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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 16, 201416 19 Familiar foes to meet again in the Champions League Page 18

KUWAIT: His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah presents the Crown Prince Football Cup to Al-Arabi captain Mohammed Jarouk. — KUNA Al Arabi lift Crown Prince Football Cup

KUWAIT: Al-Arabi Sports Club defeated Kuwait Sports His Highness the Crown Prince was received upon Sabah, President of Kuwait Football Association (KFA) Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Sheikh Faisal Al-Saud Al-Sabah, for- Club 4-2 in extra time to lift His Highness the Crown arrival at the stadium by Minister of Information and Sheikh Talal Fahad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, KFA board mer parliament speaker Jassem Al-Kharafi, His Highness Prince Football Cup held at Kuwait Stadium in Kaifan Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah members, senior PAYS officials, and chairmen of the two Sheikh Nasser Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, His yesterday. His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah, Chairman of Board and clubs. Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al- Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah partonized and attended Director General of the Public Authority for Youth and The final game was attended by parliament speaker Hamad Al-Sabah, Deputy Minister of Amiri Diwan Ali the final match. Sport (PAYS) Sheikh Ahmad Mansour Al-Ahmad Al- Marzouq Ali Al-Ghanem, Pakistani parliament speaker Jarrah Al-Sabah and senior state officials. — KUNA PSG, Marseille New skippers, but Gabba both beaten 1-0 record favors Aussies BRISBANE: Australia, under new cap- and this seems the perfect time to enact : An early goal by Guingamp’s Jeremy Pied was enough to tain Steve Smith, take a one-nil series the changeover.” hand champions Paris St Germain their first loss of the French lead over India into today’s second Test The teams have to back up from a season, leaving still on top despite in Brisbane where they have not lost a three-day turnaround and the their own defeat by Monaco on Sunday. Test in 26 years. Australians are tinkering with freshen- In the first of the day’s twin 1-0 upsets-which saw the top two Smith, at just 25, was anointed ing up their pace attack with Josh Monday as Australia’s 45th Test skipper Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc vying for surprisingly felled-Pied’s diving header in the 11th minute secured after Michael Clarke suffered a fresh starting roles. a home victory for the unheralded Breton side. hamstring injury in the 48-run victory in “We will see how they pull up,” coach It was PSG’s second defeat of the week, following their 3-1 Adelaide and was ruled out for the rest Darren Lehmann said on Sunday of the Champions League loss in Barcelona today. Despite strong early of the four-match series. The Australians bowlers who performed in Adelaide. possession and a searing shot over the bar by Edinson Cavani in have proved formidable in steamy “We will pick the best team to get 20 the second minute, the Parisians often appeared jaded against an Brisbane where the pace and bounce of wickets. A couple of them are sore but increasingly combative Guingamp, fresh from consecutive victories the Gabba wicket troubles touring sides, the next day or two will tell. It’s a quick over Reims and Caen. none more so than India who have not turnaround.” Guingamp’s break came when a Younousse Sankhare header won in five attempts. Off-spinner Nathan Lyon is also steered a free kick to Pied, whose deadly lunge from near the Australia’s last Gabba Test loss was expected to figure prominently at the penalty spot left a beaten Salvatore Sirigu fuming. against the Viv Richards-led West Indies Gabba, where he has taken 15 wickets PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was the most profligate, miscon- by nine wickets in 1988. India will also in three Tests at 21.87. likely have a new captain with Lyon captured a career-best 12 wick- trolling incoming passes and sending a free kick into the wall. Team Mahendra Singh Dhoni expected to ets in the match, including seven for mate Marco Verratti’s 19th-minute strike from outside the box return to the leadership role after miss- 152 in the second innings at the found Jonas Lossl’s waiting gloves. ing the series opener to recover from a Adelaide Oval, triggering a final-session The 13th-placed Guingamp also came close to further goals, fractured thumb. collapse to steer Australia to victory. with Claudio Beauvue often looking dangerous and toying with It is bitter-sweet for India with Dhoni “He did a really good job (in David Luiz in the PSG box before putting the ball wide in the 22nd taking the reins from stand-in skipper Brisbane) last year against England, got minute. Virat Kohli whose twin centuries had the some key wickets,” Lehmann said. “He PSG’s efforts became more frantic in the second half but ulti- tourists on the cusp of a remarkable enjoys the bounce at the Gabba.” mately no more effective. Yohan Cabaye earned his latest yellow come-from-behind victory in Adelaide India’s pace attack of Varun Aaron, card for a tardy tackle on Lionel Mathis. until a late clatter of wickets on the final Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma With the pace intensifying, a fine Lucas Moura strike was deflect- day. will also relish bowling at the Gabba, ed wide in the 77th and a Cavani cross could only find empty “I would be very happy that he while off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (Dhoni) is going to be fit and available is in line for a return. space. Gregory van der Wiel’s well-placed centre brought for the second Test,” Kohli said. “It The Indian management’s decision to Ibrahimovic close to redemption in the closing minutes, but doesn’t matter if I have the ‘c’ in front of hand a debut to rookie leg-spinner Karn Guingamp’s Danish keeper was up to the challenge. my name or not. That doesn’t change Sharma ahead of the more experienced Guingamp’s prowess handed OM a chance to widen their one- anything as far as my mindset is con- Ashwin in Adelaide came in for some point lead over second-placed PSG but that too was squandered. cerned.” post-match criticism. Monaco’s coup de grace came in the 67th minute when But former Australia Test captain Ian While off-spinner Lyon picked up 12 Bernardo Silva netted following an centre and Chappell believes Kohli should be wickets and delivered a dramatic victory Yannick Ferreira Carrasco feint. installed as India’s full-time skipper. to the home team on the last day, wrist- The improving principality side, now up to sixth having let their “Kohli’s performance over three-and-a- spinner Sharma ended with match fig- best players leave following last term’s second-place finish, almost half days must have tempted the selec- ures of 4 for 238. doubled their lead via Andrea Raggi’s head four minutes later. tors into thinking now is the right time Despite India’s record at the Gabba, it to elevate him to full-time Test captain- is a match that the tourists must at least Andre-Pierre Gignac and Mario Lemina had earlier come close to MONACO: Marseille’s French defender Rod Fanni (right) vies with cy,” Chappell said. draw to still have a chance of winning scoring for Marseille, whose 38 points represent their highest Monaco’s Portuguese Silva Bernardo (left) during the “There’s no doubt that M.S. Dhoni has the series ahead of the third Test begin- return at this stage of a season since 1998-9. — Reuters French L1 football match. — AFP passed his use-by-date as a Test captain, ning Boxing Day in Melbourne. — AFP