It is common to see Roger Federer get emotional on the court, but it was rare to see him so vulnerable with a microphone in his hand. The 20-time Grand Slam champion gave a tearful speech during his induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island. Following a moving introduction by his wife, Mirka, the 45-year-old sports legend broke down several times during his nearly 30-minute speech. He spoke about his love for tennis and thanked the people who supported his journey.
Federer started with a warm smile and joked about how hard it was to speak right after Mirka. “Oh man,” he said. “This is a tough act to follow. I don’t know if you have been practising secretly… I was a little stressed, to be honest.”
However, his composure did not last long. As he spoke about his childhood idol, Stefan Edberg, tears began to stream down his face. He had to pause and reassure the laughing audience that these were happy tears.
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The emotions grew even stronger when he spoke about his family and team, especially Mirka, who backed him throughout a career that included 103 ATP titles and 310 weeks as World No. 1. Overcome with emotion, he paused to collect himself.
“Now the Mirka part… Oh gosh, this is such a mess,” he said. “I need tissues and sunglasses and everything to protect me right now.”
He also thanked the ball kids, remembering his own early days in Basel: “I see you. I thank you. I was you.”
Reflecting on his historic achievements, including eight Wimbledon titles and five straight US Open trophies, Federer shared that fame was never his main goal. Instead, he simply wanted to spend his life doing what he loved alongside great people.
He closed his speech with a comforting message for fans. “As you can tell, I’m still writing my love letter to tennis,” he said, promising that while his playing days are over, his connection to the sport will last forever.
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Yamal Laughs At Paredes vs Gavi ‘Fight Of The Year’ Poster During Parade
Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar called for fines to be imposed on the bowler and the bowling coach for every no-ball bowled after Team India’s series win over Sri Lanka. Despite pulling off a 1-0 series win, the Indian bowlers, including the spinners, struggled with overstepping issues.
In just the second Test, the visitors sent down 13 no-balls, with the spin duo of Saransh Jain and Ravindra Jadeja bowling 11 across the two innings. Jadeja, who has often struggled with front-foot no-balls throughout his stellar career, also sent down four no-balls in the first Test at Galle.
Addressing the issue during the second Test, India’s bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule called for free-hits even in red-ball cricket.
However, Gavaskar disagreed with that thought and felt fines were the way forward, saying in his column for the Mid-Day:
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“The India team spinning coach jokingly said that giving a free hit after a no-ball might help in curbing the offense. Please, let’s not make run-scoring easier in Test cricket for the batters with this penalty. As it is, with the restriction on bouncers to two in an over and the boundaries being brought in, run making has become a little simpler. Instead, how about a fine which gets doubled for every further transgression, plus half the amount of the fine for the bowling coach too.”
He added:
“The fines collected can be used for the final team dinner before the boys disperse. There could be other fines too, for example, not backing up for a throw or something else not done on the field, which the whole team can vote on whether to impose or not. This can also be a fun activity and bond the team even more.”
Overall, the Indian bowlers bowled an unacceptable 20 no-balls across the four innings in the two Tests in Sri Lanka.
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“There should be no excuses for overstepping the bowling crease” – Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar believes bowling no-balls is inexcusable in the modern day, given the facilities and equipment available. The white-ball formats have penalized bowling no-balls with free hits for years as a move to penalize the bowlers.
“This has to be looked at urgently because it can change the colour of the game. There are very few aspects of the game that are totally in the players’ control, and a batter taking guard and a bowler not bowling a no-ball are two such aspects. Players, when they come for interviews, talk about doing things that are in their control. Today, with tape measure available to mark the run-up, there should be no excuses for overstepping the bowling crease,” said Gavaskar (via the aforementioned source).
Sri Lanka were themselves guilty of bowling no-balls across three innings in the Test series against India.
The American League wild-card picture won’t be clearing up anytime soon.
Entering the weekend on a seven-game win streak and two games above .500, the Cleveland Guardians have suddenly lost two straight games to the red-hot Kansas City Royals and lost ground to a pair of AL East rivals.
The Guardians’ step back has been a boon for the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles, who gained ground for the second straight day with their respective wins.
Toronto used a comeback victory over the Seattle Mariners to move 1.5 games back of Cleveland, while Baltimore moved to a single game back with another win over the Athletics.
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Elsewhere in the race, the Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins saw their losing streaks extended to four and the Mariners droped a third straight contest.
Further down the standings, the Detroit Tigers stayed on the fringes of the chase with a win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Here’s how the standings look after Saturday’s results:
Toronto: vs. Seattle, 1:37 p.m. (Sportsnet, Sportsnet+) Houston: at New York Mets, 3:10 p.m. New York Yankees: vs. Boston, 1:35 p.m. (Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet+) Baltimore: at Athletics, 4:05 p.m. (Sportsnet+) Boston: at New York Yankees, 1:35 p.m. (Sportsnet ONE, Sportsnet+) Texas: at Milwaukee, 2:10 p.m. Cleveland: vs. Kansas City, 1:40 p.m. Minnesota: vs. Chicago White Sox, 2:10 p.m. Seattle: at Toronto, 1:37 p.m. Detroit: vs. L.A. Dodgers, 1:40 p.m.
TORONTO — Alejandro Kirk drove in the tiebreaking run with a two-out single in the sixth inning and Toronto beat Seattle.
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José Soriano (11-7) struck out six in seven innings to win for the second time in three starts. Soriano allowed three runs and three hits.
Tyler Rogers struck out two in the eighth but left after walking Julio Rodríguez. Josh Naylor singled off Mason Fluharty to advance Rodríguez to third, but Fluharty struck out Cal Raleigh to preserve the lead.
Louis Varland finished for his 31st save in 32 opportunities.
Seattle lost its third straight and dropped to 27-41 on the road.
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CLEVELAND — Josh Rojas had his second career game with four RBIs, Salvador Perez hit two doubles and Kansas City defeated Cleveland for their 12th win in 13 games.
Rojas came into the game as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning. He lined a two-run single to left to extend Kansas City’s lead to 6-2 and added a two-run homer in the eighth. Rojas’ other game with four RBIs was with Arizona in 2022.
Cleveland’s Angel Martínez had two hits, including a two-run homer, and drove in three runs. The Guardians have dropped their last two after a seven-game winning streak.
Anthony Gose (1-0) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings as five Royals relievers combined to allow one run and two hits in 5 2/3 innings.
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WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Leody Taveras broke out of an 0-for-12 slump with two doubles and three RBIs in the Baltimore Orioles’ 5-3 victory over the Athletics on Saturday night.
Colton Cowser hit his 13th home run of the season in the fifth inning while Coby Mayo had a base hit and scored twice for the Orioles.
Shane Baz (5-14) went 5 2/3 innings, giving up five hits and two runs. He struck out four and walked three. Baz had previously lost all five decisions in August, with eight losses overall since June 18. The right-hander’s last win was 7-3 against the San Diego Padres on June 12.
The Orioles got on the board in the third inning when Taveras hit a ground-rule double off pitcher Jack Perkins (3-10) to bring in Mayo.
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Cowser homered over the centre-field wall in the fifth inning, and Taveras’ second double off reliever Luis Suárez in the sixth inning drove in two more runs to give Baltimore a 4-0 lead.
NEW YORK — Juan Soto, activated from the 10-day injured list before the game, had the go-ahead RBI single a pitch after fouling a ball off his right leg Saturday, leading New York to a victory over Houston.
Soto was tended to by manager Andy Green and a trainer before his hit off Cristian Javier (1-5) capped a seven-pitch battle and sparked a three-run fifth for the Mets, who halted a three-game skid.
Soto returned to the last-place Mets after missing 31 games with a grade 2 strain of his left calf. It was the second IL stint of the season for Soto.
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Jared Young added a two-run triple later in the fifth and finished with three hits and a career-high three RBIs. Francisco Alvarez hit a two-run double in the eighth,
MILWAUKEE — Jackson Chourio and William Contreras homered in the first inning and Milwaukee stayed ahead the rest of the way to defeat Texas.
The MLB-leading Brewers won their fourth in a row and handed Texas its fourth straight loss. The Rangers remained two games behind AL West leader Houston, which lost 6-2 to the New York Mets earlier Saturday.
Brandon Nimmo hit a two-run homer and Cody Freeman added a solo shot for Texas.
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Rangers starter Cal Quantrill gave up homers to two of the first four batters he faced.
Chourio’s 20th homer of the season came on a night when fans received cereal bowls bearing his name as they entered American Family Field. Quantrill was a strike away from getting out of the inning before Contreras connected on a 2-2 pitch and sent a 409-foot shot to left.
DETROIT — Javier Báez made huge ninth-inning plays in the field and at the plate to set up Kevin McGonigle’s game-ending single as the Detroit Tigers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 on Saturday.
The Dodgers nearly took the lead in the top of the inning, but with two outs, Báez sprinted over from left field to run down Teoscar Hernández’s drive to the deepest part of the ballpark.
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He then led off the bottom of the ninth with a double and took third on Max Clark’s sacrifice bunt. Jack Dreyer (5-2) intentionally walked Gleyber Torres, but then walked Hao-Yu Lee unintentionally to load the bases.
McGonigle then hit a deep fly to left-centre field that hit the warning track and bounced into the Dodgers bullpen. Because the winning run was on third, the play was ruled a single rather than a ground-rule double.
Each starter pitched well, but neither was involved in the decision. Blake Snell allowed one run on three hits in five innings, striking out 10, while Tigers starter Keider Montero gave up one run in 5 1/3 innings.
MINNEAPOLIS — Andrew Benintendi had all three of Chicago’s hits, with his sixth-inning home run being the difference, as the White Sox beat Minnesota.
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After five shutout innings Friday, the White Sox bullpen added four more as division-leading Chicago won its fourth straight game and improved to a season-high nine games over .500.
Josh Bell and Walter Jenkins had RBIs for Minnesota, which lost for the seventh time in eight games. The Twins are 8-17 in August as their playoff aspirations continue to fade.
A season-low-tying eight games under .500, Minnesota is 4 1/2 games out of the final American League wild-card spot, behind four other teams.
ST. LOUIS — Rafael Flores Jr. hit a three-run home run and Brandon Lowe added a solo shot to lift Pittsburgh to a victory over St. Louis.
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The Pirates entered the game, having scored only eight runs in their previous six games.
Carmen Mlodzinski (7-6), the third Pirates pitcher, gave up one run and one hit in 3 1/3 innings. Six Pittsburgh pitchers held the Cardinals to just three hits.
Rookie Brycen Mautz (0-1) took the loss in his MLB debut for St. Louis. He gave up four runs on five hits and a walk in three innings. Mautz struck out eight.
In the fifth, Flores drove a 3-2 slider into the left-field bleachers for a three-run homer, extending Pittsburgh’s advantage to 5-1.
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CHICAGO — Pete Crow-Armstrong homered three times and drove in six runs, helping the Cubs beat Sal Stewart and Cincinnati.
Alex Bregman, Carson Kelly and Seiya Suzuki also went deep for Chicago, which had lost three in a row and six of eight overall. The bottom of Chicago’s lineup — Tyrone Taylor, Pedro Ramírez and Kelly — went 8 for 12 and scored nine runs.
Stewart and Eugenio Suárez homered for the Reds, who dropped to 3-5 on a nine-game trip. Andrew Abbott (6-10) was tagged for seven runs and eight hits in three-plus innings.
Stewart’s two-run shot in the third was his 30th homer of the year. He leads NL rookies in homers and RBIs (104).
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Crow-Armstrong hit a 435-foot drive to right-centre in the first for his eighth career leadoff homer — all this season. He connected for a two-run drive in the second and a three-run homer in the seventh, a 444-foot shot to centre for No. 36 on the year.
NATIONALS 5, MARLINS 4, 10 INNINGS
WASHINGTON — Dylan Crews hit an RBI single with two out in the 10th inning to give Washington a win over Miami.
Miami pitchers had set down 21 consecutive Nationals before Michael Petersen (3-4) walked José Tena and Daylen Lile in the 10th inning to push automatic runner Nasim Nuñez to third. Crews then singled to the left of diving second baseman Xavier Edwards to win it.
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Orlando Ribalta (1-2) pitched a scoreless 10th for his first major league victory in 70 career appearances.
Washington has won three in a row for the first time since Aug. 7-9.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Yandy Diaz knocked in three runs with a bases-loaded single in the seventh inning and Chandler Simpson followed with a tiebreaking RBI hit as Tampa Bay rallied to beat San Diego in a game in which Padres second baseman Luis Rengifo was carted off with a right knee sprain.
Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda homered as the Rays won their third straight and for the fifth time in six games.
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Kevin Kelly (6-3) earned the win with 1 2/3 innings in relief. Bryan Baker recorded his league-leading 39th save by working a scoreless ninth. Starter Nick Martinez allowed three runs on seven hits and struck out four in six innings.
Bradgley Rodriguez (3-3) took the loss after failing to record an out while facing four batters in the seventh. Walker Buehler allowed seven hits and three runs while striking out three in five innings. Ty France hit a two-run home run for San Diego.
ATLANTA — Michael Harris II hit a two-out, two-run double in the eighth inning to lift Atlanta to a win over Colorado Rockies, the sixth straight for the National League East leaders.
Brent Suter (2-2) pitched 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief and picked up his first victory since joining the Braves at the trade deadline. Rookie Didier Fuentes allowed two baserunners in the ninth but retired Jake McCarthy to end the game and pick up his third save.
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Harris lifted a fly ball to left-centre field that was just out of the diving reach of Cole Carrigg and scored Matt Olson from second and Mauricio Dubón from first.
The Rockies entered the game with an MLB-worst 5.54 team ERA but came within four outs of just their second shutout of the season.
RED SOX 6, YANKEES 0, GAME 1
YANKEES 9, RED SOX 2, GAME 2
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NEW YORK — Ben Rice had a two-run single in New York’s five-run eighth inning and finished with three RBIs as the Yankees beat Boston in the nightcap and earned a doubleheader split.
The Yankees pulled rookie shortstop George Lombard Jr. after the third inning with right knee discomfort. The 21-year-old tweaked his knee on a check swing in the second inning and took another at-bat before exiting.
Ceddanne Rafaela hit an RBI single in a four-run ninth as Boston beat New York 6-0 in the opener.
The Yankees evened the season series at six games apiece and moved three games ahead of the Red Sox for the AL’s top wild-card spot.
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PHILLIES 4, ANGELS 2, 10 INNINGS
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Kyle Schwarber hit a go-ahead RBI single and Trea Turner had a two-run single in a three-run 10th inning in the Philadelphia Phillies’ 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Saturday night.
Phillies closer Jhoan Duran (2-4) threw a scoreless ninth and gave up an unearned run in the 10th as Philadelphia won for the 12th time in 14 games. The Angels have lost six straight.
The top of the 10th began with automatic runner Brandon Marsh getting thrown out at third on J.T. Realmuto’s grounder to short off Angels reliever Trevor Martin (0-1). Justin Crawford singled, advancing Realmuto to third.
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Schwarber blooped an RBI single to left-center for a 2-1 lead, Crawford taking third and Schwarber second on the throw. Turner squibbed a grounder through the right side of a drawn-in infield for a two-run single and a 4-1 lead.
Angels shortstop Zach Neto capped a 12-pitch at-bat in the eighth with a solo homer off Phillies reliever Jonathan Bowlan, tying the score 1-all and snapping a string of 30 consecutive innings without an extra-base hit for the Angels.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, just 15, took over East Zone’s captaincy mid-match after Ishan Kishan left the field with a finger injury.
This marked Sooryavanshi’s first taste of leadership, coming after he’d already served as vice-captain for Bihar and India U-19.
The youngster struggled with the bat this Duleep Trophy but chipped in with two wickets as East Zone romped to victory.
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Youngest captain in first-class cricket: 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi leads East Zone as Ishan Kishan suffers injury
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi suddenly found himself leading East Zone in their Duleep Trophy semi-final against Central Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
According to reports from the ground, he could barely contain his delight once the armband landed on him.
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Ishan Kishan, who was standing up to the stumps during the 19th over as Abhijit Sarkar bowled, took a nasty blow on his left hand and had no choice but to leave the field for treatment. Team physios worked on the Jharkhand gloveman before he was forced off entirely, and Kumar Kushagra stepped in behind the stumps.
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That left Sooryavanshi, already the side’s vice-captain, to take charge, and by all accounts, he couldn’t quite believe he’d suddenly be calling the shots for bowlers like Mohammad Shami and Mukesh Kumar.
Sooryavanshi had already worn the vice-captain’s tag for Bihar in last season’s Ranji Trophy, and earlier this year he held the same role for the India Under-19 side that lifted the World Cup.
WATCH: Sooryavanshi all smiles after being asked to lead East Zone
A captaincy call for Sooryavanshi that says more about potential than performance
To hand a 15-year-old the reins of a first-class side, even for a brief period, isn’t a decision anyone takes lightly, and it shouldn’t be read as some reckless gimmick.
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Sooryavanshi’s numbers this tournament haven’t been flattering, sure, but selectors clearly aren’t just looking at the scoreboard. They’re backing temperament, composure and a cricketing brain that’s already been tested on the biggest U-19 stage there is.
Leading senior pros like Shami mid-match, even briefly, throws a kid into deep water fast, but that’s often exactly how you find out what someone’s really made of. Whether this turns into a longer leadership story for Sooryavanshi remains to be seen, but Sunday’s moment, injury-forced as it was, might end up mattering a lot more than the scorecard suggests.
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In just a few short hours, after a power nap or two, Chelsea will be taking on Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge. It will be game number two of the Premier League season, both teams coming in off wins on opening weekend, Chelsea narrowly over Fulham, 3-2 and Brighton not so narrowly over Aston Villa, 4-0.
Xabi Alonso may have a preference for a back-three, but he’s been fairly fluid with formations overall. Things morph and move around. Standard formation notations aren’t really cut out for the modern game. That said, the WAGNH Community overwhelmingly prefer the back-three look.
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And there’s strong consensus on two of that back-three in Maxence Lacroix and Levi Colwill. Similarly, there is very strong consensus on the front-three, in JP, Morgan, and the guy who doesn’t like the JP Morgan nickname for that trio. Reece James is also a nailed-on starter. But there’s a steep drop after him for the last four starters, though in Caicedo’s case, that’s surely just due to his uncertain fitness status.
Josh Acheampong (45%), Pep Chavarría (42%), Wesley Fofana (41%), and Valentín Barco (34%) also came very close, though I expected a bit more for Barco after his Man of the Match showing midweek. Pedro Neto (23%) remains far off the pace, along with Estêvão (13%). Enzo Fernández managed just 11% as he continues to write a new chapter in his Chelsea legacy.
Chicago Sky guard Natasha Cloud argues with former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom, right, during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Indiana Fever, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
NEW YORK — Natasha Cloud didn’t want to waste time and energy talking about Enes Kanter Freedom on Saturday as she prepared for the Chicago Sky’s game against the New York Liberty.
To Cloud, he is unimportant.
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“I won’t be talking about anything that happened with an irrelevant person,” Cloud said. “What I will focus on is what actually affects women and children currently in 2026.”
Cloud then went on to name domestic violence, sexual assault and food insecurities as three things that women are most affected by.
Cloud got into a confrontation with Freedom at last Sunday’s Chicago home game against the Indiana Fever. The former NBA player was sitting along the baseline wearing a black shirt that read “WOMAN noun. adult human female.” The Fever called for a timeout after Cloud scored inside with 1:22 left in the third. Cloud then chest bumped with teammate Aicha Coulibaly before turning around and walking in Freedom’s direction.
The 34-year-old Cloud started yelling and pointing at Freedom as she approached him. He stood, held his arms out and stepped onto the court as security and a handful of Sky players moved between the two.
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“I will not talk about an irrelevant threat to our lives because that’s exactly what it is,” she said. “I want to talk about real issues that face women, and it’s not our trans human beings, and it’s not our drag queens. It’s not our gay community. There is a certain demographic of people that you can generally search. It’s a simple Google search of what is the greatest threat to women and children currently in 2026, in the United States of America.”
Freedom has been banned by Sky owner Michael Alter from attending any future Chicago home games.
Cloud applauded the move by the front office to “protect the players.”
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“That’s what protection looks like on the whole. I want everyone to hear that,” she said. “That’s what protection looks like from the right.”
Freedom and Royce White, another former NBA player, have declared for the WNBA draft, saying they identify as women. But a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Monday that they are not eligible. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation.
The WNBA has been the subject of recent debates on whether transgender women — people assigned male at birth who transition to align with their gender identity — should be allowed to participate in the league. There has never been such a player in the WNBA.
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Although the league’s collective bargaining agreement says the WNBA is restricted to women, it contains no more specific language about gender identity or sex assigned at birth.
“We won’t allow our league to be used as a pawn for any political or cultural wars that the right wants,” Cloud said. “We’re absolutely not going to. This league has always stood on principle and on our humanitarian efforts.”
Cloud wished the talk was about the amazing season the WNBA has been having on the court with strong ratings — that game against Indiana drew 3.3 million viewers, which was the most since the league’s inaugural season in 1997.
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“I just had a fan who identifies as trans cry to me in here and this is why I do what I do,” Cloud said. “None of this is performative. I don’t want to put myself in front of fires all the time. I don’t want to be the one that always has to speak up. But somebody (expletive) has to do it.”
The Minnesota Vikings have completed the preseason. The focus is now firmly on where things are going with the final roster. To that end, consider a Vikings 53-man roster projection. Needing to see some more info for who was employed by the Vikings means being able to check out the team website. However, all of the Vikings’ 91 players going into cut weekend are included below in some form.
Hit me up on social media — @VikingsGazette — if you think I’m incorrect.
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A Final Vikings 53-Man Roster Projection
Offense — 25 Players
Aug 22, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Tai Felton (13) catches a pass as Baltimore Ravens safety Silas Walters (36) defends during the first half at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images – Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Cut: Jeshaun Jones, Dontae Fleming, Trayvon Rudolph, Marcus Sanders, Terrill Davis, Michael Briscoe
TE | 3:
TE1 T.J. Hockenson
TE2 Josh Oliver
TE3 Gavin Bartholomew
Cut: Ben Yurosek, Bryson Nesbit, Marshall Lang, Matt Lauter
OL | 9:
OL1 Christian Darrisaw
OL2 Brian O’Neill
OL3 Ryan Van Demark
OL4 Walter Rouse
OL5 Donovan Jackson
OL6 Will Fries
OL7 Blake Brandel
OL8 Michael Jurgens
OL9 Caleb Tiernan
Cut: Gavin Gerhardt, Joe Huber, Tristan Leigh, Henry Byrd, Vershon Lee, Joshua Gray, Delby Lemieux, Tomas Rimac
Defense — 25 Players
Aug 22, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Baltimore Ravens running back Elijah Tau-Tolliver (34) is tackled by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jake Golday (41) during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images – Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
EDGE | 6:
EDGE1 Andrew Van Ginkel
EDGE2 Dallas Turner
EDGE3 Ty Ingram-Dawkins
EDGE4 Tyler Batty
EDGE5 Bo Richter
EDGE6 Chaz Chambliss
Cut: Cam’Ron Stewart, Kenny Dyson
DL | 5:
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DT1 Jalen Redmond
DT2 Levi Drake Rodriguez
DT3 Domonique Orange
DT4 Caleb Banks
DT5 Elijah Williams
Cut: Isaiahh Loudermilk, Jonathan Harris, Jahvaree Ritzie, Smith Vilbert
LB | 4:
LB1 Blake Cashman
LB2 Eric Wilson
LB3 Jake Golday
LB4 Ivan Pace Jr.
Cut: Jacob Roberts, Bangally Kamara, Josh Ross
CB | 4:
CB1 Byron Murphy Jr.
CB2 Isaiah Rodgers
CB3 James Pierre
CB4 Chuck Demmings
Cut: Zemaiah Vaughn, Da’Veawn Armstead, Marcus Allen, Tre Hawkins III, Bryce Phillips, Jarod Washington
S | 6:
S1 Josh Metellus
S2 Theo Jackson
S3 Jay Ward
S4 Jacob Thomas
S5 Jakobe Thomas
S6 Tavierre Thomas
Cut: Kahlef Hailassie
Special Teams — 3 Players
Dec 14, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Minnesota Vikings place kicker Will Reichard (16) kicks a field goal during the second half against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
Heading into the new season, some would have preferred Kieran McKenna to occupy the seat in the opposition dugout on Sunday. McKenna and Michael Carrick both worked under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United, and they have gone on to forge successful coaching careers since then.
After securing the Tractor Boys’ return to the Premier League at the first time of asking, Ipswich were preparing to continue with McKenna at the helm. However, on June 10, the former United assistant shocked everyone in Suffolk. “It was a complete bombshell,” East Anglian Daily Times’ chief football writer Stuart Watson told MEN Sport. “Kieran McKenna had written himself into Ipswich Town folklore with three promotions in four seasons. [He was] adored by the fanbase and players alike.
“There was a feeling when promotion was secured… Kieran was talking about the club being in a much better place to take on the Premier League this time around. He helped design the state-of-the-art new training ground that has just opened.
“So when the news came in June that he was quitting to take a break from the game, it took everyone by surprise.”
After recovering from that unexpected blow, the thoughts of everyone at Ipswich turned to who his successor would be. Just less than two weeks later, Gary O’Neil was appointed as the club’s new head coach.
“I think it’s fair to say the Gary O’Neil appointment didn’t necessarily set pulses racing to start with,” Watson admitted. “But very quickly he’s won people over.
“He’s been very bullish about what Ipswich Town can do this year. That’s been backed up by a really ambitious transfer window and a fantastic start to the season with the win against Sunderland on Saturday. So the mood’s pretty buoyant at the moment.”
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The victory over Sunderland last weekend could have been the shock of the opening day, if it had not been for United’s dismal showing at Hull. Watson explained that O’Neil has won a lot of fans round by playing the front-footed, possession-based style of football that beat the Black Cats. However, he believes that O’Neil has the potential to eclipse his predecessor’s legacy.
“If there was any slight knock on Kieran McKenna, and I’m loath to highlight too many, because he was absolutely remarkable for Ipswich Town, but it was that you tactically always knew what you were going to get,” Watson said. “There wasn’t a lot of deviation from 4-2-3-1, front foot, possession-based. One or two questioned whether there was maybe a little bit of naivety to that in the Premier League last time around.
“Gary O’Neil has said that he’ll be adaptable, he’ll be flexible, and you only have to look at the way he kept Bournemouth and Wolves in the Premier League before, he changed tactics in certain games. He too likes to be front-footed, possession-based, attacking football. That’s what he did at Strasbourg last season and that’s what we’ve seen so far in pre-season and on the opening day against Sunderland.
“I think Portman Road, they’re going to really go for it in most of the games and take people on. But he says, when we go away from home to Manchester United, for example, it’s not going to be that and it’s going to be a bit more pragmatic. So, whether we’ll see that for the first time at Old Trafford on Sunday will be interesting.”
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The talk of pragmatism will haunt United after last weekend. Hull don’t always play in a back three, but the Tigers spotted a weakness in the Reds, focused on it before the game and exploited it on Saturday.
Watson believes there is a good chance Ipswich could look to recreate that same system on Sunday. “As soon as Gary O’Neil talked about having that sort of flexibility to maybe go a bit more defensive, counter-attacking for the tougher away games in the division, we were looking through the squad, working out where the personnel fits in it,” he admitted. “They certainly have got the personnel for kind of a back three/five.
“The right-back at the moment is the captain Dara O’Shea, who played all of last season at centre back. He is a centre half by trade and he’s played him at right back because they’ve brought in Issa Diop, experienced player from Fulham, ex-West Ham. He’s kind of taken the right-sided centre half role, which means the captain’s ended up playing out of position at right back. So he sort of naturally tucks in anyway, which can create a bit of a back three feel.
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“The left back, Leif Davis, is very adventurous. He’s one that likes to push on, so he’s certainly got a wing-back feel to him. It would be who plays at right wing back which would be the most interesting call.
“They’ve brought in a player from Strasbourg, reunited with Gary O’Neil, called Abdoul Ouattara, young Ivorian, who we don’t know much about at the moment, other than the fact he’s ultra versatile. He’s played at Strasbourg, left back, right back, centre midfield.
“Gary O’Neil says he’s got a role in mind for him, but he won’t tell us just yet. He came on for a ten-minute cameo on Saturday and played central midfield, although they’re a little bit light in that area at the moment, so I don’t know whether to read too much into that. He could be the right wing-back option if they decide to go down that route at Old Trafford on Sunday.”
Ipswich also have threats going forward. Julio Enciso is the main man and is a popular figure at Portman Road. He rejoined Ipswich this summer having spent the second half of their last Premier League campaign on loan at the club.
“He’s got a habit of scoring worldies from 30-40 yards out. He got one for Ipswich at Goodison Park that beat Jordan Pickford all ends up, off the crossbar,” Watson raved. “He’s done it before for Brighton. He’s done it elsewhere as well. He’s an absolute superstar back in Paraguay. He scored at the World Cup against Germany this summer and he’s seen as a major coup.”
He is joined up front by Abdul Fatawu, who arrived from Leicester in the summer for £20m, and centre-forward Emersonn who is seen as one for the future. “It certainly feels like a club in general that’s far more prepared this time around,” Watson admitted.
“It was, you know, 22 years away from the Premier League. It was back-to-back promotions from League One, and it was a fantastic story, but the chairman Mark Ashton always used the analogy of trying to build a plane in flight and it was just too big a gap to bridge. So they’ve come back at the first time of asking and the water levels have risen in terms of the quality in the squad.”
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He concluded: “I think their feet are firmly on the floor. Ipswich’s eyes are wide open now to how tough the Premier League is. Gary O’Neil talked after the weekend about not getting carried away. It’s just one win and he’s a Premier League manager now with a bit of experience, so he knows every game is difficult, as the cliche goes.
“Before a ball was kicked, he said: ‘I don’t want us to go into this season with any kind of fear. I don’t want us to be scared of any of the challenges ahead of us,’ and that’s the kind of attitude internally. I think fans are feeding off that.
“So I think they’ll go to Old Trafford very mindful of it being still a very, very difficult Premier League game, but equally no fear about what they could potentially do at the weekend. I think everyone’s just going into Sunday’s game really looking forward to it.”
Daniella Okocha, daughter of Nigerian football legend Austin “Jay-Jay” Okocha, has celebrated her white wedding to Leonard Okorocha in a lavish ceremony in Marbella, Spain.
The 27-year-old law graduate and Leonard exchanged vows at the destination wedding on Saturday, August 29, 2026, surrounded by family, friends and loved ones.
The Marbella celebration comes months after the couple held their civil wedding in Lagos on January 3, 2026. Daniella and Leonard had also celebrated their traditional marriage earlier in the year.
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One of the highlights of the Spanish celebration was Daniella’s emotional father-daughter dance with Jay-Jay Okocha.
The former Super Eagles captain shared the dance floor with his daughter in a beautiful and playful moment that has since attracted attention online.
Daniella had announced her engagement to Leonard in late 2025 before beginning a series of wedding celebrations that have now taken the couple from Lagos to Spain.
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The Marbella ceremony marks another memorable chapter in the couple’s journey as husband and wife, with the Okocha family joining them to celebrate their union.
It would be too simplistic – and unfair – to say Hrgovic won the fight purely through mind games, but the 34-year-old had succeeded in making the build-up uncomfortable.
Hrgovic spent fight week repeatedly attacking Itauma’s age, dismissing him as “just a kid”. As the week wore on, Itauma looked increasingly irritated and eventually lost his composure at the weigh-in, shoving Hrgovic before the Croatian responded with a slap.
Itauma prides himself on being unusually cerebral for a heavyweight. He reads psychology and self-help books, talks openly about sharpening his mind and appears to spend far more time analysing himself than most 21-year-olds.
But there is always a danger that deep thinking becomes overthinking, something Anthony Joshua has been accused of repeatedly during the latter stages of his career.
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Whether the pre-fight barbs played any part or not, Itauma’s gameplan once the bell rang was clear; he wanted to end the night early.
“Someone said to me he doesn’t feel like he’d win a world title unless he knocks him out. I didn’t like that,” promoter Frank Warren said afterwards.
That mindset was understandable because it had served Itauma extraordinarily well until now. But perhaps Hrgovic had been underestimated by almost everybody – Itauma, the media, pundits, former fighters and bookmakers who installed the Briton as a heavy favourite.
Hrgovic is an Olympic bronze medallist who went 12 hard rounds with the giant Zhilei Zhang, while against Daniel Dubois – the only defeat on his record – he was leading on two of the three scorecards before the fight was stopped because of cuts.
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‘El Animal’ knew what it felt like to be hurt, to become tired and to remain in a fight when things were going badly. Itauma did not.
Kevin Quiambao found himself on familiar ground Friday night and delivered when Gilas Pilipinas needed him most.
The former La Salle standout hit a crucial 3-pointer with 11.7 seconds left in overtime as the Philippines escaped Jordan, 82-81, in the second round of the 2027 Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
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With Gilas holding a slim lead late in overtime, CJ Perez drove into the lane and found an open Quiambao, who knocked down the triple for an 82-79 advantage.
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Quiambao finished with 14 points, five rebounds and two assists despite shooting 5 of 12 from the field.
The big shot came at a venue where Quiambao has spent much of his basketball career.
“Since high school, I’ve been here,” Quiambao said. “When I was in NU, I got to play here in MOA. Since then, I just give my best here every single day, practice and game here in MOA.”
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“I can’t say much about the familiarity, but when I’m here, I just let it fly.”
Quiambao later starred for La Salle in the UAAP before moving to the Korean Basketball League, where he plays for the Goyang Sono Skygunners.
The victory was also significant for a Gilas squad playing without naturalized forward Justin Brownlee, who missed the qualifiers’ second window while recovering from nagging lower-body injuries.
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“Of course, it would’ve been better if JB were here, right?” Quiambao said.
“Still, we were all-Filipino. We wanted to prove that we can win with this team.”
Gilas faced another setback when Carl Tamayo suffered a high ankle sprain in the third quarter against Jordan.
With Brownlee unavailable and Tamayo sidelined, Quiambao helped fill the void.
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And when Gilas needed a basket late, the former Green Archer delivered on a court he knows well. INQ
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