Belgian sisters Nele and Tinne Gilis are top seeds in the women’s draw
By JAMES ROBERTS (Squash Mad Correspondent)

Victor Crouin is expected to climb up the PSA world rankings after finishing runner-up to Mohamed ElShorbagy in Qatar – and despite a combination of tiredness and jetlag he will be entering this week’s Open de France in Nantes full of confidence.

This morning the event organisers announced the location of “the secret venue” that has formed much of the pre-event media campaign.

The glass court is set up inside Hangar 24, Quai du Président Wilson, at the end of the Three Continents Bridge.

Crouin enters the Hangar tomorrow as No.4 seed and is due to meet compatriot Gregoire Marche (seeded two) in the semi-finals.

Having lost to Mohamed ElShorbagy in Doha, Crouin will be keen to go all the way to the final in Nantes, where Mohamed’s brother Marwan is the top seed.

Fortunately Crouin has a bye in today’s first round. Both he and Marche will have to work hard to reach the last four.

After his fantastic performances at the QTerminals Qatar Classic, the presence of Crouin (No. 18) in Nantes represents a real attraction, but it remains to be seen if he has recovered both physically and emotionally.

We will know as soon as he enters the fray against the winner of the first round tie between Egypt’s Mazen Gamal or the dangerous Aly Abou Eleinen, a player he often encountered during US College matches between his Harvard team and Penn.

The quarter-final will also not offer him any respite, with the former World Championship runner-up Omar Mossad (No. 21) potentially on the menu, although he has recently beaten him, or even the Mexican Leonel Cardenas (No 36), a player from the same generation with whom he has fought some big battles.

Marche, winner of the first three editions and semi-finalist at the Chateau des Ducs de Bretagne in 2019, loves Nantes. The man from Drome will enter the fray on Tuesday afternoon against either his compatriot Auguste Dussord or the Scot Rory Stewart, the battle between whom will undoubtedly provide the highlight of the first round.

Stewart, who impressed so much in the Commonwealth Games, will be keen to take that form into his PSA season.

In that section of the draw, Marche is seeded to meet England’s fiery George Parker in the quarter finals. Parker is seeded eight and will come into the draw in the second round against the winner of today’s first round tie between India’s Mahesh Mangaonkar or Faraz Khan (USA).

This year’s Open de France certainly promises to be a grandiose sporting spectacle.

In the top half of the draw, Marwan ElShorbagy and Saurav Ghosal are seeded one and three.

Both could be facing English opponents in the second round, with ElShorbagy meeting Nick Wall or Egypt’s Yahya Elnawasany, and Ghosal playing either Charlie Lee or France’s Bernat Jaume.

Declan James, Nantes champion in 2018 after beating James Willstrop on stage inside the stunning Théâtre Graslin, plays French wild card Benjamin Aubert with the winner meeting America’s Shahjahan Khan in the next round.

James has recently teamed up with Willstrop to win the men’s doubles at the Commonwealth Games and will be looking to build on that gold-medal confidence as he seeks to rise up the rankings again this season.

The Spaniard Iker Pajares is undoubtedly a rising star of the World Tour but suffered a few physical concerns last season and has not played for four months.

Seeded six, he has a bye today and faces either Lucas Serme (France) or Juan Carmilo Vargas (Colombia). In that section of the draw, the 36-year-old Ghosal shows no signs of decline and has just won the bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games.

In the women’s draw, the New Zealand world No.5 Joelle King, who would have been the No.1 seed, has unfortunately been forced to withdraw due to an injury.

If the seedings are respected, the final will oppose the two Belgian sisters, Nele Gillis and Tinne Gillis, who last week were ranked 13 and 12 respectively. Currently rising up the rankings and the victor in their last two meetings, the latter is the logical favourite, despite her older sister having fond memories of Nantes (finalist at the Machines de l’Isle in 2017 and the victor at the Théâtre Graslin in 2018).

Nele’s potential opponents in the semi-final will either be Tesni Evans (No. 19) – after suffering a fair few physical mishaps, the Welsh player will be looking to return to her best form – or Lucy Turmel (No. 27), a rising star of the new generation of English women’s squash. If it takes place, the quarter final between these two British players on Thursday night promises to be hotly disputed.

In the early rounds, Tinne will have to watch out for the Japanese player Satomi Watanabe (No. 51) and could meet Melissa Alvez in the last four.

Just a few weeks ago, Alvez, who is France’s best hope for success at Nantes, provided Tinne with stiff resistance at the same stage of the competition in the European Individual Championships, before succumbing in four games.

Pictures courtesy of PSA World Tour and Open de France, Nantes 

Northampton fly-half James Grayson has warned that his side must avoid "switching off" in games following their season-opening defeat at Sale.

They responded with three of their own but were unable to erase the deficit and went down 29-22 in the Premiership.

"In this league, if you switch off for 10 minutes, teams can rip you apart," Grayson told BBC Radio Northampton.

"We felt we applied a lot of pressure in the first half, we spent a lot of time in their 22 but didn't actually come away with any points, so that's a learning for next week.

"And in the second half, that 10-minute, maybe 15-minute, period, when we switched off really cost us - but that last 15 minutes is probably where we want to be and what we want to be doing to teams."

Saints took an early lead through Grayson's penalty and he later added two conversions in their strong finish to the game.

"To come back and scrape a (losing bonus) point, at the end of the season that one point might be quite important," he said.

"There's a lot of frustration, but (we have) momentum from that last 15 minutes. We'll build on that and we'll look at the bits we did poorly and we'll build on that as well."

Northampton's first home match of the campaign against London Irish has been switched from Friday to Saturday, with a 14:00 BST kick-off.

Saints won the corresponding game last season 23-21 and also triumphed 42-22 when the two teams met in round 21 at the Brentford Community Stadium.

England head coach Simon Middleton has made 12 changes for Wednesday's Test against Wales in Bristol, their final game before World Cup selection.

Alex Matthews and Marlie Packer return in an equally competitive back row.

Middleton will name his World Cup squad on 20 September, with England's opening game against Fiji on 8 October in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Rugby Football Union is still finalising details of tributes to Queen Elizabeth II, with England captain Sarah Hunter describing the monarch as "an inspirational leader and a female leader at that".

Wales are expected to name their side on Tuesday.

If they beat Wales, England will become the first team to win 25 Tests in a row, with their most recent defeat coming against New Zealand in 2019.

With such a significant squad selection so close, there will be as much focus on individual performances as the result.

Middleton confirmed he will take three scrum-halves in his 32-player World Cup squad.

Packer is competing with Natasha Hunt, Leanne Infante and the returning Claudia MacDonald, who can also play on the wing.

Middleton says number 12 and the back row are two other areas where he will have to make "big calls" after the Wales game.

England team to face Wales: Kildunne; Thompson, Scarratt, Rowland, McKenna; Harrison, L Packer; Cornborough, Davies, Bern, Aldcroft, Ward, Matthews, M Packer, Hunter (capt).

Replacements: Cokayne, Botterman, Muir, Talling, P Cleall, MacDonald, Reed, Aitchison.

Former Chelsea striker Diego Costa has completed a move to Wolverhampton Wanderers on a free transfer until the end of the 2022-23 season, the Premier League club announced on Monday.

Costa, who had been without a club since leaving Brazilian side Atletico Mineiro in January, was initially denied a work permit when his application did not fulfil the points criteria, but was accepted upon appeal.

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Wolves chairman Jeff Shi said: "We are absolutely delighted to welcome Diego Costa to Wolves, and back to the Premier League.

"A serial winner with a wealth of experience at the highest level, Diego will bring something unique to our dressing room and on the pitch, and we look forward to his impact at Molineux and Compton this season."

Wolves were left short at striker after new arrival Sasa Kalajdzic sustained a knee ligament injury during his debut on Saturday, while Raul Jimenez missed the opening two games of the season with a knee injury.

Costa, 33, previously helped Atletico Madrid to the LaLiga title in 2014 before embarking on a successful three-year spell at Chelsea, where he scored 59 goals in 120 games in all competitions and won two Premier League titles in 2015 and 2017, as well as the League Cup in 2015.

He left to return to Atletico in 2017 but left in December 2020 before returning to native Brazil last summer to join Atletico Mineiro.

Costa, who was born in Brazil, represented Spain at international level, scoring 10 goals in 24 games, his last appearance coming at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

MINNEAPOLIS -- It was a scene the Minnesota Vikings could only dream of. Superstar receiver Justin Jefferson ran wild Sunday through the Green Bay Packers secondary, hauling in a slew of wide-open passes on the way to the best game of his career.

Jefferson had nine receptions for a career-best 184 yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings pounded their NFC North rival, 23-7, at U.S. Bank Stadium. But it was the nature of Jefferson's catches that were so stunning.

Jefferson averaged 4.0 yards of separation on his 11 targets, according to ESPN Stats & Information research, and gained 138 of his receiving yards on plays when he had at least 3.0 yards of separation. And on a 64-yard haul that set up a field goal in the second quarter, there was not a defender within 10 yards of him.

"I was thinking somebody was about to come from behind and tackle me," Jefferson said. "I thought [Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander] had run with me. But he wasn't there. It kind of shook me up a little bit, but I'm glad I got into the end zone."

The Vikings were playing their first game in new coach Kevin O'Connell's scheme, and Jefferson said he expected to see the usual double teams and cloud coverages he has grown accustomed to during his first two seasons in the league. He was surprised, however, to see the Packers did not consistently ask Alexander to follow him in coverage.

Alexander was surprised, as well. Asked about the potential matchup, Alexander first made the zipping-the-lips motion and then said: "All week, [he was] asking for that matchup. But it ain't about me. It's about the team. It ain't about me. If it was my way, you know what I would be doing."

O'Connell's scheme was partly responsible. Jefferson lined up all over the field, making it difficult to track him. Jefferson took 41 snaps on the outside, 12 in the slot, two in the backfield and one as a tight end. Nearly half of his yardage total (91) came on those plays from the slot with the other 93 from the outside, making him only the second player in the past seven seasons to accumulate at least 90 yards from both the slot and the outside.

Jefferson also went into pre-snap motion on seven snaps and was targeted on four of those plays, including a 5-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter.

"I definitely like the motioning," Jefferson said, "and just seeing the whole field. I'm pretty sure I'm going to do it a lot more."

ESPN's Rob Demovsky contributed to this report.

Brian Cashman must feel cursed. For years, the New York Yankees general manager has been on a mission to find balance in his lineup, and just when he thought he had finally captured it, it vanished.

The Yankees have fallen on hard times, and it's in part because of injuries and inconsistent production by left-handed hitters. It's forced New York to revert back to relying on righties to carry the load at a time when seemingly everyone on the roster not named Aaron Judge has slumped.

"Take a look at their numbers since Matt Carpenter left the lineup," one AL scout said. "Yes, Matt Carpenter. If he or Anthony Rizzo or even Andrew Benintendi were right-handed, we wouldn't be having this discussion. These players are key to the Yankees because they're lefties."

The phrase "you can never have enough left-handed pitching" is often heard in MLB front offices, but the concept extends to the batter's box as well. Every July, executives play musical chairs with the limited number of lefties who become available and the teams that have realized they need to add them, mostly with one specific thing in mind: October.

"Those guys have so much value, especially in the playoffs when you're facing so many elite right-handers," one executive said. "You can get to the postseason with different kinds of lineups, but boy, are some lefty hitters needed once you're there."

Recent history agrees: Last year's two World Series participants, the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros, ranked No.1 and No. 2, respectively, among all 2021 playoff teams in OPS from left-handed hitters. From the right side of the plate, they ranked just sixth and seventh out of 10 teams.

"I wouldn't say that it's a singular focus on left-handed hitting as much as making sure that we have balance throughout the lineup," Astros GM James Click said via an email. "Whether it's in terms of handedness or other skills like speed, power, opposite-field hitting."

That, of course, is easy to say when your team employs left-handed mashers, such as Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker. Cashman's boppers, on the other hand, were born right-handed -- meaning the Yankees have had to actively acquire lefties.

"The Yankees are a team who clearly saw their weakness on offense and addressed it," one former executive said. "Some teams are more aggressive than others. Its just so hard to overcome when you're too heavily balanced on one side or the other. I think the Yankees ... saw that and knew they had to fix it to have a great offense."

They've traded for lefties Rizzo, Joey Gallo, Carpenter and most recently, Benintendi in an effort to fill the void. And for a while this season, it seemed they had finally found that needed lineup balance.

But since Carpenter went down with a wrist injury Aug. 8, the Yankees are second to last in the majors in OPS against right-handed pitching. Rizzo had slumped (.691 OPS, 7 BB, 23 K's) before recently landing on the injured list and is now out with a back issue. Benintendi (.326 OBP) also slowed down before suffering his own wrist injury that will likely end his season.

And Rizzo and Benintendi haven't been the only lefties to struggle. In Carpenter's absence, the Yankees' left-handed hitters have batted .198 compared to .212 before Aug. 8, while righties have hit .221 in the time since Carpenter was injured.

Even if New York manages to hold off the Tampa Bay Rays for the AL East title, their lack of left-handed lineup depth could come back to haunt them in the postseason. One executive pointed out that he would rather be vulnerable against left-handed pitching than against righties, simply because there are fewer left-handed pitchers and it's a lot easier to find a dangerous right-handed hitter, even just to fill part of a platoon.

"Lefties are a commodity," the executive said of batters. "It's as simple as that. Take a look at last October."

The Yankees aren't the only team that suffer from a lack of left-handed hitting -- and it's an issue that has plagued other franchises over the years.

The 2021 Chicago White Sox are a cautionary tale from that postseason about what can happen when a team enters October without this key ingredient. They won their division by 13 games, but then a first-round series against the Astros exposed them. White Sox right-handed hitters batted .295 off righty pitching in the series -- though all of the hits were singles. Meanwhile, their lefties hit .196 with a just .667 OPS in four games. Houston won the series easily in large part because Chicago's lefties weren't good enough.

Chicago's inconsistency has carried over to this season as the White Sox have just 24 home runs from left-handed hitters, ranking 29th in the majors. The only team worse is the Toronto Blue Jays, who have just 15 home runs from lefties.

Both teams are doubling down on their righties to lead them to October after failing to make a deal for one of the plenty of lefties that did change teams at the trade deadline.

"I'm not sure how Toronto expects to win a World Series this year with that kind of production," an NL scout who has watched them said. "You need to be so good in other areas of your game to overcome that."

If they make it to the postseason, the decision to trade for Whit Merrifield instead of finding a left-handed bat means the Blue Jays could be at a disadvantage against the teams who did prioritize lineup balance at the deadline.

Notably, instead of making a splashy move for a middle-of-the-order bat like many expected under new owner Steve Cohen, the Mets opted to strike by adding two hitters early this trade season: switch-hitting Daniel Vogelbach and left-handed Tyler Naquin. Meanwhile, the Braves made an under-the-radar deal for left-handed hitting Robbie Grossman and the Rays added veteran lefty David Peralta. And then, of course, there are the Padres, who completely reshaped their lineup by adding Juan Soto and Josh Bell in the biggest blockbuster of the summer.

New York also made left-handed hitting a priority with the acquisitions of Carpenter and Benintendi -- talent the team hoped would help them make a deep postseason run. However, now plagued by injuries, their October is suddenly up in the air. Will the Yankees be able to navigate a postseason without consistent production on both sides of the plate, or will they and this postseason's other right-handed heavy contenders end up going home because of it? We're about to find out.