Reuters Sports News Summary

The German told reporters he was sad to see the Australian lose his seat at the end of the season after the split was announced on Wednesday. Tennis-Medvedev handed tough draw for U.S. Open title defence Top seed Daniil Medvedev will open his U.S. Open title defence on Monday against American Stefan Kozlov but faces major hurdles on the path to a second Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows, including in-form Australian Nick Kyrgios.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis - Comeback king Nadal ready defy logic again

Rafa Nadal returns to the U.S. Open for the first time in three years short of match practice and with big question marks about his fitness but few people will dismiss the Spaniard's chances of claiming a record-extending 23rd Grand Slam title. The 36-year-old Mallorcan went in to Wimbledon still on course for a calendar year Grand Slam but an abdominal injury forced him to pull out of his semi-final against Nick Kyrgios.

Tennis-Federer highest paid player in 2022 despite year-long absence - Forbes

Former world number one Roger Federer retained his place at the top of the list of the world's highest paid tennis players for a 17th year despite not playing a match for nearly 14 months, Forbes has revealed. Federer, 41, has not featured since Wimbledon last year after he had another operation on his knee, which has bothered the Swiss great in the twilight of his career.

Motor racing-Norris has no sympathy for departing Ricciardo

McLaren's Lando Norris said he had no sympathy for team mate Daniel Ricciardo after the Australian's split from the former champions was announced this week. Ricciardo will leave the British-based team at the end of the season, paid off a year before his contract was due to expire.

Djokovic will miss U.S. Open as unable to travel to New York without COVID vaccine

Former world number one Novak Djokovic will miss the U.S. Open after he said on Thursday that he will not be able to travel to New York for the tournament, having chosen not to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Current rules require travellers to show proof of full vaccination to board flights to and enter the United States.

Tennis - Medvedev faces plenty of challenges in U.S. Open title defence

Daniil Medvedev will look to shake off some inconsistent form as he bids to become the first man since Roger Federer in 2008 to successfully defend his U.S. Open title while fending off a string of challengers to his number one ranking. A mixed run-up to the year's final major shows the Russian could have his work cut out when the main draw kicks off next week.

Soccer-Man City's Haaland, Barca's Lewandowski to meet former clubs in Champions League

Two of Europe's leading strikers will take on their former teams as Manchester City's Erling Haaland faces Borussia Dortmund and Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski meets Bayern Munich after the Champions League group-stage draw was made on Thursday. Holders Real Madrid, who captured a record-extending 14th European crown when they beat Liverpool in last season's final, will play RB Leipzig, Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic in Group F.

Tennis-Serena Williams begins U.S. Open bid against Kovinic

Serena Williams begins what is expected to be her final U.S. Open with a match against Montenegro's Danka Kovinic but things could get tough quickly for the 23-times Grand Slam champion with second seed Anett Kontaveit possibly awaiting the winner. The U.S. Open draw released on Thursday did Williams no favours, the 40-year-old American landing in the bottom quarter where fifth-seeded Tunisian Ons Jabeur, the Wimbledon runner-up, 10th-seeded Russian Daria Kasatkina and last year's losing finalist Leylah Fernandez of Canada all lurk.

Ex-boxer George Foreman sued by two women accusing him of sexual abuse

Two women who accused the American former heavyweight boxing champion George Foreman of sexually abusing them in the 1970s have filed lawsuits in a Los Angeles court. Foreman, 73, has denied the allegations since they first became public last month and spokespeople referred questions about the lawsuits to his earlier statement.

Motor racing-McLaren failed to get the most out of Ricciardo, says Vettel

McLaren failed to get the most out of Daniel Ricciardo whose talents will ultimately shine through, former team mate and four-times Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel said on Thursday. The German told reporters he was sad to see the Australian lose his seat at the end of the season after the split was announced on Wednesday.

Tennis-Medvedev handed tough draw for U.S. Open title defence

Top seed Daniil Medvedev will open his U.S. Open title defence on Monday against American Stefan Kozlov but faces major hurdles on the path to a second Grand Slam title at Flushing Meadows, including in-form Australian Nick Kyrgios. While Medvedev will not be looking too far ahead, fans certainly will at the prospect of an enthralling fourth-round showdown between the Russian and Wimbledon finalist Kyrgios who beat the world number one in three sets in Montreal this month.