Sports News Roundup: Djokovic fumes at Norrie's 'attitude' in fiery clash; Cardinals blitz Brewers 18-1 and more

Rahm denied the Saudi-backed circuit a watershed victory at Augusta when he beat LIV standard bearers Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson, collecting his second major prize after winning the 2021 U.S. Open. Tennis-Flawless Djokovic crushes Norrie to reach Rome quarter-finals Holder Novak Djokovic powered past Briton Cameron Norrie 6-3 6-4 in a tense match to reach the Italian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday and remain on track for a seventh title in Rome.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Golf-No interest in diving into LIV feud, says Rahm, after Masters triumph

Jon Rahm was the PGA Tour's hero when he held off LIV Golf contenders to don the green jacket last month, but the Spaniard insisted ahead of his latest PGA Championship campaign that he is staying out of the rival tours' feud. Rahm denied the Saudi-backed circuit a watershed victory at Augusta when he beat LIV standard bearers Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson, collecting his second major prize after winning the 2021 U.S. Open.

Tennis-Flawless Djokovic crushes Norrie to reach Rome quarter-finals

Holder Novak Djokovic powered past Briton Cameron Norrie 6-3 6-4 in a tense match to reach the Italian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday and remain on track for a seventh title in Rome. Djokovic made slow starts to his opening two matches but the fired-up world number one quickly opened up a 3-0 lead and let slip two opportunities to break Rio champion Norrie a second time before taking the first set on serve.

Gymnastics-British Gymnastics chief calls for independent welfare body

The head of British Gymnastics wants the government to set up an independent body to ensure the welfare of athletes, saying many sports lack the resources to adequately safeguard competitors. "We love to watch our sporting heroes compete and triumph on the world stage, but we also expect that the pursuit of success is accompanied by high standards of athlete welfare," Mike Darcey said in a statement on Tuesday.

Motor racing-Imola paddock closed as river levels rise due to heavy rain

Formula One personnel were asked to leave the Imola circuit on Tuesday amid fears of flooding as water levels rose in the nearby Santerno river following heavy rain ahead of the weekend's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Local authorities took the precautionary measure while monitoring the situation.

Golf-McIlroy focused on PGA Championship not LIV

Rory McIlroy said he was only focused on the PGA Championship on Tuesday as the Northern Irishman chose few words in response to questions regarding PGA Tour's feud with the Saudi-bankrolled LIV Golf. It has been a year since LIV Golf arrived on the scene poaching players disrupting the sport with massive purses and lawsuits that have divided golfers into two camps.

Soccer-Arsenal striker Balogun switches allegiance from England to U.S

Arsenal striker Folarin Balogun has opted to represent the United States, U.S. Soccer said on Tuesday, after FIFA approved his decision to switch international allegiance from England. The 21-year-old, who is currently on loan at Ligue 1 side Stade de Reims, had previously played for England at Under-21 level.

Tennis-Kyrgios pulls out of French Open to delay comeback

Nick Kyrgios has pulled out of the French Open starting later this month, further delaying his return to competitive action following knee surgery at the start of the year, the French Tennis Federation (FFT) said. The 28-year-old Australian had a brilliant second half of 2022, winning a title in Washington in August and reaching the U.S. Open quarter-finals the following month having contested his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon earlier in the year.

Cycling-Cort out-sprints breakaway rivals to win Giro stage 10

Denmark's Magnus Cort completed his Grand Tour Slam with a maiden victory at the Giro d'Italia in Tuesday's stage 10, out-sprinting Derek Gee and Alessandro de Marchi in a rain-soaked 196-km ride from Scandiano to Viareggio. The trio were part of a breakaway group that held off the peloton and set up a three-way sprint, with Cort timing his move perfectly to take the win.

MLB roundup: Cardinals blitz Brewers 18-1

Nolan Gorman and Nolan Arenado hit three-run homers and combined for nine RBIs to power the St. Louis Cardinals past the visiting Milwaukee Brewers 18-1 on Monday. Gorman finished 3-for-5 with three RBIs while Arenado went 2-for-3 with four RBIs. St. Louis' Tommy Edman had four hits and four RBIs, Lars Nootbaar also scored four times and Paul Goldschmidt added two hits and two RBIs.

Tennis-Djokovic fumes at Norrie's 'attitude' in fiery clash

Novak Djokovic fumed at Cameron Norrie after winning a tense encounter at the Italian Open on Tuesday, saying he failed to understand the reason for the Briton's "attitude" on court. A charged-up Norrie vociferously celebrated points in the opening set of his 6-3 6-4 fourth-round loss despite trailing early on and Djokovic responded in a similar fashion as the contest progressed.