Joe Clarke cruises through to the semi-finals at the Canoe Slalom World Championships, Andy Murray picks up Davis Cup victory and Bianca Walkden wins silver in Turkey. Here's out review of the last 24 hours.
Joe Clarke believes he laid down a marker after qualifying second fastest for the K1 semi-finals at the Canoe Slalom World Championships at Lee Valley.
That result means all British boats have now advanced to the weekend’s semi-finals, with Clarke finishing just behind New Zealand’s Mike Dawson.
Dawson clocked 81.28 in the heats first run with Clarke 0.19 seconds behind and Michal Smolen of the USA third.
“It’s great to get through to the semi-final on the first run and to put a solid run down and a bit of a marker in the sand for what I need to do on Sunday in the semi-final,” said Clarke.
“It is fantastic when you come down the home stretch you can hear all the crowd cheering and it really pushes you down the course and gives you that extra bit of edge.”
Saturday is set to be a busy one for the Brits with the C2 men’s semi-finals and finals taking place with three home boats including David Florence and Richard Hounslow.
While for the women, Kimberley Woods will look to progress to the final of the K1.
Aggression was the key according to Andy Murray as he got Great Britain off to a winning start in the Davis Cup semi-final clash with Australia.
The Olympic champion dispatched Thanasi Kokkinakis in straight sets 6-3 6-0 6-3 but Dan Evans couldn’t follow suit as he lost to Bernard Tomic 6-3 7-6 (7-2) 6-7 (4-7) 6-4.
For Murray it was a clinical display as he won 91% of his first-serve points and produced a ruthless performance to blitz the young Australian in the second set.
“It’s fantastic, it’s a huge match and I think managed to put on a good performance,” said Murray.
“I was hitting the ball clean right from the beginning and I had break points and I was putting him under pressure.
“Once I managed to get the break I settled down and didn’t give him any opportunities on my serve and was really aggressive.
“I went for my shots and made it really tough for him.
“It’s a different atmosphere and being part of a team and representing my country is a proud moment every single time and I love it.”
Bianca Walkden picked up her second successive World Grand Prix medal as she clinched silver in Samsun, Turkey.
The heavyweight won two golden-point fights in the +67kg division to set up a final clash with America's Jackie Galloway.
But that was as good as it got for Walkden who will now turn her attentions to next month's home tournament in Manchester.
“I’m devastated because I thought my hook kick to the face had scored in sudden death,” she explained. “I am angry because the decision was rushed and it cost me gold.
“Overall, I did well and came through a tough competition and beat some good girls. I am getting back on track but I honestly believe I had scored with that shot.”
Non Stanford and Vicky Holland booked their tickets to Rio as the duo finished second and third respectively at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Chicago.
USA's Gwen Jorgensen took top spot but the British duo performed well to ensure a strong British presence on the podium.
“You never want to enter a race not aiming to win it,” said Holland. “But getting on the podium was a win for me. That’s absolutely everything I wanted to do today. I’m delighted, I’ve done it.”
Chris and Gabby Adcock were in fine form as they produced a strong display to reach the semi-finals of the Victor Korea Open in Seoul.
The England duo saw off Thai pair Sudket Prapakamol and Saralee Thoungthongkam 21-16, 21-17 to seal safe passage into the final four.
It took 40 minutes for the Adcocks to see off their opponents and they now set up a clash with Indonesian duo Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir for a place in the final.
And for coach Julian Robertson the country’s number one pair showed what they are capable of after a shaky start.
"We started the match a little slow coming out the blocks but that was also because the Thais can be quite unpredictable," said Robertson.
"We were hesitant at the beginning but soon found our speed and vision and reading their play.
“We started using good variety from Chris in the rear court and with Gabby controlling the tape they couldn't cope with what we were bringing."
Mark Cavendish has been forced to pull out of next week's UCI World Road Race Championships after failing to recover from a shoulder injury.
Cavendish sustained the injury during stage six of the Tour of Britain and has been unable to recover in time to compete in the worlds which take place in Richmond, USA.
The 30-year-old has previous in the event after taking victory in 2011 edition in Copenhagen and Great Britain's technical director Shane Sutton admits it's a big loss to lose Cavendish.
"It's a real blow for Mark to have to pull out of this year's race as we thought he had a great chance of being successful," said Sutton.
"Unfortunately the injury he sustained during last week's Tour of Britain is more serious than we had hoped. We wish him well in his recovery."
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