Sports News Roundup: Tennis-Djokovic saga will not define Australian Open, says Tiley; Gymnastics-Sydney Olympics rings champion Csollany dead at 51 and more

Keys continued her strong start to the season on Rod Laver Arena as she toppled the French Open champion 6-3 6-2 under the Melbourne sun to return to the semi-finals in Australia for only the second time. NBA roundup: Suns down Jazz for 7th straight win Devin Booker scored 33 points while Chris Paul added 27 points and 14 assists to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 115-109 victory over the Utah Jazz on Monday night.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis-Djokovic saga will not define Australian Open, says Tiley

Australian Open chief Craig Tiley said the Novak Djokovic saga will not define the 2022 tournament but that he regrets how the volatile situation took the focus off the Grand Slam and players leading up to the Melbourne Park major. The 34-year-old Serb was deported from Australia after an 11-day rollercoaster involving two visa cancellations, two court challenges and five nights in two stints at an immigration detention hotel where asylum seekers are held.

Gymnastics-Sydney Olympics rings champion Csollany dead at 51

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and gymnastics great Nadia Comaneci led the tributes to 2000 Sydney Olympics rings champion Szilveszter Csollany, who died on Monday aged 51.

Hungarian media said he had been hospitalized in December due to COVID-19 and had spent weeks on a ventilator.

Tennis-Medvedev playing both hero and villain at Australian Open

Daniil Medvedev has tapped into the energy of the crowd at Melbourne Park by playing both hero and villain, while the world number two's mind games have also earned him comparisons with American great Jimmy Connors. Similar to his run to the U.S. Open final in 2019, where the Russian antagonized fans at Flushing Meadows early on before ultimately winning them over, Medvedev has engaged with crowds at the Australian Open in his four victories so far.

Tennis-Tsitsipas outlasts Fritz to reach quarter-finals

Fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas survived an attritional fourth-round battle with American Taylor Fritz on Monday, twice coming from a set behind to win 4-6 6-4 4-6 6-3 6-4 and reach the Australian Open quarter-finals. At just past midnight on Rod Laver Arena, the Greek ended Fritz's resistance to set up a clash with Italian Jannik Sinner when he will be seeking to reach the semi-finals here for the third time in his career.

Tennis-'Where is Peng Shuai?' shirts welcome at Australian Open

Fans are free to wear "Where is Peng Shuai?" shirts at the Australian Open but they must not become "disruptive", Tennis Australia chief Craig Tiley said on Tuesday, amid criticism of the Grand Slam organizers' earlier stance on the issue. In response to a video posted on social media on Saturday of security officials instructing fans to remove shirts with the slogan on them, the governing body said the Melbourne Park tournament does not allow political statements.

NHL roundup: Pavel Francouz's shutout gives Avs 7th straight win

Pavel Francouz had 24 saves for his second shutout in as many starts and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 in Denver on Monday night. Nazem Kadri and Mikko Rantanen scored goals for the Avalanche, who have won 16 in a row at home and seven straight overall.

Olympics-U.S. sending large, experienced team to reclaim share of medals in Beijing

The United States will send its second-largest Winter Olympic contingent to compete in Beijing next month, with 222 athletes vying to bring home medals after a disappointing outing in Pyeongchang. The U.S. fell far short of their medals target four years ago, bringing back 23, the fewest they have claimed since the 1998 Nagano Games.

Tennis-American Keys relishing underdog status in Melbourne

Madison Keys said she is enjoying her underdog status after reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final in four years with an upset of fourth seed Barbora Krejcikova at the Australian Open on Tuesday. Keys continued her strong start to the season on Rod Laver Arena as she toppled the French Open champion 6-3 6-2 under the Melbourne sun to return to the semi-finals in Australia for only the second time.

NBA roundup: Suns down Jazz for 7th straight win

Devin Booker scored 33 points while Chris Paul added 27 points and 14 assists to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 115-109 victory over the Utah Jazz on Monday night. Paul poured in 15 points in the fourth quarter as Phoenix came back from a five-point deficit early in the period. He also had nine rebounds in the game plus an uncharacteristic seven turnovers.

NFL-Overtime rules come under fire after Chiefs win playoff thriller

The National Football League's (NFL) overtime rules have again come under fire after the Buffalo Bills' high-powered offense never got a chance to touch the ball in the extra period of their crushing playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The game on Sunday was an instant classic between two of the most gifted NFL quarterbacks and included three lead changes in the final two minutes of regulation before Patrick Mahomes's Chiefs prevailed 42-36 over Josh Allen's Bills.