Digest

SOCCER

Maradona shirt auction opens with $5m bid

An auction of the jersey worn by Diego Maradona when he scored twice against England in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals, including the infamous "hand of God" goal, kicked off Wednesday with a bid of over $5 million.

Sotheby's is selling the blue No 10 Argentina shirt in an online sale that runs until May 4.

A few hours after bidding opened, the site showed that a first offer of $5.2 million－matching the low end of the auction house's presale estimate－had been registered, which would be a record price for a soccer jersey at auction.

The record for a game-worn shirt from any sport is $5.6 million, set in 2019 for a jersey Babe Ruth wore while with the New York Yankees.

Maradona's daughter cast doubt on the sale earlier this month when she claimed that the shirt put up for auction had been the one her father wore in the goalless first half, not the second when he scored his two goals. Sotheby's insists it is the right shirt.

PSG forced to put title champagne on ice

Paris Saint-Germain won 3-0 away at Angers on Wednesday but will have to wait a little longer to be confirmed as Ligue 1 champion after nearest challenger Marseille beat Nantes 3-2.

PSG started the day 15 points clear with six games left and so knew it could clinch its eighth Ligue 1 crown in 10 years if second-placed Marseille slipped up.

Mauricio Pochettino's side got the result it needed, brushing aside struggling Angers despite being without the injured Lionel Messi and the suspended Neymar.

PSG remains 15 points clear with just 15 points left to play for and also boasts a far superior goal difference.

It will be confirmed champion on Saturday with a point at home to Lens. A 10th title will see PSG equal the record set by the Saint-Etienne side of Michel Platini when it won its last championship in 1981.

Benzema misses two penalties in Real win

Karim Benzema missed two penalties in seven minutes on Wednesday but Real Madrid still had enough to defeat Osasuna 3-1 as it continued its march toward the La Liga title.

Benzema was looking for his 45th goal of the season but was twice denied by Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera, who both times dived to his right and both times made the save with Madrid leading 2-1 at El Sadar.

But Osasuna was unable to find an equalizer in the second half and Madrid added a third in injury time, Vinicius Junior teeing up Lucas Vazquez for an easy finish.

Madrid moved 17 points clear at the top of La Liga, ahead of Atletico Madrid, which missed the chance to pull away in the race for the top four after being held to a goalless draw by Granada.

The stalemate saw Atletico move up to second in the table but it could be overtaken by both Barcelona and Sevilla on Thursday. Barca was due to face Real Sociedad, with Sevilla at Levante.

TENNIS

Shriver had 'damaging' relationship with coach

Former professional tennis player Pam Shriver, now a television commentator for ESPN and the BBC, says that she "had an inappropriate and damaging relationship with my much older coach" that began when she was 17 and he was 50.

In a first-person account published Wednesday by British newspaper The Telegraph, Shriver describes a "painful and emotional journey" that included what she writes was a relationship with coach Don Candy that lasted a little more than five years.

Candy died in 2020.

"I still have conflicted feelings about Don. Yes, he and I became involved in a long and inappropriate affair. Yes, he was cheating on his wife. But there was a lot about him that was honest and authentic. And I loved him," she says. "Even so, he was the grown-up here. He should have been the trustworthy adult."

Wimbledon bans Russia, Belarus players

Tennis players from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to play at Wimbledon this year because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the All England Club announced Wednesday.

Among the prominent men's players affected by the ban are reigning US Open champion Daniil Medvedev, who recently reached No 1 in the ATP rankings and is currently No 2, and No 8 Andrey Rublev. The women's players affected include No 4 Aryna Sabalenka, who was a Wimbledon semifinalist last year; Victoria Azarenka, a former No 1 who has won the Australian Open twice; and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, the French Open runner-up last year.

Medvedev, Rublev and Pavlyuchenkova are from Russia; Sabalenka and Azarenka are from Belarus.

Wimbledon begins on June 27.The decision was swiftly condemned by the men's and women's tours as well as women's legend Martina Navratilova.

Agencies