GGOLFOLF | Page 2 NNBABA | Page 5 Woods’ Sixers rousing reach 50 return aided wins, Jazz by humility in playoff s

Tuesday, April 10, 2018 FOOTBALL Rajab 24, 1439 AH Guardiola, Klopp GULF TIMES know ‘anything can happen in Europe’ SPORT Page 3 GOLF Reed fi ghts off Spieth and Fowler to win fi rst Masters ‘It was going to be tough, anytime trying to close off a golf tournament is really tough’

Reuters Only is fi nal round 71 kept Reed from Augusta writing his name in the Masters record books as the fi rst golfer to post four sub- 70 rounds. atrick Reed fought off furious “You know, just kind of one of those back-nine challenges from Jor- things that you expect that trying to go dan Spieth and Rickie Fowler win your fi rst major that people are go- to record a one-shot victory at ing to make runs and it’s not going to be theP US Masters on Sunday, trading in easy,” said Reed. “You’re going to have his ‘Captain America’ cap for a Green to go out and play a good round of golf Jacket. and shoot under par.” The fi nal round began with Reed McIlroy, three shots back and play- holding a three-shot advantage over ing in the fi nal pair with Reed, had to get Rory McIlroy, but while the Northern off to a quick start and he did just that, Irishman’s challenge faded Reed had chopping two shots off the defi cit in just to hold off his hard-charging US Ryder two holes. Cup team mates to claim his fi rst major Reed sent his opening tee shot deep championship. into the pines and opened his account Needing a two-putt par from 26 feet with a bogey and McIlroy amped up at the 18th to clinch the title, Reed ran the pressure with a birdie at the sec- his fi rst putt four feet past the hole, took ond while Reed settled for a par as the a deep breath and held his nerve rolling American’s advantage narrowed to one a knee-knocker into the cup for a one- stroke. under 71 that ended Fowler’s hopes of a But the rollercoaster ride had only playoff . just begun as the third hole saw a two- The fi ery leader of recent US Ryder shot swing back to Reed, who birdied and Presidents Cup eff orts, Reed dis- the hole while McIlroy took a bogey to played plenty of the same brash spirit put both men back where they started. that earned him the ‘Captain America’ While Reed steadied himself McIlroy moniker while adding his name to the unravelled, taking bogeys at fi ve and list of Masters champions. eight to drop into a pack that included “Today was defi nitely probably the Spaniard Jon Rahm and Fowler four hardest mentally a round of golf could back of the front-running Reed. possibly be,” said Reed, who posted a McIlroy, who squandered a four- 15-under 273 total. “It was going to be shot lead at Augusta National in 2011 by tough, anytime trying to close off a golf shooting a fi nal round of 80, was out of tournament is really tough.” the race by the turn and will have to wait Fowler, who remains without a ma- another year for his chance to become jor title, had put the pressure on with a the fi rst European to complete the ca- back nine charge that featured six bird- reer grand slam. ies over his fi nal 11 holes, including one “Just wasn’t meant to be,” shrugged at the last, but his 67 and 14-under total Patrick Reed of the US celebrates winning the 2018 Masters the Northern Irishman, after slumping would not be enough. tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, to a fi nal round two-over 74 to fi nish Before Fowler took up the challenge of Georgia. six shots back of the leader. “At least I overhauling Reed, it was Spieth leading put myself in the position. That’s all I the chase with a sizzling eight-under 64 wanted to do. that matched the lowest fi nal round at a ters spotlight when the Green Jacket starting the day, to get that much help While Reed had established his National, was not rated among the hot “The last four years I’ve had top 10s Masters to fi nish two shots back. was up for grabs. and shoot a fantastic round was nearly championship credentials with fi ve favourites when the year’s fi rst major but I haven’t been close enough to the Sitting nine shots off the pace at the In four Masters appearances, Spieth impossible,” said Spieth, whose only PGA Tour wins and a runner-up fi nish got underway. lead. Today I got myself there. start of the day, Spieth was an after also has two runner-up fi nishes and a blemish was bogey at the 18th after at the last major the 2017 PGA Champi- But after opening the tournament “I didn’t quite do enough. But, you thought as spectators fi led into Augusta tie for 11th last year. his tee shot hit a branch. “But I almost onships at Quail Hollow, Reed, who had with three straight rounds in the 60s know, come back again next year and National but was once again in the Mas- “With eight people ahead of me pulled off the impossible.” never had round under 70 at Augusta Reed had everyone’s attention. try.”

FOOTBALL El Arabi: Duhail can win Qatar Cup and Emir Cup

By Sports Reporter well in future,” said El Arabi, The Emir Cup off ers a chance Doha adding he wanted to win every to clubs from the lower divi- title on off er this season as Al sions to compete with the top Duhail are in top form. guns and cause an upset or two, NB Stars League “We want to win all titles — although it’s rare for them to ac- champions Al Duhail the Qatar Cup, Emir’s Cup and tually win the tournament. are determined to win AFC Champions League. The Muaither coach Philippe the Qatar Cup and team is very strong this season Burle said playing the Emir Cup EmirQ Cup to add to their impres- as you can see from the results. would be a great experience for sive collection of trophies, their We’ve big players and we’re his players. star striker Youssef El Arabi ready to compete for all titles on “We are looking forward to has said. off er this year,” he said. the tournament. Our aim is to Moroccan El Arabi was top The 31-year old, who played progress as far as possible al- scorer in the league with a for long at Spanish club Grana- though it will be a diffi cult task,” whopping 26 goals, with his Muaither coach Philippe Burle speaks to the media ahead of his da, termed his rivalry with Msa- said Birol, whose team were teammate Youssef Msakni sec- team’s Emir Cup playoff match against Al Shamal. kni a healthy one. relegated from the Qatar Stars ond with 25 and Al Rayyan’s Ab- “My rivalry with captain League last season. derrrazaq Hamdallah third with for rival defenders. Apart from the fi eld in the second half, but Msakni was a very positive one “We will put out best foot for- 18. his individual achievements, El could not score and limped off and it was good for the team. I ward against Al Shamal and I am El Arabi, who was also the Arabi has also contributed to the fi eld after aggravating a knee wanted to win the top-scorer sure the match will be a tough highest scorer in the 2016- his team’s two successive league injury. The Tunisian attacking award, but it was good that I was one,” he added. 2017 season with 24 goals, has triumphs as he was a part of last midfi elder has been ruled out for challenged by Msakni till the Al Shamal captain Walid emerged the most feared player season’s triumphant Lekhwiya six months and will also miss the end,” El Arabi said. Muhyiddin said his team will on the domestic scene over the who were merged with El Jaish FIFA World Cup in Russia. Meanwhile, the Emir Cup give their all to progress. past three years. and relaunched at the start of “I’m very happy that we kicks off today with second di- “Al Shamal and Muaither He and Msakni accounted this season as Al Duhail. won the title with an unbeaten vision teams Muaither and Al know each other very well. We for 51 of the 86 goals scored by El Arabi did not play in Al Du- record. I’m also happy that I Shamal aiming to progress to have played each other in the Al Duhail in 22 matches of the hail’s fi nal-round match against could be the top scorer for the the last 16. The tournament’s second division and both teams QNB Stars League together this Al Sailiya, which they won 5-2, second successive season. This offi cial draw will only take place will be determined to make an season, proving a nightmare due to an injury. Msakni took would motivate me to perform tomorrow. impression.” Gulf Times 2 Tuesday, April 10, 2018 GOLF

HIS OWN MAN SPOTLIGHT Woods’ rousing comeback aided Reed answers the by humility major question, top-5 or not ‘I feel like I’ve played some golf that I need to play in order to get to where I want to be, and that’s to be the best golfer in the world’ Tiger Woods of the United States waits on the first fairway with caddie Joe LaCava during the final round of the 2018 Masters Tournament on Sunday.

Reuters Parent remarked that was key Patrick Reed of the United States Augusta to moving forward. celebrates with the trophy during the “If you have a little bit of hu- green jacket ceremony after winning mility it’s easier for you to accept the 2018 Masters Tournament on ears of trials and tribu- what your limitations are. Then Sunday. lations have given Tiger you can play within yourself and Woods a new character then you can adjust your game trait — humility, which to the requirements of the golf couldY prove a valuable tool in his course,” said Parent, the author rousing comeback bid to return of “Zen Golf”. to the top of the golf world. “The length of time that it’s Woods did not deliver a story- taken for him to work on his in- book chapter at the Masters, fi n- juries and get to playing on this ishing one-over-par 289 in a tie level, I think he has gained some for 32nd. But the now mellower perspective on how long these 14-times major champion ac- things take. Unlike the earlier Ti- cepts that he is in a process after ger, ‘unless I win, I’m wasting my spinal fusion surgery a year ago. time’, he’s taking the increments “My swing is slightly off . I was as positive signs. Now he’s say- pleased with the way I was able ing, ‘Look at the steps I’ve taken. to drive it, but I just could not Look at the progress I’ve made.’” convert with my irons. I strug- Woods calls his recovery a gled controlling the shape. Can’t “miracle” and some experts view control the distance,” he told re- it in a similar light. Dr. Qusai porters. After the self-critique, Hammouri, an orthopaedic sur- former world number one Woods geon at New York’s Staten Island was asked about the importance University Hospital, told Reuters of competing at Augusta Nation- that Woods’ comeback from back al for the fi rst time in three years. fusion surgery was “inspiring and “I missed the challenges out surprising.” there. I missed it. I missed play- “Once you’ve demanded from ing out here. I missed competing your body a certain amount of against these guys,” four-times eff ort that caused that injury... I Masters winner Woods said after don’t think we return you to the shooting a fi nal-round 69 that level that you had before,” he said. included an eagle at the par-fi ve You can rehab and strengthen 15th. Five years removed from his yourself and we can get you bet- last PGA Tour win and 10 years ter. But I don’t think you return since his last major champion- to your baseline of before. Some ship win, Woods has stirred the decrease in your abilities can be AFP two over Spieth, he has proven his point you have assured yourself a captain’s pick what they say if they are cheering for me golf industry with his return to expected.” Augusta that he deserves consideration among the for next year’s @PresidentsCup.” or not,” Reed said. “I’m out here to do my competition, contending at tour- Woods has noticed limita- fi nest players in the world. Reed has been a fi ery Ryder Cup player, job, and that’s to play golf. If I’m doing it naments and showing glimpses tions but the supremely talented “I feel like I’ve played some golf that shushing European fans and exciting US the right way, then that’s all that really of his once dominant form. athlete has still managed to con- atrick Reed still wasn’t a top- I need to play in order to get to where I crowds with fl amboyance in the team matters.” Since the 2008 US Open, he has struct a swing that allowed him fi ve player in the world when want to be, and that’s to be the best golfer match-play event. Reed even used crowds as motivation overcome a broken leg, knee op- to reach a swing speed of a tour- he walked off the 18th green at in the world,” he said. “The way you’re Reed led nearby Augusta State Univer- on Sunday, saying he could feel more erations, a marital break-up, sex leading 129 mph. Augusta National, but he was going to do that is perform in these big sity to US college titles in 2010 and 2011, people cheering playing partner Rory addiction treatment, four back Golf television ratings are Psomething more important — a Masters events and to win these big events.” but only after departing the University of McIlroy’s quest for a win and career surgeries, a video of his prescrip- trending upwards, so are equip- champion. The win was especially welcome for Georgia under a cloud after one season, Grand Slam than for his own victory. tion drug-induced DUI and stop- ment and ball sales since Woods’ The outspoken 27-year-old American, the 2017 PGA Championship runner-up, denying reports of cheating and stealing “I walked up to the fi rst tee and had a start comeback eff orts cut short return, while the Masters fea- who fi rst came to world attention in 2014 who didn’t take any title last year. from a teammate. really welcoming cheer from the fans, but due to back pain before his last- tured a buzz of excitement miss- by declaring himself a world top-fi ve tal- “I’m just happy to be up here and be Reed has also been estranged from his then when Rory walked up to the tee, his ditch fusion procedure. ing in recent years. ent after a WGC win at Doral, held off able to say I’ve gotten over that hump of parents and sister. Asked about not being cheer was a little louder,” Reed said. “Clearly, all the things that he’s Large Augusta National galler- Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler down the not winning at all last year, coming into a able to share his success with them, Reed “But that’s another thing that just kind been through have at least done a ies followed Woods and cheered back nine Sunday to win the 82nd Mas- year that one of my biggest goals was to matched Woods at his best on sore sub- of played into my hand. Not only did it little bit to humble him,” mental him on. “I had expectations, as he ters. win a major and compete,” Reed said. jects with a deft defl ection. fuel my fi re a little bit, but also, it just game expert Dr Joe Parent told probably did too, but the fact is he Comparing himself to idol Tiger Woods “To be able to get them both at once, to “I mean, I’m just out here to play golf takes the pressure off of me and adds it Reuters in an interview. is just coming back from such a and other “legends of the game” rubbed end the drought and win a major, it helps and try to win golf tournaments,” he said. back to him.” “Humility was not one of his long layoff and I think it’s positive many the wrong way, especially since he me mentally, and also helps my resume, Reed was branded the US PGA’s sec- Reed said he didn’t think it was a meas- strong suits early on. Tiger nev- what he’s doing,” said Ryan God- had never played in a major tournament. and hopefully I can just take this momen- ond-most disliked player, after Bubba ure of popularity. er really admitted that he was sey, a 41-year-old teacher from “I don’t ever regret anything I re- tum going forward and play some really Watson, in a 2015 ESPN poll. And he was “He has played some really solid golf struggling with anything.” Greenville, South Carolina. ally say. I stand by my comments,” Reed, solid golf.” to the point when asked why he thought here. A lot of people are wanting him to currently ranked 24th in the world after Woods, the 2019 US Presidents Cup social media posts tended to run against win to get that career Grand Slam,” Reed reaching a career high of seventh. captain and 14-time major winner, backs him. said. “It’s just nature. It didn’t surprise FOCUS Having broken through for his fi rst Reed, tweeting of the new Masters cham- “I have no idea and honestly I don’t re- me that the fans were cheering for him in major title by one stroke over Fowler and pion: “Congrats @PReedGolf! At worst ally care what people say on Twitter or the beginning.” Spieth plays Masters BOTTOMLINE like he has lost it, nearly wins it McIlroy vows he’ll be back aft er shooting 75. AFP Augusta “To be able to have a chance to win this tournament fi ve years in a row is really, really cool and that’s ordan Spieth played Sun- how I’m going to take today,” Spi- yet more Masters heartache day’s last round of the Mas- eth said. AFP A birdie at the par-5 second of his putts from within seven ters like he didn’t have a The 24-year-old American Augusta saw McIlroy edge even closer, feet over the fi rst three rounds, hope of winning, and lo and knew no winner had ever recov- but he could never build mo- couldn’t get the putts to drop on behold,J gave himself a chance at ered from more than eight strokes mentum as that marked the start Sunday. another green jacket. down in the fi nal round to win. ory McIlroy came up of a birdie-bogey-birdie-bogey A bogey at the par-5 eighth, The reigning British Open In fact, had he won, Spieth empty again in his bid run. where he missed the fairway champion, who began the day nine would have had the second-best to complete a career “It was like every time I took right, laid up and then missed strokes adrift of eventual winner comeback in major golf history Grand Slam at the Mas- a step forward I took a step back the green with his third shot, Patrick Reed, matched the low fi - after Scotsman Paul Lawrie’s 10- ters,R but the Northern Ireland on the next hole,” McIlroy said. dropped him into a tie for sec- nal round in Masters history with shot Sunday rally to win the 1999 star insists he has the game to “I’d say three and fi ve are the ond and he was never really a an eight-under par 64 and came British Open. win at Augusta National. ones that I’d look back on and factor over a back nine that in- within a closing bogey of matching So Spieth adopted a laid-back “I think 100 % I can come back if I could have made pars there cluded two more bogeys and a the 18-hole course record of 63. attitude and swears he never and win here,” McIlroy said after it could have been a diff erent birdie. “In general this round was fan- looked at a leaderboard to see his fading to a 2-over par 74 and a tie story.” “The putter let me down a tastic,” Spieth said. “I mean no- charge into a share of the lead on for fi fth behind fi rst-time major It wasn’t the horror show of little bit,” McIlroy said. “I just body’s going to have a great Sunday the back nine. winner Patrick Reed. victory over McIlroy at Hazel- Jordan and Rickie did. They got 2011, when McIlroy took a four- wasn’t quite as trusting as I was every year at Augusta National.” “Didn’t look once. That was “I’ve played in two fi nal tine two years ago. on a roll and I just didn’t. shot lead into the fi nal round and the fi rst few days and that made He fi nished third on 13-under my plan,” he said. “Go out and groups in the last seven years, Instead, Jordan Spieth and “Patrick and I didn’t. We were carded an 80. a big diff erence. 275, two back of Reed and one be- just have fun. Don’t worry about I’ve had fi ve top-10s, I play this Rickie Fowler surged from the in and around even pare and Since then he has won four “I was trying to hit good shots hind runner-up Rickie Fowler. the golf tournament itself, worry golf course well,” McIlroy said. chasing pack to threaten. It was were just grinding out there... he majors but never a Masters, un- and good putts and any time I Spieth, also the 2015 US Open about playing Augusta National. I “I just haven’t played it well world number 24 Reed who just hung in there a little better able to join Jack Nicklaus, Tiger felt like I hit a good shot I got champion, shared second at the heard roars. I knew someone was enough at the right times.” stood fi rm, wresting a 1-under 71 than I did and got the job done.” Woods, Ben Hogan, Gary Player myself on the wrong side of the Masters in 2014 and 2016, the playing well. With eight people McIlroy trailed Reed by three from Augusta National as McIl- An opening tee shot that skid- and Gene Sarazen as the only pin or gave myself a tricky one runner-up eff orts sandwiched ahead of me starting the day, to get going into the fi nal round, and roy let chances go begging. ded right proved to be an omen, players with at least one win in down the hill. around an epic 2015 triumph with that much help and shoot a fantas- their fi nal pairing was expected “I feel like momentum is a huge even though McIlroy managed each of the four major tourna- “When I did get some chances a 72-hole record matching 18-un- tic round was nearly impossible. to produce the kind of fi reworks thing, especially in fi nal rounds,” to salvage a par as Reed made a ments. I didn’t take advantage of them. der 270. Spieth was fourth enter- “But I almost pulled off the im- seen in Reed’s 1-up Ryder Cup McIlroy said. “You look at what bogey. McIlroy, who made 100% It was a tough day.” ing last year’s fi nal round before possible.” Gulf Times Tuesday, April 10, 2018 3 FOOTBALL

APPOINTMENT DISAPPOINTMENT ANNOUNCEMENT DECISION FOCUS Japan names new coach 2 West Brom to appeal against Capello confirms he has Torres to leave Atletico Kane hopeful of catching months before World Cup safe-standing rejection retired from coaching in search of game time Salah in Golden Boot race

Japan named respected veteran Akira Nishino West Bromwich Albion expressed disappoint- Legendary Italian coach Fabio Capello has Atletico Madrid striker Fernando Torres plans to Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane remains as its new national football manager yesterday ment and surprise yesterday after an applica- announced his retirement from Football and leave the club when his contract expires at the hopeful of overhauling Liverpool’s Mohamed after sensationally dumping Vahid Halilhodzic tion to introduce a safe-standing section at their turned down a possible off er to lead his end of the season to seek more game time. Salah in the race for Premier League Golden with only two months until the World Cup. Hawthorns ground was rejected by the British country’s national team in an interview with Torres, 34, has started only three La Liga Boot but is also focused on helping Spurs finish The 63-year-old Nishino boasts an impressive government. The Premier League club said they state radio station RadioUno yesterday. matches this season and made 17 appearances the season strongly. array of domestic silverware and masterminded had written back requesting a review of the de- The decision comes after Capello’s recent sack- from the bench, scoring two goals. “I want to Kane is bidding to end the campaign as the one of Japanese football’s proudest moments: cision taken by Sports Minister Tracey Crouch. ing by Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Sun- take advantage of this opportunity to say this division’s top scorer for the third time in a beating a Brazil side containing Ronaldo and “I think the Minister has taken a short-sighted ing. The 71-year-old says he will now focus on will be my last season at the club,” Torres said row, a feat no other player has managed since Roberto Carlos 1-0 at the 1996 Olympics. Nishino view and is preventing the club from creating his career in broadcasting. “I’ve already had ex- at a promotional event. “It has not been an easy Arsenal’s Thierry Henry won the last of his four will have only 70 days with the Blue Samurai be- a safer environment for supporters,” director periences with the English and Russian national decision. Looking at the reality, the circumstanc- scoring titles in 2006. fore they play their first match against Colombia of operations Mark Miles said on the Baggies’ teams,” Capello said. “I wanted to coach a club es, perhaps it’s for the best. I accept that I’m not The 24-year-old England international has in a tough World Cup pool that includes Poland website (www.wba.co.uk). “The all-seater policy once more and Jiangsu was my last job in Foot- having much of a role, so perhaps this is the scored 24 times in the league and currently and Senegal. Nishino is best known for his stint was developed over 25 years ago and Football ball. I did all I wanted. I am very happy about moment to step aside for others.” The Spanish trails Salah by five goals with six games remain- at the helm of Gamba Osaka and he took the is a very diff erent place now. The system we what I did and now I enjoy being a commenta- striker is in his second spell at the club he left in ing. Liverpool have five fixtures left. “I still club to its first Asian Club Championship in 2008. proposed is well-tested across Europe.” tor. You always win in that role.” 2007 to sign for Liverpool. believe I can,” Kane told British media.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOTLIGHT Foreign football club to play fi rst Iraq tie Guardiola, Klopp since ban lift ed

AFP that means the game will still Baghdad not exactly be a home match – as their regular stadium in the capital is not on the list. raq today will host a foreign know ‘anything can football club for a com- ‘It’s an honour’ petitive match for the fi rst That has not dampened the time in decades, after FIFA spirits of the team or its sup- Igave the go-ahead for games to porters – who feel they will be resume. representing the whole of Iraq. The feted Al-Zawraa club will “We have been waiting for this face off against Lebanon’s Al- kind of match for a long time,” Ahed in an Asian Football Con- Abdel Rahman Rashid, manager happen’ in Europe federation match in the holy Shi- of Al-Zawraa, told AFP. ite city of Karbala, 100 kilometres “It’s an honour,” he said. ‘There is no perfect Football team in the world. The game doesn’t give you the chance to (62 miles) south of Baghdad. For the players the trip to the No matter the fi nal score, the game today will be far less ardu- be perfect. I knew before they can concede goals and we can concede goals and lose’ scheduled showdown is already ous than the ones they got used to being hailed as a win for war- as they previously had to play their torn Iraq, which just months ago competitive international fi xtures declared victory over the Islamic in neutral countries. All that trav- State group. The country was elling “costs clubs a lot and had a prohibited from hosting inter- negative impact on players”, coach national games since the early Rashid said. 1990s until FIFA ruled in March For the fi rst time today his to bring it back into the full in- squad will “have the advantage ternational fold. of being at home, in front of its “Up until now we have been audience, and that will infl ate deprived the chance of seeing player morale”. our team’s international ex- For the club’s diehard fans the ploits,” said Majid, a supporter two-hour journey from the cap- of Al-Zawraa approaching his ital Baghdad to watch the match fi fties. seems like nothing. “Now we’ll get to relive the Veteran supporter Aqil al- atmosphere of the big matches.” Mendalaoui has already bought After fi rst allowing the return a ticket. For him, going to the of friendly games last year, glo- game is a “national service” that bal footballing authorities fi - goes beyond just cheering on his nally agreed to let foreign teams beloved team. come for competitive games af- “Tuesday’s match does not ter agreeing security conditions only belong to Al-Zawraa, it is were fi ne. for all the clubs in Iraq,” he told The return of international AFP. competitions has been seen as “We, Al-Zawraa fans, are major progress by Iraqis and known for following our team their government, as the coun- wherever it plays, so of course try looks to attract investment we’ll be there for the fi rst game and change its image after years after the lifting of the FIFA ban.” of violence. Iraqi fans look set to get the But still only three stadiums in opportunity to see more games Iraq have been given the green- soon. After taking on Lebanese light to host the ties. outfi t Al-Ahed, Al-Zawraa will They are the 30,000-seater host Bahrain’s Manama club on in Karbala, the country’s most April 16. modern arena in the southern Next up after that another Ira- city of Basra and the main sta- qi club Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya will dium in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi take on Bahrain’s Malkiya club in Kurdistan. Karbala before hosting Oman’s For Baghdad team Al-Zawraa Al-Suwaiq. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola attends a training session in Manchester. (AFP) Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp during a training session yesterday. (Reuters)

Reuters scribes himself as a “fan” of the fi nal in Istanbul on penalties too long – 50 minutes or longer. the visitors today could be ca- Manchester Spanish club and will need no against AC Milan after trailing It’s not the fi rst time it has hap- lamitous for them – and Liver- reminding of how his old team 3-0 to the Italians at half-time. pened in Football and it won’t pool are particularly eff ective progressed to the quarter-fi nals Even this season, Klopp and his be the last time,” he noted then. on the counter-attack. Guar- In Football, anything can last season. players themselves experienced What makes today’s game diola said his side will need to happen,” said Manchester Paris St Germain beat Barca how easily a three-goal advan- particularly fascinating is that produce “the perfect game” but City manager Pep Guar- 4-0 at the Parc des Princes in tage can disappear in European City boast an attack more than Klopp is wary of the danger in diola with a shrug, as he their last 16, fi rst leg game only Football. capable of ripping apart Liver- even an imperfect performance. looked“ ahead to today’s Cham- to be eliminated after a remark- They were 3-0 up at halftime pool’s defence – as they showed “There is no perfect Football pions League quarter-fi nal sec- able 6-1 win for the Catalans at in Sevilla in their group stage with their 5-0 Premier League team in the world. The game ond leg where his team have to the Nou Camp where three of match in November but ended win over Klopp’s men in Sep- doesn’t give you the chance to overcome a 3-0 defi cit against the goals came in the fi nal min- up drawing 3-3 after a second- tember. But as Guardiola’s team be perfect. I knew before they Liverpool. utes of the game. half comeback was completed demonstrated again on Satur- can concede goals and we can This picture shows a placard reading “FIFA President Gianni Infan- It is a truism, of course, and Klopp frequently notes how with an added-time equaliser day, giving up a 2-0 lead to lose concede goals and lose,” he said tino” inside the Karbala Olympic Stadium in Karbala, central Iraq, on neither Guardiola nor his Liver- the club’s history has little im- from Guido Pizarro. 3-2 to Manchester United, they yesterday. April 4, 2018. Baghdad’s Al-Zawra will face off against Beirut’s Al-Ahed pool counterpart Juergen Klopp pact on his team but his team’s The German manager’s reac- have a defensive fragility that a “You have always the chance today, in Iraq’s first hosting of an international match following the will need to wrack their brains fans understand more readily tion after that second-half col- clinical forward line like Liver- to respond and to strike back. lifting of a FIFA ban. (AFP) too hard to think of examples than most how fragile a three- lapse could serve as the perfect pool’s can exploit – especially if City has the chance too. We where a three-goal lead – or goal lead can be. warning to his team ahead of Mohamed Salah wins his battle have the chance to win the more – has been overturned in The Anfi eld faithful still cel- their trip to the Etihad. to be fi t. game. Most of the people think Ronaldo rest crucial to Madrid’s dream European competition. ebrate one of the great Football “It is not allowed to become City will attack from the out- Liverpool will go through but Former Barcelona player and comebacks – the night they won passive in a game like this. Be- set but, not having scored an will lose the game. We have the With the score poised at 1-1 in Sunday’s Madrid derby in La Liga manager Guardiola still de- the 2005 Champions League cause of that, the second half is away goal, a single strike from chance to win.” between Real and Atletico, Cristiano Ronaldo’s number appeared on the fourth off icial’s electronic board in red and the crowd in the San- tiago Bernabeu fell silent. Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane took PREVIEW off the Portuguese forward for Karim Benzema in the 64th minute. Even though his careful management of Ronaldo’s minutes has become increasingly obvious, it is still jarring to see him removed. Ronaldo had sent Real ahead 11 minutes earlier, positioning himself Roma refuse to surrender against Barcelona perfectly to volley Gareth Bale’s looping cross beyond the reach of the previously unbeatable Jan Oblak. However, Antoine Griezmann Reuters “Why not believe until the end was in the old European Cup in 1984 fired Atletico level moments later. With Ronaldo off the pitch, rested Rome and hope we can achieve something when they beat Dynamo Berlin and ahead of tomorrow’s Champions League quarter-final second leg unprecedented? We’re trailing by went on to lose in the fi nal to Liver- clash in Turin against Juventus, the game petered out. three goals, so it’s a really tough pool. “We often speak about a win- “Cristiano is Cristiano, he has been this player all his life, scoring S Roma are refusing to ask, but we have the duty to try,” Di ning mentality, but we’ve not won 50 goals a season. It is true that there is nobody else who does give up the ghost in their Francesco told reporters. much at this club, so historically we that,” said Zidane after the game. “But others can score, have done Champions League quar- “We’re up against a machine... We haven’t really had one,” Di Francesco recently, and we must think about the positives. It’s better to have ter-fi nal against Barcelona must play with passion, heart and said. Cristiano with us. It was just (to rest him). We have many games, despiteA facing a three-goal defi cit in belief right up until the fi nal whistle “You create a winning mental- that’s it. Sometimes he needs to rest. These days he needs that. He today’s second leg. if we want to do the unthinkable.” ity through a sense of belonging, an feels better every day, you can see it.” Coach Eusebio Di Francesco “Sometimes, we lack that craft identity, consistent work and stick- Although Real, fourth, have no hope of catching league leaders pointed to their 3-0 group stage win and guile you need to get better re- ing close to your surroundings.” Barcelona, who are 15 points ahead, Ronaldo’s substitution ef- over Chelsea as he insisted they can sults,” he added. “I always want to “Barca’s strength has been built fectively appeared as Zidane giving up on the game, considering still recover from last week’s 4-1 de- see the right amount of cynicism over many years, it’s not happened his goalscoring influence. Ronaldo’s goal against Atletico was his feat, even though their opponents’ from the team.” overnight,” he added. 24th in his last 13 matches across all competitions, and the 10th superior pedigree suggests other- Roma have reached the quarter- “Barcelona’s strength comes from consecutive match in which he has scored. Madrid are dependent wise. fi nals three times before and lost their mentality, which starts from on Ronaldo’s goals and Zidane has taken to resting him completely But he said his side needed to their last two, both to Manchester the youth academy... They manage in some league games, leaving him out of trips to Leganes, Espanyol show more guile and cynicism than United in 2007 and 2008. games superbly, using the ball well and Las Palmas recently. they have been doing recently. The only time they made it further and making few mistakes.” AS Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco. (Reuters) Gulf Times 4 Tuesday, April 10, 2018 SPORT

MOTORCYCLING FORMULA 1 Mercedes look to China aft er losing out again Crutchlow wins as ever, compared with a second Reuters London and third so far. If Hamilton loses out again next weekend in Shanghai, a race or the second race in a that he has won fi ve times previ- row, Sebastian Vettel ously and that Mercedes has won celebrated on Sunday in fi ve of the last six years, then while Formula One world there will be serious concern in Marquez, Rossi clash championsF Mercedes and Lewis Brackley and Stuttgart. Hamilton rued the one that got In Bahrain, Valtteri Bottas fi n- away. ished second for Mercedes after By winning in Bahrain, after chasing down Vettel in the clos- his season-opening success in ing laps when the Ferrari driver Australia, the German became was on badly worn soft tyres af- the fi rst Ferrari driver since ter making one less pitstop. Michael Schumacher in 2004 to The gap at the end was 0.699 at Argentina GP take the fi rst two races of a seconds; close but not close season. enough. ‘It was nice to win, but it was to be expected to be honest’ Since 1982, when Alain Prost Mercedes team boss Toto started strongly but lost out in Wolff told reporters afterwards Reuters the title race to Keke Rosberg, that his team felt sure they had a Termas de Río Hondo, Argentina every driver who has won the winning tyre strategy. fi rst two races of a season has That was because Bottas and been crowned champion at year- Hamilton were on mediums that al Crutchlow won a end. could go to the end whereas Vet- damp and chaotic Ar- But Vettel, a four times world tel had to decide whether to pit gentine MotoGP race on champion and keen student of F1 again and lose the lead or stay Sunday to became the history, knows the battle is just out and risk running out of rub- fiC rst Briton to lead the top cat- beginning and he cannot put too ber. egory of grand prix motorcycling much faith in statistics. “This was the moment where since the late Barry Sheene near- “They had less races in 1982, I would say probably 90 percent ly 40 years ago. so probably...I don’t believe in all probability was on us winning The non-works LCR Honda those things,” the German said and we lost that,” said Wolff . rider, celebrating a third career after the fl oodlit race at Sakhir. He recognised however that MotoGP win and Honda’s 750th “Sometimes they work for Ferrari had swept the front row grand prix success, now has 38 you, sometimes against you. in qualifying when Mercedes points and leads Ducati’s Italian “We have a very very long sea- were not good enough, with Andrea Dovizioso by three af- son ahead of us. It’s clear that Hamilton also having a fi ve place ter two races. Sheene, a double we need to improve, we have to penalty for a gearbox change world champion for Suzuki in the improve our car, our package. I that left him lining up in ninth. old 500cc era, last led the stand- guess everybody’s trying to do That setback cost Hamilton ings in 1979. the same so the competition is – who missed out on victory in “It was nice to win, but it was very high.” Australia after a virtual safety to be expected to be honest,” said Vettel will also be well aware car period played into Ferrari’s Crutchlow. that the calendar has possibly hands – any chance of winning. “I was comfortable in the bat- fl attered him. The Ferrari driver And that was cause for con- tle, I felt I took no risks. I stayed also won in Australia and Bah- cern for a team that have won the with riders I probably should rain last season, when China was past four drivers’ and construc- have and would have been able to the second round of the champi- tors’ titles but are now second drop if I needed to. onship rather than the third, but behind Ferrari. “I think we could have fought his title challenge imploded later “The points that you don’t no matter which circuit it would in the campaign. make are the ones that could have been this weekend.” Hamilton was second in Aus- decide the championship,” said Frenchman Johann Zarco fi n- tralia and Bahrain last year, how- Wolff . ished a close second for Tech3 Yamaha after a last lap battle for the lead while Honda’s reigning Honda biker Cal Crutchlow (centre) of Great Britain, Yamaha biker Johann Zarco (left) of France and Suzuki biker Alex Rins of Spain cel- CRICKET world champion Marc Marquez ebrate their first, second and third place respectively at the podium of the Argentina Grand Prix at Termas de Rio Hondo circuit, in Santiago was penalised for a collision with del Estero, Argentina on Sunday. (AFP) Yamaha’s Italian great Valentino Rossi. Spaniard Alex Rins was four leading in turn while Mar- Yasir ruled out for third for Suzuki, his fi rst MotoGP quez and Rossi tangled with Angry Rossi accuses Marquez of ‘destroying’ MotoGP podium, at the Termas de Rio four laps to go. The Spaniard Hondo circuit. was handed a 30 second penalty, Italian MotoGP great Valentino Rossi has ac- others acted in the same way as Marquez, who Pakistan’s UK tours The race start was delayed dropping him down to 18th with cused reigning world champion Marc Marquez has won four of the last five world champion- for safety reasons amid farci- Rossi, who went off track and fell of ‘destroying’ the sport by riding danger- ships. He said he had spoken to race director AFP Shadab has taken just one cal scenes, with rain before the following the collision before re- ously and without respect for his rivals. The Mike Webb and hoped his words had an eff ect. Karachi wicket in a single Test appear- event leaving all riders except suming, in 19th. pair clashed on a damp track in Argentina on “They have to do something,” added Rossi. “I’m ance in Barbados last year, while Australian pole sitter Jack Miller Sunday, with Rossi falling after being pushed scared on the track when I’m with Marquez. I the others have yet to play a Test. on wet weather tyres. The fast- RESULTS onto the grass by the Spaniard who had already was scared today when I saw his name on the akistan suff ered a stinging Yasir has taken 89 wickets in improving conditions then trig- MOTOGP incurred a ride-through penalty for a breach board. setback yesterday ahead 16 of the 17 Tests Pakistan have gered a mass return to the pits 1. Cal Crutchlow (GBR/LCR Hon- of start procedures. Rossi finished 19th with “I’m not race direction -- they will decide -- but of their Test tours of Ire- played under head coach Mickey for a change of tyres with only da) 40:36.342, 2. Johann Zarco Marquez, who was handed a 30 second penalty like this he is destroying our sport, because land and England after Arthur since May 2016. Miller’s Pramac Ducati remain- keyP leg-spinner Yasir Shah was He took a match-winning 10 (FRA/Yamaha Tech3) at 0.251sec, for the collision, also out of the points in 18th po- when you do 300-kilometre an hour on the ing on the grid. 3. Alex Rins (ESP/Suzuki) 2.501, 4. sition. “I’m OK, but this is a very bad situation,” track, you have to have respect for your rivals.” ruled out with a hip bone injury. wickets in Pakistan’s victory at Organisers decided, after con- Jack Miller (AUS/Ducati Pramac) Rossi said of the incident, with Marquez refused Marquez accepted in a Honda release that he The 31-year-old has been key Lord’s in 2016 on their way to a sultations with team bosses in 4.390, 5. Maverick Vinales (ESP/ access to the Yamaha garage in an attempt to had been to blame for a high speed collision to Pakistan’s Test wins since 2-2 series draw in England. order to avoid a mass start from Yamaha) 14.941, 6. Andrea apologise that the Italian dismissed as mere PR with compatriot Aleix Espargaro but said the 2014, having taken 165 wickets The leg-spinner also raced to the pits, to leave Miller alone out Dovizioso (ITA/Ducati) 22.533, 7. for the cameras. Rossi clash was down to the conditions. in 28 Test matches. Chief selec- 100 wickets in 17 Tests, while front and several rows clear of Tito Rabat (ESP/Ducati A1vintia) “If you take what happened this weekend as an “I touched a wet patch, locked the front, and tor Inzamam-ul-Haq confi rmed also taking 150 wickets in 27 the others after grid penalties. 23.026, 8. Andrea Iannone (ITA/ example, one incident can happen to anybody, released the brakes. I tried to turn, again mak- the spinner will not be available Tests – the second fastest player Marquez then stalled, the Suzuki) 23.921, 9. Hafizh Syahrin you can make a mistake in braking, you can ing my best eff ort to avoid contact. When he for the tours. “Yasir is ruled out in Pakistan to achieve both mile- four-times MotoGP champion (MAL/Yamaha Tech3) 24.311, touch the other guy. It can happen, it’s racing. crashed I immediately apologised,” said the of the Ireland and England Test stones. Pakistan will be Ireland’s wheeling the bike clear, bump- 10. Danilo Petrucci (ITA/Ducati “But from Friday morning on, Marquez did this Spaniard. “It was a tricky Sunday. Of course tours and it’s a big blow,” In- inaugural Test opponent in Dub- starting it and then riding the Pramac) 26.003 to (Maverick) Vinales, to (Andrea) Dovizioso, today I made some mistakes, which I recognise. zamam told local media. “It’s a lin from May 11-15 before playing wrong way down the track to Selected others to me, and on Saturday morning, and today he “Other mistakes were made by race direction big loss for the team.” two Tests against England. resume his starting position 15. Jorge Lorenzo (ESP/Ducati) at went straight through four riders,” added the on the grid, and others were due to the diff icult Medical reports said Yasir suf- The fi rst Test is at Lord’s from against the rules. 42.274, 18. Marc Marquez (ESP/ 39-year-old nine-times world champion. conditions, but one thing I know for sure: never fered a hip bone stress fracture May 24-28 while the second is at Marquez quickly reeled the Honda) 43.860, 19. Valentino Rossi said such behaviour created a dangerous in my career have I intentionally hit another and needs four weeks rest in ad- Leeds from June 1-5. Australian in and passed him Rossi (ITA/Yamaha) 52.082 situation, which would only be made worse if rider.” dition to another six for rehabili- Meanwhile India all-rounder before receiving a ride-through Overall standings tation. Inzamam said Pakistan Axar Patel is to join Durham penalty for the start infringe- 1. Cal Crutchlow (GBR/LCR called on teenage leg-spinner for the fi nal six English County ment, knocking him back to 19th. Honda) 38 points, 2. Andrea Tech3) 28, 4. Maverick Vinales (ESP/Yamaha) 21, Ducati Pramac) 17, 8. Valentino Rossi (ITA/Yama- Shadab Khan, off -spinner Bilal Championship fi xtures of the Miller, Rins, Zarco and Dovizioso (ITA/Ducati) 35 pts, 5. Marc Marquez (ESP/Honda) 20, 6. Jack Miller ha) 16, 9. Alex Rins (ESP/Suzuki) 16, 10. Andrea Asif and left-arm slow bowler upcoming season, the northeast Crutchlow broke clear with all 3. Johann Zarco (FRA/Yamaha (AUS/Ducati Pramac) 19, 7. Danilo Petrucci (ITA/ Iannone (ITA/Suzuki) 15. Kashif Bhatti to fi ll in the gap. club announced yesterday.

IPL Dhawan stars as Hyderabad outplay Rajasthan IANS chipped in one wicket each. CSK VS KKR Hyderabad Put in to bat, Rajasthan got off to a poor The Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata start as opener D Arcy Short (4) was departed Knight Riders, who will come up against on the last ball of the the fi rst over. But after each other in Match 5 of VIVO IPL 2018, will rilliant batting from opener Shikhar that wicket, new batsman Samson and open- be brimming with confi dence after thrilling Dhawan (77 not out) helped Sunris- er Ajinkya Rahane (13) forged a crucial 46- wins in their respective season openers. ers Hyderabad outplay Rajasthan run partnership to steady their team’s ship. CSK outclassed defending champions Royals by nine wickets in the fourth Just when things seemed good in the mid- Mumbai Indians in the opening match. Down matchB of the Indian Premier League (IPL) dle, Rahane was dismissed in the seventh and out for all counts at one stage in their yesterday. over by Kaul. run-chase, Dwayne Bravo single-handedly Right from the start, Dhawan, who Unperturbed by the fall of skipper’s wick- turned the match around in favour of his slammed 13 boundaries and one six, made his et, Samson played freely, smashing the bad team. intentions clear. Though Hyderabad started balls. Middle-order batsmen Ben Stokes (5), The Trinidadian rescued his team from poorly, losing their opener Wriddhiman Saha Rahul Tripathi (17) failed to utilise the start 118-8 in their chase of 166, with a sensational (5), but after that there was no looking back and were dismissed cheaply in the process. end innings blitz, before an injured Kedar as Dhawan and skipper Kane Williamson (36 While trying to increase the run-rate, Jadhav – who returned to bat after Bravo was not out) guided it to a comfortable victory Samson was also dismissed by spinner Hasan dismissed in the penultimate over – took the with over four overs remaining . in the 14th over. Samson played 42 balls and team over the line with two boundaries. Williamson played 35 balls in smashed slammed fi ve boundaries. KKR did extremely well to pull back RCB’s three boundaries and one six. Krishnappa Gowtham (0) was next to go. reins just when they were in a position to ex- For Rajasthan, pacer Jaydev Unadkat was Kaul dismissed him in the 15th over. plode. Nitish Rana, used by captain Dinesh the lone wicket taker. Jos Buttler (6) and Shreyas Gopal (18) then Karthik possibly with an intention to slip one Earlier, Disciplined bowling helped Sun- joined in the middle but the latter failed and or two quiet overs, actually struck two big risers Hyderabad restrict Rajasthan Royals to departed in the 18th over. Gopal, however, blows when he dismissed AB de Villiers and 125/9 in their allotted 20 overs. tried to pace the innings but was sent pack- Virat Kohli off successive deliveries. Apart from Sanju Samson (49), no other ing in the last over by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. KKR then restricted the visitors to a com- batsmen rose to the occasion and were dis- petitive 176-7, which they chased down in missed one by one. For Hyderabad, pacer Brief scores 18.5 overs. Sunil Narine’s blitz at the top gave Sidharth Kaul and spinner Shakib al-Hasan Rajasthan: 125/9 (Sanju Samson 49; Siddarth KKR the perfect platform for such a chase, took two wickets each while Bhuvneshwar Kaul 2/17) against Hyderabad 127/1 (Shikhar following which Rana and captain Karthik Sunrisers Hyderabad opener Shikhar Dhawan in action during the 2018 Indian Premier League match Kumar, Billy Stanlake and Rashid Khan Dhawan 77 not out; Jaidev Unadkat 1/28) contributed thirties to get the job done. against Rajasthan Royals at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad yesterday. (AFP) Gulf Times Tuesday, April 10, 2018 5 SPORT

NBA NHL Panthers spoil Bruins’ division title hopes Sixers reach 50 wins was replaced by backup Roberto Reuters Los Angeles Luongo, stopped all eight shots he faced. David Pastrnak scored his team-leading and career-high he Boston Bruins fell 35th goal, David Backes scored his short in their pursuit of 14th and Tuukka Rask made 22 an Atlantic Division ti- saves for Boston, which fi nished tle and the top overall the regular-season slate with four for fi rst time since Tseed in the Eastern Conference losses in its last fi ve games. playoff , losing 4-2 to the visiting Boston’s Rick Nash (concus- Florida Panthers in the regular- sion), Sean Kuraly (upper body) season fi nale on Sunday night. and Riley Nash (ear laceration) Boston fi nished with 112 all missed the game, although points, one behind the division all three are progressing and Ri- and conference champion Tam- ley Nash will resume skating on pa Bay Lightning. The Bruins Monday. ’01, Jazz in playoff s needed a win to claim their fi rst Aleksander Barkov (upper division crown since the 2013-14 body) sat for Florida. ‘It’s huge for the team. It shows how far we’ve come for the season’ season and their 26th overall. Borgstrom quieted an excited The Bruins will face the To- TD Garden crowd with his goal ronto Maple Leafs in the fi rst 1:22 into the fi rst period. Backes round of the playoff s. That series pulled the Bruins even with a begins Thursday in Boston. goal at 8:18 of the fi rst, only for The Sunday contest – the last Vatrano to strike at 16:46 of the game of the NHL regular sea- opening period to restore the son – was the makeup of a game Panthers’ lead. that was postponed Jan. 4 due Mamin’s tally at 13:33 was the to a blizzard. Henrik Borgstrom only goal of the middle period. scored his fi rst NHL goal and Pastrnak gave the Bruins life Evgenii Dadonov (28th of sea- with his power-play goal at 9:54 son), Frank Vatrano (seventh) of the third. Dadonov put the and Maxim Mamin (third) also game out of reach with 1:49 to scored for Florida, which fi n- play. ished just outside the playoff Before the game, the Bruins picture in third place in the East- honoured longtime national ern Conference wild-card hunt. anthem singer Rene Rancourt James Reimer fi nished with ahead of his fi nal regular-season 33 saves for the Panthers, who performance. were eliminated from play- Rancourt, a 78-year-old na- off contention Saturday after tive of Maine, has been perform- a Philadelphia victory. Reimer ing the anthems at Bruins games left the game with an apparent for 42 years and is retiring after injury with 8:07 remaining and this season.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons picks up a loose ball past Dallas Mavericks forward Dorian Finney-Smith during the first quarter of their NBA game at Wells Fargo Centre in Philadelphia. PICTURE: USA TODAY Sports

AFP 31.Philadelphia are now assured Redick leading the scoring for clinch a playoff berth with a Elsewhere in the East, sec- Los Angeles of at least a top-four fi nish in the home team with 18 points. 112-97 win over the Los Angeles ond-placed Boston suffered the East after Sunday’s victory Simmons was satisfi ed to reach Lakers. Mitchell also had nine an upset 112-106 loss to bot- at the Wells Fargo Centre. 50 wins for the season for the rebounds and eight assists, and tom team Atlanta at the TD en Simmons scored 16 The win also guarantees Phil- fi rst time since 2001, two years Joe Ingles had 22 points in the Garden. points as the Philadel- adelphia home court advantage after the Sixers fi nished with a win. Jae Crowder came off the It was a third defeat in four phia 76ers routed the for the start of the playoff s. dismal 10-72 record at the foot bench to score 18. games for the Celtics, who are Dallas Mavericks to “To win 50 games with two of the Eastern Conference. battling an injury crisis as they extendB their winning streak to games remaining, 14 in a row, “It’s huge for the team,” Sim- ‘Great feeling’ head into the playoff s. 14 games in the Eastern Confer- to secure home court advantage mons said. “It’s a great feeling to have The Celtics were rocked this ence playoff race on Sunday. is fantastic,” Sixers head coach “It shows how far we’ve come that,” Mitchell said. “But at the week after it was confi rmed Australian star Simmons Brett Brown said. for the season. I think we’ve same time, we got two more star Kyrie Irving would miss fi nished with nine assists and “Our season has been excep- pushed through the tough games left and want to stay the remainder of the season seven rebounds as the Six- tional. The group has continued to times and I think we’re getting where we’re at.” after complications from knee ers cruised to a 109-97 vic- improve and those things are that I a lot better over time ... it’s been Also, the Indiana Pacers are surgery. tory to move one win clear of will remember the most. There is a very enjoyable. It’s better when one game behind Cleveland af- the Cleveland Cavaliers in the toughness to our group.” you’re winning.” ter overpowering the Charlotte RESULTS standings. The Sixers and the With the injured Joel Embiid Harrison Barnes led the scor- Hornets 123-117 on the road. Toronto ...... 112 Orlando ...... 101 Cavs are locked in a duel for close to a return, the Sixers will ing for the Mavs with 21 points, Domantas Sabonis led the Phoenix ...... 100 Golden St...... 117 the third seed spot in the East- enter the postseason brimming with Dennis Smith Jr adding 20 scoring for the Pacers with 30 LA Lakers ...... 97 Utah ...... 112 ern Conference playoff picture, with confi dence after another points and Dwight Powell 13. points from the bench, while Memphis ...... 130 Detroit ...... 117 with Philadelphia now at 50-30 impressive win. Simmons was In other games on Sunday, Victor Oladipo had 27 points. Charlotte ...... 117 Indiana ...... 123 Mark Pysyk (left) of the Florida Panthers celebrates with Roberto for the season, ahead of Cleve- one of fi ve Sixers players to Donovan Mitchell scored 28 The Pacers improved to 48-33 Philadelphia ..109 Dallas...... 97 Luongo after the Panthers defeat the Boston Bruins 4-2 at TD Garden land, who are fourth with 49- make double fi gures, with JJ points to help the Utah Jazz with the victory. Boston ...... 106 Atlanta ...... 112 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Getty Images/AFP)

MLB Ohtani dazzles with his bat and arm for Angels AFP Ohtani joined Babe Ruth in the and celebrated with a scream time AL Cy Young winner Corey Anaheim, United States record books, becoming just the and a fi st pump. Kluber in the fi fth inning, and third player in league history to “I wanted to keep a clean zero the Angels went on to win 3-2 in hit a home run in three straight on the board,” Ohtani said. “One 13 innings. hohei Ohtani fl irted with games and post a double-digit hit would (mean) two runs, and After an off day on Thursday, a perfect game in his strikeout game in the same sea- it’s a huge diff erence. I wanted Ohtani belted a 449-foot solo home pitching debut on son. that strikeout, and I got it.” home run to centre fi eld with Sunday, retiring the fi rst The fi rst to do it was Ruth in Ohtani, who played with the two outs in the second inning 19S batters to power the Los An- 1916 and the other Ken Brett in Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters and Los Angeles rallied from a geles Angels to a 6-1 rout of the 1973. last season, said this would have huge defi cit to win 12-9. Oakland Athletics. He is also the fi rst major been his fi rst no-hitter. Angels third baseman Zack The two-way Japanese sensa- leaguer to record two wins and Asked how he compares Cozart said Ohtani also has a va- tion is exceeding expectations three home runs in his fi rst 10 this outing to previous ones he riety of pitching weapons. with his fairytale season as he games since Jim Shaw in 1919. said, “probably my best outing “His splitter just kind of drops struck out 12 batters and allowed Ohtani had performed poorly was when I was in elementary off the table,” Cozart said. just one hit over seven shutout in spring training, but if there school.” “It looks like a strike I feel like innings at Angels Stadium. was any doubt he could hit and In his pitching debut last Sun- almost every time, but it never Marcus Semien singled to left pitch at the major league level it day, he allowed three runs on a is. It just drops below the zone. fi eld to break up the bid for a was erased this week. second-inning homer by third That’s how it comes out, the perfect game, but the 23-year- Ohtani blasted three homers baseman Matt Chapman, but same as his fastball. It makes it old rookie kept his cool and hung between his pitching debut last that was his only blemish in the tough as a hitter.” in there to eventually get the side weekend and his fi rst win at An- 7-4 victory. out and end the inning in front of gel Stadium on Sunday. RESULTS a crowd of 44,700. He started quickly on Sunday, Home run hero Indians ...... 3 Royals ...... 1 “Especially with how my striking out the side in the fi rst Since then, Ohtani moved Pirates ...... 5 Reds ...... 0 spring training went, I wasn’t inning on just 15 pitches. to designated hitter for games Red Sox ...... 8 Rays ...... 7 really imagining (the start of He struck out the side again Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday Mets ...... 6 Nationals ...... 5 the season) to be this good, to be in the fi fth inning as only one A’s and homered in all three in dra- Orioles ...... 8 Yankees ...... 7 honest,” Ohtani said through a batter managed to avoid being a matic fashion. Dodgers ...... 2 Giants...... 1 translator. strike out victim on the night. His three-run blast in his fi rst Astros ...... 4 Padres ...... 1 “I feel better every day. I feel “That’s as good a game as you at-bat in front of the Angels Diamondbacks 4 Cardinals ...... 1 like I’m getting used to every- are going to ever see pitched,” Stadium home crowd lifted Los Marlins ...... 6 Phillies ...... 3 thing more and more each day. said Angels manager Mike Scio- Angeles to a 6-2 lead against the Cubs ...... 3 Brewers ...... 0 But it’s just the fi rst week.” scia. Cleveland Indians on Tuesday, Tigers ...... 1 White Sox ...... 0 The highly sought after off - After yielding the lone hit he and they eventually won 13-2. Blue Jays...... 7 Rangers ...... 4 season free agent is living up to eventually struck out Matt Ol- The next day, he hit a game- Braves ...... 4 Rockies ...... 0 Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani throws against the Oakland Athletics in the second the Ruthian hype. son to end the seventh inning tying two-run homer off two- Angels ...... 6 A’s ...... 1 inning during their MLB game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. PICTURE: USA TODAY Sports Gulf Times 6 Tuesday, April 10, 2018 SPORT

SPOTLIGHT Al Feroz, Warriors Club to clash Cycling world mourns for title Doha: Al Feroz Youngsters and Warriors Club will clash for the prestigious Qatar Air- ways Premier Division Cricket Tournament crown. Both Al Feroz Youngsters and Warriors Club warmed 23-year-old Goolaerts for the title clash with one- sided semi-finals victories at the West Bay Grounds on Goolaerts was found unconscious and Friday, riding centuries from Tanveer and Adnan, respec- not breathing at the side of the road on tively. Qatar Airways, one of the Sunday, after racing along one of the youngest airlines in the world with a strong presence in all course’s famous cobbled sections six continents, is the sponsor of the tournament and has AFP Belgium, where the Flemish VRT broad- been supporting the Qatar Paris caster said cycling was “in mourning”. Cricket Association in the David Lappartient, president of the development of the sport in sport’s governing body the UCI, said Qatar for a long time. he world of cycling yester- on Twitter: “I would like to extend my Tanveer excelled in his Al day mourned Belgian cyclist deepest condolences to the family, team Feroz Youngsters’ mam- Michael Goolaerts after he died and friends of Michael Goolaerts, who moth 101-run victory against of heart failure at the age of 23 left us too early today. We share their im- HBK. He blitzed six sixes and Tduring the gruelling Paris-Roubaix mense sadness.” as many boundaries in his one-day classic race in France. Gool- The organisers of the Tour de France, unbeaten 129 off 149 balls aerts was found unconscious and not who are also in charge of the Paris- to lift his team to a formida- breathing at the side of the road on Roubaix, said race doctors had managed ble 330 for five in 50 overs. Sunday, after racing along one of the to reach Goolaerts within “two to three Noman and Faisal also struck course’s famous cobbled sections. minutes”. “They tried to bring him back half-centuries to bolster their Doctors were unable to revive him at to life. In this type of race they adminis- team. the scene and he was fl own to hospital in ter the fi rst treatment and then they call Tanveer was involved in the northern city of Lille where he died the local emergency services,” race or- two big alliances for his team. of “cardiac arrest” surrounded by his ganiser Pierre-Yves Thouault said. Despite losing Qalandar off family, his Veranda’s Willems team said. Tour de France race director Christian the very first ball, he and A video on YouTube which has been au- Prudhomme said Goolaerts’ team had opener Faisal (67 with three thenticated showed Goolaerts failing been delighted to receive an invitation to sixes and seven fours) col- to negotiate a curve and shooting into a Sunday’s race. “They so wanted to be on lected 117 runs for the second grassy bank at high speed. the start line,” he said. “We are united in wicket. He and Noman added A post-mortem will take place in the compassion for them.” 192 runs for the fourth wicket next few days to determine the precise The winner of the race, Slovakia’s before the latter missed out cause of death. “According to prelimi- three-time world champion Peter Sa- on his ton by eight runs. He nary reports it was an illness, no doubt gan, paid tribute to Goolaerts on Twitter, made 92 off 75 balls with two the heart which caused the fall, it’s not writing: “All the thoughts and prayers of sixes and eight boundaries. the fall that caused his condition,” the the @BORAhansgrohe team and myself Tayyab picked two wickets prosecutor’s offi ce in Cambrai, which is are with Michael Goolaerts. Such sad for 43 runs. investigating the tragedy, said. news...” During the chase, Mansoor It added: “It’s not a criminal inquiry, Paris-Roubaix is known as the “Hell (four for 38) and Inam it’s an investigation which aims to shed of the North” because a large section of grabbed seven scalps be- light on the circumstances of an un- the course is made up of uneven cobbles tween them and shot out HBK explained death, as is the case when a and the riders have to contend with thick for 229. Mansoor’s 72 came young man of 23 dies suddenly, with- mud in some parts. Goolaerts became a off 62 deliveries with two out the presumption of the existence of professional rider in 2014 aged just 20, sixes and nine boundaries, wrongdoing.” and had taken part in 20 days of racing while Tayyab was the other Police have asked Veranda’s Willems in 2018, including starting the Tour of fighter as he hit half a dozen to make available the fallen rider’s bike Flanders earlier this month, although he fours in his 50 in 82 balls. and helmet to investigators. did not fi nish that race. Warriors Club’s Adnan, dur- Goolaerts came to grief at around the He was yet to win any major honours ing a dominant nine-wicket 100-kilometre mark of the 257-kilome- in the sport. His death echoed that of after a brisk 150-run chase, tre race. “It is with unimaginable sad- another young Belgian rider, 22-year- launched a stinging attack on ness that we have to communicate the old Daan Myngheer, who died in hospital the rival bowlers and raced to passing of our rider and friend Michael two days after suff ering a heart attack on 107 in just 76 balls. His knock Goolaerts,” his team said on Twitter. “He the Criterium International race in Cor- had two sixes and 16 fours. died of cardiac arrest, all medical assist- sica in 2016. In 2011, Belgium’s Wouter Imraz chipped in 35 not out ance was to no avail.” Weylandt was killed in a crash during the Belgian cyclist Michael Goolaerts died in hospital on Sunday at the age of 23, hours after suff ering heart failure during the with a six and three fours in His loss was felt especially keenly in third stage of the Giro d’Italia. gruelling Paris-Roubaix one-day classic race in France. (AFP) his 53-ball knock. Earlier, Nayeem triggered the Commercial Bank Qatar’s TENNIS FOCUS collapse at 33 when he dismissed Zaheer (13). At the same score, Waleed was run out for a duck. After that, the Bertens dominates Goerges to bank men suff ered blows at QIA Champions League regular intervals and folded up for 149 in 44.2 overs with clinch Charleston Open title Nayeem and Kushal sharing four wickets. Murad, Praveeth German number one on Monday, going on to reach her seventh fi - 2018 inaugurated and Omar got one each. Reuters Charleston, United States avoided a sixth break of serve nal in the past 12 months. Goerg- Faisal hit four boundaries by saving two match points late es hit 45 winners, almost twice jam-packed Doha in 39 to be CBQ’s top scorer. in the second set, but Bertens as many as Sevastova’s 23 but Stadium witnessed Taimoor made 19, while Ali iki Bertens routed Julia served out the match to love. the Latvian still had her chances, a fun-fi lled football and Dharmang added 16 and Goerges 6-2 6-1 for the “I have to give credit to her be- only managing to convert one of match as QIA Cham- 15, respectively. biggest victory of her cause she played very solid,” said 14 break points. pionsA League 2018 was for- BRIEF SCORES career at the Charleston Goerges, who had won her last mally inaugurated on Friday Al Feroz Youngsters: 330 for KOpen in South Carolina on Sun- three WTA fi nals. evening. five in 50 overs MUGURUZA WINS (Tanveer 129 day. The dominant Dutch 12th “She didn’t give a lot of mis- ABIERTO GNP SEGUROS An exhibition game between not out, Noman 92, Faisal 67, seed needed only 58 minutes to takes, so I really had to work for Wimbledon champion Garbine India and Nepal was also held Tayyab 2/43) bt HBK: 229 all claim her fi fth career title. every point, I wasn’t really able to Muguruza won the Abierto GNP as the highlight of the day. Af- out in 46.4 overs (Mansoor 72, “It’s unbelievable. I’m so play every point as tough as I did Seguros on Sunday for her fourth ter the initial Group C game Tayyab 50, Mujeeb 4/38, Inam happy and proud,” Bertens said in the semi-fi nals.” title of the year, beating Timea between South Indian FC and 3/46) after winning her second match In the semis, Bertens broke Babos 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in Monter- FSC Naseem Al Rabeeh, the Man the match: Tanveer of Al of the day. The 26-year-old had Keys eight times but had to save rey, Mexico. sixth edition of the tourna- Feroz Youngsters defeated American Madison Keys a match point. Keys led 5-4 in the The third-ranked Muguruza, ment was declared open by Commercial Bank Qatar: 149 6-4 6-7(2) 7-6(5) while world third before the Dutch player ral- from Spain, was the top seed in the Sharaf Hameed, CEO of all out in 44.2 overs (Faisal 39, number 13 Goerges beat Anas- lied to force the tiebreak, which the hard-court event at Club title sponsor City Exchange. Taimoor 19, Ali 16, Dharmang 15, tasija Sevastova of Latvia 7-6(5) she won when Keys netted a Sonoma. She improved to 5-0 The inaugural ceremony Nayeem 2/11, Kushal 2/38) lost 6-3 in earlier semi-fi nal matches backhand. against the fourth-seeded Ba- was followed by the exhibi- to Warriors Club: 153 for one in after rain had postponed play on The Georges-Sevastova match bos, from Hungary. In the dou- tion game between India and 21.2 overs (Adnan 107, Imraz 35, Saturday. The fi nal was much had been suspended because of bles fi nal, Britain’s Naomi Broady Nepal. Rahul K P, India’s U-17 Amir 1/40) easier for Bertens as she broke Saturday’s rain with the score and Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo World Cup star, and Nepa- Man of the match: Adnan of the German fi ve times to score 4-4 in the fi rst set. When play re- topped Desirae Krawczyk of the lese national team star Sujal Warriors Club her second career win over her. sumed on Sunday, Goerges took United States and Giuliana Ol- Sreshta headlined the respec- An exhibition game between India and Nepal was held at the Goerges, who will become the fi rst set in a tiebreak before mos of Mexico 3-6, 6-4, 10-8. tive starting lineups. India Doha Stadium after QIA Champions League 2018 was won the game 1-0, with Mu- inaugurated on Friday evening. feer scoring the lone goal. Later on, the second group presence of representatives RESULTS: game of the day was held, with from Qatar Football Asso- South Indian FC 1 (Sachin 24’) - 1 YAAS Qatar defeating Team ciation, tournament sponsors Naseem Al Rabeeh FSC (Jibin MBM 3-1. The tournament and QIA offi cials. QIA chief 55’) will continue on April 12, with patron M S Bukhari spoke of India 1 (Mufeer 24’) - 0 Nepal two games set to be played the organisation’s future plans YAAS Qatar 3 (Prasoon 18’, at Doha Stadium. The open- and also promised support to- Anoop 49’, 55’) - 1 Team MBM ing ceremony was held in the wards the HH The Emir’s Cup. (Vishnu 53’)

Tanveer of Feroz Al Feroz Youngsters made 129. The Netherlands’ Kiki Bertens poses with Charleston Open trophy on Sunday. Gulf Times Tuesday, April 10, 2018 7 COMMONWEALTH GAMES

ATHLETICS SWIMMING Van der Burgh Simbine upsets Blake stuns Peaty to spark African gold rush AFP appearance at the Games. “Adam Gold Coast, Australia and I have a really tough rivalry and he’s had the up over me over to win 100m gold the last few years. To get on top of ameron van der Burgh the podium and see my fl ag and stunned Adam Peaty my national anthem played is a Jamaica also denied in the women’s 100, with Trinidad’s Ahye taking the gold to defend his 50 metres career highlight. “It’s not every breaststroke title and day you beat the world record Ctrigger a big night in the pool for holder and I’ll take it.” South Africa at the Common- Peaty took the defeat on the wealth Games yesterday. South chin. “As an athlete I’m disap- African swimmers rode the wave pointed. I’ve never had a 50m as Chad le Clos clinched the Commonwealth title — I’ve had butterfl y treble with victory in the rest but not this one,” he said. the 100m fi nal for a 16th career “But as a person and as a char- Commonwealth medal and Tat- acter in the sport away from the jana Schoenmaker completed a racing, I’m so happy for Cam- breaststroke double with gold in eron.” the 100m. Le Clos improved to three but- The boil-overs kept coming terfl y golds and a silver medal on the penultimate night of the in the 100m freestyle. “I’m swimming with Bronte Campbell very proud of myself. Nothing upstaging sister Cate’s bid for a could’ve gone better for me this fourth gold medal with a stirring week,” he said. “I knew had to come-from-behind win in the win tonight — lot of pressure go- 100m freestyle. ing in as favourite. I couldn’t ask Van der Burgh hurtled off for a better way to end from an the starting blocks and defi ed individual stand point.” Peaty’s eff orts to hunt him down Bronte Campbell looked stag- in the frantic one-lapper, win- gered to post a Games record ning by four hundredths in 26.58 52.27sec to overhaul her sister seconds to infl ict a rare defeat on Cate in the 100m free. “I didn’t the Englishman and complete a know I could swim that fast and 50m hat-trick. I wasn’t expecting to go that The South African, who beat quickly,” she said. “To swim the Peaty in the event at the 2014 fastest I have in three years in Glasgow Games, celebrated a fi nal and come away with the wildly by punching the water be- gold is pretty special.” fore climbing on to the lane rope Elsewhere, Mitch Larkin be- and pumping his fi sts in delight. came the fi rst man to win the World record holder Peaty has Commonwealth Games back- South Africa’s Akani Simbine (centre) sprints to victory ahead of compatriot Henricho Bruintjies (left) and Jamaica’s Yohan Blake in the 100m final during the 2018 Gold Coast proved unbeatable in the 50m stroke treble, leading an Aus- Commonwealth Games at the Carrara Stadium on the Gold Coast yesterday. (AFP) and 100m in recent years and was tralian clean sweep in the 200m expected to carry off the breast- fi nal in 1:56.10. Teenager Ariarne Reuters “I was stumbling all the way,” the “I wasn’t focused on (Blake). I was just 800, qualifi ed fastest for today’s fi nal stroke double. Titmus claimed Australia’s fi rst Gold Coast, Australia 28-year-old told reporters ruefully. “I focused on myself and making sure I get ahead of home runner Georgia Griffi th But London Olympic 100m victory in the Games 800m free- just didn’t recover from it. It was a pretty to the 50 metres as quick as I can because (4:06.41) and Kenya’s Mary Kuria. champion van der Burgh had style in 20 years with storming easy race for me to win because I’ve been I know if I put that together the rest of my Even with the absence of Wayde van other ideas. “To get the triple win in 8:20.02 in another one- kani Simbine upstaged favourite feeling good. It was just never (going) to race will come together,” said the Pretoria Niekerk and reigning champion Kirani in the 50 breast and to come two-three for the hosts. Austral- Yohan Blake to win the 100 me- happen today, I don’t know. I’m a bit dis- 24-year-old. James, the men’s 400m boasts qual- through the years and fi nish on ia top the able-bodied swimming tres gold medal for South Africa appointed because I’ve been feeling good, “Being able to run in lane eight and lane ity and looks to be a battle between Bot- such a high is something that is medal tally with 15 golds to South at the Commonwealth Games I’ve been running good.” nine with Henricho and placing fi rst and swana’s fl amboyant Isaac Makwala and really special,” van der Burgh said Africa’s six and England’s fi ve yesterday,A ending Jamaica’s reign over Bolt, who retired last year with eight second with him, it’s really amazing. And Grenada’s Rio Olympic fi nalist Bralon after what will likely be his last with one day remaining. the sprint. With a heaving crowd at Car- Olympic golds including two 4x100 re- it’s a big thing for South Africa sprinting Taplin. Makwala, who was barred from rara Stadium roaring, Rio Olympic fi nalist lay titles shared with Blake, tweeted his and South African sports.” competing in the world championships’ Simbine blazed away after Blake botched congratulations to his teammate and Jamaica was also denied in the wom- 400 fi nal in London last year over illness his start, and crossed the line in 10.03 Simbine. “Well done @YohanBlake. Keep en’s 100, with Trinidad and Tobago’s fears, qualifi ed fastest for the fi nal with a seconds, leading a South African one- putting in the work. You know your jour- Michelle-Lee Ahye taking the gold in time of 45.00 seconds. two with team mate Henricho Bruintjies. ney,” the sprint great said. The path to 11.14, holding off Blake’s teammate After crossing the line, the 31-year- A stumbling Blake struggled for bal- gold was made smoother for Simbine Christania Williams (11.21) and third- old did two push-ups on the track. New ance and by the time he regained it, the when England runner Adam Gemili, a placed Gayon Evans. It was a better night Zealand’s world champion Tomas Walsh race was over, leaving him disappointed 4x100m relay gold medallist at the Lon- for world and Olympic 800m champion threw 21.41 metres to take the shot put with the bronze and a time of 10.19. The don world championships, pulled out Caster Semenya, who kicked off her bid gold, going one better than his silver at third fastest man of all time, Blake topped before the fi nal with a thigh injury. Sim- for a Commonwealth double with a com- Glasgow. Stella Chesang fought off Ken- qualifying with a time of 10.06 and had bine’s victory ended Jamaica’s domina- fortable win in the 1,500m heats in four ya’s Stacy Ndiwa to take the 10,000m been warned jokingly by Bolt not to come tion of the Commonwealth 100m dating minutes and 05.86 seconds. The South gold for Uganda and win her maiden home without gold in his luggage. back to the 2006 Games in Melbourne. Africa fl ag-bearer, who will run in the Commonwealth medal.

SPOTLIGHT India win gold in TT and badminton, shooter Jitu breaks CWG record IANS Gold Coast, Australia South Africa’s Cameron van der Burgh (right) and England’s Adam wo fi rst-time gold medals from Peaty compete during the men’s 50m breaststroke final at the 2018 the men’s table tennis team and Gold Coast Commonwealth Games yesterday. (AFP) the mixed badminton team, shooter Jitu Rai’s triumph with Ta meet record and a medal each from Pardeep Singh, Om Mitharwal, Mehuli Ghosh and Apurvi Chandela took India Pakistan weightlift er to the third position in the medal table at the 21st Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Nooh Butt wins bronze Gold Coast yesterday. While the men’s table tennis team, spearheaded by Achanta Sharath Kamal, thrashed Nigeria 3-0 in the fi nal, the mixed badminton team outplayed three- time defending champions Malaysia 3-1 in the fi nal, as India overtook Canada in the medal table with 19 medals in total, including 10 gold. India is behind hosts Australia (106 medals) and England (63 medals). Among other success sto- ries, boxers Manish Kaushik and Gau- rav Solanki entered the quarter-fi nals, while high jumper Tejaswin Shankar and sprinter Muhammed Anas entered the fi - nals on a day mixed day for the athletics contingent. Shooters, for the second con- India's badminton team pose on the podium after winning gold in the Mixed Team event in Gold Coast yesterday. (Reuters) secutive day, delivered the most number of medals, headlined by Jitu’s wire-to- women’s eff ort. The men’s team defeated mixed doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Ran- while one scored it as a draw. wire victory in the men’s 10m Air Pis- Nigeria 3-0, after beating Singapore in kireddy and Ashwini Ponnappa all win- Earlier, Solanki entered the quarter- tol fi nal. Jitu created a new CWG record the semi-fi nals earlier in the day. Sharath ning a match each to power India past Lee fi nals of the men’s fl yweight (52 kilogram) of 235.1 for his second gold medal at the gave India an early 1-0 lead with a thump- Chong Wei-spearheaded Malaysia which category, defeating Akimos Annang Am- Nooh Dastgir Butt of Pakistan lifts on the way to his bronze medal CWG. Om bagged the bronze in the same ing 4-1 (4-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-9) comeback was winning gold since the 2006 CWG. piah of Ghana by a unanimous 5:0 verdict in the men’s +105kg weightlifting at the Commonwealth Games. event with 214.3. He exited after the 22nd win over Bode Abiodun in the fi rst singles Elsewhere, India completed its weight- in the round of 16. shot of the 24-shot fi nal. match of the contest. lifting campaign with nine medals — the In athletics, Shankar entered the fi - Gold Coast: Pakistan added attempt to turn it into a gold, The women shooters also did India India’s top-ranked singles player last coming from Pardeep’s Singh silver nal of the men’s high jump event with another medal to its tally in Nooh attempted 228kg in 2nd proud as Mehuli and Apurvi bagged silver Sathiyan Gnanasekaran then doubled the in the men’s 105 kg category, lifting 152kg a best attempt of 2.21 metres, fi nishing the Commonwealth Games and 231kg in third attempt but and bronze respectively in the women’s lead with another come-from-behind in snatch and 200kg in clean and jerk for the qualifi cation stage at the joint fi fth yesterday when Nooh Dastagir couldn’t do it successfully. His 10m Air Rifl e event. Mehuli lost to even- victory over Segun Toriola 4-1 (10-12, a total of 352kg. spot. Sprinter Anas entered the fi nal of Butt won the bronze medal in lifting of 395kg is also a junior tual champion Martina Lindsay Veloso 11-3, 11-3, 11-4). Sathiyan and Harmeet Other lifters in action during the day, the men’s 400 metre event, fi nishing fi rst +105kg weightlifting competi- commonwealth record. of Singapore in the shoot-off after both Desai were assigned with the doubles Purnima Pandey fi nished sixth in a fi eld in the semifi nal, clocking 45.44 seconds tion. The 20-year-old Nooh, who This is Pakistan’s second were tied at a CWG record score of 247.2 tie and the duo rather had a comfortable of eight competitors in the women’s with a reaction time of 0.132. last year won the silver medal medal in the ongoing Common- in the fi nal. Mehuli scored 9.9 while Mar- 11-8, 11-5, 11-3 win against Omotayo Ola- +90kg category, while Lalchhanhimi fi n- Long-distance runner Suriya Loga- in Commonwealth weightlifting wealth Games being held in tina shot 10.3 in the shoot-off . jide and Abiodun Bode. Sharath had won ished eighth in the 90kg category with a nathan fi nished outside of the medals championship, lifted an overall Gold Coast, Australia. Both the Apurvi, the defending champion, got twice to guide India past Singapore in the total of 194kg. in the women’s 10,000m fi nal, but had a 395kg to win the medal. medals have been won by the the bronze with 225.3. Smit Singh fi nish- semi-fi nals. In boxing, Kaushik overcame Michael personal best timing of 32:23.56. She fi n- After lifting 173kg in snatch, weightlifters for the country. ing sixth in in fi nal of men’s skeet shoot- The mixed badminton team also rose Alexander of Trinidad and Tobago in the ished at the 13th spot. he successfully lifted 222kg in Last week, Taha Talib won a ing competition. to the occasion. World No.2 men’s sin- round of 16 stage of the lightweight (60 Tejinder Pal Singh fi nished a disap- his first attempt of clean and bronze medal in men’s 62kg In team table tennis, India struck a gles star Kidambi Srikanth, 2012 Olympic kilogram) category, with a 4:0 margin as pointing eighth in the men’s shot put fi nal jerk to confirm his medal. In an weightlifting competition. golden pair as the men emulated the bronze medallist Saina Nehwal and the four of the fi ve judges ruled in his favour with a best throw of 19.42 metres.

Tuesday, April 10, 2018 GULF TIMES SPORT

SPOTLIGHT Souq Waqif Equestrian Festival starts on grand scale The final two days of Festival will see leading Qatari riders take part in the 11th leg of the Hathab National Equestrian Series

By Sports Reporter Doha

he Souq Waqif Equestrian Fes- tival 2018, organised by the Private Engineering Offi ce, is being held until April 14, in co- Toperation with the Qatar Equestrian Federation, Racing and Equestrian Club and Al Shaqab, member of Qatar Foundation. Special areas have been reserved for the public who will attend the various equestrian competitions, which will be held from 4:30pm to 10:30pm. The festival started on Sunday with an auction of Arabian horses (beauty category), said the Festival’s general supervisor Abdulrahman al-Naama. The festival is being held in the western square of Souq Waqif. Today, the Arabian Peninsula cham- pionship will be held, with the auction resuming tomorrow. On Thursday, the A horse is on show at the Souq Waqif Equestrian Festival 2018 yesterday. The event is being ponies races will be held. The fi nal two held at the western square of Souq Waqif and will conclude on April 14. days of Souq Waqif Equestrian Festival will see leading Qatari riders take part in the 11th leg of the popular Hathab National Equestrian Series. This is the penultimate round of Hathab series, with the 12th and fi nal round scheduled for 26th, 27th and 28th of April. Hathab, meaning ‘Canter’ in Arabic, is an initiative of HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad al-Thani, president of the Qa- tar Olympic Committee. The champi- onship is jointly organised by Al Shaqab and Qatar Equestrian Federation. The series, which carries a total prize money of QR1mn, is open for Qatari nationals and also to residents of Qatar. Organisers aim to improve the standard of horse riding among Qatari youths through Hathab, while also encourag- ing the involvement of private stables and individual horse owners to increase awareness of horsemanship as part of Qatar’s history and tradition. Results of the competition will be used in the selection process of riders to represent Qatar in future international competi- tions. Each leg will carry points, with only top seven results to be counted.

QATAR SHOOTERS SHINE IN MOROCCO FOOTBALL QFA-Chelsea Foundation Coaching Clinic takes place in Qatar for second time he Qatar Football Association’s D licence candidate coaches. Some of the gives the opportunity for many of our play- (QFA) Football Development De- coaches participating in the coaching clin- ers to diversify their football knowledge and partment held a press conference in ic from Qatar are Djamel Belmadi, Sami technical abilities and helps to develop it in collaboration with Chelsea Founda- Traboulsi, Philippe Burle, Amine Frikha, an ideal manner to help them in the future.” Ttion and Yokohoma Tyres, the principal club Aberrazak Hedider, Dragam Tadic, Silvio He added: “One of the most important partner, to launch the joint QFA-Chelsea Diliberto, Ouajdi Boussarsar. There are also objectives of this coaching clinic is to ex- Foundation Coaching Clinic. be coaches assisting Chelsea Foundation’s pand the fundamentals of the technical The press conference was attended by coaches in delivering the sessions to the partnership between the Qatari clubs and Fahad Thani al- Zarraa, Director of Foot- young players, those include Wissam Rizk, the Chelsea Foundation, which possesses ball Development Department at QFA, Zak Wael Gomaa, Mohamed Aboutrika, Said one of the most important academies for Wooster, Head Coach at Chelsea Founda- al-Basheer, Ali Al Ahraq, Younes Ali, Ezzat football development around the world. It tion, Takeshi Harada, General Manager at Gadoo, and Abdullah Koni. Lastly, a list of also seeks to create a permanent technical Yokohama Tyres Middle East, and Karu- D License and Pro License coaches includ- partnership in terms of exchange of knowl- nakar Menon, Divisional Manager at Ali Bin ing Jawad Ahannach, Ahmed Muhegri, Ab- edge and expertise, workshops and special- Qatar’s Nasser bin Saleh al-Attiyah (centre), Rashid Khalifa Al Hitmi & Co, distributors of Yoko- dullah Maarafi , and Saleh Al Deery are tak- ised training courses for diff erent age group Saleh (left) and Saeed Abusharib celebrate on the hama Tyres. ing part in theoretical sessions delivered by players.” podium after winning the skeet team gold medal Held from 7 to 11 April, Chelsea founda- Chelsea Foundation’s Zak Wooster. Joining Chelsea FC in 2009 and develop- in the Arab Shotgun Championship in Rabat, Mo- tion Coaches shall deliver coaching on the The QFA-Chelsea Foundation Coaching ing international projects across the globe rocco, yesterday. Rashid also won the individual opening day to expatriate children from Clinic is an example of the fruitful techni- ranging from Soccer Schools to Sponsorship skeet silver. Meanwhile, Qatar women skeet team schools followed by intensive coaching clin- cal partnerships that QFA signs with vari- activation, Zak Wooster, International Foot- comprising Sara Mohamed, Hajar Mohamed and ics to promising young players representing ous football associations, academies, and ball Development Offi cer at Chelsea FC spe- Reem Sharshani won the silver medal. Clubs under QFA and coaching workshops clubs around the world and highlights the cialises in coaching elite players and leading On Sunday, Qatar women team (Amna al-Abdul- to expat coaches who are sports teachers QFA’s Football Development Department’s specialised clinics for coach education, and lah, Khloud Khalf and Bana Ali) clinched the trap from various schools around Qatar, as well ongoing objectives in constantly developing delivers the club’s philosophy to a wide vari- silver medal after finishing second behind the as coaching workshops to coaches from Qa- football in Qatar. ety of players and coaches across the world. Moroccan team, while the bronze medal went to tari clubs. While the coaching workshops Taking place in Qatar for the second con- Zak Wooster, International Football De- Kuwaiti side. Qatar’s Bana Ali also won claimed for expatriate coaches were held on the secutive time, the coaching clinic aims to velopment Offi cer at Chelsea Foundation the silver medal in the individual event. opening day at the Messaimeer Sports Club, benefi t local coaches by giving them the op- said: “The Academy’s presence in Doha coaching workshops for the QFA’ s Profes- portunity to learn specifi c skills and tech- for the second consecutive time in a row is sional Coaches were held from 8 April at niques that will benefi t them in the future aimed at launching a unique training pro- Duhail Sports Club and Mesaimeer Sports and also provides a real opportunity to up- gram to delivers the club’s philosophy to a FOCUS Club and will continue until 11 April, and the date the Qatari football system, in particu- wide variety of players and coaches in Qatar, clubs’ sessions for the players took place at lar the local coaches in Qatar, of the modern by allowing players and coaches to spend the Aspire’s pitches 3 and 4 starting from 8 April coaching methods and philosophies used in most enjoyable times and learn the latest and are planned to continue until 11 April. Chelsea Foundation’s development philoso- training methods of the foundation.” Team Atlas emerge champions The coaching clinic will see the participa- phies. Fahad al- Zarraa commented: “The He added: “We are keen to engage with tion of more than 120 players between the coaching clinic is a great learning experi- the largest number of coaches from Qatar eam Atlas have been rec- ages of 10 and 14, and shall be delivered by ence for the coaches and players and being in order to help them learn the Chelsea way ognised as Qatar’s 2018 Zac Wooster, Head Coach and four Coaches held in Doha for the second consecutive of coaching so they can transfer their expe- Neymar Jr’s Five cham- at Chelsea Foundation, and over 74 coaches year refl ects the great confi dence that Chel- riences and knowledge with the rest of the pions, after a month of from Qatar. sea Foundation has in the Qatari football other players. The aim of the coaching clinic Tfascinating fi ve-a-side football. The coaches from Qatar who are tak- system. Partnering with advanced foot- is to learn more about the coaching culture The national fi nal took place at ing part in the coaching clinic include Pro ball academies that have a unique coaching in Qatar and the young players’ potential, Qatar Sports Club on April 6. licence coaches, D licence coaches, and methodologies such as Chelsea Foundation teach them diff erent methods.” The playoff s commenced with a roster of 16 teams. After quali- fying in a convincing fashion, team Atlas beat Favour FC 5-1 to secure their place at the Neymar Jr’s Five World Final. Over 200 teams took part in the three qualifying phases that were held throughout the case their talents. Team Atlas the Red Bull athlete Neymar Jr. month of March. The tourna- will represent Qatar at the world himself at the Instituto Projeto ment brought together 1200 par- fi nal which will be held in Brazil Neymar Jr, giving the victors ticipants, giving both casual and on July 21, 2018. an opportunity to challenge the devoted fans a platform to show- The event will be hosted by Brazilian hero on the pitch.