Reuters Sports News Summary
Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.
Djokovic survives scare in Vienna
Top-seeded Novak Djokovic saved four set points before pulling away for a 7-6 (11), 6-3 victory against Croatia's Borna Coric on Wednesday in the second round of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, Austria. The Serbian star improved to 21-2 in tiebreaks since the start of the 2019 Wimbledon final against Roger Federer. Djokovic saved all three break points he faced and withstood nine aces from Coric.
MLB criticises Turner for returning to field after COVID-19 positive
Major League Baseball (MLB) on Wednesday issued a scathing rebuke to Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner after he returned to the field with his team mates after their World Series-clinching Game 6 win having tested positive for COVID-19 Turner was removed from the field during the eighth inning and placed in isolation after MLB said it learned mid-game that he had tested positive for the coronavirus, which has ravaged the United States and claimed more than 220,000 lives across the country.
Dodgers beat Rays to snap 32-year World Series drought
The Los Angeles Dodgers ended decades of heartbreak with their first World Series win since 1988 on Tuesday, a 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in Arlington sealing the best-of-seven championship 4-2. The Dodgers' triumph at their third World Series appearance in four years closed out a shortened season in which the final three playoff rounds were held at four neutral-site locations in a bid to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Raptors G Davis arrested on assault charge
Toronto Raptors guard Terence Davis was arrested Tuesday night in New York City and charged with assault and criminal mischief, according to multiple media reports. He allegedly assaulted a woman at a luxury apartment hotel in Midtown Manhattan. USA Today said the 20-year-old woman told authorities she was Davis' girlfriend. He is alleged to have hit her in the face, causing pain to her eye, and breaking the screen of her phone.
Rays left to wonder what might have been after World Series loss
The Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday began the first day of an offseason sure to be haunted by thoughts of what might have been after a controversial decision to pull their ace pitcher from a do-or-die World Series game backfired. The Rays, who reached the World Series in part because of a philosophy of not allowing starting pitchers to face hitters three times, were getting a much-needed gem from Blake Snell on Tuesday as he held the Los Angeles Dodgers in check.
Reinstated Larson signs with Hendrick Motorsports
Kyle Larson on Wednesday signed a multi-year contract with Hendrick Motorsports after he was fired by Chip Ganassi Racing and suspended for more than six months by NASCAR for using a racial slur in April. A six-time winner on the NASCAR Cup Series, Larson had been one of its hottest commodities until he was heard using the slur while apparently testing his microphone for the iRacing competition. He was immediately dropped by sponsors and his team.
League considers cutting Super Bowl capacity due to COVID-19
The NFL said on Wednesday it was exploring the possibility of reducing seating capacity to 20% at February's Super Bowl in Tampa, Florida, because of COVID-19. The home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which had been expected to have a capacity crowd of close to 75,000 for the Feb. 7 NFL championship game, would instead host between 13,000 and 15,000 fans, making one of the most sought-after tickets in sport even tougher to find, ESPN reported on Wednesday.
Los Angeles parades on hold in the 'City of Champions'
In a year when it seemed like nothing could go right, the sports Gods smiled on Los Angeles, rewarding long-suffering fans of the city's beloved Dodgers and Lakers with titles just weeks apart, but formal celebrations will have to wait due to COVID-19. The Dodgers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday to clinch the club's first championship in 32 years after enduring heartbreaking losses in the 2017 and 2018 World Series.
2021 Boston Marathon pushed back from traditional April date
Next year's Boston Marathon will not be held in April as it usually is and will be moved to the autumn due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organisers said on Wednesday. The race had been held annually since 1897 until it was cancelled this year for the first time, having first been postponed to September from the third Monday in April, or Patriots' Day in Massachusetts, when it usually takes place.
Jimmy Orr, 1958 NFL Rookie of Year, dies at 85
Two-time Pro Bowl receiver and 1958 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Jimmy Orr died Tuesday at age 85. Orr died at his home in Brunswick, Ga.
