Reuters Sports News Summary

Seeing his first action since last July and playing his first Masters 1000 event in nearly three years, the injury prone Nishikori was unable to produce the energetic form that took him to the 2014 U.S. Open final and number four in the world rankings. Olympics-Russia's reaction to Games parade ban 'grotesque', says French sports minister Russia's response to the International Olympic Committee's (IOC)decision to ban its athletes from the Paris Games' opening ceremony parade is "grotesque", French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea Castera said on Thursday.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Tennis-Sakkari romps into Miami third round, Wozniacki loses in thriller

Maria Sakkari was back to her winning ways just days after losing the Indian Wells final as she demolished China's Yue Yuan 6-2 6-2 on Thursday to ease into the third round of the Miami Open. Putting the 6-4 6-0 California drubbing at the hands of world number one Iga Swiatek in Sunday's final in the rearview mirror, the eighth seeded Greek was all business after having failed at the first hurdle in her last two visits to Miami.

Baseball-Ohtani's interpreter fired amid allegations of 'massive theft'

Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani's interpreter Ippei Mizuhara has been fired by the team amid allegations he had engaged in "massive theft" from the player to pay off gambling debts, multiple news outlets reported. Ohtani's attorneys told the LA Times that Mizuhara had used the ballplayer's funds to pay off an alleged illegal bookmaker, who is reportedly under federal investigation.

Spring training roundup: Braves rally past Yankees

Orlando Arcia hit a home run and right-hander Charlie Morton went five strong innings as the Atlanta Braves earned a 5-2 victory Thursday over the visiting New York Yankees at North Port, Fla. The 40-year-old Morton, who is heading into his 17th major league season, gave up two runs on four hits with three walks and three strikeouts as he improved to 2-1 on the spring.

Third man charged with murder in shooting at Super Bowl rally in Kansas City

A third man was charged on Thursday with murder after a gunfight on the fringe of a Super Bowl victory rally in Kansas City, Missouri, last month killed one person and wounded more than 20 others in a quarrel over eye contact, prosecutors said.

Terry Young, 20, faces second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and armed criminal action charges for opening fire during an altercation on Feb. 14 near the city's landmark Union Station, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said in a statement. The incident occurred while throngs of fans had gathered to celebrate the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl win over the San Francisco 49ers.

Olympics-IBA accuses IOC of political agenda after Olympic exclusion

The International Boxing Association has accused International Olympic Committee leaders of political bias after the IOC's sports director asked national federations to create a body it can work with so boxing can be included in the 2028 Games. The IBA said in a statement on Thursday that the IOC leadership was interfering in the IBA's internal affairs and "violating the principles of its own Olympic charter".

Tennis-Another Nishikori comeback ends in early Miami exit

Kei Nishikori's return to competitive tennis suffered an early blow on Thursday when the former-Miami Open finalist was swept out of the opening round 6-3 6-4 by Austrian Sebastian Ofner. Seeing his first action since last July and playing his first Masters 1000 event in nearly three years, the injury prone Nishikori was unable to produce the energetic form that took him to the 2014 U.S. Open final and number four in the world rankings.

Olympics-Russia's reaction to Games parade ban 'grotesque', says French sports minister

Russia's response to the International Olympic Committee's (IOC)decision to ban its athletes from the Paris Games' opening ceremony parade is "grotesque", French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea Castera said on Thursday. The IOC announced on Tuesday a ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes taking part as neutral competitors in this year's Olympics from the opening ceremony parade due to the war in Ukraine, which Moscow calls a "special military operation".

McDonald's signs three-year sponsorship deal with French soccer's Ligue 1

France's top soccer league will become the McDonald's Ligue 1 from July 1 after the U.S. fast food chain signed a three-year sponsorship deal on Thursday. "First French restaurant chain, present in more than 1,150 towns, with two million meals a day, McDonald's joins the number one show in France," the French League said in a statement on its website.

Miami coach Katie Meier announces retirement

Katie Meier announced her retirement from coaching on Thursday after 19 seasons leading the Miami women's basketball team. Meier, 56, won 362 games, posted 11 20-win seasons and took the Hurricanes to 10 NCAA Tournament berths from 2005-24.

NBA roundup: Celtics top Bucks, win 7th straight

Jayson Tatum had 31 points and eight rebounds to help the Boston Celtics extend their winning streak to seven games with a 122-119 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. Derrick White added 23 points and eight assists for Boston, which made 18 of its 40 3-point attempts. Jaylen Brown had 21 points, and Payton Pritchard came off the bench to score 19.