Charles Barkley is displeased with the situation he and his ‘Inside the NBA’ teammates find themselves in: sweating whether or not the NBA will keep Warner Bros. Discover, the parent company of TNT, as a partner in its down-to-the-wire media rights negotiations.

‘Morale sucks, plain and simple,’ Barkley said Thursday on the ‘Dan Patrick Show.’

Barkley took aim at WBD CEO David Zaslav for saying the company didn’t need the NBA at an investing conference two years ago. Barkley said he doesn’t know for sure that the comment upset NBA commissioner Adam Silver, but it definitely didn’t help negotiations.

‘These people I work with, they screwed this thing up, clearly,’ Barkley said. ‘We don’t have zero idea what’s going to happen. I don’t feel good, I’m not going to lie.’

Reports indicate TNT might be on the outs, with ESPN remaining, Amazon swooping in and NBC coming back to the NBA.

Barkley was confused by TNT Sports adding College Football Playoff games in a licensing deal with ESPN announced Wednesday. It signaled to him that they were spending on other sports because the company won’t have to commit finances to the NBA.

‘I just feel so bad for the people I work with, Dan,’ Barkley said. ‘These people have families. I just really feel bad for them right now.’

‘Inside the NBA’ won its fourth Sports Emmy award for ‘Best Studio Show: Limited’ this week. The program is hosted by Ernie Johnson, and Barkley is joined on the desk by Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith.

Barkley said he’s spoken to the crew about signing them to his production company, Fine Line Productions, and then selling the show to one of the remaining rightsholders.

‘We’re just sitting back waiting on these people to figure out what they’re going to do,’ Barkley said. ‘My two favorite wines are Inglenook and Opus and these clowns I work for, they’ve turned us into Ripple and Boone’s Farm and Thunderbird.’

The show would continue for another year on TNT even if WBD lost out on the NBA. The league’s new media deal wouldn’t start until the 2025-26 season begins.

At one point, Patrick opted for an observation rather than a question: ‘You’re actually angry.’

‘I am,’ Barkley replied.

This holiday weekend always holds a special place for lacrosse fans as the sport gets its time in the spotlight. The women take the stage first, with Friday’s semifinals back in Cary, North Carolina.

The field features one of the sport’s most accomplished programs looking to defend its title and add to its trophy case, but a first- or second-time champion could also emerge. The top three seeds are there, along with an unseeded squad that perhaps shouldn’t have been. Here’s a quick look at the matchups, with opening draw times and TV information. Enjoy the show and don’t look away, as every team here can make things happen in a hurry.

POSTSEASON LINEUP: NCAA women’s lacrosse tournament schedule/results

No. 1 Northwestern (17-2) vs. Florida (20-2)

Time/TV: 3 p.m. ET, ESPNU

How they got here: Northwestern – Beat Denver 17-4, Penn 20-7; Florida – Beat North Carolina 17-8, Virginia 13-8, Maryland 15-9.

National championships: Northwestern, eight (last 2023), Florida, none.

Players to watch: Northwestern – A Madison Taylor (75 G, 32 A); A Izzy Scane (79 G, 20 A); A Erin Coykendall (41 G, 55 A). Florida – A Maggi Hall (60 G, 54 A); A Danielle Pavinelli (54 G, 39 A); A Ashley Gonzalez (34 G, 33 A).

Quick sticks: These programs were once league rivals in the erstwhile American Lacrosse Conference, though they haven’t met since 2014. The Wildcats, of course, now compete in the Big Ten, while the Gators play in the American Athletic Conference, which they have won every year since they joined in 2019. … Florida enters on a 20-game winning streak after an 0-2 start to the campaign. This is the Gators’ first semifinal appearance since 2012, which was only the program’s third season. Amanda O’Leary, a former two-sport standout at Temple, has helmed the program since its inception. … The contest pairs the nation’s two highest scoring teams, both averaging over 17 goals a game. … Northwestern’s deep attack unit also includes Dylan Amonte, niece of coach Kelly Amonte Hiller and daughter of U.S. hockey hall of fame inductee Tony Amonte.

No. 2 Boston College (18-3) vs. No. 3 Syracuse (16-5)

Time/TV: 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPNU

How they got here: Boston College – Beat Princeton 21-16, Michigan 14-9; Syracuse – Beat Stony Brook 15-10, Yale 19-9.

National championships: Boston College, one (2021); Syracuse, none.

Players to watch: Boston College – A Rachel Clark (71 G, 18 A); A Mckenna Davis (23 G, 64 A); A Emma LoPinto (54 G, 27 A). Syracuse – A Emma Tyrrell (70 G, 21 A); A Olivia Adamson (57 G, 24 A); A Emma Ward (42 G, 37 A).

Quick sticks: Syracuse coach Kayla Treanor and the Orange fans can be forgiven if they’re a little tired of running into BC at this phase of the season. The Eagles upended the Orange in last year’s semifinal round, and also defeated Syracuse in the 2021 championship game. … The two teams have also met twice this year already, with the Eagles taking both those encounters. BC won the regular-season meeting in an 11-10 squeaker and prevailed 15-8 in the ACC tournament. … While the rules of the women’s game tend to favor offenses, BC’s Sydney Scales is a major difference maker on the defensive end, averaging over two caused turnovers a game while often marking the opposing team’s top attacker.

Championship game: Sunday, noon ET, ESPN

Championship weekend in men’s lacrosse will once again bring a sizeable crowd to Philadelphia for the sport’s showcase event, with the final four teams set to square off at Lincoln Financial Field.

The teams here feature a little of everything, from flashy attackmen and fearsome face-off takers to lockdown defensemen and accomplished goalkeepers. What we won’t see this year, however, is a first-time champion. The Philly quartet includes all past winners, including the last three NCAA tournament champions. We might, however, see a first-year head coach lift the trophy.

More on that below. Here’s what you need to know to watch the games, beginning with Saturday’s semifinal clashes, both of which will be matching former conference foes.

No. 1 Notre Dame (14-1) vs. No. 5 Denver (13-3)

Time/TV: Noon ET, ESPN2

How they got here: Notre Dame – Beat Albany 14-9, Georgetown 16-11; Denver – Beat Michigan 16-11, Syracuse 10-8.

National championships: Notre Dame, one (2023), Denver, one (2015).

Players to watch: Notre Dame – A Chris Kavanagh (36 G, 36 A); A Pat Kavanagh (28 G, 41 A); G Liam Entenmann (9.39 GAA, .551 Sv%). Denver – A J.J. Sillstrop (29 G, 17 A); M Michael Lampert (21 G, 23 A); G Malcolm Kleban (9.14 GAA, .510 Sv%).

Quick sticks: In the fledgling years of the sport’s expansion from beyond its eastern hotbeds, these programs met frequently as members of the Great Western Lacrosse League. Both schools can now be considered well-established programs as they renew acquaintances seeking their second title. … Notre Dame finally broke through for its first title on this same field a year ago, and would seem to be well positioned to make it two in succession. Since an early setback against Georgetown, the Fighting Irish haven’t lost again, including a dominant run through the ACC. … The long flight east will be nothing new for the Pioneers, accustomed to lengthy road trips as the sport’s western-most power. Denver is back in the semifinals just a year after legendary coach Bill Tierney retired and handed the reins over to long-time assistant Matt Brown. … The Fighting Irish have all-star talent at every position, but the Pioneers’ ability to gameplan on defense – a sign that Tierney’s fingerprint is still very much a part of the program – is often a great equalizer.

No. 6 Virginia (12-5) vs. No. 7 Maryland (10-5)

Time/TV: 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

How they got here: Virginia – Beat Saint Joseph’s 17-11, Johns Hopkins 11-10 (2OT); Maryland – Beat Princeton 16-8, Duke 14-11.

National championships: Virginia, seven (last 2021); Maryland, four (last 2022).

Players to watch: Virginia – A Connor Shellenberger (31 G, 51 A); A Payton Cormier (64 G, 12 A); A McCabe Millon (39 G, 25 A). Maryland – FO Luke Wierman (.620 FO%, 4 G, 5 A); D Ajax Zappitello (2 G, 31 ground balls, 23 caused turnovers); G Logan McNaney (10.40 GAA, .508 Sv%).

Quick sticks: Though these flagship institutions from neighboring states are no longer ACC foes, they remain archrivals who continue to meet on an annual basis. The Cavaliers took this year’s encounter 14-10 back on March 16, but both teams have gone through hot and cold spells since, hence their relatively low seeds. That loss began a 3-4 stretch for the Terrapins, but UVa dropped its last four regular-season contests heading into the NCAA tournament. … This Maryland squad doesn’t have the high-octane attack that the 2022 title team featured, but the Terrapins’ specialists could have the edge at the face-off X and in the cage. … The matchup between Shellenberger and Zappitello, voted to numerous All-America teams at their respective positions, will garner much attention. It could be said that Zappitello got the better of it in the March meeting as Shellenberger managed just three points on two goals and an assist, but Griffin Schutz took up the slack from the Virginia midfield with four goals and two helpers. … The Cavaliers’ goalie situation is the other major topic of pregame conversation after Matt Nunes was pulled in favor of sophomore Kyle Morris in UVa’s quarterfinal comeback win. Coach Lars Tiffany said he’d make a determination this week in practice, but the starter might not be known until the team takes the field.

Championship game: Monday, 1 p.m. ET, ESPN

There’s a reason Emma Hayes was worth the wait for the U.S. women’s team.

That she’s a proven winner is obvious. Six months after her hiring was announced, Hayes began her new job this week after winning a fifth consecutive Super League title, and seventh in 12 years, with Chelsea on Saturday. She’s a masterful tactician (see previous sentence) and, given the Who’s Who of players who’ve been at Chelsea, knows how to manage personalities and get the best out of all of them.

But as Hayes made the rounds of media in New York on Thursday, what stood out most was her confidence and unflinching honesty. She knows she’s the best at what she does and isn’t afraid to own that.

Fans of the USWNT will recognize the trait because it’s what the team had for so long — and what it’s been sorely missing since the 2019 World Cup.

“If we can perform at our best level, then we have a chance of doing things. But we’ve got work to do,” Hayes said in a meeting with reporters. “The realities are, the world game is where it is and the rest of the world do not fear the USA in the way that they once did. And that’s valid. I think that’s valid.

“It’s our job to grasp quite quickly what we need to do to get close again to those levels.”

Yes, the U.S. women are four-time world champions and spent much of the last three decades as the world’s undisputed No. 1 team. But if we’re all being honest, they haven’t looked like themselves since they left France in 2019 soaked in champagne and confetti stuck to their skin.

They used to walk onto the field with a swagger that could be mistaken for arrogance if they didn’t have the results to back it up. They had more talent and depth than anyone else, and, if they lost, it was going to be because they beat themselves. They knew they were the team everyone was chasing and they reveled in that superiority.

Then the world caught up. It’s what the USWNT had worked for all these years; they saw what soccer did for them and how they helped change society’s perceptions of women, and they wanted that for the rest of the world.

But when it happened, both slowly and all at once, the Americans didn’t know what to do. They looked sluggish and overmatched at the Tokyo Olympics and again at last summer’s World Cup, their once-ferocious speed no longer a decisive advantage over teams that were more technically sound.

Being caught between generations didn’t help, and neither did adjusting to a new coach after eight years with Jill Ellis. But those were only contributing factors. The harsh truth was the Americans needed an overhaul — of tactics, of personnel and of attitude — if they were going to keep pace.

And Hayes is the person to do it.

While everyone on the USWNT knows who Hayes is, few actually know her. Catarina Macario and Mia Fishel, who is out of the running for the Olympic team after tearing her ACL in February, are the only Chelsea players currently in the U.S. player pool, though Crystal Dunn played for Hayes seven years ago. Hayes has allegiances to no one and no one thing.

Take Dunn as an example. Though she began her career at forward and is a midfielder for Gotham in the NWSL, she has been the USWNT’s left back for almost 10 years now. When Hayes announced her first roster as head coach Tuesday, however, Dunn was listed as a forward.

“I know what she can do at left back. I don’t need to see that at this camp,” Hayes said. “I want to see some different things from her.”

Of course Hayes has been assessing everyone in the player pool — she talked of watching games and clips of individual players late into the night in England over these past six months — and will eventually settle on a rotation and a tactical style. But there is something to be said for players having to prove themselves and not being able to take roster spots, starting jobs or even positions for granted. Hayes will make decisions based on what is best for the team in the moment, not because it’s what’s always been done.

That’s in the short term. Long term, the development system in the United States, or such as it can be when it’s largely pay-to-play at the youth level, is in desperate need of an overhaul. The NWSL needs to continue to elevate its level of play and profile, and the minor-league USL has an important role, too.

Stakeholders might balk at what Hayes recommends, but it’s going to be hard to argue with her given her résumé and her first-hand experience with a system that has proven its worth in Europe.

“I always said on sideline, ‘What got you here won’t get you there,’” Hayes said. “It’s an opportunity now to evolve.”

Similarities to Dawn Staley

As Hayes spoke, the parallels with another championship coach, one who speaks plainly and gets the most out of her players, was striking. No surprise, Hayes said. She and South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley, who last month won her second national championship in three years, are part of the same Nike coaches group and have gotten to be friends.

“Dawn and I are two of a kind,” Hayes said. “What an incredible coach she is.”

The same can be, and has been, said about Hayes. The USWNT needs a reboot, and she’s the perfect person to do it.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.

Messi, Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets did not travel with Inter Miami on its cross-continent flight Thursday from South Florida to Vancouver. 

Inter Miami is scheduled to play Vancouver Whitecaps FC Saturday night, with kickoff slated for 10:30 p.m. ET. 

Messi and his former Barcelona teammates are not injured. With two home games next week and at least 12 hours of expected travel to and from Vancouver, club officials opted to rest the trio, a person with knowledge of the decision told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

Vancouver Whitecaps FC, which said it had expected a club record crowd Saturday, also released a statement Thursday night: 

“While we haven’t received an official update on the availability of Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, and Sergio Busquets for this weekend, we understand they will not make this trip. Unfortunately, we have no control over who plays for our opponent, and it was important for us to communicate to our fans as soon as possible,“ Whitecaps FC CEO Axel Schuster said in a statement. 

“We always want our best players going up against our opponent’s best players, and facing players of the highest pedigree was especially exciting for our team. We know that there will also be a lot of disappointed fans. We remain committed to making this a special experience for everyone. It is still going to be an incredible atmosphere and celebration of soccer for our city. We have amazing fans, we have a good team, and Saturday’s match is a very important home game for us.’

All in-stadium food and beverages will be discounted 50%, and all kids will be provided one free kids meal combo for the game, Vancouver said.

Messi played the entire match last Saturday at home vs. D.C. United, but did appear to favor his left leg during a Tuesday night practice open to media and season-ticket holders.

Messi initially suffered a left leg injury in Montreal on May 11. He appeared to hyperextend his leg during a collision with a Montreal player. Inter Miami identified the injury as a knock or a blow, and not a muscular or structural injury, the week following the injury.

Messi sat out of Inter Miami’s match on May 15 on the road against Orlando City as a precaution.

After the Vancouver match, Inter Miami will host Atlanta United on May 29 and St. Louis City SC on June 1 — the last two matches Messi will play before the FIFA international window begins next month.

Messi will also participate in two Argentina friendlies before Copa America begins. He will captain Argentina against Ecuador at Chicago’s Solider Field on June 9. Five days later, Messi and Argentina will face Guatemala at Commanders Field in Landover, Maryland.

Messi and Argentina will take center stage in the Copa America opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on June 20.

Argentina is the defending World Cup and Copa America champions, and the tournament could be Messi’s last for his country.

Japanese competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi, the six-time Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest champion, has announced his retirement from the sport due to rising health concerns.

‘I’ve decided to retire from competitive eating. It’s all I’ve done for the last 20 years,’ Kobayashi, 46, announced in Netflix’s ‘Hack Your Health – The Secrets of Your Gut,’ a documentary film that explores how food, the digestive system and gut health relates to overall well-being.

Kobayashi said decades of overeating for sport has left him with no appetite or no sensation of fullness, which his wife Maggie James said has caused Kobayashi to go days without eating anything at all.

James said her husband feels his body is ‘broken.’

‘I hear people say they’re hungry, and they look very happy after they’ve eaten. I’m jealous of those people because I no longer feel hunger,’ Kobayashi said in the documentary. ‘I hope to live a long and healthy life.’

Takeru Kobayashi: ‘I’ve eaten 10,000 hot dogs’ in career

Kobayashi jumpstarted his career in 2000 during an appearance on the Japanese variety show ‘TV Champion,’ where he consumed 16 bowls of ramen in one hour. He set a world record at the 2001 Nathan’s Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest, held annually on July 4, by eating 50 hot dogs in 12 minutes. (The previous record at the time was 25⅛ hot dogs). He won the Mustard Yellow Belt six consecutive years from 2001 to 2006.

‘I’m sure that I’ve eaten 10,000 hot dogs since the beginning of my career,’ Kobayashi said in the film.

Kobayashi does not just eat hot dogs. He’s held world records over his career with different foods, ranging from Buffalo wings, lobster rolls and cow brains to hamburgers, tacos and pizza. The list goes on. 

‘I am Japanese but I’ve eaten like an American. I think that’s what damaged my body,’ he said. ‘I overeat because I’m a competitive eater. … When you eat too much, you don’t savor the taste or fully enjoy the smell of the food. You ignore you body’s signals, like fullness.’

In order to prepare for competitions, Kobayashi said he would spend months expanding his stomach with food.

‘You have to gradually build up your gut by eating larger and larger amounts of food, and then be sure to work it all off so body fat doesn’t put a squeeze on the expansion of your stomach in competition. I start my regimen about two months before a big competition,’ he said in 2004.

Kobayashi’s brain affected by competitive eating

Kobayashi underwent multiple tests during the documentary to diagnose his lack of appetite and reduced sense of smell. Doctors and scientists determined that Kobayashi’s chronic overeating has affected his nervous system and that his brain is still trained to think he’s competing or eating highly processed foods, despite stepping away from competition.

‘I used to crave cakes and curries when I was little. I don’t feel that joy about eating anymore,’ he said. ‘It’s scary to think that the brain and gut are so closely related. It makes me want to be more careful with what I eat.’

Although Kobayashi won’t be competing at Coney Island on the Fourth of July anymore, he’s not giving up hot dogs completely. Kobayashi said he’s on a mission to ‘create a healthier hot dog’ that features traditional Japanese ingredients.

‘What’s influenced me more than competitive eating is the hot dog,’ he said. ‘I am worried about what my next step will bring, but I am also excited about my future.’

The newest star of the WNBA is ready for her city of angels debut.

Caitlin Clark will play her first game in Los Angeles when the Indiana Fever face off against another rookie sensation in Cameron Brink and the Los Angeles Sparks in what will be a battle between the top two picks in the 2024 WNBA Draft. While Los Angeles picked up its first win of the season on Tuesday, the Fever are still searching for their first win, and hope to get in Tinseltown.

The Fever are in the middle of a three-game West Coast trip that began with a loss against the Seattle Storm on Wednesday. The team will conclude the trip against the two-time defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces on Saturday.

Here’s what to know for the Fever vs. Sparks matchup on Friday night:

When is Indiana Fever vs. Los Angeles Sparks?

Date: Friday, May 24
Start time: 10 p.m. ET

Fever vs. Sparks will tip off on Friday at 10 p.m. ET from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

How to watch Caitlin Clark and the Fever vs. Sparks

Broadcast/Live stream: ION

Friday’s game will be part of the WNBA on ION Friday night showcase. The game will be available nationwide on most cable and streaming services. Find what channel ION is in your area and on your cable or streaming service.

Sparks move game vs. Caitlin Clark, Fever

Several WNBA teams have made adjustments to their contests against the Fever due to the hype surrounding Caitlin Clark, and the Sparks are one of the latest teams to do so.

Friday’s game was originally scheduled to take place at Long Beach State’s Walter Pyramid due to construction at its home arena, Crypto.com Arena. Walter Pyramid has a 4,000-seat capacity compared to the 19,000 at Crypto.com Arena, meaning a smaller crowd and more expensive tickets on the resale market to see the matchup.

But on May 7, the Sparks announced the game against the Fever would be moved back to their home arena, allowing ‘the ability to have more fans in the stands,’ Sparks president Christine Monjer said in a statement.

Caitlin Clark stats last game

Indiana dropped to 0-5 on the season after it lost to the Seattle Storm in another close defeat. Despite holding a two-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, the Fever lost 85-83.

In the loss, Clark had a team-high 21 points, seven assists and seven rebounds. On the season, Clark is averaging 17.8 points (1st among rookies), 5.8 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game. She is also shooting 32.6% from 3-point land.

The next, and perhaps final, stop on Rafael Nadal’s unofficial retirement tour has reaches its apex next week at the French Open, the Grand Slam where he’s won 14 titles and owns an unthinkable 112-3 overall record.  

But this is a different Nadal than the one who has shown up in Paris ready to destroy everything in his wake for nearly two decades. He’s days away from turning 38, ranked No. 276 in the world and hasn’t reached the semifinal of any tournament since Wimbledon in 2022. 

A lifetime of grinding for every point has left his body in what seems like a constant state of disrepair. When Nadal is healthy enough to play, he looks slow out of the corners and can’t get enough power on his serve to win easy points. 

And yet… it’s Nadal on clay. Nadal at Roland Garros. Nadal willing to leave it all out there for one more run at the most important tournament in his career. 

That possibility of capturing glory one last time, faint as it might be, made Nadal’s placement in the draw one of the more intriguing storylines of the tournament.

Thursday, we got the answer, and it wasn’t good news for Nadal fans. 

The random draw placed Nadal opposite No. 4 seed Alexander Zverev, who just won the Italian Open last week and is unquestionably one of the favorites to win the title. This matchup is stunning for Zverev as well: In the 2022 French semifinals, they were locked in an air-tight battle for more than three hours when Zverev suffered a devastating ankle injury that would require surgery and took him out of action for the rest of the year. Nadal went on to win his 22nd Grand Slam title. 

Despite everything Nadal has accomplished in Paris and his 7-3 head-to-head record against Zverev, he goes into this match as a huge underdog. If he loses, it will likely be his last time ever playing at Roland Garros, bringing an end to the most dominant run at a major tournament  in tennis history. And it may be the last time we ever see him in competition. 

Here’s everything you need to know about the French Open draw:

No clear favorite for men’s title 

This has been a strange year in men’s tennis. Beyond his mediocre results, No. 1 Novak Djokovic isn’t passing the eye test lately and has fired several longtime members of his coaching team since losing to Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semifinals. 

How do you know he’s searching for something? Djokovic is playing right now in a small tournament in Geneva, which is highly unusual preparation for him the week before a Grand Slam. Djokovic has been candid in interviews that motivation, after setting the men’s all-time record with his 24th Grand Slam last year, has been an issue. Can he turn things around in Paris? 

But Djokovic isn’t the only contender with question marks.

Carlos Alcaraz, who seemed poised to win everything last year after beating Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, is dealing with a forearm injury and hasn’t looked right when he’s been on the court in recent weeks. Sinner, unquestionably the best player in the world this year, hurt his hip in the gym during the Madrid tournament and pulled out of Rome in his home country. There were questions whether he would even be healthy enough to play in Paris. 

This may be an opportunity for someone like Zverev, Casper Ruud, Andrey Rublev or Stefanos Tsitsipas — all of whom have a good track record on clay — to win their first Grand Slam title. 

Iga Świątek looms over the women’s field

On the cusp of her 23rd birthday, Świątek enters as the heavy favorite to win her fourth French Open title. Though some players have been able to chip away a little bit at her dominance on other surfaces, she’s still almost unbeatable on clay and comes into Roland Garros off winning titles in Madrid and Rome − beating No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the final both times.

Another Świątek-Sabalenka finał meeting in Paris seems likely. They have separated from the field this year, with Elena Rybakina able to sometimes make it a trio at the top when she’s healthy. 

Having said that, Świątek’s path to the final looks like a pretty tough one on paper. Former No. 1 Naomi Osaka, who has been steadily improving since her return to the tour after childbirth, is a possible opponent in the second round. Former French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova looms as a possible fourth-round opponent. And in the quarterfinals, Świątek could face either American Danielle Collins (32-9 this year with two titles) or reigning Wimbledon champ and former French finalist Marketa Vondrousova. 

If Świątek can get it done once again in Paris, Chris Evert’s record of seven women’s titles will officially be in jeopardy. 

Is Coco Gauff ascending or leveling off?

It’s been difficult to assess where last year’s US Open champion stacks up this year. Gauff is ranked No. 3, but she hasn’t reached a final since opening the season with a win in a warm-up tournament for the Australian Open. Her forehand is clearly more consistent than it was last year, but her serve has fallen apart under pressure lately. Gauff isn’t playing her best tennis, but she’s still putting up a lot of good results including a semifinal last week in Rome. 

Though Gauff loves the red clay and made the French final in 2022, Swiatek is her biggest impediment to winning a second major. 

After losing to her once again in Rome, Gauff is now just 1-10 against Swiatek and will likely have to face her again in the semifinals here. Having said that, Gauff got a decent draw and should be able to cruise through the first three rounds before her first big challenge against No. 13 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia if the seeds advance. 

Gauff’s projected quarterfinal opponent would either be Ons Jabeur, who hasn’t been in good form this year, or the hot-and-cold Jelena Ostapenko. Overall, Gauff looks like a good bet to reach the semifinals just as she did in Australia. But can she turn around the rivalry with Swiatek?

Other storylines worth watching 

With so many questions around Djokovic, Nadal, Alcaraz and Sinner, this is one of the most wide-open Grand Slams we’ve seen in years. Are there any American men capable of taking advantage? 

Taylor Fritz has posted some good clay results this season, reaching the final in Munich, the semis in Madrid and the quarters in Rome. He’ll have a challenge right off the bat with Federico Coria, an Argentinian who plays well on clay. 

Tommy Paul, who won the junior French Open in 2015, is dangerous because of how much this surface highlights his movement and athletic ability. He just reached the semis in Rome and got a pretty favorable path to the round of 16, where he’d be projected to play Djokovic. Unless Djokovic significantly improves his recent form, Paul would have a real shot to win that match. 

This is going to be a big year for retirements in tennis, and two great champions likely in their final season − Stan Wawrinka and Andy Murray − will meet in the first round. Murray is a former French finalist, while Wawrinka managed to beat Djokovic for the title in 2015. Alizé Cornet, one of the more popular French players, will be a sentimental favorite after announcing that Roland Garros would be her final tournament. She’ll face No. 7 seed Qinwen Zheng in the first round. 

Videos have been released of the arrest of No. 1 world-ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler.

Louisville Metro Police Department held a news conference Thursday, during which official spokespersons said charges against the golfer stemming from a May 18 arrest would not be dropped. However, videos of the incident were released later that day.

While no bodycam footage of the incident and subsequent arrest exists, the LMPD released both pole camera and dash cam footage of the arrest Thursday.

While the camera angles don’t have a particularly full view of the incident, both videos shine a little more light on the happenings.

The pole cam video shows Scheffler making a left-hand turn down a road, when a yellow-vested police officer chases and stops his vehicle. It’s unclear what’s said from the officer to Scheffler, but the golfer exits his car and is placed under arrest roughly 30 seconds after his vehicle is stopped.

Below is the pole video released of the incident (Scheffler’s car can be seen being stopped left of center in the video):

The first video, a nearly hourlong dash cam video, shows an alternate angle of the golfer being stopped and subsequently arrested and placed into a police vehicle. The incident can be seen beginning at 22:46 in the following video.

In both videos, Scheffler’s vehicle is obscured by buses along the road.

LMPD spokespersons said detective Bryan Gillis, the officer who arrested and filed an incident report on Scheffler, received internal ‘corrective action’ for his failure to activate his bodycam, as is department policy.