinent factor. Especially bearing in mind his "small hands."

WATCH on Hotstar (India only): How England bowled out New Zealand

"I got lucky," Wood said. "He backed-up because he was looking for the run. It was nothing to do with my bowling. And it's not as if I deliberately palmed it back on the stumps. I was trying to actually stop it and got a little bit fortunate. I am pleased that in such a big game I managed to be so lucky.

"He doesn't know how unlucky he is because I've got the smallest hands for a bloke you've ever seen. I managed to just get a fingertip to it. The umpire wasn't sure if I'd tipped it, and I was like 'I swear to God I did.' I knew it had flicked the end of my finger.

"He is one of the best players I've ever bowled at. So to get him out any way you can is pretty important. It saved me bowling at him any more so I was pretty pleased."

Jos Buttler, meanwhile, reckoned that England's performance in their last couple of games - matches in which they have beaten India and New Zealand at a time they knew defeat could mean elimination from the tournament - should both give the side confidence and remind them to play the "brand of cricket" which works best for them.

"It's a really good sign for us," Buttler said. "We stood up and played our brand of cricket under that pressure. That breeds a lot of confidence for the group. It reminds us that our way is the best way and gives us a lot of chance of performing. That's what we have resorted to in the two must-win games and shows that we must continue that."

Both men admit their excitement at reaching the semi-final stage, though Buttler also accepted it had been a "minimum requirement" ahead of the tournament.

"We are very excited to be in a semi-final," he said. "But I think it was the minimum requirement; the first stage we had to get to. We have given ourselves a great chance and we're really excited for that challenge. We've obviously had two tough games to finish to qualify and we showed great character to come through with two very good performances."

"We've got some great momentum," Wood agreed. "We've had our backs up against the wall so to play with the values we have talked about in the past has showed a lot of courage from the team. Now we are going on to another huge game, but one we'll be pretty confident in."