Todays Sporting News – 8 September 2025

• England managed to pull off the impossible. They’ve gotten out of a home series loss looking pretty good. That’s what tends to happen when you beat a premier white ball side like South Africa by the largest ever margin in an ODI. ENG beat SA by 342 runs – the largest ever margin in an ODI.
• Womens RWC 2025 – Quarter-final 1: New Zealand v South Africa: New Zealand capped off an unbeaten campaign in Pool C with a 40-0 victory over Ireland in Brighton. Played in front of a packed out 30,017 crowd at Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium, the win confirmed New Zealand top of the pool and they will play South Africa, who finish runners-up in Pool D after suffering their first loss of the tournament, going down 57-10 against France in front of 13,268 fans in Northampton. Quarter-final 1 will be played at Exeter’s Sandy Park at 13:00 on Saturday, 13 September.
• Womens RWC 2025 – Quarter-final 2: Canada v Australia: Canada finished top in Pool B by beating Scotland and Australia finished runners-up in Pool A after their 47-7 loss to England. Quarter-final 2 will be played at 16:00 on Saturday, 13 September as Bristol’s Ashton Gate stages its first match of Women’s RWC 2025.
• Womens RWC 2025 – Quarter-final 3: France v Ireland: With a final pool win against South Africa to follow earlier victories against Italy and Brazil, France top pool D. They will play Pool C runners-up Ireland, who finished their Pool C campaign with a 40-0 loss to defending champions New Zealand in Brighton. Quarter-final 3 will be played at 13:00 on Sunday, 14 September at Exeter’s Sandy Park.
• Womens RWC 2025 – Quarter-final 4: England v Scotland: By beating Australia 47-7 in front of a sell-out crowd at Brighton & Hove Albion Stadium, England finished top of Pool A and will take on Pool B runners-up Scotland. The Scots finished second in Pool B after their hard-fought 40-19 loss to world number 2 side Canada. Quarter-final 4 will be played at Bristol’s Ashton Gate at 16:00 on Sunday, 14 September.
• The BCCI has posted another insane set of financial figures; they had ~$2.35 billion in the bank at the end of the last financial year!
• Javed Farooqui reports that the increased tax on IPL tickets could adversely affect the smaller teams’ ability to sell them, while My11 Circle has pulled out of their ~$71 million IPL sponsorship after the fantasy gaming ban in India.
• USA Cricket has un-terminated their contract with ACE (the organisation that runs their T20Is and T20 leagues), but no one has said anything publicly yet.
• Donald Trump appeared at the US Open men’s final on Sunday to a mix of cheers and jeers. The stadium was relatively empty, as enhanced security checks delayed spectators, along with the match start time. Crowd audio was intentionally muted on televised broadcasts
• Carlos Alcaraz bested Jannik Sinner to clinch the US Open title with a 6-2 3-6 6-1 6-4 win. Alcaraz is now the second-youngest man to win six majors (after Björn Borg).
• Joe Root and Jacob Bethell scored centuries and fast bowler Jofra Archer took 4-18 as England demolished South Africa by a world record 342 runs in the third ODI in Southampton on Sunday.
• Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the fastest Formula One race in history on Sunday to complete an Italian double, while McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished second and third.
• Tennis – Carlos Alcaraz is the new world No 1 after winning the US Open final 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 against Jannik Sinner. On Saturday, Aryna Sabalenka defeated Amanda Anisimova to retain the women’s title.
• Formula One – Max Verstappen won the Italian Grand Prix ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri who were, again, embroiled in controversy as their McLaren team ordered Piastri to hand Norris back second place with four laps to go.
• Cricket – England scored a remarkable, record-breaking win over South Africa in the third one-day international – sealing victory by 342 runs, the largest margin in the history of the format.
• At 102, Kokichi Akuzawa struggled midway through his climb up Mount Fuji and considered turning back. But he persevered, reaching the summit to become the oldest person ever to scale Japan’s tallest peak.
• Salah-inspired Egypt can seal World Cup slot by beating Burkina Faso: Liverpool star Mohamed Salah could this week become the second African football icon after Achraf Hakimi to ensure his presence at the 2026 World Cup in North America. Salah will captain Egypt in Burkina Faso in a top-of-the-table African zone group A.
• Do-or-die affair for both Bafana and Super Eagles: Nigeria sit six points behind South Africa, but if there is to be a sanction for Bafana Bafana in the Tebeho Mokoena affair, then the difference is only three points. That makes Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier in Bloemfontein a do-or-die affair for both.
• Sinner and Alcaraz set for gripping third act in US Open final: Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the world’s undisputed top two players, will square off in a third straight Grand Slam final on Sunday at the US Open with President Donald Trump in attendance.
• Anisimova laments ‘lack of fight’ in US Open final loss: Amanda Anisimova felt she didn’t “fight hard enough” in her US Open final loss to Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday and admitted to suffering a recurrence of nerves in her second Grand Slam final.
• Italian GP: Verstappen on pole with Hamilton making Ferrari Monza debut: Italian Grand Prix race start at 14:00 BST · Verstappen on pole, Norris second with Piastri third · Leclerc fourth, Russell fifth with Hamilton 10th because of grid penalty · Piastri leads Norris by 34 points in drivers’ championship.
• McIlroy in hunt for first win since Masters at Irish Open: Rory McIlroy remained in contention for his first tournament triumph since the US Masters after a bogey-free 68 on Saturday left him four shots off the lead heading into the final round of the Irish Open. McIlroy, who completed a career Grand Slam of …
• How Verstappen surpassed fastest F1 cars in history: Italian Grand Prix. Venue: Monza Date: 7 September Race start: 14:00 BST on Sunday. Coverage: Live commentary of race on BBC Radio 5 Live; live text updates on BBC Sport website and app. The lap with which Max Verstappen set a new all-time Formula 1 …
• Alcaraz & Sinner set for Grand Slam trilogy in New York: On Sunday, the pair return to Arthur Ashe Stadium to contest this year’s US Open final – the third successive Grand Slam showpiece between them. “I feel like our rivalry started here playing an amazing match …
• Piastri told to let Norris past as Verstappen wins: McLaren told Oscar Piastri to let Lando Norris past in a team orders controversy which overshadowed Max Verstappen’s Italian Grand Prix victory. They ordered Piastri to cede second place to team-mate Norris after a slow pit stop dropped the Briton …
• F1 live Italian Grand Prix: Oscar Piastri starts third behind Max Verstappen and Lando Norris at Monza: Piastri holds a 34-point lead in the drivers’ championship over Norris heading into tonight’s race at Monza.
• Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy has now won 2 Irish Open titles. Nine years after his first Irish Open title, the world number two golfer outplayed Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren in a playoff to claim his second. It adds to a remarkable year for McIlroy, who has won four titles, including the Masters.
• The Wallabies continued their impressive run in The Rugby Championship on Saturday with a 28-24 victory over Argentina in Townsville. After trailing 21-7 at halftime, the Wallabies worked themselves back into the game and were able draw level with ten minutes remaining.
• Australian cyclist Jay Vine was denied a historic third stage win at the Vuelta a España on Stage 15, but he held on to the King of the Mountains (polka-dot) jersey.
• NRL finals: Friday night saw the Sydney Roosters secure the final place in the top eight with a dominant 36-6 win over the South Sydney Rabbitohs. They will play the Sharks (5th) in an elimination final while the other elimination final will be contested between the NZ Warriors (6th) and Penrith Panthers (7th). In the qualifying finals between the top four teams in the competition, the Melbourne Storm (2nd) will host the Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs (3rd) and the Canberra Raiders (1st) will face the Brisbane Broncos (4th). Meanwhile, the Newcastle Knights take home the wooden spoon for the fourth time in 11 seasons after they were beaten 66-10 by the Eels yesterday.
• In their first ever AFL finals appearance, the Gold Coast Suns scraped past the Fremantle Dockers by one point (80-79) to keep their hopes of an AFL premiership alive and end Fremantle’s season.
• The Wallaroos have secured a place in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals, despite a heavy 47-7 loss to England in Brighton.
• The singles finals at the U.S. Open saw Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz take home the coveted women’s and men’s titles.
• Carmelo Anthony, Sue Bird, and Dwight Howard headline 2025 class of inductees into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
• Davey Johnson, four-time MLB All-Star and manager of 1986 World Series-winning New York Mets, dies at age 82.
• Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka tops American Amanda Anisimova to win her second straight US Open.
• Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz beats Italy’s Jannik Sinner to win his second US Open and sixth career Grand Slam title.
• South Africa have been fined five per cent of their match fee for maintaining a slow over-rate in the third ODI against England in Southampton on Sunday.
• The independent FPRC has proposed a one match suspension for Taleni Sua (Samoa), noting that both of the yellow cards were for foul play offences. The player has accepted the sanction and will therefore miss Samoa’s match against USA on 14 September in the Asahi Super Dry Pacific Nations Cup 5th place play-off.
• The last round of league matches delivered victories for the Lions, Vodacom Bulls, Hollywoodbets Sharks XV and a first triumph for DHL Western Province, while there was heartache for the Airlink Pumas, who just missed out on a semi-final berth.
• The Sharks XV beat the Pumas by 19-13 in a tense affair in Durban on Friday evening for their third win of the campaign, while WP won their Western Cape derby 40-22 over Boland in Cape Town – their first victory of the season.
• Up on the Highveld, the Lions roared to a 37-7 triumph over Griquas in Joburg and in the final encounter on Saturday, the Bulls finished their campaign with a hard-fought 35-31 win over the Cheetahs in Pretoria.
• The last round of league action kicked off on Friday evening in Durban, where the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV clinched a nail-biting 19-13 victory over the Airlink Pumas. Unfortunately for the visitors, who had to wait until the final match almost 24 hours later, the single losing bonus point was not enough to make the playoffs.
• In Saturday’s first fixture, DHL Western Province finally broke their winless streak by clinching a bonus-point 40-22 triumph over the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers at the DHL Stadium.
• The Rams’ celebrated a 14-9 season-opening victory against the houston Texans before 71,346 at SoFi Stadium.
• The Dodgers beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-2.
• Jo Adell hit his 35th homer, Travis d’Arnaud hit a tiebreaking RBI double in the eighth inning, and the Angels avoided a three-game sweep with a 4-3 victory over the Athletics on Sunday.
• UCLA backup quarterback Pierce Clarkson was arrested Friday on unspecified felony charges and has been suspended indefinitely from the team pending the outcome of legal proceedings.
• Seven-hundred fifty-five yards: How much USC gained during its 59-20 victory over Georgia Southern on Saturday.
• Rose Lavelle scored her first goal of the season and Gotham FC defeated Angel City 3-1 on Sunday.
• The Sparks defeated the Dallas Wings 91-77 on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena to keep their faint playoff hopes alive heading into the final week of the regular season.
• Williard (Bill) Christine Jr., a multiple award-winning journalist who spent 23 years covering horse racing for the Los Angeles Times, died on Monday (Aug. 25) after being diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia three years ago. He died at his home in Hermosa Beach, with family by his side. He was 87.
• Rassie rings changes to Bok squad with new-look backline for crucial Wellington clash.
• A Western Cape school has been taken to task for imposing severe sanctions on two of its star rugby players found guilty of vaping, with the high court setting aside their punishment on the basis that it was humiliating instead of focused on reform.
• Betway SA20 and Absa have announced a new multi-year partnership, confirming the pan-African financial services group as the Official Banking Partner of the League.

TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY

1946 — Jack Kramer wins his first U.S. men’s singles titles with a 9-7, 6-3, 6-0 win over Tom Brown.

1957 — Althea Gibson becomes the first Black person to win the U.S. Open, beating Louise Brough, 6-3, 6-2. Australia’s Malcolm Anderson defeats countryman Ashley Cooper in three sets to become the first unseeded player to win the U.S. Open.

1968 — Virginia Wade wins the first official U.S. Open (formerly known as U.S National Championships). Wade upsets Billie Jean King, 6-4, 6-2 and Arthur Ashe beats Tom Okker, 14-12, 5-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 for the men’s title.

1969 — Australia Rod Laver wins the U.S. Open and the grand slam of tennis for the second time in his career with a four-set victory over Tony Roche. Laver wins 7-9, 6-1, 6-3, 6-2.

1973 — Australia’s Margaret Court Smith wins the U.S. Open for the fifth time with a 7-6, 5-7, 6-2 victory over Evonne Goolagong.

1974 — Billie Jean King wins her fourth U.S. Open with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 triumph over Evonne Goolagong.

1985 — Ivan Lendl wins his first U.S. Open title defeating John McEnroe 7-6, 6-3, 6-4.

1990 — Gabriela Sabatini prevents Steffi Graf from winning her third consecutive Grand Slam title with a 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) victory in the U.S. Open.

1991 — Stefan Edberg wins his first U.S. Open men’s singles title with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 win over Jim Courier.

1996 — Pete Sampras and Steffi Graf win the men’s and women’s singles titles, respectively, in the last U.S. Open championship matches played in Louis Armstrong Stadium.

2001 — Venus Williams wins her second consecutive U.S. Open title by beating her sister, Serena, 6-2, 6-4 in the first prime-time women’s Grand Slam final.

2002 — Pete Sampras beats Andre Agassi 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to win his 14th Grand Slam title and the U.S. Open for the fifth time. At 31, Sampras is the Open’s oldest champion since 1970.

2002 — Rookie quarterback David Carr throws for 2 TDs as the Houston Texans beat Dallas Cowboys 19-10 to become only the 2nd expansion team (1961 Minnesota Vikings) to win their inaugural game.

2008 — Roger Federer salvages the 2008 season by easily beating Andy Murray 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 to win his fifth consecutive U.S. Open championship and 13th major title overall.

2013 — Riquna Williams sets a WNBA record with 51 points to help the Tulsa Shock rout the San Antonio Silver Stars 98-65. The second-year guard surpasses the previous record of 47 points set by Phoenix’s Diana Taurasi and matched by Seattle’s Lauren Jackson.

2013 — Top-seeded Serena Williams wins her fifth U.S. Open championship and 17th Grand Slam title overall by beating No. 2 Victoria Azarenka 7-5, 6-7 (6), 6-1 in a windy final.

2017 — David Benavidez becomes boxing’s youngest world champion and the youngest ever in the super middleweight division with a split decision victory over Ronald Gavril at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. At 20 years, 9 months old, Benavidez (19-0, 17 KOs) won the vacant WBC super middleweight title over the 31-year-old Gavril (18-2, 14 KOs).

2018 — Naomi Osaka becomes the first Japanese female to win a Grand Slam singles title as she defeats Serena Williams 6-2, 6-4 at the US Open.

2019 — U.S. Open Men’s Tennis: Rafael Nadal defeats Daniil Medvedev of Russia 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4 to win his 19th Grand Slam singles title, and 4th U.S. crown.

TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY:

1905 — The Pittsburgh Pirates stranded 18 runners in an 8-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds to set a National League record for men left on base.

1939 — With his 12-1 victory over the Browns in St. Louis, 20-year-old Bob Feller became the youngest modern-era player to win 20 games.

1940 — Joe Gordon of the New York Yankees hit for the cycle in a 9-4 win over the Boston Red Sox.

1940 — Johnny Mize of St. Louis hit three homers and drove in six runs in a 16-14 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first game of a doubleheader. Mize became the first player to hit three homers in one game four times in a career.

1955 — The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Braves 10-2 to clinch the National League pennant with a 17-game lead.

1958 — Roberto Clemente tied a major league record by hitting three triples in a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

1965 — Bert Campaneris of the Kansas City A’s played all nine positions but had to leave after a ninth-inning collision with Ed Kirkpatrick of the Angels. The Angels won 5-3 in 13 innings.

1972 — Ferguson Jenkins of the Chicago Cubs beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 4-3, for his 20th victory of the season. It marked the sixth straight year Jenkins had won 20 or more games.

1985 — Cincinnati’s Pete Rose inserted himself into the lineup when the Chicago Cubs named right-hander Reggie Patterson as the starting pitcher. Rose singled in the first inning and again in the fifth inning to tie Ty Cobb with 4,191 career hits. Rose was retired in his other at-bats and the game was called because of darkness after nine innings with the score tied 5-5.

1988 — National League president Bart Giamatti was unanimously elected to succeed Peter Ueberroth as the commissioner of baseball.

1992 — New York’s Danny Tartabull drove in nine runs as the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 16-4. Tartabull went 5-for-5 with two homers and a double.

1993 — Darryl Kile pitched baseball’s second no-hitter in five days, leading the Houston Astros to a 7-1 win over the New York Mets. Kile struck out nine and walked one.

1996 — Todd Hundley of the New York Mets became the ninth player to hit 40 home runs this season, breaking the major league record set in 1961.

1998 — Mark McGwire broke Roger Maris’ 37-year-old home run record, lining historic No. 62 just over the wall in left field with two outs in the fourth inning. McGwire’s shot off the Chicago Cubs’ Steve Trachsel set off a wild celebration in Busch Stadium.

2008 — Pinch-hitting for Houston, Mark Saccomanno homered on the first pitch he saw in the major leagues to help the Astros beat Pittsburgh. Saccomanno hit a solo shot in the fifth inning.

2015 — Alex Rodriguez ties Hank Aaron record of 15 seasons with 30 or more home runs.

2022 — By making their 324th start as a battery, pitcher Adam Wainwright and catcher Yadier Molina of the Cardinals tie the all-time mark set by Mickey Lolich and Bill Freehan of the Tigers in the 1960s and 1970s. Molina marks the occasion by going deep twice, his first long balls since May, but the Cardinals lose to the Nationals, 11-6. The pair will set the new record on the 14th.