THURSDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2014 SPORTS Hamilton hunting Photo of the day another win

SUZUKA: Despite deposing Mercedes whole life as good, these next five races team-mate Nico Rosberg as Formula One have to be the ones.” leader, Lewis Hamilton still sees himself as very much the hunter rather than the RED BULL FAVOURITE hunted as he chases a hat-trick of victo- Neither Hamilton nor Rosberg have ries in Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix. previously won at Suzuka one of the Hamilton took a three-point lead in sport’s great circuits with its fast and the standings after winning in Singapore challenging figure of eight layout. last month while steering wheel prob- Hamilton won the Japanese Grand Prix in lems forced Rosberg’s retirement. his rookie year in 2007 but that race was With five races to go, and double held at the Fuji circuit and his best result points on offer in the finale in Abu Dhabi, at Suzuka remains a third-place for the title duel between the two is wide McLaren in 2009. Rosberg has never fin- open even if Hamilton now has the ished higher than fifth. momentum. The circuit has been one of Red Bull’s “I don’t think in my head that I am favourite stamping grounds, with leading the championship,” said the Sebastian Vettel winning four of the last Briton after celebrating his seventh win five races there. The German also of the season. “I still feel that I’m 20 clinched his second world title at the cir- points behind or whatever. I still feel like cuit in 2011 with a drive to third place. I’m chasing. I still feel like I’m hunting so While Vettel has yet to win this season, that’s a good feeling.” the reigning champion arrives on the Hamilton has won the last two races back of his best result of the campaign from pole position, and also set the with a second place in Singapore. fastest lap but the 2008 world champion, However, Red Bull, who need at least who last led the championship in May three points to prevent Mercedes taking after a run of four straight wins, knows the constructors’ title on Sunday if the just how quickly things can change. leaders finish one-two, recognise Reliability is the key now, with any Mercedes are still the favourites. retirement potentially a title-wrecker, but Suzuka also holds a special place in the Briton is not planning on doing any- the heart of McLaren’s Jenson Button, thing differently. “No, this is game time,” who won in 2011 and whose fashion- Hamilton said when asked whether he model fiancee is half-Japanese. might drive more defensively. “I’m really “Coming to Suzuka feels like a second just going to try and do the same things I home race for me,” said Button, who Competitors perform during the Red Bull Flugtag at Sankey Tank in Bangalore, India. — www.redbull.com did this last two weekends which is really failed to finish in Singapore and whose just attacking every practice session, team have not won a race since his last hope that we have clean weekends, get- victory in Brazil in November 2012. ting those poles and getting those wins “Suzuka will be a tricky one for us, but I’m Djokovic, Sharapova win in in. “I want to make sure these next five still really looking forward to it,” the races, if I don’t do any more races in my Briton said. — Reuters China, as Wozniacki falls

BEIJING: Novak Djokovic continued his 100 per- cent record at the China Open yesterday as he overcame late resistance from Vasek Pospisil, while Maria Sharapova also won but Caroline Wozniacki crashed out. The number one seed in Beijing was playing at his dominating best in the first set, breaking serve in the third and final games as he appeared in control. But the Serb lost his trade- mark composure midway through the second set, screaming to himself in anger as he failed to capitalise on a break point in the fourth game. Canadian Pospisil was in the ascendency three games later, drawing level at 40-40 with a Lewis Hamilton in action in this file photo. brilliant cross-court shot which left the world number one flat-footed. The 41st ranked player in the world then Play in our land, went on to force break-point and took the game following an incredible 26-shot rally. tells world But his valiant fightback was in vain when a clearly relieved Djokovic won the next game, INCHEON: Afghanistan’s cricket chief yes- tournament for non-Test nations in 2003. punching the air with delight and screaming as terday called on top nations to tour the They qualified for the World Twenty20 in he made it 5-5. country, insisting it is safe and has world the Caribbean in 2010 and have already tak- Djokovic then took the next two games as he class facilities boosted by foreign money. en part in subsequent tournaments in 2012 closed in on victory, and moments later was Money from Germany is being used to in Sri Lanka and in Bangladesh earlier this dancing to the applause of the crowd as a BEIJING: Maria Sharapova of Russia returns a shot against Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain dur- build one stadium in the war-torn nation year. But Afghanistan’s greatest achieve- dejected Pospisil made his way to the court exit. ing the China Open tennis tournament at the National Tennis Stadium. — AP and interest is growing as Afghanistan has ment so far is qualifying for next year’s Pospisil served “extremely well” in the second with the same confidence she showed at the With her victory in Wuhan, the 24-year-old qualified for next year’s World Cup. showpiece 50-over World Cup in Australia set, Djokovic said, which put added pressure on earlier tournament. confirmed her place at the WTA Finals in “I am telling the players to come to my and New Zealand. “We have achieved a lot his game. “That’s why the second set was very Peng, who made the semi-finals at the US Singapore, the end-of-season finale involving country and play there, they will treasure in a short time, I don’t think anyone expect- close,” Djokovic added following his 6-3, 7-5 vic- Open last month, took a 2-0 lead before the the world’s top eight women players. Those who those memories for ever,” Afghanistan ed us to get this far,” Masoud, a minister in tory. “He had a set point on his serve. But, you Wimbledon champion stormed back, winning have already made it to the tournament include Cricket Board chairman Shahzada Masoud the Hamid Karzai government, said. know, I fight my way through. I believed I could 12 of the next 16 games and wrapping up the world number one Serena Williams, Maria told AFP at the Asian Games. “The future of cricket is bright in our recover from break down, and I did. “I think it match in just 66 minutes. Peng throughout the Sharapova (4) and Simona Halep (2). World num- “We want support from other nations. country. It is played in 32 of our 34 was, especially in the second set, a very high- match had difficulty dealing with her left-hand- ber eight Caroline Wozniacki was hoping to con- We had lots of problems in the last 30 years provinces. And matches are shown on local quality tennis match.” ed opponent’s powerful serves. “Some of the firm her place at the tournament with a deep because of the uncertain security situation, television.” Masoud said thousands turned Djokovic is bidding for his fifth title in Beijing, players, they didn’t really get used to left-han- run in Beijing, but crashed out in her first match but that needs to be erased from our minds up to get a glimpse of the World Cup trophy a tournament he has won every year since 2009 ders’ serves,” Kvitova said. at the hands of Samantha Stosur. and heart now. when it was brought to Afghanistan during apart from 2011 when he did not take part. “So I think that’s my advantage,” she said, Stosur, the 2011 US Open winner, has had a “Because sport unites people. Cricket is a world tour organised by the International In the women’s competition, fourth seed adding that “the serve helped me a lot”. Kvitova miserable run in China lately, falling at the one of our favorite sports. You get 20,000- Cricket Council recently. “The World Cup is Sharapova got off to a flying start in her match, will now meet 16th seed Venus Williams for a Guangzhou Open and in Wuhan in her opening 30,000 people watching our local league big news in Afghanistan,” he said. “The racing to a 5-0 lead over Carla Suarez Navarro. tricky third-round match. The third seed in matches. But the world number 21 was the more matches. The security is good, especially for youth of the country want the team to do The Spaniard was a match for the world num- Beijing has enjoyed a return to consistency in composed as the two players battled in a tense cricketers. “Our teams travels around the well there. We know it will be a tough tour- ber four in the second set, but Sharapova was China after a poor run in the North American second-set tie break, saving five set points country without guards. We don’t need nament, but our target is to defeat estab- dominant at the tie-break, finishing the match 6- swing. She won her second tournament of the against her Danish opponent as she wrapped up those guards. People love them because lished teams like Bangladesh. “We beat 1, 7-6 (7/3). World number three Kvitova opened year at New Haven, but crashed out of the US her 6-4, 7-6 (11/9) victory. Alize Cornet of France they represent the country.” them on their soil in the Asia Cup this year, her campaign to win a second consecutive event Open in the third round to 145th-ranked Serbian eased past American Lauren Davis 6-2, 6-1 in the Masoud said a new stadium in Jalalabad so there is no reason why we can’t do it in China in commanding style. The Czech player qualifier Aleksandra Krunic. Kvitova then lost to day’s only other women’s match in Beijing, was comparable to any stadium in Asia, and again.” Afghanistan are currently touring defeated home-crowd favorite Peng Shuai 6-4, Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, her quarter-final oppo- where much of the programme was affected by has already hosted club and first-class Australia under new coach Andy Moles, a 6-2 in her first match since her victory at the nent in Wuhan, in her opening match in rain. The China Open will reach its climax on teams from Pakistan. Foreign assistance is former English first-class cricketer, to pre- Wuhan Open last Saturday, advancing in Beijing boosting cricket facilities in Afghanistan. pare for the World Cup. Cincinnati. October 5. — AFP The Indian government has given a grant of But keen to match, or surpass, their sil- one million dollars to build a new stadium ver-medal winning performance at the pre- in Kandahar. vious Asian Games four years ago, the team And Germany, a non-cricketing nation, management flew down four top players, has sanctioned 700,000 euros for a stadium including , from in Khost province, Masoud said. “We are Australia to Incheon to reinforce the sec- grateful to both India and Germany for their ond-string team. support,” he said. Afghanistan will also play four one-day- “But what we want now is for teams like ers in the United Arab Emirates in India to come any play on our grounds. “It December and take part in a one-day tour- would have been so exciting if Sachin nament in the West Indies in January to pre- Tendulkar had come and played in our pare for the World Cup. Assistant coach country. I hope Mahendra Singh Dhoni can Raees Ahmadzai, who is looking after the make it.” Afghanistan has come a long way team at the Asian Games, said the manage- since the national team was formed in 2001 ment wanted to build a true cricket culture and played their first Asian Cricket Council among the players. —AFP Nishikori begins quest for Japan Open title

TOKYO: Japan’s Kei Nishikori began his gave me more confidence,” Nishikori told quest for a second Japan Open title with a local reporters of his third title of the year. comprehensive 6-3 6-4 win over Croatia’s “I try not to pay attention to the crowd Ivan Dodig in front of a sell-out crowd yes- or what the opponent is doing, but it’s terday. always good to play at home. I can feel the The 10,000 Japanese spectators who support here,” said the local favourite, who had thronged the Ariake Colosseum went faces Donald Young in the second round home satisfied as their national hero took after the American beat Japan’s Go Soeda 85 minutes to seal the contest in a tourna- 6-4 6-2. ment which has already seen shock first “(Young’s) definitely a tough player, he round exits for top seed Stan Wawrinka and can play very aggressive,” said the 2012 2009 champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. champion. “He’s also a lefty and that makes The demand for tickets has soared since things even more complicated.” For compa- fourth seed Nishikori reached the U.S. triot Tatsuma Ito, the euphoria after stun- Open final last month and the 24-year-old, ning Wawrinka did not last long as the who overcame a sluggish start to hit some wildcard was beaten 6-3 6-3 by Germany’s pinpoint groundstrokes, did not let them Benjamin Becker who will face American BEIJING: Novak Djokovic of Serbia return a shot to Vasek Pospisil from Canada during the China Open tennis tournament at the National Tennis down. “Winning Kuala Lumpur (last week) Jack Sock in the last eight. — Reuters Stadium. — AP