Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Basketball-New York’s iconic ‘Captain’ Reed dies at 80

Hall of Famer Willis Reed, the beloved former New York Knicks player who won two championships, has died at the age of 80, the National Basketball Retired Players Association said on Tuesday. The seven-time All-Star spent his decade-long career with the Knicks, where he famously took the court in Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers despite suffering a leg injury earlier.

Tennis-Djokovic has ‘no regrets’ about missing US events over COVID vaccine status

Novak Djokovic said he had no regrets about missing tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami due to his COVID-19 vaccination status but hoped that he would be allowed into the United States later this year for the U.S. Open Grand Slam. The U.S. currently bars unvaccinated foreigners from entering the country, though the policy is expected to be lifted when the government ends its COVID emergency declarations in May

Doping-New Zealand Olympic runner slapped with eight-year ban

New Zealand middle- and long-distance runner Zane Robertson, who competed at the Rio and Tokyo Olympics, has been banned for eight years for doping and interfering with the testing process, the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand said on Wednesday. The 33-year-old, a bronze medallist in the 5,000 metres at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, received one four-year ban for testing positive for the banned substance erythropoietin (EPO) and another for tampering with evidence.Robertson tested positive for EPO, which stimulates red blood cell production and enhances performance in endurance events, at the Manchester Great Race in May 2022.

Baseball-Japan’s Ohtani strikes out Trout to seal World Baseball Classic win

Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout in a showdown between two of the game’s best players to seal Japan’s 3-2 victory over the United States in a riveting World Baseball Classic (WBC) final at Miami’s LoanDepot Park on Tuesday. Baseball is the United States’ national pastime but Japan’s win over the defending WBC champions means they have won three of five editions of the global showcase.

Tennis-Giorgi hangs on to beat Kanepi at Miami Open

Italy’s Camila Giorgi survived a near nightmare third-set collapse to edge Estonian Kaia Kanepi 7-6(4) 6-7(4) 7-6(4) in a marathon first-round match at the Miami Open on Tuesday. Giorgi appeared in complete control when she took a 5-0 third set lead but the veteran Kanepi refused to go away, erasing two match points to draw level at 5-5.

Soccer-Spurs should hold onto Conte ‘as long as possible’ – Doherty

Former Tottenham Hotspur defender Matt Doherty said they should stick with manager Antonio Conte amid speculation that the Italian could be heading for the exit after his stinging criticism of the side on Saturday. Conte blasted his players as selfish, lacking team spirit and unable to play under pressure in an extraordinary media conference following Spurs’ 3-3 draw at Southampton.

Spring training roundup: A’s yield inside-the-park HR, rally past Angels

Tyler Wade knocked a go-ahead RBI double to left in the top of the ninth, and the Oakland Athletics hung on to beat the host Los Angeles Angels 6-5 in a spring training game on Tuesday in Tempe, Ariz. Cristian Pache started the rally earlier in the ninth when his double-play grounder scored the tying run and put Jose Escorche on third. Then Wade came to the plate and collected his second hit of the day.

Surfing-Australian Olympian Owen Wright retires from pro surfing

Surfer Owen Wright, who fought his way back from a traumatic brain injury to win an Olympic bronze medal for Australia, announced his retirement from professional competition on Wednesday, saying he no longer wanted to risk his health. “Over the years I’ve had a number of head injuries and concussions and it’s got to the point where I need to prioritise my long term health,” Wright said on social media.

Soccer-U.S. players ready to move on from Reyna dispute-Ream

United States defender Tim Ream said the national team had moved on from an ugly saga involving the federation and team mate Gio Reyna, ahead of Friday’s CONCACAF Nations League game against Grenada. U.S. Soccer was embroiled in turmoil after returning from the World Cup in Qatar when a bitter dispute broke out between former coach Gregg Berhalter, U.S. midfielder Reyna and his parents..

Golf-Rahm no fan of proposed rule change that would reduce distance

A rule proposal by golf’s governing bodies that would limit the distance balls can travel in professional tournaments would only serve to hurt the players who hit it shorter off the tee, world number two Jon Rahm said on Tuesday. The proposal made last week by the Royal and Ancient and United States Golf Association would give competition organisers the option to require players to use only balls that meet maximum-distance criteria.

(With inputs from agencies.)