Three-time world squash champion NICK MATTHEW announced he will retire "at the end of the coming season." The 37-year-old, "who is aiming to win a third Commonwealth Games singles gold in April," aims to finish at the British Open later in the spring (BBC, 9/18). ... Australian test cricketer BOB HOLLAND -- who once took a 10-wicket match bag against New Zealand -- died "following a battle with brain cancer." The 70-year-old died two days "after he attended a tribute night in his honour in Newcastle" (STUFF, 9/18). ... Colombian footballer RADAMEL FALCAO, who currently plays for Ligue 1 side Monaco, will reportedly "admit to tax fraud allegations from Spain." Falcao, who played for Atlético Madrid between '11 and '13, "will plead guilty to tax fraud and pay a fine" of £6M ($8.09M) to avoid a trial (90MIN, 9/17). ... Cricketer SACHIN TENDULKAR and badminton player P.V. SINDHU "called off their talks for investing" in healthcare company CallHealth Services, according to sources. CallHealth, in a regulatory filing informing about its extraordinary general meeting, said that it would seek shareholders' approval for a proposed investment of Rs 12 crore ($1.8M) and Rs 4 crore ($600,000) from Tendulkar and Sindhu, respectively. A source close to Tendulkar's office said that the discussions with CallHealth "did not proceed beyond the preliminary stage" (PTI, 9/18). ... MONIQUE CONTI is a "world class junior basketballer and an elite" Australian Football League Women's prospect. She is "planning to play both" sports. Women's National Basketball League side Melbourne Boomers re-signed Conti to a four-year contract "that will see her play for the club and then, hopefully, join an AFLW club once the Boomers finish in January" (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 9/18). ... Boxing judge ADALAIDE BYRD, who "sparked controversy" with her scoring in GENNADY GOLOVKIN's draw with CANELO ALVAREZ on Saturday, is "being temporarily stood down from major fights." Byrd has "developed a reputation for debatable scoring," and had Alvarez winning 118-110, a score which "perplexed most observers and put her at odds with her fellow judges" (London TELEGRAPH, 9/17). ... ANA CARRASCO became the first woman to win an individual world championship motorcycle race on Sunday in Portugal. The 20-year-old Spaniard, riding a Kawasaki Ninja 300, "found a draft on the final stretch" to overtake Yamaha riders ALFONSO COPPOLA and MARC GARCÍA in round 10 of the FIM Supersport 300 World Championship (London GUARDIAN, 9/18). ... The BCCI approached the Kerala High Court against a single-bench order lifting the life ban imposed on cricketer S SREESANTH in the wake of the '13 Indian Premier League "spot-fixing scandal." In its appeal, the BCCI said that the decision to ban the cricketer was "taken based on the evidence against him." The single-judge bench on Aug. 7 "lifted the life ban imposed on him by the BCCI" (PTI, 9/18).
TWO-YEAR BAN: Former England captain WAYNE ROONEY pleaded guilty to drunk driving on Monday, "leading to a court imposing a two-year driving ban and ordering him to perform 100 hours of unpaid community work." The Everton striker was stopped by police outside Manchester on Sept. 1 "while driving someone else's car." Rooney was "three times above the legal limit for driving with alcohol in the body." He apologized for his "unforgivable lack of judgement" via a statement (AP, 9/19).
