Britain's Andy Murray beat France's Mathias Bourgue in straight sets to reach the final of the ATP Challenger in Biella, Italy.

Marchenko, world number 212, defeated Italian second-seed Federico Gaio 7-5 6-1 in the other semi-final.

Murray was ruled out of the ongoing Australian Open following a positive test for coronavirus.

Contesting his first tournament since October, the Scot took only 26 minutes to claim the opening set without losing a game.

Having survived three break points in the previous game, the Scot broke Bourgue's serve to move 4-3 ahead in the second set but was immediately pegged back to 4-4.

Murray was then forced to save a set point at 5-4, responding with another break before sealing victory with his second match point.

The 33-year-old has now won three successive matches without dropping a set - since coming from behind to win his opener against Maximilian Marterer.

Murray, who played only seven official matches last year because of injury and the coronavirus pandemic, was permitted to play in the second-tier event in Biella after a quarantine waiver was agreed for players travelling from outside the European Union.

Scotland's Zander Fagerson is sent off after hitting Alun Wyn Jones in the head in a crucial moment in their Six Nations game against Wales at Murrayfield.

FOLLOW LIVE: Scotland v Wales- watch, listen & follow text updates

WATCH MORE: Price and Graham combine for 'wonderful' Scotland opening try

Wales edged out 14-man Scotland in a mesmeric thriller at Murrayfield to maintain their 100% start to their Six Nations campaign.

But a frantic seven minutes saw the hosts have a try disallowed and Zander Fagerson sent off, while the visitors went over twice to swing the momentum.

A Wyn Jones try was bookended by two from Louis Rees-Zammit, the latter proving crucial in the bonus-point win.

Scotland claimed a losing bonus point too, but 20-year-old Rees-Zammit's efforts were the highlight of the encounter.

His first try came just moments before the break to offer hope for the Welsh, while Liam Williams' try on 52 minutes came just three minutes after Gary Graham's score was ruled out.

Scots answer early questions

It's hard to recall a time in living memory when Wales went into a Test against Scotland as clear underdogs - with good reason as it turned out - but they made a bright enough start even if their pressure only delivered three points from Leigh Halfpenny's boot. There was plenty of grunt but precious little craft - and there was a gulf between the sides in that regard.

Finn Russell levelled it on the 10-minute mark as Scotland slowly but surely turned the screw on the injury-hit visitors. Scotland, seeking a fifth straight win in the championship for the first time since 1986, struck the first significant blow of a bitterly cold day when Darcy Graham went over for the first try.

It was a beauty, too. A score borne out of vision and anticipation and ambition. Russell started it with a little break and offload to Jonny Gray who galloped in behind the Welsh defence. The big man, exceptional at Twickenham, had support coming in waves.

The key men were Ali Price, who spotted Wales' flat defence and dinked a gorgeous chip over the top, and Graham, who read his scrum-half's mind and gobbled up the dropping ball. Halfpenny tried to recover his ground, but it was too late. Russell's conversion put the Scots seven points clear.

This reborn Scotland side came again soon after. A scrum, a wraparound in midfield, a chip ahead from Hogg which should have been dealt with by Halfpenny, but wasn't. The full-back, so often the scourge of the Scots, slid to deal with the loose ball but then nightmarishly allowed it squirm from his grip. Hogg seized on it and scored. Russell made it 17-3 and the questions about Scotland's ability to back up the Twickenham win were being answered.

They got sloppy for a spell afterwards, though. Penalties flowed and so, at last, did Wales, Nick Tompkins and Liam Williams putting Rees-Zammit over in the corner just before the break. A nine-point game now.

Drama engulfs pulsating second half

Early in the new half it looked to all the world as if that gap would stretch in Scotland's favour when Gary Graham piled over at the posts, but Scott Cummings was done for obstruction and everything turned from there.

Wales came downfield, launched a devastating maul, threw a dummy runner and some deception in midfield, and Rees-Zammit went through a gap and fed Williams to score. Callum Sheedy banged over the extras, 17-15.

Then, drama. Fagerson walked when his shoulder connected with Wyn Jones' head at the breakdown. Scotland down to 14, Wales with a one-man advantage for the second week running. Another powerful Welsh maul added to Scotland's pain. The sinned-against became the scorer. Try for big Wyn - and a three-point lead for Wales.

This pulsating game was far from done, though. The 14 men got themselves back up the pitch, piled the heat on Wales under their own posts and then struck out, Russell finding Hogg who took Owen Watkin on the outside to score. It was a terrific finish from the captain. Russell, from 41 metres out and away on the angle, rifled over a valuable conversion. Scotland now had a four-point lead.

In keeping with the mini-classic we were watching, Wales regained the lead minutes later and again it was the sensational Rees-Zammit at the heart of it. This was all about the brilliant wing. He sped down the touchline, chipped ahead, gathered and outpaced the retreating Scots, Hogg among them. Wonderful.

Sheedy missed another conversion so the gap stayed at one. Ten minutes to go. Terrific. Scotland's 14 threw everything at Wales but they defended stoutly in the closing minutes.

No way through, no way back for Scotland, not even when Duhan van der Merwe looked to be away in the closing seconds only to be tap-tackled to the floor by Watkin. A mammoth injury list they may have had, but this was a gargantuan victory for Wayne Pivac's men.

Man of the match: Louis Rees-Zammit

'I'm loving playing on this stage' - what they said

Scotland captain Stuart Hogg speaking to BBC Scotland: "I thought we were excellent in large parts of that game. We talked a lot during the week about our discipline. Conceding one penalty is fine, conceding four on the bounce is unacceptable.

"Wales were outstanding, they took their opportunities but we gave them to them.

"It's pointless me whinging about the red card, what's done is done."

Wales' man of the match Louis Rees-Zammit told BBC One: "We've come a long way from the last Six Nations campaign and worked so hard in training. It's hard to come up here and get a win.

"I'm thoroughly enjoying it, the whole team have helped me settle in and I'm loving playing on this sort of stage."

'Rees-Zammit was the spark' - analysis

Glasgow Warriors & Scotland hooker Fraser Brown: "Some decisions are completely subjective. Either give the officials full autonomy to make their own decision about it, and accept that there will be differences in how they see it, or say absolutely any contact to the head is a red card and we end up playing games with eight or seven players.

"People don't want that because it ruins the spectacle but we have to think, are we doing this for the players' safety or are we doing it just for lip service?"

Former Wales fly-half James Hook: "A lot better performance by Wales this week, we showed a lot more. Rees-Zammit was the spark that everyone knows what he can do, and he showed it today."

Line-ups

Scotland: Hogg (capt); D Graham, Harris, Lang, Van der Merwe; Russell, Price; Sutherland, Turner, Z Fagerson; Cummings, J Gray; Thomson, Watson, M Fagerson

Replacements: Cherry, Kebble, Nel, R Gray, G Graham, Steele, Van der Walt, H Jones

Wales: Halfpenny; Rees-Zammit, Watkin, Tompkins, Williams; Biggar, Davies; W Jones, Owens, Francis; Beard, AW Jones (capt); Wainwright, Tipuric, Faletau

Replacements: Dee, R Jones, Brown, Rowlands, Botham, Hardy, Sheedy, Haloholo

More to follow.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Austin Cindric will start his title defense from the front of the field at Daytona Int’l Speedway, thanks to a little help from Mother Nature.

Cindric was awarded the pole position for Saturday afternoon’s Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. 300 after heavy rain during the morning hours forced NASCAR and track officials to cancel time trials.

The qualifying session was slated to kick off at 10:30 a.m. ET, but weather moved in over Daytona three minutes into the preceding NASCAR Cup Series practice and forced that session to an early end.

NASCAR then officially called off Xfinity qualifying just after 11 a.m. ET, setting the lineup by car owner points from last season as per the NASCAR rule book and putting Cindric’s Team Penske-prepared No. 33 Verizon 5G Ford on the pole.

Joining Cindric on the front row will be last year’s title runner-up, Justin Allgaier, in a JR Motorsports Chevrolet. Justin Haley starts third alongside Riley Herbst, with defending race winner Noah Gragson filling out the top five.

Sixth through 10th on the grid are Brandon Jones, Jeb Burton, Harrison Burton, Josh Berry and Michael Annett, the 2019 winner of the Daytona season opener.

Two heavy-hitters, AJ Allmendinger and Friday practice leader Ty Dillon, roll off 31st and 32nd, respectively.

With 45 cars entered, five drivers failed to make the field, with NASCAR expanding the grid from 36 starting spots to 40 due to the cancellation of qualifying because of inclement weather.

Chris Cockrum, Ronnie Bassett Jr., Mario Gosselin, past Xfinity Series champion Tyler Reddick and Jordan Anderson were the drivers sent home by the qualifying rainout.

Reddick was not eligible for a past champion’s provisional because he did not attempt a NASCAR Xfinity Series race last season.

The Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. 300 is scheduled for a 5 p.m. ET start, with live coverage on FS1, the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

STARTING LINEUP: NASCAR Xfinity Series; Daytona Int’l Speedway; Feb. 13, 2021

1. Austin Cindric
2. Justin Allgaier
3. Justin Haley
4. Riley Herbst
5. Noah Gragson
6. Brandon Jones
7. Jeb Burton
8. Harrison Burton
9. Josh Berry
10. Michael Annett
11. Myatt Snider
12. Daniel Hemric
13. Ryan Sieg
14. Brandon Brown
15. Brett Moffitt
16. Jeremy Clements
17. Josh Williams
18. Joe Graf Jr.
19. Alex Labbe
20. Colby Howard
21. Ryan Vargas
22. Tommy Joe Martins
23. Robby Lyons II
24. Jesse Little
25. Jeffrey Earnhardt
26. Chad Finchum
27. Matt Mills
28. Danny Bohn
29. Cody Ware
30. Bayley Currey
31. AJ Allmendinger
32. Ty Dillon
33. Landon Cassill
34. Kyle Weatherman
35. Gray Gaulding
36. Stefan Parsons
37. Timmy Hill
38. Caesar Bacarella
39. Brandon Gdovic
40. Jason White

DNQ: Chris Cockrum, Ronnie Bassett Jr., Mario Gosselin, Tyler Reddick, Jordan Anderson

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Just like he did one year earlier, Jordan Anderson jumped from his No. 3 Chevrolet Silverado late Friday night with a spring in his step, beaming from ear to ear.

It wasn’t a victory he was smiling about, but it was a second-place finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series opener that meant “the world” to his self-owned Jordan Anderson Racing operation.

Anderson nearly shocked the world for the second straight season at Daytona Int’l Speedway, avoiding a last-corner crash in the NextEra Energy Resources 250 and charging from 11th at the white flag to second at the checkered.

His momentum entering the tri-oval on the bottom lane of the 2.5-mile superspeedway was nearly enough for him to draw even with eventual winner Ben Rhodes at the finish line, but Anderson fell short by .036 seconds.

But even a second runner-up finish couldn’t wipe the grin off of Anderson’s face as he spoke to reporters following what he called “one of the greatest nights of my life.”

“This is what happens when you never give up!” Anderson said. “I know I’ve got a mask on, but I’m still smiling! I need to go back to Chevrolet and see if we can make these Silverados a little bit longer, because that’s two years in a row we’ve finished second to a ThorSport truck here at Daytona. But it’s a dream come true for everyone that’s supported this program. We had a new sponsor onboard in Swann Security and this is a big moment for a lot of reasons that a lot of people may not realize.

“Back in December, we decided we were going to start an Xfinity (Series) program and we were so close to shutting down our Truck program. (Crew chief) Bruce Cook and I finally started talking, and he was looking for something to do, so I finally said, ‘Hey, let’s just keep this Truck program going,’” Anderson continued. “I’m so glad we did. I’m almost speechless. This is so much energy and so much emotion. I shouldn’t be here. I shouldn’t be racing in a (NASCAR) national series. I came from Columbia, S.C., and nobody in my family raced. To go through all we’ve gone through … it’s amazing.

“We were like 12th on the last lap and we’re going Xfinity racing (this year) and finished second at Daytona in a Truck again. Let’s go!”

As good as the ending was, Anderson’s race was almost crushed much earlier, when he was involved in a lap-61 crash that saw his truck spin into the turn-one runoff area but, thankfully, escape undamaged.

“Our night almost ended in that one; I think it was Stewart Friesen or somebody who got into us early … and we went for that huge spin cycle down the short chute going into turn one,” Anderson recalled. “I was puckered up for a second. I thought we were going into the wall. Thankfully, we got out of that one.”

From there, Anderson just laid back and waited in a safe place near the back of the lead pack before fighting his way toward the front during the closing stages of the race.

He admitted, however, that his mindset on the last lap was much different than the previous year.

“I think the biggest thing that was different from last year was that last year we were second coming out of turn two (at the white flag) and, in my head, I was preparing for it and fighting for the win, but to be honest with you … going down the backstretch this year, I was outside the top 10, so the lead and winning wasn’t even in my train of thought,” Anderson admitted. “I was just trying to survive. I feel bad, because I think I clipped Austin Wayne Self there when somebody knocked me down into him, but that whole last lap … I was just trying not to wreck. I was sideways. I had a handful of wheel just trying to keep the thing pointing in the right direction.

“I didn’t really have time to think about anything else, other than ‘Don’t wreck,’ quite honestly,” he added. “Coming out of turn four there, I saw everybody going to the top and I just decided to hug the yellow line here and see what happens, and dang if it didn’t almost work out for us.”

Because Anderson plans to run a full season in the NASCAR Xfinity Series this year, he chose to accrue points in that division rather than in the Truck Series, due to NASCAR’s series declaration rule.

However, even that minor disappointment wasn’t enough to quell the 29-year-old’s enthusiasm.

“I’m kind of bummed that I’m not racing for Truck points this year now,” Anderson admitted, still smiling. “I declared to go race for Xfinity points this year, but it’s still pretty crazy. It’s a huge boost for our team. You know, anytime you can come out of Daytona with a truck that’s for the most part intact, it’s a good night and we did that and almost won the thing. I can’t complain at all.

“This is huge. I’ve had to fight for everything I have. To do this … it’s a special night, it really is.”

As he walked off into the night, Anderson offered a parting thought to the next generation of racers looking up at his path to the top levels of the sport for inspiration and guidance.

“My story is this: for every kid out there who races Legend cars, late models, dirt … never give up,” Anderson said. “If you want to be here, just keep digging.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: Anderson’s quest to make the NASCAR Xfinity Series Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. 300 on Saturday morning at Daytona was stifled by rain that canceled qualifying.

Due to the weather cancellation, Anderson was one of five drivers who failed to make the race. He hopes to run the full season with his No. 31 Chevrolet Camaro this year.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Kyle Busch’s list of NASCAR accomplishments is nothing short of legendary.

Busch boasts 213 national series wins, 13 more than Richard Petty for the most all-time. He has two championships in the NASCAR Cup Series, supported by one title in the Xfinity Series. He’s won the Brickyard 400 twice, as well as the Coca-Cola 600 and Southern 500.

The Las Vegas native even has a 2008 win in the GEICO 500 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway, one of the original “majors” of the sport, as designated by the old Winston Million bonus program from R.J. Reynolds.

However, Busch’s résumé lacks one definitive achievement: a win in NASCAR’s most prestigious event, the Daytona 500.

Sunday afternoon, Busch will make his 16th start in The Great American Race, hoping to finally capture the prize that’s eluded him for nearly two decades.

If he does, he’ll join Petty, Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon, Bobby Allison, Darrell Waltrip, Buddy Baker, Jimmie Johnson, David Pearson and Kevin Harvick as only the 10th driver to win all four of the original crown jewel races in the sport’s history.

For as prolific as Busch has been over his NASCAR career, no race has stifled him more.

Busch, 35, has more Daytona 500 finishes outside the top 30 (five) than finishes inside the top 10 (four). He’s failed to complete all 200 laps in three of the last four events and, traditionally, has seemed to encounter some sort of mishap along the way.

Last year, Busch led with 20 laps to go before engine issues shipwrecked another Daytona 500. He finished 34th, while teammate Denny Hamlin powered to his third win in the sport’s grandest event.

“We’ve been in that spot I don’t know how many times, and I guess we will just keep going down in history of finding new ways to lose it,” Busch said in his post-race interview last year. “I know there is another guy who has done that before [Earnhardt] and he was pretty popular.

“It sucks to be in that conversation,” Busch continued, “but we will go on another year.”

This time, another year has ushered in change. For the first time since 2014, Busch has a new crew chief, as Ben Beshore replaces Adam Stevens atop the pit box.

Stevens helped produce both of Busch’s Cup Series championships in 2015 and ‘19. The two also won 28 times in 203 Cup Series races together.

But Busch is coming off his worst season since 2014, the last time he didn’t have Stevens atop the pit box. That year, he won once at the Cup level and finished 10th in the points standings. Last year, he finished eighth in the standings, which ended five straight years of Championship 4 appearances.

Nixing practices hurt Busch and Stevens, a duo notorious for maximizing and bettering their cars throughout race weekends.

On the outside, showing up and strictly racing neutralized their advantage.

“We had to resort to different circumstances in order to make ourselves better,” Busch said during last week’s Daytona 500 media conferences.

Busch and Stevens tried new ways of business, but ultimately nothing stuck to support a 2021 return. Now, Busch and Beshore are set to roll off 10th in the 63rd running of the Daytona 500, hoping to override years of disappointment by earning a victory Sunday.

“It’s a new challenge and it’s a whole [new] group, but looking forward to it,” Busch said.

Coverage of the 63rd Daytona 500 kicks off at 2:30 p.m. ET Sunday, live on FOX, the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.

OCALA, Fla. – Saturday night’s USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Car Winter Dirt Games XII finale at Bubba Raceway Park has been canceled due to overnight rain and forecasted showers throughout the evening.

Kevin Thomas Jr. and Justin Grant earned the first two victories of the season with the series on Thursday and Friday, respectively, at the three-eighths-mile dirt track.

Grant was the high point man over the first two nights of  the Winter Dirt Games Sprint Car events, which saw an event record total of 45 drivers participate.

The USAC AMSOIL National Sprint Cars will resume competition on Saturday night, April 3, at Lawrenceburg (Ind.) Speedway.

Opportunity is something every race car driver wants, but very few receive.

In the case of Corey LaJoie, he’s been working his entire career for an opportunity to drive solid equipment in the NASCAR Cup Series.

After years of toiling away in outdated and underfunded equipment, LaJoie may have found the opportunity he was looking for with Spire Motorsports.

“I’ve never been more excited leading into any race season in my life than I have been for 2021,” said LaJoie, the son of two-time NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Randy LaJoie and the grandson of New England Auto Racing Hall of Famer Don LaJoie.

Prior to this year, LaJoie has found himself struggling near the back of the NASCAR Cup Series field since becoming a series regular in 2017 when he joined the now-defunct BK Racing operation.

In his first season, he rarely ran anywhere near the top 10, earning a best finish of 11th during the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona Int’l Speedway. He only earned three other finishes of 25th or better in 32 starts that year.

LaJoie spent the next season sharing TriStar Motorsports’ No. 72 entry with Cole Whitt. His best finish was 16th.

He then moved on to Go FAS Racing where he spent two seasons and claimed his first three top-10 finishes, including an eighth-place effort in last year’s Daytona 500.

Yet, LaJoie still found himself yearning for an opportunity to show his true ability. He thinks his deal with Spire Motorsports is that chance. He also thinks that everything he’s learned to date has prepared him for this opportunity.

“I certainly haven’t learned all the lessons there are to learn, but all the lessons that I have learned, I’ve learned the hard way on live television for everybody to watch,” LaJoie acknowledged. “I haven’t had the opportunity to learn a whole lot in the Xfinity Series or race a bunch of races there to get your feet wet. It wasn’t even get your feet wet, it was jump in the ocean and figure out how to tread water.

“When guys jump in certain situations with great people and great cars around them, that learning curve is a little less steep because the cars can carry you when the experience doesn’t match,” LaJoie explained. “I’ve never had that opportunity to have some fast race cars to complement. Learning the garage, learning the politics, learning my brand off the race track, and also just trying to figure out the areas I can control without the fastest car, I think that’s really going to apply when Spire puts fast hot rods underneath me this season.”

The way LaJoie explains it, this chance to drive for Spire Motorsports started in the garage area and gained legs as a type of inside joke with Spire owners Jeff Dickerson and T.J. Puchyr.

“I’ve had a good relationship with T.J. Puchyr and Jeff ever since I’ve been moseying around in the Cup Series,” LaJoie said. “The joke between Jeff and I … it wasn’t even really a joke. Every time I saw Jeff over the past couple of years it’s been, ‘You know, when you guys are actually ready to go real racing, you’ve got my number.’ We’d kind of laugh and say, ‘OK, you ready? I’m ready. Whenever you’re ready, I’m ready.’”

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CHICAGO -- The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated defenseman Zach Werenski off injured reserve.

Werenski is expected to return to the lineup Saturday night at Chicago. The 23-year-old Werenski missed three games with a lower-body injury after he got hurt during a 4-3 win over Dallas on Feb. 4.

Columbus also placed goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks on IR, retroactive to Feb. 6. Kivlenieks, 24, is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Werenski has one goal and three assists in 12 games this year. He was selected by Columbus with the No. 8 pick in the 2015 draft.

Major League Soccer announced the dates for the opening of training camp, with players on most teams reporting on March 1.

The first week will consist of a quarantine period that will include medical exams and testing for COVID-19. The first day of full training for most teams will be on March 8. That date will allow for a six-week training camp prior to the start of the regular season on April 17.

- MLS pushes season start back to April 17
- Insider Notebook: Varane on Man Utd's defensive shortlist

A handful of teams will start earlier because of their involvement in national or continental competitions. Toronto FC's involvement in the Canadian Championship final on April 6 against Forge FC means players will report on Feb. 17 and begin full practice on Feb. 24. If Toronto prevails, it will advance to the knockout stages of the CONCACAF Champions League.

The four teams who have already qualified for the CCL -- Atlanta United, the Columbus Crew, the Philadelphia Union and the Portland Timbers -- will have players arrive on Feb. 24 and begin full practices on March 3.

The league added that players may begin their quarantine period prior to Feb. 24 on a voluntary basis. In such case, players may conduct individual training during the quarantine period and may engage in group training prior to March 3 provided that each player in the group training has conducted medical exams and testing.

Technical staffs and coaches for Atlanta, Columbus, Philadelphia, and Portland may not be present during group training prior to Feb. 24.

The full regular season schedule will be announced at a later date.