CRAWFORD STOPS BROOK IN 4TH ROUND

Terence Crawford started slow and finished fast, stopping Kell Brook with a barrage of punches in the fourth round Saturday night in Las Vegas to retain his welterweight title.

Crawford remained unbeaten (37-0) and kept his place on the mythical poundfor-pound best list with an impressive stoppage of the veteran Brook (39-3), who fought well for three rounds before succumbing to Crawford’s power.

Crawford turned the fight around with a big right hand that sent Brook into the ropes and prompted referee

Tony Weeks to give him an 8count. When the fight resumed, he landed a half dozen punches to the head before Weeks waved the fight to a close at 1:14 of the fourth round.

The fight followed a bizarre ending in a 115-pound title rematch that left Joshua Franco still holding the belt he won in his first fight with

Andrew Moloney in June.

Franco’s eye swelled up from what was ruled an accidental head butt in the first round of the scheduled 12round bout. After the ringside physician ruled Franco couldn’t go on at the end of second round because his eye was shut, the fight was called a no contest.

Soccer

A World Cup winner, European champion with Spain and Real Madrid, and expert penalty taker, Sergio Ramos had scored from his last 25 spot kicks. On the night of his European men’s record-setting 177th international appearance, he was given two chances from the spot to celebrate with a goal. Ramos missed them both.

Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer twice guessed right, and dived to his right, to save in the 57th and 80th minutes. Ramos was spared further embarrassment by substitute Gerard Moreno firing an 89th-minute leveller in a 1-1 draw in the Nations League.

Spain’s lapse in Switzerland let Germany take the lead in Group 4 of the Nations League top tier. Germany won 3-1 against a Ukraine team that lost four players to positive tests for COVID-19.

France became the first team to advance to the Nations League Final Four next year, beating defending champion Portugal 1-0 in Lisbon.

• For the first time, UEFA canceled a Nations League game because of COVID-19 infections. Norway was due in Romania to play today, but could not travel after players were ordered into quarantine by its home health authorities.

• American World Cup winner Tobin Heath’s stunning strike began Manchester United’s comeback to draw with Manchester City 2-2 in a Women’s Super League derby.

• Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah has mild symptoms after testing positive for the coronavirus and is due to spend at least the next week self-isolating in Egypt, the national team doctor said.

Tennis

Italy’s Jannik Sinner

earned his maiden ATP title after beating Vasek Pospisil

6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (3) in the Sofia Open final in Bulgaria.

• Top-seeds Aryna Sabalenka and Elise Mertens

had three-set wins to advance to the final of the season-ending Upper Austria Ladies Linz in Austria. The 11th-ranked Sabalenka outlasted Barbora Krejcikova 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, and Mertens rallied to defeat Ekaterina Alexandrova

2-6, 6-1, 7-5.

Basketball

Hall of Famer Maurice Cheeks is returning to his hometown to serve as an assistant under new coach Billy Donovan, the Chicago Bulls announced.

• Iona men’s coach Rick Pitino is calling for a delayed start to the college basketball season as COVID-19 cases rise across the country. “Save the Season,” Pitino tweeted. “Move the start back. Play league schedule and have May Madness. Spiking and protocols make it impossible to play right now.”

Death

Jim Pace, the overall winner of the 1996 24 Hours of Daytona, died Friday after contracting COVID-19. He was 59.