46 Down

NYT Daily • August 2, 2025

Love, on the pitch

Answer:

NIL

Hint:

["Here’s a helpful hint for your crossword clue:\n\n**\"Scoreless in soccer, or a tennis term for zero.\"**\n\nThis hint connects the two sports contexts without directly repeating the original clue or giving away the answer. It guides the solver toward thinking about how \"zero\" is expressed in different sports."]

Explanation:

The clue "Love, on the pitch" leads to the answer "NIL" through a clever combination of wordplay and sports terminology. - **"Love"** in tennis scoring means zero, often represented as "0" or "love." - **"On the pitch"** refers to a soccer (football) field, where a score of zero is commonly called "nil." Thus, the clue translates "love" (zero in tennis) to "nil" (zero in soccer), making the answer a playful crossover between the two sports' terminology for the same concept.

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