Category Sports News

Without giving an explicit reason, Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal from the upcoming Paris Masters creates more ambiguity in terms of his future plans.

The 38-year-old Serb suffered a foot injury at his most recent ATP match, the Shanghai Masters, where he lost to Valentin Vacherot, a qualifier, in the semi-finals.

Last week at the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia, Djokovic had to stop playing Taylor Fritz.

The 24-time major champion announced on Tuesday that he would not compete in the Paris Masters, the final ATP 1000 match of the year that would begin the following week.

Djokovic expressed regret on social media that he would not compete at the Paris Masters this year.

Djokovic made a statement in Saudi that he would skip Paris to potentially lengthen his season, but he did not provide any specific reason why he was not playing.

Djokovic’s main focus is appearing at an ATP 250 event in Athens, which his family moved from Belgrade to.

If his physical issues are too severe, it seems unlikely that he will miss a significant event with such an emotional pull.

The season-ending ATP Finals in Turin follow that.

Despite only appearing at 12 tournaments this year, Djokovic has already risen to third place in the rankings for men’s tennis, behind Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

Djokovic, who has repeatedly stressed how important it is to preserve “history,” may choose to skip an event he has already won seven times.

Djokovic was unconcerned about his upcoming schedule after pulling out of the Saudi match.

The five-time world champion said, “Now it’s rest and really addresses some of the issues I have with my body.”

Djokovic’s aging body has proven to be unable to withstand the rigorous demands of winning the sport’s biggest prizes once again throughout the season.

He still competes against the majority of the ATP Tour’s technical talent, as evidenced by his recent ATP Tour semi-finals.

Three days after winning the Australian Open against Alcaraz while sidelined by a leg injury, Djokovic was unable to advance to the semi-finals of his match against Alexander Zverev.

He also advanced to the last four at Wimbledon and the French Open, but Sinner physically deteriorated.

Djokovic admitted at the US Open that he “ran out of gas” in the three-set defeat suffered by Alcaraz.

The main goal of his career’s twilight is to win a 25th major, clearing him of Australia’s Margaret Court as the only record holder.

His next major goal is to set that goal at the Slam in Melbourne, where he is already a record-holder for the previous 10-time men’s champion.

Jess Naz, a Tottenham player, has been selected for England’s friendlies against Brazil and Australia following Jess Park’s withdrew due to injury.

Park, 24, opted to leave after Manchester United won 4-1 at Everton in the Women’s Super League on October 12 after suffering a delayed concussion.

Park will continue her rehabilitation with United, according to the Football Association, who stated that she “experienced some symptoms” during the graded return-to-play assessment.

Naz, 25, won six caps for the Lionesses last time they won 1-0 over Spain in February.

Grace Clinton from Manchester City’s Grace Clinton and Katie Reid from Arsenal are the other players to leave this week.

England travel to Derby’s Pride Park on Tuesday and Brazil travels to Brazil’s Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

Sir Ian McGeechan, the head coach of the former Scotland and British and Irish Lions, has stated that his prostate cancer is “all gone and under control.”

The 78-year-old, who is a consultant rugby director at Doncaster Knights in England’s second tier, has supported calls for the introduction of a national screening program.

Following treatment, which included a six-week course of radiotherapy, McGeechan shared his diagnosis in May, which included a positive update.

“So it’s quite special when you hear someone say to you, “You have got cancer,” you can’t help but feel special. I’m delighted that the prostate cancer is completely under control.

Prostate Cancer UK statistics show that 12 000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, and that more than 63, 000 of those diagnosed with the disease pass away.

The UK National Screening Committee is currently evaluating whether a prostate cancer screening program should be established in response to growing requests for annual tests.

According to McGeechan, “it needs that government support.” Because prostate cancer can be recovered, there must be a screening program.

And it would be a shame if people didn’t get a scan and were just able to ask, “Can you, can’t you?” instead?

McGeechan, a fly-half from Leeds, won the 1974 Lions series in South Africa, and the team then made another appearance in New Zealand in 1977. He won 32 of Scotland’s caps, including nine as captain.

He became a coach after winning the 1990 Five Nations Grand Slam and the 1989 and 1997 series victories as the Lions’ manager.

In Arsenal’s 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, Viktor Gyokeres put an end to a nine-game goalless run for the club and nation, scoring twice. Manager Mikel Arteta was quick to applaud his all-round performance.

Arteta cites his athleticism and work-rate as distinguishing qualities as the 27-year-old makes the Gunners “a much better team,” blaming his signing as making them “much more unpredictable,” and citing his ability to “make them” as stand-out traits.

After winning the Champions League, the Spaniard praised him for being so physically fit and holding the ball.

The data supports Arteta’s assertion that Gyokeres offers more than just goals, especially when winning the ball back in advanced positions.

Gyokeres tops the Premier League in terms of using “high pressure” in the final third, which Opta defines as being within 2 meters of an opponent, recording 199 such actions.

Gyokeres keeps making wise, probing runs to stretch and strengthen his defenses when Arsenal are in possession.

This season, the Swede has made more off-the-ball runs into the penalty area than any other Premier League player.

Arsenal’s focus has increased as a result of Gyokeres’ signing this summer, especially in the second half of the campaign, when injuries forced them to deal with without Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus.

Havertz can provide an aerial threat in the box, but the versatile German is not just a pure number nine, which is a claim made of Jesus, who has frequently played on the wing since he first arrived in England.

Gyokeres, on the other hand, consistently leads the opposition box and has played more games than any other Gunners player this year.

Gyokeres will undoubtedly be judged on his goals as a centre-forward, but it is unrealistic to expect him to score at the impressive level he did in Portugal, where he scored 97 goals in 102 games for Sporting.

He has four goals in 11 starts for Arsenal, and it should be possible to finish 2025-26 with at least 20 goals if he can maintain or even increase that score.

Ever since Gyokeres arrived at the club, fans have been anticipating seeing the striker score two goals in a sizable match.

One of the reasons Arsenal selected Gyokeres was because he would make room for the attacking players behind him, including Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka, Eze, and Odegaard.

This season, Arsenal have altered their play to move the ball forward more quickly, and this in part because Gyokeres’ size and range of running speed allow the team to utilize his size and power to its fullest.

Gyokeres had not scored in seven games for Arsenal before his goals last night, and the forward was occasionally glaringly frustrated.

Gyokeres has received praise from Mikel Arteta whenever the chance arises, and his teammates have expressed their gratitude for his efforts.