Sports News Roundup: Tennis-Top-ranked Swiatek cruises past former champion Stephens in second round; Tennis-Williams sisters crash out of U.S. Open doubles but Serena not done yet and more

The transfer was announced well after the 2200 GMT deadline but Chelsea had submitted the paperwork to the Premier League in time after the former Arsenal striker arrived in London late on Thursday. Tennis-Ukrainian Kostyuk's handshake refusal latest sign of tension at U.S. Open Geopolitical tensions simmered at the U.S. Open on Thursday as Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk refused the customary handshake at the net when Belarusian Victoria Azarenka defeated her 6-2 6-3 in the second round.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis-Top-ranked Swiatek cruises past former champion Stephens in second round

World number one Iga Swiatek chipped away at American Sloane Stephens' defensive play to roll into the third round of the U.S. Open 6-3 6-2 on Thursday on her Arthur Ashe Stadium debut. The 2017 champion Stephens saved eight of 12 break points but once again could not fend off the Pole's offensive barrage after losing to her in straight sets last month in the Cincinnati third round.

Tennis-Williams sisters crash out of U.S. Open doubles but Serena not done yet

The U.S. Open turned over Arthur Ashe Stadium to the Williams sisters on Thursday for a prime-time first round doubles match that could have been Serena's last after the pair fell 7-6 (5) 6-4 to the Czech duo of Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova. Winners of 14 Grand Slam doubles titles, including two U.S. Opens, the Williams sisters were playing together for the first time in more than four years, the occasion attracting a capacity crowd to watch one of tennis's most successful partnerships take perhaps a final bow.

Motor racing-Ferrari expect to be fighting at the front in Zandvoort

Ferrari are confident they will be a lot closer to Red Bull in this weekend's Dutch Grand Prix than they were in Belgium last Sunday. The race is a home one for Red Bull's runaway Formula One leader Max Verstappen, who was in a league of his own at Spa-Francorchamps and won in front of his Orange Army of fans in the Netherlands last year.

Soccer-Forest gamble on quantity, City hit jackpot with Haaland

Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper said on Thursday he was looking forward to the transfer window shutting, presumably so he could head home to sit in a dark room. As the clock ticked down on deadline day, centre back Willy Boly became Forest's 19th signing of a head-spinning close season.

Tennis-Alcaraz tames Coria to reach U.S. Open third round

Teenager Carlos Alcaraz fended off a late push from veteran Argentine Federico Coria to emerge with a 6-2 6-1 7-5 win on Thursday to reach the U.S. Open third round where he will face American Jenson Brooksby. The young Spaniard used his all-court speed and punishing forehand to win the final 10 points of the first set and broke Coria's serve to open the second to cruise to a 2-0 sets lead.

Soccer-'Unfinished business': Aubameyang makes Premier League return with Chelsea transfer

Chelsea have signed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Barcelona, with the Gabon striker signing a two-year contract to seal a return to the Premier League, the two clubs said on Thursday. The transfer was announced well after the 2200 GMT deadline but Chelsea had submitted the paperwork to the Premier League in time after the former Arsenal striker arrived in London late on Thursday.

Tennis-Ukrainian Kostyuk's handshake refusal latest sign of tension at U.S. Open

Geopolitical tensions simmered at the U.S. Open on Thursday as Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk refused the customary handshake at the net when Belarusian Victoria Azarenka defeated her 6-2 6-3 in the second round. The pair exchanged a quick tap of the racket on Court 17 after Kostyuk whacked the ball into the net on the third match point and the three-time Flushing Meadows finalist let out a triumphant roar.

Tennis-Kyrgios fined for spitting, obscenities at U.S. Open

Fiery Australian Nick Kyrgios has been fined $7,500 for "spitting and audible obscenities" during his second-round win at the U.S. Open on Wednesday, tournament organizers told Reuters. The fine was the largest handed out to a player at the tournament so far.

Motor racing-Hamilton wants to get more involved in sports team ownership

Seven times Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton, who recently invested in the Denver Broncos, said he wants to get more involved with teams to boost Black ownership and equity in sport. Hamilton was asked at the Dutch Grand Prig on Thursday about reports British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, a co-owner of the Mercedes F1 team, wanted to buy English soccer giants Manchester United.

Basketball-Nowitzki's No. 14 jersey was retired by German national team

Dirk Nowitzki, widely considered one of the best foreign-born NBA players of all time, had his No. 14 international jersey retired on Thursday by the German Basketball Federation ahead of the opening day of the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 in Cologne. The towering power forward got his first taste of success at the international level when he won a bronze medal with Germany at the 2002 World Cup and silver at the 2005 European Championship, taking home Most Valuable Player trophies from both events.

(With inputs from agencies.)