Andre Agassi is back. This week, the 55-year-old American tennis star returned to the court. Only this court was slightly smaller. Agassi, an eight-time grand slam winner in his heyday, was playing in the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships in the mixed doubles draw. Unfortunately, he and his playing partner lost their second round match.

Pickleball just keeps coming and coming. My hot take: we’ll be watching the world’s best pickleballers battle it out for gold at Brisbane 2032.

32-12
The final score after the first game of Women’s State of Origin last night, with NSW delivering a decisive victory over the Maroons. The Blues won in front of a record crowd for the Women’s State of Origin matches, with 26,022 people at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.

“I think based on the cases we’ve seen, watch who you kiss and watch out who you have an intimate relationship with.”
Head of the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Travis Tygart, speaking at the Sports Resolutions conference in London. Tygart’s comments were made in relation to anti-doping breaches where athletes have failed drug tests after being intimate with someone who had been using a prohibited substance.

Australian surfer Isabella Nichols, who won last weekend’s Bells Beach Ripcurl Pro, was Blake Lively’s body double in the 2016 film ‘The Shallows’.

⚽ Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham won the first leg of their Europa League semi-final against Norwegian side Bodø/Glimt. After opening the scoring within the first 39 seconds, the Spurs won the match 3-1. The win means Tottenham, who are flailing in 16th in the Premier League, are just one match away from potentially making a tournament final and finding some redemption in what has otherwise been a historically poor season. Manchester United also won its first semi-final leg against Spanish club Athletic Bilbao 3-0. 

🏉 Essendon held off a late surge from North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium last night to win 65-62. Essendon captain Zach Merrett starred for his side with 35 disposals. The result adds to North Melbourne’s woeful start to the season, with only one win from eight matches. Meanwhile, Essendon are 11th on the ladder, having won four from seven matches.

🏀 Australian basketball star Georgia Amoore has been dealt a devastating blow after injuring her  ACL just days before she was due to make her debut for the WNBA’s Washington Mystics. Amoore was selected as the sixth pick in the WNBA draft last month after a successful college basketball career with Virginia Tech and Kentucky.

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The stage is set for the Miami Grand Prix, with Australian driver Oscar Piastri leading the Drivers Standings heading into the weekend. The race is scheduled to begin on Monday at 6:00am (AEST).

This year will mark the third edition of the Miami Grand Prix after it was introduced to the season calendar in 2022. Max Verstappen won the first two, while Lando Norris won last year’s race. The track in Miami is a temporary street circuit that makes its way past Hard Rock Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins.

The weekend will also see the drivers do battle in a Sprint race on Saturday (local time). 

Piastri is 10 points ahead of Norris, his McLaren teammate, with Red Bull’s Verstappen just two points behind the Brit. When asked who the bigger threat is between Norris and Verstappen, Piastri replied: “I think Lando”. 

Piastri is not the only Aussie in the race, with Jack Doohan taking to the track with Alpine despite growing speculation that reserve driver Franco Colapinto will replace him. Doohan is in his first season as a full-time driver and has not yet registered a point. 

In the Constructors’ Championship, McLaren is well and truly on top, 77 points ahead of Mercedes. Red Bull is third, 11 points behind Mercedes.

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The English Football Association has announced that transgender women will be prohibited from playing women’s soccer in England from 1 June.

The sport’s governing body made the announcement on Thursday (local time).

It follows a UK Supreme Court ruling last month which determined that the legal definition of a woman is based on biological sex.

In a statement explaining the decision, the FA said: “This is a complex subject, and our position has always been that if there was a material change in law, science, or the operation of the policy in grassroots football then we would review it and change it if necessary.”

The decision comes a month after the FA said it would allow transgender women to play women’s football on the condition that they reduce their testosterone to a certain level.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the FA reportedly sought legal help and was advised to change its policy.

A spokesperson for UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: "We have been clear that biology matters when it comes to women's sport, that everyone should be compliant with the law… We will continue to support bodies to protect the integrity, fairness and safety of the game."

In response to the FA’s decision, LGBTQIA+ charity Stonewall said: “The FA and Scottish FA’s decision to ban trans women from women’s football has been made too soon, before the implications of the Supreme Court’s ruling has been worked through by lawyers and politicians or become law.”

Meanwhile, campaign group Sex Matters said: “Every other sporting body now needs to re-establish a genuine women’s category. Anyone who cares about women and girls in sport will see that this is the right thing to do.”

The FA said that in the wake of the decision, it was contacting registered transgender women’s football players to explain how they can stay involved with the sport.

The Scottish FA has followed the FA’s decision, and other sporting bodies, including England Netball and the England and Wales Cricket Board, are also taking steps to exclude transgender women.