:00:00. > :00:13.Hello. I'm Ollie Foster. Welcome to the BBC Sports Centre. Another
:00:14. > :00:14.packed programme for you today with news and features on another packed
:00:15. > :00:32.weekend. Here's what's coming up on the
:00:33. > :00:37.programme today. It is finals weekend in Melbourne. There was a
:00:38. > :00:42.new name on the women's trophy. We have a report coming up of Li
:00:43. > :00:46.against Cibulkova. England's women can retain the Ashes tomorrow. We
:00:47. > :00:51.are in Tasmania to find out how they have put the men in the shade.
:00:52. > :00:56.And one of Great Britain's sliders is heading to the Winter Olympics on
:00:57. > :01:00.top of the world. First, let's check on some of the day 's headlines.
:01:01. > :01:05.Liverpool are playing Bournemouth in the early kick-off of the FA Cup
:01:06. > :01:10.fourth round. Arsenal are already through after beating Coventry 4-0
:01:11. > :01:13.last night. Manchester United have confirmed
:01:14. > :01:18.that Chelsea's Juan Mata will be their new record signing. ?37
:01:19. > :01:24.million. More good news for the club, it is understood Wayne Rooney
:01:25. > :01:26.is in talks to extend his stay at Old Trafford.
:01:27. > :01:35.And Carl Froch has been ordered to have a rematch against his last
:01:36. > :01:39.opponent, George Groves. To the tennis now, and after a
:01:40. > :01:48.fairly one-sided contest against Melbourne, China's Na Li is the new
:01:49. > :01:55.America -- Australian open champion. She breezed through the second set
:01:56. > :01:59.to win her second Grand Slam title. The fans who bought tickets for the
:02:00. > :02:05.Australian Open women's final were probably expecting to see Serena
:02:06. > :02:09.Williams, Maria Sharapova, or Victoria Azarenka in action.
:02:10. > :02:15.Instead, it is a matchup that three would have predicted a fortnight
:02:16. > :02:20.ago. China's Na Li almost retired from the sport after a poor
:02:21. > :02:25.Wimbledon, and little-known Cibulkova is aiming to be the first
:02:26. > :02:31.Slovakian to win a Grand Slam. Expectations of this match were
:02:32. > :02:37.high. Both players seemed consumed by nerves, as each others' errors
:02:38. > :02:43.made it close. The first set lasted an hour and ten minutes, and in the
:02:44. > :02:49.inevitable tie-break, Li's attacking intent -- in tent was enough to take
:02:50. > :02:57.it. Now relaxed, she finally started playing like a champion. Cibulkova
:02:58. > :03:05.had no answer, much to the relief of Li, who made 1.3 billion people back
:03:06. > :03:09.in China very happy indeed. A two-time grand slam winner, and her
:03:10. > :03:21.previous two defeats here all but forgotten. My husband, he is famous
:03:22. > :03:26.in China! Thanks for him giving up everything, just travelling with me
:03:27. > :03:32.to be my hitting partner, fix the drinks and fix the rackets! He does
:03:33. > :03:48.a lot of jobs. Thanks a lot. You are a nice guy. And, also you are so
:03:49. > :03:54.lucky to find me! I don't know really where to start. This was just
:03:55. > :04:02.a fantastic two weeks of my life. I think I'm going to cry.
:04:03. > :04:10.This means a lot for our country, and I'm happy I can be the one who
:04:11. > :04:17.is, you know, here for Slovakia. I would like to congratulate to Li Na.
:04:18. > :04:26.She had a great tournament, and she deserved to be here as a winner. So
:04:27. > :04:31.Li Na is the champion in Melbourne, adding that title to the French
:04:32. > :04:35.open. Tucked away in the corner of the BBC Sports Centre is John Lloyd.
:04:36. > :04:40.What did you make of that women's final? Great that Li came back after
:04:41. > :04:46.all her troubles in last year's final. It was a nervy first set for
:04:47. > :04:50.both players. Once Li got the first set, the second set showed the
:04:51. > :04:54.player she really is. There's no reason why she can't win the French
:04:55. > :04:59.open again. She could challenge Serena Williams for the number-1
:05:00. > :05:06.spot. She's that good. You will back tomorrow morning for the men's
:05:07. > :05:12.final. Stanislas Wawrinka against Rafael Nadal. It is his 19th grand
:05:13. > :05:16.slam final, and the first four Wawrinka. I think it is going to be
:05:17. > :05:23.closer than a lot of people think. If Stan relaxes and plays the sort
:05:24. > :05:29.of Tennessee is capable of, I think he can give Nadal a run for his
:05:30. > :05:34.money. -- the sort of tennis he is. We are going to stay in Australia
:05:35. > :05:38.now. England's women could have wrapped up the Ashes series a few
:05:39. > :05:43.days ago, but the series is still alive. The two teams are in
:05:44. > :05:45.Australia for tomorrow's one-day, and England only need one win to
:05:46. > :06:10.retain those ashes. A change of scene, and with it,
:06:11. > :06:14.perhaps, a change in fortune for England. Charlotte Edwards and her
:06:15. > :06:18.team missed another Trinity to clinch the series in Melbourne, but
:06:19. > :06:24.here in Hobart, they have another chance, and they are confident they
:06:25. > :06:28.can take it. They were a team that we knew would be difficult in their
:06:29. > :06:33.backyard. To be in the position we are in is fantastic. We've really
:06:34. > :06:38.got to fight back on Sunday, and I'm certain we will do that. It's still
:06:39. > :06:43.a huge challenge facing Australia. They need to win all four of their
:06:44. > :06:47.remaining games. England just need to win one. But whilst the series is
:06:48. > :06:53.still alive, the Australians still have hope. But England have one hand
:06:54. > :06:58.on the trophy, unlike the men's team, whose Ashes campaign failed to
:06:59. > :07:03.ignite. That's something the Australian public have been keen to
:07:04. > :07:08.remind them of. The first couple of weeks of this campaign, with the men
:07:09. > :07:11.not doing well, they certainly tell you. It gave me more fight to come
:07:12. > :07:17.out here and perform well, because you don't want to be walking down
:07:18. > :07:24.the street and being told you're no good at cricket. Since her debut
:07:25. > :07:30.nearly 20 years ago, Edwards has seen England's fortunes transform.
:07:31. > :07:35.Now she is keen for the next generation to experience success. I
:07:36. > :07:40.played against Australia for the first ten years and didn't win a
:07:41. > :07:44.game. Now, to have the success we've had, I don't want to walk away from
:07:45. > :07:49.it. I've really enjoyed it. A few things we need to change, and we
:07:50. > :07:56.will come back stronger on Sunday. Coverage of that night -- that match
:07:57. > :07:59.overnight on Radio 5 Live. From Hobart to somewhere a little closer
:08:00. > :08:02.to home, Rugby Union's Six Nations Championship starts a week today.
:08:03. > :08:06.Wales are favourites - they have won the last two. But, as Patrick Gearey
:08:07. > :08:15.explains, this could be a good year for the French.
:08:16. > :08:19.2013 was a year of ramp it red-shirted rugby. Wales won their
:08:20. > :08:26.second straight Six Nations. This year, the Welsh are going for three
:08:27. > :08:30.championships in a row. We would be part of the greatest Six Nations
:08:31. > :08:36.team ever. That is a massive thing to achieve. Everyone is desperate to
:08:37. > :08:40.get that three in a row. History is against them. If you are looking for
:08:41. > :08:43.a sign ahead of this year's petition, it is probably looking
:08:44. > :08:55.across the Channel. Looking at recent results, Lions tours seem to
:08:56. > :09:01.be good for one nation. Lions tours in 2001 and 2005 were followed by
:09:02. > :09:06.French Six Nations title wins, and the pattern continues after the
:09:07. > :09:14.bruising 2009 Lions tour to South Africa. The 2010 competition was won
:09:15. > :09:18.by France. So maybe the French benefit from playing against battle
:09:19. > :09:24.weary Lyle 's, but now they have a tough time domestically, and that is
:09:25. > :09:30.taking its toll. It is a big problem. It's a tough competition.
:09:31. > :09:35.It's 11 months competition, so our players last year played 14 games
:09:36. > :09:41.here. I am not worried, because at times like this, it is French rugby.
:09:42. > :09:45.Philippe Saint-Andre's squad don't seem to conform to patterns,
:09:46. > :09:51.finishing fifth last year. They will be tested next weekend in Paris by
:09:52. > :09:56.an improving England. If they -- is our will and can recapture the form
:09:57. > :10:05.seeing them second from beating New Zealand, they will have a chance. --
:10:06. > :10:07.if Arlen. It's difficult to see whose hands this trophy will end up
:10:08. > :10:11.in! Well, Inside 6 Nations returns on
:10:12. > :10:15.the BBC News Channel next Friday. That's in Sportsday at 6:30pm, and
:10:16. > :10:16.I'll be in Cardiff to look ahead to this year's tournament.
:10:17. > :10:20.Great Britain's Winter Olympians will soon be heading to Russia for
:10:21. > :10:24.next month's Games. Four years ago, one gold in the skeleton was their
:10:25. > :10:27.sole return. There are other medal hopes this time, but once again the
:10:28. > :10:31.sliders are expected to excel in Sochi. Lizzy Yarnold leads the way
:10:32. > :10:33.after winning the World Cup Series yesterday. Nick Hope has been to
:10:34. > :11:00.meet her. It takes a special kind of person to
:11:01. > :11:05.tolerate travelling at speeds of over 80 mph with your face just an
:11:06. > :11:11.inch from the ice. Britain's Lizzy Yarnold is the best in the world,
:11:12. > :11:16.but even she is not fear free. You always feel nervous when you compete
:11:17. > :11:20.in the skeleton. It can be quite dangerous. They say you need to get
:11:21. > :11:24.your butterflies flying in the same direction, but it's that thrill and
:11:25. > :11:32.adrenaline that I love. Yarnold found her way to skeleton through a
:11:33. > :11:40.UK sport backed identification programme in 2008, and hasn't looked
:11:41. > :11:45.back since. She's proven to be a worthy successor to Vancouver
:11:46. > :11:49.Olympic champion Amy Williams, who retired in 2012. I came to the
:11:50. > :11:53.programme, Amy Williams had just won the gold medal, and it was the same
:11:54. > :11:57.team around her that I now have around me. I slot in the ass lit
:11:58. > :12:03.position in the amazing machine that is -- in the athlete position in the
:12:04. > :12:11.amazing machine that is the skeleton team. Do you like that expectation?
:12:12. > :12:16.The edge that it has given new? I think I am such a focused athlete, I
:12:17. > :12:22.have always been so determined. I don't do it to be famous. I do it
:12:23. > :12:26.because I am passionate about being a sportsman and inspiring other
:12:27. > :12:32.people. I have a lot of graft to do to be on the podium. She has always
:12:33. > :12:37.-- off shared it with world champion team-mate Shelley Rudman. But
:12:38. > :12:42.Yarnold is the favourite, and targeting nothing less than Olympic
:12:43. > :12:45.gold. I can't wait to see what I can achieve in Sochi. I'm going to give
:12:46. > :12:48.it everything. So, Yarnold looks good for a medal
:12:49. > :12:55.in Sochi. But who else should we look out for? Inspire is coming up
:12:56. > :13:00.on BBC One shortly. This month, we are building up to
:13:01. > :13:04.the Winter Olympics by tracking the progress of some of the British
:13:05. > :13:10.Olympians hoping to shine in Sochi. We will be catching up with Eve
:13:11. > :13:14.Muirhead and the curling team, and John Jackson as well.
:13:15. > :13:16.Lots of sport on the BBC this afternoon. Straight after Inspire
:13:17. > :13:19.there is International Athletics from Glasgow. Just before we go,
:13:20. > :13:23.let's check on that early kick-off in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
:13:24. > :13:28.Liverpool are down on the South coast playing Bournemouth at the
:13:29. > :13:33.Goldsands Stadium. About 12 minutes gone. No goals there. You can follow
:13:34. > :13:36.that match on Radio 5Live right now. A couple of other interesting ties
:13:37. > :13:39.this afternoon. Manchester City against Watford and Stevenage host
:13:40. > :13:43.Everton. The BBC Sport Website is a good place to keep across all the
:13:44. > :13:47.latest scores. I'll be back on the BBC News Channel at 6:30 and 7:30
:13:48. > :13:50.with Sportsday. From all of us at the BBC Sports Centre, whatever
:13:51. > :13:55.sport you're watching, have a great weekend.