A round-up of Friday's action in the Davis Cup.
Britain battled to victory over last year's Davis Cup runners-up Australia in their Finals group stage opener on Wednesday, while Spain and Italy both suffered chastening defeats at home in the premier men's team competition.
The skeet team, comprising Angad Vir Bajwa (121), Anant Jeet Singh Naruka (120), and Gurjoat Khangura (115), finished in 14th place with an overall score of 356.
Lionel Messi's second-half goal gave Argentina a 1-0 home win over Ecuador on Thursday to get their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign off on the right foot.
Iga Swiatek used an outfit change to help her reset after a poor start and beat China's Zheng Qinwen.
Spain's late substitute Joselu struck two quick-fire goals on his debut to seal a 3-0 win over Norway
'How do you stay so energised? So young?' 'Dev Anand flashed that familiar crooked grin and told me, "The mind never grows old. It urges you to surge ahead".'
World number one Carlos Alcaraz marked his return to action following his Wimbledon triumph with a battling 4-6, 6-4 (10-8) win over David Goffin in their Hopman Cup clash on Friday but could not prevent Spain from losing 2-1 to Belgium.
Lyudmyla Kichenok and Croatian partner Mate Pavic won the mixed doubles title of Wimbledon 2023.
Young Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh finished fifth while his illustrious compatriot Viswanathan Anand could only manage a tied seventh place in the third leg of the 2023 SuperUnited Rapid and Blitz chess tournament.
World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen was in stunning form, winning all nine of his games to take a significant lead. He has 20 points out of a possible 27 going into the second half of the blitz on Sunday.
The 43-year-old Bopanna and 35-year-old Ebden, who claimed two doubles titles on the ATP Tour earlier this year, will next face the unseeded British pair of Jacob Fearnley and Johannus Monday on Sunday.
Viswanathan Anand shot into the lead at the end of three rounds of the Rapid segment in the third leg of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour
Brady was sidelined by knee and foot injuries since the summer of 2021
Indian football team head coach Igor Stimac has expressed his displeasure over his wards losing possession of the ball at crucial junctures of a game.
The four countries were winners of their respective League A groups last year and compete in the mini-tournament in mid-year to decide the 2022-23 title.
Kvitova and Vekic had played twice on Saturday after a rain delay on Friday but it was the Czech who did not drop a set in the entire tournament.
Stimac, a vastly experienced coach and 1998 World Cup bronze medallist for Croatia, interfered when Pakistan player Abdullah Iqbal was ready to make a throw-in. He tried to pull back the ball from the player, sparking wild reactions from some Pakistani players as well as some coaching staff.
Spain must continue this improvement in order to beat Croatia in the final in Rotterdam on Sunday, Manchester City midfielder Rodri said.
Croatia beat Brazil in the quarter-finals, but for Dalic, Saturday's bronze medal game was the highlight of their tournament.
Croatia and Morocco will face off in Qatar for a second time after playing out a 0-0 draw in their group opener
Asked to rate Croatia's success in the past four years, Dalic said the 2018 semi-final win over England was so far their biggest match.
"Mateo, Luka and Marcelo are the best Croatia midfield in history. I don't think it can be repeated. When you pass them the ball it is safer than having your money in the bank," the defender said.
The comparison with Maradona for the title of the greatest Argentine player of all time cannot be complete without a world title, which the late Maradona won almost single-handedly 36 years ago.
Instagram model Ivana Knoll has appeared at every Croatian game at the FIFA World Cup to support her country, always in hot outfits, thwarting Qatar's modesty laws.
Neymar had scored late in the first half of extra time to give Brazil the lead, but Croatia equalised when Bruno Petkovic scored in the 117th.
The fans were in full voice during the national anthems and the stadium was bouncing.
"What I've seen so far, when you take a look at their selection of players, their quality, skills and value, then it is indeed terrifying."
'We had a fantastic goalkeeper today, Livakovic, he was great, he was insurmountable, he defended the penalties in a very strong, stable manner.'
Nagatomo, who believes Japan have the most united team at the World Cup, said he had also drawn on Japanese cultural references to drive the point home.
Captain Luca Modric, who with Ivan Perisic and Dejan Lovren forms a high class but ageing core to the team, says they fear no-one and they will have done their homework on the Samurai Blue.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic admitted his team rode their luck against Belgium but said he was pleased with the way they controlled the match for large stretches.
The intricate play and tight triangles Croatia were attempting only had to falter in a tiny way, and when they did Argentina were ready to pounce.
Croatia were not the favourites to reach the last four again but they came through two penalty shootouts in a repeat of their 2018 exploits.
While Canada may have been humbled, coach John Herdman remained unbowed making no apologies for his incendiary remarks - which caused a stir in Croatia.
In the 21 editions of the World Cup over 92 years featuring 79 nations, there have still been only eight winners and only 13 have made it to the final. Spain were the last to join the elite group of champions in 2010 after France in 1998 and Argentina in 1978.
Emotional after Canada's solid performance against the second-ranked team in the world, Herdman drew the attention of Croatian media after he said his team would go and "eff Croatia".
Australia beat Croatia 2-1 on Friday in Malaga, Spain, to reach the Davis Cup final for the first time in 19 years and will next face either Canada or Italy.
Marin Cilic can now secure Croatia's place in Friday's semi-final against Australia with a victory over Pablo Carreno Busta in the day's second singles match.
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