Coco Gauff has reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals for the first time by coming back in each set to beat Zhang Shuai of China 7-5, 7-5 in front of a partisan crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium. The 18-year-old Floridian, the runner-up at the French Open in June, trailed 5-4 in the opening set, then 5-3 in the second, which she was a point from losing. But buoyed by spectators who cheered her every point, chanted “Let’s go, Coco!” as the end neared and prompted Zhang to cover her ears with her hands, Gauff improved to 4-0 in Ashe this year. Later on Ashe, Nick Kyrgios eliminated defending men's champion Daniil Medvedev.
Nick Kyrgios has eliminated defending U.S. Open champion and No. 1-ranked Daniil Medvedev in the fourth round. Kyrgios beat Medvedev 7-6 (11), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Sunday night in Arthur Ashe Stadium. This is the first time Kyrgios has reached the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows. This extends the recent run of high-level play for Kyrgios, a 27-year-old Australian who reached his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in July. Kyrgios was up to some of his usual anctics but he outplayed Medvedev with the help of 21 aces. Next for Kyrgios is a matchup on Tuesday against Karen Khachanov.
MLB
In the National League Washington crushed the Mets 7-2, and San Francisco beat Philadelphia 5-3.
In the American League the New York Yankees got by Tampa Bay 2-1, and The Red Sox beat Texas 5-2 for a 4-game sweep.
Albert Pujols hit his 695th career home run in the eighth inning and Miles Mikolas tossed eight scoreless innings to help the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs 2-0. Pujols is fifth on the all-time list behind Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755), Babe Ruth (714) and Alex Rodriguez (696). The Cardinals recorded their eighth series sweep of the season. They have won 18 of their last 20 home games. Chicago had dropped seven of eight.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Shyheim Brown blocked LSU’s extra-point attempt with no time left to give Florida State a 24-23 victory Sunday night, spoiling Brian Kelly’s debut as Tigers coach. Despite a slew of mistakes including a muffed punt with 2:15 left, LSU came within the extra point of tying it in the wild finish. Florida State’s Treshaun Ward fumbled at the LSU 1 with 1:20 to go, and Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels drove LSU for a touchdown on a 2-yard pass to Jaray Jenkins with no time left. But Brown deflected Damian Ramos’ kick, touching off a Florida State celebration.
Expanding the College Football Playoff from four to 12 teams will fundamentally change the sport on the field and off — for better or worse. More regular-season games will have playoff implications, but the biggest games will no longer have winner-take-all tension. The new format will break up a conference caste system fortified by the four-team model, but it won’t stop the growing gap between haves and have nots. More teams will play in the championship tournament. But a larger field probably won’t increase the number of teams that have a realistic chance of winning the whole thing. The CFP is getting bigger. Whether it's getting better is a matter of personal preference.
GOLF
Dustin Johnson is finally a winner again for the first time in 19 months. And he did so in dramatic fashion at LIV Golf. Johnson made a 35-foot eagle putt that banged against the back of the cup on the first playoff hole. That beat Anirban Lahiri and Joaquin Niemann in the first LIV Golf sudden-death playoff. Johnson's last win was the Saudi International in February 2021. He now has made nearly $10 million in just four events on the the Saudi-funded rival league. Lahiri missed a 5-foot eagle putt on his last hole that could have won it.
Gaby Lopez has won the Dana Open with a great finish at Highland Meadow. Lopez started the final round four shots behind and shot a 63. She finished with three straight birdies. Lopez finished one shot ahead of Megan Khang. The last group was never a factor. Lucy Li made only one birdie through 15 holes and shot 70. Lexi Thompson didn't make a birdie until the final hole and shot 73. Caroline Masson began with a double bogey. The 19-year-old Li posted her second straight top 10. That gets her into the next LPGA event in Cincinnati.
INDY CAR RACING
Team Penske declined to call for team orders on Sunday at Portland International Raceway and it will be seen what kind of implications it has on the championship. Penske driver Scott McLaughlin won the race to remain mathematically eligible to win the title. Will Power finished second and his lead in the standings stretched from three points to 20 points, over Penske teammate Josef Newgarden and six-time champion champion Scott McLaughlin. But had Team Penske ordered McLaughlin to pull over and let Power win the race, Power would take a 31-point lead into Sunday's finale at Laguna Seca. It's the tightest championship race since 2003.
NASCAR
Erik Jones took the lead when Kyle Busch’s engine blew up, then pulled away from Denny Hamlin after a final restart 20 laps from the end to win the opening NASCAR Cup Series playoff race at Darlington Raceway on Sunday night. Hamlin is seeded sixth in the playoff. He closed in on Jones' bumper but couldn’t make the winning pass. Jones went on to his second career win at Darlington and third NASCAR victory _ over two of his former teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing. It was also the 200th win by the iconic No. 43 car, made famous by Hall of Famer Richard Petty.
BOXING
Andy Ruiz knocked down Luis Ortiz three times on the way to a unanimous-decision victory Sunday night. Ruiz took a big step toward a chance to become a heavyweight world champion again. Ruiz had all of the big moments while grinding out a decision over Ortiz, a two-time world title challenger. Ruiz knocked down Ortiz twice in the second round and again in the seventh, but Ortiz also punched more accurately during long stretches of relative inactivity for both fighters. Former three-division world champion Abner Mares also fought to a majority draw in his return from a four-year ring absence.
SARATOGA RACE COURSE
The 2022 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, comes to a close today with the traditional final feature race, the Grade 1, $300,000 Hopeful for 2-year-olds, which affords racing fans a preview of potential standouts in next year's Triple Crown series and Runhappy Travers.Gates open at 11 a.m. Special first post time of 12:35 p.m.
Meanwhile, today is also the last at the Spa for its lead announcer. The New York Racing Association says full-time track announcer John Imbriale will retire at the end of the year.
Imbriale has served as NYRA’s head race-caller since 2020, after the retirement of Larry Collmus. NYRA says Imbriale will remain as the primary announcer at Belmont Park in 2023 and beyond.
