Unheralded American Ryggs Johnston has crashed the party with a stunning and improbable Australian Open triumph in Melbourne.
The world No 954 emerged from a big pack of home hopes to steal the Stonehaven Cup with a nerveless final-round four-under-par 68 at Kingston Heath on Sunday.
Continue reading...Australian cricket is mourning the loss of one its last old-school stonewall openers, with former Test batsman Ian Redpath dying at 83.
A member of Australian cricket’s hall of fame, Redpath was a fixture of Australia’s side in the 1960s and 1970s. The Victorian played 66 Tests and scored eight centuries between 1964 and 1976, compiling 4734 runs at an average of 43.45.
Continue reading...Australia’s bid to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has taken another hit after Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the second Test with a side strain.
Already sweating on the fitness of Mitch Marsh, Australia suffered a further blow on Saturday when medical staff put Hazlewood on ice for the day-night Test in Adelaide with a sore left side. The injury is not thought to be serious and Hazlewood will remain around the Test squad ahead of the third Test in Brisbane.
Continue reading...Australia have called Beau Webster into their squad for the Adelaide Test, as cover for allrounder Mitch Marsh.
Webster was officially added to Australia’s squad on Thursday with a 14-man group to now assemble in Adelaide on Monday.
Continue reading...John Longmire has stepped down as senior coach of the Sydney Swans and will be replaced by his long-time assistant Dean Cox.
The 2012 AFL premiership-winning coach, who was contracted for next season, will address his decision in a press conference at the Swans’ headquarters at 1.30pm AEDT on Tuesday.
Continue reading...Elvis Smylie stared down Cameron Smith at his pet event to win the Australian PGA Championship and book a return to the European tour.
The 22-year-old from the Gold Coast, son of former tennis star Liz Smylie, produced a string of clutch par saves and dodged Smith’s last desperate swings in a bogey-free Sunday at Royal Queensland. His 14-under total (65, 67, 67) left him two clear of three-time winner Smith (67, 65, 69), who was level with Smylie to begin Sunday but again stuttered on the final day after blowing a final-round lead at the NSW Open last weekend.
Continue reading...Australia are trusting in some backline wizardry, handing a debut to the winger Harry Potter and returning Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii to the starting lineup for the Scotland Test match.
Suaalii is set for his biggest examination yet in Wallabies gold with the cross-code superstar back as outside centre for the third leg of their British Isles grand slam bid at Murrayfield on Sunday.
Continue reading...Cricket Australia will fly flags at half-mast and black armbands will return to players’ uniforms as the sport prepares to mark the 10-year anniversary of Phillip Hughes’ death.
Saturday’s Sheffield Shield round will begin two weeks of commemorations for Hughes, whose life was tragically cut short days before his 26th birthday in 2014.
Continue reading...Inspired captaincy, a nail-biting underdog’s win for Thanasi Kokkinakis and good old-fashioned Australian doubles pedigree has powered Australia into the semi-finals of the Davis Cup in Spain.
Lleyton Hewitt outduelled his USA counterpart Bob Bryan in the key captaincy decisions of their quarter-final tie in Malaga on Thursday as Australia defeated the Americans 2-1 in the battle between the two nations who have won the men’s “World Cup of tennis” more than any other.
Continue reading...A three-match suspension has ended Samu Kerevi’s tour, jolting his longer-term Wallabies hopes and opening the door for Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii’s return against Scotland.
The centre’s yellow card for a high shot was upgraded to a 20-minute red in Australia’s defeat of Wales in Cardiff. On Wednesday the 31-year-old’s fate was sealed, a disciplinary committee upholding the on-field decision and halving the standard six-week ban due to his guilt, remorse and good record.
Continue reading...The Hawthorn racism scandal has ended after the AFL club settled their Federal Court case with Indigenous former players and their families, and apologised to the group for their experiences.
The club and players released a joint statement on Wednesday night, confirming the settlement after two days of mediation this week.
Continue reading...A hamstring injury to Glenn Maxwell was the only dampener as Marcus Stoinis helped Australia thrash Pakistan by seven wickets to seal a clean sweep in their three-game Twenty20 series.
The all-rounder Maxwell limped off with a suspected low-grade issue in Hobart on Monday night after pulling up sore while fielding. He was not required to bat and will have almost a month to recover for the Melbourne Stars’ Big Bash League season opener against Perth on 15 December.
Continue reading...Spencer Johnson produced the greatest-ever figures by an Australian quick in a men’s Twenty20 international to bowl his side to a 13-run win over Pakistan.
With Australia defending 9-147 at the SCG on Saturday night, Johnson bagged five for 26 with the ball to have Pakistan all out for 134 and help the hosts to an unassailable 2-0 series lead.
Continue reading...Australia’s new cross-code star Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii has been surprisingly dropped from the Wallabies’ starting lineup against Wales following his impressive debut against England.
The 21-year-old, who was man-of-the-match in the thrilling win over England at Twickenham last Saturday having played the entire 80 minutes, will revert to the bench in Cardiff on Sunday.
Continue reading...Nick Kyrgios will make his long-awaited return to competitive tennis at the Brisbane International after playing only one ATP Tour match in more than two years.
The 29-year-old firebrand has been mostly sidelined with career-threatening wrist and knee injuries since the 2022 US Open quarter-finals. That run came six weeks after reaching the Wimbledon decider when he came closest to an elusive major crown before falling in four sets to Novak Djokovic.
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