Sydney Banks

Sydney Banks Doing what you love is the cornerstone of having abundance in your life.

Finland is the world's happiest country – and professional "happiness hacker" Lena Salmi knows where to find Helsinki's ...
08/07/2024

Finland is the world's happiest country – and professional "happiness hacker" Lena Salmi knows where to find Helsinki's happiest spots, from sea pools to graffiti walls.

For the last seven years, Finland has been voted the happiest place in the world. Of the 140 countries surveyed in the UN's latest World Happiness Report, it continues to rank top for health, wealth, kindness and freedom for citizens to do as they please. Never is that clearer than during the summer when daylight reigns in "the land of the midnight Sun", bringing the city’s unique blend of nature and urban perks to life.
An archipelago framed by 300 islands, with two national parks reachable by public transport from the city and plenty of green spaces, Helsinki is an outdoor-lover's paradise and a sauna-goer's haven; the city has one for every two residents. Add 19 hours of daylight to breezy summertime highs of 21C, and the "happiest city in the happiest country" moniker suddenly makes perfect sense.

After eight years in the job, England manager Gareth Southgate has plenty of practice in blocking out the noise and crit...
06/25/2024

After eight years in the job, England manager Gareth Southgate has plenty of practice in blocking out the noise and criticism that is currently being aimed in his direction after a mixed start to Euro 2024.

He accepts, however, that the contentious conversation provoked by England’s dismal showing in the 1-1 draw with Denmark in Frankfurt will only end if those words are replaced by actions against Slovenia in Cologne on Tuesday.

England have already reached the last 16 but can secure top spot in Group C - and avoid a knockout tie against Germany - with victory on Tuesday.

Kylian Mbappe is always the headline act when he pulls on the France shirt, but an old campaigner shared top billing by ...
06/18/2024

Kylian Mbappe is always the headline act when he pulls on the France shirt, but an old campaigner shared top billing by rolling back the years as Austria were eventually overcome in Dusseldorf.

Mbappe's so far chequered relationship with the European Championship continues and was summed up in one eventful night as he carved out France's fortunate winner, missed a simple chance barely anyone in Dusseldorf Arena could believe, before finding himself covered in blood from a broken nose following an aerial collision.

Jaylen Brown starred as the Boston Celtics put on a dominant display to beat the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 in game one of ...
06/07/2024

Jaylen Brown starred as the Boston Celtics put on a dominant display to beat the Dallas Mavericks 107-89 in game one of the NBA Finals.

The 27-year-old top scored with 22 points, while five of his team-mates also recorded double figures for the Celtics who are aiming to win a record 18th title.

But the Celtics' defensive display was just as good, helping them to a 29-point lead in the first half at the TD Garden in Massachusetts.

Psychology student Ziyad 'Zizo' Almaayouf closes the door and flicks off the light switch. A YouTube video titled 'stadi...
05/28/2024

Psychology student Ziyad 'Zizo' Almaayouf closes the door and flicks off the light switch. A YouTube video titled 'stadium crowd shouts and chants' plays on his phone.

It's August 2022 and in a matter of days the Saudi fighter will be making his pro boxing debut on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk v Anthony Joshua in Jeddah in his home country.

Italy's Jannik Sinner says he is working with doctors to be ready for the French Open after announcing his withdrawal fr...
05/07/2024

Italy's Jannik Sinner says he is working with doctors to be ready for the French Open after announcing his withdrawal from this week's Italian Open in Rome.

The world number two won his first Grand Slam title at this year's Australian Open and is one of the favourites for the Roland Garros tournament, which starts 26 May.

Sinner, 22, followed January's win in Melbourne with further titles in Rotterdam and Miami, but pulled out of the Madrid Open last week with a hip injury after reaching the quarter-finals.

"It is not easy to write this message but after speaking again with the doctors and specialists about my hip problems I have to announce that unfortunately I will not be able to play in Rome," he wrote on X, external.

"Obviously I'm very sad that I didn't recover, it being one of my favourite tournaments ever. I couldn't wait to come back and play at home in front of the Italian crowd."

The news comes a day after the withdrawal of Spain's Carlos Alcaraz - the world number three - from the tournament.

Sinner, who has never been past the quarter-finals at the French Open, added: "Now I will work with my team and doctors to be ready for Roland Garros."

Andy Murray will not have surgery on an ankle injury suffered last month but does not have a date for his return.The Sco...
04/24/2024

Andy Murray will not have surgery on an ankle injury suffered last month but does not have a date for his return.

The Scot, 36, ruptured ankle ligaments at the Miami Open and no timescale has been given for his return.

A spokesperson said on Monday that the three-time Grand Slam champion's rehab is "going well" and he is hoping to start hitting again on court soon.

Britain's former world number one has previously said he does not plan to "play much past this summer".

Rafael Nadal enjoyed a winning start at the Barcelona Open as he returned from another long-term injury in what could be...
04/23/2024

Rafael Nadal enjoyed a winning start at the Barcelona Open as he returned from another long-term injury in what could be his final year before retirement.

The Spanish 22-time major champion, who turns 38 in June, won 6-2 6-3 against inexperienced Italian Flavio Cobolli in their first-round match on Tuesday.

Now ranked 644th, Nadal was playing for the first time since January because of a hip injury and abdominal issues.

Nadal has indicated 2024 is likely to be his last as a professional player.

After pulling out of last year's French Open with the hip problem, the former world number one said he planned to retire at the end of this season.

Nadal, who is considered as one of the best players in history and greatest clay-courter of all time, has only played one event since.

But, before making his latest comeback in Barcelona, Nadal said he was not "putting a deadline" on his retirement and would only keep playing as long as he felt it was "worth it".

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This win was a positive step, if a somewhat straightforward assignment, as the record 14-time champion aims to return to Roland Garros next month.

"I'm just having fun and happy to start with a victory," said Nadal, who faces a tougher opponent next in Australian world number 11 Alex de Minaur.

"I'm going through some tough moments but at the same time when I'm able to be on tour and compete a little bit it means a lot."

Daniil Medvedev was asked by the umpire not to shout at a line judge during his 6-2 6-4 win over Gael Monfils at the Mon...
04/11/2024

Daniil Medvedev was asked by the umpire not to shout at a line judge during his 6-2 6-4 win over Gael Monfils at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Russia's Medvedev, 28, was leading 6-2 1-2 when he became angry and disagreed with two calls on the baseline and shouted at the official.

Umpire Mohamed Lahyani twice came on to court to check calls and calm him down.

"Daniil please don't shout at him," Lahyani said. "He [line judge] can make a mistake as well."

Despite being 40-15 up in the incident-packed game, the world number four lost his serve and then went 4-1 down before winning five games in a row to seal victory against the Frenchman.

The disagreement began after a shot made by Monfils, which Medvedev returned with a forehand winner, was called out. Lahyani came down to check the call but said it was in and awarded the point to Monfils.

Medvedev was clearly frustrated, particularly as Hawk-Eye showed the shot was out, but continued to play.

On the next point Monfils' shot was called in but it had gone beyond the baseline. Medvedev started to shout at this point, with Lahyani coming to check the call once again. This time the umpire agreed with the world number four and gave him the point, but he went on to be broken.

Medvedev continued to remonstrate during a change of ends, shouting and swearing at the umpire, and he was seen hitting the canopy of his chair.

After Lahyani said "if I am wrong, I will apologise", Medvedev replied: "How can you apologise, I lost the freaking game. How did I lose the game when it's out? It's out, it's out... You guys are getting ridiculous, with the Hawk-Eye live you don't see anything."

After the match, Medvedev wrote "in or out?" on a TV camera lens, but was seen shaking hands with Lahyani.

He will play compatriot Karen Khachanov in the last 16 on Thursday.

"I am happy I managed to at one moment try to stay calm, to get my composure, that's what I wanted to do more this year," he said after the game. "There are going to be moments when I still go crazy… but I am 99% sure the ball was out.

"It's a pity because I would have won the game and maybe I win 6-2, but I am happy that even from 4-1 I managed to come back to win the set."

World number one Novak Djokovic has split with coach Goran Ivanisevic.Former Wimbledon champion Ivanisevic became Djokov...
03/29/2024

World number one Novak Djokovic has split with coach Goran Ivanisevic.

Former Wimbledon champion Ivanisevic became Djokovic's main coach in March 2022, having worked with him alongside long-time mentor Marian Vajda since 2018.

Serb Djokovic has won a joint-record 24 Grand Slam singles titles but has made a disappointing start to 2024.

"Goran and I decided to stop working together a few days ago," Djokovic said on Instagram.

"Our on-court chemistry had its ups and downs, but our friendship was always rock solid."

Djokovic lost in the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January, suffered a third-round defeat by world number 123 Luka Nardi at Indian Wells this month, then withdrew from the ongoing Miami Open, citing a need to balance his "private and professional schedule".

"I remember clearly the moment I invited Goran to be part of my team. It was back in 2018, and Marian and I were looking to innovate and bring some serve magic to our duo," Djokovic said.

"In fact, not only we brought serve, but also lots of laughter, fun, year end no1 rankings, record breaking achievements and 12 more Grand Slams (and a few finals) to the count since then. Did I mention a bit of drama too?"

Croat Ivanisevic was nominated for the ATP Coach of the Year in 2023, having helped Djokovic to three of the four Grand Slam titles.

Djokovic shares the record for Grand Slam singles titles with Margaret Court.

The French Open, which starts on 26 May, is the next Grand Slam in the calendar.

Andy Murray believes players need to be more careful about how they speak to officials and that tennis could learn a lot...
03/12/2024

Andy Murray believes players need to be more careful about how they speak to officials and that tennis could learn a lot from rugby about the issue.

Murray's second-round opponent at Indian Wells on Friday is Andrey Rublev, who was disqualified in Dubai last week for unsportsmanlike conduct.

The world number five screamed in the face of a line judge following a disputed call in the final set of his semi-final with Alexander Bublik.

"All of us players - and I think I've been guilty of it myself - we need to be a little bit careful of the way that we speak to officials and treat officials," Murray said.

"There's a huge difference between rugby and football - rugby is a great example for how to deal with it. Officials are dealt with respectfully and we could probably do a better job with it in tennis as well.

"At the end of the day, we as players shouldn't be doing that. We are the one in the wrong - not the official."

Rublev was defaulted after a Russian-speaking official told ATP supervisor Roland Herfel that the 26-year-old had sworn at the line judge in Russian.

Rublev denied he had been speaking Russian, and subsequently won his appeal against losing his ranking points and prize money for the week. An ATP committee decided the penalty would be "disproportionate in this case".

Rublev's fine of $36,400 (£28,700) for the code violation remains in place despite the appeal. In a post on social media, he promised to learn from the experience and "try to be a better player and better person," but did not apologise for his behaviour.

Another recent high profile case was Alexander Zverev's disqualification from the 2022 Mexican Open.

The German player angrily struck the umpire's chair several times - once narrowly missing the official's foot - at the end of a doubles match and was given a suspended eight week ban.

"I understand that in the heat of battle sometimes things happen, but I think over the last four or five years there have been a number of instances where lines have probably been crossed - and maybe not enough has been done about it," Murray continued.

"So I think we all probably have to have a bit of a look at ourselves and go 'is this really the way we want to be dealing with officials or bad line calls?'"

British number one Cameron Norrie moved into the semi-finals of the Rio Open with a 6-1 3-6 6-2 victory over home favour...
02/28/2024

British number one Cameron Norrie moved into the semi-finals of the Rio Open with a 6-1 3-6 6-2 victory over home favourite Thiago Seyboth Wild.

Defending champion Norrie wrapped the first set up in 30 minutes but an error-strewn second set allowed the Brazilian to level.

The 28-year-old raced to a 5-1 lead in the decider and sealed victory with his fifth match point.

"I was just really proud of how I fought hard," said Norrie.

"It was so humid and it was tough physically. I managed to break there in the end, so I'm proud of myself."

Norrie, ranked 23rd, has reached his first ATP Tour semi-final since May and will face 22-year-old Argentine qualifier and world number 113 Mariano Navone.

The other semi-final sees an all-Argentine encounter between Francisco Cerundolo and Sebastian Baez.

"I had a tough patch at the end of last year and I just wanted to stay strong. It's wins like this that make it count," added Norrie.

No player has won the Rio Open twice, while Norrie has joined Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz in reaching the semi-final of the tournament the year after winning it.

At the Los Cabos Open in Mexico, Norway's Casper Ruud beat Greece's defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4 7-6 (7-4) and will face either German top seed Alexander Zverev or Australian Jordan Thompson in the final.

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