Italians, No. 7 Sara Errani and No. 12 Roberta Vinci. Sixth

Nine of the 11 Grade 1 winners from Aintrees Grand National meeting have been entered at the Punchestown Festival, while nine of the 13 Grade 1 winners from last months Cheltenham Festival are also engaged. A vintage jump season looks set to end on a high with a potential clash between Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Don Cossack, Cue Card and Vautour in the €200,000 Grade 1 Bibby Financial Services Ireland Punchestown Gold Cup on Wednesday, April 27.The latter, part of a sizeable potential Punchestown raiding party trained in Dorset by Colin Tizzard, fell at Cheltenham but made amends in style when winning the Grade 1 Betfred Bowl by nine lengths at Aintree. Cue Card and Don Cossack are among 20 entries that also include the Cheltenham second, third and fourth - Djakadam, Don Poli and Carlingford Lough. Ryanair Chase winner Vautour, a faller at Aintree last week, could step back up in trip for this contest.Both Tizzard and Don Cossacks trainer, Gordon Elliott, are looking forward to the big race.The plan always was to go on to Punchestown and I dont see any reason to change that, Tizzard said.He fell at Cheltenham and mentally didnt have a hard race. He also didnt have too hard a race at Aintree and hes come out of it all fine.From three out to two out at Aintree he came through a gap and came eight lengths clear without ever seeming to do too much.Hes in the form of his life so theres no reason not to go.Speaking about Don Cossack, he added: Hopefully they both jump a clear round. Don Cossacks fallen once, weve fallen once and hopefully they both jump clear and well see who finishes in front. Sky Racing Tickets Fast, secure racing tickets: Exclusive racing offers near you Gordon Elliott, trainer of Don Cossack, reports his charge to be in good shape, as he bids for back-to-back victories in the race. He worked Don Cossack work over a mile and a half alongside stable companion Cause Of Causes in front of media at Punchestown on Monday.He said: We havent done anything serious with him since then and today was the first time that hes really stretched his legs since Cheltenham.Cue Card is a horse Ive got massive respect for. Its going to be a very good race at Punchestown.He (Don Cossack) will have one more good bit of work and then its all systems go.The Punchestown Gold Cup promises to be the most enthralling race of this years Festival, with brilliant Ryanair Chase hero Vautour, who suffered a shock fall at Aintree last Friday, also a likely runner.Trainer Willie Mullins said: Theres a very good chance Vautour will run in the Gold Cup.Hes as fit as a flea and as long as hes sparkling at home, hell take his chance.Sprinter Sacre has been entered for the Grade 1 €200,000 BoyleSports Champion Chase on Tuesday, April 26. Nicky Hendersons brilliant performer won the Punchestown contest in 2013 and looked as good as ever when winning the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham last month.Punchestowns racing manager Richie Galway revealed that Henderson has not yet ruled out a return to Ireland with his stable star, who claimed the same prize in 2013.Galway said: Myself and Shona Dreaper met Nicky in Newbury recently and we said weve love to have Sprinter Sacre running.He said the day that he won in Punchestown for himself and the owners was one of the great days they had with Sprinter Sacre.Cheltenham runner-up Un De Sceaux and third Special Tiara, trained by Henry de Bromhead, are also engaged, as well as Sprinter Sacres stablemate Simonsig, who has not run since November, and Kerry Lees recent Normans Grove Chase winner Top Gamble.Other highlights on Tuesday include the Grade 1 Herald Champion Novice Hurdle over two miles. It could feature a clash between the Willie Mullins-trained Yorkhill, a Grade 1 winner at Cheltenham and Aintree this year, and the Henderson-trained Buveur DAir, winner of a Grade 1 novice hurdle at Aintree on Friday.There are 30 entered for the Grade 1 Growise Champion Novice Chase the same day. Native River, winner of the Grade 1 Mildmay Novices Chase at Aintree, is set to represent Colin Tizzard in the 3m 1f contest, while Sandy Thomsons stable star Seeyouatmidnight is another possible runner from Britain.Alongside the Bibby Financial Services Punchestown Gold Cup, Wednesday also features the Grade 1 Irish Daily Mirror Novice Hurdle.Among the 36 entries is Yorkhill, who could step up to three miles for this event, while the Ben Pauling-trained Barters Hill, winner of the Grade 1 Challow Hurdle at Newbury, is among those expected to travel over from Britain.All eyes will be on the brilliant Thistlecrack on Thursday when he is expected to start in the €200,000 Grade 1 Ladbrokes Champion Stayers Hurdle.Colin Tizzards brilliant hurdler ran at last years Punchestown Festival, where he came second in the Irish Daily Mirror Novice Hurdle, and he has not been beaten since. Having won Saturdays Grade 1 Stayers Hurdle at Aintree and the Grade 1 Ryanair World Hurdle at Cheltenham, he is set to bid to complete a rare treble at Punchestown.Willie Mullins has given his star mares Annie Power and Vroum Vroum Mag this option - although the former is more likely to stay at two miles - while the Coral Cup winner Diamond King could bid to continue his upward career trajectory for trainer Gordon Elliott. The Dan Skelton-trained Value At Risk, winner of the Grade 2 Keelings Irish Strawberry Hurdle at Fairyhouse on April 28, is in the reckoning to bid for another fruitful foray to Ireland.The fantastic Douvan heads the entries in the Grade 1 Ryanair Novice Chase.Despite being only six, he has already won six times in Grade 1 company, including effortless displays at Cheltenham and Aintree. His potential opponents include Kylemough Lough, who gave rookie British trainer Kerry Lee a first Grade 1 success in the Ryanair Gold Cup at Fairyhouse on March 27.No less eagerly awaited will be the expected appearance of the great Annie Power in the €200,000 Grade 1 Betdaq Punchestown Champion Hurdle on Friday.She would line up in the race on the back of superb wins in the Grade 1 Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham and by 18 lengths in the Grade 1 Aintree Hurdle. The runner-up on both occasions, My Tent Or Yours, could reoppose for trainer Nicky Henderson.Mullins confirmed on Monday that Annie Power was on course to run.Annie Power seems fine and the plan is to go for the Champion Hurdle, he said. It will only be her fourth run of the season.I imagine all the top guns will run as its the last big Festival of the season.Yorkhill must have some engine to do what he did in Aintree the other day. If hes recovered, he could go to Punchestown. Hes a good eater and he drinks well and hell get a good rest before then.Apples Jade was a revelation at Aintree. She had some training problems after Christmas and (in hindsight) we obviously didnt have her as straight as wed want at Cheltenham.Theres a bumper 39-strong entry for the Grade 1 Tattersalls Ireland Champion Novice Hurdle with the likes of Barters Hills, Buveur DAir and the aforementioned Yorkhill all being given this option.Improving Brain Power is another entered by Nicky Henderson, Aidan OBrien could run recent Fairyhouse Grade 2 winner Slowmotion, and Apples Jade has also been entered.Dick OSullivan, Punchestowns General Manager, said: These are vintage times for jump racing with some fantastic horses based both in Ireland and across the water in Britain.Weve seen a series of great performances at Cheltenham and Aintree, as well as at home, in recent weeks and we are obviously thrilled that so many of the top horses look set to line up at the 2016 Punchestown Festival. There are some fantastic showdowns in prospect at what promises to be five magical days of racing. Also See: Live results service Full racecards Get Sky Sports Cheap Kyrie Irving Shoes . The two teams will play through the completion of the game starting at 5pm ct on Wednesday. The regularly scheduled Wednesday night matchup will follow that and will now be seven innings. Kyrie Irving Shoes Free Shipping . -- C.J. Cron hit an RBI single on the first pitch he saw in the major leagues, doubled his second time up and hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the sixth inning to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 5-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Saturday night. https://www.cheapshoeskyrieirving.com/ . Three pitches later, he was hugging Mike Napoli at home plate after his teammates winning home run. Napoli and Ortiz hit consecutive homers with one out in the 10th inning and the Boston Red Sox rallied past Minnesota 2-1 Wednesday, sending the Twins to their fifth straight loss. Kyrie Irving Shoes Deals . The United States clinched the final berth into the Ford Worlds, March 28-April 6 at Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, on Saturday in Blaine, Minn. Wholesale Kyrie Irving Shoes . The government says top golfers are expected to compete in the PGA Tour event at the Ashburn Golf Club in the suburb of Fall River from July 3-6 and again next year.MELBOURNE, Australia -- A rusty Novak Djokovic began his bid for a fourth consecutive Australian Open title on Monday with a win over Lukas Lacko while Serena Williams looked as polished as ever beating Australian teenager Ashleigh Barty. With his new coach and six-time Grand Slam singles champion Boris Becker watching him during an official match for the first time, Djokovic appeared tentative early against the Slovakian player, who often appeared content to keep the ball in play. But as the second-seeded Djokovics patience level began to drop, his skill level stepped up. He stayed on course for a fifth Australian title with a 6-5, 7-6 (2), 6-1 win, hoping to be the first man to achieve that feat since the Open Era began in 1968. Top-ranked Williams won her 23rd consecutive match -- including 18 at the end of last season and four last week in winning the Brisbane International -- after beating Barty 6-2, 6-1 in 57 minutes. "You have to be ready," Williams said. "She had nothing to lose." Williams continues to be in rarified territory. Her Brisbane title was the 58th of her career -- she won 11 last year, including the French Open and U.S. Open. A five-time winner of the Australian Open, shes trying to end Victoria Azarenkas two-year run as womens champion at Melbourne Park. Williams won 10 of 11 points at the net during the Barty match, but tried to dowse expectations that shell vacate her usual place at the baseline. "In my mind Ive been at the net (previously), but now Im physically going there a little more," Williams said. "No pressure. My next match I might stay at the baseline the whole time. Its nothing Im permanently working on. Im just trying to have fun and do what I want to do out there." Djokovic also had a strong finish to 2013, entering the tournament on a 24-match winning streak, which followed his loss to Rafael Nadal in last years U.S. Open final. Hes now also on a 22-match winning streak at Melbourne Park. "It is the first competitive match Ive had this season, I havent played for five or six weeks," Djokovic said. "I was a bit rusty on the court the first two sets. Afterwards it was all working well."t; Serenas sister, Venus Williams, started well earlier Monday but unforced errors in two key periods in her match sent the seven-time major winner out of the tournament.dddddddddddd The elder Williams missed a break-point chance in the sixth game and then, after getting to 40-30 on serve in the ninth, inexplicably fired three consecutive double-faults to surrender a break and just about the set to No. 22-seeded Ekaterina Makarova. She took a 3-0 lead in the third before her unforced error toll climbed to 56 and Makarova won six of the next seven games for a 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 win. The 33-year-old Venus Williams, the second-oldest player in the tournament, has struggled with injuries and illness in recent seasons but reached the final of the WTA event at Auckland to start 2014 and came to Melbourne saying she was feeling better than she had in years. "The last 12 months I have had issues," she said. "But this year I definitely am looking forward to having a good run and feeling well." Three-highly-ranked players were beaten in the first round, including 2011 Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova and two Italians, No. 7 Sara Errani and No. 12 Roberta Vinci. Sixth-seeded Kvitova lost 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 to No. 88-ranked Luksika Kumkhum of Thailand, who was playing in just her second Grand Slam tournament. Womens winners included two-time Australian Open finalist Li Na, Wimbledon semifinalist Kirsten Flipkens, No. 9 Angelique Kerber, 2011 U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur, No. 14 Ana Ivanovic, No. 26 Lucie Safarova, No. 28 Flavia Pennetta, No. 30 Eugenie Bouchard and No. 31 Daniela Hantuchova. Eighth-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka, who won the recent Chennai Open, was the first man into the next round, advancing after just 15 games when Andrey Golubev retired with an injured left leg. Other winners were third-ranked David Ferrer, No. 7 Tomas Berdych, No. 9 Richard Gasquet, No. 14 Mikhail Youzhny, No. 17 Tommy Robredo, No. 19 Kevin Anderson, No. 23 Ernests Gulbis, No. 29 Jeremy Chardy, No. 32 Ivan Dodig and American Sam Querrey. On Tuesday, in the tougher top half the mens draw, top-seeded Rafael Nadal, Wimbledon champion Andy Murray and Roger Federer are all in action. ' ' '