[attach id=540685 size="medium"]Angelique Kerber[/attach]
Tennis: Angelique Kerber produced a polished display to claim her second straight win at the WTA Finals with a 6-4 6-2 victory over Simona Halep yesterday, the world number one virtually booking a spot in the semi-finals of the elite eight-woman event. Kerber, who beat Slovak Dominika Cibulkova in her first match on Sunday, was at her resilient best against Halep, standing firm when her opponent threatened and putting her foot on the accelerator when she sniffed an opportunity to pull away.
Formula One: Sunday’s US Formula One Grand Prix reversed a trend of declining audiences with its biggest crowd yet, according to organisers who said 269,889 attended over the three days at the Circuit of the Americas. The numbers were boosted by singer Taylor Swift holding her long-awaited first concert of the year on Saturday night after race qualifying, with some 80,000 watching. The race, now in its fifth edition, reported a three-day crowd of 224,011 last year with the previous record of 265,499 set on its debut in 2012. In 2013 and 2014 the official figures were 250,324 and 237,406 respectively.
Snooker: Ronnie O’Sullivan advanced into the last 16 of the International Championship in Daqing, China, yesterday with a 6-4 second-round victory over Kurt Maflin. O’Sullivan, who on Monday had suggested he was no longer good enough to compete with the international elite, found himself 4-3 down to Maflin before turning things around, finishing with a break of 101. Reigning champion John Higgins eased past Jak Jones 6-2 and world champion Mark Selby won by the same score against John Astley.
Rugby Union: Ireland coach Joe Schmidt has signed a two-year contract extension to stay on until the end of the 2019 World Cup, the Irish Rugby Football Union said. The New Zealander, who took over in 2013 after a spell at Irish province Leinster, led the country to back-to-back Six Nations titles in his first two years and reached the quarter-finals at last year’s World Cup. Ireland finished a disappointing third in this year’s Six Nations but won a test match for the first time in South Africa in a much improved tour in June.
Rugby League: Australian half-back Jarrod Sammut has joined London Broncos on a two-year deal. The 29-year-old former Penrith Panthers player has spent the last seven years in the English game, initially with Crusaders, and also played in Super League for Bradford and Wakefield before moving to Championship club Workington 18 months ago. Sammut, who played four matches on loan from Wakefield with the Broncos in 2015, said: “I’m really pleased to be returning to London. My time with the Broncos in 2015 was short and sweet but something I really enjoyed.”