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• 'Business as usual' for Middleton despite Giannis uncertainty

  Khris Middleton is not getting caught up in speculation surrounding team-mate Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is uncertain over his Milwaukee Bucks future.

  Antetokounmpo, a two-time NBA MVP, has recently cast doubt on whether he will be staying with the Bucks.

  The 28-year-old has made it clear that he wants to win another championship, having helped the Bucks to glory in 2021.

  But Middleton is staying focused on his preparations for the new season, instead of paying too much attention to the talk around the Bucks' star man.

  "I think it's kind of business as usual either way," Middleton told ESPN.

  "It doesn't affect me personally. I don't think it affects us as a team. I think this is something he said almost every year he's come up in contract extension talks.

  "We always want him back for sure. Let's be for sure and let everyone know that. We want this guy to come back because he's one of the best players in the world.

  "He's one of the best players in franchise history. So when he says things like that, I think he just wants to challenge the team, the organisation, to keep putting us in a position to win championships."

  Middleton believes Antetokounmpo's comments are about keeping the pressure on, for both himself and the team.

  "But I think it's just something that he just wants to keep putting pressure on everybody. That's himself also," Middleton added.

  "He's not just pointing a finger at everybody else saying, 'You guys have to do this for me'.

  "I think he's putting that pressure on himself to be better, to come in and be great every year. So there's no pressure on, there's no added pressure when he says that to us as a team, or me as a person, that I have to be better."

  The Bucks won their fifth straight division title last season, yet lost to the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs, resulting in the departure of head coach Mike Budenholzer.

• 'The numbers don't lie' – Djokovic hailed as greatest of all time by Lopez

  Novak Djokovic is just one grand slam away from becoming the most decorated player in history and Feliciano Lopez believes "the numbers don't lie" when it comes to debating tennis' greatest.

  Serbia's Djokovic equalled Margaret Court's record of 24 grand slam triumphs after defeating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets at the US Open earlier in September.

  That made the world number one, aged 36 years and 111 days at the time, the oldest winner of the men's singles title at the US Open.

  It was also Djokovic's third major crown of 2023, winning a trio of grand slams in a calendar year for the fourth time in his career,

  Davis Cup tournament director Lopez, who had previously hailed Djokovic for featuring at the "unique" competition, suggested no one in history compares with the 36-year-old.

  Asked by Stats Perform if Djokovic was the GOAT – greatest of all time – Lopez said: "According to the numbers, yes. The numbers don't lie.

  "If you look at the stats, Novak is the best. So, I mean, what can I say?

  "I think the numbers are very clear, not only by the fact that he's won 24 slams, but also there are other numbers and other statistics that clearly show he's the best player who ever played the sport.

  "According to the numbers, I cannot say anything different."

  Djokovic triumphed at the Australian Open, French Open and US Open, only missing out on a clean sweep of the majors after losing the Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz.

  As for Djokovic's chances for more major success going forward, Lopez believes the sky is still the limit.

  "It's very difficult to predict honestly, but as long as he's feeling physically strong I think it's clear that his will in the last three or four years is to keep winning grand slams," Lopez added.  

  "If he is able to sustain his physical condition for the next two years, I can fairly say that he can win, I don't know, two, three or four, but it's very difficult to say one number because this year, for example, he could have won all four.

  "He won in Australia, he won in Paris, he was very close to winning Wimbledon because of that second-set tie-break, and he just won the US Open.

  "You ask me how many grand slams you think he will win in the future when he just won three of them in the same year!

  "I don't know, maybe three or four more is fair to say, but it's very difficult to predict."

• Christian McCaffrey equals record to keep San Francisco perfect

  Christian McCaffrey grabbed a touchdown for the 12th consecutive game as the San Francisco 49ers saw off the New York Giants 30-12 for a 3-0 start to the season.

  Brock Purdy threw for two touchdown passes – to Ronnie Bell and Deebo Samuel – as he extended his winning run as a starter in the regular season to eight from as many starts.

  But he struggled at times, narrowly avoiding turnovers and relying on his receivers to make the bulk of the yardage.

  Although the 49ers offense was not particularly smooth, they were too good for the Giants – without the injured Saquon Barkley – as the defence finished the job.

  Giants quarterback Daniel Jones struggled to make any headway downfield as he threw for just 137 yards and an interception.

  The Giants’ only scores came from an eight-yard Matt Brieda touchdown run and a pair of first-half field goals.

  McCaffrey’s four-yard touchdown run, which opened a 17-3 lead in the second quarter, equalled Jerry Rice’s franchise record of touchdowns in successive games and is just three short of the NFL record.

  The 49ers have now won 13 consecutive regular season games as they moved to 3-0 for only the second time in 25 seasons.