The Boston Celtics watched as their 3-1 series lead against the Philadelphia 76ers slipped away this week as they lost Game 7 and were eliminated from the playoffs on Saturday night.

The 76ers won Game 7, 109-100, behind Joel Embiid’s 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. Embiid made nine of his 11 free-throw attempts, but drew flopping accusations from Celtics star Jaylen Brown after the game.

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“Embiid put a lot of pressure on us, like on all our bigs and our guards,” he said, via Mass Live. “We didn’t really have an answer for him. We tried a bunch of different things and he just, he’s a big body, and also he was flopping around, he got some extra calls and stuff like that, and they rewarded him for that. That’s the league that we’re in. So, that’s all I got to say.”

Tyrese Maxey added 30 points and VJ Edgecombe added 23 in the win.

One of the key difference-makers in Game 7 were Philadelphia’s 3-point shooting. The 76ers were 39% from long range while Boston shot 27%. The Celtics were 13-of-49.

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Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown plays during the final minutes of Game 7 in a first-round NBA playoff series in Boston on May 2, 2026. (Jim Davis/AP)

Brown said after the game that he didn’t feel as though Philadelphia was a “traditional” No. 7 seed. He gave credit to Maxey, Embiid and Paul George’s effectiveness.

“Like we just didn’t really have an answer for Embiid in the games that he played. He just was a problem for us,” Brown added. “Obviously, we didn’t know if he was going to be able to play because of his appendicitis, or whatever you call it, but I think that made the difference. But give credit to (76ers head coach) Nick Nurse. Give credit to Philadelphia. They got better.”

Boston also lost Jayson Tatum to an injury in the middle of Game 6 and he exited Game 7, while trying to play through an injury.

Boston Celtics’ Jayson Baylor Scheierman defends Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid during the first half of Game 7 in a first-round NBA playoff series in Boston on May 2, 2026. (Jim Davis/AP)

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Philadelphia will play the New York Knicks in the next round.

• Kingsmen chase title in debut season.
• Zalmi target second PSL crown since 2017.
• Babar leads with record-breaking run tally.

Marnus Labuschagne’s Hyderabad Kingsmen are set to face Babar Azam’s Peshawar Zalmi in the final of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 on Sunday night at the Gaddafi Stadium, which will mark the culmination of the 44-match season of the league.

For the first time in the history of the PSL, a separate reward has been set for the franchises with the winning franchise getting $500,000, runners up will get $300,000, while the franchise with the best player development efforts will bag $200,000. The tournament-winning prize for players will comprise $500,000.

Hyderabad Kingsmen will be looking to conclude their fairytale season with the PSL title, while Peshawar Zalmi are eyeing their second title after 2017. Zalmi were the runners-up for 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons.

On the back of Babar’s record 588-run tally, Kusal Mendis’ 541 runs and Sufyan Moqim’s 21 wickets, Peshawar Zalmi won eight of their 10 matches in the league stage including a seven-match winning streak.

They outclassed Islamabad United by 70 runs in the Qualifier to secure the ticket for the final.

Express fast bowler Nahid Rana has also rejoined the Peshawar Zalmi squad and will be available for selection.

He picked up seven wickets in four league matches for Zalmi.

Hyderabad Kingsmen began their campaign with three outright losses by 69 runs against Qalandars, by 40 runs versus Gladiators and by six wickets against Sultans.

Their fourth consecutive loss came against Peshawar Zalmi as the two teams played out a last-ball thriller.

Zalmi chased the 146-run target with four wickets in hand.

Kingsmen then won four matches on the trot before falling flat against Islamabad United.

They thumped Rawalpindiz by 108 runs in their last league game to oust defending champions Lahore Qalandars on net run rate.

Kingsmen knocked out Multan Sultans in Eliminator 1 and came from behind to stun Islamabad United by two runs in the Eliminator 2.

At the pre-final captains’ press conference, Babar said: “We have played really good cricket in the tournament. Our focus has been on assessing the conditions first and then executing the plans.”

“The performance of our team this season has been a combined effort of the local and overseas players. We hope to win the trophy by giving our best.”

Labuschagne, the skipper of the Kingsmen said that leading his side has been really exciting and he’s enjoyed every moment.

“There have been certainly ups and downs but I think that’s what makes it so good. [it’s] just another game and we will make sure that we stick to our processes.”

Marta Kostyuk defeated Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 7-5 to win the Madrid Open for the first time on Saturday. 

It was world number 23 Kostyuk’s first trophy at WTA 1000 level and her second title of the season.

She became only the second player outside of the top 20 to win the Madrid Open, in her third final of an impressive 2026 thus far.

“It feels unbelievable to stand here right now,” said Kostyuk, holding the trophy.

“It took me many years to reach this point and the one word I think about right now is consistency — showing up every day no matter how hard it is, no matter how much you love or hate what you do.

“I’ve been doing that really well (over) the past years I think, so I’m very proud of myself and my team.”

Kostyuk won when she met Andreeva in Brisbane earlier this year in their only prior meeting, and both have since enjoyed stellar starts to the clay-court swing.

The Ukrainian secured the first break to take a 4-2 lead in the opening set, with world number eight Andreeva struggling to handle her opponent’s superior power.

The 23-year-old Rouen Open winner spurned her first set point with a double fault but captured the second when Andreeva went long.

The Russian, who became favourite to win the tournament after Aryna Sabalenka was eliminated, made too many mistakes in the first set and Kostyuk was only too happy to take advantage of them.

Playing in her first WTA 1000 final, Kostyuk broke in the first game of the second set with Andreeva volleying into the net.
However, the 19-year-old broke back with a fizzing return down the line to tie at 1-1.

The players exchanged breaks again in the fourth and fifth games, before Kostyuk showed great resilience to save two set points and hold for 5-5.

Andreeva double faulted to give her opponent a 6-5 lead and the chance to serve for the title.
Kostyuk opened up three championship points and spurned the first two but triumphed when Andreeva sent a backhand long, collapsing to the floor in joy.

“Of course I would like to congratulate Marta, for how your clay season is going so far as well, you won two tournaments in a row, so you’re playing very well, so congrats for the win today,” said Andreeva, who could not hold back tears.

It was her third WTA 1000 final and her first defeat in one as she was unable to add to the 500 titles she won in Adelaide and Linz earlier this year.