Buttler Relishing Pakistan Draw Fi Nal ‘Another Test Debut’ Warm-Up Match ‘It’S a Fantastic Surprise and an Incredible Opportunity with England Aff Orded to Me’
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NNBABA | Page 5 GGOLFOLF | Page 7 Curry silences Wise beyond critics as his years, Aaron Warriors rout claims fi rst PGA Rockets Tour win Tuesday, May 22, 2018 FOOTBALL Ramadan 6, 1439 AH Iniesta bows out with GULF TIMES Barca win thanks Coutinho strike SPORT Page 4 Al Duhail celebrate domestic treble Al Duhail players and off icials celebrate their domestic treble — QNB Stars League, Qatar Cup and Amir Cup — at their club on Sunday evening. PICTURES: Jayan Orma FIA WORLD CUP FOR CROSS-COUNTRY RALLIES Qatar’s al-Attiyah heads to critical rally in Kazakhstan ‘It’s a case of pushing for the win and the 60 points and then seeing how it all pans out and aff ects the championship’ By A Correspondent Aktau City, Kazakhstan verdrive Racing’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah faces a cru- cial test of his nerve when he takes part in Rally Kaza- Okhstan, round fi ve of the FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Rallies, a series that he has won for the last three years. The event takes place from May 27 to June 2. The decision to miss two rounds of this year’s championship in the Unit- ed Arab Emirates was exacerbated by a cruel non-fi nish at his home Qatar Cross-Country Rally last month and the Doha-based driver fi nds himself in eighth position in the Drivers’ Cham- pionship and, more importantly, 114 points behind Polish series leader Jakub Przygonski. Al-Attiyah and French navigator Matthieu Baumel won the fi rst four stages in Qatar until a technical is- sue cost them a potential victory and the two-time Dakar winner knows the enormity of the task awaiting him if he is to win the FIA World Cup for a fi fth time this year. The duo did, however, claim victory in Kazakhstan’s inaugural round of the series last year. “I made a calculated decision not to go to the UAE and I guess success hinged this season on winning in Qa- tar,” said al-Attiyah. “That was not meant to be, that’s motorsport, and the non-fi nish there has made it vital that I win in Kaza- khstan. I like the new rally here very much and really enjoyed the stages and the terrain last year. “It’s a case of pushing for the win and the 60 points and then seeing how Qatar’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah (also inset) heads into crucial Rally Kazakhstan showdown. it all pans out and how that aff ects the championship.” Cruiser to win the category and finish luck after retiring from the Italian Baja 280.35km heads south from Aktau City 30 heads deeper into the area east of CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (top 10) Yasir Seaidan returns to action in seventh overall. last year and then being forced to fi ght to a Caspian Sea Resort in Kenderly, Kenderly. Stage four runs for 398.57km 1. Jakub Przygonski (POL) 144 pts Central Asia with Russian naviga- Seaidan currently holds fourth place back from early problems to fi nish 30th a tourist destination located around and skirts around the nearby oil city of 2. Martin Prokop (CZE) 113 pts tor Alexei Kuzmich after tacking the in the Drivers’ Championship stand- overall in the Rally of Morocco. 210km south-east of Aktau. Zhanaozen before returning to Aktau 3. Vladimir Vasilyev (RUS) 111 pts recent event in Qatar with French- ings behind Przygonski, Martin Prokop This year’s Rally Kazakhstan will be This plays host to the event’s bivouac City. 4. Yasir Seaidan (SAU) 58 pts man Laurent Lichtleuchter. Seaidan and Vladimir Vasilyev. fought out over a revised route featur- for the second, third and fourth legs. The remaining two stages of 5. Ahmed al-Shegawi (SAU) 39 pts finished on the podium at Losail last The French duo of Ronan Chabot and ing six long and demanding selective Second day action on May 29 takes 298.04km and 148.52km head north out 6. José Luis Pena Campo (ESP) 36 pts month, after overcoming the rigours Gilles Pillot crew the third Overdrive sections and around 1,900km of com- place on a stage of 414.12km that loops of Aktau City, with the last one passing 7. Claude Fournier (FRA) 31 pts of the event’s complex navigation, Racing Toyota Hilux. Chabot retired petition in a compact route through the through the deserts to the east around along the shoreline of the Caspian Sea 8. Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah (QAT) 30 pts and also enjoyed his visit to Kaza- from 15th position in the Dakar Rally on far west of the country. the town of Senek, before the third before the ceremonial fi nish in the city 9. Aron Domzala (POL) 24 pts khstan last season in a T2 Toyota Land medical grounds and is due some better The opening timed section of timed section of 327.47km on May on June 2. 10. Cyril Despres (FRA) 24 pts Gulf Times 2 Tuesday, May 22, 2018 FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Liverpool’s Klopp seeks fi tting fi nale to long road to Kiev ‘It was a very exciting journey so far and now we want to bring it to the best possible end’ AFP Liverpool iverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is quietly confi dent his side can upset the odds by preventing Real Madrid from claiming a Lthird consecutive Champions League title on Saturday, to cap a stunning sea- son engineered by the German. Klopp’s men started their Cham- pions League campaign in a playoff against Hoff enheim just to make the group stages back in August. Now, after plundering 46 goals in 14 games, Liv- erpool have made it back to the Cham- pions League fi nal in Kiev for the fi rst time in 11 years. “I don’t want to talk about confi - dence, but we feel good and think we deserve to be where we are because the boys really showed up in all the diff er- ent games,” said Klopp yesterday. “It was a very exciting journey so far and now we want to bring it to the best pos- sible end.” By contrast, Madrid are featuring in their fourth fi nal in fi ve years. But Klopp believes Liverpool can compen- sate for their lack of experience com- pared to the European champions with other qualities that have characterised their run to the fi nal. “If there is an experienced market, they should sell it because then they would be even more rich than they are already,” Klopp added of the Spanish giants. “Experience is very important in life but not the only important thing in life, and especially in football. It is an advantage to be more experienced, but you can level it with desire, with readiness, attitude, work rate and that is what I love in football.” Liverpool will be back in the Cham- pions League next season no matter the Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp watches as his players go through a training session at Anfield in Liverpool, Britain, yesterday. (Reuters) outcome in the Ukranian capital as they held on to fi nish fourth in the Premier “It’s a very good moment for the proved signifi cantly since being paired a-lifetime opportunity. “We have the fi elder Emre Can, who has missed the tion. But let me put it this way, 10 days League despite a late-season blip in club, for us, for the boys because we with club record £75mn ($100.6mn) biggest chance in our lives. For some of past two months with injury, returned ago I didn’t think it is possible he could form as the physical toil of their Euro- have fi nished the season in the best way signing Virgil Van Dijk in January. us, maybe it’s the only one,” he added. to training ahead of Saturday’s Cham- do what he did today. It looked good. It pean exertions showed. we could,” he added. “It felt really good “I feel personally much more confi - “We have something to catch, (for the) pions League fi nal against Real Madrid. was really positive but we have to wait,” Klopp took his squad on a warm and then having the time to prepare the dent when you know you have a really whole squad it is the fi rst time in the fi - Can trained with the Liverpool squad he told reporters. “The door is open — weather training camp in Marbella game is really good. We could do a lot good partner next to you and he showed nal of the Champions League. We know yesterday and his return to fi tness is a he is really desperate to be a part. We last week. And he believes a two-week of things and didn’t have to rush it or already at Southampton that he is one what we are playing for and how hard it boost for Klopp whose midfi eld options shall see,” Klopp added. break between their 4-0 thrashing of compress it into two or three sessions. of the best defenders in the Premier was from day one.” have been restricted by injury to Alex James Milner, who missed the fi nal Brighton to ensure a top-four fi nish It was good recovery time.” League,” Lovren said of Van Dijk’s in- Oxlade-Chamberlain. Premier League game of the season and the fi nal is the perfect preparation Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren is fl uence. BOOST FOR LIVERPOOL AS CAN But Klopp cautioned about Can’s against Brighton & Hove Albion with a to ensure Liverpool’s high-energy style one of Klopp’s many success stories And Lovren urged Liverpool not to RETURNS TO TRAINING potential involvement in the game in muscle problem, also took part in the can be fully utilised on Saturday.