Digest

BASKETBALL

China gears up for Women's World Cup

China's national women's basketball team has departed for Europe to prepare for the FIBA World Cup.

The Chinese team is scheduled to play warm-up matches against the national teams of France, Belgium and Serbia, as well as local clubs in Spain.

China will head to Australia in early September and continue its warmup series with local clubs and other World Cup teams.

The quadrennial FIBA Women's World Cup will feature the world's top 12 women's national teams, with 38 games to be played across 10 days from Sept 22 until Oct 1 in Sydney, Australia.

China has been drawn in Group A with Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Puerto Rico, South Korea and defending champion the United States.

Jordan 'Last Dance' jersey to be auctioned

MJ's iconic Bulls shirt

A jersey worn by basketball legend Michael Jordan during Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals, his last title victory, is set to be auctioned off in September for an estimated $3-5 million, Sotheby's announced Wednesday.

The iconic red Chicago Bulls jersey, with Jordan's No 23 on the back, is only the second worn by the star during his six championships to be sold at auction.

Most of Jordan's NBA Finals jerseys remain in private hands, according to Sotheby's, although he has donated one to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC.

Jordan, now 59, spent the bulk of his basketball career with the Bulls, with whom he won all six of his titles, but came out of retirement in 2001 to play two seasons with the Washington Wizards. His final season with the Bulls was detailed in the documentary series The Last Dance.

Trial on Kobe death crash photos begins

A court case brought by Kobe Bryant's widow over graphic photographs taken by first-responders at the site of the helicopter crash that killed him got underway in the United States on Wednesday.

The basketball superstar and his teenage daughter were among nine people who died when their chopper smashed into a hillside near Los Angeles in January 2020.

Vanessa Bryant alleges she suffered emotional distress because personnel from the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department and firefighters snapped pictures of the scene, which they later shared with friends and first-responders.

"At least 11(sheriff's) personnel and a dozen firefighters shared the photos within 24 hours of the crash," Bryant's attorneys wrote in court papers. "In the following weeks, one (sheriff's) deputy flaunted photos of remains at a bar, another texted photos to a group of video-game buddies, and (county fire) personnel displayed photos at an awards gala."

TENNIS

Zheng Qinwen moves into last 16 in Toronto

Chinese ace Zheng Qinwen moved into the last 16 of the National Bank Open when Tunisian Ons Jabeur, the No 5 seed, retired at the Aviva Centre in Toronto on Wednesday night.

Zheng, ranked No 51, led 6-1, 2-1 when this year's Wimbledon runner-up Jabeur, ranked No 5, pulled out on Wednesday night.

It was Zheng's first career win against a top-10 opponent and marked the first time that the Hubei province native claimed two successive victories at a WTA 1000 tourney.

The 19-year-old will next face Canada's 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu, who battled to a 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Frenchwoman Alize Cornet on Wednesday.

Zheng edged out Canadian wild card Rebecca Marino 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 in the first round in Toronto.

China's top ace Zhang Shuai, ranked No 45, lost to two-time tournament champion Simona Halep of Romania, 6-4, 6-2.

SWIMMING

Popovici expected to continue medal rush

David Popovici

At just 17 years old, Romanian swimmer David Popovici has emerged as the new star of the pool.

After bringing back two world titles from Budapest in June, the teenager continues his crazy summer in Rome from Thursday at the European Swimming Championships.

In the Hungarian capital, Popovici became the first man to complete the 100m/200m freestyle double at the world championships in nearly 50 years, albeit in the absence in the 100m of the Tokyo Olympic top two: American Caeleb Dressel and Australian Kyle Chalmers.

"I'm glad we got to write a small page in swimming history," said Popovici, before adding: "Some would say a huge page, but we like to keep it low-key."

Xinhua / Agencies