Carlos Alcaraz feels like he is coming back to his best form after strolling to Wednesday's 7-5, 6-2 win over an emotionally fraught Andrey Rublev and keeping alive his hopes of reaching...

After clawing their way to Istanbul, Internazionale have made one thing clear beyond the fact they have reached a first Champions League final since 2010, and a sixth in their history. Whoever they meet in the Ataturk on 10 June is going to have to fight to lift that trophy. That was one of the grand lessons of this historic 3-0 aggregate win over their great rivals in AC Milan. Such a scoreline may have made it look easy but it came from a combativeness and willingness to rise to the occasion. That’s maybe essential, since Inter are in some way a team drastically rising above where they are as a club right now. A defiance runs through the side: against their league position; against their financial situation; against their profile; against age - even against reputation. It was symbolic that it was Lauturo Martinez who got the clinching goal to make it 1-0 here, given how criticised he’d been for performances in the 2022 World Cup. As in Qatar, though, he refused to give in. So did his team. There is a persistence and battle resilience about Simone Inzaghi’s side that has shades of Jose Mourinho’s in 2010. Only shades, though, since this doesn’t have the quantity of players in that final prime season of their careers. It does have a lot of good individuals that can lift it, though. It is why they eliminated Milan here and why pose more of a threat to either Real Madrid or Manchester City. The invitation is obviously to conclude that the eventual winners will come out of that other semi-final but that could be an even greater mistake than the passiveness Milan displayed here. Inter have a fine goalkeeper in Andre Onana. They have two top-class defenders in Alessandro Bastoni and Milan Skriniar, the latter of whom again didn’t play. They have proper midfield industry in Nicolo Barella and Federico Dimarco. They also have a wide enough array of big-name attackers to give any opposition side a variety of problems. Edin Dzeko was again seemingly everywhere without actually moving that much. Romelu Lukaku came on to again show he has returned to previous levels. Martinez meanwhile did what happens so often in football in offering some personal redemption, while perhaps setting up something greater. They then have a manager in Simone Inzaghi who is capable of the right gameplan and right motivation for seemingly any occasion. Inter are really the ultimate cup team, now going to the ultimate stage. It created another European occasion that was only to be experienced. The noise was already deafening before it became one of those defining nights for this old ground. The famous red girders shook along with everything else, first to greet the teams, then when Martinez forced the ball past the otherwise impermeable Mike Maignon, finally in the glorious moment of victory. Javier Zanetti celebrated wildly on the pitch with everyone else, his hair still unruffled by all the embraces. Milan, so meekly trying to go about their processes, just never looked like forcing it. They even had Maignon to thank for keeping them in it for that much longer. This is why he is now being described as one of the best goalkeepers in the world - and perhaps even Milan’s most important player beyond Rafael Leao. The return of the forward did nevertheless give Stefano Pioli a bit his team had been badly missing in the first leg. That was never more obvious than when he totally undid Francesco Acerbi with his footwork, only for the remaining gap to full fitness to become apparent with a shot that went just wide. It was still a piece of individual brilliance, with the profiles reversed as Inter instead offered some flowing collective moves. It was one of those that brought a first brilliant save from Maignan. Dzeko showed his everlasting class with a touch inside then a fine pass to Dumfries. He cut back for Nicolo Barella, only for the goalkeeper to stay firm. Maignan surpassed himself minutes later. Dzeko was seemingly everywhere for a veteran who had to conserve his movements, and his thunderous header forced Maignan into acrobatics. Maignan couldn’t keep managing to keep Inter out, though. Martinez eventually found a way, the ball fittingly squirming under the goalkeeper’s body. It fits how Inter have made their way to Istanbul. Read More Being confronted by fans and returning star driving AC Milan bid to reverse history Milan derby creates thrilling sensory overload that shows how football should be AC Milan vs Inter Milan LIVE: Champions League semi-final result and reaction Inter vs AC Milan player ratings as Lautaro sends Nerazzurri to final Sheikh Jassim makes bigger last-ditch bid in Man United takeover saga Forest fined over pitch invasion after 2022 play-off semi against Sheff Utd

World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont said on Tuesday the sport was about to enter an "exciting new era" with the unveiling of a new bi-annual international competition from 2026, comprising a top division of 12 teams from the...

The Nationals vs. Mets game scheduled for July 29 received a sobering weather update: the start time would be delayed due to a Mets rain delay.No, the New York Mets-Washington Nationals game scheduled for Saturday will not be delayed due to Max Scherzer's impending trade. It's just a c...

The Lions' hype train screeched to a halt after Week 7's blowout loss to the Ravens. Here are some players who were exposed.

Premier League leaders Manchester City travel to Chelsea on Sunday with Erling Haaland in ominous form as Arsenal and Tottenham seek to recover from their...

The Texas Rangers have acquired catcher Austin Hedges from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for international bonus pool money

Tottenham have the chance to go five points clear at the top of the Premier League table as they travel to Crystal Palace in a Friday night London derby. Spurs continued their best start to a league campaign since 1960-61 with Monday night’s 2-0 victory over Fulham, as goals from Son Heung-min and James Maddison saw Ange Postecoglou’s side return to the top of the standings. The victory means Postecoglou has taken a Premier League record 23 points from his first nine games in charge, but the Australian revealed afterwards that he was “really disappointed” with Tottenham’s second-half display. Tottenham will therefore be looking to maintain their high standards as they face the trip to Selhurst Park and take on a Crystal Palace side who were thrashed 4-0 by Newcastle last weekend. Follow the latest action from the Premier League below. Read More Ange Postecoglou’s four new signings breathe fresh life into different Tottenham There’s a long way to go – Ange Postecoglou staying grounded despite Spurs form ‘Really disappointed’: Ange Postecoglou’s surprise response as Tottenham go top

The Dallas Cowboys have looked dominant for most of the NFL season thus far, but had the script flipped on them on Sunday. Here's who deserves the most blame.

Getty Chief Sports Photographer Maddie Meyer gives FanSide an inside look at how they accomplished the incredible official FIFA World Cup portraits, capturing every athlete across all 32 teams and making every player feel special.This year’s Women’s World Cup is the biggest tour...

The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly have no interest in reuniting Kyrie Irving and LeBron James.The Los Angeles Lakers were swept out of the conference finals, kicking off a summer of questions -- starting with LeBron James' potential retirement.Assuming the King returns, LA's front ...

Giancarlo Stanton hit a mammoth homer in the first inning and added a two-run homer after a video review in the fifth and the New York Yankees beat the Chicago Cubs 6-3 Saturday