Men’s football: Mal Benning wants to inspire the next generation of Indian Sikh players as he goes for promotion with Port Vale.

The left-back believes today’s League Two play-off final with Mansfield is the perfect platform to provide hope.

Now, as he prepares to play at Wembley for the first time, Benning knows the magnitude of his achievement for his culture.

He said: “To be involved is special, especially being from an Indian background, it’s special for me and my origin. I take a lot of pride in that.”

Formula One: Lewis Hamilton will be able to race in Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix wearing jewellery after his exemption was extended.

The seven-time world champion, 37, was told in Miami earlier this month that his nose stud must be taken out for the seventh round of the campaign in Monte Carlo.

But Formula One’s ruling body, which is enforcing the jewellery clampdown on safety grounds, has granted Hamilton a new deadline of June 30.

Formula One: Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has denied he was arrested for carrying a gun before boarding a flight in Sao Paulo.

Ecclestone said the firearm, a LW Seecamp .32, was not loaded and it was packed in his luggage by accident.

The 91-year-old claimed he spent several hours with local police reporting the incident, because the gun had not been registered.

Men’s football: Harry Kane hopes to become England’s top goalscorer at this winter’s World Cup.

The Three Lions skipper is four goals behind Wayne’s Rooney’s tally of 53, tied on 49 with Sir Bobby Charlton.

It is only a matter of time until Kane surpasses that number and it could even happen before the World Cup in November, as England have six Nations League matches to play.

Men’s rugby league: It will be a proud family occasion for James Child when he takes charge of his first Challenge Cup final today, as he revealed coming out has made him a better referee.

Child’s parents Colin and Patricia stopped going to matches after witnessing widespread abuse towards players and referees from the terraces but they have been encouraged by the progress the game has made towards inclusivity.

The spectators at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the showdown between Huddersfield and Wigan will also include Child’s fiance Steven and their young son Harris.

Mental health: Former Wimbledon and French Open champion Simona Halep revealed she suffered a panic attack during her second-round defeat to Zheng Qinwen at Roland Garros.

Romanian Halep, the 19th seed, was leading her teenage opponent from China when she called for the doctor.

After falling to a 2-6 6-2 6-1 defeat, Halep said: “I didn’t expect [it] because it was just a panic attack. It happened.”

“It was nothing like dangerous, in my opinion, but it happened. So it’s good that now I can smile.”

Eurosport pundit and former British number one Tim Henman applauded Halep for her honesty.

Tennis: Wimbledon has confirmed its intention to update the way it represents female champions on its honours boards in time for next month’s Championships.

Traditionally, the names of female winners have been given the prefix ‘Miss’ or ‘Mrs’ while men have merely been referenced by their first initial.

The All England Club acknowledged a report in the Times that revealed it was making the move in order to further modernise the tournament.

In a further move, married winners will be recorded using their own names, rather than those of their husbands.