Sports
WTA Roundup: Emma Raducanu wins twice in one day to reach London finals
Emma Raducanu gets set to serve to Amanda Anisimova during their third-round match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., Sunday, March 8, 2026. Former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu thrilled the home crowd in London by winning a pair of matches over several hours at the HSBC Championships on Saturday to advance to the tournament finals.
The oft-injured 2021 champion knocked off Uzbekistan’s Kamilla Rakhimova, 6-3, 7-5, then came back a few hours later to oust No. 6 Iva Jovic, 6-2, 6-2.
In between those matches, Croatian Donna Vekic, a lucky loser into the main draw, defeated the United Kingdom’s Katie Boulter, 6-1, 6-3.
Vekic and Raducanu will meet for the first time on Sunday. The 29-year old Vekic has four WTA titles under her belt, while the London native is seeking her second.
Raducanu broke Jovic five times in their match and took advantage of the 18-year old American’s 58 percent first serve efficiency.
Vekic won 23-of-25 points on her first serve against Boulter and never faced a break point.
Libema Open
Robin Montgomery, ranked No. 484 in the world, knocked off Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic, 6-4, 6-2, to reach her first-ever finals in the ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands event on Saturday.
Montgomery, will take on eighth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic in Sunday’s finals. Krejcikova, the lone seeded player to reach the quarterfinals of the grass court event, edged Poland’s Magda Linette, 6-3, 7-6 (4).
Linette served at 5-4 in the second set, staved off four break points, but could not convert on a fifth. She took a 3-0 lead in the tie-breaker, but Krejcikova stormed back to win seven-of-eight to earn the win.
Montgomery smacked 11 aces and won 28-of-33 points on her first serve against Tomljanovic.
The two players have never competed against one another in a tour-level match.
–Field Level Media
Sports
George Russell on Barcelona pole, Lewis Hamilton P2
May 23, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CANADA; Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton (44) during the qualifying session of the Lenovo Grand Prix Du Canada at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images Lewis Hamilton finished just 0.064 seconds behind polesitter George Russell in qualifying for the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, a spot Hamilton believes puts his Ferrari team “in a good position to be able to fight” for first place in Sunday’s race.
In finishing just behind the Mercedes driver, Hamilton notched his best qualifying performance ahead of a Grand Prix. His position for Sunday’s 66-lap race will be his first Grand Prix front-row start since 2024’s British Grand Prix.
“All weekend we’ve been kind of four-tenths off these guys [Mercedes], so even with the upgrade we thought maybe that’s where we were,” said Hamilton.
“But for us to be that close, less than a tenth between us, it’s a real showing of the hard work everyone at the factory has done to bring these upgrades to this track, so a big, big thank you to everyone back in Maranello.”
The seven-time World Champion topped Qualifying 1 on Saturday. His teammate, Charles Leclerc, finished less than half-a-tenth behind Russell in Q2 before suffering a crash at the start of Q3.
“We’ve just got to keep pushing, keep developing, and I’m hoping tomorrow we can squeeze some more out of this and I hope we keep up with these guys for once,” Hamilton said.
Runaway championship leader Kimi Antonelli came in third in the other Mercedes, with McLaren’s Lando Norris taking the fourth slot.
“It has been a little bit of a difficult weekend for me, didn’t really have the feeling in the car,” said Antonelli, who has 156 points after just six races, a whopping 66 points ahead of Hamilton and 68 ahead of Russell.
“It’s going to be an interesting race tomorrow,” Russell said. “Lewis did an amazing job to get up there. We thought the fight was with ourselves and McLaren and Lewis was very fast in that session.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rangers place OF Evan Carter (oblique) on injured list
May 17, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers center fielder Evan Carter (32) catches a fly ball for an out against the Houston Astros during the eighth inning at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images The Texas Rangers placed outfielder Evan Carter (oblique) on the 10-day injured list on Saturday. In a corresponding move, the club recalled utility man Cody Freeman from Triple-A Round Rock.
Carter exited Friday’s game against the Boston Red Sox due to right oblique soreness. It is now being labeled as a right oblique strain.
Carter recorded six home runs, 21 RBIs, 10 stolen bases and a .172/.292/.321 batting line for the Rangers this season. His defensive ability in center field has been even more critical. Baseball Savant ranks him in the 94th percentile in Fielding Run Value.
Freeman suited up in 36 games for the Rangers last season, batting .228 with three home runs and 15 RBIs. He is hitting .341 with two home runs and 11 RBIs in 10 games in Triple-A this season and went 1-for-2 in his lone game for Texas.
He has experience playing left field, right field, second base, and third base in the majors.
Texas also recalled right-hander Joe Ross from Triple-A Round Rock and optioned right-hander Luis Curvelo to the same affiliate. In addition, right-hander Michel Otanez was designated for assignment.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Penguins acquire Oliver Okuliar from Panthers for Emil Pieniniemi
Providence Bruin Matthew Poitras gets wrapped up by Charlottte wing Oliver Okuliar in the second period. The Pittsburgh Penguins acquired forward Oliver Okuliar from the Florida Panthers in exchange for defenseman Emil Pieniniemi.
Okuliar played for Skelleftea AIK in the Swedish Hockey League last season, posting 15 goals and 14 assists in 46 games. During the postseason, the 26-year-old was tied for the league-lead in goals (six) and helped lead his team to the SHL Championship.
During the 2024-25 season, Okuliar played for the Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League, recording 19 goals and 22 assists in 69 games.
Pieniniemi, 21, was a third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Last season, he recorded three points in nine games for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
–Field Level Media
George Russell on Barcelona pole, Lewis Hamilton P2
Rangers place OF Evan Carter (oblique) on injured list
