Today's sports news: What you need to know

Latest - Four-time Olympian hockey player Kayla Whitelock has torn the anterior cruciate ligament in her knee and is unavailable for the Tokyo Olympics.

The Black Sticks defender, with 260 caps for her country, injured her right knee in the fourth and final match of the Trans-Tasman series in Palmerston North last night.

Coach Graham Shaw said his heart went out to Whitelock.

"It's often an overused term but Kayla truly is a legend of our game, and it was a heart-breaking moment when she shared the extent of her injury with the team today."

"Kayla will be a massive loss to the team both on and off the field in Tokyo."

Captain Stacey Michelsen said many players, including herself, had looked up to Whitelock as youngsters.

"Kayla was an inspiration to all of the current Black Sticks when we were growing up and continued to play that role over her entire career.

"We are absolutely devastated that her Olympic dream has ended this way."

Whitelock would have joined Barbara Kendall and Valerie Adams as the only Kiwi women to attend five Olympics if she'd made it to Tokyo.

Both Black Sticks squads for the Olympics will be named on 10 June.

Barty and Nadal into second round

World number one Ash Barty managed to play through an injury problem and stave off an upset against American Bernarda Pera with a three set win in her opening match of the French Open.

Returning to the Philippe Chatrier court after her maiden Grand Slam win in 2019, the 25-year-old Australian seemed to be cruising against the 70th-ranked Pera when she was up 5-2 in the opening set.

Barty, who skipped the claycourt Grand Slam last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, started moving sluggishly thereafter, clearly bothered by an injury, and then took a medical timeout at the end of the second set after Pera levelled the match.

The Australian, who started the match with a heavily-strapped left thigh, kept fighting and found a way to victory and a second round meeting against either Magda Linette of Poland and Frenchwoman Chloe Paquet.

Meanwhile 11th seeded Czech Petra Kvitova has withdrawn after injuring her ankle in a freak fall while performing her post-match media duties on Monday.

Rafa Nadal launched his bid for a record-extending 14th French Open title with a straight-sets win over young Australian Alexei Popyrin.

-Reuters

Cricket World Cups to get bigger

The Men's Cricket World Cup and Men's T20 World Cup will be expanded to include more teams and matches from 2027 and 2024 respectively.

The Cricket World Cup will feature 14 teams and 54 matches in 2027 and 2031, while the T20 World Cup will grow to 20 teams and 55 matches in 2024, 2026, 2028 and 2030.

The Cricket World Cup will feature two groups of seven teams, with the top three in each earning passage to a Super Six stage that will be followed by semi-finals and a final, the same format used in the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

In the T20 World Cup, there will be four groups of five teams and the top two will go through to a Super Eights stage before semi-finals and a final.

The ICC also announced that an eight-team Champions Trophy will be held in 2025 and 2029, following the format of previous editions with two groups of four, semi-finals and a final.

-Reuters

Breakers sign future star

One of Europe's leading young basketballers is joining the Breakers as part of the NBL's Next Stars programme.

Ousmane Dieng has committed to the club for the 2021/22 season.

The 18-year-old Frenchman is currently 14th on ESPN's rankings of best available prospects for the 2022 draft.

"The Breakers have already had great success in developing NBA level players, and I can't wait to join their program in a move that will advance my career and prepare me for the NBA draft next year," Dieng said.

"The NBL is one of the world's best basketball leagues, and I believe this move is the best step forward for me as I strive to become an NBA player."

RJ Hampton was the Breakers' first Next Star.

He was selected 24th in last year's draft and has just finished his first NBA season with the Orlando Magic.

Ancelotti heading back to Spain

Carlo Ancelotti has returned to Real Madrid for a second spell as coach, re-joining the club from Everton.

The Italian, who was previously in charge of Real between 2013 and 2015, has agreed a three-year deal at the Bernabeu. He replaces Zinedine Zidane, who left Real last month.

Ancelotti had been in charge at Goodison Park since December 2019, leading Everton to a 10th-placed finish in the Premier League last season.

The Italian, who has one of the most-decorated CVs in world football, won the Champions League with Real in 2014, helping the Spaniards to their fabled 'Decima' (10th) European crown, before being sacked 12 months later.

The 61-year-old is one of three coaches, along with former Liverpool manager Bob Paisley and Zidane, to have won the European Cup or Champions League on three occasions, having also led AC Milan to glory in 2003 and 2007.

He has also coached Juventus, Chelsea, Paris St Germain and Bayern Munich in his 26-year managerial career.

-Reuters

England name Euro squad

England manager Gareth Southgate has named four right backs in his final 26-man squad for next week's European championship after dropping six players including in-form attacking midfielder Jesse Lingard.

Others who failed to make the cut were defenders Ben Godfrey and Ben White, goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, forward Ollie Watkins and midfielder James Ward-Prowse.

Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood was withdrawn earlier due to an underlying injury to whittle the squad down from a provisional 33 named a week ago.

Liverpool's Alexander-Arnold was one of the four right backs.

Injured duo Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson were both included.

The FA said the dropped players would remain in the squad for two pre-tournament friendlies in Middlesbrough against Austria on Wednesday and Romania on Sunday.

Teams competing in Euro 2020 can make unlimited replacements before their first match due to serious injury or illness.

England's Euro 2020 Group D campaign starts with games against Croatia, Scotland and Czech Republic.

-Reuters

IPL set for less foreign players

As the Indian cricket board seeks to complete this year's Indian Premier League in the United Arab Emirates, it appears to have accepted that the UAE leg may not feature several of the league's star foreign players.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India was staring at a $372 million loss in revenue when the IPL was suspended last month after several players and backroom staff tested positive for COVID-19.

Having shifted rest of the tournament in the UAE in September-October, the BCCI top brass are currently in Dubai to finalise schedule of the remaining 31 matches in consultation with their Emirati counterparts.

England have effectively ruled out further participation of their players when the tournament resumes but the BCCI appear unfazed.

"Our main focus is on completing this edition of the IPL," BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla said.

"So whichever foreign players are available is fine. Whoever is not available, it is not going to stop us from hosting the tournament."

Boards would be wary of releasing players and exposing them to possible injuries on the eve of the Twenty20 World Cup in October-November.

-Reuters

James O'Connor hits century

Thirteen years after becoming Super Rugby's youngest debutant at the age of 17, James O'Connor will savour his 100th cap in the provincial competition on Friday when the Queensland Reds face the Blues in Brisbane.

Though only 30, O'Connor's milestone comes after fits and starts, with his first two stints in Super Rugby finishing in acrimony before his successful return to the Reds last year.

The Wallabies fist five was banished from Australian rugby in 2013, his contract torn up after one too many off-field incidents.

He returned home for an ill-fated season with the Reds in 2015 before heading back to Europe to more trouble and a drug-related arrest in Paris while on Toulon's roster.

O'Connor played his first Super Rugby match for Western Force against the Reds in 2008 and became the second-youngest Wallabies debutant the following year at the age of 18.

Though hailed as a once-in-a-generation talent, his off-field indiscretions steadily piled up. He later battled depression, alcohol and a dependency on prescription drugs while dealing with injuries in a mid-career slump.

Now sober, fit and committed to Australian rugby through the 2023 Rugby World Cup, O'Connor said if he could go back in time he would tell his teenage self to "enjoy the process".

-Reuters