🗞 The Aussie Usain Bolt

G’day Sports Fans,

📊 Wild Stat: Luke Douglas (Sharks & Titans) played a record 215 consecutive NRL games. Will that ever be beaten?

🎟️ Coffee-break ammo: The average resale ticket price for Super Bowl LVIII is US$11,606, according to SeatGeek's live tracker.

📧 P.S. First time reading? Subscribe here for free.

🏏 Andrew McDonald says Marnus Labuschagne's position at number three is safe despite a lean trot.

Labuschagne, who made 19 runs at an average of 6.33 in the 1-1 series draw with West Indies, has made 1,005 runs in his past 35 innings at an average of 33.5, with just one Test century.

🏏 Australia swiftly bounced back from Sunday's surprising loss to South Africa, clinching a series-deciding T20 victory at Hobart's Blundstone Arena. Despite South Africa's record-breaking 7-162 total, Beth Mooney's stellar 82 off 55 balls led the way for the Aussies.

Australia claimed a 4-2 lead in the points-based multi-format series.

🏃🏾‍♂️ No pressure: "There's a 16-year-old sprinter up in Queensland called Gout Gout, who if I've ever seen anybody run like Usain Bolt and built like him, he is it," - Jane Flemming, who competed in two Olympics and is now the president of Athletics Australia on Wide World of Sports Radio on Monday night.

We picked up Gout Gout’s story last April after he broke an Australian junior 200m record, blitzing an under-18s race despite being at least two years younger than the majority of the field.

🥊 The whispers were true; With highly-touted Titans teenager Alex Leapai Jr. opting to pursue a career in boxing.

The 18-year-old forward signed with the Gold Coast after reportedly knocking back an offer from the Sydney Roosters, but will now put his NRL dream on hold to follow in his father's footsteps.

Alex Leapai Sr. was a standout heavyweight and once challenged Wladimir Klitschco for the undisputed title, but fell short in his bid to become a world champion and retired in 2019.

🏀 Ben Simmons made his latest long-awaited return to the NBA court after almost three months on the sidelines and played a major role in the Brooklyn Nets' 147-114 win over the Utah Jazz.

• Simmons has only played 47 games for Brooklyn since being traded two seasons ago.

• Simmons has expressed interest in playing for the Boomers at the Paris Olympics.

⛳️ LIV Golf: More fuel has been added to the fire surrounding Lucas Herbert's proposed move to LIV Golf after a leaked photo of the Australian appeared to show him wearing Ripper GC apparel in Mexico, days before the start of the new season.

🥇 Australian diver Cassiel Rousseau has opted not to defend his men's 10-metre platform crown at the world championships in Qatar.

Instead, the 22-year-old will compete in the men's 10m synchronised event as he and Domonic Bedggood seek to secure Australia a quota spot for the Olympic Games in Paris starting in July.

🏏 Will Pucovski, the one time Test opener, has bolstered his Australian team comeback bid by securing a county cricket deal in the UK. The move follows his recent retirement due to a helmet-hit while playing for Victoria's Second XI, raising concerns given his history of concussions and mental-health breaks that have hampered his Test career since January 2021.

🏉 Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett has applied to replace Michael Maguire as New Zealand’s coach. 

Bennett will finish with his NRL club at the end the season and is the leading candidate to land the Kiwis job, according to The Daily Telegraph.

⛳️ Pebble Beach Pro-Am Preview: In a change from previous years, the notable amateurs in the field will be strictly athletes, and will play just two rounds: Tom Brady, Alex Smith, Aaron Rodgers, Pau Gasol, Larry Fitzgerald and Buster Posey. It’s now one of the signature events with a ($20m purse), and 48 of the top 50 players present.

Courses: Pebble Beach (host course), par 72, 6972 yards, stroke average in 2023 - 71.53. & Spyglass Hill par 72, 7041 yards, stroke average in 2023 - 72.8

Putting for dough: Hot putters, and those that are familiar with Poa annua grass, are the players to concentrate on.

Previous Winners: Two of the last eight winners have been priced $500.0+ pre tournament. The most recent two winners J. Rose ($30) & T.Hoge ($66). Only 3 non-americans have won here in the last 25 years.

Contenders: Market leaders McIlroy and Sheffler (debut), have a lack of experience here, which means value elsewhere. California native Xander Shauffele ($16.0) is in the mix. As is putting machines Matt Fitzpatrick ($41.0), and Jason Day ($41.0), who notched up a run of seven consecutive years of T11 or better here. Denny McCarthy ($67) needs to show his 2023 form where he led at halfway before finishing T4, if his putter gets hot, look out for him.

⛳️ LIV Golf: Tyrrell Hatton, the 16th-ranked player in the world, will join Ryder Cup teammate Jon Rahm as part of a new 13th team, will debut this week at the season-opening event at Mayakoba, Mexico (2-4 Feb local).

🚓 Cricket legend and former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has been sentenced to 10 years in prison [for leaking classified state documents], less than two weeks before the country votes in an election his party has been hamstrung from contesting.

👕 Sports Biz: Quarterback legend Tom Brady has struck a deal with apparel company NOBULL to merge his wellness company, TB12, and his apparel line, Brady Brand. The combined company will retain the NOBULL name. 

⚽️ Liverpool could be facing the "end of an era" this summer if stars Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah follow manager Jurgen Klopp out of the club.

Captain Van Dijk says he does not know if he will be part of the new era, while forward Salah has been linked with a move away.

🏏 India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and batter KL Rahul have been ruled out of the second Test against England, adding to the hosts' problems after losing the first test.

Former captain Kohli withdrew from the first two Tests in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam for personal reasons.

TODAY 

06:30 - Premier League - Nottingham Forest v Arsenal (Optus Sport 2) 

06:45 - Premier League - Fulham v Everton (Optus Sport 3) 

06:45 - Premier League - Luton Town v Brighton & Hove Albion (Optus Sport 6) 

07:15 - Premier League - Aston Villa v Newcastle United (Optus Sport 4) 

11:30 - NBA - Boston Celtics v Indiana Pacers (ESPN) 

12:00 - NHL - St. Louis Blues v Columbus Blue Jackets (ESPN 2) 

14:00 - NBA - Golden State Warriors v Philadelphia 76ers (ESPN) 

14:30 - NHL - San Jose Sharks v Seattle Kraken (ESPN 2) 

THURDSDAY

02:30 - SA20 - Joburg Super Kings v Sunrisers Eastern Cape (Fox Cricket) 

05:00 - Spanish La Liga - Barcelona v Osasuna (Optus Sport 2) 

06:30 - Premier League - Manchester City v Burnley (Optus Sport 5) 

06:30 - Premier League - Tottenham v Brentford (Optus Sport 4) 

07:00 - Spanish La Liga - Atletico Madrid v Rayo Vallecano (Optus Sport 2) 

07:15 - Premier League - Liverpool v Chelsea (Optus Sport 3) 

12:00 - Men's NCAA - Kentucky Wildcats v Florida Gators (ESPN 2) 

12:30 - NBA - Brooklyn Nets v Phoenix Suns (ESPN) 

14:00 - NBA - Portland Trail Blazers v Milwaukee Bucks (ESPN 2) 

14:05 - Marsh One-Day Cup - Western Australia v New South Wales Blues (Fox Cricket) 

19:30 - NBL - Cairns Taipans v Tasmania JackJumpers (ESPN)