SUNDAY, JANUARY 6, 2019 16

Pakistan avoid innings defeat, delay South Africa Bahrain snatch victory charge draw with UAE Mohamed Al Rohaimi’s goal salvages draw for Bahrain in 2019 Asian Cup opener AFP | Abu Dhabi

osts United Arab Emir- Pakistan’s Shan Masood plays a shot ates salvaged a contro- Hversial 1-1 draw in their AFP | Cape Town, South Africa overs was not worth it,” said Asian Cup curtain-raiser against South African fast bowler Kag- Bahrain yesterday. lthough Pakistan are fac- iso Rabada. Substitute Ahmed Khalil Aing a heavy defeat, their Masood hit a composed 61 smashed home a late penalty fightback on the third day of and Shafiq and Azam both harshly awarded for a handball the second Test against South played aggressively to score after Mohamed Alromaihi had Africa was a good sign for the 88 and 72 respectively. given Bahrain a shock lead in team, batsman Asad Shafiq Masood and Shafiq shared Abu Dhabi. said yesterday. the most enterprising part- The Emirates scored after just Half-centuries by Shafiq, nership of the match when 14 seconds when the two teams Shan Masood and Babar Azam they put on 132 in 132 min - met at the 2015 Asian Cup in enabled Pakistan to take the utes off 168 balls for the third Australia but there was little match into a fourth day. wicket. danger of that in a scruffy first Pakistan were bowled out Shafiq said a positive mind- half. in the last over for 294, leav- set was the key to Pakistan’s UAE’s Ismail Alhammadi fired ing South Africa needing 41 best day of the series. tamely at goalkeeper Sayed Ala- runs to win the match and the “If you get in you get good wi after six minutes before Ali three-match series. value for your shots. The ball Mabkhout blazed over. A provision for an extra half was coming on to the bat and Bahrain went close just before hour was not used because the outfield is fast,” he said. halftime when Komail Alaswad only 20 minutes or five overs of “I had to see off the first 20 fizzed a free kick just over the Bahrain’s Sayed Dhiya, right, in action against UAE’s Khalifa Mubarak during the opening match of the 2019 Asian Cup at play would have been possible. or 25 balls but then I decided if bar. Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi “Trying to get 41 runs in five the ball was in my zone I would The home side’s profligacy play my shots.” continued as Mabkhout lashed Makhadmeh pointed to the spot tinental title in 2011, but his hosted the Asian Cup in 1996, Shafiq played some powerful wide from point-blank range. five minutes from time for what Emirates side have flat-lined in losing on penalties to Saudi drives, cuts and pull shots as That wastefulness came back appeared to be an unintention- the run-up to this year’s compe- Arabia. he came within 12 runs of a to haunt the UAE after 78 min- al handball to offer the hosts a tition, scoring just 10 goals in 18 They take on India and Thai- second century in successive utes when Alromaihi bundled lifeline. games under the Italian. land in their next two Group Test matches at Newlands. He home after his initial header ap- Khalil, appearing in his 100th His hopes of going deep into A fixtures but will need to im- 132 made 111 in the 2012/13 meet- peared to have crossed the line. international, stepped up to rifle the tournament have not been prove drastically if they have run partnership was put ing of the two countries at the Sami Alhusaini almost equal- the spot kick into the top cor- helped by the loss of mop-top designs on emulating their run on in 132 minutes off ground. ised five minutes from time, ner and send a partisan crowd talisman Omar Abdulrahman to the last four at the last tour- 168 balls by Masood and He reached his fifty off 56 only for Alawi to pull off a stun- wild. through injury. nament in Australia where they Shafiq balls and went on to face 118 ning block. UAE coach Alberto Zaccher- The Emiratis were beaten fi- stunned holders Japan in the deliveries, hitting 12 fours and But Jordanian referee Adham oni steered Japan to the con- nalists the last time the country quarter-finals. a six.

Djokovic’s conqueror Bautista Agut takes Qatar Federer retains Hopman title loss to Zverev in London to beat Open title Federer became the big-serving German 6-4, 6-2 • and make it a clean sweep of his AFP | Doha the first player to win singles matches in Perth for the three Hopman Cups, second year running, less than oberto Bautista Agut teaming with Belinda two weeks before he defends his Rfollowed up his shock Bencic for the duo’s Australian Open title. victory over world num- It was a high-octane match, ber one Novak Djokovic by second consecutive title with plenty of big serves and lifting the Qatar Open title clean winners, but Federer was yesterday. AFP | Perth, Australia able to answer everything the The Spaniard, ranked 24 21-year-old threw at him. in the world, ground out a oger Federer became the He broke Zverev in the 10th hard-fought victory in three Rmost successful player in game of the first set and then sets against the Czech Re- Hopman Cup history when he tightened the noose on the Ger- public’s Tomas Berdych, led Switzerland to a 2-1 win in man, with two more breaks in winning 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the an enthralling final of the mixed the second set. final. teams tournament in Perth yes- Federer, who also beat Zverev “It’s been a fantastic week terday. in three sets in last year’s Hop- for me,” he said immediately In what is tipped to be the fi- man final, clinched the match after his triumph. nal edition of the unique tourna- with a typically crisp forehand “Today it was not easy to ment, the best was saved for last volley. manage all the emotions I as Federer became the first play- He was pleased to maintain had on court.” er to win three Hopman Cups, Roger Federer and his mixed doubles partner Belinda Bencic of Switzerland with the Hopman Cup his unbeaten singles record dur- It was the 30-year-old’s teaming with Belinda Bencic The 37-year-old gave the Swiss able to do so earlier in the set. records, although I didn’t come ing the week, during which he ninth career title and his to make it successive titles in the early ascendancy with a The tournament came down here for that,” he said. never dropped his serve. first in Doha. The victory Perth. straight sets win against Zverev, to a single point at 4-4 in the “Winning it back-to-back World number two Kerber came 24 hours after he beat For the second year in a row, before Kerber squared the tie by third set tie-break, with both years, what a thrill it was, not appeared set for an easy win Djokovic in the semi-final, the Swiss beat the German pair- beating a dogged Bencic to set teams holding match point and just the match point but the in her singles match against also in three sets. He also ing of Alexander Zverev and up the mixed doubles decider. after an extended rally Zverev whole week.” Bencic, taking the first set and beat three-time Grand Slam Angelique Kerber by claim - Federer was a dominant fig- dumped a backhand into the net Zverev and Kerber were de- then claiming an early break in winner Stan Wawrinka ear- ing a deciding mixed doubles ure in an extraordinary doubles to hand the Swiss victory. spondent after the loss and the the second. lier in the week. rubber which was loaded with match as the Swiss claimed the former said it was a tough pill The German served for the In total, Bautista Agut drama. abbreviated format 4-0, 1-4, 4-3 ‘What a thrill’ to swallow. match at 5-4, but the match took only lost two sets all week It was Switzerland’s fourth ti- (5/4) to clinch the title despite Federer also became the first “We really wanted to win as a a dramatic twist as Bencic broke in his five matches. tle overall, behind only the Unit- Germany having two match player to win successive Hop- team,” Zverev said. back, only for Kerber to imme- The Spaniard made de- ed States with six, and Federer points. man Cups and said the records “We came so close - we were diately break again. cisive break of serve in the first won the Hopman Cup back Fittingly, it was Federer who were a nice bonus for winning one shot away.” For a second time Kerber was third game of the final set in 2001 when he teamed with served out the match in the third the title. In the men’s singles, Federer unable to serve out the match, to take a lead he never lost. Martina Hingis. set tie-break, having been un- “I am very happy for these bounced back from a November as Bencic forced it to a tie-break.