TENNIS
Rafael Nadal will face a red-hot Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Barcelona Open final after the 11-time champion eased past fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno 6-3, 6-2 on Saturday.
The second-seeded Tsitsipas advanced by beating Jannik Sinner 6-3, 6-3 for his eighth consecutive straight-sets victory including last week’s title run at Monte Carlo.
Tsitsipas beat Nadal in their last meeting in the Australian Open quarterfinals in February, when Tsitsipas rallied from a two-set deficit.
PORSCHE GRAND PRIX: Top-ranked Ash Barty celebrated her birthday by coming back from a set down to beat fourth-seeded Elina Svitolina 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 in the semifinals in Stuttgart, Germany.
Barty will play Aryna Sabalenka in Sunday’s final as she bids for her first clay title since the 2019 French Open.
Sabalenka defeated second-seeded Simona Halep, 6-3, 6-2.
GOLF
LPGA: Brooke Henderson rallied to win the HUGEL Air Premia LA Open in Los Angeles for her 10th LPGA Tour title, chipping in for birdie on the par-3 12th in an early back-nine burst and getting up-and-down for par on the last hole.
Henderson closed with her second straight 4-under 67 for a one-stroke victory over Jessica Korda. She finished at 16-under 268 to break the event record of 14 under set by Minjee Lee in 2019.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Garrick Higgo of South Africa shot a 7-under 63 and took a two-shot lead into the final round of the Gran Canaria Open in Clas Palmas, Spain.
Matthias Schwab, Matthieu Pavon and Connor Syme were tied for second place at 16 under.
PGA: Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel birdied six of their final eight holes to shoot a 9-under 63 and take a one-shot lead at 19-under 197 into the final round of the Zurich Classic in Avondale, Louisiana.
AUTO RACING
XFINITY: Jeb Burton raced to his first NASCAR Xfinity Series victory when rain halted the race with 23 laps left at Talladega Superspeedway.
Burton passed his cousin, Harrison Burton, on the inside on Lap 82 and stayed in front before a seven-car wreck forced a caution and heavy rain sent the cars to pit road.
COLLEGES
FOOTBALL: Jawon Hamilton rushed for a career-high 171 yards and scored an FCS playoff-record 99-yard touchdown as top-ranked James Madison (6-0) defeated VMI 31-24 in the first round of the playoffs in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
• Nolan Henderson passed for a touchdown, Anthony Paoletti ran for a score and Delaware advanced to the FCS quarterfinals with a 19-10 win over visiting Sacred Heart.
• Mark Gronowski passed for three touchdowns, Isaiah Davis ran for 156 yards and another score and South Dakota State (6-1), the No. 1 seed in the FCS playoffs, walloped Holy Cross 31-3 in Brookings, South Dakota.
SOCCER
MLS: Brandon Bye’s cross led to Brendan Hines-Ike’s own goal in the 48th minute as the New England Revolution beat visiting D.C. United, 1-0.
ENGLAND: Chelsea boosted its chances of qualifying for the Champions League with a 1-0 win at West Ham on a goal late in the first half by Timo Werner.
The victory, coupled with Liverpool conceding a stoppage-time goal to draw 1-1 at home against lowly Newcastle, allowed Chelsea to open up a gap over its two main rivals for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
With five games remaining in the league, Chelsea is three points ahead of West Ham and four ahead of Liverpool.
GERMANY: Bayern Munich missed a chance to clinch the Bundesliga title with three games remaining when it lost 2-1 at relegation-threatened Mainz.
First-half goals from Jonathan Burkardt and Robin Quaison put Bayern’s title celebrations on hold and lifted Mainz five points clear of the relegation zone.
Robert Lewandowski returned from a month out because of a knee injury and for Bayern in the fourth minute of injury time to take his season tally to 36, but it was too late for the eight-time defending champions.
FRANCE: Kylian Mbappe scored twice before exiting with what appeared to be a minor injury as Paris Saint-Germain won 3-1 at Metz and moved to the top of the French league.
Lille can regain first place by one point if it wins at Lyon on Sunday.
SPAIN: Real Madrid stumbled in a tight Spanish league title race, being held to a 0-0 draws at home by Real Betis.
Madrid is two points behind Atletico Madrid, which can take a big step toward its first title since 2014 if it wins at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
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