Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Serena survives Pironkova test to reach U.S. Open semis

Serena Williams was forced to dig deep to secure a 4-6 6-3 6-2 U.S. Open quarter-final victory over unseeded Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova on Wednesday, keeping alive her latest bid for a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title. Williams, a six-times champion in New York, struggled with Pironkova’s slice forehand early and was at risk of her earliest U.S. Open exit in 14 years until she used her experience to find a way back.

Premier League teams to have ‘No Room For Racism’ badge on shirts

The Premier League said on Thursday that players and match officials will wear a “No Room For Racism” badge on their shirts for the entirety of the 2020-21 season, replacing the “Black Lives Matter” logo that previously appeared on kits. The “Black Lives Matter” logo appeared on kits for all the games following the COVID-19 break last season and the league said it will support players who ‘take a knee’ at matches to highlight racial injustice.

Hirschi soloes to maiden win, Roglic stays in yellow

After two agonising near misses, Swiss Marc Hirschi finally claimed his maiden Tour de France win, and his first as a professional, when he completed a solo break to take the 12th stage on Thursday. Having finished second in the second stage in Nice and third in the ninth stage in Laruns after a long solo breakaway in the Pyrenees, the former Under-23 world champion held off a group of chasers to prevail following a bumpy 218-km trek that ended in former French president Jacques Chirac’s hometown.

MLB roundup: Braves set NL runs record in 29-9 rout

Adam Duvall had his second three-home run game of the season, including his fourth career grand slam, and the Atlanta Braves set a modern-era (since 1900) National League record for runs scored in a 29-9 win over the visiting Miami Marlins on Wednesday. Duvall was 3-for-4 with five runs and a franchise-record-tying nine RBIs. He also hit three homers against Boston on Sept. 2, and has 13 long balls on the year — including nine in his past 10 games. He became the first Braves player ever with two career three-homer games — both in an eight-day span.

Sublime Thiem tames De Minaur to book U.S. Open semi-final spot

Second seed Dominic Thiem delivered a sublime performance to dismantle Australian Alex de Minaur 6-1 6-2 6-4 on Wednesday and canter into the semi-finals of the U.S. Open. Thiem needed a little over two hours to record the win under the closed roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium despite being put under constant pressure by De Minaur, who is nicknamed ‘Demon’ and known for his never-say-die attitude and speedy court coverage.

Day counter to be reset for second round of Tour coronavirus tests

Tour de France organisers have performed a U-turn to remove the danger of expulsion for tour teams who had been on a knife edge after positive COVID-19 tests on Thursday. Another test for Ineos-Grenadiers, AG2R-La Mondiale, Mitchelton-Scott or Cofidis will not mean that they will be ejected from the race if they have another one in the next round of tests, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Vettel says he came close to retirement before Aston deal

Sebastian Vettel said he had come close to retiring before Racing Point offered him a chance to continue in Formula One next season. Asked on Thursday ahead of the Tuscan Grand Prix at Italy’s Mugello circuit how close he was to walking away, the four-times world champion replied: “Close”.

Lewis inspired by tennis-playing mums at Flushing Meadows

Stacy Lewis begins her bid for a second victory at the LPGA Tour’s ANA Inspiration on Thursday and the former world number one says she has taken inspiration from the performances of tennis-playing mothers at the U.S. Open Grand Slam in New York. The women’s singles draw at Flushing Meadows featured nine mothers, with two — Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka — advancing to the semi-finals.

Azarenka clobbers Mertens to set up Serena showdown

A loose and confident Victoria Azarenka overpowered Elise Mertens 6-1 6-0 on Wednesday to advance to the semi-finals of the U.S. Open where she will face a familiar foe in Serena Williams. Azarenka, smiling and bobbing her head along to music being played during changeovers, spread the court with 21 winners to dominate 16th seed Mertens in their first career meeting.

ATP adds four events to 2020 calendar

Four new tournaments have been added to the provisional ATP calendar for the remainder of the 2020 season, the men’s Tour announced on Thursday. The German city of Cologne will host back-to-back ATP 250 events on indoor hard while Sardinia will stage a claycourt event and Nur-Sultan in Kazakhstan will host an indoor event.