[attach id=533269 size="medium"]Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez... boxing champ.[/attach]

Boxing: Liverpool’s Liam Smith lost his WBO light-middleweight title when he was knocked out by Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez in Texas during the weekend. Mexico’s Alvarez claimed his 28-year-old opponent’s crown in the ninth round at the AT&T Stadium, Smith failing to beat the count after being dumped to the canvas by a fierce body shot. Smith was previously unbeaten and had won his last eight fights by knockout but that record went with the Briton’s third defence of his title.

Snooker: Snooker’s new Evergrande China Championship will have a top prize of £200,000, the biggest ever for a tournament outside the UK, World Snooker announced. The event will run from November 1 to 5 and it will be staged in Guangzhou. This year it will be a 16-man non-ranking tournament, with the top ten in the world rankings invited, along with the next four players from the separate one-year ranking list. The field will be completed by two players nominated by the China Billiards and Snooker Association.

Tennis: Christina McHale claimed her maiden WTA Tour title with a dramatic 3-6 6-4 6-4 victory over Katerina Siniakova at the Japan Women’s Open in Tokyo. McHale had appeared set to fall short when she trailed by a set and a break before the American reeled off eight successive games to take control. Unseeded Czech Siniakova, who was also chasing her first WTA Tour title, then bravely battled back from 5-2 down in the decider but McHale held on.

Ice Hockey: A dominant Sidney Crosby led Canada to a 6-0 win over the Czech Republic at the World Cup of Hockey yesterday following Team Europe’s shock victory over the United States in the tournament opener in Toronto. Crosby was easily the best player on the ice scoring a goal and adding two assists as Canada lived up to their billing as tournament favourites. The win leaves Canada tied atop the Group A standings with Team Europe, a squad made up of players representing eight different countries in the eight-team tournament.

Cycling: British Cycling has announced that HSBC UK is to become its new lead partner for the next eight years commencing from January 1. The two will work across the sport from participation at grassroots level and major organised cycling events through to the highest level of performance with the Great Britain Cycling Team. “This is a huge moment for cycling in Great Britain,” British Cycling chief executive Ian Drake said. “Working together with HSBC UK, we will provide the encouragement and opportunities to make cycling the most popular activity and sport of choice in Great Britain.”