Sports News Roundup: Thomas grabs U.S. Open lead, Mickelson falters; Flawless Azarenka hands rare double bagel to Kenin in Rome and more

The 22-year-old had her left hamstring taped when she battled back against Victoria Azarenka in the U.S. Open final in New York on Saturday to win her third Grand Slam title.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Aces' Wilson named WNBA MVP; Dangerfield, Reeve honored

Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson was named the WNBA's Most Valuable Player, the league announced on Thursday. The WNBA also named Minnesota Lynx guard Crystal Dangerfield and Cheryl Reeve as the recipients of the league's Rookie and Coach of the Year Awards, respectively.

Wolff inspired by Morikawa's success as he eyes first major

Matthew Wolff says watching Collin Morikawa win his maiden major at last month's PGA Championship had given him belief that he too can get his hands on one of golf's most iconic trophies. Morikawa, 23, displayed nerves of steel during the final round at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco to capture the title in only his second major start.

Yankees blast Blue Jays, belt record six homers in third straight game

Brett Gardner, DJ LeMahieu, and Luke Voit homered in a span of three pitches with one out in the fourth inning when the New York Yankees became the seventh team in baseball history to homer five times in an inning during a 10-7 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays Thursday night. The Yankees hit 19 homers in the series, a major league record over a three-game span, and became the first team to hit five homers in an inning since the Washington Nationals did it against the Milwaukee Brewers on July 27, 2017.

Osaka withdraws from French Open with hamstring injury

Japan's Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the upcoming French Open with a hamstring injury, she said on Thursday. The 22-year-old had her left hamstring taped when she battled back against Victoria Azarenka in the U.S. Open final in New York on Saturday to win her third Grand Slam title.

Fed Cup to be re-named Billie Jean King Cup

Almost 60 years after Billie Jean King helped the United States win the inaugural Fed Cup, the team event is being re-named in honour of the greatest trailblazer in women's tennis. The competition, revamped this year to feature a 12-nation finals week to rival the men's Davis Cup, would from 2021 be known as the Billie Jean King Cup, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said in a statement.

Heat seize 2-0 series lead over Celtics with second-half surge

Goran Dragic scored a game-high 25 points, Bam Adebayo had 15 of his 21 during a furious third-quarter comeback, and the Miami Heat rallied from an early 17-point deficit to beat the Boston Celtics 106-101 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals Thursday night near Orlando. Adebayo, the hero of Game 1 with his critical block in overtime, added 10 rebounds as the Heat improved to 2-0 in the best-of-seven series and 10-1 in the playoffs. Six Miami players scored in double figures, including Duncan Robinson, who had 18 points on six 3-pointers.

Duplantis produces highest-ever outdoor pole vault jump

American-born Swede Armand Duplantis produced the highest-ever outdoor pole vault jump on Thursday when he cleared 6.15 metres to win gold at the Rome Diamond League meeting. The 20-year-old cleared the bar at the second attempt with room to spare and was only three centimetres short of the world record he set indoors in Glasgow in February.

Van Vleuten out of Giro Rosa, Road World Championships with broken wrist

Dutchwoman Annemiek van Vleuten will not defend her UCI Road World Championships crown in Imola next week after she sustained a broken wrist in a crash while riding for Mitchelton-Scott at the Giro Rosa. Race leader Van Vleuten, 37, was unable to avoid riders falling in front of her in the final part of the seventh stage on Thursday and was ruled out of the remainder of the race.

Flawless Azarenka hands rare double bagel to Kenin in Rome

Victoria Azarenka produced a masterclass on centre court at the Italian Open to knock out third seed Sofia Kenin with a dominant 6-0 6-0 victory in the second round on Thursday. Azarenka, who lost the U.S. Open final in New York on Saturday and flew in to Rome to beat Venus Williams in a two-hour first-round match on Wednesday, needed only an hour to dispatch the reigning Australian Open champion.

Thomas grabs U.S. Open lead, Mickelson falters

World number three Justin Thomas fired his lowest opening score in a major and held a one-shot lead after the first round of the U.S. Open on Thursday, while Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods were among a slew of big-name players well off the pace. Thomas, who has one top-10 finish in five U.S. Open starts and missed the cut last year at Pebble Beach, drained a 24-foot birdie putt at the 18th for a five-under-par 65 at a Winged Foot layout that has yet to bare its teeth.

(With inputs from agencies.)