14/08/2026

SPORTS 28 R ORY MCILROY is gearing up for a golf marathon as he targets a fourth US PGA Tour FedEx Cup crown, starting with the St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee, this week. “I almost try to view the playoffs as one big, long tournament, like a 12-round event,” McIlroy told reporters yesterday as he prepared to tee it up at TPC Southwind after skipping the first playoff event last year. “You’ve got to pace yourself,” he added. “It’s three long weeks. We’re going from here to St. Louis to Atlanta. “I’ve tried to treat it like one big long golf tourna ment and sort of get into the rhythm of it and go from there. “I’ve been lucky enough to do pretty well on these things over the years. So try to add another one to the list.” McIlroy is 12th in the playoff standings and assured of playing the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta, where the field is winnowed to the top 30 on the list. He was ranked second in the playoff standings at this time last year when he opted out of the opening event and said “a few different things” went into making a different decision this year. FRIDAY | AUG 14, 2026

Marathon man McIlroy returns to action at St. Jude Classic targeting fourth FedEx Cup crown

SPORTS TRAMLINES Zverev’s easy fix for crowded calendar

WORLD NO. 3 Alexander Zverev said cutting Masters tournaments back to one week would help players main tain their fitness instead of having to manage their workload and be selec tive about which events they com pete in. Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Canadian Open to prioritise his health after retaining his Wimbledon title, while 24-times Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic also skipped the US Open tune-up to manage his work load. Carlos Alcaraz missed out due to a wrist injury that has kept him out since April. The withdrawals once again left the tournament without three of the sport’s top names after the trio also missed last year’s edition. French Open champion Zverev, who lost his opening match in Montreal, told reporters: “I think that’s what two-week events do. “Unfortunately, especially if there’s a Grand Slam coming after that. If you play everything and you’re a top player, you spend seven weeks here in North America. “That is quite a long time and I think that’s why a lot of top players choose not to play Canada for multi ple years now. That’s unfortunately the sad reality of it. “It’s quite simple. Make us be here for two weeks, not seven. For the Masters, it’s two weeks for both of them. I think that’s an easy fix regard ing top players playing,” added the German, speaking ahead of the HOLGER RUNE has revealed that he’s still hoping to make a comeback at the US Open as he continues to recover from a torn Achilles. The former world No. 4 suddenly injured himself at the Stockholm Open last October and was in tears as he retired. He soon con firmed that he’d torn his Achilles tendon and quickly underwent surgery. The 23-year-old ing “good”. Rune also told Roddick that he could return for Denmark’s Davis Cup World Group tie against Bulgaria, being played from Sept 18 to 20. Then, he’d look ahead to the Asian swing. The Dane’s comments led many to believe that he had ruled out the US Open entirely, but Rune has now shared a new statement on his hopes of competing in Flushing Meadows. “I see conclusions on me with drawing from US Open. I did not with draw. I am working super hard every day and as soon as I am ready, I am ready. I hope it will be US Open,” he tweeted. “I’m feeling great. It’s a long proc ess, as we all knew it would be, but rehab is going well. Now it’s less about rehab and more about getting ready to perform again.” Cincinnati Open. Rune hoping for US Open return has given a positive update during an appearance on Andy Roddick’s Served podcast, in which he revealed that he was making progress on the practice courts and that his Achilles was feel

In fact, since winning a second straight Masters title in April, McIlroy has played just six PGA Tour events to take his total to 11 for the year. He is projected to come up one start short of the 15 US PGA events required to maintain his dual PGA Tour and DP World Tour membership. McIlroy said he was confident he would reach an agreement to maintain his membership without cramming another PGA Tour stop into a late-season schedule that includes half a dozen global events. He said he had had “productive” talks with PGA Tour commissioner Brian Rolapp on the matter. “I think we’ve built up a really good relationship and we’ve had a couple of conversations last week about what I can do with the tour going forward to fulfill the obligation to keep my membership,” he said. – AFP

“I think having four weeks off going into the last two events of the year was probably going to be a lit tle too much for me in terms of wanting to be com petitive,” he said. “I think it’s important to be here,” he added. “It’s the Tour’s playoffs, and I think it’s important for all the players to be here.” World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler tops the FedEx Cup standings and will be looking for a hot start in Memphis, where has finished in the top five in his past two starts. “I have three tournaments, three good starts to kind of end the year. Definitely excited to get this week going,” Scheffler said. He will tee off overnight alongside McIlroy, who hasn’t played since he finished with a share of 40th in the British Open at Royal Birkdale in July.

Swiatek, Rybakina set for Toronto showdown

Ben Shelton celebrates after defeating Learner Tien (not pictured) in their National Bank Open semifinal in Montreal, Canada yesterday. – AFPPIC

IGA SWIATEK rallied from a break down in the deciding set to beat Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 at the Canadian Open yesterday, securing her place in a final for the first time this season. Swiatek will take on Elena Rybakina for the title at the US Open tune-up event after the Australian Open cham pion beat Coco Gauff 5-7, 6-2, 6-2. Swiatek, who won one of her six Grand Slam titles in Flushing Meadows in 2022, secured the rain-delayed first set in Toronto before Svitolina turned the tables and broke the Pole twice in a one-sided second set. Svitolina broke to grab a 3-2 lead in the decider but former world No. 1 Swiatek reeled off the final four games to claim victory. “After that second set I knew I had to do everything I could to get my rhythm and my game back,” she told Tennis Channel . “It’s not easy to do that during a match – to keep your calm and your composure and follow the plan. I’m happy in the third set I did that and it paid off in the end. I didn’t doubt myself.” Swiatek has had an inconsistent sea son, failing to advance beyond the quarters at a Grand Slam and replacing her coach after a surprise second-round defeat by compatriot Magda Linette in Miami. In yesterday’s other semifinal, Gauff edged a tight opening set but the American’s game fell apart after her serve was broken in the second, as Rybakina won five straight games to level the contest. Kazakhstan’s Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon winner, broke twice in quick succession to take command of the third set and fought off a couple of break points to serve out the win. The only previous meeting between Gauff and Rybakina also came in Toronto in 2022, which the American won in three sets. “Last time we played, it was such a battle and even in practice, it’s always a close match,” world No. 2 Rybakina said. “I feel like in the first set we were playing well but then I rushed it a little bit. I’m just glad that I managed to win again in three sets,” she added. – Reuters

Bloodied Shelton reaches final

DEFENDING champion Ben Shelton shook off a nasty crash into a back court hoarding as he steamrolled Learner Tien 6-2, 6-3 to reach the final of the ATP Montreal Masters yesterday. Shelton, who won the title in Toronto last year in the ATP Masters 1000 event that alternates between cities, will try to double up in Toronto when he takes on fellow American Brandon Nakashima in today’s title match. Nakashima held off Spanish teenager Rafael Jodar 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 to book his first ATP Masters final. “It means a lot, so many American guys in the mix,” Shelton said. The last all-US pair to battle for a Masters trophy were Mardy Fish and Andy Roddick in 2003 in Cincinnati. Shelton was treated by a trainer in the second set to staunch bleed ing from his left elbow and webbing of his fingers.

times they have played – including in Toronto last year. Nakashima needed two hours – including 66 minutes in the second set – to subdue Jodar. The Spanish sensation, a finalist in Washington this month and tipped to soon crack the top 10 in the rankings, saved four match points before his opponent fired an ace on his fifth opportunity to pre vail in a final game that featured six deuces and lasted more than 10 minutes. “That final game was crazy,” Nakashima, 25, said. “It was super tight. We both had to keep fighting. I was lucky I was hitting my spots on serve, it paid off today. I’m happy to get through that one.” Nakashima will be playing the fifth final of his career and by far his most prestigious. He said fatigue wasn’t a factor, despite piling up matches in his deep runs in Washington and Canada. – AFP

He shook off the discomfort to earn a payback win against Tien, who had beaten him in two previ ous meetings. “I played four good return points after the timeout, I was not feeling anything except the sting of the medicine,” Shelton said. “I’m super happy with the per formance,” added the American, who saved all four break points he faced and won 81 percent of his first-serve points. “Learner presents a lot of prob lems to my game. He’s a challenge to overcome,” Shelton said. “He can jerk you around the court. I had to play intelligent tennis. The final will be a war and I’ll leave it all out on the court.” Shelton is seeking his fourth title this season after winning on three different surfaces: indoor in Dallas, clay in Munich and grass in Stuttgart. He has beaten Nakashima all five