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Novak Djokovic says it's a 'gamble' to keep playing the Australian Open and his abdominal injury could have an impact on the rest of his season, but the world number one is prepared to take the risk. The Serbian eight-time champion sustained a "muscle tear" during a thrilling five-setter against Taylor Fritz on Friday. He didn't train the following day but took to Rod Laver Arena on Sunday evening dosed up on painkillers to see off the threat posed by big-serving Canadian Milos

Lionel Messi and Francisco Trincao scored twice as Barcelona beat Alaves for a seventh consecutive La Liga win. Trincao opened the scoring from a pass by Ilaix Moriba - both players were making their first La Liga starts - and Messi doubled the lead via the inside of the post from outside the box. Luis Rioja gave struggling Alaves hope. Trincao scored again after Messi's shot was saved and then the Argentine netted an excellent 25-yard strike before Junior Firpo's close-range fifth. Messi

Bayern Munich have signed the defender Dayot Upamecano from RB Leipzig with the French centre-back set to join the European champions in July before the 2021-22 season, the Bundesliga club said on Sunday. Upamecano, 22, agreed to sign a five-year contract that will keep him at Bayern until 2026. Financial details of the transfer were not provided but German media reported Bayern had triggered his release clause which is worth around €42.5m. “We’re happy that we’ve been able to sign Dayot Upamecano for

Naomi Osaka battled back from the brink to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory over Garbine Muguruza on Sunday. Naomi Osaka saved two match points and came back to beat Garbine Muguruza in a big-hitting fourth-round matchup of Grand Slam champions at the Australian Open. The third-seeded Osaka grabbed the last four games to win 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 in Rod Laver Arena. That result puts her back in the quarterfinals of a tournament she won in

Jurgen Klopp conceded that Liverpool's title defense was over after the Reds suffered a 3-1 defeat at Leicester that the defending champions will not be catching Manchester City. Jurgen Klopp has conceded that conceded that Liverpool's title defense was over after the defending champions capitulated to a 3-1 defeat at Leicester after falling behind to a soft goal on Saturday.

With the win Leicester City went second ahead of Manchester United while Jurgen Klopp's side are fourth on the table, 10 points behind leaders Manchester City. Champions Liverpool faced an embarrassing loss to Leicester City on Saturday after looking like winning the game for most parts. After a goal-less first half, Mohamed Salah broke the deadlock in the 67th minute and put the champions ahead and it looked like they would go on to earn the much-needed win, but the defence imploded in

American professional golfer, Dustin Johnson has backed out of this week's CJ Cup after testing positive for COVID-19, the PGA Tour said on Tuesday. Dustin last competed at September's U.S. Open, notified Tour officials he was showing symptoms and was conducted a test, leading to his step down from the Las Vegas event as he begins to self-isolate, the Tour said. "I am very disappointed," Johnson said. "I was looking forward to competing this week but will do everything I can to return

Melbourne: American professional golfer, Tiger Woods has secured 15 majors and a record 82 US PGA Tour events. But the Woods admitted on Sunday that winning the Presidents Cup is extra special and honouring. After Hale Irwin in the inaugural Presidents Cup in 1994, Woods became the second playing-captain to lift the biennial matchplay trophy. Tiger Woods the 43-year-old secured all three matches he played, apart from the Saturday fourballs and foursomes to focus entirely on his captaincy duties. Tiger Woods competing in

James Harden says there’s no bad blood between him and the Houston Rockets after a whirlwind start to the season that resulted in his trade to the Brooklyn Nets last month. Harden apologized in a recent interview with ESPN for the drama that unfolded in Houston as reports of his wanting out reached a climax. "I wasn’t trying to be disrespectful," Harden said. "I wasn’t trying to be selfish. I feel like the front office knew where I stood, and what I wanted.

Rohit Sharma scores seventh Test ton as India close day one of second Test against England 300-6 on spinning pitch; Moeen Ali bowls Virat Kohli for a duck on Test comeback; recalled Olly Stone impresses on day of controversial third-umpire decisions Rohit (161 from 231 balls) scored a seventh Test century, hit 18 fours and two sixes, and shared a fourth-wicket stand of 162 with Ajinkya Rahane (67) as India - who lost the first Test at the same venue by 227 runs

India vs England, 2nd Test: Moeen Ali on Saturday bowled Virat Kohli for nought in the first session and became the first spinner to dismiss Kohli for a duck in Tests. Moeen Ali on Saturday became the first spinner to dismiss India skipper Virat Kohli for a duck in Test cricket. Moeen Ali bowled a stunning delivery and it turned to rattle the stumps of Virat Kohli (0) in the first session on Day One of the ongoing second Test between India and

Europa League: Arsenal's second leg match against Benfica on February 25 will be played in Greece, UEFA announced on Friday. The venues for Europa League ties involving both Arsenal and Tottenham have been switched because of Covid-19 restrictions, UEFA announced on Friday. Arsenal's second leg against Lisbon giants Benfica on February 25 will be played in Greece. The game will be played at the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium of Olympiakos at 1755 GMT. The first leg of the last 32 tie on February 18

3 Indian race walkers qualified for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics during the National Open Race Walking Championships, with Sandeep Kumar and Priyanka Goswami shattering national records in the men's and women's 20km events respectively. Three Indian race walkers qualified for the upcoming Tokyo Olympics during the National Open Race Walking Championships on Saturday, with Sandeep Kumar and Priyanka Goswami shattering national records in the men's and women's 20km events respectively. The National Open Race Walking Championships are the first major athletics event after

The Australian state of Victoria will lock down for five days in a bid to curb the spread of a more contagious coronavirus variant, meaning the Australian Open will go without fans during what is usually its busiest few days. Authorities have identified 13 new cases tied to an employee of a quarantine hotel in Melbourne, who tested positive for the so-called United Kingdom coronavirus variant on Monday. Five of those cases were identified in the previous 24 hours, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews

Australian Open: Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Mikael Ymer 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 to march into the fourth round. Stefanos Tsitsipas put friendship aside to crush Mikael Ymer and race into the Australian Open fourth round Saturday, dismantling his sometime hitting partner in straight sets. The pair were born within weeks of each other and often pitted together as juniors, but Greek fifth seed Tsitsipas swatted the Swede 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 at John Cain Arena. He will now play either big-hitting ninth seed Matteo Berrettini or

Novak Djokovic battled through injury to survive a comeback by Taylor Fritz in the third round of the Australian Open, triumphing 7-6 6-4 3-6 4-6 6-2.Crowds were told to leave the stadium as the match carried on past midnight and Melbourne's five-day lockdown came into force. While the 33-year-old Djokovic had enough in the tank to defeat world No. 31 Fritz, the world No. 1 admitted after the match that he may not be able to recover from the abdominal injury he sustained

Karolina Pliskova said she never got into her comfort zone on Saturday as the sixth seed exited the Australian Open following a 7-5 7-5 third-round defeat by Czech compatriot Karolina Muchova at Rod Laver Arena. Pliskova's frustrations boiled over in the first set as she received a code violation for racket abuse and was then handed a point deduction for smashing another racket in the tunnel between sets. Pliskova told a news conference she had been a little bit surprised at the second

Liverpool have suffered another injury setback with Brazilian midfielder Fabinho set to miss Saturday's trip to Leicester. Fabinho has largely been used in central defence by Jurgen Klopp this season after Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip suffered season-ending injuries. Klopp does at least now have some centre-back cover with new recruits Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies, signed on transfer deadline day earlier this month, available to make their debuts at the King Power for a crucial game in the battle

Golden State Warriors star guard Stephen Curry is happy to let his game do the talking as it pertains to the MVP race this season. Curry, 32, is in the midst of one of the best stretches of his career, averaging 35.3 points per game and shooting 53-for-101 from beyond the arc over his past eight contests. After scoring 40 points in a 111-105 win over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night, the former two-time MVP spoke with the type of confidence that

Two-time Formula One World Champion Fernando Alonso was hospitalized after a road accident while cycling in Switzerland, according to a tweet from the Alpine F1 Team. "Fernando is conscious and well in himself and is awaiting further medical examinations tomorrow morning," the team's tweet read. The 39-year-old is an avid cyclist who is returning to Formula One racing this year. The Spaniard's return comes less than two years after he announced he was leaving the sport. Pre-season testing for the upcoming F1 season