Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. Putintseva into quarter-finals after beating Martic

Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva reached the U.S. Open quarter-finals with a 6-3 2-6 6-4 victory over eighth seed Petra Martic in a see-saw encounter at Flushing Meadows on Sunday. Putintseva surged into a 5-0 lead in 19 minutes on her way to taking the opening set but Croatian Martic appeared to have turned the match in her favour by easing through the second. Zverev rolls into U.S. Open quarter-finals with easy win

Alexander Zverev slammed down 18 aces en route to demolishing Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-2 6-2 6-1 in the fourth round of the U.S. Open on Sunday. After an early break for the 2-1 lead, the 23-year-old German never let his Spanish opponent get a foothold in the match. He produced 39 winners and dropped just one service game during a ruthless performance. Rogers upsets sixth seed Kvitova in U.S. Open fourth round

American Shelby Rogers ousted sixth seed Petra Kvitova in the fourth round of the U.S. Open on Sunday, winning 7-6(5) 3-6 7-6(6) in one of the most tightly-contested matches of the tournament so far. Rogers saved four match points in a strong defensive effort that saw her commit a dozen fewer unforced errors than her opponent, as the twice Wimbledon champion struggled with her serve and committed seven double faults, including one late in the third-set tiebreak. Djokovic disqualified from U.S. Open after striking line judge with ball

World number one Novak Djokovic was sensationally disqualified in the U.S. Open fourth round on Sunday after striking a line judge with a ball following a point during the first set of his match against Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta. Djokovic was becoming frustrated after squandering three set points when Carreno Busta served at 4-5, 0-40, then suffering a fall. Having dropped serve to trail 5-6, he swatted a ball reasonably hard to the back of the court, inadvertently striking a female line judge in her throat. Djokovic ‘sad and empty’ after U.S. Open disqualification

Novak Djokovic said he was “sad and empty” after a being disqualified from the U.S. Open on Sunday after hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball during his fourth-round match against Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta. “I checked on the lines person and the tournament told me that thank God she is feeling ok. I‘m extremely sorry to have caused her such stress. So unintended. So wrong. I’m not disclosing her name to respect her privacy,” the world number one said on Instagram. Babos decries U.S. Open doubles withdrawal

Women’s doubles top seed Timea Babos has said she was still in tears on Sunday, a day after she and her partner Kristina Mladenovic were withdrawn from the U.S. Open hours before being due on court. The duo were forced to hand Canadian Gabriela Dabrowski and American Alison Riske a walkover in the second round after Mladenovic received a COVID-19 quarantine notice from public health officials. NFL notebook: Steelers bring back QB Dobbs, cut Hodges

The Pittsburgh Steelers are bringing back quarterback Joshua Dobbs, claiming him off waivers. Dobbs was one of more than 20 quarterbacks cut Saturday after NFL teams reduced their rosters to the 53-player limit. The Tennessee product was released by the Jacksonville Jaguars, who acquired him in a trade with the Steelers in 2019. With ice in her veins, Brady finds career breakthrough

American Jennifer Brady said working on her mental approach has been a “huge game changer” as she reached the quarter-final of a Grand Slam for the first time at Flushing Meadows on Sunday. Brady claimed a straight-sets win over 2016 champion Angelique Kerber in the fourth round of the U.S. Open, putting up a fearless performance that earned enormous praise from commentators. German Vetter produces second best javelin throw in history

Germany’s Johannes Vetter produced the second longest javelin throw in history when he threw 97.76 metres at the Tour Gold event in Chorzow, Poland on Sunday. Jan Zelezny’s record has stood the test of time since he threw 98.48 metres in 1996 but 27-year-old Vetter’s effort on his third attempt came close, landing 72 centimetres shy of the Czech’s mark. Dustin Johnson extends Tour Championship lead at East Lake

Dustin Johnson posted his best round of the season-ending Tour Championship on Sunday, carding a third-round 64 to sit five shots clear of the field as he guns for his first FedExCup championship. After misfiring with the driver for most of Saturday, the overnight leader was much better on Sunday, hitting 11 of 14 fairways and is now 19-under for the tournament with Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas tied for second at 14-under.