The 1895 Duke Of York Clipper Stakes appears the preferred next stop for Karl Burke-trained sprinters Spycatcher and Marshman following their mixed efforts in Newmarket’s Abernant Stakes.

It was the Highclere Thoroughbreds-owned Spycatcher who performed best of the Spigot Lodge pair, finishing third and beaten less than a length by winner Washington Heights, having lost a shoe at a vital moment in the Group Three event.

Burke also feels going conditions may have slightly gone against his soft ground-loving six-year-old, who was only a short-head away from Group One glory in France last summer.

The Curragh’s Group Two Greenlands Stakes on May 25 is waiting in reserve if conditions prove unsuitable for Spycatcher at York, but the Middleham handler is hopeful both can take their chance in the six-furlong event on the Knavesmire.

“Hopefully, the ground is right for the pair of them to go to York for the Duke Of York,” said Burke.

“Spycatcher obviously wants cut in the ground and if it turned up firm there, then Marshman would go to York and Spycatcher is in a race in Ireland, the Greenlands.

“Spycatcher ran a cracking race and he’s only just come to himself. I think if you ran it on the first day (of the meeting), with a bit more juice in the ground, he just might have won.

“He pulled a shoe off just at the top of the dip and Clifford (Lee, jockey) said he felt it and just lost his balance for a stride or two. I think it probably cost him second, but on soft ground, I think he would have won.”

Marshman finished a lacklustre 13th of 14 in the Abernant and having failed once again to handle the undulations of the Rowley Mile, connections will look forward to returning the four-year-old to a more level surface and a track where he has some encouraging form figures.

“Marshman was disappointing and we’ve run him twice at Newmarket now and he’s run moderately,” continued Burke.

“Sam (James, jockey) was adamant he hated the undulations and although he was very keen when we ran him in the Middle Park, I would say he wants a flat track.

“If you look back; Doncaster, Chantilly, Deauville are the tracks where he’s been at his best. He’s a good horse with a lot of ability, but he’s a bit quirky.”

Ranger Suarez and the Philadelphia Phillies each extended impressive streaks in the team's 7-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds in Monday's opener of a four-game series.

Suarez increased his run of consecutive scoreless innings to 22 by limiting the Reds to two hits and a walk over seven dominant frames in Philadelphia's seventh straight win. The left-hander struck out five and improved to 4-0 in five starts this season.

Kody Clemens supplied the offence for the Phillies by going 2 for 4 with a three-run homer after being called up from the minors to replace slugger Bryce Harper, who is away from the team to attend the birth of his child.

Hunter Greene threw a season-high seven innings for Cincinnati but was handed the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits.

The Phillies opened the scoring in the second when Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos reached on back-to-back singles before Bryson Stott plated Bohm with a sacrifice fly.

Johan Rojas tripled off Greene to start the third and came home on Kyle Schwarber's sac fly for a 2-0 edge, and the Phillies tacked on another run in the fourth when Bohm doubled and scored on Stott's fielder's choice grounder.

J.T. Realmuto's run-scoring double in the fifth put Philadelphia up 4-0, and Clemens' blast with Castellanos and Stott aboard in the ninth closed out the scoring.

Gelof's homer in ninth lifts Athletics over Yankees

Zack Gelof broke a scoreless tie with a two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning that gave the Oakland Athletics a 2-0 win over the New York Yankees in the opener of a four-game series.

Abraham Toro greeted reliever Victor Gonzalez with an infield single to start the ninth before Gelof lined a pitch from the Yankees' left-hander into the right field seats to end the scoreless stalemate.

Mason Miller then struck out Anthony Volpe, Juan Soto and Aaron Judge in order in the bottom of the ninth to record his fifth save and put an end to Oakland's three-game losing streak.

The Yankees were dealt a second loss in three games despite a dominant start from Carlos Rodon, who yielded only a fifth-inning single and two walks over seven innings.

A's starter JP Sears was equally good, however, as the former Yankee permitted just three hits and a walk while striking out seven in six innings.

The Yankees played nearly the entire game without manager Aaron Boone, who was ejected by home plate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt in the top of the first inning after questioning whether Oakland lead-off hitter Esteury Ruiz swung a pitch that hit the outfielder.

Boone said after the game Wendelstedt was angered by a remark directed at the umpire by a fan sitting behind New York's dugout. 

Orioles stay hot by extending Angels' struggles

James McCann and Colton Cowser homered to back 5 2/3 scoreless innings from Albert Suarez as the Baltimore Orioles continued their surge with a 4-2 victory over the slumping Los Angeles Angels.

Adley Rutschman added two hits and two RBIs to help Baltimore to its seventh win in eight games, a run that has moved the Orioles a half-game ahead of the New York Yankees for first place in the American League East.

The Angels, meanwhile, have now lost five straight after dropping the opener of this three-game series.

Suarez scattered four hits and two walks while striking out five before departing with a 3-0 lead. McCann's solo homer in the second inning put Baltimore on the board before Jorge Mateo stole two bases in the third to precede Rutschman's run-scoring single.

Rutschman made it 3-0 when he followed Gunnar Henderson's single with a double off Los Angeles starter Reid Detmers in the fifth, and Cowser increased the margin in the seventh with his sixth home run of the season.

All four Baltimore runs came off Detmers, who lasted seven innings and was dealt his first loss of the season after going 3-0 over his first four starts.

The Angels did close the gap in the bottom of the seventh, as Jo Adell homered and Logan O'Hoppe followed with a single before later scoring on Nolan Schanuel's base hit that cut the lead to 4-2.

Los Angeles threatened in the ninth by loading the bases with one out, but Baltimore closer Craig Kimbrel got Schanuel to pop out before fanning Mike Trout to end the game and record his sixth save.

O'Hoppe recorded three of the Angels' eight hits for the game. 

Donte DiVincenzo's go-ahead 3-pointer with 13.1 seconds left highlighted a furious late rally that propelled the New York Knicks to a crucial 104-101 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in Monday's Game 2 of an Eastern Conference quarter-finals series. 

Down 101-96 in the final minute, the second-seeded Knicks scored the game's final eight points to grab a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series, which shifts to Philadelphia for Thursday's Game 3.

DiVincenzo finished with 19 points and Jalen Brunson had 24 along with eight rebounds and six assists for New York, which also got a big effort from center Isaiah Hartenstein to overcome a 10-point deficit late in the first half.

Hartenstein scored all 14 of his points in the second half on 7-of-7 shooting while helping the Knicks contain 76ers' star Joel Embiid. The reigning NBA MVP managed 34 points and 10 rebounds, but made good on just 12 of 29 field goal attempts and missed a potential tying 3-point try at the buzzer.

Tyrese Maxey ended just shy of a triple-double for seventh-seeded Philadelphia, as he compiled 35 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds.

The Sixers trailed 90-82 early in the fourth quarter before outscoring New York 19-6 over a seven-minute stretch to pull ahead late. Maxey's jumper with 2:22 to go gave Philadelphia a 97-96 edge, and the All-Star buried a 3-pointer shortly afterward to extend the lead to four entering the final minute.

Brunson gave New York some life with a 3-pointer with 27.4 seconds remaining to cut the lead to 101-99, and after Maxey turned it over on the ensuing possession, DiVincenzo knocked down a 26-footer on a second-chance attempt to send the Knicks in front.

Maxey then couldn't get a contested layup to fall with 6.6 seconds left, and New York's OG Anunoby was fouled after grabbing the rebound before making both free throws ahead of Embiid's game-ending miss. 

Nuggets rally from 20 points down to stun Lakers in Game 2

The Denver Nuggets also took a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference series with the Los Angeles Lakers after overcoming a 20-point second-half deficit to rally for a stunning 101-99 win.

Jamal Murray capped Denver's improbable comeback by hitting a game-winning 15-foot jumper with 0.4 seconds left on the clock.

Murray scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half and Nikola Jokić had 15 points after half-time to also spark the defending NBA champions. Jokic ended the night with a 27-point, 20-rebound, 10-assist triple-double.

Anthony Davis finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds for the seventh-seeded Lakers, who appeared on the verge of sending the series back to Los Angeles all tied up after opening up a 68–48 lead two minutes into the third quarter.

Second-seeded Denver trailed 74-55 near the midway point of the third before getting back in it with a 10-0 run. The Nuggets later went on a 10-1 spurt to pull within 83-81 on Murray's layup with 6:45 remaining.

Murray was later fouled with 57.6 seconds left and made both free throws to forge a 97-97 tie. LeBron James answered with a layup on the ensuing possession to put Los Angeles back ahead, but Murray sunk a step-back jumper with 30 seconds remaining to even the score once again.

James then misfired on a 3-point try and the Nuggets secured the rebound before getting the ball to Murray, who knocked down the game-winner right before the buzzer sounded with Davis contesting the shot.

James had 26 points and 12 rebounds, while D'Angelo Russell netted 23 points for the Lakers while going 7 of 11 from 3-point range.

Game 3 will take place Thursday night.

Cavaliers shut down Magic again to take 2-0 series lead

Donovan Mitchell scored 23 points and Jarrett Allen led another strong defensive effort for the Cleveland Cavaliers, who took a 2-0 lead in their first-round series against the Orlando Magic by recording a 96-86 win.

After holding the Magic under 33 per cent shooting in Saturday's series opener, fourth-seeded Cleveland forced 17 turnovers and limited No. 5 seed Orlando to a 36.2 per cent rate from the field to move within two wins of advancing.

Allen particularly made his presence felt by corralling 20 rebounds along with three blocks and two steals. The standout center also contributed 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting.

Evan Mobley added 17 points and Darius Garland had 15 in a game the Cavaliers never trailed while taking control early by building a 30-18 lead after one quarter.

Cleveland's margin grew as high as 17 points in the second quarter as the Magic continued to struggle to score, and Mitchell registered 19 of his points in the first half to help send the Cavs into the break owning a 58-44 advantage.

Orlando never seriously threatened in the second half and will now attempt to reverse momentum when it returns home to host Game 3 on Thursday. 

Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 21 points and Franz Wagner had 18 for Orlando, though all but one of those points came during the first half.

Two-time taekwondo world champion Sarah Stevenson announced her retirement on this day in 2013.

The announcement brought to an end a glittering career that also brought her four gold medals at the European Championships.

She also claimed Britain’s first ever Olympic medal in taekwondo at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but was at the centre of controversy after appealing against a contentious ruling during her quarter-final loss to China’s Chen Zhong.

The appeal was successful meaning Stevenson was awarded a spot in the semi-finals and she went on to take bronze.

Stevenson’s first taekwondo world title came in 2001, and she earned her second a decade later in emotional circumstances as both her parents were critically ill.

Her parents died later that year and her career could have been derailed after suffering a serious knee injury, but she recovered in time to compete in her fourth Olympics at London 2012.

She failed to progress beyond the first round and, having not fought since then, reached the decision to retire and take up a role as a high-performance coach with GB Taekwondo.

Stevenson, then aged 30, said: “It has been a hard decision and it has been a long process but I think in just stepping away from the sport and having a break, waiting to seeing if I’m going to miss it or not – I realised I didn’t miss it.

“I didn’t feel in my heart that I wanted to compete again.

“I don’t really do anything half-hearted and I think it would be a mistake for me to continue if my heart isn’t in it.

“But I have no regrets and it feels good to say that. I am 100 per cent happy with my decision.”

Jude Bellingham has targeted a trophy treble on the pitch after picking up silverware at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards in Madrid.

Bellingham won the World Breakthrough of the Year prize after a stunning start to life at Real Madrid.

The 20-year-old has scored 21 goals since his summer move from Borussia Dortmund, his latest effort being a stunning winner in Sunday’s El Clasico against Barcelona.

Bellingham now hopes to end the season with a LaLiga and Champions League double at Real before heading to Euro 2024 in Germany where England are among the favourites to win the trophy.

Asked what would mean success, Bellingham said: “I think just more trophies really.

“We’re still in with a chance of two with Madrid and obviously the Euros with England. So I think success would be all three.

“It’s been a bit of a crazy week, really. I’m so tired, to be honest. So excuse me if I look it.

“But I’m really proud to win this award and hopefully keep making more memories with Real Madrid and with England in the future.”

Novak Djokovic was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for a record-equalling fifth time after winning the Australian Open, French Open and US Open to lead the way with 24 grand slam men’s singles titles.

“I am incredibly honoured to have won my fifth Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award,” said Djokovic.

“I think back to 2012, when I won it for the first time as a 24-year-old. I am very proud to be here 12 years later, reflecting on a year that brought me and my fans a lot of excitement and success.

“It was thrilling to return to Australia last January and win my 10th title. It is a tournament that is so dear to my heart and set me up for an incredible 12 months.

“I could not have achieved so much success without an incredible team behind me, and inspirational rivals who have always pushed me to be the best version of myself.”

Aitana Bonmati took to the stage twice to collect two awards – the first footballer to win the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year trophy, and also represent the Spain team which won the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

She said: “It is humbling to see the list of previous winners of this award.

“From Serena Williams to Simone Biles, Lindsey Vonn, Naomi Osaka and last year’s winner Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, they are all incredible athletes who have not only excelled in their chosen sports, but been incredible role models for younger generations of young women and girls.

“As the first women’s team to win the Laureus, we are proud of our status as pioneers and as a group we are as committed to equality and representation as we are to what we do on the football pitch.”

American gymnast Biles, a three-time winner of Sportswoman of the Year, won the World Comeback of the Year Award.

Biles collected four gold medals at the World Gymnastics Championships in Antwerp, her first global event since leaving the Tokyo Olympics due to mental health issues and entering a near two-year break from the sport she had dominated.

Other award winners were Rafael Nadal (Sport for Good), Diede de Groot (World Sportsperson of the Year with a disability) and Arisa Trew (World Action Sportsperson of the Year).

:: The 25th Laureus World Sports Awards took place on Monday 22 April in Madrid, celebrating the leading names in sport from across the globe. To find out more, visit www.laureus.com.

Zach Wilson has a chance to restart his career in a new setting after the Denver Broncos reportedly traded for the former starting quarterback from the New York Jets on Monday, according to NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport.

The Broncos are also acquiring a seventh-round pick in this year's NFL draft, and the Jets will receive a sixth-rounder.

New York will also pay part of Wilson's $5.5million salary next season.

Wilson arrives in Denver after never living up to expectations with the Jets after the franchise selected him second overall in the 2021 draft.

He went 3-10 as a rookie in 2021, and things didn't improve in 2022, leading to his benching.

The Jets had seen enough and decided to move on from Wilson, trading for Aaron Rodgers prior to the 2023 season. Wilson, though, got another chance to start after Rodgers tore his Achilles on his first drive with New York in the season opener.

He was unable to take advantage of that opportunity, however, throwing for eight touchdowns and seven interceptions in 12 games in 2023. His 77.2 passer rating ranked 30th out of 32 qualifying QBs last season.

In 34 career games, he has completed 57.0 per cent of his passes for 6,293 yards with 23 TDs and 25 picks.

Among the 30 quarterbacks with a minimum of 700 pass attempts since 2021, Wilson ranks last in completion percentage and QB rating (73.2), and 29th in both touchdown passes and yards per attempt (6.34).

In Denver, he'll likely get a chance to compete for the starting QB job after the Broncos released Russell Wilson in early March.

The only other quarterbacks on Denver's roster are Jarrett Stidham and Ben DiNucci, but the team could also decide to select one in Thursday's draft.

Mark Selby has vowed to consider retirement after crashing out of the World Snooker Championship in a “pathetic” 10-6 defeat to qualifier Joe O’Connor.

The four-time former champion finished a dismal season by his own standards on a low note as he failed to claw back a 7-2 overnight deficit against the only debutant in this year’s draw.

Having first questioned his future after a Tour Championship defeat to Gary Wilson earlier this month, Selby admitted something will have to change if he is to continue on the tour next season.

Selby, who has reached a solitary ranking final this season, said: “I will take a long time to think about it over the summer. Away from snooker I’m happy, then when I come to snooker it’s the opposite. It was pathetic from start to finish.”

O’Connor, who grew up idolising Selby and cheered him to three of those previous successes, held his nerve as his opponent – aided by breaks of 112 and 91 – slowly reduced the deficit to 8-5 at the mid-session interval.

Selby threatened to move within two frames when he went 39 points up in the 15th but he left himself too much to do and O’Connor built on a nerveless red down the rail to complete the biggest win of his career.

It marked the first time since 2018 that Selby has lost in the first round, and prompted ‘The Jester from Leicester’ to concede he will not be able to continue without some serious help.

He told the BBC: “I’ll sit down with (my wife) Vicky and see what the options are.

“Obviously it will be a big decision but if I do carry on playing I need help, probably on the mental side of it a little bit more just to go out there and enjoy the game.

“That’s all I want to do, go out there and enjoy it and for me, it’s always sort of life or death; I’ve always been that kind of character, putting too much pressure on myself and trying too hard.”

Shaun Murphy avoided the same fate as he turned a 6-3 overnight advantage into a comfortable 10-5 win over China’s Lyu Haotian.

Murphy punished Lyu from 38 points behind to pinch the opening frame, and was never in danger of surrendering his advantage in the tie, which he eventually polished off with a break of 81.

The 2005 champion told the BBC: “It’s such a relief, it’s so rewarding and pleasing, I haven’t won a match here for a few seasons. I’m delighted to have got that win and (be) in the second round of the tournament.”

Triple world champion Mark Williams edged in front of last year’s surprise semi-finalist Si Jiahui in a high-quality opening session of their first round match.

Williams started the match with a brilliant 142 clearance but Si hit back, and the Welshman had to dig deep to win the final two frames of the session to establish a 5-4 lead ahead of Tuesday’s conclusion.

Stuart Bingham stormed into an impressive three-frame lead to give him a healthy advantage at the end of the first session, leading Gary Wilson 6-3.

Bingham started in tremendous fashion, falling just two points short of an opening-frame century break and he rattled off the next three before Wilson made his mark on the scoreboard.

Bingham responded with a 117 break to go 5-1 up and put daylight between himself and his opponent, who many expected to challenge for the title.

Staring down the barrel of an early exit, Wilson’s session-high 60 break came in the final frame but a missed black helped Bingham swoop and almost clear the table until he himself missed a routine black, which his opponent sunk to reduce the deficit to three.

Owner Ahmad Al Shaik is again dreaming of Derby glory after Deira Mile broke his duck in routine fashion at Windsor.

Dubai Mile was ninth in the Epsom Classic last year carrying the Green Team Racing colours and hopes are high of an improved placing this term.

The Owen Burrows-trained Deira Mile remained a maiden following four runs as a juvenile, mainly due to fluffing his lines when sent off as a 1-5 favourite at Chelmsford.

However, he showed his potential when beaten less than three lengths in fourth behind Ancient Wisdom in the Group One Futurity at Doncaster and built on that by justifying short odds of 4-9 at Windsor under Jim Crowley.

Asked about Derby aspirations, his owner told Sky Sports Racing: “It is in my blood and my sons’ blood, not just me. We need to go to the Derby and one day we will win – if not me, one of my sons.

“He is still green but Jim Crowley said the further he goes, the better he will be.

“We have only 40 days now until Epsom, I don’t think we have time to run him again, so I will discuss with the trainer about going straight to Epsom and I think he will be fine.”

Burrows added: “He’s a big lad and mentally, he’s still quite immature. He had the four runs last year, but he is still a big baby.

“The plan was to try and find as easy a race as we could and it worked out perfectly. He’s ended up hitting the front a little sooner than ideal, as he gets to the front and just thinks ‘right, what do I do now?’ But he’s had a race.”

Crowley pulled alongside main market rival Castle In The Sand between the final two furlongs of the 10-furlong contest and Deira Mile responded to his urgings to prevail by four lengths.

The jockey said: “It’s the first time I’ve ridden him, but I saw him at Chelmsford last year and I think when he hits the front, he just loses concentration a little bit and he did it there, hence why I gave him a smack, because I just don’t want him to get in the habit of doing it.

“The race sort of fell apart at the two-furlong pole and I could have quite easily stayed upsides on the bridle, but he probably wouldn’t have learnt an awful lot.

“But he is learning, he’s going to progress and he stays well – he’s a lovely type of horse and he was entitled to win that race.

“His two-year-old form was very good at the back-end and I suggested to Owen we could possibly put a set of cheekpieces on him, especially in a better race where horses take him further.

“Like I said, he stays very well and there will be some lovely races for him through the summer.”

Qualifier Joe O’Connor held his nerve to sink four-time champion Mark Selby and book his place in the second round of the World Championship in Sheffield.

O’Connor, who grew up idolising Selby and cheered him to three of those previous successes, scrambled to a 10-6 victory after resuming 7-2 in front from Sunday’s dominant first session.

Selby, who has struggled on and off the table this season and said he was considering retirement after his Tour Championship loss to Gary Wilson earlier this month, looked sluggish and far from his best throughout.

But he still managed to draw on his famous fighting qualities as he opened with a break of 112 and also fired a 91 to reduce the deficit to 8-5 at the mid-session interval.

O’Connor, the only debutant in the tournament this year, showed few signs of nerves as he nudged 56 points from victory in the next to move one more frame from a famous victory.

Selby responded once more with a break of 67 then threatened to edge within two frames when he went 39 points up in the next before an ice-cool red down the rail by his opponent effectively confirmed his demise.

It marked the first time since 2018 that Selby has lost in the first round, and prompted ‘The Jester from Leicester’ to admit that he will give some serious thought to his future in the summer.

Selby told the BBC: “I’ll sit down with (my wife) Vicky and see what the options are.

“Obviously it will be a big decision but if I do carry on playing I need help, probably on the mental side of it a little bit more just to go out there and enjoy the game.

“That’s all I want to do, go out there and enjoy it and for me, it’s always sort of life or death; I’ve always been that kind of character, putting too much pressure on myself and trying too hard.”

Shaun Murphy avoided the same fate as he turned a 6-3 overnight advantage into a comfortable 10-5 win over China’s Lyu Haotian.

Murphy punished Lyu from 38 points behind to pinch the opening frame, and was never in danger of surrendering his advantage in the tie, which he eventually polished off with a break of 81.

The 2005 champion told the BBC: “It’s such a relief, it’s so rewarding and pleasing, I haven’t won a match here for a few seasons. I’m delighted to have got that win and (be) in the second round of the tournament.”

Stuart Bingham stormed into an impressive three-frame lead to give him a healthy advantage at the end of the first session, leading Gary Wilson 6-3.

Bingham started in tremendous fashion, falling just two points short of an opening-frame century break and he rattled off the next three before Wilson made his mark on the scoreboard.

Bingham responded with a 117 break to go 5-1 up and put daylight between himself and his opponent, who many expected to challenge for the title.

Staring down the barrel of an early exit, Wilson’s session-high 60 break came in the final frame but a missed black helped Bingham swoop and almost clear the table until he himself missed a routine black, which his opponent sunk to reduce the deficit to three.