Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - Manchester City have took a big step towards their first Champions League football with a 2-1 away win over last year's runners-up Paris St Germain

in the semi-final first leg.

PSG went ahead courtesy of a Marquinhos header in the first half, but Mauricio Pochettino's side lost control after the break with De Bruyne and Mahrez finding the back of the net in the space of eight minutes to secure City's 18th consecutive away win in all competitions.

Last year's runners-up PSG then found themselves with a higher mountain to climb as Idrissa Gueye picked up a straight red card in the 77th minute for a reckless challenge on Ilkay Gundogan.

The French champions will need to show next Wednesday the same away form that enabled them to beat Barcelona at the Camp Nou and Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in previous rounds if they are to progress.

-Reuters

The Breakers basketballers have been unable to celebrate a milestone night for captain Tom Abercrombie with victory.

Melbourne United recorded 10 straight wins in a season for the first time in its history after defeating the New Zealand side 90-76 in Melbourne on Wednesday night.

Former Breakers star Scotty Hopson led the way for United with 25 points, while Jo Lual-Acuil added 23 points and nine rebounds.

Corey Webster scored 20 points and added five assists for the Breakers, while Will McDowell-White and Abercrombie combined for 23 points.

Abercrombie was playing his 355th game for the Breakers, breaking the record for most NBL appearances for the club.

No plans to halt IPL

A senior Indian cricket board official says the Indian Premier League (IPL) will continue as scheduled, despite fierce criticism of the popular Twenty20 competition being played in the midst of a national health crisis.

India's death toll surged past 200,000 on Wednesday and at least 300,000 people a day have tested positive for the virus over the last week as a resurgent Covid-19 pandemic has gripped the world's second most populous nation.

In a fevered social media debate over whether the IPL show should go on, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been accused of being "tone-deaf" for its stance.

The senior BCCI official, however, said the cricket was providing important solace and entertainment to many people during hard times, even though fans are not being allowed into stadiums to watch the games.

"We should not underestimate the power of sport to spread positivity," the official said, requesting anonymity. "At least fans are absorbed in it at home. Otherwise many of them will step out without masks.

"The league generates considerable money for the economy. It has to be seen from that context too. How does stopping IPL help?"

- Reuters

Olympics organisers reiterate safety measures

Organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics have rolled out stricter coronavirus countermeasures, including a plan to test athletes daily, as they try to reassure a Japanese public made increasingly sceptical by the resurgent pandemic.

With just three months to go until the postponed Games, Japan has been encumbered by a slow-moving vaccination drive that has raised concerns about the viability of the Games.

Overseas spectators have already been ruled out and a decision on whether to allow domestic spectators will be taken in June, a few weeks before the Games begin on July 23.

Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said that while organisers wanted as many spectators as possible, they were ready to take every step needed to ensure safety.

"We are prepared to hold the Games without spectators," she told a news conference following a meeting on the second draft of rule "playbooks" for the Olympics and Paralympics.

The organisers, which include the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Japanese government, said in a joint statement that they would "deploy all possible countermeasures and place the highest priority on safety".

- Reuters

Covid cans Canadian GP

Turkey will replace Canada on this year's Formula One calendar after the June 13 race in Montreal was cancelled on Wednesday for the second year in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Formula One said it had extended Montreal's contract by two years to take into account the cancellations, securing the race until 2031.

The race had been scheduled for the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on the weekend after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and Turkey's Istanbul circuit will be logistically convenient for air freight coming from Baku.

There were no races in the Americas or Far East last year, with the reduced, 17-round season conducted entirely in Europe and the Middle East and some circuits holding more than one grand prix.

Formula One has operated in a bubble since the pandemic, with teams and staff regularly tested and many vaccinated while most races had been held behind closed doors, and was aiming for 23 grands prix this year.

The sport had hoped to visit Canada without a mandatory 14-day quarantine but a third wave of the virus thwarted those plans.

- Reuters

More sports join UK racism action

English cricket and Premiership Rugby have announced they will join football's social media blackout this weekend in response to continued online racist abuse of professional players in the country.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) with all 18 first-class county teams, the eight women's regional teams and the Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA) will join the football community in switching off their social media accounts from Friday afternoon to Monday night.

Cricketers have not been immune to online abuse, with England fast bowler Jofra Archer revealing last year that he received racist messages on social media after breaching bio-bubble protocols during the test series against West Indies.

Earlier this month, England seam bowler Stuart Broad said the national team players were willing to take a stand against online abuse.

Premiership Rugby and their clubs have also given its "full support" to the campaign this weekend.

The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) has already confirmed their involvement in the campaign, which aims to encourage social media companies to do more to eradicate online hate.

- Reuters