Retief Goosen has blasted Gary Player for claiming that the use of performance-enhancing drugs is rife in golf. Goosen, speaking after opening his British Open campaign with a one-under-par 70, said he did not agree with Player and criticised his fellow South African’s judgement in speaking out about the issue without being willing to provide any evidence.
Phil Mickelson brushed aside concerns over a wrist injury that has hampered his game recently as he swept into a share of the early lead at the £3-million Scottish Open on Thursday. Ernie Els got off to a frustrating start, bunkering his approach to his first hole, the 10th, and immediately dropping a shot.
Venus Williams believes her fourth Wimbledon title could herald the start of a new period of dominance for herself and her sister Serena in women’s tennis. Both sisters endured injury-blighted years in 2006 and there were plenty of pundits willing to predict that their time at the top of the women’s game was nearing an end.
Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, with his 50th straight win on grass, eased into the third round at Wimbledon on Thursday, but there was no such satisfaction for Tim Henman, who bowed out, possibly for the last time. There were comfortable wins for defending champion Amelie Mauresmo, Maria Sharapova and Venus Williams.
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have been teed up to resume their rivalry in the Wimbledon final after being named as top seeds for this year’s men’s singles. Federer, who will begin his bid for a fifth straight title on centre court at the All England club on Monday, beat Nadal quite comfortably in last year’s final.
On Merseyside they like to remember it as the ”Miracle of Istanbul”; in Milan they would just like to forget it. If the 2005 Champions League final is ever recalled in the red-and-black heartlands of Lombardy, it is with the kind of shivery discomfort usually associated with the aftermath of a particularly unpleasant dream.
Didier Drogba’s 33rd goal of the season, four minutes from the end of extra time, was enough to secure the FA Cup for Chelsea in the first final at the new Wembley on Saturday. Drogba’s goal count this season also includes the winner in the League Cup final against Arsenal in February.
The last little piles of sawdust have been swept away, the builders have being paid off and the two biggest acts in the country have been lined up for the grand reopening. Few places did football as theatre as well as the old Wembley but now, finally, an FA Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester United offers the new arena the opportunity to start establishing its own tradition.
Manchester United will parade the Premiership trophy to a jubilant Old Trafford on Sunday but manager Alex Ferguson insists it will be business as usual against relegation-threatened West Ham. The Hammers, one of only three teams to have beaten Ferguson’s men this season, need a point to complete a remarkable escape from relegation.
The differences between Roman Abramovich and Jose Mourinho appear to have been patched up for the moment. An impromptu hug at the end of the FA Cup semifinal win over Blackburn hinted that the troubled relationship between Russian owner and Portuguese manager was on the mend.