Digest

BASKETBALL

Patrick Ewing

Ewing out of hospital after virus diagnosis

Basketball Hall of Famer and Georgetown University men's coach Patrick Ewing has been released from hospital and is resting at home after having tested positive for COVID-19, his son confirmed on Monday.

"I want to thank all of the doctors and hospital staff for taking care of my father during his stay, as well as everyone who has reached out with thoughts and prayers to us and since his diagnosis," his son Patrick Ewing Jr. said in a statement.

"My father is now home and getting better. We'll continue to watch his symptoms and follow the CDC guidelines. I hope everyone continues to stay safe and protect yourselves and your loved ones."

The 57-year-old Ewing revealed last Friday that he had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Jamaica-born Ewing played most of his NBA career with the New York Knicks, registering almost 25,000 points and more than 11,000 rebounds. His 17-year career also included spells with the Seattle SuperSonics and Orlando Magic. He won two Olympic gold medals.

Lillard won't play if no chance for playoffs

Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard has said he will sit out the rest of the NBA season if it resumes in a format that prevents his side from competing for a playoff spot.

Portland was 3.5 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies, who occupied the final Western Conference playoff spot, before the season was suspended in mid-March when a player tested positive for the new coronavirus.

The league is considering various options to restart the campaign, one of which would involve scrapping the rest of the regular season and moving directly into the playoffs, according to ESPN.

"If we come back and I don't have an opportunity to make the playoffs, I will show up to work, I'll be at practice and I'll be with my team," Lillard told Yahoo! Sports.

"I'm going to do all that and then I'm going to be sitting right on that bench during the games. I'm not going to be participating. I'm telling you that right now."

TENNIS

Novak Djokovic

Djokovic announces summer 'Adria Tour'

World No 1 Novak Djokovic on Monday announced he will stage and participate in a series of invitational tournaments in the Western Balkans this summer to promote tennis and raise funds for humanitarian organizations.

Djokovic said that the so-called "Adria Tour" will include players from the region and beyond, including Austria's world No 3 Dominic Thiem, Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, Germany's Alexander Zverev, Serbia's Viktor Troicki and Bosnian Damir Dzumhur.

"Absolutely all the income from sponsorship agreements and television rights will go to humanitarian organizations. They come here for free," Djokovic said.

"You know that when it comes to top tennis players, there is a certain guarantee when they come to tournaments. They come here because of my relationship with them."

Serbia's 17-time Grand Slam champion added that local tennis federations will organize tournaments for younger and lower-ranked players, with the winners of those events to be invited to participate in the Adria Tour.

The opening tournaments have been scheduled for Serbian capital Belgrade, on June 13-14, and Zadar, Croatia, on June 27-28. More tournaments are planned for Montenegro in late June and in Bosnia and Herzegovina in early July.

New team league to allow fans at matches

World TeamTennis, an innovative mixed-gender professional tennis league, will start from July 5 at the Greenbrier, West Virginia, and up to 500 fans will be allowed to attend matches during its three-week season, tournament organizers said on Tuesday.

WTT said it would adhere to all health and safety protocols required by authorities to ensure the well-being of its players, coaches and essential staff amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grand Slam champions Sofia Kenin and Sloane Stephens are set to take part in the event, which will consist of a 63-match regular season followed by the playoffs.

WTT plans to stage at least three matches per day at the Greenbrier's 2,500-seat outdoor stadium, while an indoor court will be installed for backup.

The WTT also said it is increasing prize money to a record $5 million, with an added $1 million awarded in WTT Playoffs compensation.

SOCCER

Joshua Kimmich

Bayern takes big step toward retaining title

Joshua Kimmich's long-range lob put Bayern Munich on the verge of another Bundesliga title.

Kimmich's goal gave Bayern a 1-0 win over closest rival Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, moving his team a huge step closer to winning the league for a record-extending eighth consecutive time.

Kimmich collected the ball outside the area and chipped it over Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Burki minutes before the break. It was enough for Bayern to stretch its lead to seven points over Dortmund with six games of the season remaining. Dortmund had a chance to cut the lead to one point with a win, but Bayern has only dropped points once in the last 14 games.

"It's brutally difficult," Dortmund coach Lucien Favre said of his side's hopes.

It was an eerily quiet meeting between the Bundesliga rivals as the shouts from players and coaches, and the thud of the ball being kicked around, could be heard clearly in Dortmund's almost-empty 81,000-capacity Signal Iduna Park.

PANDEMIC

Rory McIlroy

McIlroy, Felix in the saddle for All-Star Ride

World No 1 golfer Rory McIlroy, NBA All-Star Gordon Hayward and six-time Olympic track champion Allyson Felix are among the sports stars set for a made-for-television spinning class to air on Saturday.

The Pro Athlete All-Star Ride, the latest bid to attract sports viewers with events shut down during the coronavirus pandemic, will feature a 20-minute men's and equally long women's stationary bicycle ride among athletes who are also Peloton members.

Each race will feature eight riders and the one with the highest output number－a combination of cadence and resistance－in each race will be declared the winner.

NBA players conducting a shooting contest from their backyards for TV and prime-time shows of mini-golf, obstacle course and tag competitions are among the other unique TV lures attempted for sports-hungry viewers.

The move comes two days after golf stars Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson combined with NFL Super Bowl champion quarterbacks Tom Brady and Peyton Manning to produce a Sunday ratings blockbuster for an 18-hole golf event, the 5.8 million viewers being US cable's largest-ever golf audience.

Xinhua - Agencies