TENNIS
Serena Williams won for the second straight night at the Rogers Cup, beating Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5, 6-4 on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals at Toronto.
Playing her first event since losing the Wimbledon final, Williams opened with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Elise Mertens on Wednesday. The 37-year-old Williams has won the event three times, all in Toronto.
Third-ranked Karolina Pliskova advanced to the afternoon, beating Anett Kontaveit 6-3, 7-5. In position to reclaim the top spot in the world ranking this week, Pliskova set up a match against Bianca Andreescu.
Andreescu beat fifth-seeded Kiki Bertens 6-1, 6-7 (7), 6-4.
The 19-year-old Andreescu improved to 5-0 against top-10 opponents this year.
Fourth-seeded Simona Halep, making her first start since beating Williams for the Wimbledon title, beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-2, 6-1.
• Sixth-seeded Karen Khachanov of Russia beat Montreal teenager Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-7 (7), 7-5, 6-3 in the men’s tournament at Montreal.
Celebrating his 19th birthday, Auger-Aliassime was undone by 12 double faults and a series of mistakes. After the match, the crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to Auger-Aliassime, while a video featuring fellow pros also passing on their greetings played on the big screens.
Khachanov set up a quarterfinal match against third-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany, a 7-5, 5-7, 7-6 (5) winner over Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili.
SOCCER
MLS: The Seattle Sounders acquired midfielder Emanuel Cecchini on loan from Spanish side Malaga and signed forward/midfielder Luis Silva ahead of the summer transfer window.
Cecchini’s loan from Malaga will cover the rest of this season and all of the 2020 season.
• Los Angeles FC acquired 19-year-old Uruguayan forward Brian Rodriguez.
Rodriguez heads to MLS after scoring one goal in nine games for Penarol in Uruguay’s top league. The forward is considered one of the top young talents in South America, and LAFC sold veteran forward Christian Ramirez to Houston to create the space to acquire him.
• The LA Galaxy acquired high-scoring forward Cristian Pavon on loan from Argentina’s Boca Juniors.
The 23-year-old Pavon played for Galaxy Coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto with Boca Juniors. The forward has 28 goals and 32 assists in 108 first-team appearances since joining the club in 2014.
PREMIER LEAGUE: Manchester City winger Leroy Sane is facing a lengthy layoff with anterior cruciate ligament damage.
Sane, who limped off in the early stages of Sunday’s Community Shield win over Liverpool, will undergo surgery in the coming week.
City opens its Premier League title defense against West Ham on Saturday.
HOCKEY
NHL: The state board responsible for economic development unanimously approved a $1.3 billion arena and entertainment complex to be the new Nassau County home of the New York Islanders.
The six members of the Empire State Development voted in favor of the Islanders’ plan following a two-hour long meeting in midtown Manhattan that included public comment from residents, civic groups and lawmakers. All but two speakers supported the project.
New York Arena Partners, developers of the project, have proposed a 19,000-seat arena, 350,000 square feet of upscale shops and restaurants, a 250-room hotel and parking on the vacant state-owned property at Belmont Park.
The development group is a partnership of the owners of the Islanders, the New York Mets and the arena development company Oak View Group.
AUTO RACING
FORMULA ONE: Formula One extended the Mexican Grand Prix through 2022, keeping a race that draws some of the season’s biggest crowds on the calendar.
The Mexican Grand Prix is in the final year of its original five-year contract and there were doubts about its future as the federal government wanted to stop its financial aid for the race.
Mexico City Mayor Claudia Scheinbaum said the new deal will not use government money and the race will be supported with private funds.
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