WHAT’S HOT WHAT’S NOT

HOT COCO GAUFF

WE LEARNED at Wimbledon last summer that Gauff isn’t the meek sort. We also heard her talk of social activism, which ran the risk of attracting cynicism from folk familiar with athletes who wrap earnest words around hollow sentiments. After her speeches and tweets of the past week, it is safe to say the 16-year-old has substance on the court and off it.

BARRY HEARN

HE TOLD Sportsmail a few weeks back that he had given ‘a starving man a sandwich’ by showcasing darts from the homes of players. By getting snooker back on television this week, he has added a bag of crisps and a can of pop. Not a proper meal, but it’s something.

ALEXIS SANCHEZ

INTER MILAN can see something behind closed doors that we can only wonder about. So let us assume on the basis that they have extended his woeful and expensive loan from Manchester United that he has been reborn in training. Otherwise they are truly crackers.

NOT SKY BROWN

IT IS reassuring to see the 11-year-old skateboarding prodigy is recovering after an awful crash. Quite troubling, though, is the over-produced video she put out of the incident. The Nike athlete is reported to have been unresponsive briefly and the footage plays to that with audio of a flat-lining monitor, among other things. There is a marketing operation around the Team GB skater and you can only hope that the idea was hers alone.

NFL

IN THE wake of George Floyd’s killing they tell us they ‘stand with the black community because Black Lives Matter’. Sentiments that shouldn’t have required much thought. But then we think back to how they handled the Colin Kaepernick saga. They should be down on both knees.

MAURICIO SULAIMAN

THE president of the WBC has given his support to a 53-year-old Mike Tyson returning to boxing. This being the same figurehead who had little concern about the allegations of a farmer who said he gave false evidence to help Tyson Fury fight a doping charge. He’s a piece of work, or something.