Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. Players Association seeking 'certainty' before return

National Basketball Players Association executive director Michele Roberts told ESPN on Tuesday that players are seeking a "level of certainty" regarding their return from the hiatus caused by the coronavirus pandemic. On hold since March 11, Roberts said "it's time" for players to get back on the court. On this day: Born May 28, 1888: Jim Thorpe, American athlete

Jim Thorpe, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and formidable American football and baseball player, was one of the greatest U.S. athletes of all time but the public often failed to recognise him as one of their own during his lifetime. Thorpe was born on May 28, 1888 (though some reports have him born on May 22 while others put the year as 1887) on Sac and Fox Nation land in Oklahoma to parents who were each half American Indian and half Caucasian. Japanese fans can cheer remotely at empty stadiums

As Japan’s sports teams prepare a cautious return to action after novel coronavirus suspensions, a company has developed an app that allows fans to cheer remotely for their teams playing in empty stadiums. Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball league is scheduled to resume on July 19, with J.League soccer expected to start a couple of weeks later, but no fans will be allowed into stadiums amid fears of new coronavirus infections. Tiafoe wants to draw more black kids to tennis

American Frances Tiafoe has already changed the lives of his immigrant parents thanks to his tennis career and the 2019 Australian Open quarter-finalist hopes he can also inspire more black kids to take up the sport. Tiafoe, 22, was born to immigrant parents from Sierra Leone, with his father working as a janitor at a tennis centre in Maryland while his mother had to work double shifts as a nurse to help the family make ends meet. Dolphins owner says 2020 season will 'definitely' happen

Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross said on Tuesday he believes the NFL's 2020 season will take place as scheduled later this year despite the COVID-19 pandemic and that his team's plan is to have fans in attendance. Speaking in an interview with CNBC, the 80-year-old real estate developer said the league wants to have fans in place but that plan is subject to change before the regular season begins on Sept. 10. League says players should expect daily COVID-19 testing if play resumes

National Hockey League (NHL) players can expect daily COVID-19 testing if a proposed 24-team playoff competition is able to go forward this year, league officials said. The NHL, on hold since March due to the global coronavirus outbreak, outlined a roadmap for a return to competition on Tuesday, with plans to hold games in two hub cities without fans but stopped short of suggesting a potential start date. League proposes steep cuts to players' salaries for return of games: ESPN

A proposal from Major League Baseball (MLB) to bring back live games would see players' salaries slashed, with higher-earning players taking a bigger hit, ESPN reported on Tuesday https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29224973/sources-mlb-proposal-includes-pay-cuts-highest-paid-players, MLB and its players' association are in negotiations to resume games without fans at stadiums after the novel coronavirus outbreak put the 2020 season on hold. World TeamTennis to allow up to 500 fans at matches

World TeamTennis, an innovative mixed-gender professional tennis league, will start from July 5 at the Greenbrier, West Virginia, and up to 500 fans will be allowed to attend matches during its three-week season, tournament organisers said on Tuesday. WTT said it would adhere to all health and safety protocols required by authorities to ensure the well-being of its players, coaches and essential staff amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Elliott ends Busch's Truck Series dominance

In the closing laps of Tuesday night's North Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., Chase Elliott held off a determined charge from Kyle Busch in the closing laps to earn the victory and a $100,000 bounty offered to any full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver who could beat Busch. Not bad for a guy who hadn't competed in a NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series race since 2017. Cuban proposes NBA regular-season restart, extra playoff rounds

While the NHL is preparing to restart its season by leaving off seven of its 31 teams, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban wants all of the NBA's 30 teams to be in action when basketball resumes. Cuban wants each team to return for five to seven regular-season games, setting up a 20-team postseason that would include a six-team play-in tournament.