LONDON: Premier League champions Chelsea on Monday announced the signing of Bosnian international goalkeeper Asmir Begovic from Stoke City. Begovic, 28, has agreed a four-year deal at Stamford Bridge, with Chelsea paying Stoke an undisclosed fee to make the goalkeeper their second major signing of the summer. His arrival in west London follows the signing of Colombian striker Radamel Falcao on a season-long loan from Monaco, and the giant shot-stopper will give Thibaut Courtois competition for places between the posts after Petr Cech was sold to Arsenal. Begovic, who went to school in Canada and represented that country at the under-20 World Cup in 2007, spent more than five years with Stoke after moving to the Britannia Stadium from Portsmouth in 2010.

Rayudu ruled out

MUMBAI: In-form batsman Ambati Rayudu has been ruled out of the remainder of India’s tour of Zimbabwe with a muscle injury, the country’s cricket board (BCCI) said on Monday. Rayudu, 29, scored an unbeaten 124 in the first one-day international against Zimbabwe and followed it up with a 41 in the second match, during which he sustained the injury. “Rayudu pulled his right quadriceps muscles and will require 2-3 weeks of rehabilitation,” the BCCI said in a statement. Uncapped Sanju Samson, 20, will replace Rayudu for the third and final ODI and the two subsequent Twenty20 matches. India are 2-0 ahead in the three-match series, with the final ODI on Tuesday.

Williams ups lead

LONDON: Serena Williams has widened her lead at No 1 in the WTA rankings with her fourth consecutive Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, now holding more than twice as many points as No 2 Maria Sharapova. Novak Djokovic’s third championship at the All England Club allowed him to retain his healthy lead atop the ATP rankings on Monday over No 2 Roger Federer, the man he beat in the final. Sharapova, who lost to Williams in the semifinals, rose two spots, while last year’s champion, Petra Kvitova, slid from No 2 to No 5 after exiting in the third round. Garbine Muguruza, the 21-year-old from Spain who was the runner-up to Williams, moved into the top 10 for the first time at No 9, an 11-spot rise. The men’s top 10 remained unchanged, including Andy Murray at No 3, and Rafael Nadal at No 10.