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Monday, May 1, 2017 FORMULA ONE Sha’baan 5, 1438 AH Bottas claims fi rst GULF TIMES win for Mercedes ahead of Vettel SPORT Page 6 ATHLETICS Mansour exhorts young Qataris to conquer world It was Mansour who put Qatar on the world sports map in the 1980s and early 90s during which he scorched the track with his trailblazing runs and came to be known as the ‘Sprint King of Asia’

Talal Mansour (second from left) with Qatar Athletics Federation off icials and young Qatari athletes at a press conference yesterday.

By Anil John meets. “They feared me, the Japanese, Public to participate in Doha Diamond Doha the Chinese. I would like the young Qatari athletes to do the same to their League press conference rivals as they progress in their careers,” hree decades before high- Mansour said. By Sports Reporter jumper Mutaz Barshim, rally He singled out hammer thrower Doha driver-cum-shooter Nasser Ashraf Elseify, middle distance spe- Saleh al-Attiyah and a few oth- cialist Abdulrahman Samba and fe- ersT captured the imagination of the male sprinter Mariam Farid for special he Qatar Olympic Commit- sporting world with their sensational praise. tee and the Qatar Athletics performances at the Olympics and “I have been watching Mariam dur- Federation have announced other prestigious events, Qatar’s iden- ing her training sessions at the Aspire T that the Doha Diamond tity on the global stage was almost ex- Academy and I would like to see her im- League 2017 press conference will be clusively defi ned by the exploits of just prove a lot with her participation at the open to the public for the first time one person — Talal Mansour. Doha Diamond League. She has great ever. To be held at City Center Mall The now 52-year-old Mansour may talent. Abdulrahman has been also do- from 11:30am to 12:30pm on May 4, not ring a bell among the current gen- ing well and should touch new highs,” the conference will discuss the ath- eration of sports fans, but it was he who said the Qatari legend. letes’ hopes for the upcoming season, put Qatar on the world sports map in The 19-year-old Mariam was en- which kicks off on May 5t at Qatar only IAAF Diamond League meeting the 1980s and early 90s during which thused by the praise and promised to Sports Club. Tickets are on sale now in the Middle East and is one of he scorched the track with his trailblaz- do her best. “It’s a matter of great pride at www.q-tickets.com to be part of the the most exciting sporting events ing runs and came to be known as the and honour for me to be applauded by action-packed evening of world-class hosted annually in Qatar. The best ‘Sprint King of Asia’. a legendary athlete like Talal Mansour. athletics. athletes from around the world will Mansour made the world sit up and His words will surely inspire me,” she The new and innovative format to the be competing, including Olympic take notice when he broke Japan’s and added. press conference will be hosted by and World Champions, together with China’s stranglehold in the sprints Thirteen Qatari athletes will com- World and Olympic triple jump Cham- Qatar’s own world-class athletes such by winning the gold at the 1986 Asian pete in the Doha Diamond League meet pion, Team USA’s Christian Taylor, as Mutaz Barshim, Ashraf Elseify and Games in Seoul. He repeated the feat at which 16 reigning Olympic and world and reigning Olympic Champion in Ahmed Bedeir. We aim to organise four years later at the Beijing Asian champions have been confi rmed. the shot put, Michelle Carter, who will the event to the highest possible Games and in 1994 claimed the 100 and The competition will be also an op- discuss the exciting start to the Dia- standards and provide the very best 200m sprint double at the 1994 event portunity for Qatar’s two-time Olym- mond League with fellow World and conditions for athletes and spectators in Hiroshima. pic medallist Mutaz Barshim, who is Olympic Champions, including Qatar’s alike. ” It’s safe to say that had this happened gunning for Cuban Sotomayer’s world sporting legend, Mutaz Barshim. The in this era of all-pervasive television record of 2.45m. Barshim’s best is press conference will be open to the The press conference will and information overload, Mansour 2.43m, set in 2014. public for the first time ever, with be open to the public for the would have been the stuff of celluloid Femi Ogunode, who set a world lead- the aim of encouraging and inspir- fi rst time ever, with the aim dreams. In fact, his background and ing time of 9.82 seconds at the Emir ing Qatar’s residents to engage in of encouraging and inspiring his rise to global fame could well form Cup athletics meet will be another athletics through the Doha Diamond Qatar’s residents to engage in an attractive topic for a blockbuster bi- athlete to watch out for. Others in- League. The public will be able to find athletics opic, or even a full length feature fi lm. clude his younger brother Tosin Ogu- out more about what this year’s Doha Imagine this: a large family of no- Femi Ogunode, Qatar’s current 100m star node (100m), Mohamed Nasir Abbas Diamond League has to off er and Commenting during a question and mads wander into Qatar from the Rub (400m), as well as Qatar’s Youth Ol- there will be opportunities following answer session at Sunday’s media Al Khali Desert (Empty Quarter), the Mansour now plays an active role introduce some of the Qatari athletes ympic silver medallist Hamza Driouch the press conference for photos and briefing, Bedeir said: largest contiguous sand desert in the with the Qatar Athletics Federation participating in the Doha Diamond (1,500m). autographs. “The level of the Doha Diamond world with an area spanning 650,000 (QAF) in spotting talented young ath- League meeting on May 5, Mansour Samba will compete against some Dr Thani al-Kuwari (pictured), League is very high as it is attended square kilometres which include parts letes and nurturing them. He means spoke highly of them, saying they have of the best athletes in the world in the President of the Qatar Athletics Fed- by the world’s greatest athletics stars, of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman and business when he speaks and when he the potential to make their mark on the 400m hurdles event. Earlier in March, eration and Secretary General of the so the competition will be very tough. Yemen. They set up base in Doha, and says certain athletes would go far, it world scene if they kept their focus. the 22-year-old cruised to victory in Qatar Olympic Committee said during I have been training hard and cannot from such beginnings rises a boy who would be foolhardy to dismiss him off - He spoke of the days when his rivals the Sasol-NWU International meeting a media briefing on Sunday: wait to compete and I hope to honour would go on to become a role model for hand. would panic when they saw him lin- in South Africa with a time 48.31 sec- “The Doha Diamond League is the Qatar and make everyone proud.” the country. Yesterday at a press conference to ing up alongside them at international onds. Gulf Times 2 Monday, May 1, 2017 FOOTBALL

SPOTLIGHT BLOCKED Sigurdsson dents Alli and Kane earn United’s CL dreams Spurs stirring win Dele Alli and Harry Kane kept Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League title hunt as their side torpedoed Arsenal 2-0 in White Hart Lane’s last north London derby

Swansea City’s Gylfi Sigurdsson (C) celebrates after scoring.

AFP “We have a squad of 22 that London is reduced to 13 or 14 players. The players are very tired. I am more than happy with sublime free-kick by the players, they gave Icelandic international everything they could. I Gylfi Sigurdsson gained have zero criticism” Premier League strug- glersA Swansea a deserved point in a “We lost players and we lost 1-1 draw with Manchester United points, so yes today was a bad yesterday, dealing a blow to the day,” Mourinho told the BBC. latter’s Champions League hopes. “We did not look tired and Sigurdsson’s 10th goal of the exhausted, we are tired and ex- season but fi rst in 11 matches can- hausted. You cannot isolate the celled out veteran Wayne Rooney’s performance out of the context. contentious penalty in time added This is the ninth match of April, on in the fi rst-half when Mar- it is not human. cus Rashford made the most out “We have a squad of 22 that is of minimal contact with ‘Swans’ reduced to 13 or 14 players. The goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski. players are very tired. The point saw United move “I am more than happy with level on points with city rivals the players, they gave everything Manchester City but remained they could. I have zero criticism. fi fth, a place outside the auto- “I don’t know about the inju- matic spots for the Champions ries. I think Luke Shaw’s must be League, because of a poorer goal a big injury, because to leave the diff erence. pitch after 10 minutes I am ex- It will be of little consolation pecting a very big injury. to manager Jose Mourinho that “At the moment, we cannot it extended their unbeaten run walk from the bed to the loo and to 25 and have not been defeated break a leg.” at Old Traff ord since September His Swansea counterpart Paul 10th last year. Clement said Rashford had ‘de- Spurs, though, will be aiming ceived the referee’ but added to keep the pressure on table- the point enforced their belief toppers Chelsea, who have a they could retain their elite sta- tricky match at Everton, who are tus — they are two points adrift Tottenham’s Harry Kane (left) celebrates scoring their second goal with Dele Alli during their English Premier League match against Arsenal yesterday. on a streak of eight successive of fourth from bottom Hull with home wins. three matches remaining. AFP sive league matches at home within the Results and Kane and Son hitting the side-net- Mourinho saw two more de- “That is arguably a clean sheet London same season for the fi rst time. ting from the corner that followed Wan- fenders depart injured in the im- today and we go into the next Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger’s Manchester United 1 (Rooney 45+3- yama’s eff ort. pressive Eric Bailly on the hour game against Everton fully be- 50th north London derby ended in a fi fth pen) Swansea 1 (Sigurdsson 79) Olivier Giroud provided a moment mark and Luke Shaw, whom the lieving that we can stay in this ele Alli and Harry Kane kept defeat in six away games, leaving his side Everton 0 Chelsea 3 (Pedro 66, Cahill of alarm by volleying over at an Arsenal Portuguese has harangued all league for next season,” said Tottenham Hotspur in the Pre- six points off the Champions League 79, Willian 86) corner, but in the 55th minute Spurs’ season, in just the eighth minute. Clement. mier League title hunt as their slots in sixth place. Middlesbrough 2 (Negredo 38, Cham- pressure told. side torpedoed Arsenal 2-0 in Arsenal retain a game in hand, how- bers 77) Manchester City 2 (Aguero After jinking into the six-yard box, WhiteD Hart Lane’s last north London ever, and their disappointment was miti- Eriksen was thwarted by Cech, but Alli 69-pen, Jesus 85) IN SUPPORT derby yesterday. gated by the fact top-four rivals Man- Tottenham 2 (Alli 55, Kane 58-pen) followed up to slide in the rebound, with Leaders Chelsea extended their advan- chester City and Manchester United both Arsenal 0 Oxlade-Chamberlain completely miscu- tage to seven points by winning 3-0 at dropped points earlier in the day. ing an attempted goal-line clearance. Everton earlier in the day, but Mauricio Laurent Koscielny shook off a knee in- The Lane was rocking and three min- Klopp urges Reds to Pochettino’s Spurs cut the gap back to jury to take his place in an Arsenal back Cech acrobatics utes later the home fans had a second goal four points with a thrilling display. three that swiftly found itself under ex- Three minutes later another chance to cherish. The two goals arrived within 146 sec- amination. went begging. Kane drew a clumsy swipe from Gabri- take pride in battle onds of each other in the second half, Alli It took the hosts less than a minute to After nutmegging Oxlade-Chamber- el and then wrong-footed Cech with an polishing off a rebound and Kane netting register a shot on target, Kane working lain, Son Heung-Min dispatched a shot emphatic, drilled penalty into the bot- a penalty to take their respective goal tal- Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech at his near that fell kindly for Eriksen, but from sev- tom-left corner. lies to 17 and 21 for the campaign. post after Alli hooked the ball on. en yards out and with the net gaping, his Arsenal looked to respond, Giroud and Spurs will fi nish above Arsenal for the Toby Alderweireld headed wide from left-volley clipped the crossbar. Sanchez shooting tamely at Lloris, before fi rst time since 1995, ending 22 years an Christian Eriksen corner and Ben Dav- The half ended with Cech scram- Danny Welbeck and Hector Bellerin were of “St Totteringham’s Day” — the day ies saw a cross defl ected into the side- bling to turn a low Jan Vertonghen ef- pitched into the fray from the bench. marked by Arsenal fans when their team netting by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain fort behind, but prior to that Arsenal had But Spurs continued to look the more can no longer be overtaken by their local before Alli spurned a gilt-edged chance. threatened to land a sucker-punch. likely scorers and it was only because of rivals. Kane’s shot from the right fl icked up Aaron Ramsey obliged Spurs goal- Cech’s acrobatics that they failed to run Spurs will play at Wembley next sea- off Koscielny and looped towards the keeper Hugo Lloris to palm a curling at- away with the game. son before moving into their new stadi- back post, but with the goal at his mer- tempt wide, while Kieran Gibbs slashed The former Chelsea goalkeeper pro- um — which is being built on the site of cy — and under pressure from Oxlade- over and Alexis Sanchez billowed an ef- duced fl ying saves to deny Vertonghen their current home — in August 2018. Chamberlain — Alli nodded wide from fort off -target. and Alderweireld and raced out smartly They have now won nine league games point-blank range. The pattern continued in the second to thwart Kane, who also headed into the in succession and prevailed in 13 succes- half, Cech saving from Victor Wanyama side-netting.

Liverpool’s German manager Jurgen Klopp. BOTTOMLINE AFP ally interesting, to be honest.” London Liverpool saw a seven-game unbeaten run ended by an unex- pected 2-1 home defeat by Crys- iverpool manager Jurgen tal Palace last weekend. Klopp has encouraged his Klopp hopes to be able to call Pedro takes Chelsea closer to title team to relish the battle upon England pair Adam Lallana AFP and rebounded to Romelu Lu- for Champions League and Daniel Sturridge, both of kaku, whose close-range strike Lqualifi cation as they look to whom resumed training with the Liverpool was goalbound until Cahill came preserve their top-four place at fi rst team on Friday. to the rescue with a block. Watford today. edro’s sublime strike In need of inspiration to break Liverpool topped the Premier ‘ANGRY’ WATFORD NEEDED fi red Chelsea a step down obdurate Everton, Conte’s League table in November and Watford sit 10th in the table and closer to the Premier men went close early in the sec- looked poised to mount a title have reached the 40-point mark League title as the ruth- ond half when a clever short cor- tilt, but a top-four fi nish is now that is traditionally synonymous Pless leaders swept to a 3-0 win at ner routine set up Victor Moses the only thing they can now hope with survival. Everton yesterday. for a shot that was defl ected wide. to salvage from their season. But head coach Walter Maz- Antonio Conte’s side had to But Chelsea kept probing and While they could be out of the zarri says his side should be mo- work hard to break down Ever- their persistence was rewarded top four by kick-off at Vicarage tivated by a desire to avenge their ton’s stubborn resistance, but with Pedro’s thunderbolt in the Road on Monday, Klopp wants one-sided 6-1 defeat at Anfi eld Pedro’s majestic second-half 66th minute. his players to remain mindful of in November, in which Liverpool goal put Chelsea on course for A sustained period of Chel- how privileged their position is. went 5-0 up inside an hour. a fourth win in their last fi ve sea pressure pushed Everton “When we were fi rst or second “Liverpool will be angry after league games. deep into their own penalty area in the table and all that stuff , I losing at home (to Palace), but Late goals from Gary Cahill and and when the ball was worked said the only thing we can do is I hope my players will be more Willian wrapped up the victory. to Pedro in a central position to be in the battle for the inter- angry as we lost at Hull and con- Chelsea’s steely display ensured the Spanish winger uncorked a esting positions at the end of the ceded six goals at Anfi eld,” said the destiny of the title remains fi erce 20-yard strike that fl ashed season,” he said. the Italian. in their hands with four matches Chelsea’s Pedro scores his team’s first goal against Everton during their EPL game yesterday. into the roof of the net for his “The end of the season is now, “I want them to fi ght for every left against Middlesbrough, West fi rst goal since February. of course. It is the last month of ball and be really concentrated.” Bromwich Albion, Watford and “We scored an amazing goal Chelsea have been revitalised by Restoring Pedro to the start- With 11 minutes left, Hazard’s the season and we are in the bat- Watford centre-back Craig relegated Sunderland. with Pedro. This gives us lots of their FA Cup semi-fi nal win over ing line-up in place of Cesc Fa- low free-kick was pushed out by tle. So what else do we want? Cathcart is doubtful due to a Chelsea need nine points to be confi dence. Now it is important Tottenham. bregas, Conte put the emphasis Stekelenburg and Cahill tapped “Yes, it would be nice if we had knee injury, while Valon Behrami assured of being crowned Eng- to prepare for the fi nal rush. We They beat Southampton in on attack, but the leaders were in to trigger chants of “Tot- 10 points more and fi ght with is being monitored following lish champions in Conte’s fi rst must look step by step.” midweek to re-establish con- nearly caught cold at the back in tenham, we’re waiting for you” Chelsea for the title, but that’s not a spell on the sidelines with a season in charge. After defeats against Man- trol of the title race and ending the opening minutes. from Chelsea’s jubilant fans. for us obviously in this moment. hamstring problem. “We had a lot of patience for chester United and Crystal Pal- Everton’s eight-match winning Dominic Calvert-Lewin wrig- There was still time for Wil- “So we have to fi ght for what we Younes Kaboul, Roberto the right moment to hit. We de- ace raised questions about their streak at home was another sig- gled free for a shot from a tight lian to come off the bench and can fi ght for and that’s a Champi- Pereyra and Mauro Zarate are served the win,” Conte said. ability to get over the fi nish line, nifi cant step towards the title. angle that defl ected onto a post score in the 86th minute. ons League place. That’s really, re- long-term absentees. Gulf Times Monday, May 1, 2017 3 FOOTBALL

SERIE A BUNDESLIGA Augsburg rout Hamburg to climb Balde brace ruins out of danger zone

AFP pions for the fi fth straight season Berlin after their 6-0 thrashing of 10- man Wolfsburg on Saturday. Robert Lewandowski netted ugsburg climbed out of twice to leave the Poland hot- Totti’s fi nal derby the Bundesliga’s rel- shot as the league’s top scorer on egation zone with a 4-0 28, one more than Dortmund’s hammering of Ham- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. We made some wrong decisions. We should have had more ball possession, but we burgA yesterday as Turkey inter- After second-placed RB Leipzig national Halil Altintop netted had earlier been held to a goal- struggled to respond when they went on the counter: Roma coach Luciano Spalletti twice. less draw by Ingolstadt, Bayern Hamburg took Augsburg’s wrapped up the title as the win place in 16th after the away de- over Wolfsburg left them ten feat as the hosts climb to 13th points clear with three games left. giving themselves a two-point David Alaba, Thomas Mueller, buff er from the drop zone with Joshua Kimmich and Arjen Rob- three games left. ben also netted in Wolfsburg’s Altintop, 34, struck twice to thrashing at the Volkswagen leave Augsburg 2-0 up at the Arena. break before winger Philipp Max Wolfsburg, the 2009 German netted their third with a quarter league champions, are level with of an hour to play. Hamburg on 33 points, but they Max, 23, then set up replace- are only above relegation places ment striker Raul Bobadilla, who on goal diff erence. was on for Altintop, to bang in their fourth goal on 85 minutes, RESULTS just fi ve minutes after coming off Augsburg 4 (Altintop 28, 42, Max the bench. 76, Bobadilla 85) Hamburg 0 On Saturday, Bayern Munich Hoff enheim 1 (Huebner 90) Ein- were crowned Bundesliga cham- tracht Frankfurt 0

‘Enough’ as Muntari Kuwaiti offi cial quits walks off in Cagliari FIFA council to fi ght racism storm bribery claim

Ghana’s Sulley Muntari dramati- World sport powerbroker cally walked off the pitch while Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad playing for Pescara at Cagliari al-Sabah announced his yesterday after his complaints resignation yesterday from of alleged racist abuse were the FIFA council, saying he met with a yellow card. did not want to be a distrac- The former AC Milan and Inter tion while fighting corruption midfielder also angrily con- allegations. fronted Cagliari fans, shouting Aside from serving on FIFA’s at them: “This is my colour.” top body, the Kuwaiti heads Muntari could now face discipli- the influential Association of nary measures after deciding, National Olympic Committees, voluntarily, to leave the field the Olympic Council of Asia seconds before full-time — a de- and other senior sport admin- cision that earned him a second istration posts, including with yellow card, and then a red, in the Asian Football Confedera- the 96th minute of the game tion (AFC). that his team lost 1-0. Sheikh Ahmad has been Earlier, he had spoken directly named as a co-conspirator Lazio’s forward from Senegal Balde Diao Keita celebrates after scoring during the Italian Serie A match between AS Roma vs Lazio at the Olympic Stadium in Rome. with a section of the Cagliari of disgraced Guam football supporters targeting him with chief Richard Lai, who pleaded AFP Lazio midfi elder Lucas Biglia said they Results racist abuse. guilty in New York this week Milan had been determined to cause an upset. And when he protested to to receiving nearly $1 million “We deserved the win, but the coach Roma 1 (De Rossi 45-pen) Lazio 3 match referee Daniele Minelli in bribes from football off icials has been trying to drill into us since (Keita 12, 85, Basta 50) and other off icials in the 89th wanting his help to influence eita Balde struck twice as Lazio Monday that we could beat Roma,” said Bologna 4 (Destro 2, 59, Taider 45+2, minute that he was still being FIFA. ruined Francesco Totti’s fi nal Biglia, who swapped shirts with Totti at Danilo 68-og) Udinese 0 targeted, Muntari was booked. The Kuwaiti denied all wrong- derby as a player yesterday with the fi nal whistle. Caglari 1 (Pedro 23-pen) Pescara 0 While leaving the pitch in frus- doing on Saturday before Ka thrilling 3-1 win over Roma “For me, he’s one of football’s icons so to Crotone 1 (Trotta 8) AC Milan 1 (Paletta tration and murmuring “Basta deciding to step back from his that could also jeopardise their push for go home with his shirt is great gift for me.” 50) ! (Enough)” minutes later, FIFA post yesterday. a top-two fi nish in Serie A. Roma enjoyed a bright start, Edin Dze- Empoli 1 (Pucciarelli 24-pen) Sassuolo Muntari went to address more “I do not want these allega- Roma hosted their city rivals looking ko notably fi ring over while under pres- 3 (Peluso 20, Matri 34, Duncan 57) supporters, showing them his tions to create divisions or to maintain their fading title challenge sure from six yards out. Genoa 1 (Pandev 43) Chievo 2 (Bastien Roma’s Francesco Totti. arm and shouting: “this is my distract attention from the to leaders Juventus after a 2-2 at Atalanta But the red and yellow half of the Sta- 60, Birsa 70) colour, this is my colour.” upcoming AFC and FIFA Con- Saturday took their lead to nine points dio Olimpico was stunned into silence Palermo 2 (Diamanti 32, Aleesami 90) ma’s defence stood back moments later His protest was later backed gresses,” he said in an emailed with four games remaining. before the quarter-hour when Balde col- Fiorentina 0 at the other end to allow Dusan Basta a by Pescara coach Zdenek Ze- statement. But Juve’s slip-up wasn’t enough to lected a perfect through ball from deep in free shot on goal, and paid the price. man, although in comments to “Therefore, after careful con- entice Roma on what should have been midfi eld to sidestep two defenders and His eff ort defl ected off a Roma de- Sky Sport the Czech veteran sideration, I have decided it Totti’s derby farewell as his fi nal season fi re through the legs of Emerson Palmieri Dzeko had a previous claims for a pen- fender before creeping past Szczesny and said Muntari should not have is in the best interests of FIFA in Italy’s top fl ight draws to a close. to wrong-foot Wojciech Szczesny in the alty waved away but Roma’s luck changed inside the near post. quit the game. and the AFC for me to with- Luciano Spalletti’s men physically Roma net. in dramatic fashion when Kevin Stroot- Totti, who has enjoyed only a handful “He asked the referee to draw my candidacy for the turned up at the Stadio Olimpico, but Lazio were denied a penalty when Jor- man came down following a swipe at his of cameo appearances this season, re- intervene, but he (said he had) FIFA Council and resign from mentally looked elsewhere as they strug- dan Lukaku was brought down by Fazio feet by Lazio defender Wallace. placed De Rossi for the fi nal 17 minutes. neither heard nor seen any- my current football positions,” gled to impose their usual, fast-fl owing after he powered his his way into the area Television pictures suggested no con- On one of his fi rst touches, the thing,” Zeman said. “Muntari he added. game against a Lazio side battling for a from the left. tact had been made on the Dutchman, 40-year-old was dispossessed by Biglia, was right, but he shouldn’t “I will continue to support place in Europe. Over-run in midfi eld and struggling for but the decision stood and Daniele De who set up Felipe Anderson for a counter have left the pitch.” the family of football once Roma remain nine points behind Ju- solutions in the fi nal third, Spalletti turned Rossi stepped up to roll a cheeky low shot that saw Szczesny thwart the Brazilian Muntari was at AC Milan when these allegations have been ventus. Spalletti said Roma “lacked lu- to the Roma fans, gesturing for their vocal inside Thomas Strakosha’s near post to with his trailing leg. former teammate Kevin Prince disproved.” cidity” but said his men ultimately had to support as his side failed to fi re. level on the stroke of half-time. But Lazio weren’t to be denied. Boateng angrily walked off “keep quiet and accept the fl ak”. But on 36 minutes Lazio almost had But Lazio resumed in positive fashion, On another counter Senad Lulic was the pitch while being targeted Aizawl win I-League to “We made some wrong decisions. We their second, Marco Parolo forcing Szc- Balde breaking down the left to cut back allowed to run half the length of the pitch with racist abuse during a create history should have had more ball possession, zesny to parry down low after he ran on for Parolo, before he was dispossessed. before fi nding Balde with a precision pass friendly with lower league side but we struggled to respond when they to a looose ball following another Balde And although Dzeko fl ashed a drive off inside the area for the striker to slot past Pro Patria in January 2013. Aizawl FC yesterday earned a went on the counter.” incursion. the post from Salah’s smart delivery, Ro- Szczesny fi ve minutes from the end. It prompted a wave of support well-deserved 1-1 draw against on social media, although Shillong Lajong FC to create football’s ruling body FIFA, history by becoming the first BOTTOMLINE while applauding Boateng’s club from the north-east to principles, said it did not con- win the I-League title. done his decision to walk off . Lajong had taken the early lead when centre-forward Fit-again Kaka scores Asier Pierrick Dipanda for Orlando on slammed home a header in emotional return the ninth minute. Milan slip-up aids Inter Euro aim That complicated things for AFP cated to the Cup winners. up this season, so it’s only right Kaka made a triumphant the visitors as they needed at Milan In the June 2 Cup fi nal, Juven- we celebrate.” return from injury with a goal least a draw to win the title. tus, set for a Champions League Genoa and Empoli, however, in Orlando City’s 2-0 victory But Aizawl recovered from the spot, face Lazio — who look set face a nervous end to the season over the Colorado Rapids in setback to dominate the game C Milan suff ered a to fi nish fourth and book a spot after defeats to Chievo and Sas- the Major League Soccer on thereafter. second league setback in Europe’s second tier club suolo respectively left them just Saturday. Despite some stout defend- since their takeover by competition. above the drop zone with four The 35-year-old Brazilian, who ing by the hosts, William Aa Chinese consortium “We still believe we can reach games remaining. had been out since leaving Lalnunfela finally made sure to boost rivals Inter’s bid for one the Europa League,” added While rock-bottom Pescara’s the season opener with a that Aizawl won the title when of two Europa League spots in Montella. “We’ve still to face relegation last week was ham- hamstring injury, was inserted he found the equaliser in the Italy’s Serie A. Atalanta and sixth place still of- mered home on Sunday by a 1-0 in the 60th minute and he 67th minute. Milan travelled to relegation- fers a way in.” defeat away to Cagliari, fellow scored in the stoppage time. Going into yesterday’s game, haunted Crotone looking to Inter, enduring an equally strugglers Crotone and Palermo “I cannot put in words what Aizawl were leading the make up for a shock 2-1 San Siro tough season under new Chinese can dream of top-fl ight survival I’m feeling, the emotions 10-team I-League table with defeat to struggling Empoli last owners Suning, host Napoli in for another week. to be back to be playing, to 37 points from 17 matches, week. Sunday’s late game looking for A point from their draw with score and win another game three ahead of second-placed But for the second game in their fi rst win in six outings. Milan left Crotone third from at home,” the former Brazil Mohun Bagan and needed succession since the Rossoneri A home win at the San Siro bottom but now just four points midfielder told reporters. at least a draw to clinch their Sport Investment Lux bought would pull Stefano Pioli’s men behind Empoli. “When I came on the field and maiden title. the seven-time European cham- level on points with Milan (59). But Crotone coach Davide all of the supporters clapped They capped off their fairy pions from long-time owner Sil- Elsewhere, former Roma Nicola remains unconvinced, for me and were saying my tale run to the title by finishing vio Berlusconi, Vincenzo Mon- Juraj Kucka sent off six minutes table. We’re going home with a striker Mattia Destro struck in saying: “We’re neither closer, name, it was unbelievable. with a tally of 37 points from tella’s side disappointed. into second-half stoppage time point, and somewhat angry.” either half to complete a brace as nor further away (from safety.” “Today, I showed that I’m their full quota of 18 matches. Marcello Trotta fi red Crotone for a second bookable off ence, Milan remain sixth, fi ve Bologna secured their top fl ight Palermo saw goals from Ales- ready to join the team again Mohun Bagan, who have into an eighth-minute lead at were forced to settle for a point. points adrift of Atalanta in the survival with a comprehensive sandro Diamanti and Haitam and be part of this amaz- breathed down Aizawl’s neck their Ezio Scida stadium and it “We should be disappointed fi nal Europa League spot, but 4-0 win over Udinese. Aleesami, at the death, secure ing group,” added Kaka, the throughout the season and took until the 50th minute for and angry for the result,” Milan for Montella — given backing It gave Roberto Donadoni’s a 2-0 home win over 10-man league’s highest paid player. had even topped the table for Milan to level, veteran defender coach Montella told Mediaset by the club’s new owners last men a 13-point lead over third- Fiorentina — only their fourth Orlando (6-1-0) also got its some time, finished second Gabriel Paletta bundling home a Premium. week — a Europa League spot from-bottom Crotone with of the season. It left the Sicil- first goal of the campaign with 36 points. messy goal from close range. “We’ve found out to our cost remains reachable, especially as four games remaining and Bo- ians second from bottom and 10 from Carlos Rivas who helped Lajong finished fifth with 26 Milan pushed for a late winner that we can also drop points to the sixth-placed league fi nisher logna forward Simone Verdi points behind Empoli with four the team stay perfect at home. points. but the Serie A giants, who saw teams much lower down in the could be handed the spot allo- said: “We’ve deserved to stay games remaining. Gulf Times 4 Monday, May 1, 2017 SPORT

SPOTLIGHT FOCUS Federer says he plans to play at French Open Wild card Siegemund wins Stuttgart title AFP Channel he plans to play at Roland US and Australian Open crowns and off season was going to really pay off . Los Angeles Garros for the fi rst time since 2015. seven Wimbledon titles. “I was going to get a second AFP “I am registered and my intention “I feel very privileged to be back chance to really play tennis again on Stuttgart, Germany is to play Roland Garros,” the 18- on a tennis court,” Federer told the the professional tour and so when I oger Federer, coming off time Grand Slam champion said in a network. did come back in Australia was really victories at the Austral- post-match interview. “Last year was extremely diffi cult, exciting.” ermany’s Laura Siegemu- ian Open and ATP events The 35-year-old Swiss star, ranked having had surgery and the knee Federer, whose fi rst three exhibi- nd was the shock winner of in Miami and Indian Wells, fourth in the world, made a quarter- never healing. Then I had back pain tions for African children’s charities Stuttgart’s WTA tournament saidR Saturday he plans to play in next fi nal exit in the 2015 French Open and too, and it all got too much at Wim- were played in Switzerland, raised yesterday after her three-set month’s French Open. missed last year’s event while dealing bledon and I was out for six months. almost $2 million and also played a Gwin over France’s Kristina Mladenovic After defeating John Isner 6-4, with knee and back injuries. “But I was able to spend some doubles exhibition alongside Micro- in the fi nal. 7-6 (7) in an exhibition at Seattle, His lone title on the red clay in incredible time with the family and soft founder Bill Gates, beating Is- Siegemund, ranked 49th in the world Washington, to benefi t his charity Paris came in 2009 and completed start preparing for this season and ner and Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike and a wild card entry for the main draw, foundation, Federer told the Tennis a career Grand Slam. He owns fi ve hoping that the work that I put in the McCready. sealed a 6-1, 2-6, 7-6 (5) win over Mladenovic, who had beaten Maria Sharapova in the semi-fi nal, ending the Russian’s comeback from a 15-month TENNIS doping ban. The 29-year-old converted her fi rst match point after nearly two and a half the German returned the compliment hours to claim only her second WTA breaking Mladenovic straight away, win after victory at Bastad, Sweden, then serving out to take the fi rst set in last July. 29 minutes. “It was an incredible match, I don’t Just as she did in her three-set win over know how I managed to win here,” said Sharapova, Mladenovic turned things Red-hot Rafa romps the new champion. around to take the second set, breaking Mladenovic praised her rival. Siegemund twice to force a third set. “Laura played some really entertain- The decider swung back and forth ing tennis,” said the 23-year-old. with both players breaking the other Siegemund made a strong start, twice to force the tie-breaker, but it charging into a 4-0 lead after twice was Siegemund who held her nerve to to Barcelona victory breaking Mladenovic’s serve in what claim victory. proved to be a topsy-turvy fi rst set. She drove away with the prize of The Frenchwoman, 19th in the world, a brand new Porsche sports car and ‘It is two consecutive weeks winning... it is a dream start on clay’ broke Siegemund in the fi fth game, but 107,036 euros ($116,621) of winnings.

Istanbul is GOLF Svitolina’s third title this season Blixt and Smith pull Ukraine’s world number 13 Elina Svitolina beat Belgium’s Elise Mertens 6-2, 6-4 yester- away at Zurich Classic day to clinch her third title of the season on Istanbul’s clay AFP Kisner and Brown opened with nine courts. Having previously Los Angeles pars before coming alive on the back won at Taipei and Dubai the nine with six birdies and a bogey. 22-year-old was top seed in Hoff man and Watney made the last Turkey and she lost just a onas Blixt and Cameron Smith of their four birdies at 18, bouncing single set, in the first round, produced a bogey-free four-un- back from their lone bogey at 15 to grab on her run to the title. The der par 68 on Saturday, stretch- a share of second. 21-year-old Belgian Mertens ing their lead to four strokes enteringJ the fi nal round of the Zurich POULTER RETAINS PGA TOUR CARD was in just her second final after her win in Hobart in Classic of New Orleans. Britain’s Ian Poulter has regained his January, and will climb to a Sweden’s Blixt and Australia’s Smith PGA Tour card for the rest of the sea- career-high 53 in the WTA have played 54 holes without a bogey son, a week after losing it. rankings. at TPC Louisiana, where the format of The European Ryder Cup hero thought two-man teams is a fi rst on the US PGA he had lost his full playing status after Tour in 36 years. failing to earn enough points in a desig- Top seed “It doesn’t matter how many bogeys nated number of tournaments this sea- Pouille takes you make if you’re in the lead,” said Blixt, son after returning from a foot injury that Budapest title a two-time winner on the US tour. “I’m curtailed his 2016 campaign. very happy about the way we played.” But the Tour recalculated his points Spain’s Rafael Nadal poses with the trophy after beating Austria’s Dominic Thiem in the Barcelona Open final yesterday. (AFP) France’s “Kudos to you,” Blixt said in turning tally based on a diff erent formula and Lucas to his partner — who is seeking a fi rst concluded he had done enough to keep AFP and emotional.” added Nadal. Pouille won PGA Tour title. “You played some really his card through the end of the season. Barcelona Nadal won in Barcelona between “It was hard. I was having a few more a second good golf coming in — there were some “It’s obviously a big bit of good news,” 2005-2009, 2011-13 and now in the last chances than him but it was very even career title really hard shots into the wind there.” Poulter told reporters at the Zurich Clas- two years. and that is why I celebrated with so yesterday Saturday’s alternate shot format sic of New Orleans on Saturday. afael Nadal hailed a “dream The 14-time Grand Slam champion much energy at the end.” when he didn’t produce the sizzling scores seen “For the Tour to unanimously decide start” to his clay court sea- also looks like the man to beat at Ro- The second set was a procession as beat Britain’s in better ball play on Friday — when that was the fair thing to do, puts me in son after romping to his 10th land Garros after winning on a Barce- Thiem’s frustration at his inability to Aljaz Bedene Blixt and Smith combined for a 62 to a very diff erent situation, being able to Barcelona Open yesterday af- lona court named after him and where break through Nadal’s defences saw 6-3, 6-1 in seize a one-stroke lead. play the Players (Championship) and all terR sweeping aside Austria’s Dominic he didn’t drop a set all week. him consistently fi re long. Through 54 holes, they are four in the remaining events I would like to play.” Budapest. Thiem 6-4, 6-1. Thiem had shocked world number Thiem held off three break points The world front of two all-US duos: Kevin Kisner Englishman Poulter, 41, is best The Spaniard also claimed his 10th one Andy Murray in Saturday’s semi- in his opening service game, but was number 14 and Scott Brown, who posted a 67, and known for his stellar Ryder Cup per- title at the Monte Carlo Masters last fi nals and showed some early resist- powerless to stop Nadal thereafter as he lived up to Charley Hoff man and Nick Watney, formances, playing on the winning Eu- week as he gears up for to go for his 10th ance. won the last fi ve games to seal victory in his top seed- who carded a 69. ropean team in four of fi ve appearances French Open title next month. The world number nine even had his just over 90 minutes on court. ing in the Hungarian capital as Former world number one Jordan Spi- in the event and racking up an impres- “It is two consecutive weeks win- only break point of the match in the However, Thiem wasn’t too disheart- he dispatched the Slovenian- eth and fellow Texan Ryan Palmer were a sive individual record of 12 wins, four ning, in Monte Carlo and here, two spe- fi rst game. ened after losing out to the king of clay born Briton, 68th in the world, further stroke back after a 70 for 202. losses and two halves. cial tournaments for me, it is a dream But Nadal, returning to top form at after what had been a productive week. in little over an hour. It was Blixt and Smith started strong with American Brian Gay uncovered the start on clay,” said Nadal. age 30, upped his intensity at the cru- “I really enjoyed the week in Barce- Pouille’s second title after a birdies at the second and third. They discrepancy in points allocation for “It means a lot for me to reach cial moment and took the set with the lona,” he said. “There are worse things maiden win in Metz, France in picked up two more strokes with bird- players coming back off medical ex- number 10 here in Barcelona, in front of only break in the 10th game. than to lose against the greatest player September last year. ies at 15 and 18 — where Blixt’s 123-yard emptions and also benefi ted by retain- the people of my club, I am very happy “The fi rst set was vitally important,” on clay ever.” third shot left Smith a tap-in. ing his own Tour card.

BOTTOMLINE Muzavazi wins QGL Golf Tournament Kapur wins inaugural Taiwan event

AFP Taipei

hiv Kapur claimed victory at the inaugural Yeangder Herit- age in Miaoli, Taiwan yester- day, beating overnight leader YikeunS Chang with an impressive eight-under-par 64. The 35-year-old veteran from India ended strong, shooting fi ve birdies in his closing seven holes and fi nished with a winning total of 16-under-par 272. The win ends a long drought for Kapur, whose last Asian Tour title was 12 years ago when he was still a rookie. It also marked a strong comeback for him after undergoing liver surgery last September. “I really struggled last year,” said Kapur. “Now I’ve come back after six months and to win the way I did is satisfying.” France’s Alexander Levy celebrates his China Open win in Beijing yesterday. (AFP) Kapur, who was the Asian Games individual champion in 2002, was the and Country Club yesterday. “That’s an amazing feeling to be oldest player in the fi nal three groups The 2014 winner, who was seven back in the winner’s circle,” Levy said. yesterday. shots behind Frittelli at the start of “It’s a goal and a dream for me to play Chang of Korea and Gavin Green the fi nal day, birdied the 18th hole to the Ryder Cup in France. I will do a lot of from Malaysia tied for second place. card a 67 and force a playoff with the work to play the Ryder Cup and I will do The 23-year-old Korean was eyeing South African at 17-under-par for the my best to be part of the team.” his fi rst Asian Tour victory and held tournament. Pablo Larrazabal, who started the the lead for the past two days before Earlier, Frittelli was in the driving day in second, endured a terrible start conceding to Kapur. seat after taking a four-shot lead to the with back-to-back bogeys and signed back nine but a double bogey on the 12th off with a 72 to finish third. LEVY EDGES FRITTELLI IN hole saw him lose momentum. Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger, last PLAYOFF FOR CHINA OPEN TITLE Following his fourth European Tour week’s winner at Shenzhen Interna- (From left) Manoj Megchiani, Qatar Golf Lovers Golf Tournament winner Henry Muzavazi, ‘Closest to Rope’ winner Julia Alexander Levy became the fi rst golf- title and his fi rst of the season, Levy tional, maintained his impressive run Deeley, tournament runner-up PK Mathew, ‘Longest Putt’ winner Paul Betterton, ‘Longest Drive’ winner Pratyush Jain er to win the China Open twice after said he is aiming for a home Ryder in China after carding a 67. He fi n- and ‘Closest to Pin’ winner Arnab Dutta pose after the strokeplay format tournament concluded. he defeated overnight leader Dylan Cup appearance at Le Golf National ished tied-fourth alongside England’s Frittelli in a playoff at the Topwin Golf in 2018. Chris Wood. Gulf Times Monday, May 1, 2017 5 SPORT

NHL NFL Rangers drop Game Jets receiver Smith to miss Two to Senators in 2017 season with knee injury double overtime Agencies of active duty for cadet athletes to play New York professional sports upon graduation, a departure from a 2016 policy change by Pageau first with four goals in playoff game since Red Wings’ Franzen in 2010 the Department of Defense. ew York Jets wide receiver That means Robinette could not Devin Smith suff ered his sec- start his playing career until the 2019 ond major knee injury in less season at the earliest. than two years and will miss According to USA TODAY, Robi- Nthe 2017 NFL season, the team said nette is hoping there is a way to lobby Saturday. the Pentagon to allow him to be grand- Smith, the Jets’ 2015 second-round fathered into the NFL under the 2016 draft pick, has a torn anterior cruciate policy because an offi cial order has not ligament in his right knee that was dis- been signed by Secretary of Defense covered on April 17 — just as the team Jim Mattis. began its off season programme. Robinette is on track to graduate Smith had torn the ligament during May 24 — taking six courses to fi nish his rookie season in 2015 after starting his degree in management at the Air his career with broken ribs suff ered in Force Academy — while he prepared training camp. this spring for the draft believing he He did not return from the fi rst knee would be able to join an NFL team im- injury until midway through last sea- mediately. son. He went undrafted after the ruling. Overall he has played just 14 games over the past two years. COWBOYS’ GREGORY TESTS “It’s bad luck and bad timing because POSITIVE, AGAIN the kid worked so hard to get back,” Jets Defensive end Randy Gregory of the coach Todd Bowles said. Dallas Cowboys, already on suspen- sion for violating the NFL’s substance- 49ERS ACQUIRE RUNNING abuse policy, tested positive for the BACK BIBBS seventh time, according to media re- The San Francisco 49ers acquired run- ports. ning back Kapri Bibbs from the Denver Gregory was tested on February 21 Broncos on Saturday for a 2018 draft and on March 2, and was reportedly in- pick. formed that he had tested positive for The 49ers received Bibbs and Den- marijuana. He has since been uncoop- ver’s 2017 fi fth-round (177th overall) erative with NFL offi cials trying to dis- draft choice for San Francisco’s fourth- cuss the situation. round draft choice next year. Gregory, 24, was suspended for the The 5-foot-11, 203-pound Bibbs fi rst four games of the 2016 season, Ottawa Senators center Jean-Gabriel Pageau (second from right) celebrates his third goal in the third period of game two in the second round of the 2017 Stanley Cup signed with the Broncos as an undraft- suspended for 10 more games last Sep- Playoff s against the New York Rangers in Ottawa, Canada, on Saturday. (USA TODAY Sports) ed free agent in May 2014. tember, and in January was suspended After spending the majority of his for at least a year following additional By Steve Zipay day, the Blueshirts scored twice short- of the second period, in which they Anderson was forced to make two rookie season on the Broncos’ prac- positive tests. Newsday (TNS) handed and another goal fi ve seconds outshot the Senators 19-10 and could big saves, fi rst on Miller in front, tice squad, Bibbs appeared in 13 games after a power play ended in the second have had more than three if not for prompting chants of “Andy, Andy” over the last two seasons, recording 29 LYNCH THANKS FORMER TEAM IN period. some remarkable saves by Anderson and then on Grabner from the left side. rushes for 129 yards with two recep- NEWSPAPER AD fter a stunning meltdown late Trailing 4-2 after two periods, the (43 saves). At 9:30, Jimmy Vesey was hooked tions for 75 yards and one touchdown. Running back Marshawn Lynch is in the third period on Satur- Senators got a big bounce off the end It was also the penalty-kill, by by Stone going to the net, and Derek The 49ers added the 24-year-old sending a thank you to his former team day, the Rangers are coming boards and Ottawa’s Mark Stone was snuffi ng out three opportunities by Stepan’s shot from the left post was Bibbs to a backfi eld headlined by Carlos before resuming his career with the back to New York down 2-0 in front for the carom at 1:28. But the Senators in the fi rst period that al- denied. On the ensuing power play, Hyde and newly signed veteran backup Oakland Raiders. inA the Eastern Conference semifi nals. Rangers rookie defenseman Brady lowed the Rangers to be tied 1-1 after the Rangers couldn’t solve Anderson, Tim Hightower. Lynch took out a full-page ad in Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored his Skjei scored his second of the game 20 minutes. who sprawled to stop Miller alone at Sunday’s Seattle Times to thank the fourth goal of the game at 2:54 of the and fourth goal of the playoff s at 5:10 With Marc Staal in the box for inter- the right post, with an arm and glove POLICY CHANGE MAY AFFECT AIR Seattle Seahawks’ fans and owner Paul second overtime as the Senators ral- to give the Rangers a 5-3 lead. ference at 3:28, Ottawa forward Mark save. FORCE PLAYER’S NFL DREAM Allen for their support during his ten- lied to stun the Rangers, 6-5, in Game With 8:31 left, Kyle Turris was Stone couldn’t handle a pass from the Shortly after it ended, Kreider Air Force wide receiver Jalen Robi- ure in the Pacifi c Northwest. 2 of the best-of-seven series. whistled for holding on a rush putting off ensive zone to the left point. Jesper fought off Viktor Stalberg in the left nette’s dream of playing in the NFL this The 31-year-old Lynch, who is com- Leading 5-3 late in the third, the a damper on the Senators hopes. But Fast scooped it up and broke down ice circle, spun and fi red toward the net season may be impacted by a change in ing out of retirement to play with his Rangers allowed two goals in the fi nal with 3:19 left, a low right point shot on a two-on-one with Michael Grab- and it got past Anderson at 10:39 for the academy’s policy requiring cadets hometown Raiders following a trade 3:19 — both by Pageau. His third goal was tipped past Henrik Lundqvist (28 ner, who buried a shot at 4:16 for the a 2-1 Rangers lead. It was his fi rst goal to serve two years of active duty. with the Seahawks, paid tribute to the with 1:02 left tied the score at 5 with saves) by Pageau. Pageau’s tying goal game’s fi rst goal. It was Grabner’s of the playoff s. Stepan then finished The Air Force Academy said in a Seattle organisation and its fans in the goalie Craig Anderson pulled for an 2:17 later also was on a tip-in, off a third of the playoff s. off Rick Nash’s pass on a two-on-one statement obtained by the Denver Post ad, which was tweeted by Seattle Times extra skater. long shot from Turris, on a six-on- Later in the fi rst, Dan Girardi’s way- rush for the Rangers’ second short- that it will no longer defer the two years publisher Frank Blethen on Saturday. Pageau, who scored 12 goals in 82 fi ve, and it completed the comeback ward cross-ice pass from the right side handed goal. With six minutes left, regular-season games this season, and gave him his second career playoff was scooped up in the neutral zone by Mike Hoff man dashed down the right is the fi rst player with four goals in a hat trick. Pageau, who drove in on Ryan McDon- side, around Skjei, and Mike Methot playoff game since the Red Wings’ Jo- The Rangers had won six of the last agh and beat Lundqvist with a shot scored on the rebound to cut the lead han Franzen did it in 2010 against the eight playoff games they have played over his left shoulder from outside of to 3-2. Sharks. when trailing in a series, dating back the right faceoff circle at 13:59. But Skjei’s fi rst goal, a long, soft Game 3 is tomorrow at Madison to Game 5 of the second round against Vigneaut juggled his lines in the shot that went through traffi c, made it Square Garden. Washington in 2015. second. Mats Zuccarello was with 4-2 at 15:51 of the second period. In a game that appeared would be Neither Lundqvist or Anderson Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, and Os- decided by special teams, which coach were in top form. car Lindberg was centering Pavel RESULTS Alain Vigneault thought had cost the There were four goals scored — Buchnevich and JT Miller. The move Senators 6 Rangers 5 Rangers in the 2-1 Game 1 loss Thurs- three by the Rangers — in a 5:12 span seemed to jumpstart the club. Penguins 6 Capitals 2

MLB Angels’ winning run comes to an end with loss to Rangers

By Jeff rey Fletcher The Pujols sac fl y came just after The Orange County Register (TNS) he’d contorted himself to avoid a high- and-tight pitch from Darvish. Pujols then jawed at the Rangers dugout. ile the Angels’ 6-3 loss to The Angels had a shot to get more the Texas Rangers on Satur- against Darvish in the sixth, when he day night under the heading: was clearly labouring. He walked the “Baseball is a game of inches.” fi rst two batters of the inning, but the Dallas Cowboys’ Randy Gregory (left) was suspended for the first four games of FThe four-run fi fth inning that Rangers kept him out there as he ap- the 2016 season, suspended for 10 more games last September, and in January fl ipped the game for the Rangers, and proached 110 pitches. He then stayed was suspended for at least a year following additional positive tests. (TNS) ended the Angels’ fi ve-game winning even after walking the bases loaded streak, involved three straight hits with one out. that were all inches from being caught A hit could have tied the game, and a or foul. fl y ball could have cut the lead in half, That sequence put the Rangers up but Simmons popped up and Ben Re- New Jersey Devils get top pick in draft 4-2, and then Carlos Gomez padded vere grounded out on Darvish’s 125th The New Jersey Devils will own the top selection in the NHL draft for the first the lead with a two-run homer, which and fi nal pitch. time since 1979 after winning the lottery in Toronto on Saturday. made him the sixth player ever to hit The Devils finished last in the Eastern Conference in the 2016-17 season but for the cycle against the Angels. The RESULTS will now have the first pick in June 23-24 draft at the United Center in Chicago. last was Felix Pie in 2009. LA Dodgers 6 Philadelphia 5 They are expected to choose between two highly touted centers, Nolan It was Gomez’s triple that came San Diego 12 San Francisco 4 Patrick of the Western Hockey League and Nico Hischier of the Quebec Junior during the game’s critical fi fth inning. Colorado 7 Arizona 6 Hockey League. Jesse Chavez took the mound in the Texas Rangers center fielder Carlos Gomez (left) watches his home run to Texas 6 LA Angels 3 “This is a great day for our franchise, and to pick first overall, to have that fi fth with a 2-0 lead, having worked complete the cycle leave the ball park against the Los Angeles Angels in the Atlanta 11 Milwaukee 3 for our Devils fans and our organisation, is great news,” New Jersey general around a couple jams in the fi rst four seventh inning in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday. (USA TODAY Sports) Oakland 2 Houston 1 manager Ray Shero told NBC Sports. innings. Pittsburgh 4 Miami 0 The 14 NHL teams that did not qualify for the Stanley Cup playoff s, along with With two outs and a runner at sec- couldn’t hang on. Gomez ended up righty Yu Darvish, but they could only Cleveland 4 Seattle 3 the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, participated in the lottery. ond in the fi fth, Nomar Mazara lined with a game-tying triple. parlay them into two runs. Chicago Cubs 7 Boston 4 The Philadelphia Flyers, who finished 11th in the Eastern Conference, got the a single just past the dive of short- Roughned Odor then whacked a drive After being held hitless in the fi rst Chicago W Sox 6 Detroit 4 second overall pick. stop Andrelton Simmons, driving in off the right-fi eld pole, for a two-run three innings, the Angels scored two (10 innings) The Dallas Stars got the third followed by the Colorado Avalanche, Vancouver one. Gomez then hit a drive to right homer to put the Rangers on top. runs on a Kole Calhoun single, a Trout Toronto 4 Tampa Bay 1 Canucks, Vegas Golden Knights, Arizona Coyotes, Buff alo Sabres, Detroit Red center. Mike Trout chased it down and Off ensively, the Angels had a cou- double (and an error) and an Albert NY Yankees 12 Baltimore 4 Wings and Florida Panthers. got a glove on it with a stretch, but he ple promising rallies against Rangers’ Pujols sacrifi ce fl y. NY Mets 5 Washington 3 Gulf Times 6 Monday, May 1, 2017 SPORT

FORMULA 1 FUTURE PLANS Honda to supply engines to Sauber Bottas claims fi rst Reuters in Honda’s F1 activities,” added Sochi the executive in a statement. “In order to leverage the ben- efi ts of supplying to two teams onda will supply the to the maximum extent, we will Swiss-based Sauber strengthen the systems and ca- Formula One team with pabilities of both of our two de- engines from 2018 as velopment operations, namely win for Mercedes wellH as McLaren in a move that the HRD Sakura and the operation in Japanese manufacturer hopes will Milton Keynes.” help speed up the development of Under Formula One rules de- its troubled power unit. signed to ensure no team is left The deal was announced by without an engine supply, manu- both sides yesterday at the Rus- facturers are obliged to supply a sian Grand Prix. team if they have spare capacity No details about the cost or and are asked to. ahead of Vettel duration were given, although it Champions Mercedes currently is likely to be until 2020 at least. supply three of the 10 teams, as do Honda currently has an ex- Renault and Ferrari, while Honda ‘I thought I could do it, but I wasn’t sure what Felipe Massa would do and I ended up clusive agreement with former have only one partner. world champions McLaren but The Japanese manufacturer is losing out. It doesn’t matter though. Big congratulations to Valtteri. This is his day’ that relationship, which started still hoping to make big strides in in 2015, has been strained due to the latter part of the season, with AFP a lack of engine performance and Mercedes and Ferrari enjoying Sochi, Russia reliability. a big power advantage over the Sauber, a long-standing mid- others. table team who are languishing Sauber principal Monisha altteri Bottas claimed his maid- near the back of the fi eld after Kaltenborn said the deal was part en Formula One victory yester- fi ghting back from a period of fi - of the team’s realignment and day when he resisted intense nancial diffi culties, are using last recovery as it celebrates its 25th Vpressure from championship season’s Ferrari engines at present. anniversary in Formula One. leader Sebastian Vettel to triumph for Neither they, nor McLaren, “We have set another mile- Mercedes in a tense Russian Grand Prix. have scored a point so far in three stone with this new engine era, The Finnish driver, starting from third races this year. which we await with huge excite- place on the grid, grabbed the initiative “In addition to the partnership ment and of course we are look- at the start by powering past both Fer- with McLaren which began in ing for new opportunities,” she raris and into the lead while his Mercedes 2015, Honda will begin supplying said in a statement. team-mate Lewis Hamilton struggled power units to Sauber as a cus- “We very much look forward home fourth. tomer team starting from next to our partnership with Honda, Four-time champion Vettel fi nished year,” said Katsuhide Moriyama, which sets the course for a suc- second ahead of Ferrari teammate Kimi Honda’s head of brand and com- cessful future — from a strategic Raikkonen who claimed his fi rst podium munication operations. as well as from a technological fi nish since last year’s Austrian Grand Prix. “This will be a new challenge perspective.” The popular Bottas’s fi rst win was warmly received by his fellow drivers and the paddock, Hamilton hugging him after DISASTER he had jumped into the arms of his crew and Vettel joining the reception, Russian President Vladimir Putin also present for congratulations and prize giving. More misery for “Worth the wait!” said the unfl appable Bottas in typical understated style after coming home just six-tenths of a second Alonso in Russia ahead of Vettel at the fl ag. Dutch teenager Max Verstappen fi n- ouble world champion ished fi fth for Red Bull ahead of Mexi- Fernando Alonso can Sergio Perez and his Force India failed to start yester- team-mate Esteban Ocon, German Nico day’s Russian Grand Hulkenberg of Renault and Brazilian DPrix due to an engine problem, Felipe Massa of Williams. the second race in a row that his The result lifted Vettel clear at the struggling McLaren team have top of the drivers championship with 86 Winner Mercedes’ Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas (C) celebrates on the podium with second placed Ferrari’s German driver Sebastian had just one car competing. points ahead of Hamilton on 73 with Bot- Vettel (L) and third placed Ferrari’s Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen (R) after the Formula One Russian Grand Prix yesterday. The Spaniard’s Belgian rookie tas up to third with 63 points. Mercedes team mate Stoff el Vandoorne was lead the constructors title race with 136 hilarating getaway. laps to go and set up a grandstand fi nish, Standings absent from the grid in Bahrain points to Ferrari on 135 after four rounds Almost immediately, Frenchman Ro- but Bottas hung on to take his fi rst and two weeks ago due to a problem of this year’s championship. main Grosjean of Haas collided with the welcome victory in his 81st Grand Prix. Driver and Constructor Standings with the Honda power unit. Bottas became Finland’s fi fth Formula Renault of Briton Jolyon Palmer at Turn after the Formula One GP Russia at Alonso, who is due to race the One race winner following Keke Rosberg, Two, the cars crashing heavily to trigger a Russian Grand Prix results Sochi Autodrom yesterday Indianapolis 500 next month Mika Hakkinen, Kimi Raikkonen and red-fl agged halt and a Safety Car. instead of the showcase Monaco “I come here, drive as fast as I Heikki Kovalainen, who was the last from After a six-minute stoppage, Bottas 1. Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes), Drivers Grand Prix, had qualifi ed in 15th can to try and help the team. We the Nordic country to triumph, at the was sharpest at the re-start when the 2. Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 1. Vettel (Germany) Ferrari 86 place in Sochi. just hope the next race will be 2008 Hungarian Grand Prix. Safety Car pulled in and he dominated, 3. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari) 2. Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes 73 However, the car broke down better. I’m just a driver. I help the Vettel was seemingly as pleased for pulling 3.1 seconds clear of Vettel by lap 4. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 3. Bottas (Finland) Mercedes 63 on the formation lap at the pit team but the team have to look at Bottas as if he had won himself. 10 as Hamilton, back in fourth, struggled 5. Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) 4. Raikkonen (Finland) Ferrari 49 lane entry, forcing the start to the bigger picture.” “I tried everything to catch him and I with power and over-heating problems. 6. Sergio Perez, (MEX/Force India) 5. Verstappen (NED) Red Bull 35 be aborted with the cars going McLaren, the second most thought there would be an opportunity Ricciardo was another early departure 7. Esteban Ocon (FRA/Force India) 6. Ricciardo (Australia) Red Bull 22 around again as the unhappy successful team in the sport’s on the back straight,” the German said. after just seven laps with brake problems. 8. Nico Hulkenberg (GER/Renault) 7. Perez (Mexico) Force India 22 Spaniard unbuckled himself and history in terms of wins, have “I thought I could do it, but I wasn’t By lap 18, Bottas was controlling events 9. Felipe Massa (BRA/Williams) 8. Massa (Brazil) Williams 18 stepped out. not won a race since 2012 and sure what Felipe Massa would do and I with a 4.5-sec lead and the top four were 10. Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Toro Rosso) 9. Sainz Jr (Spain) Toro Rosso 11 Honda said Alonso’s car had are experiencing new lows every ended up losing out. It doesn’t matter separated by less than 14 seconds. 11. Lance Stroll (CAN/Williams) 10. Ocon (France) Force India 9 suff ered a loss of power due to a weekend with the engine lacking though. Big congratulations to Valtteri. The leading positions remained un- 12. Daniil Kvyat (RUS/Toro Rosso) suspected energy recovery issue power and reliability. This is his day.” changed until the pit-stops, which saw 13. Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas) Constructors in the hybrid unit. “It’s obviously They have yet to score a point Raikkonen said: “I have had a bit of a Bottas fi rst in for super-softs followed by 14. Stoff el Vandoorne (BEL/McLaren) 1. Mercedes 136 frustrating. Four races into the in three races this season and rough start to the season, but this week Raikkonen and Hamilton, Vettel leading 15. Marcus Ericsson (SWE/Sauber) 2. Ferrari 135 championship, four DNFs (non- Vandoorne started at the back has been a step forward, but we still only from lap 27 until lap 34 when he fi nally 16. Pascal Wehrlein (GER/Sauber) 3. Red Bull - TAG Heuer 57 fi nishes). This time we did not of the grid in Russia due to a fi nished third. So, we’ll keep trying.” pitted for new rubber. 4. Force India - Mercedes 31 even make the start. That’s sad 15-place penalty incurred as a On a balmy Spring day by the Black This enabled Bottas to regain the ini- Did not finish 5. Williams-Mercedes 18 but there’s nothing we can do,” result of excessive engine com- Sea, two-time champion Fernando Alon- tiative, but an error at Turn 13 on lap 38, Jolyon Palmer (GBR/Renault), Romain 6. Toro Rosso - Renault 13 Alonso told the BBC. ponent usage. so was an instant retirement before the when he had a serious lock-up and nar- Grosjean (FRA/Haas), Daniel Ricciardo 7. Haas - Ferrari 8 start when the Spaniard abandoned his rowly avoided the wall, invited Vettel, on 8. Renault 6 troublesome McLaren Honda. fresher tyres, back into contention. Did not start 9. Sauber - Ferrari 0 BADMINTON ASIA CHAMPIONSHIP This delayed the start for an additional Needing no second invitation, the Ger- Fernando Alonso (ESP/McLaren) 10. McLaren 0 formation lap before Bottas made his ex- man closed the gap to 1.5 seconds with 10 China, Taiwan and BOTTOMLINE Japan strike gold

AFP onships, countries can only enter Wuhan, China four athletes if they are ranked in the top eight. Singapore GP secure, says Bernie With the qualifying deadline Reuters clestone had showed a “lack of re- and locked out the front row io Olympic gold medal- having just expired, China can Sochi spect” and made promoters “look in Russia with championship list Chen Long beat his only enter three players in the like idiots” with comments about leader Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Chinese teammate Lin men’s singles but the selections charging high hosting fees. Raikkonen outpacing once- Dan in the men’s singles are up to the Chinese federation, ormula One will not miss “Nobody made him look stu- dominant Mercedes. fiR nal yesterday to win his fi rst who are not bound to follow the the Malaysian Grand pid, and it’s diffi cult to make peo- Asked about the fate of Sao Badminton Asia Championship rankings and so could opt for Prix when it drops off ple look stupid. If they are, they Paulo’s Interlagos, Ecclestone and boost his claims for a berth Chen. the calendar after this are,” said the Briton, who ran the ruled himself out. at the world championships. Lin, 33, beat Malaysia’s current year’sF race because neighbour- sport for decades as a dealmaker. “No chance. Not at all,” he The 28-year-old Chen had world number one Lee Chong ing Singapore is set to stay as the “They have done a very good said. “I’ve been trying to (broker not won a tournament since Wei in Saturday’s semi-fi nals. region’s showcase, former com- job with the motorcycles, he’s a deal) but it’s not easy for any- last year’s Olympics but ended But Sunday’s loss ended the bid mercial supremo Bernie Eccle- fallen in love with the motorbike body there.” his barren run in timely fash- by the 2008 and 2012 Olympic stone said yesterday. racing — and that (MotoGP) they The Briton said, however, that ion when he came from behind champion for a record-equalling The 86-year-old Briton, apparently make money from,” the current deal was assured to to beat Lin 21-23, 21-11, 21-10 in fi fth Asian title, which would speaking to Reuters at the Rus- he said of Razali, whose circuit 2020 and there was an agree- yesterday’s fi nal at the Wuhan match the feat of Ye Zhaoying sian Grand Prix, also said he will continue with MotoGP. ment to safeguard the track, Sports Center Gymnasium. who won fi ve women’s crowns in would not be buying Brazil’s In- “With Formula One they unlike the situation in Rio de Ja- It was his fi rst win at the Asian the 1990s. terlagos circuit. don’t make money and what I neiro where the old Jacarepagua Championships, one of the few Tai Tzu-ying provided Taiwan That track is due to be sold said was, and we talked about a circuit was built over for the major tournaments to have elud- with its fi rst Badminton Asian off by local authorities who had lot of the promoters, we haven’t 2016 Olympics. ed him, after he fi nished on the champion when she won Sun- talked up his potential interest been delivering what they “I met the mayor (of Sao Pau- podium six times previously. day’s women’s singles fi nal. when they announced their in- Former Chief Executive of the F1 Group Bernie Ecclestone. bought. Not our fault. We don’t lo) last time I was there, months The victory may also help his The current world number one tentions this month. make the show. ago, and I got him to agree that prospects of competing at this took the gold when she beat Jap- Malaysia, which has been part suggesting last November that fi ned ‘emeritus’ role. “If we’d “But thankfully now, if Ferrari when it goes out to tender for year’s world championships in anese teenager Akane Yamaguchi of the world championship since talks were not going well. have lost Singapore it’s not good. keep up their job and the other selling the place that they keep Glasgow, where he would be 18-21, 21-11, 21-18. 1999, will bow out in October, Asked whether Malaysia’s de- But we haven’t lost Singapore so people do the same, we’ll have the circuit,” he said. gunning for a third successive ti- Japan’s Olympic champions a year earlier than previously parture was a blow, Ecclestone it’s OK. very good racing and then things “If the circuit is still there, tle if selected. Misaki Matsutomo and Ayaka scheduled. shook his head. “They (Singapore) were going should be a lot better for the if you bought it for developing He is currently ranked ninth Takahashi successfully defended There have also been questions “No, not at all. We’ve got Sin- to stop... it’s OK now.” promoters. They should be able then you’d have to keep the race- in the world but there are three their Asian women’s doubles ti- about the Singapore Grand Prix, a gapore,” said the Briton, who Ecclestone hit back at Sepang to sell tickets.” track and fi nd someone who was Chinese men ahead of him, in- tle as expected, while China won popular night race whose contract was ousted in January as series circuit boss Razlan Razali, who Ferrari have won two of the going to run the race or be the cluding Lin. Under the qualify- the men’s and mixed doubles fi - expires this year, with Ecclestone supremo but retains an unde- told reporters last week that Ec- fi rst three races of the season promoter.” ing rules for the world champi- nals. Gulf Times Monday, May 1, 2017 7 CRICKET

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE WI VS PAK, DAY 1, 2ND TEST Pakistan bowlers Warner ton takes expose Windies top order again

Hyderabad to AFP wicket off Yasir Shah, the leg-spinner Bridgetown, Barbados extracting sharp turn off the fi rst-day pitch. Kieran Powell, top scorer with 49 amid est Indies were 166 for six the West Indies’ second innings capitu- in their fi rst innings at tea lation in the fi rst Test in Kingston, was on the opening day of the sent back by Amir in the seventh over second Test against Pa- after lunch for 38, bringing an end to the win over Kolkata Wkistan at Kensington Oval in Barbados 65-run partnership with Roston Chase, yesterday. who was unbeaten at 70 at tea. Siraj, Kaul, Bhuvneshwar take two wickets each in 48-run victory West Indies’ vulnerable top-order Vishaul Singh (3) was the next to go batting was again exploited by Pakistan edging one to Younis Khan in second after choosing to bat fi rst. slip off Abbas. Despite a surface that off ered very Shadab Khan, the man of the series little assistance to the faster bowlers, in the four-match T20 contest who the Caribbean team lost their fi rst three also enjoyed success in the three one- wickets after just over an hour. day internationals preceding the Tests, Mohamed Amir was the fi rst to strike picked up his maiden Test wicket after for Pakistan against a batting line-up Shane Dowrich nicked one to the slips that was surprisingly unchanged from for Younis to claim yet another low the seven-wicket defeat in Jamaica, catch. the selectors resisting calls for to bring in middle-order batsman Jermaine SCORECARD (at tea) Blackwood. WEST INDIES 1st Innings Kraigg Brathwaite enjoyed a moment K. Brathwaite c Ahmed b Amir 9 of good fortune when he was dropped K. Powell lbw Amir 38 at short extra-cover off Amir. S. Hetmyer c Ali b Abbas 1 However the lapse did not prove S. Hope c Ahmed b Shah 5 costly for the visitors as Amir took the R. Chase not out 70 outside edge of the opener’s bat in the V. Singh c Younis b Abbas 3 same over to give a straightforward S. Dowrich c Younis b Shadab 29 catch to wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed. J. Holder not out 0 Shimron Hetmyer, one of two bat- Extras (b-4, lb-5, w-2) 11 ting debutants from a week earlier, Total (6 wkts, 54 overs) 166 faced just three deliveries before driv- Fall of wickets: 1-12 (Brathwaite), 2-13 ing loosely at the other opening bowler, (Hetmyer), 3-37 (Hope), 4-102 (Powell), Mohamed Abbas, for Azhar Ali to take 5-107 (Singh), 6-154 (Dowrich) a sharp catch head-high at second slip. Bowling: M. Amir 15-4-26-2, M. Abbas Shai Hope’s struggle for runs con- 11-2-30-2 (2w), Y. Shah 17-1-66-1, S. Khan tinued when he was caught at the 11-3-35-1

Sunrisers Hyderabad captain David Warner plays a shot during the IPL match against Kolkata Knight Riders in Hyderabad yesterday. (AFP)

IANS bowl, Kolkata captain Gautam Gam- ball 29 before being run out, with the lusty blows. Hyderabad bhir applied a strategy of completing hosts at 139 for 1 in 12.4 overs. But seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar the six overs of Powerplay with six Warner followed him to the dug-out cut short Pandey’s stay when the bats- bowlers. But none of them could stop soon, as he mistimed a slow delivery man gave a return catch to the bowler, pening batsman David Warner, who completed his 50 in only from pacer Coulter-Nile to Gambhir with Kolkata at 90 for 3 in 11 overs. Warner smashed a maraud- 20 deliveries. At the end of six overs, at short cover, with Hyderabad at 171 Uthappa, meanwhile completed ing 126 runs off 59 deliveries Hyderabad rocketted off to 79 for 0, for 2 in 16.2 overs. his fi fty. But he soon was removed by as Sunrisers Hyderabad reg- with Warner at 62 not out off 25 balls. Kane Williamson (40 off 25) later Siraj, with Warner taking a catch at isteredO a crucial 48-run victory over One delightful stroke that signifi ed ensured that Hyderabad crossed the long-off to halt Kolkata’s progress. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in an In- Warner’s belligerence was a switch- 200-run mark with smart strokeplay. Yusuf Pathan hardly impressed as dian Premier League (IPL) clash at the hit to Sunil Narine as the ball went for Chasing the big target was always he scored a run-a-ball 12 before being Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium six over short third man. going to be an uphill task and Kolkata’s caught by Kaul off leg-spinner Rashid here yesterday. Later, Warner got a life as Chris poor start made their challenge even Khan, with the visitors at 130 for 5 in The Hyderabad captain unleashed Woakes dropped an easy catch at stiff er. Opening batsmen Narine (1) 16 overs. Mohamed Amir of Pakistan celebrates the wicket of Kraigg Brathwaite of West mayhem as he milked 10 fours and long-off off chinaman bowler Kuldeep and Gambhir (11) mistimed deliveries With 80 runs required from four Indies on Day One of the second Test in Bridgetown, Barbados, yesterday. (AFP) eight sixes to power his team to 209 for Yadav in the fi fth ball of the 10th over. from Mohamed Siraj and Siddharth overs, Colin de Grandhomme and 3 in 20 overs. Kolkata could only score The catch went over the boundary line Kaul, as Kolkata were reduced to 12 for Sheldon Jackson (16) tried their best 161 for 7. for a six and the following ball gave 2 in 2.3 overs. but couldn’t trouble Hyderabad, who COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP Warner and Shikhar Dhawan forged Warner another six to take him to 98. They reached 52 for 2 in seven overs won by 48 runs. a 139-run partnership for the open- The next over saw Warner complete when rain halted the match for around ing wicket as the former produced an a double with a fl ick towards mid- 45 minutes. After the rain-enforced BRIEF SCORES: Sunrisers Hyderabad astonishing show of power hitting. He wicket off a Umesh Yadav delivery as break, Robin Uthappa and Manish 209 for 3 (Warner 126, Williamson 40; England captain Root also became the highest run-scorer of he registered his century in just 43 de- Pandey (39 off 29) provided resist- U Yadav 0-30) beat Kolkata Knight the tournament so far with a tally of liveries. ance, putting up a third-wicket 82- Riders 161 for 7 (Uthappa 53; Siraj 459 runs. All this while, Dhawan played a per- run stand in 8.3 overs. They took the 2-26, Kaul 2-26, Bhuvneshwar 2-29) by bests brother Billy in win After winning the toss and opting to fect foil to Warner, scoring a run-a- attack to the opposition with some 48 runs AFP serving skipper Alastair Cook resigned. London “At the end it was diffi cult when I SPOTLIGHT hit my brother for six — but the pro- fessional side took over,” added Root, oe Root came out on top in every whose 80-ball innings also included sense in his fi rst county match seven fours. against younger brother Billy Earlier, Nottinghamshire were Punjab humiliate Delhi by 10 wickets as Yorkshire launched their bowled out for a mere 185, with Billy One-DayJ Cup campaign with a seven- Root managing just six against his na- wicket win away to Nottinghamshire at tive county before he was caught be- IANS opening over when comeback man Trent Bridge on Saturday. hind by England wicket-keeper Jonny Mohali Sam Billings off ered an outside edge England Test captain Joe Root made Bairstow off Tim Bresnan. to an outswinger from Sandeep for an an unbeaten 75 as Yorkshire comfort- The ex-England paceman led York- easy catch to Punjab wicket-keeper ably chased down a meagre target of shire’s attack with three for 22. ings XI Punjab dominated Wriddhiman Saha. 186 and he ended the match with more Former Zimbabwe batsman Brendan with both bat and ball to Delhi were off to a slow start and got than 17 overs to spare by lofting part- Taylor top-scored for Nottinghamshire thrash a rather off -colour their fi rst boundary in the third over time off -spinner Billy for six. with 60 off 59 balls, including eight Delhi Daredevils by 10 wick- when Sanju Samson dispatched a San- The match also saw Joe Root in op- fours. Kets in their Indian Premier League deep delivery to the wide mid-off fence. position to an England team-mate Riki Wessels, the son of former Aus- (IPL) match here yesterday. The Punjab pacer got his revenge a in Nottinghamshire paceman Stuart tralia and South Africa batsman Kepler, Medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma ball later when Sanju tried to fl ick one Broad. scored 41 while Michael Lumb, an ex- played a starring role for Punjab, re- off his pads to the mid-wicket region. “Broady was giving me a bit of stick Yorkshire batsman whose father Richard turning fi gures of 4 for 20 to bag the But the ball did not swing as much as but that’s what you get from a top opened for the White Rose, made 35 but Man of the Match award as Delhi were he had expected, and taking the toe of class bowler,” said Joe Root, appointed there was little else for Nottinghamshire bundled out for a mere 67 runs at the the bat ballooned up for a simple catch as England’s Test captain after long- fans to cheer during the innings. Punjab Cricket Association Stadium to Rohit Sharma at mid-off . here. Sandeep picked up his third wick- Delhi’s total was the second lowest et in his next over with an excellent in this year’s IPL after Royal Chal- Kings XI Punjab’s Sandeep Sharma (fourth from left) celebrates the wicket of caught and bowled eff ort to send Sri Lanka hire Allan Donald as bowling coach lengers Bangalore were dismissed for Delhi Daredevils’ Sanju Samson during the IPL match yesterday. (AFP) Shreyas Iyer back to the pavilion. Iyer 49 during their 82-run loss to Kolkata had attempted to drive the ball past Sri Lanka Cricket yesterday an- take up a coaching assignment with Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens last formance will no doubt be one of the With the pitch having an extra bit the bowler but was outfoxed by the nounced they had hired former English county Kent next year, is due in week. highlights of their season. of moisture due a spell of rain here on lack of pace. South African paceman Allan Donald Colombo on Monday. Kent said Donald Needing only 68 runs for a win, Delhi are at the bottom of the eight- Saturday, the Punjab bowlers made Delhi continued to struggle and as temporary bowling coach ahead would join them in 2018 because of Punjab crossed the line in just 7.5 overs team table with just four points from full use of the favourable conditions. Patel picked up a wicket when Karun of the Champions Trophy in England. delays in obtaining a work permit. with New Zealand star Martin Gup- eight matches. Sandeep made an excellent come- Nair misjudged the line of the ball only The 50-year-old will join as “con- Last week Sri Lanka named a till smashing a half-century in double Although they have one of the back to the playing XI after being to see it crash into his off -stump. sultant fast bowling coach” for 15-member squad led by Angelo quick time. strongest bowling line-ups in the IPL, dropped in the last match. The right- Rishabh Pant was then trapped leg two months in the run-up to the Mathews for the Champions Trophy. Guptill remained unbeaten on 50 off Delhi have paid the price for consist- armer produced superb swing and before by Glenn Maxwell and Patel tournament starting on June 1, the Sri Sri Lanka Cricket said it hoped Don- 27 balls with six boundaries and three ently unimpressive batting perform- movement off the pitch to trouble the claimed his second victim in the form Lankan board said. ald would also train Sri Lankan pace sixes. Fellow opener Hashim Amla was ances which have proved to be their off -colour Delhi batting line-up. of Chris Morris as Delhi lost their en- “Donald will join the team in their bowling coaches Chaminda Vaas, not out on 16 at the other end. Achilles heel. The 23-year-old clinched three tire top and middle order within the residential training at the Pallekele Champaka Ramanayake, Ravindra Punjab, who thus registered the They have won just two matches so wickets in his fi rst three overs to put fi rst nine overs. International Stadium where they will Pushpakumara and Nuwan Zoysa. third win of their campaign, are now far this year and have suff ered six de- the hosts in the driving seat. be undergoing a high-intensity train- Donald was one of Test cricket’s top fi fth on the IPL table with eight points. feats. Fast bowler Varun Aaron and left- BRIEF SCORES: Delhi Daredevils 67 ing and conditioning programme fast bowlers between 1992 and 2002, They have not exactly set the fi eld Earlier, Punjab captain Glenn Max- arm spinner Axar Patel picked up a all out (Sandeep 4-20) lose to Kings from May 9-16,” it said. taking 330 wickets in 72 Tests at an on fi re in this edition, losing six of well won the toss and asked the visi- couple of wickets each for Punjab. XI Punjab 68 for 0 (Guptill 50 not out) The South African, who is due to average of 22.25. their nine matches and Sunday’s per- tors to bat fi rst. Delhi lost their fi rst wicket in the by 10 wickets

Monday, May 1, 2017 GULF TIMES SPORT

LEKHWIYA WIN EMIR CUP HANDBALL

Qatar Handball Association president Ahmed al-Shaabi presents the Emir Cup trophy to the Lekhwiya team after they defeated El Jaish 27-24 in the final yesterday. At right, a piece of action from the match. Pictures: Noushad Thekkayil

BOXING FOOTBALL Joshua stops Al Ahly clinch ‘12th Klitschko in epic Player’ title heavyweight fi ght ‘I’m not perfect but I’m trying and if you don’t take part you’re going to fail’

AFP London

oung gun Anthony Joshua got up off the canvas to stop former champion Wladimir Klitschko Saturday in the 11th round of a heavyweightY world title fight that is be- ing hailed as an epic. Badr al-Hay awards Al Ahly, the winners of the ‘12th Player’ football In a tumultuous atmosphere at Wem- tournament. bley Stadium, 90,000 fans saw the un- defeated 27-year-old add the World By Sports Reporter ing all options for developing an Boxing Association (WBA) title to his Doha even more successful event next International Boxing Federation (IBF) year. We’re also planning to ex- belt sparked by a devastating right up- tend the invitation to GCC fans percut that led to the 41-year-old Kl- spire Zone’s ‘12th Play- associations – something that itschko being felled in the 11th. er’ football tournament we expect would go down well The Ukrainian former world champi- featuring teams made with participants, spectators and on rose unsteadily before being floored Aup of local fans for journalists.” again. several football clubs has ended In conjunction with the ‘12th He bravely got up once more but ref- after a thrilling fi nal match. In a Player’ tournament, Aspire Zone eree David Fields waved it off soon af- closely fought game, the Al Ahly Foundation also organised the ter as he was unable to defend himself SC (Egypt) fan association team ‘Aspire Workers Cup’, a two-day against a barrage of Joshua blows on the defeated the Al Arabi (Qatar) football tournament for workers ropes. fan association team 1-0. In the in Aspire Zone, which concluded American Boxing legend Sugar Ray third and fourth place play-off , last Wednesday. Leonard was among those who imme- the Al Gharafa (Qatar) fans team The ‘Aspire Logistics’ team diately hailed the contest as ‘amazing’. secured an impressive 4-0 win clinched the tournament’s title “Such an amazing fight with 2 great against Roma (Italy) fans team. after defeating ‘Aspetar’ 2-1, with fighters. Lot of heart by both fight- The tournament was char- the ‘Aspire Academy’ team trail- ers. A lot of questions answered by @ acterised throughout by strong ing in third place. anthonyfjoshua #JoshuaKlitchsko,” he support from spectators from the The top three teams were tweeted. local community. Large numbers awarded the Cup and medals by Lennox Lewis paid tribute to Kl- attended the fi nal which took itschko for getting up twice in the 11th place on the indoor pitches in During the fi rst half, the from devastating Joshua punches. Aspire Dome. Many were car- team of Al Ahly SC fans “How much heart did @Klitschko rying the fl ags of their favourite team dominated posses- show in this fight? Gotta respect it. clubs and singing team songs to sion and enjoyed consider- Hold ur head high brother! #joshuak- provide encouragement to their able vocal support from the litschko.” tweeted the Briton who was friends on the pitch. sidelines, particularly aft er the last man to be the undisputed world The fi nal was a hard fought, they hit the back of the net. heavyweight champion. physical match with both teams The Ukrainian had also been sent showing great determination and senior offi cials from Aspire Zone crashing to the floor in the fifth round showcasing the qualities that se- Foundation, including Badr al- as the 27-year-old British fighter took cured them their place in the fi nal Hay, Director of Education and his perfect record to 19 stoppage wins in stages of the competition. Student Care at Aspire Academy, 19 fights. During the fi rst half, the team Rashid al-Khalifa, Deputy Chief “What can I say? 19-0, three and a of Al Ahly SC fans team dominat- of Operations at Aspire Logis- half years in the game. As I said, I’m not ed possession and enjoyed con- tics Ali Sultan Fakhroo, Director perfect but I’m trying and if you don’t siderable vocal support from the of Corporate Services at Aspire take part you’re going to fail,” said Josh- sidelines, particularly after they Academy and Abdulrahman al- ua who was put on the canvas for the hit the back of the net. Mulla, Assistant Director of Hu- first time in his career in the sixth round In the second half, the Al Arabi man Resources at Aspetar. of the see-saw battle. fans team did their best to get In addition to the top three “As boxing states, you leave your back into the game, piling on the teams, awards were also made ego at the door and you respect your pressure and looking for a break- to individuals who showcased opponent. So a massive shout out to Anthony Joshua knocks down Wladimir Klitschko in London on Saturday. through. Despite repeated eff orts exceptional skills throughout Wladimir Klitschko,” said Joshua. from their opponents, the Al the tournament. These include A third defence of his IBF world heav- the three belts he lost to Joshua’s fellow mer left hand. right hand to the temple. Ahly SC fans team held on until the ‘Top Scorer’ award, won by yweight title also earned Joshua the va- Briton Tyson Fury by an upset on points Klitschko began the fourth full of He was up at eight and immediately the fi nal whistle. Describing the Salah Maradona (Al Gharafa cant WBA belt as he became the first in November 2015. intent but it was Joshua who started had to duck a big left from Klitschko be- success of the event, Mohamed Team), ‘Best Player’ award, won British heavyweight since Lewis in 2002 The Ukrainian had not fought since quicker in a thunderous fifth round. fore surviving the round. al-Hamadi, Director of the ‘12th by Mohameed al-Fuhaida (Roma to hold two versions of the world title. then and entered the ring as the under- The Briton wobbled Klitschko with a In the 11th Joshua uncorked a sweet Player’ tournament, said: “The Team), and the ‘Best Goalkeeper’ It was Klitschko’s first stoppage de- dog in front of Britain’s largest boxing left before landing a series of clubbing right uppercut to snap back Klitschko’s level of support from spectators award, won by Mohamed Fay (Al feat since Lamon Brewster beat him in attendance since 1939. blows, including a cracking right up- head, followed by another right to send and the skill and quality of the Arabi Team). 2004 and leaves his record at 64 wins Klitschko could not establish his jab percut, which sent the Ukrainian to the his opponent to the canvas. teams have been really obvious The 12th Player Tournament and five defeats. in the first round and it was Joshua who canvas. Klitschko got up but was on un- Klitschko courageously got up but during the tournament. Both re- was organised with the help of “The best man won tonight and it’s landed more punches, with the best be- steady legs and began swinging wildly. was nailed by another right and another fl ect the popularity and support Gold Partner Doha Bank, Silver a massive event for boxing,” Klitschko ing a left hook in the opening minute. Joshua suddenly became static on the right uppercut and went down again. that football in Qatar enjoys. Partner Nissan Qatar, and Bronze told Sky Sports. Joshua began the second confidently ropes after punching himself out. Kl- Klitschko got up but when Joshua “We can expect that this tour- partners Mövenpick Hotel Al “Two gentleman fought each other. and repeatedly found Klitschko with his itschko seized his moment and began to started to pile on the pressure referee nament will become a regular Aziziyah Doha, Oxygen and Oryx. Anthony was better today. It’s really sad jab. The Briton missed with a big over- land flush as he took control. Fields had no option but to save the feature in our sporting calendar. The Qatar Football Association I didn’t make it tonight.” hand right at the start of the third round In the sixth, Joshua’s early confidence brave Ukrainian from further punish- We’re now looking for ways to was the Strategic Partner for the Klitschko was trying to reclaim two of but then connected with a sledgeham- had evaporated and he was dropped by a ment. build on this success and explor- organisation.