This Week In Sport: 28th September – 4th October 2020

The sporting calendar has served up seven days of scintillating action to look forward to. The Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs kick off the week with the most mouth-watering clash of the NFL season thus far, and there are two particularly tasty fixtures in English football as rivals Tottenham and Chelsea go toe to toe in the Carabao Cup, before Wolves face Manchester United in the Premier League. The final Grand Slam of the year continues at Roland Garros, and we’re into the business end of the AFL season as Brisbane Lions take on Richmond in the Final Eight. The Scottish Open golf gets underway and the T20 Blast reaches its hotly-anticipated conclusion with a bumper day of cricketing action.

Monday 28th September (00:15AM GMT Tuesday 29th): American Football - Baltimore Ravens v Kansas City Chiefs

Monday Night Football in the NFL sees a red-hot matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and the Kansas City Chiefs at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Tuesday 29th September at 12:15AM GMT.

The Kansas City Chiefs continue the defence of their Super Bowl crown on Monday as they play the Baltimore Ravens, in a game that could be a potential AFC Championship Game preview. 

The teams are widely regarded as two of the best in the NFL at this point in time, and a win for either side could be vital for playoff seeding.

Both teams have won their opening two fixtures; the Ravens recorded comfortable 38-6 and 33-16 victories over the Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans, while the Chiefs also emerged victorious against the Texans, before recording a narrow 23-20 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.

A blockbuster clash is in store for the biggest game of the NFL season so far.

Tuesday 29th September 6:45PM GMT: Football - Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea

Age-old rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea face off in the Round of 16 of the Carabao Cup at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Tuesday 29th September at 6:45PM GMT.

Tottenham and Chelsea will be looking to take one step closer to getting their hands on this season’s first piece of silverware as they meet in the Carabao Cup fourth round. 

Incidentally, this competition was the last trophy that Tottenham won, with Chelsea the beaten finalists back in 2008. It is also the first piece of silverware that Spurs manager Jose Mourinho got his hands on in English football - with Chelsea back in 2005.

Frank Lampard is aiming to get one over his former boss Mourinho for the third time as manager of Chelsea, having already beaten Spurs in both December and February in the Premier League. The Lampard-Mourinho element adds another layer to what is already a compelling rivalry, and should make for a fascinating fixture.

Wednesday 30th September 9:00AM GMT: Tennis - French Open 2020, Day 4 

Day 4 of the 2020 French Open gets underway at Roland Garros on Wednesday 30th September at 9:00AM GMT.

The final Grand Slam of the year enters its fourth day on Wednesday, with the opening days of action serving up a selection of shocks. Last year’s semi finalist Johanna Konta was eliminated in the first round by teenage sensation Coco Gough, while 24th seed Dayana Yastremska was knocked out by unseeded Australian Daria Gavrilova.

Favourite and world number one, Simona Halep, progressed into round two in straight sets and will face compatriot Irina-Camelia Begu. Serena Williams is still chasing Margaret Court’s record Grand Slam haul of 24, and can equal the tally with victory at Roland Garros. 

In the men’s draw, world number one Novak Djokovic will be looking to make up for his US Open disappointment, but will face stiff competition if he is to claim his second French Open title from the ‘King of Clay’ Rafael Nadal. The world number two already boasts a record 12 titles at Roland Garros, and has not lost at the French Open since 2016.

A top-class day of tennis is in store as players aim to take a step closer to claiming the final Grand Slam title of the year.

Thursday 1st October 08:00AM GMT: Golf - Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open, Day 1

The European Tour moves to North Berwick and The Renaissance Club for the Scottish Open on Thursday 1st October at 8:00AM GMT.

The European Tour stops off in North Berwick on Thursday as the rescheduled Scottish Open gets underway. The line-up for the Rolex Series event includes: two-time Major winner, Martin Kaymer; 2016 Masters champion, Danny Willett; world number 17, Tommy Fleetwood; and former world number one, Lee Westwood.

Defending champion Bernd Wiesberger is also in action, having celebrated victory on the east coast of Scotland last year with a playoff victory over Benjamin Hebert.

With the winner pocketing a $7.5 million jackpot, there’s everything to play for at the Renaissance Club.

Friday 2nd October 9:50AM GMT: Australian Rules Football - Brisbane Lions v Richmond

The AFL playoffs continue with a thrilling matchup between Brisbane and Richmond at the Gabba on Friday 2nd October at 9:50AM GMT.

Brisbane Lions and Richmond will be vying to automatically book their place in the AFL Preliminary Finals with victory on Friday morning, while the losers will have to do it all over again in the Semifinals if they are to keep their hopes of lifting the AFL Premiership Cup alive.

Brisbane finished second in the regular season to secure their spot in the AFL Final Eight, with Richmond six points behind in third. Dustin Martin has shone for Richmond this term, and will be looking to repeat his six-goal haul from last season’s Qualifying Final.

For Brisbane, they will be hoping Charlie Cameron can recapture his form from the 2017 Preliminary Final against Geelong, where he kicked five goals.

With an AFL Grand Final spot tantalisingly close, a thrilling encounter awaits.

Saturday 3rd October 10:00AM GMT: Cricket - Vitality Blast Finals

T20 Finals Day takes place at Edgbaston on Saturday 3rd October at 10:00AM GMT as the Vitality Blast comes to its conclusion. 

Saturday sees the most infectiously fun day in the British cricketing calendar as the T20 Blast concludes with Finals Day.

The day is an absolute feast of T20 action, kicking off with the two semi finals in the morning and early afternoon, before the hotly anticipated final in the evening.

Can Notts’ Outlaws and Surrey carry their fine form from the group stages into the knockout phase? Will Gloucestershire celebrate their maiden T20 title? Can the Leicestershire Foxes win the Blast for the first time since 2011? Will the Sussex Sharks avenge their 2018 Final defeat?

There’ll be no fans and no fancy dress this year, but this should not dampen what is set to be an electric day of cricketing action.

Sunday 4th October 3:30PM GMT: Football - Manchester United v Tottenham Hotspur

In the Premier League, Manchester United meet Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford in Manchester on Sunday 4th October at 3:30PM GMT.

Another clash between Jose Mourinho and one of his former clubs should be a thrilling affair.

The two clubs are both expected to be in the mix for top four spots in this 2020/21 campaign but both sides have had slightly bumpy starts to the new season.

Manchester United are yet to rediscover the form that saw them surge into the top four towards the back end of last season, having lost to Crystal Palace before requiring a huge slice of late penalty drama to take all three points against Brighton.

Tottenham started with a loss to Everton before a convincing win over Southampton, but are coming off a controversial draw with Newcastle after a contentious penalty was given against them in the last minute.

Sunday’s match is poised to be a real benchmark for where these two sides are and what can be expected from the pair for the rest of the season.

Other sporting highlights around the globe

Honourable mentions around the globe begin with the Premier League, where reigning champions Liverpool play FA Cup holders Arsenal in a blockbuster fixture on Monday evening. The pair then meet again at Anfield on Thursday night, this time in the Carabao Cup. There’s more action from the English top flight on Saturday as goal-happy Leeds welcome Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City to Elland Road.

Further footballing action comes from the USA, where FC Dallas play Columbus Crew in the MLS, while the Portland Thorns FC take on the OL Reign in the NWSL

Elsewhere in the States, Alabama face Texas A&M and Georgia take on Auburn in NCAA College Football on Saturday.

There’s more American Football on display in the NFL, where the Tennessee Titans take on the Pittsburgh Steelers, the reigning Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs face the 2018 Super Bowl champions the New England Patriots and the San Francisco 49ers play the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Stanley Cup winners will be crowned in the NHL this week. The Dallas Stars currently lead the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 and can wrap up the series with victory on Tuesday, or Lightning can take the Final to a winner-takes-all decider on Thursday. 

The winner of the  NBA Eastern Conference Finals will take on the LA Lakers in the NBA Finals this week. The WNBA Finals also start this week.

The MLB Playoffs begin on Tuesday and take place throughout the week with all the Wild Card Series.

The PGA Tour stops off in Jackson for the Sanderson Farms Championship, which begins on Thursday, while the LPGA Tour action comes from Galloway with the ShopRite LPGA Classic. 

Cricket fans have an assortment of action to tuck into this week. The Royal Challengers Bangalore play the Mumbai Indians and the Delhi Capitals face the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League, Australia Women and New Zealand Women continue their T20 and ODI series and England Women will be vying to secure a whitewash in their T20 series against the West Indies at the County Ground in Derby. The four sides competing in the T20 Blast Finals Day will be decided on Thursday as the quarter finals take place across England.

Elsewhere in the UK, Harlequins play Wasps, Northampton face Sale and Wasps then take on Exeter in the Premiership, while in Rugby League, the Wigan Warriors go toe to toe with St Helens and the Leeds Rhinos play the Catalans Dragons in the Super League. Teams’ attention then turns to the Challenge Cup, as the Rhinos play the Warriors and the Salford Red Devils face the Warrington Wolves on Saturday.

Further Rugby League action comes from Australia as the NRL Finals commence. The Panthers host the Roosters and Melbourne take on Parramatta in the two Qualifying Finals.

Elsewhere in Australia, Port Adelaide face Geelong, St Kilda take on Western Bulldogs and West Coast Eagles play Collingwood in the AFL.

In gymnastics, the FIG World Challenge Cup begins in Hungary on Friday.

The French Round of the Superbike World Championship takes place over the weekend.

The Giro d’Italia kicks off on Saturday with a time trial in Sicily whereas the new Pro14 Rugby Season starts on Friday.

And finally, a very different verion of the London Marathon takes place on Sunday.

A world-class week of sport awaits. Whatever you’re watching, enjoy! 

Fixture

Photos by Baltimore Ravens, Chelsea FC, Roland-Garros, European Tour, Richmond, Edgbaston, Manchester United

Written and information correct on 27th September at 10:00PM GMT

 

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