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Good afternoon.
Do you ever wake up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night and wonder when the next Tiger Woods will come along?
Fear not, he’s here.
American Scottie Scheffler has been the world number one player since May 2023, meaning he has spent 141 continuous weeks at the top.
The record for the most consecutive weeks at the top is 281 and belongs to Tiger (of course).
Scottie is past halfway and showing no signs of slowing down after he won the American Express, a PGA golf tournament, on the weekend in his 2026 debut.


I’ve got 10 seconds
Stat of the day
7
The number of times that Australian world No.6 Alex de Minaur has reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament without a win. Last night, de Minaur was beaten in straight sets (7-5, 6-2, 6-1) by world number one Carlos Alcaraz. De Minaur’s achievement is still historic as the only Australian man to make back-to-back quarter-finals at the AO since Pat Cash in 1987/88. Alcaraz will face third seed Alexander Zverev in the semi-final on Friday after the German defeated American Learner Tien in the quarter-final yesterday.

Carlos Alcaraz was too good for de Minaur last night (Getty)
Quote of the day
“I just took the minute to go and do that. I don’t think it’s a bad thing. Like I said, I don’t try to do it on court in front of kids and things like that, but I do know I need to let out that emotion.”
American tennis star Coco Gauff speaking after she was filmed smashing her racket in a back corridor of Rod Laver Arena. The incident followed her straight-sets loss to Ukrainian 12th seed Elina Svitolina. She added that moments like that “don’t need to be broadcast”. 31-year-old Svitolina advances to the semi-final, where she will play world number one Aryna Sabalenka.

Coco Gauff had a frustrating night out (Getty)
Random fact of the day
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation uses GPO Box 9994 as its standard mailing address in every Australian capital city. The number 9994 is a deliberate nod to cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman, whose Test batting average was 99.94.

I’ve got 30 seconds
In case you missed it…
⚽ Former A-League coach Rado Vidošić has died aged 64 after a battle with cancer, according to an Instagram post from his son Dario. Vidošić spent more than three decades in Australian football after arriving from Croatia in the late 1980s, coaching across the A-League men’s and women’s competitions. He won championships as an assistant at Brisbane Roar and later as head coach of Melbourne City’s women’s side and the club’s men’s team. Vidošić had been working in England with Brighton’s women’s program over the past year.

Rado Vidošić (Getty)
🏉 Australian rugby sevens stars Maddison and Teagan Levi have opted against an NRLW switch, re-signing with Rugby Australia on two-year deals. The sisters had been linked to a one-season move to rugby league but decided to stay in sevens, with Maddison citing the lure of the 2028 Olympic Games as the key factor. The deals keep both players in Australia’s sevens program through the next Olympic cycle.

Maddison and Teagan Levi are sticking with rugby union (Getty)
🏉 Sydney Swans coach Dean Cox has said that the club will rally behind midfielder Taylor Adams as he recovers from an alleged assault in Sydney’s east. Adams was hospitalised briefly after an incident in Rose Bay on Saturday night, with NSW Police continuing their investigation. Cox said the Swans’ priority is Adams’ wellbeing, confirming the club is providing ongoing support to him and his family as he continues his recovery.

Taylor Adams is recovering from an alleged assault (Getty)

Together with ESPN
Your Big Summer of Sport is here
From Super Bowl Monday on 9 Feb to NBA All-Star Weekend and March Madness, summer sport is stacked.
Add in Aussies lighting up the NBA, the Tillies in the UEFA Women’s Champions League, and the run home to the NBL Finals and WNBL Finals.
Stream the Big Summer of Sport with ESPN on Disney+.
*Subscription required

I’ve got 1 minute

The Winter Olympics start next week (Getty)
U.S. confirms plans to send ICE agents to support security at Winter Olympics
The U.S. has confirmed plans to send agents from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) to support security for its delegation at next month’s Winter Olympics in Milan and surrounds.
ICE is the federal agency responsible for enforcing U.S. immigration laws, including deportation. Within the last month, its agents have shot and killed two U.S. citizens in the state of Minnesota. It falls under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Here’s what we know about their involvement.
What’s happening
According to a statement from the DHS to U.S. media, the ICE agents will join other American security officials at the Olympics. They’re expected to support Italian authorities.
The DHS said “all security operations remain under Italian authority,” adding that ICE “does not conduct immigration enforcement operations in foreign countries.”
It has been reported the ICE agents will stay in a central intelligence hub and will not be patrolling the streets.
The DHS and U.S. agencies have provided security at major international events in the past. During the 2024 Paris Olympics, ICE collaborated with French authorities in a smaller role to share “best practices” ahead of the games.
Response
The plan has prompted criticism from local and national officials. Milan mayor Giuseppe Sala has publicly opposed the idea, telling local radio ICE is “not welcome,” asking: “Can’t we just say no to Trump?”
Italy’s Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi told reporters on Monday that the situation was “a controversy over nothing”.
In a separate statement over the weekend, he said he did not “see what the problem is.”
Piantedosi added that while Olympic delegations had the right to choose who staffs their security teams, it was “absolutely forbidden” to “carry out police or similar activities on our soil, especially if they are related to combating immigration”.
Reporting by Pavitra Ravi

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I’ve got 2 minutes

Aryna Sabalenka hopes the rules around wearables at Grand Slams will change (Getty)
The Australian Open fitness tracker controversy, explained
A dispute over wearable fitness trackers has emerged at the Australian Open, prompting Tennis Australia to clarify why players are being asked to remove devices that are otherwise permitted on tour.
Here’s what to know.
What happened?
The issue came to public attention when men’s world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz was asked by the umpire to remove a Whoop band before his fourth-round match against American Tommy Paul.
Other high-profile players, including women’s world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka and two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner, had also been wearing similar devices earlier in the tournament.
Tennis Australia later confirmed that personal wearable devices are not permitted during matches at Grand Slam events, even though they are approved for use at ATP and WTA tournaments.
A statement from Tennis Australia read: “Wearables are currently not permitted at Grand Slams. The Australian Open is involved in ongoing discussions on how this situation could change. Some wearables provide athletes with an indication of internal load (measures like heart rate), which can give them a 360-degree view of the work they’re doing and how their bodies’ respond.”
What is a Whoop?
Whoop is a screen-free fitness tracker designed to be worn at all times. It measures heart rate, recovery, sleep, strain, skin temperature, and blood oxygen levels. It then delivers insights through a subscription-based app.
The device does not receive messages, but it closely resembles other wristbands that could be used for communication.
That similarity could be one reason for the Grand Slam restriction, with officials wary of any technology that could be linked to in-match coaching or hidden messaging.
After every match, players receive extensive performance data through the Bolt 6 tracking system, which measures distance covered, speed, movement patterns, and shot metrics. This data is considered external and doesn’t include internal health data such as heart rate or recovery.
Player response
Sabalenka said she believed wearables had been approved after receiving communication from the International Tennis Federation.
She added: "The whole year we are wearing, on WTA tournaments, all the tournaments I play, we wear Whoop. It's just for tracking my health. I don't understand why Grand Slams have not allowed us to wear it.”
Sinner accepted the ruling but said: “There is certain data… we would like to track a little bit on court”.
He added that such data is not used during the match but is valuable for review afterwards and for future practice sessions.
What’s next?
For now, the ban remains in place at the Australian Open and other Grand Slam tournaments. According to Tennis Australia’s statement, the organisation is in ongoing discussions regarding changing the rules.

Looking back…
Australian Open
(women’s singles quarters)
Who: Elena Rybakina (9) v
Iga Świątek (2)
Result: Rybakina won in two sets
(7-5, 6-1)
Who: Jessica Pegula (6) v
Amanda Anisimova (4)
Result: Pegula won in straight sets
(6-2, 7-6)
WNBL
Who: Perth Lynx v Southside Flyers
Time: Lynx won 111-79

Looking forward… (All times are AEDT)
Australian Open
(men’s singles quarters)
Who: Novak Djokovic (4) v
Lorenzo Musetti (5)
Time: On now!
Who: Ben Shelton (8) v
Jannik Sinner (2)
Time: 7pm
Where to watch: Channel 9, 9Now, Stan Sport
Australian Open
(women’s doubles quarters)
Who: 🇦🇺Gibson/Birrell v Zvonareva/Shibahara
Time: 8:40pm tonight
Where to watch: Channel 9, 9Now, Stan Sport
NBL (Ignite Cup)
Who: Brisbane Bullets v Adelaide 36ers
Time: 8:30pm
Who: SE Melbourne Phoenix v
Perth Wildcats
Time: 9:30pm
Where to watch: 9Now,ESPN (via Kayo, Foxtel, Disney+)
A-League Women
Who: Perth Glory v Sydney FC
Time: 10pm tonight
Where to watch: Channel 10, Paramount+




