Sports

TIMES OF INDIA LONDON: Cristiano Ronaldo will wear Manchester United's iconic number seven again after Edinson Cavani agreed to surrender the shirt. Ronaldo followed in a long list of United legends to have worn number seven during his first spell with United from 2003 to 2009. The 36-year-old rejoined United from Juventus last week, but Cavani had the number seven at the start of this season, raising the possibility of Ronaldo having to don a different shirt. But Cavani has agreed to swap

ZEENEWS Lionel Messi started his first match since the final of the Copa America on July 10 and his flicks and jinks frequently ended with him being fouled as Venezuela struggled to contain him. Argentina extended their unbeaten run to 21 games on Thursday (September 2) with a comfortable 3-1 win over Venezuela in their World Cup qualifier in Caracas. Venezuela had beaten Argentina only once in 14 previous World Cup qualifiers and their hopes of doing it again on Thursday were snuffed

ZEENEWS Novak Djokovic missed an overhead and stared over toward a section of the Arthur Ashe Stadium stands. After taking the next game, Djokovic glared in that direction again. Later, he spoke to the chair umpire about someone making noise in the middle of points, considered a no-no in tennis. That, then, is pretty much what provided some intrigue and interest for Djokovic’s second-round match at the US Open, because the ultimate outcome seemed fairly obvious after all of about 15 minutes on

Quarterback Cam Newton has been released by the New England Patriots in a surprise move ahead of the new NFL season. Newton's omission means rookie Mac Jones is likely to be the team's starting quarterback. The 32-year-old replaced Tom Brady at the Patriots in 2020 after nine years with the Carolina Panthers and had been expected to start the campaign. Newton told his Instagram followers not to "feel sorry" for him. "I really appreciate all the love and support during the time, but I must

As a student-athlete, you need the extra hour to work out in the gym, practice at the pitch, and attend games. At the same time, you have assignments to complete and revisions for upcoming exams. You need the best time management strategy to hack the life of a student-athlete. You can pay for a thesis to create more time to practice your game and attend tournaments without worrying about your academic performance. Pexels Interestingly, some of the most successful students have also pursued

Andy Murray produced his finest display in four injury-disrupted years but fell agonisingly short of beating Greek world number three Stefanos Tsitsipas in a thrilling start to the US Open. The British former world number one played in a manner reminiscent of his best as he led by two sets to one. But Tsitsipas fought back to win 2-6 7-6 (9-7) 3-6 6-3 6-4 in New York. Dan Evans is the only Briton through after defeats for Heather Watson, Harriet Dart and Cameron

Defending champion Naomi Osaka claimed a straight-set victory at the US Open on her first Grand Slam appearance since withdrawing from the French Open. The Japanese third seed, 23, ground down Czech world number 87 Marie Bouzkova for a 6-4 6-1 first-round win. She will play world number 145 Olga Danilovic of Serbia next. Osaka withdrew from Roland Garros in May, revealing she had "suffered long bouts of depression" since winning her first major title at the 2018 US Open. The four-time major

REUTERS ISTANBUL, Aug 26 - Lionel Messi's new club Paris St Germain will play Manchester City, managed by the Argentine's former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola, after being drawn together in Champion's League Group A on Thursday. Messi joined Qatari-owned PSG, who will also face Bundesliga side RB Leipzig and Belgium's Brugge, from Barcelona this month after the Spanish side were unable to afford a new contract for the forward. The draw pits two of European soccer's wealthiest teams against each other once again

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's hat-trick helped Arsenal to a welcome first win of the season as they beat a young West Bromwich Albion side to reach the Carabao Cup third round. Aubameyang marked his first start of the season with two first-half tap-ins and a curling finish after the break. He also acrobatically set up Nicolas Pepe for the third, with Bukayo Saka slotting in the Gunners' fourth. Alexandre Lacazette came off the bench to fire in his side's sixth. The win could have been

England captain Harry Kane says he will be "staying at Tottenham this summer" and is "100% focused on helping the team achieve success". Manchester City were keen to sign Kane, who believed he had a gentleman's agreement with chairman Daniel Levy to leave Spurs this summer. But Levy has refused to enter into negotiations for the striker, 28. Kane played his first game of the season on Sunday, coming on as a substitute in the 1-0 win over Wolves. "It was incredible to see

Real Madrid have made a 160m euros (£137m) bid to sign Paris St-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe. The French World Cup winner, 22, joined PSG in 2017 in a transfer worth £165.7m and his contract expires in June 2022. PSG sporting director Leonardo said the club would "not hold Mbappe back" but considered Real Madrid's bid to be "not sufficient". "We consider the offer as being very far from what Kylian is worth today," he told French radio station RMC Sport. Mbappe has scored

The Premier League says its clubs have "reluctantly but unanimously" decided not to release players for matches in red-list countries during September's international break. Under current UK government rules, players would be forced to miss several games because of the 10-day isolation period required on return to the UK. The Premier League said "extensive talks" had taken place with the Football Association and government "to find a solution" but that "no exemption had been granted". It added that it "strongly supported" the move made

Fifa will receive $201m (£146m) in forfeited funds seized during a corruption probe, the US Department of Justice has announced. More than 50 defendants have been criminally charged since the Department of Justice unveiled its corruption probe in 2015. Twenty-seven people and four corporate entities have pleaded guilty, with two people convicted at trial. The repayment will begin with an initial $32.3m (£23.5m). The money, which was seized from the bank accounts of former officials who were prosecuted for corruption, will be used

Denmark captain Simon Kjaer and the medical team that saved Christian Eriksen's life are the recipients of this year's Uefa President's Award. Eriksen, 29, suffered cardiac arrest during Denmark's Euro 2020 defeat by Finland in Copenhagen on 12 June. Kjaer has been recognised for showing "exceptional leadership qualities" in his response to the situation. Thanking the medical team, Inter Milan player Eriksen said: "You did a fantastic job and saved my life." "Also a big thanks to my friend and captain Simon and

Britain's Andy Murray defeated American lucky loser Noah Rubin in the Winston-Salem Open first round after scheduled opponent Nick Kyrgios withdrew. Former world number one Murray, 34, beat Rubin 6-2 6-0 and clinched victory by winning 10 successive games. The three-time Grand Slam champion was due to face Australia's Kyrgios, who pulled out because of a knee injury. Murray, who is set to compete at the US Open from 30 August, will face American Frances Tiafoe next in North Carolina. "I didn't know

Barbarian Women are set to play South Africa at Twickenham in a double-header with the men on 27 November. It will be the first time the Barbarian's men and women's teams have played on the same day. The women will take on the Springboks after the men compete against Samoa with both teams playing for the Killik Cup. The women's team last played in November 2019 where they defeated Wales 29-15 at the Principality Stadium. "We are proud to support women's rugby globally

Premier League sides are among leading European clubs set to prevent players from going to red-list countries for September's international break. Unless quarantine exemptions are made, players would be forced to miss several domestic league matches because of the 10-day isolation period required on return to the UK. The Football Association and Premier League are in talks with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) over a relaxation of UK rules. Similar problems are thought to confront clubs across Europe. Liverpool

Switzerland playmaker Xherdan Shaqiri has completed a £9.5m move from Liverpool to Lyon. The 29-year-old has signed a three-year contract with the Ligue 1 club, who say the deal is worth 6m euros plus a possible 5m euros in add-ons. Shaqiri, who joined Liverpool from Stoke in a £13m deal in 2018, started just five Premier League games under Jurgen Klopp last season. He has not been involved in either of the club's league games this season. The former Bayern Munich and Inter

England bowler Mark Wood has been ruled out of the third Test against India because of a shoulder injury. The 31-year-old jarred his right shoulder while fielding on the fourth day of the second Test at Lord's. No replacement has been called up for the Test at Headingley, with Saqib Mahmood and Craig Overton already in the squad as back-up seamers. "It is frustrating for Mark and for us as a side - he gives us a real point of difference," captain Joe

Dimitri Payet was hit by a bottle and threw it back into the crowd before fans stormed the pitch causing Nice v Marseille to be abandoned. Marseille's Payet was struck in the back by a bottle thrown from the home supporters as he went to take a corner. He launched it back, leading to fans pouring on to the pitch as stewards and players struggled to restrain them. After a long delay, Nice's players came out to finish the game - but Marseille's