After completing his career grand slam at last year’s Masters, Rory McIlroy will try to make it two in a row at Augusta National Golf Club. He enters the 2026 Masters as one of the favorites at +1200 (risk $100 to win $1,200), behind Scottie Scheffler, who is +500 in the 2026 Masters odds, and Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau, both at +1000. McIlroy, 36, has 44 professional wins, including 29 on the PGA Tour. Besides last year’s Masters, he has major wins at the PGA Championship (2012, 2014), U.S. Open (2011) and The Open Championship (2014).
The Masters 2026 gets underway on Thursday, April 9, and this will be the 90th edition of the event. The tournament, with a $21 million Masters purse, will be played on a par-72 course measuring 7,555 yards. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson will not play this year for personal reasons. Before making any 2026 Masters picks, you need to see the 2026 Masters predictions and best bets from golf expert Brady Kannon.
Kannon is an elite golfing betting handicapper with more than 30 years of experience in the industry. He has called eight major winners since 2013 and hit six PGA winners, including 110-1 longshot Harris English at the Farmers Insurance Open, in 2025. He also hit on Matt Fitzpatrick (15-1) at the Valspar Championship on March 22 for an outright winner. Additionally, he’s 32-27-4 on head-to-head bets since joining SportsLine.
Now, Kannon has focused his attention on the 2026 Masters Tournament field and locked in his best bets, sleepers and golfers to avoid. You can only see them here.
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Top 2026 Masters expert picks
One of Kannon’s 2026 Masters Tournament predictions: He’s fading Tyrrell Hatton at 70-1, avoiding him in outright bets and head-to-head bets.
“I see the other three majors as better fits for Hatton and not the test that the Masters presents. Furthermore, his game has been quite inconsistent on the LIV circuit this season with finishes of 47th, 45th and 38th wrapped around a 3rd and a 10th. The Masters, or any major, really, is not necessarily receptive to volatility in one’s current game. Remember: Here, we are dealing with 50-some players on LIV and Hatton ranks 44th in scrambling, 33rd for greens in regulation and 27th in putting average. Normally, I might say Hatton is worth a look at a top 20 finish, but with the way he’s been all over the place this season on LIV, another missed cut at the year’s first major championship could be in Hatton’s near future.” See who Kannon is backing at SportsLine.
How to make 2026 Masters picks
Kannon has revealed his best bets, and his top outright pick is a surprising longshot who hasn’t won an event in more than three years. He’s a perfect course fit, and anyone who backs him could hit it big. You can only see who it is at SportsLine.
Scottie Scheffler +500 Bryson DeChambeau +1000 Jon Rahm +1000 Rory McIlroy +1200 Xander Schauffele +1600 Ludvig Åberg +1600 Matt Fitzpatrick +2200 Cameron Young +2200 Tommy Fleetwood +2200 Justin Rose +3000 Robert MacIntyre +3300 Patrick Reed +3300 Collin Morikawa +3500 Hideki Matsuyama +4000 Jordan Spieth +4000 Brooks Koepka +4000 Min Woo Lee +4000 Si Woo Kim +4500 Chris Gotterup +5000 Viktor Hovland +5000 Russell Henley +5500 Shane Lowry +6000 Akshay Bhatia +6000 Adam Scott +6500 Justin Thomas +6500 Sepp Straka +7000 Tyrrell Hatton +7000 Patrick Cantlay +7000 Jason Day +7000 Jake Knapp +8000 Jacob Bridgeman +8000 Marco Penge +8000 Sungjae Im +10000 Sam Burns +10000 Harris English +10000 Corey Conners +10000 J.J. Spaun +10000 Cameron Smith +10000 Nicolai Højgaard +10000 Maverick McNealy +10000 Gary Woodland +10000 Max Homa +10000 Daniel Berger +12500 Ben Griffin +12500 Rasmus Højgaard +15000 Kurt Kitayama +15000 Aaron Rai +15000 Wyndham Clark +15000 Ryan Gerard +15000 Brian Harman +15000 Sam Stevens +17500 Max Greyserman +17500 Ryan Fox +17500 Jarvis Casey +17500 Keegan Bradley +17500 Haotong Li +17500 Dustin Johnson +17500 Alex Noren +17500 Harry Hall +17500 Nicolas Echavarria +17500 Sami Valimaki +22500 Nick Taylor +22500 Sergio Garcia +22500 Carlos Ortiz +22500 Kristoffer Reitan +25000 Matt McCarty +25000 Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen +25000 Andrew Novak +25000 Aldrich Potgieter +25000 Tom McKibbin +25000 Michael Brennan +35000 Michael Kim +35000 Davis Riley +50000 Bubba Watson +50000 John Keefer +50000 Zach Johnson +50000 Charl Schwartzel +75000 Angel Cabrera +100000 Mason Howell +100000 Fifa Laopakdee +100000 Ethan Fang +100000 Brian Campbell +100000 Vijay Singh +100000 Jose Maria Olazabal +100000 Brandon Holtz +100000 Naoyuki Kataoka +100000 Danny Willett +100000 Jackson Herrington +100000 Fred Couples +100000 Mateo Pulcini +100000 Mike Weir +100000
Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick as Manchester City thrashed Liverpool 4-0 in their FA Cup quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium.
Haaland opened the scoring from the penalty spot late in the first half. He added a second goal before the break, while Antoine Semenyo made it three shortly after half-time. Haaland completed his hat-trick before the hour mark to seal a dominant win for the Premier League champions.
Mohamed Salah, playing his first match since announcing he will leave Liverpool at the end of the season, had a penalty saved by James Trafford when his team were already four goals down. It was a difficult afternoon for manager Arne Slot and his players.
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The first goal came after Virgil van Dijk fouled Nico O’Reilly in the box, allowing Haaland to score from the spot. Haaland’s second goal came in stoppage time of the first half.
Rayan Cherki played an important role in the attack, setting up chances as City continued to dominate. Semenyo added another goal early in the second half to complete Liverpool’s misery.
Haaland was named Player of the Match after an outstanding performance.
There was no better place in the league for Ryan Strome to celebrate a milestone like this.
One month after the Anaheim Ducks’ 13th forward was traded away to the Flames, he returned to southern California to record his 500th NHL point Saturday night.
He did it in style, with a breakaway finish in front of his wife, five children, in-laws and two benches full of teammates past and present who admire the man for his leadership and class.
His goal snapped a 1-1 tie early in the second period to give the Flames a lead they would not relinquish in a 5-3 road win.
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What’s more, it took a little pressure off him in a family battle he joked about before the game.
“It probably took a little longer this year than I would have expected,” said Strome of the milestone, which was delayed by the fact he was essentially the odd-man out in Anaheim this year as part of the Ducks’ youth movement.
“My brother (Dylan) is kind of catching up to me, and he’s four years younger than me, so I gotta really get my butt in gear here.”
He’s done exactly that since joining the Flames, picking up 11 points in 15 games, which is a vast departure from the nine points in 33 games he had in Anaheim before the Flames acquired him for a seventh-round pick.
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The difference in Calgary, obviously, is opportunity.
“I mean, I just really wasn’t playing,” he said of his fourth year with the Ducks.
“When you’re playing fourth line and you’re playing eight minutes a game some games, five minutes a game, it’s tough. I have a lot more respect for guys that have done it for a long time in their career, now that I’ve been through it, and I’ve never had to deal with that in my career.”
For the record, Dylan has 439 points as one of Washington’s top players.
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Late in the second period, Morgan Frost hit the 20-goal milestone for the first time in his career after taking a long pass from Olli Maatta and finishing with a series of jukes and jives to beat Ville Husso. It put the Flames up 4-1 and helped Frost fulfill an early season goal he’d come close to three years ago in Philly when he finished with 19.
He also won a huge draw in the final 90 seconds with Anaheim’s goalie pulled, and seconds later potted his second of the game into the open cage.
His 41 points are only five short of his career-high.
Ryan Huska has spoken of late about Frost emerging from the shadow of Nazem Kadri after the veteran was traded, but the reality is Frost has been one of the top two or three forwards for the Flames all season long.
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His combination of silky-smooth hands and sublime skating should make him the favourite to open next season as the organization’s top centre.
The Flames extended their obscure record to 56 consecutive wins when scoring four goals or more. Despite a 4-1 lead after two periods, built on the back of goals from Joel Farabee, Matvei Gridin, Frost and Strome, the result was very much in doubt in the third as the Ducks scored twice in the third.
Alas, Devin Cooley stood tall as the game’s first star to make several of his 36 saves in the final few minutes to preserve the two points Anaheim would so desperately have liked.
It was Calgary’s first win in the opening three games of this, their final road trip of the year.
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A lot was made about the Flames’ six-game point streak at home last week threatening the team’s draft pick status.
However, the Canucks were never going to be caught as the league’s worst team, leaving the Flames in a race with Chicago and a few others for second and third-worst.
Even after the Flames win Saturday, the Flames still sit third-last, just two points up on Chicago, which also won Saturday. The Rangers also won Saturday to stay a point ahead of the Flames.
If the lottery were to be held now, the Flames’ draft lottery odds would look like this:
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• 1st overall pick: 11.5%
• 2nd overall pick: 11.2%
• 3rd overall pick: 7.8%
• 4th overall pick: 39.7%
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• 5th overall pick: 29.8%
The good news for Flames fans is that with six games left, they still have several tough opponents on the docket, including three on the road against Dallas, Colorado and desperate Seattle, followed by three at home against Utah, Colorado and L.A.
The third round of the 2026 Valero Texas Open resumes underway Sunday morning at TPC San Antonio, with the final round being played later in the day. Here’s everything you need to know to watch the tournament on Sunday, including full Valero Texas Open TV coverage, streaming details and tee times.
How to watch Valero Texas Open on Sunday
When play was suspended Saturday afternoon at TPC San Antonio, two familiar names sat atop the leaderboard: Robery MacIntrye and Ludvig Aberg. The duo were key pieces for the victorious European side at last fall’s Ryder Cup, and in the last tuneup before the Masters, they are sitting 1-2 on the leaderboard.
MacIntyre, the 29-year-old from Scotland, sits alone in first place at 15 under through six holes of his third round, while Aberg is another two strokes behind. The two men will return to TPC San Antonio Sunday morning with a long day of golf ahead and both seeking their first victories of the 2026 campaign.
You can watch the completion of the third round of the Valero Texas Open via PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ will provide exclusive streaming coverage starting at 8:45 a.m. ET, as well as featured group and featured hole coverage all round long.
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The final round will begin after third-round play is completed, and you can watch on TV via Golf Channel from 1-2:30 p.m. ET. CBS will provide TV coverage for the remainder of the final round from 2:30-6 p.m. ET.
Below you will find everything you need to know to watch the 2026 Valero Texas Open on Sunday.
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With an ESPN+ subscription, you gain access to PGA Tour Live, where you can stream the best PGA Tour events live from wherever you want.
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How to watch on TV Sunday
Golf Channel will carry final-round TV coverage of the 2026 Valero Texas Open from 1-2:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
How to stream online Sunday
You can stream the third and fourth rounds of the 2026 Valero Texas Open via PGA Tour Live on ESPN+, which will offer streaming coverage starting at 8:45 a.m. ET on Sunday in addition to featured group and hole coverage.
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Mikel Arteta took responsibility for Arsenal’s meek FA Cup quarter-final exit at Southampton as the Premier League leaders blew a glorious chance to return to Wembley.
A fortnight on from the disappointing Carabao Cup final loss to Manchester City, the absentee-hit Gunners lost to Sky Bet Championship opposition at a rocking St Mary’s on Saturday evening.
Ross Stewart fired in-form Saints ahead at the end of a move featuring Martin Odegaard and Ben White errors, with Leo Scienza hitting the crossbar before substitute Viktor Gyokeres equalised for Arsenal.
However, it is Southampton heading to Wembley later this month in the FA Cup semi-finals after Shea Charles came off the bench to seal a famous 2-1 quarter-final victory.
“Really disappointed in the manner that we lost the opportunity to get back to Wembley,” said Arsenal boss Arteta, whose side boast a nine-point lead at the top of the Premier League.
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“I love my players. What they have done for nine months, I’m not going to criticise them because we lost a game here in the manner that they tried and the way they are putting their bodies through everything.
“Some of them probably didn’t even have to be here today. I’m not going to do that, so I’m going to defend them more than ever.
“Someone has to take responsibility. That’s me and we have the most beautiful period of the season ahead of us.
“And now is a moment. In the season, you always have moments, normally two or three. This is the first moment that we have with a certain level of difficulty.
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“We’re going to say difficulty when we’re going to play the Champions League quarter-finals and the run-up for the league.
“If this is a difficult period, I believe there are many other ones that are much more difficult, so let’s stand up, make yourself comfortable and deliver like we’ve been doing all season.”
Arsenal have little time to dust themselves down after Saturday’s loss at Southampton given the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final at Sporting is coming up on Tuesday.
Gabriel Magalhaes looks a doubt for the trip to Lisbon after the centre-back, who withdrew from the Brazil squad with a knee issue, limped off in the second half.
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“I don’t know,” Arteta said of the issue. “I think he felt something. I don’t know exactly what it is. We’re going to have to assess him. But obviously when a player asks him to be substituted, it’s not good news.”
Saints are also back in action on Tuesday, when they head to play-off rivals Wrexham buoyed by an unforgettable evening at St Mary’s.
It was the greatest victory of Tonda Eckert’s nascent coaching career and keeps alive hopes of Saints replicating Lawrie McMenemy’s second-tier side winning the FA Cup 50 years ago.
“I think the club has been craving for a moment like this for a long time,” head coach Eckert, only 33, said.
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“I think that we’ve suffered over a longer spell, and it’s just so important that we get that atmosphere back to St Mary’s how it should be.
“I think today was outstanding. Not just for the generation from ’76, but also for the younger generation to be able to identify themselves with the club, with what we do. I think nights like this help a lot.”
It was a scrappy affair between the two men, with Wilder earning two knockdowns across the course of the 12 rounds, as the judges scored the bout 115-111, 115-113 and 112-115 to secure the narrow victory for the American.
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Speculation has now begun over who ‘The Bronze Bomber’ may look to target next, with a clash against unified world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk or WBO titleholder Fabio Wardley seen as two potential options.
It seems as if Wilder may have another target in mind though, after he crossed paths with long-term rival Joshua as he left the ring on Saturday.
The aftermath was then captured by DAZN, as Wilder revealed what he thought about the coming together with Joshua.
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“He’s scared as f**k. Let’s do it.”
Wilder and Joshua were linked to a showdown for a number of years when they were each reigning world heavyweight champions, but for one reason or another, it was never able to come to fruition.
While both men may now be past their best, it would still be a big fight for the division, but for now it seems that Joshua’s focus is on landing a battle against countryman Tyson Fury, who himself knows what it is like to share the ring with Wilder after their epic trilogy.
West Ham United host Leeds United today, aiming to reach their first FA Cup semi-final in two decades.
The Hammers have moved into the quarter-finals after a dramatic penalty win over Brentford. Manager Nuno Espírito Santo oversaw a strong home run, with the side unbeaten in six at the London Stadium. West Ham have been eliminated from eight of their last ten FA Cup quarter-final ties. They now seek to end that trend tonight.
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West Ham team news
Nuno Espírito Santo manages a squad hopeful of a key attacking return. Crysencio Summerville faces a late fitness test after suffering a calf injury in March. Consequently, his availability remains uncertain until shortly before kick-off.
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Crucially, Jarrod Bowen enters the match in excellent form against the visitors. He has scored in all three of his previous appearances against Leeds at this venue.
Alphonse Areola will start in goal behind a defence featuring Konstantinos Mavropanos and Axel Disasi. In midfield, Tomáš Souček returns following World Cup qualification success with the Czech Republic.
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Mateus Fernandes is also expected to start after making his senior Portugal debut. Notably, West Ham have won their last two FA Cup meetings with Leeds. They will rely on their home dominance to secure a Wembley return today.
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West Ham predicted lineup
West Ham United Predicted XI (4-3-3): Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Mavropanos, Disasi, Diouf; Soucek, Magassa, Fernandes; Bowen, Wilson, Traore
When will the match kick off?
The FA Cup quarter-final tie officially begins this Sunday, 5 April, at 16:30 BST.
How to watch West Ham vs Leeds?
UK viewers can watch the match live on TNT Sports 1 and stream via HBO Max.
Dec 21, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell during the first half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images
This year’s draft features likely top pick Fernando Mendoza, star running back Jeremiyah Love, combine standouts and sure first-rounders Sonny Styles and Kenyon Sadiq, as well as countless other intriguing players. Perhaps the most fascinating one is someone who has yet to take his first steps on the gridiron.
Nigerian defensive tackle prospect Uar Bernard has become a sweet story in this year’s pre-draft process thanks to his otherworldly athleticism and an article of The Athletic written by Bruce Feldman.
Feldman introduced the draft hopeful: “Jordan Luallen trained some of the most freakish athletes at the 2026 NFL combine: A 245-pound edge rusher who vertical-jumped 41 inches, a jumbo wide receiver who ran a 4.3 40, and a 293-pound defensive tackle who ran 4.8. But Luallen told The Athletic he’s never seen an athlete like the one he’s been training for the past 10 weeks for this year’s NFL draft. Uar Bernard (pronounced “ooh-are”) measured in earlier this week at the NFL’s HBCU showcase at 6-4 1/2, 306 pounds with 11-inch hands and almost 36-inch arms.”
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According to analyst Ryan Fowler, the Vikings are one of five teams to have shown interest in hosting Bernard for a visit.
This is the biggest freak athlete in this year’s NFL draft. I’d never heard of him till two days ago. He’s from a small village in Nigeria. He is 6-4 1/2, 306 lbs and jumps 10-10. Some folks in the NFL think he’ll go on Day 3 of the draft. Free story: https://t.co/tgiQdpjikhpic.twitter.com/aFgq5FUjNV
Bernard is a project that will likely take years to provide a return on investment, if he ever can. Yet, teams often spend their later draft picks on players with potential rather than selecting pro-ready athletes and Bernard fits that mold, though perhaps a little more extreme than usual.
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Feldman added, “Other people who have spent their lifetimes in football say Bernard looks like a Marvel creation. Bernard’s body fat: 6 percent. He vertical-jumped 39 inches and broad-jumped 10-10, which was 14 inches more than any other defensive tackle did at this year’s combine. His 40-yard dash: 4.63.”
That’s indeed a marvel-like arsenal of physical tools.
According to NFL Next Gen Stats, he’s the most athletic defensive tackle prospect in over two decades of data. They posted on social media, “We ran Nigerian IPP prospect Uar Bernard’s numbers through the NGS athleticism models (predictive & raw) trained against DTs since 2003. Here’s how he scored relative to the 2026 draft class: Athleticism Score: 96 (1st) Raw ATH Score: 10.0 (1st)”
A terrible three-cone time hurt his still-excellent relative athletic score, but it’s worth wondering whether he’s really unable to change direction or if he botched the test. Given his movement skills, the latter theory might be more than just a conspiracy theory.
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The NFL has been trying to grow the game internationally and the number of foreign players in the NFL is slowly rising. Few have turned out to become star players or even starters. The most prominent one is Eagles All-Pro tackle Jordan Mailata, an Australian with zero football experience prior to the 2018 draft.
Feldman noted, “Bernard began the training program Jan. 18 in Florida with Luallen. He came in at 295 pounds with 11 percent body fat. He vertical-jumped 32 inches and broad-jumped 9-4. To see the improvement in the 10 weeks of training is unlike anything Luallen has experienced. ‘He was very naturally gifted when he walked in, but he made substantial improvement on everything. He’s super freakin’ flexible, and he is way more fluid now.’”
Bernard grew up in a small village in Nigeria and wanted to pursue a career in real estate. Most people from there are farmers, he said, according to Feldman.
His football journey started when he was playing basketball and a coach suggested he should pick up football. A few football camps later, he was chosen by the International Pathway Program.
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That program is working with former players and coaches to teach the prospects the sport. YouTube has been another way for him to study defensive line play, especially Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald, who have caught his attention.
Without any college experience, there’s a good chance Bernard lacks the fundamentals to thrive in the NFL, needing a lot of work. However, players with such athletic feats will always draw attention as long-term projects.
Oct 20, 2022; Glendale, Arizona, USA; New Orleans Saints co-defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Vikings defensive line coach Marcus Dixon left this offseason for the Dallas Cowboys. Ryan Nielsen was hired in that role. Nielsen has been a defensive line coach for two decades and a guy with his experience appears to be primed for that assignment.
Based on potential alone, he’ll likely hear his name called late in the draft as a flier and the Vikings could be the ones pulling that trigger.
The SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) will lock horns with the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the 10th game of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium will host the afternoon game on Sunday, April 5. The Ishan Kishan-led side will look to continue their good form after beating the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 65 runs in their previous game. The batting unit, including openers Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, and Heinrich Klaasen, will look to deliver again against the Super Giants.
Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant’s LSG will be keen to fight back after losing to the Delhi Capitals (DC) by six wickets in their opening game this season. The batting unit looked dismal as they were bundled out for 141 in 18.4 overs.
Here are three players who are likely to emerge as the leading run-scorers in the SRH vs LSG IPL 2026 match:
Abhishek Sharma
Abhishek Sharma – Source: Getty
Abhishek Sharma enjoys a promising record against LSG in IPL. The southpaw slammed 59 runs off 20 balls against them last year. He previously smashed an unbeaten 75 off 28 deliveries against the same franchise in 2024. The 26-year-old also boasts a promising record in Hyderabad, amassing 521 runs in 19 innings with the help of one century and three fifties. When Abhishek gets going, he is tough to stop. The Punjab-born player slammed 141 off 55 balls against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the same venue last year. In the IPL, he has 1871 runs in 79 matches at a strike rate of 163.69, comprising one ton and nine fifties. Overall, in T20s, the left-hander has 5,296 runs in 183 games, comprising eight centuries and 32 fifties.
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Travis Head
Travis Head – Source: Getty
Like Abhishek Sharma, his SRH opening batter, Travis Head, also enjoys a good record against LSG in the IPL. The Aussie opener has slammed 89* (30) and 47 (28) in his two innings against the Lucknow-based franchise. Interestingly, both his knocks came at the same venue in Hyderabad. The 32-year-old has amassed 459 runs in 12 innings at a strike rate of 181.42, including five fifties at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. In the IPL, Head has 1203 runs in 40 matches at a brilliant strike rate of 170.88, including one century and eight 50s. Overall in T20s, he has scored 4609 runs in 176 games, comprising two tons and 27 half-centuries.
Nicholas Pooran
Nicholas Pooran – Source: Getty
LSG’s Nicholas Pooran has a stunning record against LSG in the IPL. The wicketkeeper-batter has amassed 356 runs in 10 matches at a strike rate of 202.27, including two half-centuries. In his last four innings against the Super Giants, he has returned with scores of 45 (26), 70 (26), 48* (26), and 44* (13), respectively. In Hyderabad, Pooran has 183 runs in four innings at a stunning strike rate of 244, including the aforementioned 70.
Pooran has amassed over 10,000 runs in T20s. The left-hander has 10,379 runs in 444 matches at a strike rate of 147.89, including four tons and 63 fifties. In the IPL, he has scored 2301 runs in 88 innings at an even higher strike rate of 168.57, hitting 14 fifties.
Anthony Joshua has made his first public appearance since the death of close friends Sina Ghami and Latif “Latz” Ayodele, arriving at the O2 Arena to support Derek Chisora.
Joshua has kept a low profile in recent months after he attended the funeral of his close friends, and Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn has reiterated “AJ” needs time to heal.
Dressed in a white tracksuit, Joshua emerged with Hearn from a black people-carrier and cut a calm figure as he walked into the arena past a number of camera crews.
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There was no friendly welcome from old rival Wilder, who was repeatedly linked with a world-title bout with Joshua during the peak of their powers, as the American went straight past the London heavyweight without any acknowledgement in a tight corridor inside the O2.
Joshua last fought before Christmas when he stopped YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in Miami, but speculation continues over a potential bout with Tyson Fury.
Anthony Joshua, left, was ringside alongside promoter Eddie Hearn (Adam DAvy/PA) (PA)
During a short ringside interview with DAZN, Joshua backed fellow Finchley boxer Chisora to win, but “Delboy” lost a razor-close decision after 12 rounds.
“It amazing to be here. Boxing, especially British boxing, is booming,” Joshua said.
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Renato Moicano and Chris Duncan have trained together frequently over the years on the mats at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Fla., however on Saturday night in Las Vegas they served as main event opponents.
The lightweights headlined a 13-bout card at the Meta Apex with Moicano dominating his younger teammate and earning a second-round submission victory.
“He (expletive) me up many times in the gym when I first started going there, so I learned a lot from him,” Duncan said of Moicano three days prior to their fight. “He was kind enough to share some (wisdom and techniques). He’s a good guy and we’re just going to fight on Saturday night.”
Moicano, 36, acknowledged this week he felt the atmosphere in gym while preparing for Duncan “was not great because to be seeing your opponent (constantly while training) was not good.”
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If knowing Duncan affected Moicano at all, he hid it well in the cage because he had his best performance in a couple years.
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Brazil’s Moicano started off strong by checking Duncan with low kicks and finding a home for his jab in the opening round then he rocked Duncan in Round 2 with a check left hook before taking back control and working for a rear-naked choke.
Scotland’s Duncan, 32, was looking for his fifth consecutive win and defended Moicano’s first choke attempt but the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt was relentless and capitalized on a Duncan mistake and locked up a fight-ending face crank.
The win snapped a two-fight skid for Moicano. He had lost consecutive fights to Beneil Dariush and Islam Makhachev, the latter of which was a title fight Moicano accepted on just one day’s notice in January 2025.
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Moicano was supposed to begin his 2026 campaign with a rematch against Brain Ortega but an injury to Ortega freed up Moicano to accept this main event spot against Duncan.
There was plenty of mutual respect in the buildup Saturday’s featured bout.
Moicano, who should maintain his spot as the No. 10 contender in the 155-pound contender rankings, described Duncan as “very dangerous, a very good striker and has a good guillotine. … I don’t take anything from him. He’s younger than me and he’s hungry.”
This was Moicano’s seventh submission victory of his UFC career and his first such win since 2022.
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Virna Jandiroba returned to the win column with a unanimous decision over Tabatha Ricci in the co-main event. Jandiroba, 37, fell short in her vacant title fight with Mackenzie Dern this past October but should maintain her No. 3 spot in the UFC’s strawweight contender rankings. Ricci had been riding high off the first KO/TKO win of her UFC career. She entered the weekend ranked No. 7 at 115 pounds.
Also on the card, hyped featherweight prospect Tommy McMillen stayed undefeated with a chaotic opening-round technical knockout win over Manolo Zecchini. McMillen is now 10-0 as a pro and a teammate of former men’s bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley. The 28-year-old earned a UFC contract in September through Dana White’s Contender Series.
Abdul-Rakhman Yakhyaev showed why he was the biggest betting favourite on the card by making quick work of Brendson Ribeiro in the 205-pound division. Yakhyaev tapped out Ribeiro with a rear-naked choke midway through the opening round to improve to 9-0 in mixed martial arts as Ribeiro’s UFC record dropped to 2-5 with his past three fights each ending in a first-round stoppage loss.
Ethyn Ewing became the first fighter to defeat Rafael Estevam, using a crisp liver shot to earn a third-round stoppage in bantamweight action. Ewing is making a habit of expelling foes from the ranks of the unbeaten after handing touted bantamweight prospect Malcolm Wellmaker his first loss in November on just two days’ notice. The 28-year-old who trains out of CSW Training Center in Fullerton, Calif., has won 10 consecutive fights since beginning his career 0-2.
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It wasn’t the only finish on the card due to a body punch.
Alessandro Costa put fellow flyweight Stewart Nicoll away with a perfect left hand to the body that left Nicoll crumpled on the canvas. Costa, 30, is a member of the Legacy MMA/Brazilian Warriors team that trains out of Puebla, Mexico and had several high-profile teammates in attendance supporting him. He had two-time UFC featherweight title challenger Diego Lopes in his corner and teammate Alexa Grasso, the former women’s flyweight champion, cheering him on in the stands.
Alice Pereira earned her first UFC win with a second-round knockout of Hailey Cowan on the preliminary card. The 20-year-old Brazilian timed a step-in knee that put Cowan to sleep in their 125-pound bout.
Tresean Gore submitted Azamat Bekoev in the third round of their middleweight matchup. Gore used a guillotine choke to put Bekoev to sleep — each of his three most recent wins in the UFC have all been via guillotine.
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Bekoev debuted in the UFC in 2025 as a Legacy Fighting Alliance champions and got off to a 2-0 start with first-round knockouts of Zach Reese and Ryan Loder, however he has now lost two in a row after also getting stopped in the third round by Yousri Belgaroui six months ago.
Kai Kamaka III and Dakota Hope had a spirited tilt to kick off the preliminary card. Kamaka, who was returning to the UFC for the first time in five years, got the split decision win over the debuting Hope.
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