FFOOTBALLOOTBALL | Page 2 NNHLHL | Page 5 Vardy and Koskinen Maddison strike and Oilers as Leicester shut out sink Arsenal Devils 4-0

Sunday, November 10, 2019 FOCUS Rabia I 13, 1441 AH Al-Meghessib aims GULF TIMES to take e-football the to next level SPORT Page 7

SPOTLIGHT Al-Attiyah shoots 74, stays in Olympics hunt By Sports Reporter place with 73. The fi nal is sched- unbat and Japan’s Shiori Hirata 1743; 3. India 1730. Doha uled for 1.30pm today. won the silver and bronze re- Women: 50m rifle 3-position: Meanwhile, India won another spectively. Iran’s Fatemeh Kara- 1. Shi Mengyao (Chn) 457.9 (1178); Olympic quota yesterday thanks mzadeh fi nished fi fth. 2. Yesugen Oyunbat (Mgl) 457.0 atar’s Nasser Saleh to Tejaswini Sawant in the wom- India also won nine medals (1169); 3. Shiori Hirata (Jpn) 445.9 al-Attiyah stayed on en’s rifl e 3-position. The Former in all competitions through the (1169); 4. Tejaswini Sawant 435.8 course for a quota spot World champion fi nished fi fth day including three more gold, (Ind) (1171) at next year’s Olym- in qualifi cations with a score which took their tally to a whop- 1. China 3520 AR; 2. Iran 3505; 3. picsQ with a fi ne display in three of 1171, which was enough for ping 44. Olympian Gurpreet India 3503. rounds of qualifi cation in the a place at the next year’s Tokyo Singh bagged the men’s standard Junior men: 25m sports pistol: skeet event at the 14th Asian Olympics. With two Chinese pistol silver with 586, two points 1. Nikita Chiryukin (Kaz) 587; 2. Cao Shooting Championships yes- and two Koreans, apart from behind Han Daeyoon of Korea. Jiahao (Chn) 582; 3. Youn Jaeyeon terday. Mongolia’s Yesugen Oyunbat While another Korean Kim Jun- (Kor) 581 The London Olympics bronze who had booked a berth to Tokyo hong took bronze. The Indian Team: 1. Korea 1736; 2. India medallist shot 74, missing just in air rifl e earlier, not in the race juniors continued to excel, as 1730; 3. China 1726. one of the 75 targets, at the Lu- for quota, the three spots were Jasmeen Kaur and Aadhya Tayal Youth women: 10m air rifle: 1. sail Shooting Complex and with taken by the fi nalists from India, claimed the youth women’s rifl e Jasmeen Kaur 248.7 (Ind) (624.3); two more rounds of 25 shots each Japan and Iran. and pistol gold medals. 2. Nie Wenqi (Chn) 248.5 (629.0); 3. remaining, looks set to book a The 39-year-old Sawant Kim Seonja (Kor) 226.4 (624.5) place in today’s fi nal. eventually fi nished fourth in the THE RESULTS: Team: 1. China 1881.1; 2. Korea Kuwait’s Abdullah al-Rashidi fi nal, narrowly missing out on a Men: 25m centre fire pistol: 1. 1869.3; 3. India 1868.5. hit all the 75 targets to stay on bronze medal with a last shot of Han Daeyoon (Kor) 588; 2. Gur- 10m air pistol: Aadhya Tayal top, while al-Attiyah was tied 8.8. China’s Mengyao Shi bagged preet Singh 586 (Ind); 3. Kim Jun- (Ind)238.9 (567); 2. Shikha Narwal with India’s Angad Bajwa on the gold with a score of 457.9, hong (Kor) 586 (Ind) 237.8 (567); 3. Gong Xinyuan 74. Seven shooters were in third while Mongolia’s Yesugen Oy- Team: 1. China 1743; 2. Korea (Chn) 216.9 (564)

WORLD SQUASH Al-Tamimi storms past Castagnet into round of 16 The Qatari will be up against world number three and last year’s World Championship finalist Tarek Momen

By Mikhil Bhat championships wanting. With the ward to play well again. If I play well, Doha score at 10-7 in the third game, a I have a chance to win again, if I don’t stroke call in favour of Castagnet drew I will lose. I think that’s how it is for a review call from al-Tamimi but the every player,” al-Tamimi said. or the second time at a PSA Frenchman came within two points Earlier in the day, Rosner beat Eng- Men’s World Squash Cham- after it was turned down. lishman Declan James 3-1 (11-9, 9-11, pionship, Qatar’s Abdulla However, al-Tamimi’s closed it out 11-8, 11-9) in 70 minutes to set up a al-Tamimi beat Frenchman with a shot to the lower left corner last 16 match with Welshman Joel MathieuF Castagnet for a spot in the of the wall, with Castagnet’s desper- Makin, who beat Egyptian Mohamed last 16. ate dive not enough to keep the ball in ElSherbini 3-1 (11-3, 6-11, 11-9, 14-12) But this one is special, because it play. in 74 minutes. isn’t in Manchester, it’s at home in With a standing ovation from the Also through to the next round are Doha. audience, al-Tamimi thanked the Englishman James Willstrop and 2016 The 24-year-old had to wait for home crowd for the support. “I wasn’t world champion Karim Abdel Gawad. seven long years to pick up a major expecting to see a few people, some of victory at his home court in Doha, but them I had not seen in years. It is al- ROUND II RESULTS only 24 hours more to make it two- ways good to see old friends support- 3-Tarek Momen (EGY) bt Mazen in-a-row, with the Aspire Academy ing, even though I didn’t talk to them Hesham (EGY) 3-0: 11-9, 12-10, 11-5 graduate overcoming early nerves and for the last few years. It was really (35m) an athletic world number 28 to pick up good to see them, to see the happiness Abdulla al-Tamimi (QAT) bt Mathieu a massive 3-0 (12-10, 11-8, 11-8) vic- in their eyes,” al-Tamimi said later. Castagnet (FRA) 3-0: 12-10, 11-8, 11-8 tory at the Khalifa International Ten- He added: “I expected to play well, (43m) nis and Squash Complex yesterday. and I thought that if I played well, I 13-Fares Dessouky (EGY) bt Edmon On the fi rst day of the tournament had a chance to win. It is really hard to Lopez (ESP) 3-0: 11-5, 11-3, 11-5 (24m) on Friday, al-Tamimi had beaten an- beat Mathieu Castagnet in three. It’s 6-Diego Elias (PER) bt Greg Lobban other Frenchman and world number Abdulla al-Tamimi stretches always a relief to get out of the court (SCO) 3-2: 6-11, 11-3, 11-4, 9-11, 11-4 14 Gregoire Marche. to meet the ball during his after winning three games. Really glad (59m) “It feels really good,” al-Tamimi second round match against I did that.” 5-Simon Rosner (GER) bt Declan said right after his win, which meant Mathieu Castagnet. After the victory on the fi rst day, James (ENG) 3-1: 11-9, 9-11, 11-8, 11-9 that he now leads the head-to-head al-Tamimi, who reached as high as (70m) with Castagnet 2-1, having lost to him 23 in the world rankings in November 11-Joel Makin (WAL) bt Mohamed in a thrilling fi ve setter in 2018 in Chi- seats. last year, had joked about how facing ElSherbini (EGY) 3-1: 11-3, 6-11, 11-9, cago. With the scores locked at 10-10 in Egyptians even at home can be daunt- 14-12 (74m) “I didn’t really think this morning Abdulla al-Tamimi the fi rst game, two Castagnet hits to ing given the support they get. James Willstrop (ENG) bt Youssef that I would be playing that well to- poses with coach the tin handed the audience some re- “People thought I was serious. But I Ibrahim (EGY) 3-0: 11-7, 11-8, 11-4 (24m) day because the hardest part of win- Geoff Hunt after lief. enjoy playing against Egyptians; they 3-Karim Abdel Gawad (EGY) bt Cesar ning a big match is to back it up. In his victory. “He was picking a lot of balls up, are the best in the world at this sport, Salazar (MEX) 3-1: 10-12, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7 Manchester two years ago, I played PICTURES: Jayan and I played the ball back to myself a and to be the best, you got to play the (44m) (current German world number six) Orma few times,” al-Tamimi said of the fi rst best,” al-Tamimi said. Simon (Rosner) in the fi rst round game. As the draw would have it, the Qa- TODAY’S MATCHES (Round II) and won the match 3-2. I had to play “I wasn’t controlling the ball in the tari will be up against world number Noon: Alan Clyne (SCO) v 8-Miguel Castagnet there as well. Really glad it fi rst half of the fi rst game. After that three and last year’s world champion- Rodriguez (COL) worked well today (as well).” I stopped holding the ball, and going ships fi nalist Tarek Momen, who beat 1pm: 14-Zahed Salem (EGY) v Mostafa Al-Tamimi had beaten Castag- for the full swing to get the nerves out Egyptian compatriot Mazen Hesham, Asal (EGY) net then 3-1, before falling to former of the system, and that’s what hap- 3-0 (11-9, 12-10, 11-5) yesterday. 2pm: WC-Syed Azlan Amjad (QAT) v three-time world champion Nick pened. After the fi rst game I felt very The two have played each other 12-Omar Mosaad (EGY) Matthew of England in the third comfortable down there at the court.” just once, but the match was a thrill- 3pm: 7-Mohamed Abouelghar (EGY) v round. In the second, al-Tamimi showed ing fi ve-setter in the US Open second Leo Au (HKG) Yesterday, al-Tamimi started slow some amazing fi ghting spirit winning round last month, where Momen had 4pm: Nicolas Mueller (SUI) v 9-Mar- in the match, which he attributed to fi ve straight points after being 6-8 to dip into his reserves to beat a resur- wan ElShorbagy (EGY) being “nervous” and his body not be- down, to wrap up the game at 11-8 in gent al-Tamimi 3-2 in 65 minutes. 5pm: 10-Saurav Ghosal (IND) v Lucas ing “warm enough”. 11 minutes. “He will have his game plan and I Serme (FRA) But once the match picked up pace, In the third, the Doha-born world will have mine. He is one of the top 6pm: 4-Paul Coll (NZL) v Borja Golan both the players were at it with gladi- number 47 mixed the pace up well players in the world, he is ranked third (ESP) atorial tenacity with the rallies push- off the lobs, often leaving his sec- in the world, so I have no pressure. It 7pm: Adrian Waller (ENG) v 1-Moham- ing the audience to the edge of their ond straight French opponent at the will be on him. I am only looking for- ed ElShorbagy (EGY) Gulf Times 2 Sunday, November 10, 2019 FOOTBALL

QNB STARS LEAGUE FOCUS Liverpool v Manchester City: Qatar SC in shock Three key clashes

AFP the “Dyson” after his recent Liverpool display against Tottenham for his ability to hoover up posses- sion in midfield. iverpool host Manches- “The job of the No 6 in mod- win over Al Sadd ter City at Anfield today ern football is incredibly im- with the chance to open portant and the more offensive Qatar SC had defeated Umm Salal (5-0) and Al Shahania (1-0) in the previous weeks Lup a nine-point lead players there are around you, over the defending champions the more important it gets. in the Premier League title race But he’s not only a gap-clos- and take a huge step towards a er, a challenger or whatever, first league crown for 30 years. he is a very good footballer as Clashes between the two well,” added Klopp. sides have become classics in De Bruyne missed both meet- recent seasons with Liverpool ings between the sides in an thrashing City in a Champions injury-plagued campaign last League quarter-final 5-1 on ag- season and his return was ex- gregate in 2017/18 before City pected to have a major impact gained revenge with a 2-1 victo- on the title race. ry that saw them retain the Pre- The Belgian shone in the early mier League title last season. weeks of the season and his ab- Here, AFP Sport looks at sence from the starting line-up three key battles that are likely has coincided with City’s two to decide the latest meeting be- Premier League defeats of the tween the champions of Europe campaign so far to hand Liver- and champions of England: pool the initiative. SADIO MANE TRENT VS ALEXANDER-ARNOLD VS KYLE WALKER RAHEEM STERLING Mane was the focus of Pep Which of these England Guardiola’s ire after scoring teammates gets the upper hand another late Liverpool winner will have a huge bearing on the at Villa Park last weekend to outcome. maintain the Reds’ six-point Alexander-Arnold’s superb lead. and ball striking has Guardiola accused the Sen- made him one of Liverpool’s egalese of diving to go with his most deadly weapons, even “special talent” after he was from right-back. booked for trying to win a pen- However, the one weakness alty against Villa and won late in his game can be the space he spot-kicks that led to winners leaves to be exploited in behind against Tottenham and Leices- and there are few players bet- ter in recent weeks. ter equipped to take advantage Mane has been Liverpool’s of that than a former Liverpool most potent attacking threat favourite in Sterling. in 2019, scoring 27 goals, and Sterling has never scored at demands even greater atten- Anfield since making a £50mn tion from the City defence than move to Manchester in 2015, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed but is City’s top scorer in all Salah today. competitions and has 18 goals Walker’s poor form saw him in 20 games for club and coun- controversially dropped for the try this season. January encounter between the sides that hauled City back into FABINHO VS KEVIN the title race last season, but DE BRUYNE has reestablished himself as Fabinho’s importance to Guardiola’s first-choice right- Liverpool’s stunning form in back, despite the arrival of Joao 2019 was underlined by Jur- Cancelo from Juventus in Au- gen Klopp’s decision to rest gust. The England international the Brazilian for last weekend’s has the pace to match Mane, last-gasp win at Aston Villa but will need help from those Qatar Sports Club players celebrate their win over Al Sadd in the QNB Stars League yesterday. to ensure he did not pick up a around him to deal with the booking that would have seen dual threat posed by Liverpool’s By Sports Reporter and Week 7 fixture against Al Khor were through in the second session, with replacing Ahmed Labiath who was the him suspended for City’s visit. number 10 and Andy Robertson Doha deferred due to their AFC Champions Bounedjah at the helm of their attacks. caretaker after the dismissal of Span- Klopp nicknamed Fabinho flying forward from left-back. League commitments. But nothing went their way and Rash- iard Raul Caneda following a series of It has to be noted that Qatar SC’s all idov rounded off the tally in the final negative results. atar SC completed a hat- four victories came after former Qatar moments with an angular long shot However, The Orange Fortress trick of victories with an up- international midfielder Wesam Rizik from the left with precision. crashed to their seventh defeat and stay set 3-0 verdict over reigning took charge of The Kings, replacing Meanwhile, Al Gharafa blanked in the danger zone. It has been a differ- Q champions Al Sadd in Week Spanish coach Carlos Alos Ferrer. Umm Salal 2-0. Hector Moreno (sec- ent Umm Salal, who used to regularly 10 of the QNB Stars League at the Al And the latest came against his ond minute) and Sofiane Hanni (24th- make a respectable finish in the league, Gharafa Stadium yesterday. former club Al Sadd. minute penalty) scored the goals as Al so far this season. Sardor Rashidov (ninth minute and Rashidov opened the scoring after Gharafa surged to 20 points with their Hanni and Adlene Guedioura led Al 90+4 minutes) and Kayke Rodriguez he outsmarted Al Sadd defender Tareq sixth victory. Gharafa’s charge, while Mahmoud Al (31st minute) were the scorers as Qatar Salman and goalkeeper Saad al-Dos- On the other hand, Umm Salal’s Mawas and Yannick Sagbo were Umm SC moved on to 12 points. Al Sadd re- sari, with Kayke providing him with a woes compounded as they stood on five Salal’s main attackers. mained on 15 points. cross which he did by outmuscling rival points. They are only one point ahead of Al Gharafa, as expected, dominated Qatar SC had defeated Umm Salal (5- Gabi Fernandez. bottom-placed Al Shahania. possession and were effective in tak- 0) and Al Shahania (1-0) in the previous The roles reversed for the second Al Gharafa thus continued their win- ing advantage of the chances that came weeks. goal. This time, Rashidov turned the ning ways, having beaten Al Khor 3-1 in their way. Al Sadd had lost 2-4 to Al Rayyan in maker and Kayke the taker, as a result the previous round. The Cheetahs kept Umm Salal had their opportunities as the Qatar Clasico in Week 6 and 1-4 to of a counter-attack. their third position in the standings, well, but were unfortunate not to have Al Duhail last week. The Wolves’ title During the half, al-Dossari managed behind Al Duhail (26) and Al Rayyan found the target. campaign is off track now with their to save a free-kick from Ahmed Moein. (22). Slavisa Jokanovic’s side is well in Moreno first struck home from close third defeat as the QNB Stars League At the other end, Al Sadd’s top scorer contention for a top-four finish as the range and Hanni converted the penalty takes a long break after this round. Baghdad Bounedjah twice came close, QNB Stars League takes a long break awarded after Umm Salal captain Sagbo However, Al Sadd have the advan- but the Algerian was off the mark on now. handled the ball in the area. tage of having played two matches less both occasions. Umm Salal had appointed their Al Gharafa also had Almahdi Ali to Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp looks on as Manchester City as their Week 5 match against Al Arabi Al Sadd tried hard to make a break- former captain Aziz Ben Askar as coach, thank for making a goalline save. manager Pep Guardiola reacts in this file photo.

BOTTOMLINE Leicester move up with 2-0 win over Arsenal

AFP fortably,” said Chelsea boss Frank versy. London Lampard.”A nice, solid win with a West Ham’s woes continued as clean sheet.” Manuel Pellegrini’s men were beaten Tottenham were lucky to even es- 3-0 at Burnley to stretch their winless eicester moved up to second cape with a point as Sheffi eld United streak to seven games. in the Premier League as a 2-0 impressed once more to move up to Ashley Barnes opened the scor- victory over Arsenal yesterday fi fth. ing after 11 minutes as Burnley never further dented the Gunners’ “The reality is that for diff erent rea- looked back. hopesL of a top-four fi nish. sons we are not showing the perform- Chris Wood doubled the hosts’ ad- Chelsea were also 2-0 victors against ances that we expect,” said Spurs boss vantage after earlier having a goal ruled Crystal Palace as they too jumped Mauricio Pochettino. out by VAR for off side and a miserable above Manchester City into third. Leicester City’s James “We are not in a good position in the day for the visitors at Turf Moor was But it was another woeful afternoon Maddison celebrates table.” summed up when goalkeeper Roberto for north London’s big two as Totten- scoring their second A rare defensive error from the punched a corner into his own net. ham were held 1-1 at home by Sheffi eld goal with Jamie Vardy Blades set up Son Heung-min to open “When you concede so many easy United to slip to 12th. yesterday. the scoring with his eighth goal of the goals it does not help,” said Pellegrini. League leaders Liverpool host City season just before the hour mark. Everton moved six points clear of in a highly-anticipated clash between David McGoldrick thought he had the relegation zone thanks to a 2-1 win the champions of Europe and champi- levelled almost immediately, but af- at Southampton to ease the pressure ons of England at Anfi eld today. ter a three-minute delay the goal was on Marco Silva. Leicester and Chelsea took ad- ruled out for John Lundstram being Tom Davies gave the Toff ees the vantage of kicking off a day earlier to millimetres off side in the build-up. perfect start at St Mary’s before Danny move a point ahead of City and close to To their credit, Chris Wilder’s men Ings equalised early in the second half. within fi ve of Liverpool. were not downhearted and survived But Richarlison struck the winner 15 The Foxes’ superior goal diff erence another VAR review when George minutes from time to secure Everton’s takes them into second as second-half Baldock’s cross from the right evaded fi rst away league win since March. strikes from Jamie Vardy and James ther behind should City avoid defeat at Palace at Stamford Bridge. Christian Pulisic then secured all everyone and found the bottom corner. Newcastle are now seven points Maddison piled more pressure on be- Anfi eld. Tammy Abraham opened the scor- three points when the American head- “I’m more interested in the recov- clear of the drop zone as they came leaguered Arsenal boss Unai Emery. Chelsea were equally as impressive ing as the England striker pounced on ed home his fi fth goal in his last three ery of my players, how they went for from behind to beat Bournemouth 2-1 Arsenal are now eight points adrift with a patient performance to break a deft fl ick through by Willian seven Premier League games. the jugular to try and get back in the at St James’ Park thanks to goals from of the top four and will fall even fur- down a defensively dogged Crystal minutes into the second half. “We won the game relatively com- game,” said Wilder on the VAR contro- DeAndre Yedlin and Ciaran Clark. Gulf Times Sunday, November 10, 2019 3 FOOTBALL

BUNDESLIGA FOCUS Carrillo Bayern brush aside off -fi eld goal gives Al Hilal advantage woes to thrash Dortmund AFP Riyadh Two goals from top scorer Lewandowski lift defending champions into third place ndre Carrillo scored the AFP Midfi elder Maximilian Mittelstaedt only goal of the match Munich gave Hertha a fi rst-half lead which as Saudi giants Al Hi- lasted six minutes before Werner con- lal grabbed a thrilling verted a penalty after his hat-trick in victoryA over Japan’s Urawa Red ayern Munich thrashed Borus- last weekend’s 8-0 thrashing of Mainz. Diamonds in the fi rst leg of yes- sia Dortmund 4-0 in ‘Der Marcel Sabitzer added Leipzig’s second terday’s AFC Champions League Klassiker’ yesterday as Robert on the stroke of half-time before three fi nal. Peruvian Carrillo headed Lewandowski continued his goals came in the fi nal fi ve minutes. home off a Mohamed al-Burayk phenomenalB scoring run with two goals Kevin Kampl netted Leipzig’s third assist in the 60th minute in a at the Allianz Arena. Lewandowski’s with a superb left-footed strike be- fast-paced match which saw the fi rst-half header and 76th-minute tap- fore Werner grabbed his second for his defenders of both teams put up a in mean he has scored in all of Bayern’s 11th league goal in as many games, be- stout display in front of a packed Bundesliga and Champions League fore Hertha striker Davie Selke scored King Saud University Stadium. games this season for a tally of 23 goals. against his former club. The Saudi giants have endured Serge Gnabry claimed Bayern’s sec- Striker Rouwen Hennings completed a continental trophy drought ond, while visiting captain Mats Hum- his hat-trick fi ve minutes from time as since 2000 when they won the mels scored a late own goal for his Fortuna Duesseldorf held Schalke to a tournament for the second time, former club as Dortmund suff ered an- 3-3 draw. The Royal Blues squandered the fi rst being in 1991 when it other heavy defeat in Munich, where the lead three times as goals by Daniel was called as the Asian Club they also lost 5-0 in April. Caligiuri, Ozan Kabak and Suat Serdar Championship. Bayern’s moved up to third, level on in Gelsenkirchen were cancelled out by They came close in 2014 and points with second-placed RB Leip- Hennings. 2017 when they reached the fi - zig and one behind leaders Borussia nal, only to be beaten by Western Moenchengladbach, who host Wer- Sydney Wanderers and Urawa der Bremen today. Interim coach Hansi BUNDESLIGA RESULTS respectively. Flick enjoyed his second win in charge Al Hilal had the upper hand Hertha Berlin 2 (Mittelstaedt 32, Selke since Niko Kovac was sacked last Sun- for most part of the match going day. However, Bayern are having diffi - 90) RB Leipzig 4 (Werner 38-pen, 90, close on several occasions, es- culties fi nding a new coach, with Arsene Sabitzer 45+1, Kampl 86); Mainz 2 pecially in the fi rst half. Daisuke Wenger yesterday contradicting their (Onisiwo 81, Brosinski 90) Union Berlin Suzuki made a desperate save claims they turned him down as Kovac’s 3 (Brosinski 30-og, Andersson 45, by defl ecting the ball away from successor and slammed the club for a 51); Schalke 04 3 (Caligiuri 33, Kabak the goal off Sebastian Giovin- lack of discretion. 67, Serdar 79) Fortuna Duesseldorf co’s shot in the 14th minute and Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rum- 3 (Hennings 62, 74, 85); Paderborn 0 Takuya Aoki was lucky to nar- menigge, who spoke to Wenger last Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski (left) and Dortmund’s Achraf Hakimi vie for the ball. (AFP) Augsburg 1 (Max 41); Bayern Munich 4 rowly clear the ball a few minutes week, cancelled a pre-match interview (Lewandowski 17, 76, Gnabry 47, Hum- later after goalkeeper Haruki with Sky. Ajax coach Erik ten Hag and Sancho was hooked off on 36 minutes down, Dortmund coach Lucien Favre hosts, just before Hummels’ own goal. mels 80-og) Borussia Dortmund 0 Fukushima was beaten. Paris Saint-Germain boss Thomas after failing to make an impact on pro- brought on forwards Marco Reus and Earlier, Timo Werner netted twice as Playing today (all times GMT): Urawa’s defence fi nally fell Tuchel have already made it clear they ceedings. Paco Alcacer, who have only just recov- Leipzig went second with a 4-2 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach v Werder on the hour mark when goal- will not join Bayern this season. Gnabry had a goal ruled out for off - ered from foot and calf injuries respec- Hertha Berlin in the capital, where the Bremen (1230 GMT), VfL Wolfsburg v keeper Fukushima dropped his Berlin Wall fell on November 9, 1989. Despite their off -fi eld troubles, Bay- side as Bayern went in 1-0 up at the tively. Alcacer had his head in his hands Bayer Leverkusen (1430), Freiburg v guard and failed to anticipate ern bounced back from last weekend’s break, but the Germany winger struck after failing to connect with an Achraf To mark the 30th anniversary, a replica al-Burayk’s cross from the right Eintracht Frankfurt (1700) 5-1 drubbing at Eintracht Frankfurt two minutes into the second half. When Hakimi cross with 20 minutes left as of the Wall, which divided Germany’s to allow Carrillo to easily head as Lewandowski scored with a superb Lewandowski stumbled with the goal at Dortmund’s best chance went begging. capital from 1961, separated Hertha Played Friday: Cologne 1 (Cordoba 34) home from the six-yard mark. header from a Benjamin Pavard cross his mercy, Gnabry fi red home. Bayern’s third came as Lewandowski and Leipzig before being knocked down Hoff enheim 2 (Adamyan 48, Locadia The second leg will be played on 17 minutes. Dortmund winger Jadon With an hour gone and his side 2-0 fi nished another counter-attack by the prior to kick-off . 90+7-pen) in Saitama on November 24.

LA LIGA LIGUE 1 Hazard dazzles in Real’s win Icardi strikes again to edge PSG past Brest AFP Paris

auro Icardi came off the bench to score a late winner as Paris Saint-Germain extended their Ligue 1 lead to 10 points despite Manother unconvincing performance in a 2-1 victory at Brest yesterday. The reign- ing French champions, who were beaten by then-bottom club Dijon last week before scraping past Club Brugge in the Champions League, needed Icardi’s ninth goal in eight games to secure the three points. Brest, promoted from the second tier last season, caused PSG problems throughout and had levelled with 18 minutes remaining through Samuel Grandsir. Second-placed Angers were visiting Reims later last night, looking to cut the gap to seven points. Tuchel saw his long injury list extended Paris St Germain’s Mauro Icardi (centre) scores against Brest yesterday. (Reuters) before kick-off as goalkeeper Keylor Navas pulled out of the game after suff ering a thigh terval ahead. Cavani wasted two clear-cut ter Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting’s cross was problem in the warm-up. The Costa Rican chances in the space of three minutes just only partially cleared. joined Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, defenders after the hour mark, and Brest made him Thomas Meunier and Thilo Kehrer and mid- pay. Substitute Grandsir collected the ball LIGUE 1 RESULTS fi elder Ander Herrera on the sidelines. inside the area and fi red a low eff ort through Brest 1 (Grandsir 72) Paris Saint-Germain Edinson Cavani made his fi rst start since goalkeeper Sergio Rico, making his Parisian 2 (Di Maria 39, Icardi 85) August, but struggled in front of goal. The debut after signing on-loan from Sevilla. Real Madrid’s Vazquez (left) vies for the ball with Eibar’s Pedro Bigas during the La Liga match . AFP) visitors claimed a 39th-minute lead as An- But the Spaniard redeemed himself Playing today (all times GMT): Rennes gel Di Maria raced clear before clipping a shortly afterwards, keeping out Haris Belke- v Amiens (1400), Montpellier v Toulouse, Nantes v Saint-Etienne (1600), Marseille AFP Galatasaray and now four against who his opponent’s right chipped fi nish over Brest goalkeeper Gau- bla’s long-range strike. On-loan Inter Mi- v Lyon (2000) Madrid Eibar. All fi ve have yielded clean leg. Ramos slid the penalty home. tier Larsonneur to score his eighth goal of lan striker Icardi had the fi nal say, though, sheets, with the team now pass- Hazard wanted a spot-kick when the campaign. His eff ort survived a VAR pouncing inside the six-yard box in the 85th Played Friday: Nice 1 (Lees-Melou 27) ing 533 minutes without conced- he was caught by the onrushing review for off side to send PSG into the in- minute to scramble the ball over the line af- Bordeaux 1 (Briand 50-pen) den Hazard exploded into ing. Their scoring problems have Eibar goalkeeper Marko Dmitro- life and Karim Benzema frustrated this season too, not vic but another one would come continued his brilliant least in a home stalemate against soon. SERIE A scoring run as Real Ma- Real Betis earlier this month, First, there was a brilliant dridE delivered another goalfest but Hazard, and his burgeoning nutmeg from Hazard, a ‘rabo- yesterday in a 4-0 demolition of partnership with Benzema, could na’ cross and too many glides Eibar. Real were three up inside well provide the answer Ma- past defenders to count. Ramos Barella’s magnifi cent strike rewards Inter 29 minutes at Ipurua as Sergio drid have been looking for since passed on the second Madrid Ramos scored a penalty between Cristiano Ronaldo left almost 18 penalty, awarded for a foul on Reuters midfi elder also earning a yellow card for two Benzema strikes, the second months ago. Lucas Vazquez this time, to allow Milan taking his shirt off and throwing it to the also a spot-kick after Ramos del- Hazard, checked by an early Benzema to make it three inside ground as he celebrated. egated to his teammate. thigh injury, has taken a while to half an hour. The second period In the earlier game, Brescia’s new coach Fede Valverde added a fourth get going in Spain but this was a was a procession and Hazard was nter Milan were rewarded for a relent- Fabio Grosso had a nightmare debut as his in the second half. Benzema’s vintage performance from the taken off with 18 minutes left, his less second-half performance when a side were thumped 4-0 at home by Tori- double takes him to 157 goals for 28-year-old to suggest he is fi - work already done. By then the magnifi cent strike from Nicolo Barella no. Andrea Belotti converted penalties in Real Madrid, above Ferenc Pus- nally fi nding peak form and fi t- dynamic Valverde had added a gave them a 2-1 win over Verona after the 17th and 26th minute, both awarded kas into sixth in the club’s all- ness. He was unplayable for the fourth, cracking in Modric’s pass Ithe visitors had taken a shock fi rst-half lead for handball, to put Torino in charge and time list, but another excellent fi rst half an hour, a series of mes- for his fi rst Real goal in La Liga. in Serie A yesterday. Brescia’s problems increased with a red card display from the Frenchman was merising runs down the left leav- Barella collected the ball on the left, cut for Ales Mateju before halftime. trumped by a creative master- ing Eibar’s Cote and Takashi Inui LA LIGA RESULTS inside and curled the ball into the far corner Brescia forward Mario Balotelli was sub- class from Hazard. powerless to keep up. from the edge of the area for his fi rst goal Se- stituted at the break to make way for de- Alaves 3 (Joselu 26, Pina 32, Madrid move top of La Liga, His instinctive connection rie A goal since joining Inter from Cagliari at fender Bruno Martella and Alex Berenguer Lucas 75-pen) Valladolid 0; Inter Milan’s Nicolo Barella celebrates after above Real Sociedad and Bar- with Benzema came to the fore the start of this season. scoring against Verona in Milan. (AFP) piled on the misery for the hosts with two Valencia 2 (Wass 74, Torres 90+7) celona, who could return to the too. Benzema had already hit Inter, who blew a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2 goals in a fi ve-minute spell late in the game. Granada 0; Eibar 0 Real Madrid summit if they beat Celta Vigo at the post and he should have to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions point-blank range just before the break. 4 (Benzema 17, 29-pen, Ramos home later last night. But while scored from a delicious Hazard League on Tuesday, went back to the top of Inter’s furious assault continued after the 20-pen, Valverde 62) SERIE A RESULTS Barca have lost their way after cross before opening the scor- Serie A with 31 points from 12 games, two break and the pressure fi nally paid off in the Brescia 0 Torino 4 (Belotti 17-pen, 26-pen, defeat by Levante and a goalless ing in the 17th minute. Benzema Playing today (all times GMT): ahead of Juventus who host AC Milan today. 65th minute when Vecino headed in from Berenguer 75, 80); Inter Milan 2 (Vecino 65, draw against Slavia Prague in latched onto Hazard’s pass and Mallorca v Villarreal (1200), Inter gave away a penalty in the 19th a Valentino Lazaro cross. Verona’s Sofi ane Barella 83) Verona 1 (Verre 19-pen) the Champions League, Real will after Valverde and Luka Modric Athletic Bilbao v Levante (1400), minute when goalkeeper Samir Handanovic Amrabat gifted Inter a glorious chance by head into the international break missed, the ball spilled back to Atletico Madrid v Espanyol caught Mattia Zaccagni as he raced through hoofi ng the ball back towards his goal from Playing today: Cagliari v Fiorentina (1130), as the league’s form side. the Frenchman, who found the (1500), Getafe v Osasuna (1730), and Valerio Verre made no mistake from the halfway line and straight into the path of Lazio v Lecce, Sampdoria v Atalanta, Udi- Since losing at Mallorca, they corner from an acute angle. Real Betis v Sevilla (2000) the spot. The hosts dominated the game Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian, however, mis- nese v SPAL (1400), Parma v Roma (1700), have won four and drawn one Three minutes later it was two, Played Friday: Real Sociedad 1 and Marcelo Brozovic clipped the crossbar judged the bounce and sent a weak header Juventus v AC Milan (1945) of fi ve games, while scoring fi ve Hazard the creator again, his feet (Merino 63) Leganes 1 (En-Nesyri before Verona goalkeeper Marco Silvestri straight into Silvestri’s arms. Lukaku’s Played Friday: Sassuolo 3 (Caputo 34, 75, against Leganes, six against too quick for Pablo De Blasis, 78) managed to turn Vecino’s shot off the line at blushed were spared by Barella’s strike, the Boga 68) Bologna 1 (Orsolini 70) Gulf Times 4 Sunday, November 10, 2019 SPORT

CRICKET SQUASH Al Jaidah Group offi cial transport West Indies win partner of PSA Men’s World Championship

By Sports Reporter ers and offi cials. Doha “On behalf of the federation’s fi rst one-day board, we are proud to announce that Al Jaidah Group has joined he Qatar Squash Federa- the list of the sponsors and part- tion (QSF) announced Al ners of PSA Men’s World Cham- Jaidah Group as an of- pionship and Qatar Classic,” fi cial transport partner Zainal said. “This partnership ofT the 2019 PSA Men’s World refl ects the commitment of the Championship which is being federation and Al Jaidah Group series in fi ve years held in Doha until November 15 to develop squash in the State of and upcoming editions of Qatar Qatar by providing support to POLLARD SAID IT HAD BEEN A GREAT RELIEF TO FINALLY WIN AN ODI SERIES Classic Tournament. World Men’s Squash Champion- The partnership was an- ship and Qatar Classic,” he added. AFP nounced at a press conference “We are proud to be the offi cial held yesterday on the sidelines of transport partner of the 2019 PSA PSA Men’s World Championship, Men’s World championship. At Al with attendance of Tariq Zainal, Jaidah Group we are committed est Indies beat Af- secretary-general of the Qatar to supporting the Qatar National ghanistan by 47 Tennis, Squash and Badminton Vision 2030 and contributing to runs yesterday to Federation, and Maud Daniel, the growth and development of claim their first marketing and customer care di- Qatar,” Daniel said. Wone-day series win in more rector at Al Jaidah Group. The $325,000 total prize purse than five years as their bowlers As per the contract signed by tournament is featuring a total took control amid an invasion the two parties, Al Jaidah Group of 64 players from 24 countries, of moths. will provide these squash tour- including the 56 highest ranked Sheldon Cottrell, Roston naments with fl eets of vehicles players and eight wild card en- Chase and Hayden Walsh each for the use of participating play- trants. took three as ’s side wrapped up the three-match series with a game to spare. Afghanistan have now lost 11 one-day in- ternationals in a row. Wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran hit 67 off 50 balls to put backbone in the West Indies innings. Openers (43) and (54) put on 98 for the first but the batsmen then lost their way until Pooran’s man-of- the-match fireworks that included three sixes and seven fours. Pooran admitted it had been a “critical situation” when he came in. He helped take the score from 156-4 to 242-8. Tariq Zainal, secretary-general of the Qatar Tennis, Squash and Bad- The Afghanistan innings minton Federation, and Maud Daniel, marketing and customer care was overshadowed by tens of West Indies’ Shai Hope (right) plays a shot during the second one-day international against Afghanistan at the Ekana Stadium in director at Al Jaidah Group during the press conference yesterday. thousands of black moths and Lucknow yesterday. (AFP) flies that took over the floodlit Ekana stadium in Lucknow in Najibullah (56) and Moham- SCORECARD the day-night game. mad Nabi (32) put on 66 for WEST INDIES AFGHANISTAN Maddinson out of Pakistan clash Dark clouds of insects rose the sixth wicket, hitting the SD Hope lbw b ...... 43 c Cottrell b Chase ...... 23 over mental health issues up every time the ball hit a insects for six. E Lewis b Javed Ahmadi ...... 54 Javed Ahmadi c & b Cottrell ...... 0 boundary rope and several No one else could keep up SO Hetmyer c J Ahmadi b Mohd Nabi ...... 34 run out (Pollard/Joseph) ...... 33 Nic Maddinson yesterday silence and I applaud Nic for West Indies fielders wore the pace after their departure. RL Chase b ...... 9 Ikram Alikhil c Holder b Chase ...... 19 pulled out of Australia A’s having the courage to put his masks. The moths caused Captain Rashid Khan scored N Pooran c S Ashraf b Naveen-ul-Haq ...... 67 c Lewis b Chase ...... 3 clash against Pakistan in Perth health first.” problems for bowlers and bats- only two as the seventh man KA Pollard c & b Sharafuddin Ashraf ...... 3 c Pooran b Cottrell ...... 56 on mental health grounds, His withdrawal almost men, and Pollard twice spoke in. Sheldon Cottrell, Roston JO Holder run out (Mujeeb Ur Rahman/Ikram lbw b Walsh ...... 32 all-but ruling him out of certainly rules him out of the to the umpires about the nui- Chase and Hayden Walsh Alikhil) ...... 9 Rashid Khan st Pooran b Walsh ...... 2 contention for a berth in the opening Test against Pakistan sance. “We recovered well, but R Shepherd c Sharafuddin Ashraf b Naveen-ul- Sharafuddin Ashraf c Hetmyer b Walsh ...... 13 Test squad. in Brisbane later this month, “I’ve never played with so couldn’t finish it off,” said Haq ...... 6 Mujeeb Ur Rahman c Shepherd b Cottrell .....0 The middle-order batsman’s with the Australia A game many flies around,” said the Rashid. “The senior players AS Joseph ...... 1 Naveen-ul-Haq not out ...... 8 decision comes barely a week widely seen as a final chance West Indies captain after the did well, but we lost wickets in HR Walsh c Rashid Khan b Naveen-ul-Haq ... 4 Extras: 11 (lb 8, nb 1, w 2) after Glenn Maxwell withdrew to impress selectors. game. “Health is very impor- clusters.” Walsh took three of Extras: 17 (lb 6, w 11) Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Javed Ahmadi), from Australia’s It opens the door to Travis tant, so something’s got to be the last four wickets to fall. Total: 247/9 (50 Overs) 2-54: (Rahmat Shah), 3-61: (Hazratullah team to deal with similar Head or rising star Will done about that.” The third and Pollard said it had been a Zazai), 4-79 (Asghar Afghan), 5-109 (Ikram issues. Pucovski, who has also final one-day game is tomor- great relief to finally win a Fall of wickets: 1-98 (Shai Hope), 2-106 (Evin Alikhil), 6-177 (Najibullah Zadran), 7-177 Cameron Bancroft will replace struggled with mental health row but there are T20 games one-day series for the first Lewis), 3-137 (Roston Chase), 4-156 (Shimron (Mohammad Nabi), 8-184 (Rashid Khan), Maddinson for the three-day issues in the past, to stake and a Test to follow — all in the time since August 2014 when Hetmyer), 5-160 (Kieron PollarD), 6-182 (Jason 9-185 (Mujeeb Ur Rahman, ), 10-200 match against Pakistan at their case. Maddinson’s same stadium. Bangladesh were the victims. Holder), 7-232 (Romario Shepherd), 8-242 (Sharafuddin Ashraf) Perth Stadium from tomorrow. decision followed Maxwell, Afghanistan lost Javed “I want to go back inside (Nicholas Pooran), 9-247(Hayden Walsh) BOWLING: SS Cottrell 9 29 3; JO Holder 10 52 “Nic has made the right one of the world’s best short- Ahmed in the first opening and celebrate with the guys. BOWLIN: Mujeeb Ur Rahman 10 52 1; Naveen- 0; RL Chase 10...... decision and we are all behind format batsman, late last over before Hazratullah Za- Winning is a habit and we ul-Haq 9 60 3; Sharafuddin Ashra 9 37 1: 30 3; AS Joseph 6 22 0; R Shepherd 3 22 0; KA him,” said Australia A coach month opting to take a “short” zai (23)and Rahmat Shah (33) need to enjoy ourselves but Mohammad Nabi 10 37 1; Rashid Khan 10 45 1; Pollard 1 1 0; HR Walsh 6.4 36 3 Graeme Hick. “It is braver to break from cricket to deal with steadied in the innings. But we will be playing to win Javed Ahmadi 2 10 1 Result: West Indies won by 47 runs speak up than to suff er in similar challenges. easy wickets then fell before again tomorrow.”

SPOTLIGHT GOLF Austria’s Schwab Leave Pant alone, says Rohit seizes three-shot Reuters ting ability makes him a limited- Mumbai overs asset, but India head coach Ravi Shastri and coach Turkish Open lead Vikram Rathour said in recent ritics of India’s Rishabh interviews that the left-hander’s AFP Pant must leave the shot selection has occasionally Antalya, Turkey young wicketkeeper let the team down. batsman alone and let Pant played within himself and himC play with freedom, stand-in seemed to curb his natural in- ustrian Matthias captain Rohit Sharma said yes- stincts in his 26-ball knock of 27 Schwab edged closer terday. during India’s loss to Bangladesh to a maiden European The 22-year-old has received in the fi rst T20 in Delhi while he Tour title by claiming lots of fl ak lately from India’s did not get a chance to bat dur- aA three-shot lead at the Turk- coaching staff , pundits and the ing the series-levelling win at ish Open yesterday, while Jus- media after losing his wicket Rajkot. He, however, handed a tin Rose’s bid for a third straight through loose shots and his po- reprieve to Bangladesh opener victory in the tournament all but sition in the India test side has Liton Das, who was off ended. been taken by fi t-again Wriddhi- Yuzvendra Chahal but replays World number 102 Schwab, man Saha. confi rmed Pant did not collect who has posted nine top-10 fi n- Former Australia batsman the ball behind the stumps, with ishes this season without secur- Dean Jones told Reuters this part of his gloves jutting ahead of ing a win, fi red a six-under-par week that Pant needs to improve the line. third round of 66 to reach 18 un- his off -side game if he wants to Pant nearly repeated the mis- der par overall. to take control of the tournament. graduate from being a one-trick take when eff ecting a similar He leads a group of fi ve play- Reed is level with Scotland’s pony. dismissal to send back Soumya ers, including former Masters Robert MacIntyre, Ross Fisher, “There is a lot of talk happen- Sarkar for 30 off Chahal. “He is champion Patrick Reed, by three Frenchman Benjamin Hebert and ing about Rishabh Pant every a young guy... trying to make his strokes. Ryder Cup winner Tyrrell Hatton day, every minute,” Rohit, who mark in international cricket. “I’ll just try and do the same on 15-under. is leading the hosts in place of Every move he makes on the fi eld, stuff that I’ve been doing the last American Reed, who was rested regular captain Virat Koh- people start talking about him. It few days, and I’m sure pars will named as a wildcard by Tiger li, told reporters ahead of today’s is not fair,” Rohit said. not be enough tomorrow because Woods for next month’s Presi- deciding fi nal Twenty20 inter- Rishabh Pant attends a training session at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur, India, “Focus on him a lot more when it’s usually pretty gettable out dents Cup on Friday, poured in national against Bangladesh at yesterday. (AFP) he is doing good things also, not here,” he said. eight birdies. Nagpur. just the bad things. He is a fear- An eagle on the opening hole “At the end of the day, whoever “I just feel that he needs to be Pant was perceived as Mahen- and till recently was the preferred used his chances well, hitting a less cricketer and we want him for the second straight day got the is in the lead, they are in the driv- allowed to do what he wants to do dra Singh Dhoni’s natural suc- choice behind the stumps in all century in an Oval test against to have that freedom. And if you 24-year-old off to a yingfl start. er’s seat obviously,” he said. “If on the fi eld. I would request eve- cessor in limited overs cricket for three formats. England last year while smashing guys keep your eyes little bit off Despite a double-bogey on the they go out and continue playing ryone to just keep their eyes away India when the former captain He played 11 tests in the ab- an unbeaten 159 versus Australia him, it will allow him to perform 12th, he made two further bird- good golf and make a lot of bird- from Rishabh Pant for a while.” eventually hangs up his gloves sence of the injured Saha and in Sydney in January. His six-hit- even better.” ies, including on the fi nal green, ies, going to be hard to catch.” Gulf Times Sunday, November 10, 2019 5 SPORT

NBA FOCUS Warriors’ Curry James’ triple double ‘unlikely’ to ‘We are very return this streak ends but resilient. We bounce season: report back and Reuters This season was already a New York, United States hard slide for the Warriors, we don’t who have appeared in the NBA Finals in five consecutive sea- Lakers win again get rattled’ olden State Warriors sons — winning in 2015, 2017 guard Stephen Curry is and 2018 — but are off to a 2-6 AFP “unlikely” to return this start. Among other issues, they Los Angeles, United States season, according to a lost Kevin Durant to free agency Gstory Friday from Ric Bucher of and Klay Thompson is out for Bleacher Report. the season due to a torn ACL nthony Davis and Le- Curry underwent surgery on suffered in the Finals. Bron James combined his broken left hand last Fri- Curry, a two-time MVP, suf- for 51 points as the Los day. At that time, the team an- fered the injury against the AAngeles Lakers won nounced it would update his sta- Phoenix Suns on Oct. 30 after their seventh straight game with tus in three months, which could landing hard on his hand on a a 95-80 victory over the Miami have put Curry back on the court drive into the lane that ended Heat. around the All-Star Game. with a collision with Suns center Davis fi nished with a team- “A team source says the frac- Aron Baynes. leading 26 points and eight re- ture was worse than originally Curry, 31, averaged 20.3 points bounds and James scored 12 of thought, and it’s unlikely that he in the fi rst four games of the sea- his 25 points in the fourth quar- plays again this season,” Bucher son and has a career average of ter for the Lakers who are also wrote. 23.5 points per game. 4-0 at home. James had his streak of triple doubles snapped at three games as he fi nished with six assists and four rebounds. “I just wanted to be aggressive and see if I could make it count,” said James, who registered his 1,000th career double double. His three triple doubles in the previous three contests made him the fi rst to do it since Magic Johnson accomplished the feat 32 years ago. James previously led the Heat to two NBA titles before leaving to rejoin the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2014. “We are very resilient. We bounce back and we don’t get rattled,” James said of the Lak- ers. “That’s not common for a team that has only been together LeBron James (second from left) of the LA Lakers drives past Bam Adebayo (left) of the Miami Heat for a layup during the second half of a a short period of time, but it is a NBA game at Staples Center in Los Angeles, United States, on Friday. (AFP) good trait.” Jimmy Butler led the Heat Lillard became the fi rst NBA Siakam equalled his career best 21-point defi cit to beat the Phil- with 22 points after scoring 34 in player this season to score 60 with 44 points as the reigning adelphia 76ers 100-97. RESULTS his previous game. points after the league fea- NBA champion Toronto Rap- Jokic scored 16 of his game- LA Lakers 95-80 Miami Backup point guard Goran tured three in 2018-19. Houston tors dominated in almost every high 26 points in the fourth Dragic came off the bench to Rockets guard James Harden aspect of the game and beat the quarter and also had 11 re- New York 106-102 Dallas score 19 points for the Heat who had a pair of 61-pointers, while New Orleans Pelicans 122-104. bounds. Sacramento 121-109 Atlanta shot just 35.0% from the fl oor Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba The Raptors scored the fi rst Joel Embiid had 19 points, 15 Brooklyn 119-115 Portland and made just six of 35 three Walker also scored 60. 15 points of the second quarter rebounds and eight turnovers point attempts. Dinwiddie and Kyrie Irv- for a 75-53 halftime lead to seize before fouling out for the Sixers. Denver 100-97 Philadelphia Miami, who were playing on a ing combined to score 10 three control of the game and improve In Dallas, Luka Doncic scored Utah 103-100 Milwaukee short rest after beating Phoenix pointers which was enough to to 6-2 on the season. a career best 38 points but it Minnesota 125-119 Golden State 124-108 the previous night, had counter Lillard’s one-man per- Siakam fi nished 17 of 28 from wasn’t enough as the New York (OT) their lowest-scoring and poor- formance. the fl oor and had 20 rebounds Knicks snapped a four game skid Toronto 122-104 New Orleans est-shooting game of the season. for the Raptors, who dominat- by holding on for a 106-102 win The Heat were without starting ONE MAN SHOW ed despite missing guard Kyle over the Dallas Mavericks. Indiana 112-106 Detroit forward Justise Winslow, who has Lillard nailed a running Lowry and Serge Ibaka, who Marcus Morris equalled a sea- Orlando 118-86 Memphis now missed four straight games 34-footer at the fi nal horn, al- were both injured. son high with 29 points as the Cleveland 113-100 Washington with back problems. lowing him to surpass his previ- Fred VanVleet had 12 points visiting Knicks, who bounced Elsewhere, Spencer Dinwid- ous career high of 59 points set and 11 assists, and OG Anunoby back nicely from consecutive die came off the bench to score two years ago against Utah. contributed 21 points and seven blowout losses to Sacramento also committed eight turnovers. a team high 34 points as the Lillard fi nished 19-of-33 from rebounds. and Detroit that dropped their Mavericks Kristaps Porzingis Brooklyn Nets overcame Dam- the fi eld, seven-of-16 on three- Also, Nikola Jokic hit a 20- record to a league-worst 1-7. scored 28 in his fi rst meeting ian Lillard’s 60-point perform- point attempts and 15-for-15 foot jumper with two seconds Doncic set a career high with against his former team since In this October 28, 2019, picture, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen ance with a 119-115 win over the from the free-throw line. left, and the host Denver Nug- 38 points while collecting 14 the trade from New York on Jan- Curry is in action during the game against New Orleans Pelicans in Portland Trail Blazers. In New Orleans, Pascal gets clawed their way out of a rebounds and 10 assists, but he uary 31. New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. (USA TODAY Sports)

NHL Koskinen and Oilers shut out Devils 4-0 Reuters a row and is 1-4-1 since an 8-1-1 RESULTS New York, United States start. Tampa Bay 3-2 Buff alo FABBRI SCORES IN DETROIT lex Chiasson collected a Detroit 4-2 Boston WIN OVER BOSTON goal and an assist while Winnipeg 4-1 Vancouver Robby Fabbri scored twice on the Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Edmonton 4-0 New Jersey power play in his Red Wings de- and Joel Persson both but as Detroit stunned visiting registeredA two assists as the host Boston. Edmonton Oilers handily beat the rebound tally. Dylan Larkin and Anthony the New Jersey Devils 4-0 on Fri- Chiasson’s fi rst goal of the Mantha also scored, and Tyler day. season, a power-play marker at Bertuzzi had two assists as the The two assists were the fi rst 6:02 of the third period, rounded Red Wings snapped a four- points of Persson’s nine-game out the scoring. Chiasson was at game losing streak. Detroit NHL career. the doorstep while his team was entered the contest mired in a The Pacifi c Division-leading buzzing around the off ensive 1-11-1 funk. Oilers scored three goals in the zone, and he defl ected a Nugent- David Krejci and Torey Krug second period and received a 29- Hopkins shot. tallied for the Bruins, who lost a save performance from goalie Goalie Cory Schneider made second straight in regulation for Mikko Koskinen to snap a two- 28 saves for New Jersey, which the fi rst time this season. game losing skid. Koskinen re- concludes a fi ve-game road trip Jonathan Bernier stopped 26 corded his fi rst shutout of the Sunday afternoon in Vancouver. shots for the Red Wings. Tuukka season and the fi fth of his NHL The loss was doubly costly for Rask made 28 saves for the Bru- career. the Devils. Defenseman Sami Va- ins. Edmonton has struggled to tanen left the game after a colli- receive secondary scoring, and sion in the fi rst period and didn’t WINNIPEG BEAT VISITING it fi nally received some against a return. VANCOUVER Devils team that had high hopes Kyle Connor had a goal and an before arriving in Alberta. New TAMPA BAY WIN IN STOCK- assist as Winnipeg defeated vis- Jersey also lost 5-2 at Calgary on HOLM iting Vancouver. Thursday. Nikita Kucherov, Alex Killorn Jack Roslovic, Mark Scheifele After a goalless fi rst period, and Yanni Gourde scored goals and Adam Lowry also scored and Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl to help Tampa Bay beat Buff alo goaltender Connor Hellebuyck opened the scoring 1:55 into in the fi rst of two meetings this made 32 saves as the Jets im- the second frame. Sprung on a weekend at the NHL Global Se- proved to 3-0-1 this month. breakaway by Nugent-Hopkins, ries in Stockholm. JT Miller scored for the Ca- Draisaitl nettled his team-high Andrei Vasilevskiy made 20 nucks, who lost for the second 14th goal with a backhanded saves for the Lightning, who won consecutive night, and goalie shot. Edmonton Oilers forward Alex Chiasson (right) celebrates his goal with teammates during the NHL game against New Jersey Devils at Rogers in regulation for just the second Thatcher Demko stopped 31 Rookie forward Gaetan Haas Place in Edmonton, Canada, on Friday. (USA TODAY Sports) time since Oct. 15. of 34 shots. Vancouver had an doubled the Edmonton lead with Sam Reinhart scored twice, eight-game points streak (5-0-3) his second goal of the season at a long shot that ricocheted off Butcher and into the net. Neal made it a 3-0 game by net- was parked at the side of the net and Linus Ullmark made 31 saves snapped in a 5-2 defeat Thursday 15:45 of the period. Haas sent the skate of Devils defender Will Sixty-six seconds later, James ting his 12th of the season. Neal and pounced on a loose puck for for Buff alo, which has lost four in in Chicago. Gulf Times 6 Sunday, November 10, 2019 SPORT

SPOTLIGHT Charlotte leads bidding to be 30th MLS team, commissioner says

Reuters ber said. “There are a lot of things Miami and Nashville will begin digital. Those are the qualities Salvo, North Carolina that are happening in Charlotte play next year. Austin, Texas, will that are driving our fan base and that are very similar to things start in 2021, and Sacramento driving the value that we have.” that are happening in Atlanta in and St. Louis in 2022. Postseason matches aver- harlotte, North Caro- terms of the diversity of their fan “Our league is capitalising on aged more than 31,000 fans and lina, has moved to the base and corporate energy,” he the momentum that exists be- viewership was up 30%, with front of the line to said referring to the highly suc- hind the sport of soccer in North the sold-out championship to be Cbecome the 30th Ma- cessful Atlanta franchise. America,” Garber said. witnessed by nearly 70,000 fans jor League Soccer (MLS) team, “Should we be able to move “We are riding this crest that and viewed in 170 countries, the Commissioner Don Garber said forward, I am confi dent it will be I think we have helped create in commissioner said in a State of on Friday. successful,” Garber said, point- many ways.” League address. An announcement is expected ing to North Carolina’s success in Founded in 1993 with play be- The relatively young league in the next couple of months with women’s and youth soccer. ginning three seasons later, MLS this year opened its 20th soccer Las Vegas and Phoenix compet- The team would likely play currently boasts 24 teams in the stadium — excluding NFL facili- ing with Charlotte, Garber said in initially in the home stadium of United States and Canada and ties that host MLS play — with comments ahead of today’s MLS the National Football League’s just experienced its best playoff s investments in stadiums and Cup between the host Seattle Carolina Panthers, whose owner ever, Garber said. training grounds by MLS owner- Sounders and Toronto FC. is behind the bid. “There is a new America and ship groups totalling over $3bn. “It is fair to say Charlotte has Five other cities will also join a new Canada happening that “It has transformed itself from MLS commissioner Don Garber speaks during the State of the Union League Address in Seattle, Washington, done a lot of work to move their the rapidly expanding league in is young, that is diverse, that is a league on the rise to a league United States, on Friday. (USA TODAY Sports) bid to the front of the line,” Gar- the next three years. globally connected, that is very that has arrived,” Garber said.

NFL UPDATE NFL MVP Mahomes to start for Chiefs Vikings pose next aft er knee injury hurdle for Cowboys Cowboys are coming off wins against Eagles and Giants over the past two weeks

Reuters (hamstring), nose tackle Linval New York, United States Joseph (knee) and safety Andrew Sendejo (groin) have been ruled out against Dallas. he Dallas Cowboys will The Cowboys also feature an aim for their third win off ense loaded with playmak- in a row when they host ers. Elliott’s rushing dominance the Minnesota Vikings pairs well with solid quarter- Ton Sunday night. back play from Dak Prescott, As far as Cowboys running who passed for 257 yards, three back Ezekiel Elliott is con- touchdowns and one intercep- cerned, the main focus will be tion in last week’s victory. the same despite the prime- Wide receiver Amari Cooper time spotlight shining on Dallas. has four touchdowns in four Win the line of scrimmage and home games this season while there is a good chance to win the fellow wideout Michael Gallup game. has 100-plus receiving yards in “I feel like things are really two of his past three games at clicking, and I’m really excited home. to see where this run game goes,” Cooper, however, is listed as said Elliott, who will strive for questionable with a left knee in- his fourth consecutive game jury, though he said Thursday he with 100-plus rushing yards. “I hopes to play. think it can only get better and The Vikings are led on defense AFP been doing the whole process of better. I’m just glad we’re fi nally by Danielle Hunter, who has 8 New York, United States the injury in general is just see- putting it all together and play- 1/2 sacks. Anthony Harris leads ing how I felt every single day,” ing really well. We’re starting to the way with three intercep- Mahomes said. “I knew I had a get rolling.” tions. eigning NFL Most Valu- chance once I kind of talked to The Cowboys (5-3) are com- For Dallas, Robert Quinn has able Player Patrick those doctors and they said that ing off wins against the Phila- a team-high 6 1/2 sacks, and Mahomes will start for as long as I was functioning well, delphia Eagles and New York Xavier Woods has a pair of picks. Rthe Kansas City Chiefs moving well, that I could play Giants over the past two weeks, Turnovers dominate the at Tennessee on Sunday after this week. but they will face a diffi cult test thoughts of the Cowboys’ de- missing two games with a dislo- “Coach Reid still wanted me to against Minnesota. The Vikings fense, according to linebacker cated right kneecap, coach Andy take it day by day. So I went out (6-3) won four in a row before Jaylon Smith. Reid said Friday. here and practised, and took the losing at Kansas City last week. “What I like about the team The 24-year-old quarterback reps and I haven’t had any pains Vikings coach Mike Zimmer is we’re all hungry,” Smith said increased his amount of work or any setbacks. And so, as long also could preach a simplifi ed in comments published by The with the starters this week in as we keep going with that, I’m approach to his team this week. Athletic. “No one’s satisfi ed with anticipation he would be ready glad to be back out there.” He did not like the way Min- what they’ve accomplished. Peo- to face the Titans after suff ering A doctor quickly set Maho- nesota turned pass-happy in ple have gotten contracts, includ- the injury October 17 in the fi rst mes’s kneecap into place in the the fi rst half against the Chiefs, ing myself. We’re playing with half of a 30-6 Kansas City win at moments following the injury which the team amended in the Hall of Famers, playing with Pro Denver. and he has progressed ahead of second half. NY Giants’ Antoine Bethea (left) tackles Dallas Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott during the fourth quarter of the Bowlers, All-Pro, playing with Mahomes had been expected expectations from there. “We had to get back under con- NFL game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States, on Monday. (USA TODAY Sports) guys that come from nothing — to miss at least three games but Veteran backup Matt Moore trol and get a little bit more bal- practice squad — the camaraderie sat out only two, a 31-24 home won in relief of Mahomes at Den- anced,” Zimmer told reporters. Cousins has fared well in Dallas Bisi Johnson, with Johnson try- with at least 100 yards from is the same. loss to Green Bay and a 26-23 ver and went 1-1 in two starts. The Cowboys almost cer- throughout his career, throwing ing to haul in a touchdown pass scrimmage this season, which is “Everybody is being treated home win over Minnesota, be- The Chiefs lead the AFC West tainly noticed as they prepare to for 876 yards, eight touchdowns for the third road game in a row. tops in the NFL. equal, and for us, it’s about that fore getting the call from Reid division at 6-3, one game ahead draw up a defensive game plan and two interceptions in three Dalvin Cook provides plenty Minnesota, however, will be accountability and keeping our that he will start unless some- of Oakland, and hope to remain for this week. games. He has a group of capa- of electricity in Minnesota’s without a few playmakers as chemistry together. So that’s thing unexpected happens. unbeaten on the road after fi ve Vikings quarterback Kirk ble receivers in Stefon Diggs and backfi eld. He has seven games wide receiver Adam Thielen what I love about our team.” “We knew how we’ve kind of away games.

BOTTOMLINE NBA fi nes Celtics’ Smart for criticising referees

Reuters bounds. you have to step in and say New York, United States “Really, just, I wish they would something as a coach. But since call the game the right way,” you won’t, I’ve got to.’ Smart said postgame. “A lot of “I understand from Brad’s oston Celtics guard Mar- calls that they called, I didn’t un- standpoint, but at the same time, cus Smart, who vented derstand where the fouls were. from the player’s standpoint, about the referees on And it just seems like whenever I like, you’ve got to step in.” Thursday night, knew get the ball and I’m on off ense, I Stevens said postgame, “We heB would pay the price for his re- can’t get a call. need Marcus, and I’ve told him marks. “Nobody else is going to pro- a number of times how much The NBA proved him right Fri- tect yourself. You’ve got to pro- we need him. But this is the part day, fi ning Smart $15,000 for his tect yourself. So if that means about Marcus that I love, right? comments. I’ve got to lose a little bit of mon- His fi re, his competitiveness. If The announcement was made ey, then I’ve got to lose a bit.” there’s a moment when he’s up- by league executive vice presi- Smart was frustrated in the set with us, that’s all part of it. dent of basketball operations game, not just by the refs. He We move on pretty quickly. Kiki VanDeWeghe. also exchanged words with coach “We’ve been together a long The Celtics earned a 108-87 Brad Stevens. After Smart was time. I’ve been yelled at before road victory over the Charlotte called for a defensive foul and an and that’s OK. I love him and I Hornets on Thursday, but Smart off ensive foul in a span of 11 sec- trust him. And he’ll get every op- was not happy after a game in onds midway through the third portunity.” which he was plagued by foul quarter, Stevens subbed Smart Smart, 25, is averaging 9.6 trouble and fi nished with six out of the game, leading to a mi- points, 4.7 assists and 3.6 re- points, fi ve assists and two re- nor kerfuffl e. bounds in seven games (three Smart said, “I just was tell- starts) this season. The 2014 Devonte’ Graham (left) of the ing him, you know, especially fi rst-round draft pick is in his Charlotte Hornets tries to get when everything is going that sixth season out of Oklahoma away from Marcus Smart of the way, like, they’re just picking State. Boston Celtics during their game and picking, and it’s like they’re The Celtics (6-1) carry a six- at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, eyeing on me and it’s like they game winning streak into a Sat- North Carolina, United States, on are doing it on purpose. So I’m urday road game against the San Thursday. (AFP) telling them like, ‘At some point Antonio Spurs. Gulf Times Sunday, November 10, 2019 7 SPORT

FOCUS SPOTLIGHT De Minaur sets up fi nal showdown Al-Meghessib aims with Sinner at Next Gen ATP Finals

Reuters “It’s diffi cult, but easier in some Milan ways (playing a friend),” De Minaur to take e-football said. “It’s easy because you know that no matter what happens on ustralian top seed Alex the court, you’re still going to be ‘I feel honoured to see de Minaur moved into the best of friends. his second consecutive “In the same manner, you’ve got to an event under my own fi nal at the Next Gen ATP remember that you’re opponents. FinalsA with a 4-2 4-1 0-4 4-2 vic- I’ve got to get in the zone, fi red name. I’m so excited’ tory over Frances Tiafoe in Milan up and motivated, but it worked to next level on Friday. out today. It’s never easy playing The 20-year-old De Minaur, who someone like Frances. He has im- lost to Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsi- mense fi repower, he’s never going pas in the fi nal last season, put his to give up.” friendship with Tiafoe aside and De Minaur will face local favourite needed only 73 minutes to dispatch Jannik Sinner who came back from the 21-year-old American. a set down to beat Serbia’s Miomir De Minaur fi red eight aces, Kecmanovic 2-4 4-1 4-2 4-2. smashed 25 winners and converted The 18-year-old Italian, the all four break points to advance to youngest player in the draw, con- the fi nal where he will attempt to verted three of eight break points win his fourth title of the season and dedicated the win to his coach following wins in Sydney, Atlanta Ricardo Piatti who was celebrating and Zhuhai. his birthday on Friday.

Alex de Minaur hits a return to Frances Tiafoe during their semi-final match of the ATP Finals at the Allianz Cloud Court in Milan on Friday. Al-Meghessib has taken big and bold steps moving forward with his career. (AFP)

By Amjad Vanimal sports athlete, he fi rst made his AAMEGHESSIB’S Doha mark on Qatar’s competitive BACK-2-BACK scene starting with the Electron- AAMeghessib’s Back-2-Back is Save the Dream releases report ic Games Tournament in 2015. a unique e-sport platform for ‘When Sport Breaks Down Walls’ hmed al-Meghessib, Winning this tournament was a FIFA20 on PlayStation 4 in Qa- a 21-year-old Qatari turning point in his e-sports ca- tar. The e-football tournament, On the occasion 30th anniver- Bouzou, President and Founder footballer who has reer. From there, he went on to which kick started on 1 Novem- sary of the Fall of the Berlin of Peace and Sport and other earned his reputation win the FIFA Mini Cooper Chal- ber and national fi nals being Wall, which has become a glo- high-level representatives are asA one of the region’s top e-sport lenge and the Ajyal Tournament scheduled for 22 November, is bal icon for disruptive change included in the report. FIFA players, says he wants to in 2016. supported and supervised by and power of collective action, In his foreword to the report, create a national e-football team The young phenom broke Red Bull while partners include Save the Dream launched HE Sheikh Saoud recalled a and make Qatar a regional power through to the world stage when Lagoona Mall, Fifty One East, ‘When Sport Breaks Down number of historical moments in e-sports. he marked his position in the FNAC, Vodafone, The Pearl-Qa- Walls’, a report on insights in the field of sport diplomacy “I started playing football regional fi nals to represent the tar, UDC, I Love Qatar and 1UP gained during an international such as the 2018 Winter Olym- when I was just eight years old. “Rest of the World” at the 2017 Gaming Center. youth forum held in Berlin. pics in PyeongChang, a Games My passion for doing something FIWC. Speaking about the tourna- The report is produced in which saw athletes from North myself without the help of others As a graduate of Aspire Acad- ment, al-Meghessib said, “The cooperation with the Interna- and South Korea marching to- persuaded me to try video gam- emy, he has played in the QNB format is to create a 2-player tional Olympic Truce Center gether, for the first time, under ing. That’s how it all started,” al- Stars League and is currently team and compete in offl ine (IOTC) and with the support a unified flag. Meghessib said. with Umm Salal. qualifi ers leading to the national of the United Nations Alliance Mohamed Hanzab, Chairman of He started to play at a pro- Speaking about the scope of e- fi nal. The sportive angle is that of Civilizations (UNAOC) as a the ICSS and Founder of Save fessional level from FIFA15 and football in Qatar, al-Meghessib teams need to score 2 consecutive result of a youth forum made the Dream said, “Sport breaks quickly managed to establish said, “The scene is not really goals to win in 5v5 Street Mode.” possible by Qatar Airways and down walls, starting with those himself in the competitive mi- huge but there are many passion- The 2 players versus 2 play- hosted by Der Diwan under the sometimes built in the minds of lieu. He has become one of the ate gamers who want to explore ers format in 5v5 street football patronage of HE Sheikh Saoud people. key players in Qatar and was able their potential further. There are mode changes the whole game bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. Exactly one year ago, Save the to qualify for the FIWC (FIFA many tournaments going on lo- dynamics as well as supports the Ahmed al-Meghessib: My partnership with Red Bull helps me to explore The forum saw youth leaders Dream organised in Baghdad, Interactive World Cup) after his cally and being the only pro e- players to play with their favour- myself more, especially in my pro scene. PICTURE: Jayan Orma gathering from around the Iraq, the First National Confer- fi rst Regional Qualifi er. footballer in Qatar, I’m closely ite teammates using strategy and world to support the positive ence on Sport for Peace and De- “…But I have never shifted watching them in order to extend communication skills. Teams are hessib added. years too.” message of unity within society velopment, and a few months completely from mainstream my full support in nurturing their now focused on how well they Al-Meghessib has come a More than 100 participants while focusing on the power of later, we worked in Darfur, Su- football to e-sports. I still play talents and possibly creating a can coordinate with their team- long way and put a lot of eff orts have already registered for the sport to inspire and empower dan, to help local youth leaders, both while giving a lot of atten- strong national team.” mate to score two consecutive to be able to fulfi l his goals. “I tournament and al-Meghessib people across nations, regard- all of them internally displaced, tion to e-football as I want to Al-Meghessib has taken big goals. feel honoured to see an event believes that it will be the begin- less of faith and socio-econom- to promote the practice of make it more popular in this part and bold steps moving forward “Tournament referees will be under my own name. I’m so ex- ning of a new era for e-sport in ic condition. sport within their communities of the world, and simultane- with his career. After signing on site to monitor all games. They cited. My partnership with Red the country. “If you feel like you Contributions made by Fatma and camps. This is very much ously create a national e-football with PSG eSports, he has set his will signal participants to begin Bull helps me to explore myself can win, go ahead and explore Samoura, Secretary-General of part of our strategy to restore team,” al-Meghessib told Gulf foot into the big leagues, seizing play and will record scores for more, especially in my pro scene your potential. Passion and de- FIFA, Constantinos Filis, Direc- normality in the lives of young Times. every opportunity to make his each match. They can be identi- and hopefully we will continue sire to win is the key,” al-Megh- tor-General of the IOTC, Joël people and children.” Being a professional FIFA e- mark. fi ed by a special ID tag,” al-Meg- our partnership in the upcoming essib concluded.

TENNIS Barty crushes Garcia as Australia level Fed Cup fi nal AFP 1-1 ahead of Sunday’s reverse sin- there was no way back for a play- but given her performance Molik I love these sort of matches, the Perth, Australia gles and a doubles clash if need- er who was once ranked fourth in may change her mind and revert bigger the pressure, the more ed, with Australia targeting an the world but has slipped to 45. to Stosur — Australia’s most special the event.” eighth title and fi rst in 45 years, Barty wrapped up the fi rst set successful ever singles player, Tomljanovic failed to hit a sin- shleigh Barty played the while France are seeking a third, in 29 minutes and there was no spanning 16 years of Fed Cup ac- gle winner in the opening set. “best match of her life” their fi rst since 2003. let up as she sent down 11 fore- tion. She was broken in the fi rst game to crush Caroline Gar- “This is remarkable, I couldn’t hand and four backhand winners. France captain Julien Ben- and Mladenovic quickly turned cia 6-0, 6-0 and haul have asked for a more perfect “I was a little bit stressed to- neteau faces a similar dilemma the screws, racing to a 3-0 lead AustraliaA back into contention at match. I think that’s the best ten- day, but not too stressed, and I with Garcia. His other options before a double-fault on break- the Fed Cup fi nal yesterday af- nis match I’ve ever played in my don’t think that was why I didn’t are Alize Cornet, Fiona Ferro or point in game four allowed Tom- ter France’s Kristina Mladenovic life,” said Barty. play well,” said Garcia. Pauline Parmentier. ljanovic a rare glimmer of hope. whipped Ajla Tomljanovic. “I felt like I served really well, “Today she just played a very Currently Barty and Stosur But it didn’t last long with The world number one, fresh made a lot of returns. Most im- good match from the fi rst point are down to play Mladenovic and Mladenovic’s powerful forehand from winning the WTA Finals in portantly I played the big points to the last one.” Garcia in what could be a dou- proving too hot to handle. China, came on court in Perth well. I really wanted to assert my- bles decider. World number 40 She kept the momentum going under pressure after the nervous self and I was able to do that re- ‘ALMOST PERFECT’ Mladenovic gave her country a in the second set as Tomljanovic Tomljanovic was thrashed 6-1, ally well today.” The ease of Barty’s 56-minute 1-0 lead by destroying Toml- wilted under the pressure, gal- 6-1. The French Open champion, win was a huge relief for Austral- janovic in 71 minutes. loping to a 5-0 lead before the But in searing 38C (100F) heat capping a breakthrough season, ian captain Alicia Molik, whose “I think she played good but I Australian fi nally won a game she kept her cool to embarrass a was imperious, fi ring down pin- gamble to play Tomljanovic in just came out there and basically only for Mladenovic to comfort- stunned Garcia in a rare double point fi rst serves and eff ortlessly singles ahead of veteran Saman- wanted to win,” said Mladenovic ably serve out the match. Ashleigh Barty hits a return bagel, with the Frenchwoman pushing Garcia around the court, tha Stosur spectacularly back- after clinching her 22nd career “I gave my all and it didn’t re- against Caroline Garcia on having no answers to the Barty forcing errors. fi red. Fed Cup win. ally go as planned,” said a deject- day one of the Fed Cup Final armoury in front of 13,000 fans. She set the tone by breaking Tomljanovic is scheduled to “I really did almost the perfect ed Tomljanovic, admitting the in Perth yesterday. (AFP) It left the tie evenly poised at Garcia’s fi rst service game and play again today, against Garcia, match, I was really in the zone. occasion overwhelmed her.

Sunday, November 10, 2019 GULF TIMES SPORT

FINA WORLD CUP Morozov, Campbell crowned overall champions in Doha Hosszu and Andrew claim two gold medals each on last day

By Sports Reporter Seebohm (AUS) 2:08.54; 2. Kaylee Doha Mckeown (AUS) 2:08.56; 3. Lena Grabowski (AUT) 2:11.31 Men’s 100m Backstroke: Michael ladimir Morozov of Russia and Andrew (USA) 54.07; Bradley Wood- Cate Campbell of Australia ward (AUS) 54.66; 3Keita Sunama won the men and women’s (JPN) 54.95 overall titles respectively as VDoha wrapped up the seven-meet FINA Women’s 50m Breaststroke: 1. Swimming World Cup 2019 series at Jhennifer Conceicao (BRA) 30.93; 2. the Hamad Aquatic Centre yesterday. Weronika Hallmann (POL) 32.02; 3. Morozov and Campbell walked away Emily Seebohm (AUS) 32.03 with $150,000 for sealing the overall Men’s 200m Breaststroke: 1. Anton World Cup victories. The duo also won Chupkov (RUS) 2:08.37; 2. Arno Kam- cluster three, with 69 and 114 points re- minga (NED) 2:08.39; 3. Yasuhiro spectively. Koseki (JPN) 2:08.66 While the 27-year-old Morozov’s (333 points) World Cup title for the Women’s 100m Freestyle: 1. Cate second year in a row was confi rmed, Campbell (AUS) 52.61; 2. Bronte Campbell (357 points) sealed the overall Campbell (AUS) 53.37; 3. Michelle trophy after winning the 100m free- Coleman (SWE) 53.39 style to beat Hungary’s Katinka Hosszu, Men’s 200m Freestyle: 1. Danas who fi nished second with 312 points. Rapsys (LTU) 1:45.50; 2. Alexander Michelle Coleman of Sweden fi n- America’s Michael Andrew stormed to ished overall third with 174 points in victories in two finals yesterday. Graham (AUS) 1:47.23; 3. Antonio women’s fi eld, while Lithuania’s Danas Djakovic (SUI) 1:48.71 Rapsys (234) and Dutchman Arno Kam- women’s 200m backstroke gold after a Women’s 200m Individual Medley: minga (195) completed the top three close race with her team-mate Kaylee 1. Katinka Hosszu (HUN) 2:09.89; 2. overall rankings in men’s fi eld. Mckeown. Seebohm clocked 2:08.54, Seoyeong Kim (KOR) 2:11.44; 3. Maria Meanwhile, Campbell clocked 52.61 while Grabowski was just behind, fi n- Ugolkova (SUI) 2:12.45 for her victory yesterday for her second ishing the race in 2:11.31. Seebohm also Mixed 4x100m Medley Relay: 1. gold in Doha this year. Campbell said: secured a bronze medal in 50m breast- “I really pushed myself hard this year stroke, with Jhennifer Conceicao (BRA) Australia 3:46.77; 2. Chinese Taipei Cate Campbell (left) of Australia and Vladimir Morozov of Russia pose with their trophies after winning the women’s and and I couldn’t ask for a better World claiming the title in 30.93. 3:56.07; 3. Poland 3:56.11 men’s FINA Swimming World Cup overall titles respectively at the Hamad Aquatic Centre. PICTURE: Noushad Thekkayil Cup campaign. Most importantly, I am In men’s 400m individual medley, happy with my time. I want to thank all Balazs Hollo of Hungary edged team- the people who helped me made this mate David Verraszto, securing the win possible.” in 4:15.17. Verraszto (4:15.46) was just Hosszu, who looked determined to fractions of a second behind and had win the overall title, clinched two more to settle for a silver medal. Patrick Sta- gold on the last night but fell short in ber of Austria completed the podium in the points tally. The ‘Iron Lady’ was 4:16.03. victorious in 100m butterfl y and 200m The women’s 800m freestyle title individual medley to complete fi ve vic- was captured by Tjasa Oder of Slovenia tories in Doha. She clocked 58.19 in the in 8:34.65 while Australia clinched vic- fl y and 2:09.89 in the individual med- tory in mixed 4x100m medley relay fol- ley fi nals. “This is my second best time lowed by Chinese Taipei and Poland. (100m butterfl y), and I am very happy Over 200 swimmers from 44 coun- about it. Winning is always special,” tries took part in the FINA Swimming said Hosszu. World Cup Doha 2019, which the Qatari Danas Rapsys also grabbed the spot- capital hosted for the eighth consecu- light after completing a clean sweep of tive year. titles in men’s 200m freestyle, clock- ing 1:45.50 for the victory. America’s RESULTS Michael Andrew was another star on Men’s 400m Individual Medley the fi nal day, storming to victories in two fi nals. He clinched the men’s 50m (Fastest Heat): 1. Balazs Hollo (HUN) butterfl y in 22.94 – his second fastest 4:15.17; 2 .David Verraszto (HUN) time. Szebasztian Szabo of Hungary 4:15.46; 3. Patrick Staber (AUT) 4:16.03 - 23.34 and Riku Poytakivi of Finland Women’s 800m Freestyle: 1. Tjasa 23.60 – claimed silver and bronze med- Oder (SLO) 8:34.65; 2. Yukimi Mori- als. “My second sub 23, I am super hap- yama (JPN) 8:37.25; 3. Marlene Kahler py. It’s a very nice way the tour. I will get (AUT) 8:37.79 back to training,” said Andrew. Barely 15 minutes after winning his fi rst gold Women’s 100m Butterfly: 1. Katinka medal, Andrew returned to the pool to Hosszu (HUN) 58.19; 2. Jeanette capture the 100m backstroke victory - Ottesen (DEN) 58.52; 3. Zsuzsanna his second of the night. Jakabos (HUN) 59.30 In a thrilling men’s 200m breast- Men’s 50m Butterfly: 1. Michael stroke fi nal, Chupkov edged Arno Kamminga of the Netherlands to win Andrew (USA) 22.94; 2. Szebasztian gold in 2:08.37. Kamminga touched the Szabo (HUN) 23.34; 3. Riku Poytakivi wall in 2:08.39 for second position. (FIN) 23.60 Emily Seebohm (AUS) scooped Women’s 200m Backstroke: 1. Emily Swimmers pose with their medals on the final day of the FINA Swimming World Cup at the Hamad Aquatic Centre yesterday.

SPOTLIGHT Al-Ajami rides Carport to Big Tour victory at Hathab By Sports Reporter 1. Horse: Carport; Rider: Faleh Suwead Doha al-Ajami; Faults: 0; Time: 38.15secs; Faults: 0; Time: 41.99; Total Faults: 0; Prize: QR8,750 aleh Suwead al-Ajami won the Big Tour class during the 2. Happy Feet; Mohamed Sultan al- second round of the Longines Suwaidi; 0; 35.48; 0; 42.18; 0; QR7,000 Hathab Equestrian Tour at Al 3. Aslan 69; Salmeen Sultan al-Suwaidi Shaqab’sF indoor arena yesterday. 0; 34.79; 4; 39.15; 4; QR5,250 Ajami, who won the HH The Amir’s Open Class | Table A, One round Sword Championship 2019 earlier this against the clock, Art. 238.2.1 | year, needed only 38.15 & 41.99sec re- 110/115cm | Prize-Money QR15,000 spectively to top the 130/145cm class with his horse Carport. First leg winner 1. Guilder’s Empire of the Sun; Mohamed Sultan al-Suwaidi fi nished Salmeen Sultan al-Suwaidi; 0; 52.98; second with his mount Happy Feet. QR3,750 Salmeen Sultan al-Suwaidi on Aslan 69 2. Best of Des Forets; Salman Mo- was third. hamed al-Emadi; 0; 54.61; QR3,000 In the Open Class (Table A, One round against the clock, Art. 238.2.1 | 3. Arselina; Mohammed Khalifa al- 110/115cm), Salmeen Sultan al-Suwia- Baker; 0; 55.85; QR2,250 di, riding Guilder’s Empire of the Sun, Dressage Level 1 (Elementary) | emerged on top in 52.98secs. Salman Prize-Money QR10,000 Mohamed al-Emadi, astride Des Forets 1. Horse: Lusso Del Castegno; Rider: came second in 54.61secs, while Mo- Jessica Waldon; Score: 68.448; Prize: hamed Khalifa al-Baker and his horse QR2,500 Arselina 69, who had won the class in the opening round, had to settle for 2. Lauries; Jassim Mohamed al-Ku- third place clocking 55.85secs. wari; 64.828; QR2,000 The dressage Level 1 and Level 2 com- Jessica Waldon (centre) won the Dressage Level 1 competition, while Jassim Mo- 3. Silvan; Maryam Ahmad al-Boinin; petitions saw the seasoned Jessica Wal- hamed al-Kuwari (left) finished second ahead of Maryam Ahmad al-Boinin. 64.310; QR1,500 don (on Lusso Del Castegno), and Iris Nijboer on Amber top the scores and The riding disciplines include show- The competition is open to Qataris and Dressage Level 2 (Prelim) | Prize- fi nish fi rst in their respective events. jumping and dressage, and comprise residents of Qatar, and a total of QR1.5 Money QR5,000 The annual equestrian series, which fi ve competition categories. Staying million is awarded in prize money. 1. Amber; Iris Nijboer; 72.727; QR1,250 is in it’s third year, is organised and true to Qatar’s vision to promote sports 2. Numero Uno-T; Ghanim Nasser hosted jointly by Qatar Equestrian among its youth, the categories tar- RESULTS Federation (QEF) and Al Shaqab, mem- get various age groups starting – with al-Qadi; 68.182; QR1,000 Big Tour | Table A, Special two Faleh Suwead al-Ajami astride Carport clears a hurdle in the Big Tour class during ber of Qatar Foundation. The series is the Future Riders category for children phases, Art. 274.2.5 | 130/145cm | 3. Haiti-Loma; Jassim Mohamed al- the second round of the Longines Hathab Equestrian Tour at Al Shaqab’s indoor spread across seven months, from Oc- aged 6 and above, up to the Senior (big Kuwari; 67.727; QR750 arena yesterday. tober to April. tour) group, for individuals 21 and older. Prize-Money QR35,000