The Fast4 match format was used for this year’s Hopman Cup mixed doubles events.
AAP/Tony McDonough
Could the broader adoption of the Fast4 tennis format at the professional level prevent the rising trends in match durations, and make the sport more unpredictable?
Football figure James Hird is recovering following a suspected drug overdose last week.
AAP/Tracey Nearmy
Finding a balance between providing information on public figures like James Hird and minimising harm often is a delicate pickle for journalists.
HKmPUA/Flickr
From Sharapova to the Brownlee brothers, 2016 has given us one step forward to one step back.
The election of a reality TV star as president crosses a new frontier.
Lucas Jackson/Reuters
No longer a smoke-and-mirrors spectacle enjoyed on a grand scale, entertainment is now indivisible from our daily life. From cricket matches to blockbuster shows, amusement is the name of the game.
As the tackle that injured rugby league player Alex McKinnon shows, spinal cord injury can take place in a split-second.
AAP/Paul Miller
Alex McKinnon’s case marks the first time a player has directly sued rugby league’s national governing body over an on-field injury in Australia.
wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock.com
A meniscal tear can end a sports career. There are no reliable fixes, but one might be on the horizon.
@ruby_roubaix/Flickr
The Team Sky boss is due to give evidence to MP’s at parliament. Here’s what they should ask him.
Ravi Ashwin celebrates the wicket of England batsman Joe Root in Mumbai.
Rafiq Maqbool AP/Press Association Images
The rise of India’s Ravichandran Ashwin is down to both art and science.
Fans in Australia are held to ransom if they want to enjoy a beer at the footy or cricket.
AAP/Dave Hunt
Overpriced and low-quality beer at sports stadiums leaves fans feeling exploited. Here’s how that can change.
Presenting personalities.
BBC
There are 16 contenders for the 2016 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award… But who is the best athlete?
The presidents and commissioners of major sporting organisations such as the International Olympic Committee and FIFA have all been men.
AAP and EPA
Women are still grossly underrepresented as chairpeople, directors or chief executives of international sporting bodies, to the great detriment of those sports.
Harness racing in Brisbane.
Flickr/Andrew Sutherland
Harness Racing Australia has announced it will ban the use of the whip. The decision is a world first for any horse sporting body, so what about the rest of the horse racing industry?
The story of Chan Yeun-ting’s success is widely framed as a major step for women who take on managerial roles in male-dominated sports.
Ed Sykes/Reuters
For most women, coaching a men’s team is still off-limits, barring them from the opportunity to pursue professional careers as football managers.
Mike Boudreaux/Flickr
Fuelling direct competition between talented colleagues can backfire.
Did the Chicago Cubs break the curse of the Billy Goat to win the 2016 World Series in baseball?
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Many sports enthusiasts are notoriously superstitious. Why is that so?
shutterstock.com
Football is becoming an increasingly important weapon in Britain’s soft power arsenal.
The Australian Sports Commission’s John Wylie has reignited discussions about a UK-style lottery system to fund sport in Australia.
AAP/Julian Smith
Proposals to introduce a national sport lottery system in Australia are not new.
Dusk during the second day of the day-night Sheffield Shield match between Queensland and New South Wales at the Gabba, Brisbane, in October 2016.
AAP Image/Dave Hunt
New research shows pink cricket balls can be extra difficult to see in those crucial minutes when day turns to night during play.
Rainbow laces have become a symbol of football’s struggle against anti-gay prejudice.
EPA/Tal Cohen
Recent data on football’s homophobia problem met with both optimism and pessimism. What’s really going on?
Sports can push people to come to terms with suffering as well as success.
Reuters/China Daily
‘Sport is my religion’ isn’t just a cute bumper sticker. Athletes create rituals, endure suffering and face their own mortality. Under the right circumstances, sport can be a powerful – and secular – spiritual practice.