soccer - players.bio

Kenny rules out wholesale changes with Euro focus

Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny says he won't make wholesale changes to his team with next year’s European Championship qualification campaign in mind.

Djokovic beats Fritz to reach final of ATP Finals

TURIN, Italy: Novak Djokovic kept his bid for a record-equaling sixth ATP Finals title alive by beating Taylor Fritz of the United States on Saturday to reach the final of the prestigious season-ending tournament.Djokovic, who went unbeaten through the group stage, won 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6) in just under two hours in Turin, securing the win on his second match point.He has now won all six of his encounters against the 25-year-old Fritz.The Serb will face either third-seeded Casper Ruud or Andrey Rublev in Sunday’s final as he attempts to win his first title at the event since 2015 and match Roger Federer’s record.Djokovic had to recover quickly from a grueling three-hour win over Daniil Medvedev in his final group match, which had ended less than 24 hours previously.“I had to fight to survive,” Djokovic said. “I didn’t feel very reactive today or very comfortable.

Verstappen on pole as Red Bull lock-out Abu Dhabi front row

ABU DHABI: Max Verstappen outpaced team-mate Sergio Perez to grab pole position for Sunday’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as Red Bull locked out the front row in a closely-fought qualifying session. The two-time world champion clocked a best lap in one minute and 23.824 seconds to finish two-tenths clear of the Mexican, delighting Red Bull after a week of reported rifts between the two drivers. Charles Leclerc was third ahead of Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz and the two Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who claimed his maiden victory last weekend in Brazil.