open Page 15 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights
COVID could make next FIFA international window a bigger mess than usual
The club vs. country fight is a long and storied one in soccer, with clubs always more than a little peeved about releasing the players they’re paying millions to travel to different training schedules and medical staffs, for games they aren’t compensated for. Players getting hurt on national team d...
Naomi Osaka isn't Serena Williams' rival – she's her legacy
There is a poignancy in the current moment in women’s tennis. Naomi Osaka learned from the best, and then ended another one of Serena Williams’ evanescent chances to tie Margaret Court’s 24 record Grand Slam singles titles....
With millennials headed for the nursing home, let’s revisit the Osaka-Williams rivalry and other great generational clashes
Naomi Osaka has faced Serena Williams five times now, and the 23-year-old’s straight-sets victory in Thursday’s semifinal at the Australian Open marked the third win for the three-time (so far) major champion over the 23-time (so far) major champion, including both of their meetings at Grand Slam ev...
Monday Night Football now incites open revolt on teams
Monday Night Football hasn’t been A THING in many years. Probably not since NBC took Sunday Night Football and made that the game of the week. The games on Monday night usually suck and are typically between two teams that aren’t all that good, with ESPN’s overwrought and over-sweaty broadcasts maki...
Rafael Nadal wins Rafael Nadal Open for 13th time
There was a thought, maybe even a hope, from a minority that just wanted to see some variety, that the different setting and conditions for this year’s French Open would make things too difficult for Rafael Nadal. Or maybe just more difficult. Or maybe even slightly difficult....
Serena Williams may not win the Grand Slam record, and that sucks
It has been three years since Serena Williams held up a Grand Slam trophy in victory. ...
Martina Navratilova talks COVID and the French Open with Deadspin
Prior to the start of the French Open, Deadspin’s Julie DiCaro and Jane McManus sat down with tennis icon Martina Navratilova about a wide range of issues, including social and racial justice, the U.S. and French Opens, and whether America should even playing sports in the midst of a global pandemic...
Paris still set to host French Open as COVID-19 spikes in Europe
After postponing the French Open in March due to coronavirus, the red clay is ready for competitors. The Open starts on Sunday, albeit in the midst of a European second wave and without some star athletes — who have opted out of the tournament....
Not-LeBron, Six-Putts, and the Padres - Everything you Missed While Watching the NFL on Sunday
It’s likely that before you enter a playoff series against LeBron James, you understand there might be a game or two that’s going to be taken from you (unless you’re the Warriors, in which case it’ll be three games in a row you’ll never live down no matter what you do). He’ll go supernova, shoot som...
What You Need to Know Ahead of 120th U.S. Open
The 2020 U.S. Open will be played for the sixth time at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York this week. The tournament offers a different kind of New York Fall Classic, if you will, and one that everyone will be forced to watch from home, as spectators are still not allowed on site. I will ...
NFL's Cluelessness on BLM Exposes Fake Team Unity & Not Caring a Lick for Players' Communities
If the NFL owners and front office thought that adding Lift Every Voice and Sing to the pre-game program would mollify more players than it put off fans, they were likely wrong on both counts....
This REALLY Hasn't Been Djokovic's Year
Tennis is a game of precision....
Let Me Play in the U.S. Open, You Cowards
The U.S. Open of golf is right around the corner at the famed Winged Foot Country Club in Westchester, N.Y. As someone who loves golf and New York, it’s the perfect opportunity for me to catch a flight and head out to play in my first major championship....
Novak Djokovic Defaulted from US Open for Hitting Linesperson with Ball
It’s been a bonkers year for just about everyone, in every sense of the word. Tennis is no different, and Novak Djokovic is no different. From his medical views derived from Mars to dismissing the risks of COVID-19 and then catching it, as well as carrying an undefeated record this year, there would...
Serena Williams Is Better Than Margaret Court at Tennis and Life
As Serena Williams approaches Margaret Court’s record of 24 Grand Slams, some rightfully wish Court were already an afterthought....
Russell Westbrook Finally Gives Thunder Fans A Moment To Remember
The Bubble Domes continued at pace last night, and perhaps the story was OKC forcing a Game 7 against the Rockets in their first-round series. Or rather, the story within the story. ...
Mal Washington Weighs in On Activism of Black Tennis Players, and the Racism he Experienced, as U.S. Open Gets Underway
Standing alone on the baseline of his sport’s biggest stage, returning serve against systemic racism on-and-off the court, 1996 Wimbledon finalist MaliVai Washington, knows the weight of being a high-profile athlete balancing professional responsibilities with the complex dilemma of being a role mod...
Citing Growing COVID Cases, Rafa Opts Out of US Open
Tennis legend Rafael Nadal has decided to skip the U.S. Open. Nadal broke the news via Twitter, where he outlined his concerns about the spread of COVID-19....
As Much as I Miss Baseball, This Fanless, Pandemic Opener Leaves Me With an Empty Feeling
In 1943, with their roster torn asunder by players called into military service for World War II, the Philadelphia Eagles moved to Pittsburgh for the year, merged with the Steelers, and became known as the Steagles....