Williams climbs 153 spots in WTA rankings to No. 8

Serena Williams climbed 153 spots in the WTA rankings after her runner-up finish at Wimbledon, putting her back in the top 30.

Williams is ranked 28th in the list published Monday. At Wimbledon, the former No. 1 was playing only her fourth tournament after returning from childbirth, but still reached the final before losing to Angelique Kerber of Germany. Kerber climbed six spots to No. 4, with Simona Halep holding onto the top ranking despite going out in the third round at the All England Club.

Kevin Anderson climbed into the men’s top 5 for the first time after his run to the Wimbledon final put him in fifth place, while champion Novak Djokovic jumped 11 spots to No. 10. Rafael Nadal, who lost to Djokovic in the semifinals, remains No. 1.

MLB

SCHERZER, SALE TO START ALL-STAR GAME» Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper will bat sixth for the National League in the All-Star Game in his home ballpark.

Harper is hitting .214 with a .365 on-base percentage, .468 slugging percentage, 23 home runs and 54 RBI. Harper is an All-Star voted in by fans for the sixth time in his seven-year major league career.

Nationals teammate Max Scherzer will take the mound for the NL as expected. Scherzer (125) has a 2.41 ERA and a league-high 182 strikeouts.

Scherzer is the 14th player in Major League Baseball history to start the All-Star Game for three different teams after doing so previously with the Diamondbacks and Tigers.

Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale opens for the American League, his third consecutive AllStar Game start. He’s the third player to do that, following Lefty Gomez and Robin Roberts.

NHL

EMERY DROWNING DEEMED NOT SUSPICIOUS BY POLICE » Police say the drowning of former NHL goalie Ray Emery does not appear suspicious.

The 35-year-old player whose career spanned more than a decade drowned in Hamilton Harbour on Sunday.

Police say he jumped off a boat near the Leander Boat Club to go swimming, and friends called emergency services at about 6 a.m. when he didn’t resurface. Inspector Marty Schulenberg calls it a “case of misadventure.”

Schulenberg adds that Emery’s body was found at about 2:50 p.m. Sunday, about 20 yards from where he went into the water. He says first responders were not able to locate Emery right away so they called the dive unit.

Emery played for Ottawa, Chicago and Philadelphia and won the Stanley Cup with the Blackhawks in 2013.

Boxing

JOSHUA TO FIGHT POVETKIN IN SEPTEMBER » Anthony Joshua will defend his WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles against Alexander Povetkin of Russia in London on Sept. 22.

Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn on Monday confirmed the fight, which will take place at Wembley Stadium.

Povetkin is the mandatory challenger to the WBA title. The 28-yearold Joshua has been in training while negotiations with WBC champion Deontay Wilder stalled, but could yet face the American in April 2019.

Joshua said in a statement: “Povetkin is a serious challenge that I will prepare meticulously for. He has serious pedigree and only a fool would underestimate what he brings to the table.”

Povetkin, 38, beat David Price on the undercard of Joshua’s victory over Joseph Parker in March, having previously fought for the titles Joshua now holds in a 2013 defeat to Wladimir Klitschko.

College sports

MICHIGAN STATE INTRODUCES NEW AD » Michigan State has officially introduced Bill Beekman as its new athletic director, giving him the job he has held on an interim basis since early February.

Beekman took over on an interim basis shortly after athletic director Mark Hollis retired following the sex abuse scandal involving former sports doctor Larry Nassar and just before ESPN reported allegations of sexual assault and violence against women involving Michigan State football and basketball players. The report questioned how the athletic department handled those cases.

Engler appointed Beekman as interim AD on Feb. 5.