Sports News Roundup: Sabres rout Flyers, end run of futility at 18 games; Osaka wants its torch relay cancelled as COVID cases jump and more

Swimming: Sun's second CAS hearing to take place in May Chinese swimmer Sun Yang's appeal against an eight-year ban for missing an out-of-competition doping test will take place in May with a new panel of judges, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said on Thursday.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis: Bublik convinced teenager Sinner not 'human'

Alexander Bublik tried everything to unsettle Jannik Sinner at the Miami Open on Wednesday but with the Italian teenager keeping his composure to win 7-6(5) 6-4 the Kazakh was left convinced he had been beaten by a robot. Bublik used underarm serves, drop shots and a sneak-attack serve return against Sinner during the quarter-final of the ATP Masters 1000 event but fell to his second straight defeat to the 19-year-old following a loss in Dubai in mid-March.

Nationals' home opener postponed due to COVID-19 issues

The Washington Nationals' home opener against the New York Mets scheduled to be played on Thursday has been postponed due to COVID-19 issues, Major League Baseball said. The decision was made a day after the Nationals said one of their players tested positive for COVID-19 while four others and a staff member were in quarantine following contact tracing.

Swimming: Sun's second CAS hearing to take place in May

Chinese swimmer Sun Yang's appeal against an eight-year ban for missing an out-of-competition doping test will take place in May with a new panel of judges, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said on Thursday. Triple Olympic champion Sun was banned by CAS last February after it accepted an appeal from the World Anti-Doping Agency against a decision by swimming governing body FINA to clear him of wrongdoing for his conduct during a 2018 test.

Osaka wants its torch relay cancelled as COVID cases jump

The governor of Japan's Osaka prefecture has called for the cancellation of the Olympic torch relay in its largest city amid a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, presenting an early test to organisers as they plan for the Games during the pandemic. Osaka Governor Hirofumi Yoshimura said on Thursday the torch relay in the city should be cancelled and he wanted to have discussions with the Tokyo organising committee on the matter.

NHL roundup: Sabres rout Flyers, end run of futility at 18 games

Steven Fogarty recorded his first NHL goal and added an assist and Brandon Montour scored two late short-handed goals as the Buffalo Sabres snapped their franchise-record, 18-game losing streak with a 6-1 victory over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday night. After blowing a 3-0, third-period lead Monday in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Flyers, Buffalo had no such concerns this time, building a 4-1 lead after two periods and pulling away. The Sabres ended an 0-15-3 skid that began after a 4-1 win at New Jersey on Feb. 23.

Bautista Agut ousts Medvedev to guarantee new ATP Masters champion

Roberto Bautista Agut maintained his spotless record against Daniil Medvedev with a 6-4 6-2 quarter-final victory over the world number two at the Miami Open, ensuring there will be a new ATP Masters 1000 winner on Sunday. Four of the top six on the men's tour have skipped Miami, and with the exit of the Russian top seed on Wednesday there are no players with a Masters 1000 title left in the draw.

NBA roundup: Devin Booker scores 45 as Suns stay hot

Devin Booker scored a season-high 45 points on 17-of-24 shooting, and the Phoenix Suns held on for a 121-116 win over the visiting Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night. Chris Paul contributed 19 points and 14 assists for Phoenix, which has won four games in a row and seven of its past eight. Dario Saric scored 16 points off the bench.

Utah Jazz players feared for lives during emergency landing: Conley

Utah Jazz players feared they might be killed when their charter plane struck a flock of birds and was forced into an emergency landing on Tuesday, point guard Mike Conley said. The plane carrying the team to Memphis sustained "engine failure" following the collision shortly after takeoff, but returned safely to the Salt Lake airport.

Biden turns to NASCAR, NAACP to convince people to take vaccines

President Joe Biden is enlisting the help of groups as varied as NASCAR and the NAACP as part of a multi-billion dollar effort to convince Americans to take COVID-19 vaccines. Biden is trying to control a raging pandemic that has killed 550,000 Americans by obtaining enough vaccine for the country's 330 million residents by May.

Two more lawsuits filed against QB Deshaun Watson

Two more civil lawsuits accusing Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct were filed on Tuesday evening in a Texas court, bringing the overall total to 21. The lawsuits appeared on the website of the Harris County District Clerk on Wednesday morning.