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Good morning to everyone but especially to...
NOVAK DJOKOVIC AND IGA SWIATEK...
Get a lead and he'll hunt you down. Fall behind and he'll give you no hope. Play him close and he'll crush you in a tiebreaker. Novak Djokovic claimed his 23rd career Grand Slam title, beating Casper Ruud 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-5 to win the French Open.
- Ruud actually jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set, but Djokovic quickly got back on serve and then dominated the tiebreaker. In his career, Djokovic is 308-162 in tiebreakers, best all-time, and he went 6-0 in tiebreakers at this French Open.
- After that, it was somewhat straightforward for the Serbian superstar, who passed Rafael Nadal for most Slams in men's history.
- Djokovic also became the only man to win each Grand Slam at least three times.
- Djokovic will return to No. 1 in the ATP rankings, taking the throne from Carlos Alcaraz, who Djokovic beat in the semifinals.
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On the women's side, world No. 1 Iga Swiatek was rolling, fell apart and then came roaring back to beat Karolina Muchova, 6-2, 6-7, 6-4, for her third French Open title (second consecutive) and fourth Grand Slam.
- Swiatek, 22, cruised in the first set, becoming the first woman in the Open Era to win her first seven career sets in slam finals.
- After going up 3-0 in the second, Swiatek struggled and grew visibly frustrated, and Muchova capitalized. It was the only set Swiatek lost in the tournament.
- Muchova carried momentum into the third set, taking the first two games and, later up 4-2, looking like she might pull off the upset. But Swiatek battled back -- even with her serve struggling -- and won four straight games to defend her title at Roland Garros.
... AND ALSO A GOOD MORNING TO MANCHESTER CITY
Manchester City had seen this movie before. Missed opportunities. Another heartbreaking injury to a star. Another tight match with the opponent threatening.
Then a few bounces went their way, and, suddenly, City had done it: The Citizens are champions of Europe -- and winners of the treble -- after beating Inter Milan, 1-0, in the Champions League final.
- The biggest storyline of a quiet first half was City star Kevin de Bruyne leaving with a hamstring injury. de Bruyne later revealed he had been playing with a hamstring tear for two months. In the moment, though, City fans must have been experiencing déjà vu: He left the 2021 final loss to Chelsea early as well.
- Rodri finally broke the deadlock in the 68th minute, calmly tucking one into the net after a deflection.
- Inter had plenty of chances: Federico Dimarco's header hit the crossbar, Romelu Lukaku failed to score an open-net header, and City keeper Ederson made several big saves, earning a 9/10 in Roger Gonzalez's player ratings.
City joined 1998-99 Manchester United as the only English sides to win the treble, having also won the Premier League and the FA Cup. In a season where so much came easily, City winning a game that was full of struggles was incredibly impressive, writes our James Benge.
- Benge: "On the biggest stage, the team with the most money, the best squad and the greatest coach of his generation can freeze under the lights, run into an opponent that tests them physically and tactically and lose their best player in the first half. To add to all that, they can keep persevering with a tactical plan that really does not seem to bring out the best in them. All those game-wrecking events can transpire ... and City still win."
Honorable mentions
- The Raptors hired Darko Rajakovic as head coach.
- Amanda Nunes called it a career after beating Irene Aldana to retain her UFC women's bantamweight title.
- Nick Taylor drained a 72-foot eagle putt(!!!) on the fourth playoff hole to beat Tommy Fleetwood and win the RBC Canadian Open. He's the first Canadian to win the event since 1954.
- The Storm retired Sue Bird's jersey. The Lynx did the same for Sylvia Fowles.
- Arcangelo won the Belmont Stakes.
- Kansas State got another big-time transfer in former Creighton standout Arthur Kaluma.
- Martin Truex Jr. won the Toyota/Save Mart 350.
Not so honorable mentions
- Heat mascot Burnie got knocked out and sent to the emergency room by Conor McGregor -- but earned praise from Erik Spoelstra.
- Adam Hadwin got decked celebrating Taylor's RBC Canadian Open win.
Nuggets look to win first NBA championship tonight 🏀
The Nuggets' stars gave them the series lead. Their role players took them to within one game of their first title. Thanks to a 27-point explosion from Aaron Gordon and clutch shots from Bruce Brown, Denver downed Miami, 108-95, on Friday, to go up 3-1 in the NBA Finals.
The Nuggets can claim their first title tonight in the friendly confines of Ball Arena, where they're 9-1 this postseason. Do they get it done in front of their home crowd? Here's our Jasmyn Wimbish with her pick:
- Wimbish: "There's a reason the betting line for Game 5 heavily favors Denver, and it's not just because they've essentially cruised to wins in back-to-back games. ... The raucous environment and altitude certainly play a part, and while Miami managed to steal a win earlier in this series in Denver, I suspect the Nuggets will be extra motivated to close this series out at home. Pick: Nuggets -9"
You can see our full preview here.
MLB Power Rankings and weekend recap: Rays hold strong ⚾
If anyone wants to start closing the gap between the Rays and the rest of the field -- either in the standings or in Matt Snyder's Power Rankings -- they're going to have to, well, actually beat the Rays. The Rangers, sitting second in both, were the latest team to try (and fail) as Tampa Bay took two of three at home against Texas.
The Rays have won eight of nine and are not only holding on to the top spot, but making that weekly appearance a nearly foregone conclusion, Matt writes:
- Snyder: "Here they go again. I'll admit I'm itching to move the Rays down and it's not anti-Rays or anything like that, but instead I just like a variety here in the top spot. The Rays simply aren't allowing it. They've won eight of nine and just took two of three from the second-best team."
Here's the full top five:
- 1. Rays (prev: 1)
- 2. Rangers (prev: 2)
- 3. Braves (prev: 7)
- 4. Orioles (prev: 4)
- 5. Diamondbacks (prev: 8)
Elsewhere around MLB...
- The Red Sox took two of three from the Yankees.
- This Gunnar Henderson home run went a long, long, LONG way.
- Andrew McCutchen reached 2,000 career hits.
- The Athletics have won five straight?!?!
- The Tigers still haven't won in June.
- Liam Hendriks (elbow) is on the IL.
Brittney Griner harassed at airport; WNBA players advocate for change 🏀
Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner and her teammates were harassed by a social media personality in Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on Saturday.
- After being detained in Russia for nine months for allegedly carrying a marijuana concentrate in her luggage, Griner returned to the United States earlier this year in a prisoner swap for Viktor Bout.
- The incident this weekend occurred while the team was waiting to get food. According to a WNBA statement, Griner has been cleared to fly charter for WNBA games. According to a report, however, the Mercury didn't approve charter flights for the entire season for Griner.
- WNBA teams cannot fly charter due to competitive balance rules, a controversial stance for years. The Liberty were fined $500,000 last year for chartering flights.
- According to a tweet from forward Brianna Turner, people were "following [the team] with cameras saying wild remarks," and she called the situation, "Excessive harassment." She later added, "We demand better."
Turner was not alone in that demand: Over the weekend, several players and the players association called on the WNBA to enhance player safety.
Bold predictions for rest of NFL offseason 🏈
For the last few weeks, some of the biggest NFL news has come from players not on a team: In late May, the Cardinals released DeAndre Hopkins, and last week, the Vikings did the same with Dalvin Cook.
Those are the two biggest names on the market right now, and our Tyler Sullivan made some bold predictions as to where they -- and other top names -- will play in 2023.
- Sullivan: "DeAndre Hopkins lands with Patriots -- The Patriots desperately need some top-tier talent at the wide receiver position, so Hopkins makes plenty of sense from a football standpoint. He also has familiarity with the club's offense under new offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien, who he played under when they were both with the Houston Texans. ... Hopkins certainly still has plenty left in the tank. Bill Belichick also has plenty of affinity for the player, saying 'he's every bit as good as anybody I've ever coached against' last season."
What we're watching Monday 📺
🏀 Heat at Nuggets, 8:30 p.m. on ABC
