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In the world of football, the Gauteng Police announced that six men have been arrested in connection with the killing of Luke Fleurs, the South African footballer. Arsenal and Real Madrid drew the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals stage matches against Bayern Munich and Manchester City at home. Tiger Woods backs Rory McIlroy to win the Masters for the first time in his golfing career.
Read below to learn details about these top stories and other happenings in the sporting world in the last 24 hours.
Football
Six men arrested in connection with killing of Luke Fleurs
After the South African defender Luke Fleurs, who was shot dead in car hijacking last week in Johannesburg, the police have arrested six suspects in Soweto in connection with his case. As per the belief of the Gauteng Police, the “suspects are part of a syndicate that is responsible for car hijackings” in the province.
Arsenal and Real Madrid earn draws in UEFA Champions League QFs
Arsenal came from behind to secure a hard fought 2-2 draw against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League at the Emirates Stadium in London. Meanwhile, Real Madrid also were involved in a tough battle against the defending champions Manchester City, but they found a way to level the score at 3-3.
Tottenham monitor Nico Williams for potential summer transfer from Athletic Bilbao: Reports
Totttenham are reportedly monitoring the progress of the Athletic Bilbao forward, Nico Williams, for a potential summer transfer, as per the report from the Telegraph. Notably, the Spaniard has a £42.8m release clause in his contract with Athletic Bilbao, which Tottenham might look to trigger, if they think that additions are necessary for the team to improve next season.
Manchester United to offload Raphael Varane and Casemiro in summer: Reports
Manchester United are reportedly looking to offload the likes of French defender Raphael Varane and Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, among many other players in the summer, as per the report from Talksport. With the lack of consistent performances in the ongoing season from Manchester United, a shake-up in the squad is well overdue at the Old Trafford club, which is likely to happen under the new ownership of Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Some major results in football are as under:
UEFA Champions League 2023-24
Arsenal 2-2 Bayern Munich
Real Madrid 3-3 Manchester City
Tennis
Spaniard Aaron Cortes gets banned from tennis until 2039 due to corruption
The Spanish tennis player, Aaron Cortes, has been banned from the sport until 2039 after admitting to 35 corruption charges, which had happened between 2016 and 2018, along with a fine of $75,000, of which $56,250 is suspended, said the International Tennis Integrity Agency. Notably, the 29-year-old had fixed the outcome of matches, betted on the sport, failed to report corruption approaches, and gave money to tournament officials to get wildcard entry.
Novak Djokovic advances to third round of Monte Carlo Masters
Novak Djokovic, the world number one, has advanced through to the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters after a straight sets win over Roman Safiullin of Russia 6-1, 6-2 at the Court Rainier III. In the press conference after the win, the Serbian was quoted as saying, “It’s a great start. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves and put the hopes too high.”
Hockey
Australia defeats India 2-1 in third hockey Test match
Australia defeated India by 2-1 in the third hockey Test to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series in Perth. The Indian men’s hockey team had their best match of the tour thus far, taking the lead through Jugraj Singh in the 41st minute, but within the span of eight minutes, the Australians wrestled back the lead through Jeremy Hayward’s penalty stroke, followed by a penalty corner.
Golf
Rory McIlroy gets backing from Tiger Woods to complete career Grand Slam
Rory McIlroy, who has won the US Open, The Open, and the PGA Championships twice, is yet to achieve a victory at the Masters, during his illustrious golfing career. Tiger Woods, who is arguably the greatest golfer of all time, commented on Rory McIlroy’s lack of success at the Masters and said, “No question, he'll do it at some point. Rory's too talented, too good. He's going to be playing this event for a very long time. He'll get it done. It's just a matter of when. I think that Rory will be a great Masters champion one day, and it could be this week.”