Sports News Roundup: World gymnastics championships, Federer to face Copil in Basel finals

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Golf: Champ surges to four-stroke lead over Conners in Mississippi

Cameron Champ shot a career-low eight-under 64 to grab a four-stroke lead over Canadian Corey Conners in the third round of the Sanderson Farms Championships in Mississippi on Saturday. Nine birdies against a lone bogey fueled the sparkling round by the 23-year-old PGA Tour rookie, who surged to 17-under 199 at the Country Club of Jackson.

Muncy walkoff homer powers Dodgers past Red Sox

Max Muncy slammed an 18th inning walkoff solo home run as the Los Angeles Dodgers outlasted the Boston Red Sox 3-2 on Friday in a tension-packed marathon that entered the record books as the longest World Series game ever. After two losses in chilly Boston battling Fenway Park's quirky features, the Dodgers were back home in warmer, friendlier surroundings trimming the Red Sox lead in the best-of-seven series to 2-1.

With Dodgers, Rams and LeBron, Los Angeles sports have never been better

When LeBron James showed up to his first home game as a Los Angeles Laker, he sported a crisp blue Los Angeles Dodgers cap, a smart move as the Dodgers would go on to book their ticket to the World Series midway through his Staples Center debut. As James congratulated the Dodgers in his postgame press conference it underscored something that has become increasingly clear - there's never been a better time to be a LA sports fan.

Tennis: Federer to face Romanian qualifier Copil in Basel final

Roger Federer will face Romanian qualifier Marius Copil in the final of the Swiss Indoors in Basel after storming past seventh seed Daniil Medvedev 6-1 6-4 on Saturday. Copil, the world number 93, stunned second seed Alexander Zverev of Germany 6-3 6-7(6) 6-4 in the day's other semi-final.

Gymnastics: Biles leads world championships qualifying despite kidney stone

Olympic champion Simone Biles soared to the top of all-around qualifying at the world gymnastics championships on Saturday just hours after visiting a Doha emergency room for kidney stone problems. Aiming for her fourth world all-around title, Biles piled up 60.965 points and even had a vault, 'The Biles', named after her, USA Gymnastics said.

Leicester City football club owner's helicopter crashes outside stadium

A helicopter belonging to Leicester City football club owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha crashed in a ball of flames in the club's car park on Saturday after a Premier League match, British media said. It was not known whether Vichai, a father of four and the founder of duty-free giant King Power International, was in the helicopter when it spiraled out of control and crashed just yards from the pitch, around an hour after the game had ended.

Tennis: Nishikori, Anderson reach Vienna final

Kei Nishikori will have a chance to win his first ATP title in over two years on Sunday after beating qualifier Mikhail Kukushkin 6-4 6-3 to reach the Vienna Open final. The Japanese, ranked 11th in the world, will face this year's Wimbledon runner-up Kevin Anderson after the South African beat Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 6-3 3-6 6-4.

NBA roundup: Durant leads Warriors' rally past Knicks

Kevin Durant scored 25 of his game-high 41 points in the fourth quarter Friday night as the Golden State Warriors ended the game on a 42-9 run to complete a furious rally to beat the host New York Knicks, 128-100. The two-time defending NBA champion Warriors have won five of six to open the season. Stephen Curry scored 29 points for Golden State while Draymond Green (18 points) and Klay Thompson (12 points) also scored in double digits.

NASCAR notebook: Bowyer eyeing strong performance at Martinsville

With Kyle Busch sitting in the front row, waiting for his turn at the dais in the Martinsville Speedway media centre, Clint Bowyer seized on an opening to take a good-natured shot at his fellow Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Playoff contender before the drivers hit the track for final practice. Asked to name his favourite Halloween costume as a child, Bowyer didn't miss a beat in responding, "Kyle Busch. It was pretty damn scary."

Tennis: Svitolina, Stephens grind out three-set wins to reach Singapore final

Sloane Stephens and Elina Svitolina enjoyed contrasting three-set victories on Saturday to set up a fascinating WTA Finals title showdown between the only undefeated women at the eight-player season-ending tournament. Stephens remarkably lost the first eight games of her semi-final against a relentless Karolina Pliskova before the athletic American turned the contest on its head in the second set to emerge with a 0-6 6-4 6-1 triumph over the Czech.

(With inputs from Reuters)