Sports News Roundup: Golf-British Open champion Smith among latest players to join LIV Golf; Tennis-Tenacious Nadal downs wildcard Hijikata U.S. Open return and more

Appearing in New York for the first time as the world's top ranked player, Swiatek looked the part, reeling off the last seven games to set up a meeting with either Belgium's Greet Minnen or American Sloane Stephens. Tennis-Collins returns to knock Osaka out of U.S. Open After missing the entire North American hardcourt season, American Danielle Collins showed no signs of rust battling past twice U.S. Open champions Naomi Osaka 7-6(5) 6-3 on Tuesday and into the second round at Flushing Meadows.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Golf-British Open champion Smith among latest players to join LIV Golf

World number two Cameron Smith, who won his first major at last month's British Open, headlined the latest group of players who have agreed to join LIV Golf, the lucrative Saudi Arabia-backed breakaway series said on Tuesday. The Australian, who this year won two of the biggest events on the PGA Tour schedule having triumphed at the Players Championship as well as the British Open, is the highest-ranked player to join LIV Golf to date.

Tennis-Tenacious Nadal downs wildcard Hijikata U.S. Open return

Second seed Rafael Nadal faced a surprise test in his first U.S. Open appearance since winning the 2019 title, as he overcame 21-year-old Australian wildcard Rinky Hijikata 4-6 6-2 6-3 6-3 on Tuesday in the opening round. Playing in only his second match after pulling out of Wimbledon with an abdominal injury, the Spaniard had speculated whether he was ready to take on New York and seemed to confirm those fears as he struggled on the return in the first set.

Athletics-American Richardson beats Thompson-Herah by a whisker in Luzerne 100m

American sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson edged Jamaica's Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah by one-hundredth of a second to win the women's 100 metres in Luzerne on Tuesday. On a wet track and with a strong headwind, Richardson sprinted to victory with a time of 11.29 seconds -- ahead of Thompson-Herah (11.30) and American Celera Barnes (11.40).

Tennis-U.S. Open day two

Emma Raducanu's U.S. Open title defence ended at the first hurdle on Tuesday while Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina and twice U.S. Open winner Naomi Osaka were also ousted in the opening round. British teenager Raducanu made a dream run to the title as a qualifier last year but her return to court at Flushing Meadows was less memorable as she fell 6-3 6-3 to Frenchwoman Alize Cornet.

Tennis: Raducanu's U.S. Open title defence ends in first round

Emma Raducanu, who made a dream run to the U.S. Open title last year, suffered a nightmare 6-3 6-3 first-round loss to Frenchwoman Alize Cornet on Tuesday as the clock finally struck midnight on an improbable tennis fairytale. Raducanu captivated the sporting world when she became the first qualifier to claim a Grand Slam title, winning 10 matches in New York without dropping a set, catapulting her career into the stratosphere and making her one of the most marketable athletes on the planet.

Tennis-Swiatek cruises into U.S. Open second round

Poland's Iga Swiatek crushed Italy's Jasmine Paolini 6-3 6-0 to reach the second round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday. Appearing in New York for the first time as the world's top-ranked player, Swiatek looked the part, reeling off the last seven games to set up a meeting with either Belgium's Greet Minnen or American Sloane Stephens.

Tennis-Collins returns to knock Osaka out of U.S. Open

After missing the entire North American hardcourt season, American Danielle Collins showed no signs of rust battling past twice U.S. Open champions Naomi Osaka 7-6(5) 6-3 on Tuesday and into the second round at Flushing Meadows. The exit of Osaka, the tournament winner in 2018 and 2020, followed reigning champion Emma Raducanu's departure hours earlier as Flushing Meadows bid a first-round farewell to its past two champions.

Mexican soccer must kick homophobic slur out of stadiums, say activists

Mexico's legions of soccer fanatics, and especially the sport's leaders, must eradicate an anti-gay slur from the men's game, activists said on Tuesday, drawing attention to a routine fan chant that has long marred the country's top-flight game. While Mexico's leading soccer federation has adopted a "zero tolerance" policy against the long-standing homophobic chant yelled by fans by suspending ticket sales and forcing teams to play to empty stadiums - including for a World Cup qualifying match earlier this year - many fans stubbornly persist.

Tennis-Serena navigates doubles duty in U.S. Open calendar

Serena Williams faces a busy schedule in her Flushing Meadows farewell as she takes on second-seed Anett Kontaveit on Wednesday and brings her sister act back to the U.S. Open doubles on Thursday. The 23-times Grand Slam singles winner said she would retire sometime after the tournament and enjoyed a great reception with celebrities packed in the stands for her first-round win over Danka Kovinic on Monday in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

MLB roundup: D-backs' Zac Gallen extends scoreless streak

Zac Gallen stretched his scoreless streak to 34 1/3 innings and Jake McCarthy homered, tripled and drove in a career-high five runs as the Arizona Diamondbacks mauled the Philadelphia Phillies 12-3 on Tuesday night in Phoenix. Gallen (10-2) gave up just two hits in seven innings, striking out seven and walking one as the Diamondbacks won their season-best fifth straight game. The scoreless streak is the second longest in Arizona history behind Brandon Webb's 42-inning stretch in 2007.

 

(With inputs from agencies.)