Category Sports News

Six-time major champion Iga Swiatek says players are being watched “like animals in the zoo” by behind-the-scenes cameras at the Australian Open.

Coco Gauff was captured smashing her racquet in a corridor in the players’ area at Melbourne Park on Tuesday, leading the American to call for more privacy.

The Australian Open has shown footage from the players’ zone in the bowels of Rod Laver Arena – which includes the gym, warm-up area and the corridor from the locker room – since 2019.

Camera access is more restricted at the other majors.

“Are we tennis players, or are we animals in the zoo where they are observed even when they poop?” said Poland’s Swiatek, who lost in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Semi-finalist Jessica Pegula described the constant filming as an “invasion of privacy” that needs to be “cut back”.

“You just feel like you’re under a microscope constantly,” the American added.

Tournament organisers Tennis Australia told BBC Sport the cameras are used to help create a “deeper connection” between fans and players.

Pegula, who is member of the WTA players’ council, says the issue will “be highlighted again” in post-tournament discussions with the Australian Open.

“I saw online people were zooming in on players’ phones and stuff like that. That’s so unnecessary,” Pegula said.

“The only time you’re not being recorded is when you are going to shower and go to the bathroom.

“It seems to be worse here than maybe other years, so I think now it’s going to definitely be talked about and highlighted again moving forward.”

Asked whether she had ever approached organisers about it, Swiatek replied: “What’s the point?”

World number one Aryna Sabalenka was previously captured destroying a racquet by a similar camera after losing the 2023 US Open final.

Former world number one Andy Roddick previously said there should be a “zone” for players to “detonate” after tough defeats.

American fourth seed Amanda Anisimova says she felt conscious about the cameras following her defeat by Pegula in Wednesday’s quarter-finals.

“I knew [they] were there, so I just kept my head down and went to the locker room,” she said.

Anisimova did, however, point to the cameras also picking out “good moments” for fans to see.

Plenty of lighter moments have been caught over the years, including the likes of Swiatek, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer being asked for their ID passes – but Swiatek feels that too is intrusive.

“We’re tennis players. We’re meant to be watched on the court and in the press,” Swiatek added.

Many leaders in tennis are fully aware how it must adapt and thrive in an ever-competitive sports market.

Seeing other sports show a more human side to their athletes – with Formula 1 documentary Drive To Survive regularly heralded as the gold standard – has forced tennis to think more creatively.

Netflix’s documentary series Break Point did not engage fans in the same way, but providing behind-the-scenes content at tournaments feels like an easy win to deepen connections with fans.

When the Australian Open became the first major to bring cameras into player areas in 2019, Djokovic described it as ‘Big Brother’.

The reality television show has continued to grow – potentially, now, to tipping point.

It might be scaled back, given the frustrations of the players, but it will not disappear. Tennis needs the eyeballs.

The US Open has followed suit in recent years – unsurprising given the access-all-areas demands of the American audience across the NBA, MLB and NFL.

Providing fans with deep insight of locker room culture, and what it really takes to be among the world’s best, is more crucial than ever.

France prop Uini Atonio has been forced to retire after he was admitted to an intensive care unit following a “cardiac event”.

The 35-year-old was taken to a hospital in La Rochelle on Tuesday with his club saying he suffered a suspected heart problem and is now in a stable condition.

“Following his hospitalisation, Uini will have to undergo a long period of recovery,” said French Top 14 side La Rochelle, his team since 2011.

Atonio, who was born in New Zealand, qualified to play for France through residency and made 68 appearances for his adoptive country.

He started all five games as France regained the Six Nations in 2025, and was selected in their provisional squad for this year’s tournament.

However, he withdrew from the party this week, with France Rugby yet to confirm the reason for Atonio’s departure.

Having been spotted at a rugby 10s tournament in Hong Kong, Atonio signed for La Rochelle for the 2011-12 season and remained with the club for his entire career.

He helped his side win promotion to the Top 14 in 2014, and was part of a squad that reached three successive Champions Cup finals between 2021 and 2023, winning the title in the latter two years.

Atonio played six times this season, with his first appearance coming in early December and the last against Harlequins in the Champions Cup on 18 January.

Great Britain’s Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid both recorded victories to set up a quarter-final meeting in the Australian Open men’s wheelchair singles, before joining forces to reach the semi-finals of the doubles competition.

Defending champion Hewett took just 55 minutes to complete a 6-2 6-1 win over Japan’s Takuya Miki, while Reid beat Australian wildcard Anderson Parker 6-3 6-2.

Hewett and Reid then began their pursuit of a seventh successive wheelchair doubles title in Melbourne by defeating Miki and Dutchman Tom Egberink 6-0 6-4.

The pair have won 18 of the past 23 Grand Slam titles in the doubles format.

They will face either second seeds Martin de la Puente and Stephane Houdet or Tokito Oda and Gustavo Fernandez for a place in the final.

Britain will also have two representatives in the semi-finals of the men’s doubles event.

Sixth seeds Neal Skupski and American Christian Harrison won 6-2 6-3 against Czech pair Petr Nouza and Patrik Rikl.

Luke Johnson and Polish partner Jan Zielinski were 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 winners over fourth seeds Marcelo Arevalo, of El Salvador, and Croatia’s Mate Pavic.

Skupski and Harrison will play third seeds Marcel Granollers of Spain and Argentina Horacio Zeballos for a final place, with Johnson and Zielinski taking on Australian wildcards Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans in the other half of the draw.

Andy Lapthorne and Gregory Slade were beaten in their respective quad singles first-round matches.

Lapthorne lost 6-4 7-5 to Turkish fourth seed Ahmet Kaplan, while Slade was beaten 6-1 6-3 by Brazilian qualifier Leandro Pena.

Ulster head coach Richie Murphy feels the province’s increased representation in Ireland’s Six Nations squad “shows we are progressing and moving in the right direction”.

Last year, just four Ulster men were selected, including development player James McNabney, but returning head coach Andy Farrell initially selected seven from the northern province with Cormac Izuchukwu called up at the weekend due to an injury to Munster’s Thomas Ahern.

Izuchukwu is the only Ulster player from 2025 to return, with fellow forwards Tom O’Toole, Tom Stewart and Nick Timoney making the cut this time, while Rob Baloucoune, Nathan Doak, Stuart McCloskey and Jacob Stockdale were named in the backs as Ireland prepare for their Six Nations opener against France in Paris on 5 February.

Murphy believes their inclusion is the result of improved performances by Ulster this season who currently sit sixth on the United Rugby Championship [URC] table, while topping their pool in the European Challenge Cup.

“One of the things we talked about earlier in the year was that if you perform well in the white jersey, the green one will look after itself,” Murphy told BBC Sport NI.

“Last year we had four in there, so to double that and have Bryn Ward away travelling with the team as a trainee is very positive.

“Fifteen between the two squads [Six Nations and Ireland XV] is where we want to be. There are one or two disappointed they didn’t get the call, but that’s the competition in Irish rugby.

Last week, Murphy and coaches Mark Sexton, Willie Faloon and Jimmy Duffy signed two-year contract extensions to keep them at Ulster until the summer of 2028 despite rumours of interest from other clubs.

However, the former Ireland U20 coach is happy to continue what he started.

“I’ve enjoyed my time here so far and to extend it for another two years is brilliant,” he added.

“It was March two years ago [2024] when I came in and there was a lot of transition with senior players leaving and a change in the coaching team.

“When you see the exciting young players who are around and you get a feeling we can add to that group by bringing in a couple of Irish guys and guys from overseas, we can build a really good URC team here that challenges at the top end, hopefully, and also in Europe.

World number two Nelly Korda has called the lack of a mixed gender indoor virtual league “an unbelievable miss” following the launch of a women’s competition backed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.

The WTGL will be held in the same Florida venue as the men’s TGL, which is currently midway through its second season.

Some of the world’s best female golfers will compete in a season of team matchplay in the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, but Korda suggested not combining the men and women’s events was a missed opportunity.

“I have mixed feelings on it, and I’m surprised no other girls have spoken out about it,” she said.

“It’s a huge and unbelievable miss that we’re not playing alongside the men.

“There’s no greater way to grow the game, and it would have been revolutionary. It would have been the first time, I think, that men and women are on the same playing field, playing for the same exact amount of money.

“But I also think it’s great that we are getting this opportunity, so that’s my mixed feelings.”

The indoor golf set-up features teams of players hitting shots at a five-storey-high simulator screen before moving to a short-game area with bunkers and a green that can rotate 360 degrees, creating hole-to-hole variations.

Asked about the prospect of a mixed-gender event, Mike McCarley, a former TV executive who founded the TGL alongside McIlroy and Woods said the idea had been discussed.

“I think that is something that’s interesting to us and is interesting to the LPGA and is interesting to a lot of the players we’re talking to,” said McCarley.

“Right now, we’re really focused on building (the TGL) out and providing, frankly, a nice stage and really nice platform to showcase the players and their personalities.”

Korda, 27, is yet to commit to entering the event, saying she is “still weighing out the time commitment” required to play in the tournament.

World number one Jeeno Thitikul and British golfers Charley Hull and Lottie Woad are among the players confirmed to compete.

Atlanta Drive beat New York GC 4-3 to win the first TGL title last year, with a prize pot of £10.39m being split between the two finalists.

This season’s competition began on 28 December, with a best-of-three final set to start on 23 March.

“I have a lot, a lot of incredible, good opinions about him,” said Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola when asked about Oscar Bobb in November.

“His intuition is extraordinary. The moment he frees his mind he can do it.”

Two months on and Bobb is close to leaving for Fulham for a reported fee of around £30m – the 22-year-old Norway winger the latest City youth graduate to depart after breaking into the first team.

Since Guardiola took charge in 2016 and transformed City into an all-conquering team, Cole Palmer, Liam Delap, Brahim Diaz and Tosin Adarabioyo have also come through the ranks to play for the senior side before departing.

It is a ploy that has served City well.

According to Paul MacDonald from FootballTransfers.com, City have made more than £250m selling young players from their talent factory over the past five years alone.

Including sell-on fees, that figure is closer to £270m, he says.

Brazilian midfielder Douglas Luiz did not make a competitive appearance for the club before the then 21-year-old was sold to Aston Villa for £15m in 2019.

Jadon Sancho was sold to Borussia Dortmund for a reported £8m in 2017 before joining Manchester United £73m just four years later, while Jeremie Frimpong was signed by Liverpool for £29.5m from Bayer Leverkusen last summer. They have both gone on to make names for themselves after leaving City without making a first-team appearance.

Morgan Rogers, who joined City from West Brom at the age of 17 on a professional contract, was sold to Middlesbrough in 2023 and is now thriving for Aston Villa and England.

City spent a British record £100m on Jack Grealish in 2021, while they invested £77m on Croatia centre-back Josko Gvardiol two years later – and this January spent £65m on Antoine Semenyo and £20m on Marc Guehi.

Yet it is their ability to sell young talent that has helped bring in funds for big-money deals.

With City chasing a seventh Premier League title in 10 seasons under Guardiola, one might expect a player’s career to go downhill once they leave Etihad Stadium.

That is not necessarily true.

There are numerous examples of players going on to flourish elsewhere after failing to nail down a regular spot under Guardiola.

Palmer, who made 19 Premier League appearances for City, is a prime example.

Since moving to Chelsea for £42.5m in September 2023, the 23-year-old forward has established himself in the England side and helped his club win the Fifa Club World Cup and the Uefa Conference League.

In 2019, Spanish teenager Diaz signed for Real Madrid from City for a fee believed to be around £15m.

He made five Premier League appearances – all as a substitute – before leaving.

Since then the Malaga-born winger has won two La Liga titles, one Champions League – and, earlier this month, helped Morocco reach the Africa Cup of Nations final.

Spain defender Eric Garcia, who captained City at under-18 level, has won two La Liga titles since moving from Manchester to Barcelona in 2021, when he was 20, after 35 senior appearances.

Meanwhile, striker Delap – who also progressed through City’s Elite Development Squad (EDS) – was sold to Ipswich in a deal worth up £20m in July 2024, before Chelsea signed the player for £30m a year later.

The EDS was established to create a bridge between City’s academy and first team.

Designed to either prepare top-class talent for City’s main squad or to secure huge profit, selling EDS and non-first team players has brought in more than £500m to the club since Guardiola’s arrival.

That is significant because, when clubs sell academy graduates, the entire amount is recorded as ‘pure profit’ in their accounts, helping to meet the top-flight’s strict profit and sustainability rules.

Chelsea’s Belgium midfielder Romeo Lavia was 16 when he left Anderlecht for City.

Sancho, currently on loan at Aston Villa from Manchester United, was 14 when he moved north from Watford.

“Hugo Viana, he’s done it again,” was how one City fan put it on social media after the eye-catching signings of Ghana forward Semenyo and England centre-back Guehi this month.

But now the director of football will be praised for continuing the club’s remarkable recent record in selling players, with winger Bobb set to join Fulham.

“What City have been good at doing, which has gone under the radar, is selling players very successfully,” football finance expert Kieran Maguire told BBC Sport earlier this month.

“In the past three years they have generated £350m profit from all player sales.”

That number will edge towards £400m if Bobb completes a move to Craven Cottage, having also generated around £50m by selling James McAtee, Yan Couto and Maxime Perrone in the summer.

Not only do they bring in good money, City also insert sell-on or buy-back clauses when players make an exit and that allows them to keep a portion of control for the future. This was highlighted when bringing back goalkeeper James Trafford in the summer from Burnley, who had signed him in 2023.

Although it won’t correlate directly on the balance sheet, the fee received for Bobb effectively pays off the £30.45m spent on Rayan Cherki last June when he arrived from Lyon.