i'm ben croucher. coming up. rusty rafa.is after two months out at the tour finals in london. var hasn't pleased everyone in the premier league. we'll hear from the man whose job it is to make it work. and it's a perfect 10 for 0mara durand though — with yet another gold at the para athletics world championships welcome to the programe. world number one rafa nadal admits he simply wasn't good enough after losing his opening match at the end of season world tour finals in london. his 6—2, 6—4 loss to defending champion alexander zverev was his first since a two month layoff — but he refused to blame any physical limitations as zverev brushed him aside in their opening group game. stefanos tsitsipas was also a winner on monday. paul frostick has the best of the action. raphael nadal is the world's number one men's tennis player but the atp final is one where he not reach the summit. no doubt he is one of the best layers of all time but a new breed of talent is on its way through.

i'm ben croucher and these are our top stories: nine points.s won 3—1 in the premier league. 16 years — that's how long france have had to wait to win the fed cup. that wait is now over. from fed cup to fed up — roger federer loses his opening match at the atp finals in london. welcome along. we'll start in the premier league, where it might only be november, but already manchester city boss pep guardiola admits he's not sure if they can catch liverpool. it's after the european champions beat city 3—1 at anfield to extend their lead at the top of the premier league to eight points. as you might expect in a meeting of the two forces in english football over the last couple of years, it was a game full of talking points. fabinho gave liverpool an early lead, but only after trent alexander arnold was adjudged not to have handled the ball in his own area. it incensed guardiola and many of the city players, whose mood wasn't helped by mo salah and sadio mane making it 3 for liverpool before a late bernardo silva consolation. the intensity of the gam

but from me — ben croucher — and the rest of the sport today team, we'll see you soon.in recent weeks, it looks as though wednesday for much of the british isles is going to start at least on a drier, brighter, colder note. although there's no disguising the fact there is in fact another set of fronts to bring some rain to western areas later in the day. but it's a cold, crisp start — a frosty one for many parts of the british isles. a run of showers over the north sea through south—west scotland to the north—west of england. but as you see, even on into the afternoon, many central and eastern areas will end up with a dry, sunny but not overly warm day. now, temperatures down into single figures. where we will see a significant change to the afternoon is rain getting into northern ireland, wales and the south—west of england. and just be advised that in the more intense burst over the moors to the south—west, and the brecon beacons you could well end up with a covering of snow. here we are on into thursday, that same band of weather still producing an awful lot of rain

hello and a warm welcome to sportsday with me, ben croucher. these are your tuesday headlines.n fine and a 35 point deduction. that could be the punishment awaiting saracens after breaking rules on players salaries. genk are waiting for liverpool in the champions league tonight — they know victory at anfield will go a long way to qualifying for the knockout stages. and new zealand didn't have to wait long for wickets to fall in the third t20 international. we'll show you how five of them fell in no time at all in nelson. also on sportsday this evening... a heroes welcome injohannesberg for south africa's world champions. we'll start with one of the biggest stories in english rugby history. saracens, the dominant force over the last few years, reigning premiership and european champions have been hit with a 35 point deduction and a fine of over £5 million. it comes after a nine month investigation found they had broken salary cap rules over the past three seasons. they say they're disappointed and will appeal — as such their punishment has been suspended pending the outcome of t

you're watching sportsday on bbc news with me ben croucher. your top stories.rinho promises passion and happiness at tottenham hotspur as he takes over as their new boss. not a bad way to introduce yourself in test cricket. dom sibley and england are under way against new zealand at the bay oval. and great britain are off to a winning start in the new look davis cup — with doubles delight against the dutch. thanks forjoining us. he's been the special one. the successful one. now, he's the spurs one. you're looking at tottenham hotspurs‘ new manager right there. jose mourinho is back in the premier league. 11 months after leaving manchester united, he replaces mauricio pochettino — who was sacked just over 2a hours ago. we'll analyse just what went wrong for poch shortly but let's find out just what spurs fans can expect from one of the most enigmatic men in football. starting sportsday this evening is our editor dan roan. things move very fast and premier league football. another reminder of that. just how ruthless it can be because he did come as a shock to ma

i'm ben croucher. your top stories.er five and a half years in charge, mauricio pochettino is sacked as tottenham hotspur wales at the double. they qualify for their second straight european championships by beating hungary 2—nil at the cardiff city stadium. and we meet the jockey who answered an sos call on twitter and then went and won the race. thanks forjoining us. on one hand, mauricio pochettino guided tottenham hotspur to four top four premier league finishes in five years and to one champions league final and a sustained period as one of the best sides in english football. on the other, an alarming slump in form in 2019 that sees them lie 14th in the premier league. without a win since september. thrashed in the champions league by bayern munich. humbled in the league cup by colchester. tonight, pochettino has been sacked. our reporter simon stone joins me live on sportsday. simon — what more can you tell us? it was a fairly brief stay but just as the game was starting, it was not really a matter of bearing that

i'm ben croucher, and these are your top stories on wednesday.pool, but it's not enough to see them into the champions league last 16 yet. chelsea will have to wait too after a flukey valencia equaliser in spain. or was it? and joe root has the backing on his team after his poor batting performance in the first test against new zealand. thanks for your company. we'll kick off with football where we had two english sides in champions league action tonight. six goals. but neither liverpool nor chelsea could get the win they needed to assure themselves a spot in the last 16 with a game to spare. austin halewood's been following tonight's action. starting at anfield, austin — where liverpool took a while to get going against napoli? not like their usual selves, juergen klopp would've wanted this also not in the last 16. but itjust didn't happen, a1— one draw with snappily, you can see the action here. liverpool not themselves. now liverpool not themselves. now liverpool did come out better in the second after the break, much more like the liverpool w

i'm ben croucher. these are your top stories.r star showing in kosovo as england round off their european qualifiers with a comfortable win. it was a record breaking day in the wsl — with arsenal beating spurs in front of nearly 40,000 fans. saracens‘ champions cup defence starts with a heavy defeat in france to racing 92. also on sportsday this evening: it's the final of the atp world tour finals. will it be dominic thiem or stefanos tsitsipas crowned champion for the first time? and will lewis hamilton get to keep his third place at the brazilian grand prix after a manic end to the race in sao paolo? hello and welcome to sportsday. england have signed off their euro 2020 qualification campaign with a comfortable 4—0 win over kosovo. they had already booked their place in next year's tournament before the game but the win assures them one of the six top seeds for the draw at the end of the month. austin halewood reports. since the draw was made this was the moment they've been waiting for. the intervention of british troops duri

you're watching sport today with me, ben croucher.ing: perfect ‘thieming'! dominic thiem beats novak djokovic to guarantee a semifinal spot at the world tour finals. roger federer grabs his first win by beating italy's matteo berrettini and makes his final group game very interesting. and we'll show you how italy's assunta legnante won a second gold at the world para athletics championships. welcome along, wherever you're tuned in around the world. who predicted this, then? a group containing novak djokovic and roger federer and after playing both of them — it's dominic thiem who's already through to the last four at the world tour finals in london. he followed up sunday's win over federer with a dramatic win over djokovic in the last few hours. paul frostick reports. this was the day that austrian dominic thiem would now prove he is a top layer on all surfaces. not many can take novak djokovic all the way, and in a dramatic first is that, it looked as though this would play out as standard,

i'm ben croucher. these are your top stories. on top of the world. a six time fi world champion. and he says he's still not even reached his peak. england couldn't peak in the rugby world cup final. they returned home today without much fanfare at heathrow. and ten months on from the death of emiliano sala — cardiff are fancing a ban on signing new players unless they start to pay his transfer fee. also coming up in the programme... just how much does it mean to qualify for the olympics for the first time? about that much. we'll have more on another momentous moment for irish hockey. we will start our programme with one of great britain's greatest sportsmen. who — rather ominously for his rivals it seems — just keeps on getting better too. lewis hamilton is now a six time fi world champion. back in 2008 — when he won his first drivers championship at a dramatic brazilian grand prix — we caught a glimpse of his greatness. we had to wait another six years for his next title — starting an era of domination with mercedes. 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 and now 2

the irish captain katie mullan spoke to ben croucher earlier. it is indescribable, really.team, and i'm just incredibly proud of this group of girls and what we've achieved. you stunned the world by regional world cup final last year, what has changed with irish hockey over the last few years? a lot has changed since the world cup final, and we've seen the number of people playing hockey and supporting us is just skyrocketed and it's amazing to see for such a small sport and to have that sell—out crowd and both yesterday and on saturday it set it all really and we just want more and more kids to pick up a stick and play hockey and dream of things like going to olympic games which do come true, funnily enough. celebrations last night looks like you were all enjoying each other‘s company. what can you achieve? i think we went to our first can you achieve? i think we went to ourfirst major term as can you achieve? i think we went to our first major term as a team last summer we our first major term as a team last summer we wore a one hour world cup silver metal and used it def

you're watching sportsday with me ben croucher. your top stories.al bell for nicola adams‘ career. the double olympic champion retires from boxing at the age of 37. atalanta and red star belgrade lie in store for manchester city and spurs in the champions league. we'll assess their ambitions to reach the knockout stages. and the waltzing matildas. australia's women's football team are celebrating after securing equal pay with their male counterparts. thanks for your company. for the best part of a decade, nicola adams has been one of the faces of women's boxing both in great britain and around the world. a two—time olympic champion and three months ago, a world champion in the professional ranks. now she's stepped out of the ring for the last time. citing fears over losing her vision, she's called time on a boxing career. michael redford reflects on one of boxing's true pioneers. commentator: nicola adams of great britain has made sporting history! she is the first olympic boxing champion... it would have been easy to relax, career and ambition achi

all the sport with ben croucher.d the bbc that the response to plastic pollution has been encouraging. hello everyone. this is afternoon live. prosecutors in sweden say they will not proceed with their investigation into an allegation of rape made againstjulian assange. the wikileaks founder has been in belmarsh prison in south east london since he was evicted from the ecuadorian embassy in april. swedish prosecutors said evidence had weakened over the years and the case had now been "discounted". the a8—year—old was accused of rape by a woman and sexual assault by another one following a wikileaks conference in stockholm in 2010. he has always denied the allegations, saying the sex was consensual. mr assange still faces extradition to the united states, where he is accused of publishing thousands of classified documents. those hearings are due to begin in february. here‘s our correspondent maddy savage. they actually closed the case a few years ago, because they said it was difficult to continue while asano was hole

you're watching sportsday on bbc news with lizzie greenwood—hughes and ben croucher. top stories this saturday.... as the home nations‘ euro 2020 qualifying campaigns draw to a close, there's a morale boosting win for scotland. could this be a changing of the guard in tennis? as stefanos tsitsipas knocks roger federer out of the world tour finals. and rugby‘s european champions cup is back. we'll have all of today's results. also coming up in the programme... ten years on, we remember the life and career of the talented goal keeper robert enke through the words of his closest friends and colleagues. hello there. we're in the middle of the international break with the final wave of european championship qualifiers over the next few days. northern ireland play later, wales are in action at the minute — we'll update you on their crucial trip to azerbaijan shortly but first to scotland. they can't qualify for next year's euros via the group stages after a largely underwhelming campaign but they did manage to secure a 2—1 win over cyprus today — and had a slice of luck to

hello, there, i'm ben croucher. of either roger federer or novak djokovic will miss out on a spot in the last four. federer picked up his first win by beating italy's matteo berrettini. he'll now have to beat djokovic in his final group game to progress. it's after the 16—time grand slam champion was beaten by another inspired showing from austria's dominic thiem in london. two days on from beating federer, thiem saw off djokovic in a final set tie—break to guarantee his spot in the last four with a game to spare. well, there's no andy murray in london — he's still finding his way back after a couple of injury hit years. he says he's optimistic about the future now after fears he might have to retire but says getting right to the top and winning the big tournaments aren't his motivation. but ultimately, like, what i've learned over the last couple of years, i don't really, like really care about rankings. i don't really care about, like, winning tennis competitions. like, it's nice. it's brilliant to do that. but ac

hello i'm ben croucher, and this is your monday sport briefing.eague season? a ruthless win for leaders liverpool over defending champions manchester city 3—1 at anfield. fabinho scored for liverpool after just 6 minutes, before mo salah and sadio mane made it 3. there's still two—thirds of the season to play, but liverpool lead by 8 points. the intensity was incredible, it was pretty wild. for us, not too unusual that the game is wild, i think city usually controls the game or, but they were good, we had to defend whither we have, with all we have, and that squad at... incredible goals. in tennis, france have won the fed cup, beating australia 3—2 after a dramatic day in perth. it all came down to the doubles, which was won by the french pair of kristina mladenovic and caroline garcia, they beat ashleigh barty and samantha stosur 6—4 6—3, to seal a 3—2 victory, and deny australia a first fed cup in 45 years. the atp tour finals are up and running in london and there was a surprise as roger federer was beaten 7—5, 7—5 in his opening round robin ma

i'm ben croucher with a round—up from the bbc sport centre.liverpool and chelsea both missed the chance to make the last 16, for now, at least. chelsea were denied by a slightly lucky strike in valencia, while liverpool weren't at their best at home to napoli — both held to draws. our correspondent joe wilson has more. two shots at anfield. firstly, natalie's was onside, and then that he scored. but those were the facts. juergen klopp erupted so often the liveable manager was booked for half—time. 65 minutes intention still rising when lovering lapped, and field grieved — really. 1—1, liverpool need more. similar story for chelsea. in valencia, they are still wondering how max gomez missed, not just the still wondering how max gomez missed, notjust the chance but the actual ball completely. yes, that. but opportunities were ceaseless. in the spanish side taking the lead, to chelsea equalising 108 the spanish side taking the lead, to chelsea equalising108 seconds later. matteo, jets, well done. christian literature finish this. va are looked at

i'm ben croucher with your tuesday sport briefing.tty decent time to beat rafael nadal for the first time in his career. not that there's a bad time, mind you, but his straight sets victory at the atp tour finals in london is the perfect way to begin his title defence. nadal is competing in his first tournament since september due to fitness problems. zverev took full advantage of any rustiness for a 6—2, 6—4 win at the o2 arena. he and stefanos tsitsipas top their round robin pool after one game. everyone knows how much i was struggling this whole season than this means so much pain here again and winning my biggest so far in my career, this means everything to me. and you know, i was looking forward to this match and, you know, thanks a lot for all the support, everybody who came out. to a powerful story from the para athletics world championship next where british athlete kadeena cox revealed the competition has triggered a relapse of an eating disorder. cox won the t38 a00m silver on monday but after the race spoke candidly about

you're watching sportsday on bbc news with lizzie greenwood hughes and ben croucher. stories this saturday... wales ensure their euro 2020 qualification campaign will go down to the wire with a win in azerbaijan. could this be a changing of the guard in tennis? as stefanos tsitsipas knocks roger federer out of the world tour finals. and rugby's european champions cup is back. we'll have all of today's results. also coming up in the programme... ten years on, we remember the life and career of the german goal keeper robert enke through the words of his closest friends and colleagues. it's a busy weekend of international football with all the home nations in action, but tonight wales moved a step closer to qualifying for next summer's european championships. they beat azerbajan 2—0 in their penultimate euro 2020 qualifying game. it means if wales win at home to hungary on tuesday and slovakia drop points then wales will be through automatically. nick parrott reports. gareth bale has often been the saviour of his country, he scored the winner against azerbaijan back in s

i‘m ben croucher with an update from the bbc sport centre.cio pochettino was sacked, with the club languishing well down the premier league table. it‘s a decision that hasn‘t been universally popular amongst spurs fans. so can mourinho succeed where pochettino couldn‘t and bring silverware to the tottenham hotspur stadium. our sports editor dan roan has more. he brings trophies, but often trouble too. for almost a year, jose mourinho has been on the sidelines, but now, in a move that surprised many, one of football‘s most divisive figures is back. tottenham hotspur today unveiling the portuguese coach as their new manager. mourinho‘s appointment came less than 12 hours after the sacking of mauricio pochettino. in his five and a half years at the club, the hugely popular argentinian had transformed spurs into genuine contenders, unforgettably propelling them to the champions league final despite limited spending on players. but amid an alarming dip in form this year and with the club languishing in 14th place in the premier league, chairman da

it's just after 1:30 and i'm ben croucher with a round up of the day's sports news.champion nicola adams has announced her retirement from boxing. at 37, having become wbo world flyweight champion as a professional, she's called it a day due to the risk of going blind in one of her eyes. she said, "hanging up my gloves was always going to be hard, but i have neverfelt luckier. and i'm so immensely proud of how far the sport has come." adams isn't the only british boxer to have retired this week. former world lightweight champion anthony crolla fought for the final time on saturday and he told sally nugent that it's not easy for fighters to know when the time is right. it is so hard to let go and so many fighters carry on too long. we see it time and time again and then boxing then has an effect on your health in later life. you have got to get out at the right time and i believe that is what i have done. i am probably not the fighter i was a few years ago. and if you hang around too long, trying to pick up paydays, it comes at a cost. and certainly when you see peopl

ben crouchers has all the sport.the season ending atp world tour finals in his first appearance at the event. he is the youngest winner for 18 yea rs. he is the youngest winner for 18 years. the next gen finals for up—and—coming talent. he has arrived 110w up—and—coming talent. he has arrived now and says it was frustrating to play with so many nerves but are so relieved he managed to wind. the final round of qualifiers for the 2020 european championships are under way. england are finish their campaign witha under way. england are finish their campaign with a comfortable 4— 01 over kosovo. they had already qualified but this gives them one of the sixth—seeded places in the draw at the end of the month. harry winks, hurricane, marson blue marcus rashford and nathan mount with those goals. defending european champions portugal also assured themselves automatic qualification for next year's tournament. they beat luxembourg 2—0. cristiano ronaldo scored the 2nd and is nowjust one goal short of 100 for his country. he'll

sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here‘s ben croucher.otball with all of the home nations in action tonight. wells moved a step closer to qualify for next summer ‘s european championships. goals from kieffer moore and harry wilson saw them beat azerbaijan 2—0 in the penultimate euro qualifying game. if wales win at home to hungary and slovakia drop points, wells will be through automatically. scotla nd automatically. scotland can only reach the finals by the nation ‘s play—offs but they got theirfirst by the nation ‘s play—offs but they got their first away win under steve clark in cyprus. they took the lead through ryan christy‘s greats like. cyprus responded with a brunette goal of their own, northern ireland current playing the 11 ohms. realistically they need to win to stay in with the chance of automatic qualification. just over half an hour gone at windsor park. it is goalless although northern ireland havejust missed a penalty. england are already assured of a spot at euro 2020. they have their final qualifier against kosovo tomorr

sport now, and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's ben croucher. good evening.lify for the last 16 of the champions league, coming from behind to lead in valencia, only to draw 2—2. 1—1 at half time, chelsea took the lead soon after the break through us international christian pulisic. after valencia missed a questionable penalty, daniel wass' cross come shot somehow evaded kepa arriza balaga in the chelsea goal. victory against lille in their last game will see chelsea through. defending champions liverpool will reach the knockouts if they win at home to napoli. about 15 minutes gone at anfield, currently x—x. at anfield, currently goaless. you can listen to commentary on bbc radio 5live. it's the europa league tomorrow night. manchester united have ten players yet to make a senior appearance in their squad to face astana. for 19—year—old max taylor, it's set to be an extra special evening. this time last year, he'd just been diagnosed with testicular cancer. he's had a full recovery, and after only returning to playing at the end of october, is now set for his

coming up on afternoon live, all the sport with ben croucher.o ho is a to lead tottenham hotspur at home for the first time tonight. he says he likes the love his fans give their side. and andy murray's thoughts on retirement. thanks, ben. and another ben — ben rich — has all the weather. we have had some cloud and outbreaks of rain. it has been mild. that will change dramatically by the end of the week. i will have all the details. thanks, ben. also coming up, a builder and a shop worker are £105 million richer, after winning the euromillions jackpot. hello, everyone. this is afternoon live. i'm simon mccoy. britain's most seniorjewish leader has questioned jeremy corbyn‘s fitness to be prime minister, saying that a new poison of anti—semitism had taken root in the party, sanctioned, as he put it, from the very top. in an outspoken intervention in the general election campaign, the chief rabbi ephraim mirvis described labour's claim to have dealt with allegations of anti—semitism as a fiction and he urged people to vote with their conscience. l

you‘re watching sportsday on bbc news with me, ben croucher. your headlines this sunday.t of nearly 40,000 fans. saracens‘ champions cup defence starts with a heavy defeat in france to racing 92. also on sportsday this evening. we‘ll drop by the o2 arena in london where either stefanos tsitsipas or dominic thiem will be crowned the end of season tour champion for the first time. we‘ll show you howjohann zarco miraculously walked away from this scary incident in valencia. hello and welcome to sportsday. more on the penultimate race of the f1 season in brazil too, with lewis hamilton fighting for victory, but first to prishtina where england are playing in their final euro 2020 qualifier. they‘re in kosovo, knowing automatic qualification is already secured. we‘ve got about 15 minutes to play and england lead 1—0. harry winks scored his first international goal in the first half. burnley‘s nick pope is making his first competitive start for england in goal. raheem sterling also started. commentary on bbc radio five live right now. defending european champions portugal also

sport now with ben croucher. good evening.econd place at the united states grand prix was enough to secure the drivers championship with most of the damage done earlier on in the season. he‘s still won more than half the races so far — and theres still two to go. but just what sets hamilton apart from his contemporaries? sheer talent number one. he is an exceptionally good racing driver. it is simple like that. secondly, the termination. there is that. we see a lot with hamilton, thejet termination. there is that. we see a lot with hamilton, the jet set lifestyle and the fashion industry, the music that he dabbles with. but there is a lot of determination and ha rd there is a lot of determination and hard work that goes into it. on top of that coming of the great team behind him. mercedes, they have been a big forest since theyjoined in 201a. the whole package means that yet again he is champion with a couple of races to go as well. it was a quiet homecoming for the england rugby team at heathrow this afternoon. the disappoint

sport now on afternoon live, with ben croucher.ly, not for the first time over the last few months, we're talking about racist abuse from fans rather than the sport itself. a this time it's in cricket, where england fast bowler jofra archer says he was targetted as he left the field on the final day of england's first test match against new zealand in mount manganui. archer had spent over an hour batting to try to rescue a draw for england, and after he got out he says the incident occured. in a post on social media after the close, he said... new zealand cricket have responded, and in a statement themselves they said they'll be contacting and apologising to archer, who was racially abused by a spectator as he left the field. england cricket have also condemned the behaviour, saying there is no place for racist behaviour in the game. we are expecting to hear from england's director of cricket ashley giles later this evening. turning attention to what happened on the pitch, and that was a disappointing for england. not a great test