Desmond Kane caught up with Croatia's world number 12 and former Australian Open semi-finalist Marin Cilic to hear how his preparations are coming along ahead of the second Grand Slam of the season. The Croatian concedes grass is his favourite surface, but would like to at least equal his best returns at the French Open in 2009 and 2010 when he reached the fourth round.

How are preparations going for the tournament in Paris?

MC: It was a bit cold when I arrived. It actually felt a bit like winter. I'm just adjusting to the conditions. I've been out on the main court so get the feel of the

First and foremost, a big thank you to those who got involved in my last blog on the brutal Lebedev-Jones encounter a week ago.

Inevitably, there were a huge number of comments about banning the sport as a whole. Of course, my point was that boxing, a sport I love, ran the risk of giving such rash and melodramatic complaints even more ammunition because of just one instance, yet another instance, of fighters not being properly protected by the system in which they put their bodies on the line.

But those of you who came at the topic with more balanced and productive responses, thanks again,

Danilo Di Luca

Cycling fans were meant to be spending their Friday afternoon basking in the duel savagery of the Gavia and Stelvio for the first of two back-to-back mountain epics that would decide if not the destination of the pink jersey then at least the other minor podium places and the thrilling white jersey tussle between Messrs Majka and Betancur.

Instead, we've been dealt a double blow.

Not only has stage 19 been cancelled because of the unrelenting snow and foul weather that has blighted so much of the race, the UCI also announced that Italian veteran Danilo Di Luca – the self-styled "Killer" –

Next season there will reportedly be a very key change in the way that players are punished in the Premier League, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph.

A three-strong panel of former referees will assess notable incidents from the weekend, handing down appropriate judgements where the original decision is deemed to be insufficient.

Special attention will be paid to reckless tackles which escaped the notice of the referee or his assistants.

The new scheme was agreed as the stakeholders of English football - the FA, Premier League and Football League - apparently agreed at a meeting on

Few players in the history of English cricket have divided opinion like Stuart Broad.

The Nottinghamshire bowler - who was once reckoned to be a future genuine all-rounder - has always been a hugely frustrating mercurial talent, and that shows no signs of changing any time soon.

As a case study, the first Test at Lord's demonstrated the best and the worst of Broad: a hapless three-ball duck, starkly contrasted by a fluent 25-ball 26 later in the match; a wayward and sluggish one for 64 in the first innings, followed by a quite breathtakingly potent seven for 44 in the second.

Every time his

Picture: Lotus F1 Twitter

Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen has had a special helmet created to wear at this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix, paying homage to British racing legend James Hunt.

But according to reports in Raikkonen's native Finland, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone is less than happy with the design, and asked for the tribute to be ditched.

Hunt won the 1976 World Championship, and this weekend marks the 40th anniversary of his debut in Formula 1 - on the streets of Monte Carlo.

Hunt, who died in 1993 at the age of just 45 following a heart attack, had a reputation as a playboy racer - fast on the track, and living

If Muhammad Ali was once named the Louisville Lip, perhaps Juergen Klopp deserves to be known as the Stuttgart Smile. That famous grin regularly spreads across his face, goofy and infectious, whether provoked by one of his schoolgirl giggles or helping to deliver another memorable sound bite. Klopp’s mouth must be the most distinctive in the business.

But, thanks to Bayern Munich, the the perma-grinning, endearingly wacky Borussia Dortmund coach has had little to justify that smile of late. Deposed as Bundesliga champions and knocked out of the DFB Pokal by Jupp Heynckes's all-conquering side,

London has already turned German.

There are more than 150,000 followers of Dortmund and Bayern Munich expected to flood into the capital over the weekend and yesterday the advanced party was already moving into place. By tomorrow lunchtime, the city will be awash in luminous yellow shirts and leather shorts.

Not just any leather shorts, either. But official Bayern lederhosen, smart looking traditional Bavarian mountain gear, with a discreet Bayern crest on the leg, as worn by Bastian Schweinsteiger on the club’s merchandise website.

Never mind that, in his modelling role, Basti looks about as