Djokovic favoured to pull off Slam sweep

Novak Djokovic is heavily favoured ahead of the semifinals of the U.S. Open to become the first male player to complete a calendar-year sweep of the four Grand Slam events since Australia's Rod Laver in 1969.

But his quest for history still includes two major obstacles.

The first comes in the form of Germany's Alexander Zverev. The 2020 U.S. Open finalist has won 16 consecutive matches and has dropped only one set through his first five matches in Flushing Meadows this year.

That's three fewer than Djokovic, who dropped a set in his opener and has lost the first set in each of his past three matches. However, the top-ranked Serbian hasn't lost more than three games in any other 15 sets he has played through five matches.

Djokovic is the -260 favorite at DraftKings to get past Zverev (+195).

“I played the final here last year in front of exactly six people,” Zverev said. “That was a little bit weird for me, but it's incredible to have the New York crowd back. I think the energy of the stadium, the energy of the people, we missed it for over a year all over the world,” Zverev said.

Djokovic has been backed by 82 per cent of the handle and 80 per cent of the total bets ahead of the semifinal clash with Zverev, who is the third favourite to claim the men's singles title at +450.

That's behind second-seeded Daniil Medvedev (+210 to win the title), who will face surprise semifinalist Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal (+2500).

Medvedev is the heavy -650 favourite to win his match and is backed by 71 per cent of the bets at DraftKings. However, the book has seen some big bets on the 12th-seeded Canadian, with Auger-Aliassime backed by 57 per cent of the handle ahead of his first career grand slam semifinal.

Djokovic has 20 career major titles — 20 more than the other three semifinalists combined.

Medvedev has reached the U.S. Open semifinals for the third consecutive year, dropping only one set along the way. He also has had a relatively easy bracket, with his only win against a seeded player coming against No. 24 Daniel Evans in the round of 16.

Boston Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron

intends to play out the final season of his eight-year, US$55-million contract before deciding if he'll return to the team in 2022-23.

Bergeron, 36, has played his entire 17-year NHL career with the Bruins. He's slated for unrestricted free agency in July.

“I'm going to play out this year, and then talk about that after,” Bergeron said Wednesday.

A four-time Selke Trophy recipient as the NHL's best defensive forward, Bergeron previously said he's focused on winning a Stanley Cup this season. After that, he'll let the chips fall where they may.

“That's something that a lot of people have asked me this summer,” Bergeron said. “I think, for me, the way that I approach this year is I want to concentrate on this year. I have a year left on my contract, and I think it would be useless of me to think about the future.”

A Stanley Cup champion in 2011, Bergeron has 917 points (375 goals, 542 assists) in 1,143 career games since being selected by Boston in the second round of the 2003 NHL Draft.

David Backes signed a ceremonial

one-day contract with the St. Louis Blues on Thursday and announced his retirement.

Backes, 37, spent the first 10 years of his 15-year career with the Blues and put on the sweater one final time for his contract signing.

He played his final NHL game on May 5 in St. Louis as a member of the visiting Anaheim Ducks. The night ended with the fans giving him a standing ovation and the Blues players lining up to shake his hand.

Backes ends his career with 561 points (248 goals, 313 assists) in 965 career games. With the Ducks last season, he played in 15 games, counting four points on three goals and one assist.

Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker

said Wednesday that Tiger Woods is continuing his rehabilitation from a February accident “to get better and try to play golf again.”

Stricker made the comments in a SiriusXM Radio interview at Whistling Straits, Wis., site of the upcoming Ryder Cup. Stricker said he has talked to Woods “a lot,” acknowledging that the 15-time major champion wouldn't be joining Team USA as an assistant.

“He's a part of this Ryder Cup family. He won't be able to be a captain's assistant this time around, just because of his ongoing rehabilitation to try to get better and try to play golf again, and that's going well,” Stricker said in the interview. “He's progressing, he's doing well, things are moving in the right direction.”

The last words from Woods publicly about his recovery came in late May when he said he was focused on “walking on my own.”

Woods, 45, sustained serious injuries after crashing an SUV on Feb. 23 in the Los Angeles County city of Rancho Palos Verdes. He's recovering from open fractures to his tibia and fibula, which needed a rod inserted to aid healing, and also foot and ankle injuries that needed screws and pins placed to aid in stabilization.

The Ryder Cup begins Sept. 24.

The Japan Football Association has

withdrawn from hosting the 2021 Club World Cup due to the COVID-19 situation in the country, world soccer's governing body (FIFA) said on Thursday.

The annual tournament, which brings together champions from the six global confederations, was due to be held in December.

The decision comes after the Japanese government on Thursday officially decided to extend the COVID-19 state of emergency in many parts of the country as it looked to suppress a fresh wave of infections.

FIFA last year chose Japan as the hosts for a traditional seven-club event after an expanded 24-team tournament, originally scheduled for China in June 2021, was delayed due to the pandemic.