Sports News Roundup: Reds down Dodgers in thrilling fashion once again; Midfielder Rice will leave West Ham, says chairman and more

The trophy has already been to the 31 other participating nations ahead of the quadrennial tournament, which starts in Australia and New Zealand on July 20. MLB roundup: Reds down Dodgers in thrilling fashion once again Will Benson crushed his first career home run in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Cincinnati Reds another stunning win over the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-6 on Wednesday night.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Soccer-'Really, really surreal', Women's World Cup trophy lands in Australia

The Women's World Cup suddenly became very real for Australia defender Clare Hunt on Thursday when she took part in the first stop on a tour of the trophy around the co-host nation. The trophy has already been to the 31 other participating nations ahead of the quadrennial tournament, which starts in Australia and New Zealand on July 20.

MLB roundup: Reds down Dodgers in thrilling fashion once again

Will Benson crushed his first career home run in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Cincinnati Reds another stunning win over the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-6 on Wednesday night. After TJ Hopkins drew a leadoff walk in a tie game, Benson sent a 2-2 cutter from Evan Phillips 420 feet deep into the right field bleachers. The long ball capped Benson's 48th major league game over two seasons. Cincinnati topped Los Angeles 9-8 in the series opener on Tuesday by scoring three runs in the bottom of the ninth.

EXCLUSIVE-Olympics-Paris 2024 Olympics flame to be lit on April 16, 2024-source

The Paris 2024 Olympic Games flame will be lit on April 16 next year, marking the countdown to the July 26-Aug. 11 games in the French capital, an Olympic movement source said on Thursday. The flame will be lit at Greece's ancient Olympia, birthplace of the Games, and will remain in the country for about a week before a handover ceremony in Athens and departure to France, the source told Reuters.

Tennis-Redemption for Japan's Kato with French Open mixed doubles title

Japan's Miyu Kato put her French Open women's doubles disqualification behind her as she captured the Roland Garros mixed doubles crown with Germany's Tim Puetz on Thursday. The pair rallied to beat Canada's Bianca Andreescu and New Zealander Michael Venus 4-6 6-4 (10-6) in the final on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Tennis-Muchova stuns Sabalenka to move into French Open final

Unseeded Karolina Muchova saved a match point before battling past second seed Aryna Sabalenka 7-6(5) 6-7(5) 7-5 on Thursday to reach the French Open final in thrilling fashion and end the Belarusian's dream of becoming world number one. Australian Open champion Sabalenka, the overwhelming favourite to win the last-four showdown, would have taken over the top spot in the rankings by winning the title in Paris.

Soccer-Midfielder Rice will leave West Ham, says chairman

Declan Rice will leave West Ham United in the close season, chairman David Sullivan said on Thursday, a day after the midfielder captained the club to their first European trophy in 58 years. Sullivan said a gentleman's agreement means Rice can leave despite a year remaining on his contract with the option to extend it by a further 12 months.

Soccer-Guardiola in top three coaches of all time - Puyol

Manchester City's Pep Guardiola is one of the top two or three coaches of all time, former Barcelona team mate Carles Puyol said ahead of Saturday's Champions League final in which Guardiola will bid to win the trophy for a third time. Puyol played alongside Guardiola for Barcelona and was captain of the Barca team managed by him a few years later, winning the Champions League in 2008-09 and 2010-11.

Tennis-Alcaraz's take-no-prisoner approach faces Djokovic test at French Open

No player has come close to establishing a domination in men's tennis since the Big Three started their reign in the mid-2000s, but Carlos Alcaraz has all it takes to grab the crown for himself at the French Open. The Spaniard has been inspiring fear and dropping jaws at Roland Garros, and his take-no-prisoner approach faces the ultimate test on Friday in his semi-final clash against Novak Djokovic, who at 36 is hanging on to his dream of claiming a record-breaking 23rd men's Grand Slam title.

Nikola Jokic's historic effort sends Nuggets past Heat in Game 3

Denver Nuggets coach Michael Malone has viewed a lot of top-notch performances from the club's star tandem of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. So he didn't have any trouble assessing their efforts in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

Soccer-'I'm going to Miami' - Messi confirms move to MLS

Lionel Messi on Wednesday announced that he intends to join Major League Soccer side Inter Miami as a free agent after parting ways with French champions Paris St Germain and snubbing a lucrative contract offer in Saudi Arabia. Messi, who played his final game for PSG over the weekend, was also linked with a return to Barcelona, but the Spanish club have had their hands tied due to LaLiga's financial fair play rules.