FORMULA ONE: Frank Williams stepped down from the board of the Formula One team which bears his name yesterday, but will stay in charge of the running of the outfit he founded in 1977. Williams, whose daughter Claire will join the board instead, said that with his 70th birthday approaching, it was time to make the change.

GOLF: Argentine rookie Miguel Angel Carballo found himself in the spotlight on Thursday as he stepped into the Honda Classic in place of ailing Ian Poulter – paired with Tiger Woods. England’s Poulter had been slated to play in a marquee three-some with Woods and Lee Westwood in the first and second rounds of the US PGA Tour event at PGA National. But when Poulter pulled out Carballo got the call.

RUGBY UNION: The Otago Rugby Football Union, once one of the pillars of the sport in New Zealand, put off immediate liquidation yesterday and revealed the existence of a possible lifeline. Faced with debts of $1.97 million, the Otago Union said earlier in the week it would fold today, but at the last minute announced the move had been delayed for a week.

BASEBALL: World Series champions St Louis Cardinals signed catcher Yadier Molina to a five-year, $75 million contract extension. The St Louis Post-Dispatch reported the deal’s $15 million average annual value is second among catchers only to the eight-year, $184 million deal negotiated by the Minnesota Twins’ Joe Mauer in 2010.

TENNIS: Andy Roddick (picture) beat Denis Istomin in straight sets to reach the quarter-finals of the Delray Beach ATP tournament, avenging his loss to the Uzbek a fortnight earlier. Roddick, the fourth seed, converted all three of his break chances to book his second quarter-final appearance of the season with a 6-4, 7-5 victory. Istomin had beaten Roddick in the quarters en route to the final at San Jose, California, in February.

BASKET, NBA: Kevin Durant scored 38 points and Russell Westbrook added 29 as Oklahoma City erased a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit en route to a 105-102 NBA victory over Orlando. Durant scored 18 points in the fourth period, helping his team overcome the 33 points and nine rebounds of Orlando star Dwight Howard. The Thunder claimed a seventh straight victory, improving to 29-7.

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