MON SIX

American Hailey Baptiste overcame former French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic in first-round play at Roland Garros on Sunday in Paris.

Baptiste, seeded 26th, saved two match points and outlasted Krejcikova 6-7 (7), 7-6 (6), 6-2 in two hours, 57 minutes.

Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open winner, has failed to advance past the second round since.

Baptiste, 16 spots higher in the world rankings than Krejcikova, acted like the favorite, showing poise during the critical second-set tiebreaker to battle back from two-point deficits on four occasions and save match point twice.

That set the stage for a dominant closeout in the third set, in which Baptiste won 15 of her 20 first-service points (75%). It continues a trend of success for Baptiste at the event, after she reached the fourth round a year ago.

"It was a very close first two sets," Baptiste said. "... I just stayed tough. Saved a couple of match points in the second, and somehow got over the finish line."

It was a theme of present vs. past on the day, with present prevailing in nearly every instance. Krejcikova's fellow past Grand Slam winners -- Emma Raducanu of Great Britain and Americans Sofia Kenin and Sloane Stephens --were each ousted by comparatively less accomplished players.

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Czechia's Sara Bejlek (No. 35 WTA) dumped Stephens, the 2017 U.S. Open winner, 6-3, 6-2 in 83 minutes. Peyton Stearns also controlled play against 2020 Australian Open champion Kenin, winning 6-3, 6-3.

Argentina's Solana Sierra surprisingly jumped all over 2021 U.S. Open winner Raducanu before closing her out, 6-0, 7-6 (4).

Among seeded players, the day was mostly devoid of upsets. No. 8 Mirra Andreeva of Russia handled France's Fiona Ferro 6-3, 6-3, while 11th-seeded Belinda Bencic of Switzerland took care of Austria's Sinja Kraus 6-2, 6-3.

The lone upset came from Ukraine's Daria Snigur, who snuck past No. 21 seed Clara Tauson of Denmark 3-6, 7-5, 6-2.

No. 15 seed Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine defeated Russia's Oksana Selekhmeteva 6-2, 6-3. Czech 27th seed Marie Bouzkova topped Lucia Bronzetti of Italy 6-3, 6-1, and No. 32 seed Xinyu Wang of China beat Lilli Tagger of Austria, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.

Later in the day, No. 18 Sorana Cirstea of Romania handled France's Ksenia Efremova 6-3, 6-1.

Other winners included Caty McNally, Katie Volynets, Spain's Marina Bassols, Ukraine's Yuliia Starodubtseva, China's Xiyu Wang, Poland's Magda Linette, Germany's Tamara Korpatsch, Poland's Magdalena Frech (via retirement) and Great Britain's Francesca Jones.

--Field Level Media

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’semerging dealto end theIran waris drawing heavy criticism from some fellow Republicans who favor a harder line against the government in Tehran and fear a lost opportunity to finally rein in a longtime Mideast nemesis.

Iran US Pushback

The deal the Republican president had said was “largely negotiated” has left a range of lawmakers, former Cabinet members and conservative analysts wondering aloud whether the terms as currently known will render the conflict all “for naught.”

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said the president's decision to strike Iran was the “most consequential” of his second term and that he should not let up now.

“If the result of all that is to be an Iranian regime — still run by Islamists who chant ‘death to America’ — now receiving billions of dollars, being able to enrich uranium & develop nuclear weapons, and having effective control over theStrait of Hormuz, then that outcome would be a disastrous mistake,” Cruz wrote Saturday on the social media platform X. It was in reaction to Trump's update after he had spoken with the leaders of Israel and other U.S. allies in the region.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who also is close to Trump, panned any deal that would leave Iran perceived as being a dominant force in the region and in which it would retain its ability to destroy oil infrastructure throughout the Gulf.

Sen. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, questioned the merit of a proposed 60-day ceasefire, saying it would be a “disaster.”

“Everything accomplished by Operation Epic Fury would be for naught!” said Wicker, R-Miss.

Trump says it will take time to ‘get it right’

Trump, who has said he only makes good deals and detests being seen as not having the upper hand in any negotiation, dismissed objections to a deal that he said was not “even fully negotiated yet.”

“So don’t listen to the losers, who are critical about something they know nothing about,” he said on his social media platform.

Trump said the deal he and his representatives are working out is “THE EXACT OPPOSITE” of a nuclear pact that Iran agreed to under the Democratic Obama administration. Trump pulled out of that agreement and has been trying to iron out a new one.

“Both sides must take their time and get it right. There can be no mistakes!” Trump said.

He added that a U.S. military blockade of Iranian ports would remain “in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed.”

Some support for Trump came from Capitol Hill, too.

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GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, often a thorn in the president’s side, defended the White House's approach.

“War virtually always ends with negotiations,” Paul wrote on X. “Critics of President Trump’s peace negotiations should give President Trump the space to find an American First solution.”

Under the proposal,the warwould come to an end and Iran would reopen the strait and give up its stockpile ofhighly enriched uranium, with the details and timelines to be worked out during a later 60-day window, regional officials told The Associated Press on Sunday.

Critics air objections as details trickle out

Pollsshow the war, which began when the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, is unpopular with the American public and hascost U.S. taxpayers at least $29 billion, as of this month. Thirteen service members have been killed during the operation.

Trump initially said the war would be over in four weeks to six weeks, but the standoff continues. Iran's closure of the strait, through which about 20% of global energy supplies transit, hasjolted the world economyand sentprices for gasoline and other goodsclimbing.

Mike Pompeo, one of Trump's first-term secretaries of state, asserted on Saturday that the emerging deal seemed to him to be the same as the Obama-era one from which Trump withdrew.

“Not remotely America First,” Pompeo said on X, prompting a profanity-laced rejoinder from Steven Cheung, the White House director of communications.

John Bolton, a national security adviser in the first term who has become a critic of the president, said the emerging plan details seemed to favor the Iranian government.

“If news reports about the impending Iran deal are correct, the ayatollahs will have won a significant victory,” Bolton wrote Sunday on X. “They will be back on the road to nuclear weapons, supporting global terrorism and repressing their own people.”

Rubio says a nuclear Iran is ‘not going to happen’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back on Sunday during a diplomatic mission in India, telling reporters at a news conference that no president has been stronger against Iran than Trump.

“His commitment to that principle that they’ll never have a nuclear weapon shouldn’t be questioned by anybody,” Rubio said. “And the idea that somehow this president, given everything he’s already proven he’s willing to do, is going to somehow agree to a deal that ultimately winds up putting Iran in a stronger position when it comes to nuclear ambitions is absurd. That’s just not going to happen.”

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, a Trump antagonist who had pushed legislation to restrain the president’s ability to wage war against Iran, told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that while the terms are not yet fully known, “if Lindsey Graham and Ted Cuz are crashing out last night, I’d say it’s probably a pretty good deal.”

Massie will leave Congress in Januaryafter incurring Trump's wrath and losing his GOP primary last week to a Trump-backed challenger.

Some matchups just become oddly one-sided, even when the teams involved should be evenly matched. That has quietly become the case whenever thePhiladelphia EaglesandLos Angeles Ramsshare a field. They aren't rivals per se, but there are times when it feels like this is where it's headed.

Over the past four seasons, no NFL team has defeated theRamsmore often than theEagles, not even the teams in their division. Not theSan Francisco 49ers. Not theSeattle Seahawks. Not theArizona Cardinals, all division rivals who see Sean McVay's team far more regularly. Philadelphia has somehow become the franchise that Los Angeles simply can't seem to shake. The most recent chapter probably explains why the scars remain fresh. Their latest meeting delivered the kind of drama that leaves both fan bases emotionally exhausted. The Rams built a comfortable lead and appeared firmly in control, only for the Eagles to claw their way back into the fight. What followed felt less like a standard NFL finish and more like controlled chaos.

Philadelphia blocked one field goal. Then, they blocked another.

The second became the moment everyone remembers, asJordan Davis scooped the loose ball, rumbled to the end zone, and turned a defensive special-teams dagger into an unforgettable punctuation mark. Apparently, Sean McVay hasn't fully moved on. During a recent sit-down onBussin' With The Boys, the Rams head coach was asked about the game, and judging by his tone, the memory still sounds painfully vivid.

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More than eight months have passed, yet McVay discussed Jordan Davis' block-and-score sequence with the kind of detail that suggests the replay still visits him uninvited. Honestly, that makes perfect sense. NFL coaches are wired differently. Most fans remember the result. Coaches remember every missed assignment, every breakdown, every decision they wish they could have back.

For an offensive mind as detail-obsessed as McVay, losing in that fashion probably doesn't fade cleanly. And why would it? Games like that don't simply sting because you lost. They sting because you had control, watched it disappear, and then got buried beneath one of the season's strangest finishes.

For Eagles fans, it was exhilarating. For Sean McVay? It still sounds like a horror story with Jordan Davis playing the final villain.

This article originally appeared on Eagles Wire:Sean McVay couldn't believe Eagles blocked a FG to defeat the Rams

Iran's World Cup training base has been moved from the United States to Mexico with the approval of FIFA, the president of the governing body of Iranian soccer said Saturday.

FIFA has not yet confirmed the move, which was announced by Mehdi Taj, president of the Iran Football Federation.

"All team base camps for the countries participating in the World Cup must be approved FIFA," Taj said in a statement. "Fortunately, following the requests we submitted and the meetings we held with FIFA and World Cup officials in Istanbul, as well as the webinar meeting we had yesterday in the Tehran with the respected FIFA secretary general, our request to change the team's base from the United States to Mexico was approved."

The Iranian team had been scheduled to hold its base camp, which is used for training ahead of and after matches, at the Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Ariz., but the war in the Middle East and related security concerns had caused uncertainty about Iran's World Cup activities.

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"We will be based in the Tijuana camp, which is near the Pacific Ocean and on the border between Mexico and the United States," Taj said in a video posted on the federation's Telegram social media account, noting the move could resolve potential visa issues with the team entering the U.S. through Mexico.

Iranian officials said earlier this month their players and staff had not yet received U.S. visas.

The World Cup, co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, runs from June 11 through July 19.

As part of Group G, Iran is set to play its first two matches in Los Angeles, against New Zealand on June 15 and Belgium on June 21, with a June 26 matchup against Egypt in Seattle.

--Field Level Media

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The U.S. military conducted a rapid response exercise involving Marines and military aircraft in Venezuela’s capital Saturday, over four months after theouster of then-President Nicolás Maduro.

Venezuela US Drill

Two Marine Corps Osprey aircraft, which have characteristics of both a helicopter and a fixed-wing airplane, flew overthe recently reopened U.S. Embassy in Caracas. They landed in the parking lot with the downdraft blowing tree branches. Forces then descended from the aircraft.

“Ensuring the military’s rapid response capability is a key component of mission readiness, both here in Venezuela and around the world,” the embassy said on Instagram.

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Venezuela’s government had announced the drill earlier this week. Foreign Minister Yván Gil said the U.S. would conduct the exercise to prepare “in the event of medical emergencies or catastrophic emergencies.”

The drill comes almost two months after the U.S. formally reopened its embassy in Caracas. The reopening followed the restoration of full diplomatic relations with the South American country afterMaduro's ouster in early January.

Some Caracas residents Saturday gathered near the embassy to watch the aircraft, while a few dozen others gathered elsewhere in the city to protest the exercise. Protesters held a Venezuelan flag with the message “No to the Yankee drill” written over it.

U.S. military aircraft last flew over Caracas on Jan. 3, when elite forces rappelled down from helicopters and captured Maduro and his wife. Both were taken to New York to face drug trafficking charges. They have pleaded not guilty.

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Jovan Buha: "I don't know what (LeBron James) expects if I'm being completely honest here, but I think he expects to be paid close to what he is worth.He was an all-star last year. Once he became the number one option, he went back to putting up number one option-level numbers. He was the best player on a team that won a first-round playoff series. You could argue he's worth 35, 40, 45 million based on the season he just had. So I think the expectation will probably be somewhere in line with that.

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype:LeBron James not taking a pay cut in free agency?

Detroit Red Wings rookie Emmitt Finnie hasn't been getting much ice time for Canada at the world hockey championship in Switzerland, but he's making the most of his opportunities.

Finnie scored his first goal of the round-robin tournament and added an assist in only 5:57 of ice time, as Canada (5-0) defeated Slovenia, 3-1, on Friday at the BCF Arena in Fribourg.

More:Seven Red Wings competing at world championships: 'It's a great honor'

Finnie, a seventh-round draft choice who had 13 goals and 17 assists for 30 points with a minus-10 rating and 131 hits in his first season in Detroit, has played in only two of Canada's five games.

"My role here is a little different from what I'm used to, but everyone here is a great player," Finnie said after the game at iihf.com. "Whether I'm playing or not it's not going to deteriorate my confidence. I'm just trying to work as hard as I can and make an impact when I'm out there."

Finnie scored his goal early in the third period by going to the net and tipping in a shot from Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly at 6:41, his first career goal with Team Canada.

"It's not easy for him," Maple Leafs forward John Tavares said. "Maybe he's not always taking a regular shift when he's in, but he's really enjoying being around the group and he's learning a lot, being a sponge.

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"I'm thrilled for him to get on the board and be named Best Player of the game."

Ex-Spartan Porter Martone was scoreless in 8:11 of ice time for Canada. He has one goal and four assists for five points in five games.

The win keeps Canada in top place of the Group B standings without a loss, their only blemish being a 6-5 OT decision against Norway on Thursday.

Canada has a day off before playing Slovakia on Sunday in a battle of undefeated teams.

"I think our game was more connected today than yesterday," Tavares said. "It would have been nice to put the puck in the net a little more today, but we possessed it a lot.

"We were in control pretty much the whole game, but we can always find ways to be better."

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News:Emmitt Finnie of the Detroit Red Wings scores first goal at worlds