Brazil have shown all the signs they can rule the world yet again in Russia but they must make their excellent preparations count in their World Cup Group E opener against a resilient Switzerland side on Sunday in Rostov.
Sri Lanka suffered a stunning batting collapse as they suffered a crushing 226-run defeat in the first Test against West Indies in Port of Spain.
Rahi Sarnobat, on Wednesday, became the first Indian woman shooter to win an Asian Games gold medal as she triumphed after prevailing in a double shoot-off in the 25m pistol event in Palembang.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Wednesday
David Silva scored a late goal as runaway leaders Manchester City won their 13th successive Premier League game and restored their eight-point lead with a 2-1 victory against West Ham United on Sunday.
Manchester United beat the Philadelphia Union 1-0 on Wednesday in a scrappy game against Major League Soccer's newest team.
The best and the worse styles...
Lionel Messi answered the key question for Argentina with a display full of artistry and guile in Saturday's 1-0 win over Nigeria, showing even without scoring himself he can carry the team at this World Cup.
A veritable goldmine of soccer talent was on display at Ellis Park on Saturday but throughout Argentina's defeat of Nigeria a roly-poly, bearded bundle of arm-waving anxiety threatened to steal the show.
Gabriel Heinze scored early in the first half as two-time champions Argentina started their2010 World Cup campaign in style with a 1-0 win over Nigeria in a Group B clash at the Elis Park stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday.
A brilliant World Cup for Lionel Messi would be good for Argentina's chances of victory although it is preferable to rely on the team and not one man however great, according to defender Gabriel Heinze.
The improvement since Tite took over as coach in June 2016 has been remarkable and Brazil are now joint favourites to win a record sixth World Cup.
India thumped West Indies by 10 wickets inside three days to complete a 2-0 series sweep on Sunday after Umesh Yadav's stellar bowling effort set up their comprehensive victory in the and second and final Test.
Brazil overwhelmed Peru with three goals in a superb first half to set up a crushing 5-0 victory on Saturday and cruise into the Copa America quarter-finals.
Nihal Sarin closes in on final Grandmaster norm
Fans dived in the sea at the Vieux Port as Olympique Marseille ended an 18-year wait for the French title when late goals by Mamadou Niang and Lucho Gonzalez secured a 3-1 home win over Stade Rennes on Wednesday.
Aston Villa kept alive their slim hopes of Champions League qualification with an easy 2-0 Premier League win at relegation-threatened Hull City on Wednesday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Saturday.
Denied adequate preparation time in India, the West Indies would look to utilise all their resources when they take on Board President's XI
Marcos Alonso scored for Fiorentina and then almost immediately gifted Gonzalo Higuain the equaliser for Napoli in a pulsating, end-to-end 1-1 Serie A draw on Monday.
FCM Targu Mures midfielder Gabriel Muresan has been handed an unprecedented 16-match domestic ban for a violent tackle.
'I had no idea that behind the charming, ever smiling Goan faces, there is so much complexity and history!' says Ajit Balakrishnan.
Argentina coach Diego Maradona was the mastermind behind the goal that gave them a 1-0 World Cup win over Nigeria, midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron said.
Lionel Messi lit up the World Cup on Saturday with a mesmerising individual performance but profligate Argentina still only beat Nigeria 1-0 with a goal from Gabriel Heinze in Group B.
Indian shuttlers had a relatively good day in office at the Indonesia Open Super Series Premier badminton tournament in Jakarta on Wednesday, with the women's doubles pair of Jwala Gutta-Ashwini Ponnappa and the men's team of Manu Attri-B Sumeeth Reddy progressing to the second round.
Striker Sergio Aguero says he is eager to win back his place in ManchesterCity's starting line-up and it will be up to the Premier League club to decide whether to keep him once the season ends.
With no Champions League football for a third straight season, the financial realities are starting to bite and Arsenal will be desperate for some of their talented youngsters to come through.
Les Bleus' average age is 26 years old -- like England -- and Kylian Mbappe is 19, but it was he who ran riot after France fell 2-1 behind early in the second half.
The 19-year-old ravaged Argentina from start to finish in France's thrilling 4-3 win in Kazan
Manchester United and Chelsea secured places in the Champions League with wins on the final day of the Premier League season while Watford and Bournemouth were relegated along with bottom club Norwich City.
Gabriel Agbonlahor's late header gave Aston Villa a 1-0 away win at Premier League rivals Birmingham City on Sunday.
Germany forward Mario Gomez, scorer of only one Serie A goal this season, struck twice in the first half hour to help Fiorentina beat Atalanta 3-1 in the Italian Cup on Wednesday.
Relentless will to improve drives City to greatness
Manchester City crushed Watford 6-0 in the FA Cup final on Saturday
After going through more than 78,000 photographs from over 4,700 photographers, the expert judges of the World Press Photo contest have announced the finalists of the 2019 competition. The panelists have selected 43 photographers from 23 countries to represent the best in photojournalism.
Napoli will not allow questions about coach Rafael Benitez's future at a news conference on Thursday amid widespread expectations the Spaniard is poised to replace the sacked Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid.
Brazil scored three superbly-taken goals, including a stunning Neymar effort, to beat feisty Austria 3-0 in sweltering conditions on Sunday and put the finishing touches to their impressive World Cup preparation.
West Indies have replaced wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin with Shane Dowrich for the four-Test series at home to India.
India suffered a late batting collapse, allowing the West Indies to sneak back into the contest after Ravichandran Ashwin and Wriddhiman Saha struck fighting centuries on day two of the third Test in Gros Islet, St Lucia.
Talking points from this weekend's Premier League action as top two Manchester City and Liverpool both won with City remaining a point clear with two games remaining.
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