MELBOURNE — Novak Djokovic will need to spend some time on the sidelines recovering from a muscle tear that hindered him in the later rounds of the Australian Open, the Serbian said as he celebrated his ninth Melbourne Park title on Monday.

TURIN, Italy — Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Juventus strolled to a 3-0 home win over bottom side Crotone in Serie A on Monday, with the victory taking the champions up to third in the standings.

Novak Djokovic was his usual confident self when he headed to the Rod Laver Arena for the Australian Open singles final last Sunday. It didn’t matter that he went through a more rigorous test than he envisioned through the last fortnight; his third-round match against gritty Taylor Fritz was particularly testy, lasting all of five sets and forcing him to compete with a torn abdominal oblique muscle from then on. And never mind that he faced red-hot Daniil Medvedev, whose 20-match win streak had a number of quarters wondering if the new batch of talents would finally break through in a major championship. As far as he was concerned, Melbourne Park was his home, and it remained as welcoming as it had been in 2019 and 2020, and in the six other times he went home with the Norman Brooks Challenge Cup.

WITH the rescheduled Olympic Games in Tokyo just five months away, the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines (ABAP) is preparing to up the ante in its preparation to have as many boxers as possible to represent the country and have them ready for the competition.

SYDNEY — Novak Djokovic’s “unbelievable” performance to win his ninth Australian Open final was a statement to the young guns looking to break the stranglehold of the “Big Three” on Grand Slam titles, according to seven-times major winner Mats Wilander.

Team Philippines is set to compete in 46 sports events at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) announced on Monday.

“THE Demolition Man” is back in mixed martial arts (MMA).

THE local esports scene added a new supporter with Global smart device brand OPPO partnering with Mineski Philippines for various activities and programs this year.

HONG KONG — Hong Kong’s government is considering on waiving the city’s strict 21-day quarantine requirements in a bid to host soccer matches in the Asian Champions League and other continental club competitions, a local newspaper said on Sunday.

JAMES Harden had 37 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists as the Brooklyn Nets won their sixth consecutive contest with a 112-108 victory over the host Los Angeles (LA) Clippers on Sunday.

AFTER they let go of a key piece in Calvin Abueva, the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters are now focusing on working with what they got in return and continue with their Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) push.

MELBOURNE — Naomi Osaka added a second Australian Open title to her two US Open crowns on Saturday, but said she would rather “live in the moment” than set ambitious targets for further Grand Slam glory.