dan evans says fellow tennis player aljaz bedene shouldn't be considered british. losing in straight sets to dutchman robin haase at the madrid 0pen. which leaves him behind the slovenian—born bedene in the british rankings. evans made the comments in an interview with our tennis correspondent russell fuller, whojoins us from madrid now. russell, this isn't the first time evans has spoken out against bedene. to be fairto to be fair to dan evans, he is being true to his colours. when the bbc reported that bedene wants to switch nationalities from slovenia to britain in 2014, evans made it clear to people that it was not a move he was in favour of. speaking today, while i was talking to him about the fa ct while i was talking to him about the fact he is now the british number fourin fact he is now the british number four in the rankings behind bedene who used to represent slovenia, he made it very clear that in his mind, he is still the british number three. four at the moment. who's the fourth? pescera being bedene being the third. it's nothing to do with him. he's n

british number three aljaz bedene lost his second round match against the czech republic's jiri vesely, and then sought to clarify reports suggesting he might switch allegiance back to slovenia, the country of his birth. having been blocked from representing britain in the davis cup, bedene says he "will fight" on. i read a few interviews and i don't actually remember because i get nervous, what i'm saying, but one of the things is until it looks like it's done, it's not done yet for me. i really want to play for great britain and i'm still hoping, really. so, yeah, i haven't really thought anything outside of that. two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitova's comeback has been cut short. she was knocked out in round two — beaten in straight sets by the american bethanie mattek—sands. kvitova missed five months after being stabbed in the hand by a burglar last year.

he has it all to do if he is to stay in the this year, aljaz bedene., destroying his racket while the american johnson, who angrily, destroying his racket while the americanjohnson, who lost his father unexpectedly earlier this month, was left sobbing at the net. in the womens draw... two—time wimbledon champion petra kvitiva's comeback has been cut short. she's been knocked out of the french open by the american bethanie mattek—sand. kvitiva had been out for five months after being stabbed in the hand by a burglar. the czech lost in straight sets with her ninth double fault of the second round match. the defending champion garbine muguruza suffered a scare against the world number 99 anett kontaveit. but has made it through to round three. the fourth seed lost the first set and was a break down in the second but she fought back to take the next two sets 6—4, 6—2. muguruza will now play russia's yulia putintseva. former grand slam champion margaret court has escalated the row over her comments on homosexuality — accusing gay tennis players of influenci

the italian 0pen began today and britain's number three aljaz bedene will face novak djokovic in thethe qualifying competition for wimbledon, after she won herfirst—round match in the women's tournament in rome. she earned enough ranking points with a straight—sets victory over christine mchale. if she reaches the semi—finals of the italian 0pen, the five—time grand slam champion, who's returning from a 15—month doping ban, will qualify automatically for wimbledon‘s main draw. that's all for now. coming up in a moment, the papers. hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are camilla tominey, deputy political editor at the daily express and the broadcaster, david davies. let's have a look at some front pages. the sun leads with tonight's news that the moors murderer, ian brady, has died. they say he never revealed where he buried one of his vitims. the times also carries a picture ian brady, a picture of ian brady, but leads with a drugs firm facing a fine of hundreds of millions of pounds, for increasing the cost of cancer medic

meanwhile dan evans says fellow player aljaz bedene shouldn't be considered british.ts after losing in straight sets to dutchman robin haase at the madrid open. it's a result that sees evans remain fourth in the british rankings, but he doesn't recognise the number 3 — the slovenian—born bedene — who qualified to represent great britain two years ago on residency grounds. that's all from sportsday. coming up in a moment, the papers. hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are political commentator, jo phillips, and liam halligan, chief economics commentator at the daily telegraph. good to see you. tomorrow's front pages, starting with. .. the financial times, they lead with theresa may's plans to recommit to the conservatives' immigration target of tens of thousands, which she calls "sustainable levels". the express says mrs may told voters that border controls were "urgently needed to ease pressure on public services and a wage squeeze on the low paid". rising energy bills feature on the telegraph's front page.

dan evans says fellow player aljaz bedene should not be considered british.nise the number three, the slovenian born bedene, who qualified for great britain on residency grounds three years ago. our tennis correspondent russell fer reminded him about the current rankings. you are four at the moment. aljaz bedene being the third. oh, so i'm three, 0k. it is nothing to do with aljaz. i like him, he is not confrontational in any way, but to me it doesn't sit well if you play for another country. i don't feel bad about him or anything like that, just for me it is a bit baffling as to why. and now he lives in slovenia as well. i don't think he really believes he is british. that is just the citizenship rule. he has lived here for five years. it is just a bit different, isn't it? the british and irish lions head coach warren gatland says he fully respects and understands ben youngs' decision to pull out of the summer tour to new zealand forfamily reasons. his sister—in—law tiffany has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. scotland's greg laidlaw has been called up t

four—time champion novak djokovic is safely through to the third round after beating britain's aljaz bedene—break before going on to win the second set 6—2. the world number two has a good record in rome, having always reached at least the quarter—finals. our shot of the day goes to france's adrian mannarino. he lost to uruguay‘s pablo cuevas in straight sets, butjust look at this for a beautiful backhand drop shot. the crowd loved it, and we think it's worth a replay. i wish i could do that. here you see it in slow motion. he generates so much spin that the ball bounced back over the net. no way he is getting that. the race to host the 2024 olympics is very close between paris and los angeles. today, the new french president, emmanuel macron, put his full support behind his country's bid. he welcomed members of the ioc‘s inspection committee to the elyese palace. here's the bbc‘s sports editor dan roan. he isjust three he is just three days into the job at france's new president has wasted little time in back in paris's bid to host the 2024 games. macron welcoming numbers of the ioc to the

aljaz bedene being the third. oh, so i'm three, ok. it is nothing to do with aljaz bedene.that, just for me it isa or anything like that, just for me it is a bit baffling as to why. and now he lives in slovenia as well. i don't think he really believes he is british. that is just the citizenship rule. it isjust a bit different, isn't it? chelsea could be champions by the end of the week. they play middlesbrough at stamford bridge. the blues midfielder n'golo ka nte bridge. the blues midfielder n'golo kante should have a spring in his step after picking up another world. already named pfa player of the year they did by his peers, today the football writers made him their player of the season. he won the premier league with leicester last year. winter night and middlesbrough will be whether gaiters, and then chelsea will take the title if they can then beat west brom on friday. in this part of the season for sure it is not easy. every game is very tough, because there is a lot of pressure. it is important it is part ofa pressure. it is important it is part of a period that yo

dan evans says fellow player aljaz bedene should not be considered british.oesn't recognise the number three, the slovenian born bedene, who qualified for great britain on residency grounds three years ago. 0ur tennis correspondence russell evans reminded him about the current rankings. you are four at the moment. aljaz bedene being the third. oh, so i'm three, 0k. it is nothing to do with aljaz. i like him, he is not confrontational in any way, but to me it doesn't sit well if you play for another country. i don't feel bad about him or anything like that, just for me it is a bit baffling as to why. and now he lives in slovenia as well. i don't think he really believes he is british. that is just the citizenship rule. he has lived here for five years. it is just a bit different, isn't it? chelsea could be champions by the end of the week. they play middlesbrough at stamford bridge. the blues midfielder n'golo kante should have a spring in his step after picking up another award. already named pfa player of the year voted by his peers, today the football write

the men's world number two faces britain's aljaz bedene in the rome masters on tuesday. no, not really. to be honest, i am co mforta ble no, not really. to be honest, i am comfortable as it is for the moment. i actually am enjoying the space that i have, and being with my brother, which helps me, who helps mea brother, which helps me, who helps me a lot. and his support and also presents, i appreciate very much. i am in search for a new team, presents, i appreciate very much. i am in search fora new team, but i'm not ina am in search fora new team, but i'm not in a rush. so i know that, when the right time comes, you know, i'll let you guys know what the new team is. juan martin del potro is through to the second round in rome, afterfighting back to beat grigor dimitrov. dimitrov, the tenth seed, won the opening set, but then lost the second with a double fault. oh, the stress and strain of the men's tour. at least he has got plenty more of those in the bag. but del potro, who has had more than a few comebacks in his career, won the decider 6—3. so he will face britain's

already out is aljaz bedene.raight sets to novak djokovic, although he did push the serb all the way in the opener, breaking his serve in the first game of the match. bedene eventually lost the first set on a tie break though and faded somewhat in the second, winning only two games — 7—6, 6—2 the final score. we have breaking tennis news in the last half an hour or so. maria sharapova has not been given a wild ca rd to sharapova has not been given a wild card to play at the french open later this month. the 30—year—old russian is currently in rome fulfilling some promotional events, not playing there. she has just returned from a 15 month doping ban and has not been able to gain enough ranking points to get into the main draw or even qualify for roland garros and although she is a two—time champion in paris organisers have children, chosen not to give her a wild card but she has the chance to qualify through the ranking system. the ioc has finished its inspection of the paris bid ahead of september's vote to deci

tennis, and the british number 3 aljaz bedene is through to the second round of the french open.her winners. andy murray and johanna konta are due to play their first round matches tomorrow. and the british and irish lions have flown out for their series against the world champions new zealand. they'll play ten matches, including three tests, the first of them onjune 24th. that's all the sport, rita. now, it's a week to the day that the city of manchester suffered a major trauma, a bombing that claimed 22 lives and injured many more. our correspondent chris buckler is in manchesterfor us now. at this time exactly one week ago when ariana grande was finishing her concert, parents were gathering their children to go home and just outside a man was preparing to detonate the bomb that would claim 22 lives and change many others. there are people still being treated in hospital and so many others still reliving what happened at the o2 arena and grieving. tonight people gathered here to show their support and pay their respects. in st ann's square words mean something.

dan evans sez fellow tennis player aljaz bedene shouldn‘t be considered british.that sees evans remain fourth in the british rankings. but he doesn‘t recognise the number three, slovenian—born bedene, who qualified to represent great britain two years ago on residency grounds. 0ur tennis correspondent russell fuller reminded evans about the current rankings. four at the moment. who is the fourth? bedene thing before. it is nothing to do with him. he is not confrontational in any way, but to me it does not sit well if you have played for another country. i don't feel bad about him or anything like that. for me, it is baffling as to why. now he lives in savini as well. —— in slovenia as well. i don't think he really believes he is but it either. it is the citizenship rules and living here the five—year is. it is a bit different, isn't it. maria sharapova is taking on her critic eugenie bouchard at the madrid open this evening. bouchard called the russian "a cheater" prior to her return to competitive action in april after a 15—month doping ban. it has been a hard fo

british men's number three aljaz bedene has set up a second round meeting with novak djokovic at therld number one andy murray will be hoping for a return to form as he defends his italian open title in rome this week. he turns 30 today but says he is "not massively into birthdays". murray comes into the tournament on the back of a third—round loss to world number 59 borna coric of croatia in madrid last week. he beat novak djokovic in the 2016 italian open final and will face local favourite fabio fognini in the second round this year. it's tough to necessarily analyse losses in a couple of days when you're also looking to the next tournament but that's also sometimes a positive thing that you have another event to look forward to it immediately, you get a chance to play better, only 4—5 days after a tough match. just to confirm in the last few moments kyle edmund did win his match in the opening round of the italian open. that's all sport for now. you can keep up to date with all those stories on the bbc sport website. i'll have more in sportsday at half past six. more now on the g

in tennis, aljaz bedene gets under way in the french open first round at 10 o'clock.r dan evans, who made his debut in the tournament — it ended in defeat, though, to tommy robredo. clay is not evans' favourite surface, and it showed, as the british numberfour lost by three sets to one. this could prove to be the shock of the tournament — the top seed in the women's draw, angelique kerber, lost her first round match. she was beaten in straight sets by ekaterina makerova. it's billed as the most lucrative match in world football, and it's estimated that at least £170 million awaits the winner of today's championship play—off final between huddersfield town and reading. one of those two clubs willjoin newcastle and brighton in promotion to the premier league. sometimes the feeling, if you are not over support, everybody in britain, maybe in europe, supports huddersfield town and likes to bring this fairy tale to happy and so it looks like the second fairy tale in british football in a row after leicester last season, and this is what we are feeling. we are feeling that

british men's number three aljaz bedene has set up a second round meeting with novak djokovic at theire injured. bedene lost the first set on the tie—break before mager suffered an injury to his left leg. the match resumed and mager swiftly lost the second set before calling it a day in the third. world number one andy murray will be hoping for a return to form as he defends his italian open title in rome this week. he turns 30 today, but says he is "not massively into birthdays". murray comes into the tournament on the back of a third—round loss to world number 59 borna coric of croatia in madrid last week. he beat novak djokovic in the 2016 italian 0pen final and will face local favourite fabio fognini in the second round this year. it's tough to analyse losses in a couple of days when you're loose looking, you know, to the next tournament, but that's also sometimes a positive thing that you have another event to look forward to. immediately you get a chance to play better only four or five days after a tough match. that's all sport for now. i'll have more in the next hour. in his

britain's number three aljaz bedene will face novak djokovic in the second round of the italian open,gianluca mager on a tie—break, before the italian suffered an injury to his left leg. the match resumed and mager swiftly lost the second set before calling it a day in the third. and bedene will be joined in the second round by fellow briton kyle edmund. he saw offjoao sousa of portugal in straight sets and faces world number nine kei nishikori next. andy murray is in rome to defend his title — but he's still not firing on all cylinders, after a month out with an elbow injury. he starts his campaign against fabio fagnini, against fabio fognini, after being knocked out in the third round of the madrid open last week, by the world number 59 borna coric. it's tough to certainly analyse losses and a couple of days, when you are also looking to the next tournament, but that's also sometimes a positive thing, that you have another event to look forward to it immediately. you get a chance to it immediately. you get a chance to play better only four or five days after a tough match. maria sha

aljaz bedene has been knocked out by novak djokovic, although he did push the serb to a tie—break.in the second. 0nly won a couple of games in that one. djokovic is a four—time winner in rome and he's through to the third round. after crashing on the previous stage of the giro d‘ italia geraint thomas made a remarkable come bass to finish second in today's time trial. the team sky rider was strong over the lumpy terrain in the wine growing region. he's up to 11th in the overall standings. the olympic silver medallist was 49 seconds quicker, stormed to the top of the general classification. he now leads the race by over two minutes. quick update on the football, no goals at all in either of those matches, clive. president trump confirmed on twitter he had shared information about an islamic state terror threat. senior republicans and democrats have voiced concerns that the material was shared with moscow. did he or didn't he? in the latest troubles to hit the trump white house, allegations that the president revealed highly classified intelligence information to the russian foreign

evans said he still considered himself to be the british number three, despite being overtaken by aljaz bedenerry for the sky? —— this guy. an iranian student had to be taken to a police station at the weekend — because he looks too much like lionel messi. look at this, the resemblance is uncanny! so many people in the city of hamaden wanted a picture with reza parastesh that police had to look after him. the 25—year—old cuts his hair and grooms his beard to look like the argentina forward, and is fully booked with media interviews and has even landed modelling contracts as a result! thank you very much, cat. just over three years ago 276 school girls were kidnapped from a remote boarding school in northern nigeria by extremist group boko haram. over the weekend 82 of them were released. now their parents face an agonising wait to see them again, with many still unsure if their children were amongst the fortunate ones set free. 0ur reporter abdullahi kaura abubakar has spoken to some of the families affected and joins us now from abuja. there is a long delay on the line said it will be a bit o

and due soon at the same venue, aljaz bedene against novak djokovic.s 500. the mclaren driver is racing at the event later this month instead of the monaco grand prix. alonso is racing against time to learn a different driving discipline and racing on a 2.5—mile super—speedway track. marco andretti, alonso's team—mate, was fastest at first practice before qualifying this weekend. alonso was 19th. that is all your sport fanatic. olly foster, thank you very much. just to show you the scene in washington. we are awaiting a news conference from the national security adviser. this follows the row over president trump who has been defending his right to share information with russia after classified material it is claimed was handed over to the russian foreign minister sergey lavrov. a p pa re ntly foreign minister sergey lavrov. apparently this material was passed on by an official who had not —— a source who had not given permission for it to be passed to the russians. joining me now from washington is thomas wright, fellow in foreign policy at the brookin

british number three aljaz bedene is considering switching his allegiance back to slovenia in order toitizen in 2015 but hasn't managed to overturn a ban that's stopped him playing for great britain in the davis cup. a player must have been available for the davis cup to represent that country at the olympics, so bedene is now exploring the possibility of representing slovenia in tokyo in 2020. novak djokovic is also through to the second round — the defending champion — seeded second in paris — eased to a straight sets victory over spain's marcel granollers. rafa nadal is bidding for a record 10th french open title. he safely negotiated a tricky looking opening match against frenchman benoit paire. the fourth seed already has three clay court titles to his name this season. meanwhile women's champion garbine muguruza got her defence off to a good start. she eased past the 2010 winner francesca schiavone in straight sets. castleford cemented their place at the top of rugby league's super league with a 38—0 thrashing of leigh centurions greg eden kept up his phenomenal scoring record fo

edmund will be joined in the second round by fellow brit aljaz bedene, who will now play world numberest tennis player in the world. a warning — there is some flash photography coming up. andy murray is due to start the defence his italian open title today, a day after turning the ripe old age of 30. he was greeted at his hotel by staff, who knew all the words in english to happy birthday. he is thinking ijust want to get into the shower, i have been training very hard. i am very sweaty. genuinely, i had no idea that that was coming. but yes, i really appreciated. it is really quite embarrassing when all that the attention is on you, but it was nice they made the cake and sang me happy birthday, so it was much appreciated. he says that, i genuinely think he would have hated that. but he manages to do that with a smile and cope with it, which is why i admire him. because he is probablyjust mortified. he is definitely not one for attention. it is not something you need before your big match. some nice celebrations. in last year's eu referendum, the majority of voters in wales backed the