Mavericks' Kyrie Irving officially shut down for season following ACL tear
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving will not suit up this season, as he continues to rehab from a knee injury, the team announced.
Irving tore the ACL in his left knee in a game against the Sacramento Kings on March 3, 2025, and he missed the last 20 games of the season. Irving, 33, is expected to return for the 2026-27 season.
"This decision wasn’t easy, but it’s the right one," Irving said in a statement. "I am grateful for the Mavericks organization, my teammates and our fans for their continued support throughout the process. I am looking forward to coming back stronger next season. The belief and drive I have inside only grows. And I wanted to send a huge shoutout to ALL of my brothers and sisters out there who’ve torn their ACL or gotten injured doing what they love to do every day. THANK YOU for the inspiration. No fear!"
At the time of Irving's injury, the Mavericks were thought to be in the championship hunt after acquiring Anthony Davis from the Los Angeles Lakers for All-NBA guard Luka Doncic, a trade that stunned the basketball world.
But Irving and Davis appeared in one game together, and Davis only appeared in 29 games with the Mavericks before he was traded earlier this month to the Washington Wizards, part of a nine-player blockbuster deal.
Dallas entered the All-Star break at 19-35, good for 12th place in the 15-team Western Conference.
Irving, a nine-time All-Star, has averaged 23.7 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.1 rebounds during his 15-year career for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets and Mavericks.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyrie Irving ACL tear ends season for Mavericks star
Shiffrin Wins Slalom Gold
American skier Mikaela Shiffrin secured a gold medal in the slalom competition, marking her second Olympic gold in this event after her victory in Sochi 2014.
The win comes after Shiffrin faced disappointment in the combined and giant slalom events where she failed to medal, making this slalom victory particularly significant for the champion skier.
Giants v Coventry postponed after flight cancellation
Wednesday's Challenge Cup semi-final second leg between the Belfast Giants and Coventry Blaze has been postponed after the away side encountered travel disruption.
The game, which was set to get under way at 19:00 GMT at Belfast's SSE Arena, was called off due to Coventry's flight from Birmingham to Belfast being cancelled.
Posting on X, the Giants said a rescheduled date for the fixture will be announced "in due course".
Coventry have a 3-2 lead over the holders from last week's first-leg victory.
Four ducks in 7 innings, no problem: Abhishek Sharma remains No. 1 T20I batter; Ishan Kishan breaks into top 10
Abhishek has endured a difficult T20 World Cup campaign so far. He began with a golden duck against USA in India’s opening match and was later hospitalised in New Delhi due to a stomach infection, which ruled him out of the clash against Namibia. On his return against Pakistan, he was dismissed for another duck.
Despite the lean patch, the young left-hander continues to hold on to the No. 1 ranking.
Ishan, meanwhile, surged 17 places to eighth overall after scoring his second successive half-century of the tournament. His blistering 77 off just 40 balls earned him the Player of the Match award and significantly boosted his ranking.
Sri Lanka’s Pathum Nissanka climbed three spots to third among T20I batters following his outstanding century against Australia in Kandy.
There were notable gains elsewhere as well. South Africa’s Ryan Rickelton jumped 22 places to 11th, while Aiden Markram moved up six spots to joint 15th. USA batter Saiteja Mukkamalla rose 16 places to 21st, and England youngster Jacob Bethell advanced 22 spots to 32nd after impressive outings at the T20 World Cup.
The race for the No. 1 T20I all-rounder ranking remains intense, with Pakistan’s Saim Ayub reclaiming the top spot in the updated list. Ayub overtook Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza after his three-wicket haul against India in Colombo.
Raza slipped to second, while Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee (up two places) and Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai (up four) are joint fourth following consistent performances.
The battle is equally close in the bowling rankings. Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan moved up one place to second and is closing in on India’s Varun Chakravarthy at the summit.
Zimbabwe pacer Brad Evans leapt 10 spots to fifth after back-to-back three-wicket hauls at the T20 World Cup. India’s Axar Patel (up four places to 14th) and Jasprit Bumrah (up six to 15th), along with Ireland spinner Matthew Humphreys (up 23 to 23rd), also registered significant gains.
SVT Expert on Tkachuk Brothers: 'They are the pest together'
The American brothers Matthew and Brady Tkachuk are often painted as 'public enemy number one' by their opponents.
'They are the pest together,' says SVT Sports expert Jonas Andersson.