SHORT CORNER
Herath's last hurrah
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The spotlight in Sri Lanka's first Test against England in Galle remains on the departing Rangana Herath, the most successful left-arm spinner in history, as he seeks a fairytale swansong. Herath made his debut at Galle in 1999, got a hattrick there in 2016 and is one scalp away from a century of wickets at the picturesque venue. The 40-year-old Herath has taken 430 wickets in 92 Tests.
Djokovic hails 'most amazing' resurgence
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Novak Djokovic officially returned to world number one on Monday for the first time for two years, replacing Rafael Nadal.
Novak Djokovic said he was proud of his "most amazing last five months" despite losing to Karen Khachanov in Sunday's Paris Masters final.
Djokovic's elevation is remarkable as it comes just five months after he slumped to 22nd in the world -- his lowest ranking for 12 years -- when he was knocked out of the French Open in the quarterfinals.
"I'm satisfied of course and I'm going to be No. 1 tomorrow officially. And what more can I ask for? I won 20-plus matches in a row and had a most amazing last five months of the year," Djokovic said following his 7-5, 6-4 defeat by Russia's Khachanov.
Liverpool omit Shaqiri over political tensions
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Xherdan Shaqiri has been left out of Liverpool's travelling squad for Tuesday's Champions League match against Red Star Belgrade, the Premier League club have announced.
The midfielder was at the centre of controversy along with Switzerland teammate Granit Xhaka when they celebrated goals with a pro-Kosovo "double eagle" gesture that represents the Albanian flag during the World Cup win over Serbia in Russia.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said on the club's website on Monday: "It's a situation where we will go to the fantastic city of Belgrade as a football team to play football.
"We have heard and read the speculation and talk about what kind of reception Shaq would receive and although we have no idea what would happen, we want to go there and be focused 100 per cent on football and not have to think about anything else, that's all."
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