Elina Svitolina defeated Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-7(13), 6-4 in a gripping semifinal at the Dubai Tennis Championships, to advance to her first WTA 1000 final in eight years.

Svitolina was forced to save multiple break points at 4–4 in the deciding set before holding firm and eventually closing out the victory. Thus win marks her second win over Gauff this season and gives her a 3–2 lead in their head-to-head series.

This will be Svitolina’s 24th WTA final, her sixth at the WTA 1000 level, and her third in Dubai, the first since 2018. It is also her first WTA 1000 final since becoming a mother. With the win, she secured her 46th career victory over a Top 10 opponent and extended her record as the player with the most match wins in Dubai history (24).

After the match, Svitolina reflected on the intensity of the contest.

“I’m speechless after that fight. I was really trying to put myself out there and was playing like there is no tomorrow. Trying to put all the effort. Thank you so much for your support. Really really special to be again in the final here after a few years and have another chance to lift that beautiful trophy.”

She also acknowledged the challenge posed by Gauff.

“Coco is such a big fighter. I was expecting that she would come back in the match. She won so many big battles, big tournaments. I had to keep fighting, keep pushing. I’m very pleased with the fight and with the win today.”

Svitolina will face Jessica Pegula in the final. Pegula leads their head-to-head 5–3, though Svitolina has won two of their last three meetings, including their most recent encounter in Indian Wells last season.

Constitution Hill – one of National Hunt racing’s biggest names – returned to winning ways with a commanding switch to the Flat at the Road To Cheltenham Novice Stakes.

Having triumphed in his first 10 races, the once-seemingly unbeatable horse had fallen three times in four outings.

In an attempt to get back on track, trainer Nicky Henderson entered him in the mile-and-a-half Flat race at Southwell, before a possible tilt at March’s Champion Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival, which he won in 2023.

Starting 6-4 favourite and with five-time champion jockey Oisin Murphy in the saddle, the move paid off as the nine-year-old took to the front well before the line and held firm to win by nine-and-a-half lengths from Square Necker and Gambino.

“He felt like a machine,” Murphy told ITV afterwards.

“It went to plan. It would’ve been very easy for me to blast off in front, but I wanted to get in among them and give him an idea of what a Flat race is like.

“For a big horse that’s been jumping, he has a lot of speed and he’s a joy to ride.”

Henderson, meanwhile, said the emphatic display under the Nottinghamshire course’s floodlights would “open up a lot of doors”.

“We’ve been through a few tears over the last year or so,” he admitted. “It’s nice to be back with positive vibes.

Brazil forward Neymar is reportedly considering retirement at the end of the current season, stating he is “living year to year”.

The 34-year-old, who joined boyhood club Santos last year from Saudi side Al-Hilal, has faced recent injury problems, including a knee issue.

Despite this, he hopes to feature for his country in this summer’s World Cup, though he remains under contract until the end of 2026.

“I don’t know what will happen from now on, I don’t know about next year,” he told Brazilian channel Caze.

“It may be that when December comes, I’ll want to retire. I’m living year to year now.

“We will see what my heart decides. It depends on what my heart says later in the year.

“This year is a very important year, not only for Santos, but also for the Brazilian national team, as it’s a World Cup year, and for me too. I wanted to play this season totally 100 per cent.”

Neymar, who is Brazil’s leading scorer of all time with 79 goals in 128 caps, has played at three World Cups. The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star has not featured for the five-times World Cup winners since 2023 due to a succession of injuries.

In December, Neymar underwent successful surgery on his knee by the Brazilian national team’s doctor Rodrigo Lasmar.

“An arthroscopy was performed to treat a medial meniscus injury. The surgery was a success, and the athlete is doing well,” Santos said at the time.

Neymar previously shared the stage with singer Thiaguinho to issue a bold promise to the nation, trying to incentivise Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti to bring him back into the fold.

“We are going to do everything possible, even the impossible, to bring this World Cup back to Brazil,” declared the forward. “In July, you can hold me accountable. Come on, Ancelotti, help us out, okay?”

When once asked about Neymar returning to the national team, Ancelotti said he must be fit if he is to earn a recall to the squad for next summer’s tournament held across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Brazil will face Scotland, 2022 World Cup semi-finalists Morocco and Haiti in Group C.

Angers take on Lille at the Stade Raymond Kopa in a Ligue 1 match this Sunday.

Angers are currently in 11th, while Lille are up in 5th, five points ahead of their opponents this weekend.

So can Lille keep up the pace and continue to push for a potential Champions League spot, or will Angers pick up a valuable home win?

Angers vs Lille Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

• Lille have won their last three matches against Angers, and have only lost once at the Stade Raymond Kopa since 2018.
• Angers fell to defeat at the hands of Lorient last weekend, ending a two-match winning streak that saw them defeat Metz and Toulouse. However, the fact that both of those wins came by a single goal means that Angers have only scored two in their last four games.
• Despite Lille’s high league position, they actually haven’t been on the best form in recent weeks. In fact, their only win in their last ten matches came in the Europa League against Freiburg. They fell to defeat in that competition on Thursday against Crvena Zvedza, and have not won in Ligue 1 since December 14th.
• More worrying for Lille should be the fact that their goals have all but dried up, despite them scoring 35 thus far. Since scoring four in December to beat Auxerre, they have only managed two in their last six league games.
• Given the lack of goals between these sides in recent weeks, it shouldn’t be a surprise that historically, games between them have been low-scoring. In fact, none of their last six meetings have produced more than two goals.

Angers vs Lille Prediction

Given Lille’s miserable run of form, this match could be a difficult one to predict, even if they are the superior side on paper.

One thing is likely for certain and that is a lack of goals, as neither team has been high-scoring in recent weeks and historically, this match has not produced many.

Overall, then, given Angers have the home advantage – and have won their last two at the Stade Raymond Kopa – it’s hard to pick a winner here. The prediction is a draw.

Prediction: Angers 1-1 Lille

Angers vs Lille Betting Tips

Tip 1: Result – Draw.

Tip 2: Game to feature fewer than 2.5 goals – Yes (the last six meetings between these sides have produced fewer than 2.5 goals).

Tip 3: Lille to be winning at half-time – Yes (Lille have been leading at half-time in their last three matches with Angers).