Britain's Emma Raducanu suffered a disappointing defeat to world number 101 Cristina Bucsa of Spain in the opening round of the Singapore Open.

The 22-year-old was playing for the first time since her 6-1 6-0 third round loss to Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open and the news her coach Nick Cavaday was stepping back from the role to "prioritise getting back to full health".

But in a gruelling encounter lasting three hours and three minutes and featuring 17 breaks of service, Bucsa came through 5-7 7-5 7-5 against the seventh seed in the pair's first meeting.

The Spaniard had served for the opening set at 5-4 up but Raducanu, ranked 56, rattled off the next three games to take control of the match.

The second set started with three consecutive breaks of service to leave Bucsa 3-1 and then 4-2 up but Raducanu continued to battle and another run of three games in a row saw her go 5-4 up but Bucsa responded with the next three games to level the match.

Both players struggled to hold serve in the decider but although a weary-looking Raducanu dug deep to edge 5-4 ahead, Bucsa held and then broke her opponent at a crucial time to leave her serving for the match.

The British number two saved a couple of match points but Bucsa, the Olympic women's doubles bronze medallist, quickly earned another and this time Raducanu netted.

Bucsa will next face either Sijia Wei of China or Mananchaya Sawangkaew of Thailand in the last 16.

Townsend had Jack Dempsey and Jack Mann as his number eights in the squad but was limited in his other options when looking for a replacement for Bayliss.

Magnus Bradbury is serving a suspension and the impressive Ben Muncaster is injured, while the other eligible players in that position are raw youngsters.

Bayliss' withdrawal means Townsend has now lost for the entire tournament four of the original squad he named on 15 January - Sione Tuipulotu, Dylan Richardson, Scott Cummings and now Bayliss.

Before he named that squad he was already without Kyle Steyn, Adam Hastings, Max Williamson, Andy Onyeama-Christie and Muncaster.

The majority of those nine players would either be certainties for the starting XV or likely to be in the matchday squad.

There is also a concern over Jonny Gray, who has only played three games since the end of October and none since the middle of December.

The lock was expected to make his comeback on Saturday against Lyon but Bordeaux deemed him unfit to play.

He may recover in time to face Italy on Saturday, but there has to be a concern about his sharpness for the intensity of the Six Nations, hence the call-ups for Henderson and Johnson.

Matches are subject to late changes, so details may differ from this page. All times are GMT. Kick-off times in brackets.

Friday, 31 January

France v Wales (20:15) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Live

Saturday, 1 February

Scotland v Italy (14:15) - BBC One from 13:15-16:30 & BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Ireland v England (16:45) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Live

Sunday, 2 February

Highlights - Six Nations Rugby Special - BBC Two from 18:00-19:00

Saturday, 8 February

Italy v Wales (14:15) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

England v France (16:45) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Live

Sunday, 9 February

Scotland v Ireland (15:00) - BBC One from 14:20-17:10 & BBC Radio 5 Live

Highlights - Six Nations Rugby Special - BBC Two from 18:00-19:00

Saturday, 22 February

Wales v Ireland (14:15) - BBC One from 13:15-16:30 & listen on BBC Sounds & BBC Sport website and app

England v Scotland (16:45) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Live

Sunday, 23 February

Italy v France (15:00) - ITV & updates on BBC Radio 5 Live

Highlights - Six Nations Rugby Special - BBC Two from 18:00-19:00

Saturday, 8 March

Ireland v France (14:15) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Scotland v Wales (16:45) - BBC One from 16:00-19:00 & BBC Radio 5 Live or Sports Extra TBC

Sunday, 9 March

England v Italy - ITV & listen on BBC Sounds & BBC Sport website and app

Highlights - Six Nations Rugby Special - BBC Two from 18:30-19:30

Saturday, 15 March

Italy v Ireland (14:15) - ITV & BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Wales v England (16:45) - BBC One from 16:00-19:00 - BBC Radio 5 Live

France v Scotland (20:00) - BBC Radio 5 Live

Sunday, 16 March

Highlights - Six Nations Rugby Special - BBC Two from 18:00-19:00

Dylan Strome can't stop outdoing himself. And that's a good thing -- for Strome, and the Washington Capitals.

Strome is the Capitals' leading scorer (with 12 goals and 46 points in 49 games) and is on pace to put up a third consecutive career-best season. Washington's top-line center has been a backbone to the club's surprising success and helped carry the Capitals through their challenging stretches.

The 27-year-old stepped up offensively when frequent linemate Alex Ovechkin was sidelined five weeks because of a fractured fibula, notching five goals and 10 points while shouldering 18:24 of ice time per game. And he has been markedly consistent in his production, with a recent six-game pointless streak the only real "drought" to date.

But Strome doesn't need to be on the scoresheet to have an impact. What he does well -- at 5-on-5 and the power play -- is reflected in a strong 200-foot game that has elevated the Capitals into Stanley Cup contenders. If that reality caught anyone around the league off guard, well, let's just say Strome knew Washington was something special -- and that eventually, he'd prove to (former) doubters that he is, too.

DYLAN STROME LEAVES quite an impression. And not just on the ice.

Conor Sheary recalls the early days around his former Capitals teammate with a hearty laugh over Strome's puzzling -- but undeniably infectious -- personality.

"My first thoughts on Dylan? That's a loaded question," Sheary said. "I think with his appearance, he comes off like a pretty goofy kid. He's always in a good mood. He almost seems lazy at times, just because he's kind of laid back and just doing his own thing.

"But then he goes into a game and is the ultimate teammate. It's crazy. He's someone who just fits in right away, and guys want to be around him."

Alex DeBrincat recalled a similar interaction with Strome when he arrived to the Ontario Hockey League's Erie Otters -- and swiftly discovered Strome's magnetism.

"He was the guy who really welcomed me in and made me feel comfortable," DeBrincat said. "During [training] camp, a lot of the guys would go over to his house and Stromer invited me to hang out there too with some of the older guys. He's pretty goofy, always trying to have a good time. He runs with that and makes the most of everything. We just clicked right away."

The pairing of DeBrincat and Strome on a line -- which included Connor McDavid -- led them to scorching the OHL in seasons to come. It wouldn't be the only team on which Strome and DeBrincat found quick chemistry, either (but more on that later).

It was Strome's reputation as a happy-go-lucky kid that preceded him to the NHL draft floor in 2015, where the Arizona Coyotes called his name with the third pick. The walk on stage that followed -- with the hand shaking and the jersey acceptance and a wide-toothed grin at the cameras -- was Strome taking his first steps onto an unexpected roller coaster that would jostle him through the next handful of years.

That wasn't exactly the plan.

Strome, now 27, entered the league as a highly touted prospect who had just won the 2015 OHL scoring title with 129 points (he narrowly topped linemate McDavid, who was limited to just 47 games because of injury but still scored 120 points). The idea was for Strome to become a pillar of the Coyotes franchise.

Instead, he skated in just 48 games for Arizona over three seasons, accumulating only seven goals and 16 points before being traded in November 2018 to the Chicago Blackhawks. A tumultuous tenure there ended acrimoniously, and pushed Strome to the Capitals -- the comfortable landing spot for Strome that he'd given DeBrincat a decade before in Erie.

It hasn't been easy. But for better or worse, Strome is convinced he's just getting started.

"You're never going to completely shed [certain] labels and you're always going to be drafted where you were drafted. I think that's always going to be part of my hockey story," Strome said. "It didn't work out in Arizona. I thought it was going really well in Chicago until I hit a few speed bumps in the road.

"But then you get to Washington, and [in hindsight] those other places prepared me to be a good player on a good team. And I feel like that's where I'm at now, where I'm trying to produce on a good team. And so far, it's been fun."

Fun, and then some. It was a long time coming.

STROME IS HARDWIRED to see the good.

It's how he got through those early years being labeled a "bust" on whom the rebuilding Coyotes had wasted their coveted third overall selection. There was no escaping such narratives while Strome was struggling, shuffled between the NHL and American Hockey League when his peers were thriving in their own locales; McDavid, No. 2 pick Jack Eichel and No. 5 pick Noah Hanifin transitioned right to the NHL, while No. 4 pick Mitch Marner debuted in the NHL a season later.

"When you see guys around you doing so well and even playing [at all] in the NHL, yeah, it's in your mind that you don't want to be the guy that was drafted high and never made it or never played," Strome said. "You never know if you'll find your [place] and if the rest of that stuff and that talk will ever go away."

The conversation around Strome hit a fever pitch when Arizona traded him and Brendan Perlini to Chicago for Nick Schmaltz after Strome had appeared in 20 games in the 2018-19 season. It was an initially positive switch for Strome when he was reunited on a line with former Otters' teammate DeBrincat along with Patrick Kane -- and broke out with the best numbers of his career to that point (17 goals and 51 points in 58 games).

Strome produced well in Chicago over the next two years as well -- notching 21 goals and 55 points in 98 outings -- and signed a two-year, $6 million contract extension in January 2021.

Then the wheels began to fall off.

The Blackhawks endured a brutal start to the 2021-22 season, going 1-9-2 and seeing coach Jeremy Colliton fired. Strome was a healthy scratch in seven of Chicago's first 11 games, and it wasn't until Colliton was out -- and interim head coach Derek King stepped in -- that Strome was back in a top-six position. But the previous benching had taken its toll.

"I feel like when you're drafted high, you get a little longer leash and people know that the skill is there and it's in you to play well," Strome said. "So then when there are times where you haven't played in five games and then you go in and you don't play very well and then you're out again and suddenly it's like, 'When's the next time you're even going to play again?'

"I always believed in myself, but you question, 'What's going to happen here?' You think to yourself, 'How long can I do this for? How long are they going to allow me to do this for?'"

King could see the strain on Strome when he took over from Colliton. The goofiness that defined Strome to others was kept well hidden -- at first -- by the player's determination to be taken seriously.

"He put his nose to the grindstone and said, 'I can do this and I'm going to do it,' and he just worked hard," King said. "I knew how good he was. I wanted to get him in and get him playing. When it was game time he would knuckle down, and he took advantage when he got his chance."

Strome admits he didn't walk through those rough patches alone. Reaching out for support kept the frustration and doubts from boiling over.

"When you get home after you've been a scratch, it's easy to be disappointed," Strome said. "My dad was someone I talked to every day about situations, and he was just trying to keep me positive and realizing chances are going to come. Family was the biggest factor in getting through that, but I also had a few good friends on the team, too, like DeBrincat and Kaner, that were there for me in tough times, and I'll always be thankful for that."

King had Strome back with his two favorite linemates so they could flourish like before -- "those three always saw the game the same way," King said -- and it was a further testament to Strome's tenacity that he could slide right back into a productive role despite inconsistent ice time.

"There was a lot of not wanting to be very positive," Strome said. "But I was just sticking with it. I know it's kind of cliche, but just trying to trust yourself and trust your skills so that when you do get back in you're going to find a way to help the team win.

"It was actually a game here [in Toronto] that brought me back, I thought. I was scratched the night before, then got moved up to the first line for [the Toronto game], and then just tried to ride with it for the rest of the season from there. Sometimes all you need is that one little jump to get you going."

Strome finished the season fourth on the Blackhawks with 22 goals and 48 points in 69 games. DeBrincat was a key figure in Strome's flourishing on the ice, but more than that he provided a backbone of friendship to boost Strome's spirits during one of his career's hardest stretches.

"When you're going to the rink and things aren't necessarily going your way, it's hard to keep that [positive] energy, but I tried to keep things light and just be there for him," DeBrincat said. "I knew he was a great player, and he did have a tough time in Chicago that last year, but once he was playing every game, he was right back to his old self. And I think you saw him creating plays and creating offense like that every night. When he gets his opportunities, he proves he can really play well."

The front office had apparently seen enough, though. Strome was an impending restricted free agent in summer 2022, and when it came time to receive a qualifying offer from the Blackhawks, one never came. Suddenly, he was a unrestricted free agent with an uncertain future.

Two days into free agency, he signed a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Capitals. It was a club Strome thought would have his back.

"I feel like it's important in hockey that whenever you get a chance to try to take the ball you've got to run with it," he said. "When a team or a coach or GM or just someone believes in you, you've really got to try to ride that as long as you can and hopefully get a contract and show them you can produce."

Washington wouldn't wait long for a significant return on their investment.

SHEARY WILL FREELY ADMIT now he knew nothing about Strome -- player or person -- before they were Capitals teammates.

And like so many modern relationships, it was social media that introduced them before they connected in real life.

"It was our wives," Sheary said. "They noticed we had daughters the same age [Strome has two kids with wife Taylor; Sheary has three with wife Jordan], and they connected on Instagram. So we were virtual friends, and then after [Strome arrived in town], naturally we started hanging out with them a lot.

"It seemed pretty natural. We just had a lot in common. And then we started to play together on the ice, too, which only brought us closer."

The early synergy with Sheary mirrored an equally easy transition into Washington's lineup. The Capitals let Strome loose in a top-six role, and he put up a career-best season in 2022-23 with 23 goals and 65 points in 81 games. It was the most Strome had ever played in one NHL season, and the production wasn't a surprise given his penchant for taking advantage of opportunities.

"Honestly, it just helps when you get a good opportunity to play every night. I was having fun again," Strome said of his first season with the Capitals. "You're playing good minutes and on the power play and you're trying to help the team win. I think a lot of things meshed together at the right time for me and it was good."

"He's an incredibly smart hockey player," Sheary added. "He's got great vision, he's an incredible playmaker and he's really strong on his stick; he rarely misses a pass. And those kind of things add up throughout a game where, if you can just get it in his area, and he's able to handle it or make a play, it's pretty impressive, and his poise with the puck when he does get it, is something that you can't really teach."

The stronger Strome's game became, the more he distanced himself from that portrait of a failed draft pick. Sheary couldn't relate to Strome on that level -- he was undrafted -- but the veteran has been around long enough to know how pressure can make or break even the top-tier skaters.

"When you're an 18-year-old kid and you come in as a third overall pick, the expectation is immediate, and if that's not met, sometimes I feel like that can hurt a player," Sheary said. "But I think once Dylan moved on to Chicago, he became more of a player that he wanted to be. And then when he moved on to Washington, he was able to flourish in a bigger role, and he started playing on the top couple lines, and he proved that he could do that, night in and night out.

"He's grown more into the player he was expected to be right away, but sometimes that takes some time. I think he just finally came into his own once he came to Washington."

And how. Strome is aging like a fine wine with the Capitals, setting new benchmarks year over year that have served in propelling Washington atop the NHL standings midway through this season. Strome paces the Capitals in points since arriving with Washington to start the 2022-23 season (with 178 in 209 games) and is second in goals only to -- you might have guessed -- Alex Ovechkin.

Strome has been a regular linemate of Ovechkin's, too -- a privilege he holds in the proper perspective.

"It's been an honor to play on his line," Strome said. "I mean, you see how serious he is, but also how much fun he has. The guy loves scoring goals more than anyone I've ever seen, but he also loves being on the ice when someone else scores a goal more than I've ever seen. He wants you to score. He wants to score. He wants to be on the ice in key situations, and he wants to shoot the puck and he wants to get open. That's a good combination to have."

The lift from Ovechkin is only part of why Strome might now be in his greatest season yet, having collected 12 goals and 46 points through 46 games. He'd been centering a line with Ovechkin and Aliaksei Protas when Ovechkin fractured his fibula in mid-November. It was then on Strome to be a crucial piece of propping up the Capitals' attack -- with six goals and 13 points -- while the team's captain sat out for five weeks.

Washington coach Spencer Carbery suspected Strome would step up in Ovechkin's absence. It falls in line with the "ultra competitive" player Carbery met when he joined the Capitals.

"A lot of people wrote him off early in his career, whether it was in Arizona or Chicago, and he's continued to press forward and want to get better and better and better," Carbery said. "[He's] not just settling into, 'Well, I'm just going to be an OK player in the National Hockey League.' He's still trying to get better and still trying to push the envelope to become an elite player in the NHL and be a top center, and he's continued to prove it. And now I think this is his third year in a row where he's trending to be a better player than he was the year before. And you see that at times, but it's pretty rare."

It also hasn't come by accident. Strome has put in the work behind the scenes to become this version of an NHL player.

And, if Sheary is correct, it'll shift Strome into another chapter of his life, too, when it's time to hang up the skates:

"I always joke that he's going to be a GM someday."

MOST PEOPLE REFUSE to take the office home at night. Strome is not one of those folks.

"He's a big-time hockey nerd," Sheary said. "In Wash, we were all fascinated by his hockey knowledge. He can spit anyone's statistics without even looking them up. He loves knowing that stuff, knowing points and goals, which was pretty intriguing. I've never seen someone know so much about the game of hockey."

The obsession likely started early for Strome given his family's hockey lineage -- Strome's older brother, Ryan, plays for the Anaheim Ducks and his younger brother Matthew was a fourth-round pick by Philadelphia in 2017. Staying curious about the game appears to be part of Strome's DNA. And his dream was larger than just making the league; he wanted staying power. And never gave up on finding it.

"I think I'm pretty close to what I thought I would be as a player," Strome said. "It took a little longer than I thought to be a guy that's consistently in the lineup every day. I am more of a pass-first guy. I do try to be a good teammate. But I also feel like that's what I thought I could do the best in the NHL and now it looks pretty close to what I've become."

There's just one thing missing for Strome now -- and the Capitals are on track to check it off his list this spring: a real run at contending for a Stanley Cup.

If the league-leading Capitals can reach that level, it will be with Strome at the forefront. After years of searching for it, he has found a home in Washington. And now more than ever, there's no place like it.

Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente will remain in charge of the national team through to 2028, the country's football federation (RFEF) announced on Monday.

De la Fuente's previous deal was to expire after the 2026 World Cup.

The new and improved contract will see the 63-year-old guide La Roja through the 2028 European Championship when Spain attempt to defend the title they won last year.

The former Alaves boss replaced Luis Enrique as coach in December 2022 following Spain's round-of-16 elimination from the World Cup.

He had previously coached Spain's under-21 side, and also led the Olympic team to a silver medal at the 2022 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

After succeeding Luis Enrique, De la Fuente steered the national team to the 2023 Nations League title.

He then held the reins as Spain won their fourth European Championship title at Euro 2024.

Spain are back in action in March when they take on the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the Nations League.

Ange Postecoglou is expected to be given the chance to save his job amid mounting calls for Tottenham to sack the 59-year-old, sources have told ESPN.

Spurs were booed off after losing 2-1 at home to Leicester City on Sunday, a result which leaves them languishing in 15th place in the Premier League.

Tottenham have won just one of their past 11 league matches and during their latest defeat, many fans turned their anger on Daniel Levy with some holding up a banner which read "24 years, 16 managers, 1 trophy" in reference to his record as chairman.

However, Spurs are one game away from a Wembley showpiece final with their semifinal, second leg against Liverpool set to take place at Anfield on Feb. 6. Sources have told ESPN that Postecoglou is likely to be given the opportunity to win that tie, given they hold a slender 1-0 lead from the first leg, unless there is another dramatic downturn in the intervening two games.

Postecoglou's side host Swedish club IF Elfsborg in the Europa League on Thursday -- with Spurs in a good position to secure automatic qualification for the knockout stages -- before a tricky trip across London to Brentford on Sunday. Just three days after that Carabao Cup second leg match, Spurs face Aston Villa in the FA Cup fourth round.

There continues to be a recognition among the club's hierarchy that Postecoglou is hampered by an unusually bad injury situation with 10 first-team players unavailable against Leicester.

Richarlison was only able to play 54 minutes while Postecoglou suggested after the game that Pape Matar Sarr should not have played at all due to a lack of match fitness.

Postecoglou is hopeful that first-choice centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven could return in time in the next week or so while the club are active in the January transfer market and aim to bring in at least one player before next Monday's deadline.

Following the loss to Leicester on Sunday, Postecoglou was asked if he would get another fortnight in his post to benefit from key players returning,

"Who knows? I reckon there is probably a fair chunk [of people] that will say 'no,'" he said.

"When you are the manager of a football club you can be very vulnerable and isolated. I don't feel that. I feel like this group of players, not for me, are giving everything for the club. I have a group of staff that is really committed. I focus on that."

LONDON -- Marcus Rashford has one week to save his career, but it might be too late before he finally realises what is at stake.

The Manchester United forward either seals a move away from Old Trafford before Monday's transfer deadline, or he accepts Ruben Amorim's brutal assessment of his situation at the club and makes the changes, on and off the pitch, which are being demanded by his head coach. If he fails on both counts, then the 27-year-old will be heading for the wilderness with his once-promising career reduced to regret and what-might-have-been.

At 27, and with his form evaporating during the past 18 months -- a period that's also seen him miss out on Euro 2024 and fall out of the England picture -- Rashford is running out of time as a footballer, and Amorim is clearly in no mood to make concessions to accommodate United's highest-paid player.

When asked after United's narrow 1-0 win at Fulham on Sunday whether Rashford had a way back into the team because strikers Rasmus Højlund and Joshua Zirkzee are failing to deliver -- neither has scored on 2025, and have managed just one goal between them since the beginning of December -- Amorim had the opportunity to offer Rashford an olive branch and encouragement that the door was still open. Instead, Amorim slammed it shut with a withering assessment of the impression that Rashford has made since he arrived as coach two months ago.

"It's the same, it's always the same reason," Amorim said when asked why he continued to overlook Rashford. "The reason is the training, the way I see what footballers should do in training, in life, it's every day, every detail.

"So if things don't change, I will not change. It's the same situation for every player. If you do the maximum, if you do the right things, we can use every player. And you can see it today on the bench: we miss a little bit of pace to go and change the game, move some pieces.

"But I prefer it like that. I will put [63-year-old goalkeeper coach Jorge] Vital on before I put a player on that don't give the maximum every day. So I will not change in that department."

Amorim's stance on Rashford has been resolute since he dropped the forward from his squad for the derby against Manchester City on Dec. 15. United won 2-1 without Rashford that day, and aside from being an unused substitute in a 2-0 home defeat against Newcastle last month, the forward has been absent from 10 of 11 matchday squads. He was not involved again at Fulham and it was the poor performance of Højlund in particular that exposed United's lack of cutting edge up front.

All coaches need to find a way to win, and most are pragmatic enough to select players they have issues with in order to get the results they need to keep the fans and owners happy. But Amorim won't pick Rashford, despite the limitations of his forwards. Aside from winger Amad Diallo, no forward has scored for United since early December.

It generally doesn't matter who scores as long as a team wins or, at the very least, avoids defeat. But the problem right now for Amorim and United is that the players who are supposed to find the back of the net are showing no signs of doing so.

Højlund, a 64m signing from Atalanta 18 months ago, took his goalless streak to 11 games during a woeful 57 minutes at Craven Cottage in which he had no shots at goal and no touches in the Fulham penalty area. His replacement from the substitutes' bench, Zirkzee, walked off the pitch after a 33-minute outing having also failed to shoot at goal. The 36m signing from Bologna has now managed one goal in 14 games, although he did help link play better than Højlund did during his time on the pitch.

Højlund is clearly low on confidence and, at just 21 years old, he needs help from more experienced teammates, but when you play as a No. 9 for Manchester United, the expectations are incredibly high and the Denmark international is not meeting them. Neither is Zirkzee.

United do not have the finances to sign a proven upgrade this month, so there will no Viktor Gyökeres or Victor Osimhen arriving at Old Trafford before Monday's transfer deadline, as much as Amorim's team need a player of that calibre to bolster the squad.

With three years to run on his 325,000-a-week contract at Old Trafford, Rashford is hardly a bargain opportunity for rival clubs and with three weeks of the window gone, he is still at United having so far failed to secure a move away from the club, despite interest from AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund. Sources have told ESPN that Rashford is hopeful that Barcelona will be able to step up their interest in a loan deal by offloading players to free up room on their wage bill, but there are no guarantees, and he's just as likely to still be at Old Trafford next Tuesday as he is to be somewhere else.

Rashford hasn't kicked a ball for United since the Europa League victory away to Viktoria Plzen on Dec. 12, but the onus is now firmly on him to change that. Amorim has made it clear what needs to happen; the clock is ticking.

Rashford can either leave, or do what his coach wants. The alternative doesn't bear thinking about for a player who was once United and England's golden boy.