Donovan Mitchell got the best of the Warriors and Draymond Green, collecting 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists on a night Green was ejected in a 118-110 win over Golden State on Saturday.
Green was tossed at the 6:23 mark of the third quarter with eight points, five rebounds and four assists.
Green pushed Mitchell with his shoulder and sent him out of bounds as Cleveland’s Caris LeVert drove for a layup. Moments later, Green was bringing the ball up court and Mitchell chased him down and instigated a heated altercation.
LeVert scored 22 points, Darius Garland had 19 points, six rebounds, four assists and five steals and Evan Mobley had 19 points and two of his team’s season-high 13 steals.
Stephen Curry scored 30 points to lead Golden State, which lost both matchups this season with Cleveland.
Short-handed Heat handle Hawks
Bam Adebayo had 26 points with 17 rebounds and Jaime Jaquez Jr. added a career-high 20 points to lead the depleted Miami Heat to their fourth straight win, 117-109 over the Atlanta Hawks.
Kyle Lowry scored 17 points, Josh Richardson had 16 and Duncan Robinson contributed 11 in his first start of the season.
Miami played without two of its top three scorers, with Tyler Herro (sprained right ankle) missing his first game and Jimmy Butler absent for personal reasons.
Trae Young led the Hawks with 27 points and 11 assists, while Dejounte Murray scored 23.
The Hawks hung around and were within 115-109 after Young made two free throws with 51 seconds left, but Lowry sank a pair from the line and Young missed a 3-pointer with 22 seconds left.
Magic end 14-game losing streak to Bucks
Paolo Banchero tallied 26 points and 12 rebounds and the Orlando Magic snapped a string of 14 consecutive losses to the Milwaukee Bucks with a 112-97 victory.
Franz Wagner scored 24 points and Mo Wagner added 19 off the bench for Orlando, which defeated Milwaukee at home for the first time since March 14, 2018.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 35 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Bucks played their second straight game without Damian Lillard (sore left calf).
Philadelphia 76ers forward Kelly Oubre Jr. was hit by a motor vehicle in Center City, Philadelphia on Saturday night and has been hospitalized in stable condition, a team spokesman announced.
Oubre is expected to miss significant time due to his injuries, but those aren’t considered to be season-ending. Local authorities are investigating the incident.
Team representatives, including 76ers President Daryl Morey are with Oubre Jr. at the hospital.
The 27-year-old Oubre Jr. was walking near his residence when struck, the spokesman said.
Oubre Jr. was signed by the 76ers as a free agent in September and is averaging 16.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals in eight games this season.
He has been a key contributor for a Philadelphia team that has won seven straight and leads the Eastern Conference with a 7-1 record.
Originally drafted by Atlanta in 2015, Oubre Jr. has also played for Washington, Phoenix, Golden State and Charlotte.
Harry Kane continued his record-breaking start to life at Bayern Munich with a brace in a 4-2 victory over Heidenheim that saw the defending champions move top of the Bundesliga.
The England captain’s first-half double at Allianz Arena took his tally to 17 goals in 11 league games for Bayern – 21 goals in all competitions – and saw him write more history.
Kane has now scored more goals than anybody else at this stage of the Bundesliga season, and his current tally is already more than the 2022/23 joint-leading scorers, Christopher Nkunku for RB Leipzig and Niclas Fullkrug for Werder Bremen, managed in the whole of last season.
Following Kane’s first-half brace, promoted Heidenheim had briefly threated an upset when they drew level at 2-2 but goals from Raphael Guerreiro and Eric Choupo-Moting sealed the points for Bayern, who are now one point clear of second-placed Bayer Leverkusen ahead of their match with Union Berlin on Sunday.
Kane is not the only player to have hit a hot streak at the start of the Bundesliga season.
Serhou Guirassy’s spectacular campaign with Stuttgart reached another high when he netted the winner in a 2-1 victory over Borussia Dortmund.
The striker claimed his 15th goal from the penalty spot late on to give the home side all three points after Deniz Undav had cancelled out Fullkrug’s opener for Dortmund, who are now three points behind the third-placed Stuttgart.
Augsburg held Hoffenheim to a 1-1 draw after Ermedin Demirovic’s equaliser, Bochum’s game against rock-bottom Cologne also finished 1-1 while Darmstadt’s clash with Mainz ended 0-0.
In Spain, Real Madrid put Valencia to the sword in a dominant 5-1 win to keep the pressure up on surprise leaders Girona, who won again.
Carlo Ancelotti’s men cruised to victory without the absent Jude Bellingham, who was ruled out with a shoulder injury, after they opened the scoring in the third minute through Dani Carvajal.
Vinicius Jr netted a brace before his Brazil countryman Rodrygo managed a double.
Girona were also playing in the capital and fought from a goal down to beat Rayo Vallecano 2-1 to maintain their two-point lead at the top of LaLiga.
Alvaro Garcia Rivera struck early for the hosts before Artem Dovbyk and Savio completed the fightback for Girona, who won 11 of 13 league games this season and lost just once.
Real Sociedad won 3-1 at winless Almeria following stopped-time goals from Carlos Fernandez and Martin Zubimendi.
Grenada and Getafe drew 1-1, as did Osasuna and Las Palmas.
In France, Kylian Mbappe netted a hat-trick as Paris St Germain powered past Reims with a 3-0 win to move a point clear of Nice at the top of the table.
The clinical Mbappe, who took his Ligue 1 tally to 13 for the season, was too much of a handful for the Reims defence who could do little to prevent the France star from confirming all three points for the reigning champions.
Le Havre held Monaco to a 0-0 draw in the late kick-off.
In-form Juventus scored twice in the second half to beat Cagliari 2-1 and climb to the top of Serie A.
Goals from Gleison Bremer and Daniele Rugani earned a fifth successive win for Juve, who move a point clear of Inter Milan ahead of their game with Frosinone on Sunday.
AC Milan’s winless run was extended to four matches as they surrendered a 2-0 half-time lead to draw 2-2 at Lecce, Olivier Giroud being sent off late on for the Rossoneri having earlier given them the lead.
Also in Serie A on Saturday, Monza drew 1-1 with Torino.
Real Madrid returned to winning ways in LaLiga with a 5-1 thumping of Valencia to keep pace with leaders Girona.
Madrid had dropped points at home to Rayo Vallecano last weekend, but Girona’s victory over the same opponent earlier on Saturday briefly opened up a five-point gap at the summit.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side responded in perfect fashion with Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo each scoring doubles in a comfortable victory at Santiago Bernabeu.
While Madrid had booked their place in the Champions League last 16 with a midweek success over Braga, Jude Bellingham had added to the club’s growing list to cast doubt over his England involvement next week.
Madrid captain Dani Carvajal quickly dispelled any lingering gloom with a superb opener in the third minute.
Toni Kroos picked out Carvajal with an inch-perfect crossfield pass, which was controlled by the right-back before he smashed the ball home on the half-volley from 22 yards with his weaker foot.
Ancelotti’s team were in the mood now and Kroos struck the crossbar soon after, before Valencia did settle, but they were hit with a sucker-punch before half-time.
Rodrygo was released down the right and his wicked delivery found Vinicius Jr, who produced an unconventional finish of a chest of the ball into the ground and beyond Giorgi Mamardashvili in the 42nd minute.
View this post on Instagram
If Valencia hoped the break would interrupt Madrid’s momentum, it failed miserably with a third following four minutes after the interval.
After Rodrygo fizzed the ball to Vinicius Jr, the Brazil attacker cut inside and drilled an effort into the bottom corner.
It was 4-0 within 60 seconds when Mamardashvili’s night went from bad to worse when his attempted pass out from the back was intercepted by Rodrygo and he slotted into the corner before copying Cristian Ronaldo’s siu celebration.
Vinicius Jr was denied his hat-trick just past the hour mark when his chipped effort was blocked and he was substituted with 82 minutes on the clock.
The goal frenzy had not finished there though with Rodrygo able to pick up the mantle and grab his second of the evening.
Madrid substitute Fran Garcia found Rodrygo and the youngster twisted and turned inside the penalty area before he fired the ball into the far corner in the 84th minute.
Valencia were able to have the final say on proceedings when Hugo Gonzalez got to the right byline and crossed in for Hugo Duro to hook home on the turn, but it failed to spoil a five-star display by Madrid.
Ancelotti’s title hopefuls are once again two points behind Girona going into the international break with a trip to Cadiz to come in a fortnight.
Pep Guardiola has no issues selling players to rivals because Manchester City are not a “small club”.
The champions come up against two of their recent former players in Cole Palmer and Raheem Sterling as they travel to Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday.
Palmer left City for Stamford Bridge in August having grown frustrated at a lack of game time under Guardiola, a year after Sterling also moved there for a fresh challenge.
Both went with the club’s blessing, as did Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko when they joined Arsenal – and fuelled a strong charge at City’s crown – last year.
Some managers might be uncomfortable with at sales that effectively strengthen clubs in direct competition, but Guardiola insists it has “never ever” bothered him.
The City boss said: “From my point of view, I give my opinion to the club but after that the club has to decide if the transfer is good for both sides and for the player.
“But never ever (has it been an issue). I think that means you are a small club. Big clubs make decisions for the benefit for all three parties: players, both clubs – and agents sometimes. Really, it’s not a problem.
“So if they want to go to Chelsea or (Manchester) United or, I don’t know, Liverpool or whatever, what is the problem? They are happy to be there, the club is happy for the transfer.
“Another player would come and we’d keep going: good spirit, good mood, and try to do it.”
City had high hopes for 21-year-old midfielder Palmer, who came through their youth system.
He was a member of the squad that won the treble last season and started the current campaign strongly with goals in the Community Shield and European Super Cup matches.
It looked like he could get more opportunities following the departure of Riyad Mahrez but he opted to move on regardless, joining Chelsea in a £42.5million deal.
So far he has impressed at the London club and Guardiola accepts his decision to move appears to have paid off.
He said: “They moved from here because they wanted to play and, if they play, the decision made has been good.
“So Raheem, since he left, plays always and Cole, since he left, is playing always. So they took good decisions.
“Cole accepted some process but after one or two years he said, ‘I don’t want to stay here because I’m not going to play’.
“I said, ‘But Riyad is leaving, you have a chance’. He said, ‘I’m not going to play here. I’m going to leave’.
“OK, leave. He got what he wanted. It’s good for him. He’s a huge talent. Otherwise he would not have been here.”
Mauricio Pochettino acknowledged it will be difficult for any club to win the Premier League title whilst Pep Guardiola remains in charge of Manchester City.
Chelsea face the champions at Stamford Bridge on Sunday seeking a fourth win in six games in the league, but go into the game 11 points behind Guardiola’s treble winners having finished a colossal 45 points back last season.
Despite spending over £1billion on signings during the 18 months that owner Todd Boehly has been at the helm, the club have slid away from the league’s summit in that time, dropping from third place at the end of the 2021-22 campaign to 12th last season.
Pochettino has consistently defended results and performances since he took over in July, emphasising that despite the huge outlay, the club has mostly invested in young, inexperienced players who will required time to mature.
Ahead of Sunday’s showdown in west London, he agreed that toppling City will be a significant challenge whilst Guardiola is still in his job.
“I think we are all trying to be close to their level,” said Pochettino. “That’s the idea, that’s the challenge. It’ll be tough of course. If he continues there, he has the experience and the capacity, and the knowledge. He’s a great coach. It’s going to be tough to beat Manchester City.
“But we need to believe. Football is about belief and to try to develop and to create some different strategies to try to be above them.”
Pochettino previously enjoyed success against Guardiola and City in eliminating them from the Champions League with Tottenham en route to the final in 2019.
They ultimately lost in the final to Liverpool in Madrid, with Pochettino leaving less than six months later having failed to win silverware, despite running Leicester close for the title in 2016.
“We were contenders in the Champions League, we beat (City) with Tottenham,” said Pochettino. “But our possibility to win the league was when we fought in 2016 with Leicester. We never went in a fight with City for the league.
“But we were contenders in the Champions League. It’s not easy.
“That’s why massive credit to Pep and the organisation. Of course, you can see. But different clubs, different people, different structures, for sure, they’re building something really special.
“It was tough for them to win their first Champions League (last season), but they were consistent; improving and improving and improving with the confidence in Pep’s project, backing Pep for seven years. Massive credit to them.”
Frosinone coach Eusebio Di Francesco feels his side will have to play beyond their limits when they face the “most complete” team Inter Milan at the San Siro on Sunday.
The Nerazzurri secured a place in the Champions League knockout stages with a 1-0 win away at RB Salzburg on Wednesday night, which was a fifth-straight victory through all competitions.
Simone Inzaghi’s side, though, were knocked off the top of Serie A after Juventus beat Cagliari on Saturday.
Frosinone, who were promoted to the top flight this season, got themselves back on track last weekend with victory over Empoli, having lost back-to-back league games.
Canaries coach Di Francesco, though, is all too aware of just what challenge awaits his side at the San Siro.
“I believe that in order to compete with Inter we will have to outdo ourselves,” Di Francesco said.
“Inter are the most complete team, they are difficult to face and a club who have given continuity to the work of their coach.
“He has many weapons at his disposal, they are so difficult to deal with from all points of view.
“But what is most scary about Inter is the awareness, the knowledge they have among themselves which makes them a tough team to beat.
“If so far we have put in 10 out of 10, now to be able to compete with this Inter we will have to put in, I won’t say double, but come close.
“We must go and play this match with the same enthusiasm we have had so far.”
Despite the challenges ahead, Di Francesco wants his side to stay true to the values which have helped push them towards the top half of the table.
“In terms of the characteristics of the players who will be involved, the right solutions must be chosen, but we must not lose our identity and our principles of play,” said Di Francesco, who took over the newly-promoted side in the summer following the departure of Fabio Grosso.
“We must rely on the fact of enthusiasm, of the great desire to go and play the match.”
The Frosinone coach told a press conference: “I don’t share the concept that it’s not possible to face Inter with a smile and try to have fun – factors that will have to accompany us until the end of the championship this season.”
Di Francesco feels his players must focus on their collective goal, rather than get swept up in the occasion.
“I tried to tell my boys that when you enter the pitch in any stadium the strength lies in putting two plugs in your ears and to just focus on your team’s goal,” he said.
“That is what I did this week too, I didn’t give much weight to the match itself.
“I made it clear that we will have a strong team to fight against, however that doesn’t mean just standing behind them, but we must also be trying to fight back.”
Inter coach Inzaghi did not hold a media conference ahead of Sunday’s Serie A fixture.
Inzaghi is expected to recall Nicolo Barella after the midfielder did not feature in the Champions League.
Nerazzurri captain Lautaro Martinez started on the bench in Salzburg before coming on during the second half and scoring the late penalty which secured a 1-0 win.
Kieran Trippier confronted angry Newcastle fans following their 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth.
The injury-hit Magpies were downed by Dominic Solanke’s second-half double on the south coast.
As the players went to applaud the travelling fans after the final whistle, England full-back Trippier was filmed on social media responding to a supporter by saying: “Are the lads not giving everything? How many injuries have we got?”
Afterwards, Trippier played down the incident. He told Sky Sports: “The fans are emotional, they have travelled a long way.
“I had a chat with one of them, saying we are giving everything and there’s no need to panic.
“We got beat and we apologise for that result, but the lads are giving everything.”
Manager Eddie Howe admitted he understood the fans’ frustrations. “Kieran is fine. Emotions run high,” he said.
“We all feel a bit emotional after that from our perspective. We value all our away support, we value them greatly. We thank them for their support.”
It was a nightmare return to Bournemouth for Howe, who saw his side’s seven-match unbeaten Premier League run end and their injury crisis deepen.
The Magpies were already missing 11 players through injury and suspension after Callum Wilson injured a hamstring in the midweek defeat at Borussia Dortmund. Howe revealed Wilson will withdraw from the England squad and faces a spell on the sidelines.
They then lost Miguel Almiron to another hamstring problem midway through the first half.
The long casualty list meant a first Premier League start for 17-year-old Lewis Miley in central midfield.
Such are Newcastle’s lack of options they ended the match with Ben Parkinson, an 18-year-old who had never previously made a first-team appearance, playing alone in attack.
“It was a game where we couldn’t be where we needed to be for it and it was a tough watch. We were unrecognisable today,” added Howe, who was the Cherries manager the last time they beat Newcastle in 2017.
“It was a real off day. There are reasons, but I don’t want to sit here and make excuses. I want to support the players.”
The only surprise was that it took dominant Bournemouth an hour before they made the breakthrough.
Joe Willock challenged Antoine Semenyo, the ball rolled off him into the path of Solanke who raced into the area and lashed his shot inside Nick Pope’s near post.
Bournemouth doubled the lead from a corner, Solanke flicking the rebound home with his heel after Luis Sinisterra’s header hit a post.
It secured only a second win of the season for Bournemouth and lifted them out of the bottom three.
Boss Andoni Iraola said: “I think we really deserved this win. We played well and had good chances. Luckily we finished the job in the second half.
“Dom has been very good for us. On the ball and off the ball, he helps his team-mates. He missed chances in the first half, but cleared his mind and continued playing the same way.”
New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas was arrested Friday night and faces charges for simple battery and criminal mischief.
Thomas, 30, was arrested without incident after a confrontation with a construction worker near his home and was released late Friday night, police said.
Thomas is expected to travel with the team and play in Sunday’s game in Minnesota, multiple media outlets reported Saturday.
The Saints have not issued a statement about Thomas’ availability Sunday, saying only that the team is “aware of the incident and we are gathering information.”
According to police, Thomas was upset that a construction crew working on a nearby property had parked in front of his home. A construction worker told police that Thomas yelled at him and “verbally threatened to harm him.”
Thomas then threw a brick at the worker’s truck, police said, and knocked the man’s phone out of his hand so he would not be recorded on video.
A two-time All-Pro, Thomas has 38 catches for 439 yards this season, playing in each of the Saints’ nine games. The 2019 Offensive Player of the Year played in just 10 combined games in 2020-22 due to various injuries.
Eddie Howe’s return to Bournemouth turned into a nightmare after Dominic Solanke’s double condemned Newcastle to a 2-0 defeat.
Howe, who was the Cherries manager the last time they beat Newcastle in 2017, saw his side’s seven-match unbeaten Premier League run end and their injury crisis deepen.
The Magpies were already missing 11 players through injury and suspension after Callum Wilson tweaked a hamstring in the midweek defeat at Borussia Dortmund.
They then lost Miguel Almiron to what looked like another hamstring problem midway through the first half.
The long casualty list meant a first Premier League start for 17-year-old Lewis Miley in central midfield.
Such are Newcastle’s lack of options they ended the match with Ben Parkinson, an 18-year-old who had never previously made a first-team appearance, playing alone in attack.
It was therefore little surprise to see Bournemouth dominate the match, although they had to wait for an hour before Solanke finally made the breakthrough.
Just 40 seconds had elapsed when Ryan Christie, who signed a new Cherries contract this week, tested Nick Pope with a drive from the edge of the area.
It set the tone for the evening and moments later Antoine Semenyo burst through and forced as fine save from the Toon keeper, down low to his left.
Bournemouth welcomed back Brazilian keeper Neto after a spell out injured and he had to be on his toes to tip over Sean Longstaff’s 20-yard shot from Newcastle’s only real attack.
Solanke should have given the hosts the lead after he raced on to Semenyo’s ball over the top, but he delayed his shot and Jamaal Lascelles slid in to make a last-ditch block.
Then Justin Kluivert, whose father Patrick played for Newcastle, let fly from 20 yards forcing Pope into another sharp save.
With the visitors under the cosh, Pope saved again from Christie and Semenyo poked across goal and wide as they somehow made it to half-time goalless.
Bournemouth almost fell behind after the break when Neto made a mess of Kieran Trippier’s free-kick, but Solanke was on hand to clear the danger.
Solanke then went back to the day job at the other end of the pitch and promptly broke the deadlock.
When Joe Willock challenged Semenyo, the ball rolled off him into the path of the former Liverpool striker, who raced into the area and lashed his shot inside Pope’s near post.
Pope saved a fierce drive from Marcus Tavernier shot but Bournemouth doubled the lead from the following corner, Solanke flicking the rebound home with his heel after Luis Sinisterra’s header hit a post.
It secured only a second win of the season for Bournemouth and lifted them out of the bottom three, while Newcastle head into the international break licking their wounds.
Second-half goals from Bremer and Daniele Rugani helped Juventus move to the Serie A summit with a 2-1 home win over Cagliari.
Massimiliano Allegri’s side struggled to break down the visitors during a tense first half, but finally made the breakthrough when Bremer headed home a free-kick by Filip Kostic in the 60th minute.
Kostic created the second 10 minutes later when Rugani bundled his delivery over the line, but there would be no seventh consecutive clean sheet for the hosts after Alberto Dossena reduced the deficit to set up a grandstand finish.
Juventus were able to hold on to at least temporarily take over at the top from previous leaders Inter, who play Frosinone on Sunday before the title rivals do battle in a fortnight after the upcoming international break.
Adrien Rabiot was suspended for Allegri’s side in Turin, which meant Andrea Cambiaso was drafted into the starting line-up as a result.
Chances during the opening exchanges were few and far between with more focus off the pitch with 24-time tennis grand-slam champion Novak Djokovic in attendance at Allianz Stadium.
It was Claudio Ranieri’s Cagliari who fashioned the first opportunity, but Nicolas Viola dragged wide from a promising position in the 10th minute.
View this post on Instagram
The hosts responded soon after with Federico Chiesa curling a free-kick harmlessly over before the visitors threatened again when Dossena headed wide from a corner.
Chances remained limited in a tight first half, but Weston McKennie went close to a superb goal on the cusp of half-time.
McKennie started the move deep inside Juventus’ half and got on the end of Kostic’s cross, although he could only flick off target to ensure it stayed goalless at the break.
Allegri’s men came out with better intent after the interval and Chiesa tested Simone Scuffet inside 60 seconds, but the Cagliari goalkeeper was equal to the effort.
Chiesa was in the mood now and sent an ambitious volley over before he rifled wide after a dangerous cross from Kostic.
Kostic’s delivery was beginning to cause the away side problems and the opener finally arrived on the hour mark.
A free-kick from the wing-back picked out Bremer, who powered a header into the far corner for his first goal of the campaign.
One quickly became two when another Kostic set-piece resulted in Rugani bundling the ball into the net from close range in the 70th-minute.
The goal was not without controversy after Rugani first diverted Kostic’s corner onto the crossbar with his hand in close proximity before he was able to chest the loose ball in to make it 2-0.
A VAR check allowed the goal to be given, but Cagliari reduced the deficit with 16 minutes left.
Jakub Jankto’s corner was powered home by Dossena to give Ranieri’s side hope of earning their veteran manager his 700th point in Serie A.
There would be no happy ending for Ranieri at the home of his old club Juventus after Dossena’s late header hit a post and Gaetano Oristanio sent another effort wide.
Empoli head coach Aurelio Andreazzoli has urged his side to look for “continuity” ahead of a tough test against Napoli on Sunday.
Napoli are currently fourth in Serie A following a mixed start to the season, but they closed the gap on the top with a 2-0 win against Salernitana last weekend.
The reigning champions could leapfrog AC Milan into third in the table with a win against Empoli, but Andreazzoli wants his side to “move forward” for their upcoming fixtures.
“Napoli are extremely strong, but for us this doesn’t change the picture of what we have to do,” he told reporters.
“Frosinone also proved to be a tough opponent, which is why we need to focus on ourselves. There is time to grow but we have to move forward, for us it is a necessity.
“What Naples do I expect? I can’t know, (Rudi) Garcia is another friend of mine who I worked with, an excellent and scrupulous person. There was no coach who could replace Spalletti and do better than what Luciano did.”
Empoli are second from bottom in the table having only won two of their 11 league games so far this season and although they face a tough visit to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Andreazzoli hopes they can seek “continuity” in their performances.
He added: “We have to look for continuity, in the last match we played the game we wanted but our opponents were better.
“But we played a good game, because if we had gone ahead by two goals in the first half there would have been nothing to say.
“We had a blackout for part of the game which is inconceivable for what our team has in mind. We must always be proactive, even risking something.
“Tomorrow’s race is excellent in this sense, we can’t wait to compete with those who are better to understand who we are.”
Katie Boulter backed “tough cookie” Jodie Burrage to bounce back from her nightmare Billie Jean King Cup debut.
Burrage has established herself as British number two this season and her first call-up for her country was long awaited but she collapsed under the weight of the occasion, losing 12 of the last 13 games against Sweden’s Kajsa Rinaldo Persson, who is ranked nearly 300 places lower than her.
The 6-4 6-1 scoreline was all the more disappointing given Burrage won the opening four games, and it put Britain in a difficult spot in a tie for which they are overwhelming favourites.
They ended the first day at London’s Copper Box level at 1-1 thanks to Boulter, who produced another convincing display in the competition, beating Caijsa Hennemann 6-2 6-1.
Boulter said of her good friend’s disappointment: “It’s part of tennis. There’s always going to be matches that we win and some that we lose and I think how you pick yourself up is what’s going to define you.
“She’s a tough cookie, I can assure you, she’s been through a lot of surgeries, she’s been through a lot of tough moments and she knows how to pick herself up.
“The girl played very, very well and we’ve got a battle going into tomorrow. They’re going to have a swing, they’ve got no pressure at all. We’re going to fight our little hearts out for it.”
Rankings often are not a great indicator of success in this competition and Burrage is far from the first player to fail to handle the occasion, but even by those standards this was some collapse.
She made 23 unforced errors in the first set alone, often missing by feet rather than inches as Persson reeled off eight games in a row.
Burrage fought back tears as she said: “I’m very proud to represent my country, I’m very disappointed that I didn’t get everyone a win today. That is going to stick with me for a while.
“It’s tough to take. I have not felt like this, and even the nerves before, ever, even stepping out onto Centre Court doesn’t compare to this.
“It’s so different when you’re playing for a team. That type of pressure I’ve never really understood before, and I don’t think you ever do until you do it. That’s why it hurts even more because I’m hurting for other people.”
Whether Burrage gets a chance to make amends on Sunday must be highly questionable, with captain Anne Keothavong also able to call upon the more experienced Harriet Dart or Heather Watson.
“Jodie’s earned the right to go out there,” said Keothavong. “She’s had a fantastic year. It’s going to be a tough one for her to take but she’s got to find a way to bounce back if she’s going to keep putting herself in positions for selection.
“As a former player, I feel for her. That court can feel really small. For that to happen in front of a home crowd, it’s a tough one for her to take, but she will bounce back and she will learn from this.”
Britain must win two of the three rubbers on Sunday to secure victory and maintain their position at the elite level of the competition.
Swedish captain Johanna Larsson, who is without her top two players because of injury, was quick to emphasise that all the pressure is on Britain.
“I would expect her to say that, and she’s right,” said Keothavong. “We’ve got some work to do tomorrow. Tonight we have to keep the positivity high and remember why we’re all here.”
Burton boss Dino Maamria was heavily critical of his side’s “really poor” performance as they were beaten 2-0 by out-of-form Northampton at Sixfields.
A tight first half ended in stalemate but the Cobblers dominated the second and goals from Marc Leonard and Sam Hoskins ended their six-game winless run in all competitions.
Burton themselves are now five games without a win in all competitions and their manager had no complaints.
“It was a poor performance,” admitted Maamria. “We were outfought and outplayed and the second half especially was really poor.
“There wasn’t much in the first half so the message at half-time was to push more bodies forward and play more forward but we didn’t do that.
“They scored a brilliant goal and that probably galvanised them but I’m really disappointed with our response because we didn’t get going after that and they dominated us.
“The most disappointing thing is that we were outfought in every department. They won first and second balls, they closed us down, they got behind the ball quicker and they asked more questions.
“There are ways to lose games and you don’t lose like we did today. Northampton are in a difficult moment and the goal helped them and they finished the game better, but we were outfought and that’s not like us.
“We missed easy chances. We should have got one goal back near the end and if you do that, it’s a different game, but we deserved absolutely nothing today and I’m gutted for our fans because they turned up in their numbers.”
It was a much-needed win for Northampton boss Jon Brady.
“I’m really pleased with the performance,” he said. “We needed that and every player came to the table.
“That’s the type of energy, work-rate and tempo we need because that’s our tempo.
“It’s been tough because we’ve been playing the same players week in, week out but today we were able to freshen it up with players coming back in. That makes one hell of a difference and we looked more physical and had more about us.
“The game opened up in the second half. Tactically, they went to 4-4-2 so the midfield opened up more and if we won their balls in good areas, we were able to get in behind us and play forward and more space opened up.
“That helped us and then we broke on them brilliantly after we got the first goal.
“On top of that, our energy to get back into shape was excellent so a lot of key things worked for us today and the boys implemented what we had worked on so full credit to them.”
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
