Former No. 1 Wozniacki to retire after Australian Open
Former No. 1 and 2018 Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki will retire from professional tennis after competing in Melbourne next year.
The 29-year-old from Denmark wrote in an Instagram post on Friday that “she realized that there is a lot more in life that I’d like to accomplish off the court.”
Wozniacki said her decision to stop playing “has nothing to do with my health.” She announced in October 2018 that she has rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune condition that can cause pain and swelling in the wrist and other joints.
She is currently ranked No. 37 after going 20-15 without a singles title in 2019.
Pro basketball
KNICKS FIRE COACH FIZDALE >> The New York Knicks have made another coaching change, firing David Fizdale after barely 100 games on the job.
The Knicks cut ties with Fizdale after two straight blowout losses dropped them to 4-18 and promoted assistant Mike Miller to interim head coach.
Fizdale ran practice earlier in the day but was then fired along with assistant Keith Smart. The Knicks made no comment on the decision to release Fizdale after he went 2183.
Boxing
RUIZ EVEN HEAVIER FOR HIS HEAVYWEIGHT REMATCH >> World heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. will be nearly 50 pounds heavier than Anthony Joshua for their title rematch on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.
Ruiz weighed in at 283 pounds — about 15½ pounds more than he was for the first fight in New York in June when he delivered one of the biggest heavyweight upsets in recent history.
Joshua weighed in at 237 pounds, ensuring he will fight at his lightest weight in five years as he tries to reclaim his WBO, WBA and IBF belts.
College football
FRESNO
STATE
COACH
TEDFORD STEPS DOWN >> Fresno State football coach Jeff Tedford is stepping down from the job after three seasons at his alma mater.
The program tweeted a message from Tedford that read: “It is with a heavy heart that, today, I am announcing that I am stepping down as the head coach here at Fresno State.”
The 58-year-old Tedford was hired by Fresno State following the 2016 season and he had a 2614 record during his tenure. He took over a onewin team and quickly rebuilt the program.
Tedford began
his head coaching career at Cal. He led the Golden Bears to an 82-57 record and eight bowl bids in 11 seasons at Cal.
Baseball
PADRES GET PHAM, CRONENWORTH FROM RAYS FOR RENFROE >> The San Diego Padres have acquired outfielder Tommy Pham and infielderpitcher Jake Cronenworth from the Tampa Bay Rays for outfielder Hunter Renfroe, minor league infielder Xavier Edwards and a player to be named.
Pham gives the rebuilding Padres some pop after they finished near the bottom in the majors in most offensive categories last season, when they were last in the NL West at 70-92.
Pham hit .273 with a .369 on-base percentage, 21 home runs and 68 RBIs last year. He set the Rays’ franchise record with a 48-game on-base streak.
SOURCE: KENDRICK, NATS AGREE FOR 2020 >> Postseason star Howie Kendrick and the World Series champion Washington Nationals agreed in principle to a $6.25 million, oneyear contract, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations.
The 36-year-old Kendrick hit .344 with 17 homers and 62 RBIs in 121 regular-season games
RANGERS COMPLETE $28M, 3-YEAR DEAL WITH GIBSON >> The Texas Rangers have completed a $28 million, three-year contract with right-hander Kyle Gibson, adding another veteran in the middle of their starting rotation.
Gibson was 13-7 with a 4.84 ERA in 34 games last season for the Twins, making 29 starts and five relief appearances. He spent time on the injured list in September because of ulcerative colitis.
SOURCE: FREE AGENT CATCHER AVILA, TWINS REACH 1-YEAR DEAL >> Free agent catcher Alex Avila and the Minnesota Twins have reached agreement on a one-year contract for $4.25 million.
Avila hit .207 with nine home runs and 24 RBIs in 63 games for Arizona last season. He also pitched in two games.
Golf
WOODLAND LEADS IN THE BAHAMAS >> Two big birdies from Gary Woodland gave him the lead in the Hero World Challenge as he fired a 4-under 68 to grab a one-shot lead over Henrik Stenson
Six players were separated by three shots. That includes Tiger Woods, who was tied for third at 11 under.
Skiing
LEDECKA WINS WORLD CUP DOWNHILL >> Czech Republic racer Ester Ledecka, who also competes in snowboarding, made a charge from late in the field for her first World Cup victory on the ski side.
The 26th racer to take the course, Ledecka finished in 1 minute, 31.87 seconds to capture the women’s season-opening downhill competition. The 24-year-old Ledecka edged Corinne Suter of Switzerland by 0.35 seconds on a snowy afternoon. Stephanie Venier of Austria wound up third. ODERMATT TAKES BEAVER CREEK SUPER-G >> Swiss racer Marco Odermatt has broken Austria’s grip on the Birds of Prey super-G.
The second racer to take the hill, Odermatt went on a wild ride to finish the technical course in 1 minute, 10.90 seconds to earn his first World Cup victory. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde of Norway was second, 0.10 seconds behind, and Austrian Matthias Mayer took third.
Figure skating
KOSTORNAIA LEADS AT GRAND PRIX FINALS >> Alena Kostornaia led a Russian sweep of the top three positions in the women’s short program at the figure skating Grand Prix Finals, with Olympic champion Alina Zagitova second.
The 16-year-old Kostornaia was the only skater with a clean landing on a triple axel and scored 85.45 points to take the lead ahead of Saturday’s free skate.
Zagitova scored 79.60 for second and Anna Shcherbakova was third on 78.27.