Original 9 elected to Tennis Hall of Fame

Billie Jean King and the other members of the Original 9 who laid the groundwork for the women’s professional tour are the first group elected together to the International Tennis Hall of Fame, joining former player Lleyton Hewitt and the late educator

and contributor Dennis Van der Meer in the Class of 2021.

Last year marked the 50th anniversary of when King, elected to the Hall in 1987, and eight other players — Peaches Bartkowicz, Rosie Casals, Judy Dalton, Julie Heldman, Kerry Melville Reid, Kristy Pigeon, Nancy Richey and Valerie Ziegenfuss — took a stand against the disparity in prize money between men and women in the sport at the time.

That led to the WTA Tour, and now all four Grand Slam tournaments offer equal prize money to women and men.

Hewitt was the only one of five nominees in the Player Category who was voted in. He won Grand Slam singles titles at the U.S. Open in 2001 and Wimbledon in 2002, reached No. 1 in the ATP rankings and helped Australia win two Davis Cup titles.

Soccer: Megan Rapinoe scored two firsthalf goals and the United States won the SheBelieves Cup title with a 60 victory over Argentina in Orlando.

The United States is undefeated in 37 games in a row overall and 53 on American soil.

Carli Lloyd, Kristie Mewis, Cal alum Alex Morgan and Stanford alum Christen Press also scored, and the U.S. women became the first team to have three straight shutouts in the SheBelieves Cup, which is in its sixth year.

NFL: The Pittsburgh Steelers plan on having quarterback Ben Roethlisberger back for an 18th season.

Team President Art Rooney II released a statement saying he and Roethlisberger have met to figure out a way to ease the financial pressure caused by Roethlisberger’s contract.

Roethlisberger, who turns 39 next month, carries a $41 million salarycap number for 2021 and is due a $15 million roster bonus March 20.

The Las Vegas Raiders released receiver Tyrell Williams after two injuryplagued seasons.