Diego Forlán: ‘Playing with professionals, just for one game, you never know’

Stakes in the former footballer’s professional debut are not particularly high but the YouTube vlog will be spectacular

Before the start of the Uruguay Open, the organisers of the second-string ATP Challenger tournament had an announcement. After flooding their social media pages with references to just one participant during the week, finally, a date was confirmed for the unmissable match and tickets were on sale: “Get ready for an epic night that will remain in the memory of the Uruguay Open,” they wrote.

It is incredibly rare for any first round match on the humble challenger or future tours to generate enough attention to warrant the tournament organisers planning its exact date and time in advance. In doubles, which is usually banished to the outer courts in front of nobody at all, it is almost unheard of. But this is no normal occasion. On Wednesday at 10am local time, after weeks of publicity, interviews and hype, Diego Forlán, the former footballer for Manchester United, Villarreal, Atlético Madrid and Inter, will make his professional tennis debut alongside Federico Coria of Argentina in Montevideo.

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Duke stumbles to Kentucky

If the first half of Tuesday night’s Champions Classic game showed how good Duke can be against an elite team, the second half put Duke’s flaws on display for the first time. The result — a 77-72 loss to Kentucky at State Farm Arena — leaves a taste of both bitterness and optimism. The former is obvious, as the sixth-ranked Blue Devils lost for the first time this season.

Tracey scores 19, rallies Oregon from 13 down to beat Portland 80-70 in OT

Jadrian Tracey scored 19 points and Oregon scored the first 11 points in overtime to pull out an 80-70 win over Portland after erasing a 13-point second-half deficit on Tuesday night. The Ducks were down 54-41 with eight minutes to go and they were still in an 11-point hole with 4:46 to play. Tracey made a layup and then Keeshawn Barthelemy hit back-to-back 3-pointers to get back into the game, trailing 60-57 with three minutes left.