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Monday, April 3, 2017 FOOTBALL Rajab 6, 1438 AH Di Maria GULF TIMES sparkles as PSG retain League Cup SPORT Page 2

FOOTBALL Federer downs Nadal again, Lekhwiya, wins Miami title

Miami: Roger Federer defeated long-standing rival Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-4 to win the Miami Open yesterday and continue his outstanding start to the year. Since returning from his six month injury lay-off , Al Sadd grab the 35-year-old Federer has also won the Aus- tralian Open and Indian Wells and he heads into the clay season as, once again, the dominant presence on the ATP Tour. Federer has beaten Nadal in all of those events this year and has now won his last four meetings between the pair. The Spaniard was playing in his fifth Miami final big victories but remains without a win in the Masters series event. The first set was a tight aff air with both players With only two points separating the teams, the Qatar having their opportunities to break but it was not until the eighth game and 10th break point Stars League is set for a thrilling finale later this month of the set that one of them was able to get ahead. Nadal could only find the net from a Federer backhand and the Swiss grabbed a 5-3 lead and he comfortably held the next game to secure the first set. There has always been a marked contrast between Federer and Nadal’s diff ering styles and with time it has become further accentuated. Nadal was working hard in the 83 degrees after- noon heat, thrusting himself into his shots while the elegant Federer’s poise appeared almost casual. The second set took an almost identical path, albeit with fewer openings to break for both players until Federer again pounced, to grab a 5-4 lead when Nadal went long returning a fine backhand.

By Sports Reporter Doha Al Sadd (top) and Lekhwiya players celebrate their big wins in the QSL yesterday. ekhwiya moved into pole po- sition to capture their fi fth Qatar Stars League title after Shehzad hits 53 as Pakistan beat Lrecording a crushing 5-1 win over El Jaish yesterday. They are ahead of Al Sadd by just Windies in 4th T20 to win series two points but with both teams fa- voured to win against minor opposi- tion in the fi nal two matches, Lekhwi- AFP ya are now clear favourites for the title, Port of Spain SCOREBOARD unless, of course, there is an upset. Lekhwiya continued to pile on the West Indies Innings Pakistan Innings pressure from the off , which eventu- hmed Shehzad E. Lewis c Ali b Wasim ...... 7 A. Shehzad b Williams ...... 53 ally paid off on the 29th minute when struck a patient C. Walton c Malik b Khan ...... 40 K. Akmal c Williams b Samuels ...... 20 they were awarded a penalty after half-century as Pa- M. Samuels b Ali ...... 22 B. Azam c sub (Powell) b Williams ...... 38 Jaish’s goalkeeper clumsily brought kistan cruised to a J. Mohamed b Ali ...... 1 S. Malik ...... 9 down Almoez Ali who was running seven-wicketA win over West L. Simmons run out ...... 1 S. Ahmed not out ...... 3 into the box to connect with a chipped Indies in the fourth and fi nal K. Pollard b Raees ...... 3 Extras (lb-1, w-3) ...... 4 through ball. fi nished off the tie when Edgar made it game tilted in Sadd’s favour when T20 international in Trini- C. Brathwaite not out ...... 37 Total (3 wkts, 19 overs) ...... 127 The referee was quick to blow for a 4-1 with a fi ne fi nish on the inside of midfi elder Daniel Goumou saw red for dad yesterday. J. Holder c sub (Nawaz) b Khan ...... 0 Fall of : 1-40 (Akmal), 2-110 whistle and Lekhwiya’s , Mo- his right from 16 yards out. a second yellow after a reckless elbow Pakistan’s bowlers re- S. Narine b Riaz ...... 9 (Shehzad), 3-115 (Azam) hamed Musa, stepped up and smashed Lekhwiya weren’t fi nished with four on Hassan Haydoos. stricted West Indies to 124 S. Badree not out ...... 1 Bowling: S. Badree 4-0-38-0, J. Holder 3-0- it down the middle of the goal to give though and made it fi ve in injury time Sadd didn’t waste any time in for 8 before Shehzad (53) Extras (lb2, w1) ...... 3 24-0, K. Williams 3-016-2 (1w), S. Narine 4-0-19- the Red Knights the lead. when Moez headed home a rebounded pressing home their advantage. De- helped the tourists reach Total (8 wkts, 20 overs) ...... 124 0, M. Samuels 2-0-11-1, C. Brathwaite 2-0-13-0 Things went from bad to worse for corner kick after some more scrappy fender Pedro Miguel made a surging their target with six balls to Fall of wickets: 1-27 (Lewis), 2-52 (Walton), 3-59 (2w), J. Mohammed 1-0-5-0 Jaish who lost possession from kick- defending from Jaish. run which saw the Qatari internation- spare to complete a 3-1 series (Mohamed), 4-73 (Simmons), 5-73 (Samuels), Result: Pakistan won by 7 wickets. off and gifted Lekhwiya a second after Meanwhile, Al Sadd kept the pres- al brought down in the box, leaving victory. 6-82 (Pollard), 7-83 (Holder), 8-121 (Narine) Toss: Pakistan some poor defending. After a number sure on league leaders Lekhwiya with a the referee little choice but to award Earlier, excellent seam Bowling: I. Wasim 4-0-25-1, H. Ali 4-2-12-2 Umpires: Joel Wilson (TRI), Gregory of lazy and ill-advised back passes, comprehensive 4-1 Qatar Clasico win a penalty. Leading scorer Bounedjah bowling by Pakistan limited (1w), R. Raees 4-1-25-1, W. Riaz 4-0-44-1, S. Khan Brathwaite (BAR) Lekhwiya pressured and dispossessed over Al Rayyan. Michael Laudrup’s made no mistake from the penalty the West Indies to 124. Hasan 4-0-16-2 a lacklustre looking Jaish defence side saw midfi elder Daniel Goumou spot, calmly slotting the ball down the Ali and Rumman Raees, who which enabled South Korean interna- sent off midway through the fi rst middle of the goal. tional Nam Tae-hee to pick the ball up half, and Al Sadd made their advan- On the stroke of half time Al Sadd replaced fellow left-arm noon heat, Ali returned the match. He claimed two for in the 18 yard box and hit a low hard tage count scoring three goals in what scored a third through Iranian inter- seamer Sohail Tanvir from outstanding fi gures of two 16 off his four overs, remov- shot to make it 2-0 and take his indi- proved to be a comfortable victory for national Morteza Pouraliganji. who the previous match the day for 12 from his four overs, ing opener Chadwick Walton vidual tally to 13. the side. planted a fi ne header into the bottom before, displayed admira- including two maidens. He for a top score of 40 before It didn’t take long for Lekhwiya to The Wolves broke the deadlock on right hand corner. ble accuracy and discipline, breached the defences of coming back in the midst of fi nd the back of the net in the second the 12th minute though midfi elder Al Sadd didn’t let up and scored combining for three impor- and Ja- the West Indies collapse to half and make it 3-0 to all but secure Jugurtha Hamroun who smashed the the fourth goal of the tie through Ab- tant wickets and also deliv- son Mohammed to leave remove for a the three points and keep them top ball from outside of the box to beat dulkarim Hassan in the 51st minute. ering three maiden overs. the home side’s innings in duck. of the table. Ali Afi f found himself in Rayyan keeper Omar Barry and give Xavi picked out the Qatari interna- It is the fi rst time ever that ruins after they had started With his side tottering at space in the 18 yard box after just a Sadd a early lead in the 12th minute. tional defender, who hit his shot past Pakistan managed to bowl brightly. 83 for seven, captain Carlos minute of play in the second half and Two minutes later Jugurtha Ham- Omar Barry who should of done better as many as there maidens in Leg-spinner Shadab Brathwaite eff ected a bit of a able to easily hit a low shot home on roun was on the other end of a similar to stop the ball. a T20 International and also Khan, who suff ered along- repair job with an unbeaten his right following some scrappy de- chance from closer range but the sum- The 10 men of Al Rayyan valiantly the fi rst occasion the West side the other bowlers as 37, although a fi nal total again fending from Jaish. mer signing spurned his eff ort well tried to get back into the game, and Indies, the reigning World opener blazed under 130 left Pakistan as fa- Jaish hit one back just a minute later over. Rodrigo Tabata did grab a consolation T20 champions, conceded 91 in pacing the home side vourites to complete victory after a goal from their Brazilian for- Omar Barry kept Al Rayyan in the with fi ve minutes left to play. three maidens when to a seven- win in and take the series 3-1. ward, Romarinho, a fi ne strike which tie with an instinctive save to deny a Earlier, Al Gharafa ‘s top-4 hopes in T20s. the third match to keep the would end up being just a consolation snap header from leading scorer Bagh- suff ered a fatal blow when they were Despite struggling to cope series alive, also responded Report of third goal. Just moments later, Lekhwiya dad Bounedjah in the 33rd minute. The beaten 2-0 by Umm Salal. with the intense early after- superbly in this critical fi nal match on page 6 Gulf Times 2 Monday, April 3, 2017 FOOTBAL

PREMIER LEAGUE Arsenal held by Man City as Swansea, Boro stay in trouble Arsenal twice had to come from behind at home to avoid a third successive Premier League defeat

AFP London WENGER rsene Wenger endured more frus- DECLARES tration as Arsenal were held to a 2-2 draw by top four rivals Manchester City, while Swansea and Middles- LOVE AFTER broughA remain in relegation danger after a 0-0 draw in the Premier League yesterday. MAN CITY With Arsenal fans once again calling for Wenger to resign during a pre-match protest march outside the Emirates Stadium, the Gun- DRAW ners boss desperately needed a dominant dis- London: Embattled Arsenal manager Arsene play from his team. Instead, Arsenal twice had Wenger declared his love for the club after to come from behind to avoid a third successive his side fought back to earn a 2-2 draw Premier League defeat. against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City The north Londoners remain in sixth place, yesterday. seven points behind fourth-placed City in the Leroy Sane’s fifth-minute goal and Sergio fi ght to qualify for the Champions League via a Aguero’s drilled eff ort saw Arsenal fall behind top four fi nish. “We were nervous and surprised twice in the first half, but Wenger’s men hit by their start. I feared that we could start with back on each occasion via Theo Walcott the handbrake on because of the pressure we are and Shkodran Mustafi. The result followed under,” Wenger said. a sequence of four defeats in five Premier “We were not completely at our best because League games that had seen Wenger come of the pressure but we showed mental strength under fire from a sizeable contingent of and did not lie down. Mathematically a draw is disgruntled Arsenal fans. not the best solution for both teams but it is a “I am professional and I have shown great point which will help us.” loyalty in the past. I love this club,” Wenger City manager Pep Guardiola added: “We told television reporters at the Emirates Sta- didn’t play in the fi rst half, after the goal we for- dium. Wenger, who is reported to have been got to play, the desire went. In the second half off ered a new two-year contract by Arsenal, we played more. We suff ered a lot in the first half is yet to make an announcement about his because we did not make those passes together.” future, but once again said he would make Arsenal fell behind after only fi ve minutes his intentions known “soon”. when Leroy Sane held off Hector Bellerin as he “I don’t know how long I will be here,” he accelerated onto Kevin De Bruyne’s pass be- said. “I am clear in my head, that’s the most fore rounding David Ospina and slotting home. important thing. The decision will be soon.” Theo Walcott equalised for Arsenal in the 40th Hailing his side’s character, he said: “We were not completely at our best because of the pressure, but we showed mental strength POINTS TABLE and did not lie down.” Arsenal remain seven points below fourth- (played, won, drawn, lost, goals for, goals place City, albeit with a game in hand, mean- against, points): ing there is work to do if Wenger is to steer Chelsea 29 22 3 4 60 23 69 the club into the Champions League for the Tottenham 29 18 8 3 57 21 62 19th season running. Liverpool 30 17 8 5 64 37 59 Man City 29 17 7 5 56 32 58 just one point above Hull following their third Man Utd 28 14 11 3 42 23 53 successive game without a win. Arsenal 28 15 6 7 58 36 51 “It would have been harsh if we’d lost that Everton 30 14 8 8 52 33 50 game on the chances we created. We just West Brom 30 12 8 10 39 38 44 couldn’t get over the line,” Swansea boss Paul Stoke 30 9 9 12 33 44 36 Clement said. Middlesbrough manager Agnew Southampton 28 9 7 12 33 36 34 added: “The attitude and intensity of the play- Bournemouth 30 9 7 14 42 54 34 Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger (right) speaks to his players Francis Coquelin (left) and Mesut Ozil during the Premier League game against ers was there for all to see and that will hold us Watford 29 9 7 13 34 48 34 Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium in North London, yesterday. (Reuters) in good stead.” Leicester 29 9 6 14 35 47 33 West Ham 30 9 6 15 41 54 33 minute when he stabbed in after City defender City had a penalty appeal turned down when of safety with a victory at the Liberty Stadium. RESULTS Burnley 30 9 5 16 31 44 32 Gael Clichy played him onside following a half- Nacho Monreal appeared to handle in the fi nal But instead second-bottom Middlesbrough Arsenal 2 (Walcott 40, Mustafi 53) Manchester City Crystal Palace 29 9 4 16 38 47 31 cleared corner. seconds. remain fi ve points adrift of 17th-placed Swan- 2 (Sane 5, Aguero 42); Swansea 0 Middlesbrough 0 Swansea 30 8 4 18 36 63 28 Just two minutes later, Sergio Aguero restored Guardiola’s side have now drawn their last sea. Middlesbrough, without a win in 12 league Played Saturday: Burnley 0 Tottenham 2 (Dier Hull 30 7 6 17 28 59 27 City’s advantage with a predatory fi nish after three league matches and have a fi ve-point lead games, are four points behind third-bottom 66, Son 77); Chelsea 1 (Fabregas 5) Crystal Palace Middlesbrough 29 4 11 14 20 33 23 more sloppy Arsenal defending. Arsenal lost over fi fth-placed Manchester United, who have Hull, although they have a game in hand on both 2 (Zaha 9, Benteke 11); Hull 2 (Robertson 53, Sunderland 29 5 5 19 24 51 20 French defender Laurent Koscielny to an Achil- a game in hand on their local rivals. sides in the battle to avoid dropping into the Ranocchia 85) West Ham 1 (Carroll 18); Leicester 2 Note: Top four qualify for Champions League; les tendon injury at the interval. But Wenger’s At the Liberty Stadium, Middlesbrough wast- Championship. (Ndidi 25, Vardy 47) Stoke 0; Liverpool 3 (Mane 8, teams finishing fifth to seventh qualify for side were back on level terms again eight min- ed a chance to boost their survival bid in a stale- It was also a missed opportunity for Swansea, Coutinho 31, Origi 60) Everton 1 (Pennington 28); Europa League; bottom three relegated utes after half-time as Shkodran Mustafi headed mate with relegation rivals Swansea. Steve Ag- who could have pulled clear of the bottom three Manchester United 0 West Brom 0; Southampton 0 in from Mesut Ozil’s corner. new’s side would have moved within two points but instead remain deep in trouble themselves, Bournemouth 0; Watford 1 (Britos 59) Sunderland 0

LIGUE 1 SPOTLIGHT Ten-man Di Maria sparkles as PSG retain League Cup Rennes AFP frustrate Lyon Lyon ngel Di Maria scored one goal and set AFP up two more as Paris Saint-Germain Paris thrashed Monaco 4-1 on Saturday night to lift the French League Cup forA the fourth successive season. Julian Draxler irmin Mubele struck a fi ne late fi red PSG ahead with just four minutes played in equaliser as Rennes held Lyon to a the fi nal in Lyon, but Thomas Lemar levelled for 1-1 draw in Ligue 1 yesterday despite Monaco before the half hour. playing 85 minutes with 10 men. Argentine international Di Maria restored RamyF Bensebaini was sent off with just vefi the lead for Unai Emery’s side a minute before minutes played at Roazhon Park after han- half-time and Edinson Cavani sealed a record dling Sergi Darder’s goal-bound shot. seventh title for PSG with a clinical second-half Rennes goalkeeper Benoit Costil diverted brace. “We’ve had some diffi cult times, but we Alexandre Lacazette’s penalty onto the post, haven’t given up. We’ve proved we’re a great although Lyon eventually opened the scor- side. I think it’s a deserved win and we can cel- ing through Maxwel Cornet on 52 minutes. ebrate a bit,” midfi elder Marco Verratti said. But substitute Mubele lashed in from the “In four years here we’ve won everything. We edge of the area nine minutes from time, have a great team and this is a victory for eve- and Rennes nearly snatched all three points ryone involved. The league title is our goal now as Sanjin Prcic fi red into the side netting af- and we’ll give it our all until the fi nish.” ter following up his initial strike. After the shock of their Champions League “Taking everything into account, we last 16 collapse against Barcelona in the second should have picked up three points. So yes, leg, a third meeting with Ligue 1 leaders Mo- this draw is like a defeat,” groaned Lyon naco this season presented an opportunity for coach Bruno Genesio. “It’s a match that redemption for PSG. Monaco’s Radamel Falcao sums up our season well. With what we failed to shake off a nagging hip injury that has showed today, we don’t deserve to be fi ght- sidelined the Colombian since March 11, but ing for the top three.” Thiago Motta returned to the PSG line-up for Lyon are fourth in the table and 13 points his fi rst start in six weeks. behind Nice in the fi nal Champions League PSG have dominated the competition in re- spot with just eight games left to play. Nice cent seasons — Monaco’s last major trophy Paris Saint-Germain’s players celebrate after winning the French League Cup in Decines-Charpieu, near Lyon, France on Saturday night. (AFP) could increase that gap when they host came when they won the 2003 fi nal — and the sixth-placed Bordeaux in a late match last holders stormed into an early lead albeit in con- Monaco shrugged off that setback as Lemar However there was nothing the Monaco have netted his second and sealed the outcome night. troversial circumstances. replied with a fi ne equaliser on 27 minutes. Ber- keeper could do as Di Maria stabbed low into the when he steered wide from Di Maria’s RESULTS Verratti slipped Di Maria in behind the de- nardo Silva’s chipped pass found Djibril Sidibe corner with half-time approaching after Drax- from the left. Rennes 1 (Mubele 81) Lyon 1 (Cornet 52); fence, with the Argentine electing to unselfi shly inside the area and the France full-back laid ler displayed remarkable balance to feed the un- Substitute Irvin Cardona fl ashed a header Montpellier 0 Toulouse 1 (Delort 45); Nantes 2 slide the ball across for Draxler to tap home. the ball back for Lemar to expertly sweep home marked Argentine. Joao Moutinho fi zzed a shot just wide of Kevin Trapp’s left-hand post, while (Nakoulma 48, 54) Angers 1 (Diedhiou 55); Replays showed the Germany international was from the edge of the box. just over the crossbar following the interval, Subasic dived at full-stretch to palm away a Di Lorient 1 (Moukandjo 29) Caen 0 marginally off side, although unlike in Tuesday’s Cavani thought he had put PSG back in front but PSG landed the fatal blow on 54 minutes as Maria eff ort with the outside of the boot. Played Saturday: Marseille 1 (Payet 48) international between France and Spain where a as he reacted quickest to Thiago Silva’s towering Cavani hammered past Subasic after a sublime But the Argentine combined with Cavani in Dijon 1 (Sertic 45+1-og); Bastia 0 Lille 1 video assistant referee was used in the country back-post header, but the Uruguayan’s goal- fl oated cross from Verratti. the fi nal minute to add a fourth for PSG as the (De Preville 48) for the fi rst time there was no such help avail- bound fl ick was superbly kept out by Danijel Su- Benjamin Mendy went close to halving the Uruguayan powered home Di Maria’s cross from Friday: Guingamp 1 (Privat 59) Nancy 0 able at Parc OL. basic before the Croat smothered the rebound. defi cit with a stinging eff ort, but Cavani should close range to cap a convincing triumph. Gulf Times Monday, April 3, 2017 3 FOOTBALL

LA LIGA STUTTERING MILAN SUFFER EUROPEAN SETBACK Madrid open up Rome: AC Milan’s hopes of a — eclipsing the previous club return to European football record jointly held by veteran next season suff ered a setback captain Francesco Totti and two yesterday when they were held other Roma legends. Spalletti to a 1-1 draw at Serie A’s bottom said Dzeko was having an ex- side Pescara. The dropped ceptional season. “He is a very points left Vincenzo Montella’s strong player, of the kind we squad in seventh place in the have always looked for. Before fi ve-point lead table, two places and four there was only Totti, now we points adrift of the final Euro- also have him who can deliver pea League qualifying spot. these kind of numbers.” The seven times European Dzeko’s goals saw him pass Sevilla held 0-0 at home by Sporting Gijon, leaving them fourth in La Liga champions only had them- Totti’s best return, in the 2006- selves to blame after defender 07 season, which matched the Gabriel Paletta’s rash back pass totals registered by Austrian and a blunder by goalkeeper Gi- Rudolf Volk in 1930-31 and anluigi Donnarumma combined Argentine striker Pedro Man- to gift the side propping up the fredini in 1960-61. The 31-year- top flight a 12th-minute lead. old has scored 23 league goals, And although Croatian eight in the Europa League and midfielder Mario Pasalic equal- two in the Italian Cup. ised three minutes before the Lazio boosted their hopes interval, Montella’s men could of Champions League football not produce a winner on a day next season by coming from when close rivals Atalanta were behind to snatch a 2-1 win at thrashing Genoa 5-0 on their struggling Sassuolo that leaves own ground. It was a lacklustre them fourth, three points adrift performance that underlined of Napoli, who currently occupy the need for major investment Italy’s final qualifying spot for in the squad if Milan are to Europe’s elite competition. relive their glory days under A late own goal by Sassuolo new Chinese owners who are defender Francesco Acerbi expected to complete their gave Simone Inzaghi’s side takeover of Silvio Berlusconi’s all three points after Ciro Im- club this month. mobile’s 18th league goal of the Atalanta, who are enjoying season cancelled out Domenico their best season yet in Serie Berardi’s penalty opener for the A, leapfrogged Inter Milan into home side. fifth spot ahead of Inter’s clash The win was a tactical coup tonight with Sampdoria. Argen- for Inzaghi with all three of tine striker Alejandro ‘Papu’ his substitutes having a role Gomez was again the visitors’ in the move that led to the hero, notching a hat-trick to 83rd-minute winner in the first take his tally for the season to of three matches in eight days 14 league goals. that could define the Roman Roma had kept their title club’s season. On Tuesday, hopes alive on Saturday, thanks Inzaghi’s men will defend a 2-0 to the record-breaking exploits first-leg advantage in their Ital- of Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko. ian Cup semi-final clash with lo- The former Manchester City cal rivals Roma before hosting forward, who struggled ini- Napoli at the Stadio Olimpico tially to make an impact in Italy, on Sunday. scored twice in a 2-0 win over struggling Empoli that left Lu- RESULTS ciano Spalletti’s side five points Torino 2 (Moretti 70, Belotti 83) adrift of leaders Juventus, who Udinese 2 (Jankto 50, Perica 68); were due to face third-placed Fiorentina 1 (Babacar 51) Bologna Napoli late last night. 0; Chievo 1 (Pellissier 57) Crotone The showdown in Naples is 2 (Ferrari 51, Falcinelli 82); Genoa set to be a highly-charged aff air 0 Atalanta 5 (Conti 25, Gomez 32- Real Madrid’s midfielder Isco (right) shoots to score a goal as Deportivo Alaves’ defender Rodrigo Ely and goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco fail to make a save during the with former Napoli idol Gonzalo pen, 63, 83, Caldara 76); Pescara 1 Spanish La Liga match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid yesterday. (AFP) Higuain making his first return (Paletta 12-og) AC Milan 1 (Pasalic in a Juventus shirt. Victory for 41); Palermo 1 (Gonzalez 26) AFP having problems, we weren’t playing well Madrid’s rhythm was disrupted by the after 17 years, Sevilla boss Jorge Sampaoli Juve would, in most pundits Cagliari 3 (Ionita 48, 88, Borriello Madrid and then all of a sudden Cristiano (Ro- half-time whistle, though, as Alaves were cast doubt on his future before kick-off view, virtually wrap up a sixth 58) naldo) gets the ball, passes it to Isco and the better side for large spells of the sec- with Argentina reportedly interested in consecutive title for the Turin Played Saturday: Sassuolo 1 he controls and scores. That is what this ond-half. hiring him to salvage their fl oundering giants. Dzeko’s brace on Satur- (Berardi 26-pen) Lazio 2 (Immo- eal Madrid moved fi ve points team has. We know that at any moment Deyverson headed over from point- World Cup qualifying campaign. day took his tally for the season bile 42, Consigli 83-og); Roma 2 clear of Barcelona at the top of we can hurt the opponent.” blank range from Theo Hernandez’s cross However, Sampaoli’s stock has fallen to 33 goals in all competitions (Dzeko 12, 56) Empoli 0 La Liga despite a lacklustre per- Zidane had handed a rest from the start before Mendez passed up the visitors’ in recent weeks as Sevilla’s winless run formance as goals from Karim to a host of his stars involved in interna- best chance when he slotted wide when stretched to fi ve games in all competi- Benzema,R Isco and Nacho secured a 3-0 tional duty over the past week as captain unmarked at the back post. Manu Gar- tions despite dominating for 95 minutes win over Alaves yesterday. Sergio Ramos, Marcelo and James Rod- cia’s fl icked header also then dipped just at the Sanchez Pizjuan. A draw is far more Benzema volleyed home Dani Carva- riguez were left out. Yet, Zidane’s plans beyond Kiko Casilla’s far post as the San- valuable for Sporting at the other end jal’s cutback for the opening goal just af- were undone inside 10 minutes when tiago Bernabeu crowd became restless. of the table as they move to within fi ve ter the half hour mark. Raphael Varane suff ered a recurrence However, Isco settled their nerves points of safety in 18th. However, the European champions of a hamstring injury and had to be re- when he rocketed Ronaldo’s through ball were grateful to Alaves’ wastefulness in placed by Carvajal. “Rafa has damaged into the roof of the net from a narrow RESULTS front of goal after the break as Deyverson the same area as before, it isn’t as bad as angle. And Nacho gave the scoreline an Sevilla 0 Sporting Gijon 0 ; Real Madrid 3 and Edgar Mendez passed up huge chanc- three weeks ago and we hope it is nothing unjustifi ed gloss when he tapped into an (Benzema 31, Isco 85, Nacho 88) Alaves 0 es to equalise. Isco eventually made the major.” Zidane did name his fi rst-choice empty net after Fernando Pacheco made Played Saturday: Villarreal 2 (Soriano 18, game safe fi ve minutes from time before front three as Ronaldo and Gareth Bale a brilliant save to tip Bale’s free-kick onto 89) Eibar 3 (Pedro Leon 48-pen, Kike 54, Inui Nacho rounded off the scoring moments fl anked Benzema. All three fi red off tar- the bar. 77); Osasuna 1 (Limones 79) Athletic Bilbao later. Barcelona can close back to within get from the edge of the box as Madrid Earlier, an unsettling week for Sevilla 2 (Aduriz 11, Williams 44); Real Sociedad 1 two points with victory at Granada in a started brightly, but they had to wait 31 ended with another disappointing result (Juanmi 53) Leganes 1 (Szymanowski 30); late match last night. minutes for the opener. as they were held 0-0 at home by Sport- Malaga 0 Atletico Madrid 2 (Koke 26, Filipe “Playing every three days you can’t al- Carvajal’s burst of pace took him to the ing Gijon, leaving them fourth in La Liga Luis 74) ways play perfectly for 90 minutes,” said by-line and he picked out the unmarked yesterday. In the wake of Sporting direc- Friday: Espanyol 2 (Fuego 88, Reyes 90) Mario Pasalic scored for AC Milan. Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane. “We were Benzema to smash into the far corner. tor Monchi’s decision to leave the club Real Betis 1 (Rubén Castro 78-pen)

FOCUS BUNDESLIGA Mourinho slams Gomez hits rapid treble in six-goal thriller

AFP desliga top scorer, has 24 league goals this Berlin campaign, just like Aubameyang, who misfi ring United scored for Borussia Dortmund in their 1-1 draw at Schalke in the Ruhr Valley derby. AFP dropped in drawn games to 16 for ario Gomez netted a hat- The Poland international has now Manchester, United Kingdom the campaign. trick inside seven minutes as scored 36 goals in all competitions for “This is deja vu all season,” Wolfsburg fought back from Bayern this season. said Mourinho. “We’re not con- two goals down to take the Lewandowski also proved he can pro- anchester United sistent. We miss easy chances. Mlead before Bayer Leverkusen salvaged a vide goals by setting up Thomas Mueller manager Jose Mour- We have moments or periods point in yesterday’s 3-3 draw. Germany for Bayern’s second, his backheel then let inho openly criti- when we push but then a couple striker Gomez has now scored six goals in Thiago Alcantara stab home their fourth. cised four of his key of players disappear for 10 min- his last four games in the Bundesliga. Second-placed RB Leipzig bounced Mstars after yet another frustrat- utes, when you don’t see them. The 31-year-old struck his fi rst goal back from back-to-back defeats with a ing league game at Old Traff ord You always see the same people, at the BayArena on 80 minutes to spark 4-0 romp against lowly Darmstadt, who ended in a 0-0 draw with West the same guys in front of the Wolfsburg’s dramatic fi ghtback, with his had midfi elder Sandro Sirigu sent off . Bromwich Albion. train, pulling the train. It’s dis- team trailing after Karim Bellarabi and Guinea midfi elder Naby Keita, who col- Mourinho’s side have now appointing. We need to kill off Kevin Volland had scored for Leverkusen. lapsed after last month’s shock 1-0 defeat drawn eight league games at teams. When you see the number Gomez headed in his second from Wolfsburg’s Mario Gomez in action to Wolfsburg, marked his return with two home this season, and in seven of goals we score compared to a corner three minutes later and then during the Bundesliga match against goals while playmaker Emil Forsberg and of them they were comfortably our domination, it’s a big con- drilled home an 87th-minute penalty to between Bayer Leverkusen. (AFP) captain Willi Orban also scored. the more dominant team but ul- tradiction. If you’re somebody put Wolfsburg 3-2 up and leave the hosts timately failed to turn possession who doesn’t know, you would stunned. But 17-year-old Leverkusen RESULTS and chances into goals. think we’re a defensive team, a starlet Kai Havertz, who is currently tak- Ingolstadt 2 (Bregerie 10, Hadergjonaj 73) The latest disappointment counter-attack team, waiting ing his pre-university exams, smashed rivals. Ingolstadt are second from bot- Swiss winger Hadergjonaj delivered a Mainz 1 (Ozuntali 70); Bayer Leverkusen 3 on Saturday followed that pat- for opponents’ mistakes. And it’s home a dramatic equaliser with a minute tom in Germany’s top fl ight, seven points swift response for Ingolstadt when his in- (Bellarabi 40, Volland 65, Havertz 89) Wolfs- tern with United enjoying 75 per completely the opposite. to play. The result leaves Wolfsburg, the adrift of Augsburg in 16th place — which tended cross fl ew over Mainz goalkeeper burg 3 (Gomez 80, 83, 87-pen) cent possession against Albion “But see how may goals our 2009 German league champions, just a leads to a two-legged play-off to stay up. Jonas Loessl and into the net. The defeat Played Saturday: Bayern Munich 6 (Lewand- but failing to end a run of home guys score during the season — point above the relegation places with The timing of Ingolstadt’s victory is dragged Mainz into the relegation bat- owski 17, 55, 79, Mueller 36, 80, Thiago 62) draws that has left them facing Rashford, Lingard, Mkhitaryan, Leverkusen only two points better off . perfect ahead of Wednesday’s crunch tle, leaving them 14th and only clear of Augsburg 0; Schalke 1 (Kehrer 77) Borussia an uphill task if they are to fi n- Martial. See how many goals Earlier, 17th-placed Ingolstadt breathed match at Augsburg and Saturday’s home the bottom three on goal diff erence hav- Dortmund 1 (Aubameyang 53); Hamburg 2 ish in the top four. And Marcus they score and then Zlatan and life into their survival fi ght as goals by de- tie against bottom side Darmstadt. ing lost eight out of their last nine away (Mueller 13, Holtby 90+2) Cologne 1 (Jojic Rashford, Jesse Lingard, Henrikh Mata are the ones with more fenders Roman Bregerie and Florent Ha- French centre-back Bregerie gave Ingol- games. 25); Freiburg 2 (Petersen 65, Grifo 77) Werder Mkhitaryan and Anthony Mar- goals. If they are not, the situa- dergjonaj sealed a crucial 2-1 home win stadt an early lead with a header after 10 At the other end of the table, runa- Bremen 5 (Kruse 21, Delaney 45+2, 47, 86, tial found themselves publically tion gets more diffi cult.” against Mainz. minutes from a corner. Mainz equalised way leaders Bayern Munich remained 13 Bartels 71); RB Leipzig 4 (Keita 12, 80, Fors- criticised by Mourinho as a Unit- His words could easily be tak- It was Ingolstadt’s fi rst victory since when midfi elder Levin Oztunali drilled points clear after their 6-0 thrashing of berg 67, Orban 79) Darmstadt 0’ E. Frankfurt ed team without six key players en as a warning to the quartet as mid-February to end a fi ve-match win- home a long-range free-kick on 70 min- Augsburg as striker Robert Lewandowski 0 Borussia Moenchengladbach 0 through injury or suspension, he prepares for a busy summer in less streak and comes before next week’s utes, but the scores were level for just hit his third Bundesliga hat-trick this Played Friday: Hertha Berlin 1 (Pekarik 32) took their total of home points the transfer market. crucial matches against their relegation three minutes. season. Lewandowski, last season’s Bun- Hoff enheim 3 (Kramaric 39-pen, 87, Suele 76) Gulf Times 4 Monday, April 3, 2017 SPORT

SCOTTISH PREMIERSHIP ROUND-UP Ter Stegen Rampant Celtic roar to casts doubt on future at Barcelona Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Ste- sixth successive title gen cast doubt on his Barcelona future yesterday, amid reported interest from Manchester City Brendan Rodgers’ side set a new Scottish top-flight record as the earliest ever champions coach Pep Guardiola. Former Barcelona manager Guardiola AFP chased the 24-year-old Ger- Edinburgh man international last year and Premier League side City are reportedly primed to go for Ter eltic were crowned Scottish Premiership Stegen again at the end of this champions for a sixth consecutive season season. Asked in an interview as Scott Sinclair’s hat-trick inspired a 5-0 about City’s interest and if he demolition of Hearts yesterday. Brendan sees himself staying at Barce- Rodgers’C side, now 25 points clear of second- lona for several more years, the placed Aberdeen, set a new Scottish top-fl ight goalkeeper said: “I don’t know. record as the earliest ever champions after wrap- I try to do the best for me and ping up fi rst place with eight games still to play. for the team. Give my best and Sinclair struck twice in the fi rst half before Stu- improve. You never know what art Armstrong and Patrick Roberts netted after comes after,” said Ter Stegen, the interval at Tynecastle. Sinclair’s third, via the who is in talks over a new deal penalty spot, put the seal on the 48th Scottish ti- at the Camp Nou. Ter Stegen, tle triumph in Celtic’s illustrious history. Celtic are who joined Barca in 2014 from unbeaten in all 30 league games this season, win- Borussia Moenchengladbach, is ning 28 times. under contract with the Spanish Having already won the Scottish League Cup giants until June 2019. and with a Scottish Cup semi-fi nal against Glas- gow rivals Rangers looming, Celtic could land the EX-GERMANY STAR WIESE domestic treble in former Liverpool boss Rodgers’ PLAYS 8TH DIVISION CAMEO fi rst season in charge. Ex-Germany goalkeeper Tim “The win probably typifi ed how they’ve been for Wiese, who has been carving the majority of the season. The professionalism out a wrestling career, says he they’ve showed, the attitude and determination could still play in the Bundesliga and style in which they’ve played,” Rodgers said. after making a cameo appear- “We knew it was going to be a tough game but the ance in the German eighth style and the intensity of our play was admirable. division. More than four years “To win a pressure game like that as convincingly after his last Bundesliga appear- as we did is an absolutely remarkable achievement ance, the ex-Werder Bremen by the players.” and Hoff enheim ‘keeper ran out English winger Sinclair added: “It was great. I for north Bavarian minnows SSV think with the big games I enjoy the pressure. It’s Dillingen in Saturday’s 2-1 de- great to come away and win the championship.” feat to Haunsheim in a regional Aberdeen’s 7-0 win over Dundee on Friday had league derby. delayed the title party and meant Celtic needed a Since retiring from football in win against Hearts to clinch the championship this September 2014, the 35-year- weekend. They burst out the traps and Callum Mc- old has packed muscle onto his Gregor had the ball in the net after just two minutes 6ft 4ins (1.93m) frame and made but the midfi elder was off side when he was picked his wrestling debut in a WWE out by Sinclair. Hearts recovered and Jamie Walker event in Munich last November. fi red wide from 20 yards before Isma Goncalves But Wiese again laced up his cut in from the left and tested Craig Gordon with football boots and his one-off a thumping strike that the keeper gathered at the appearance was a favour to his second attempt. Two quick-fi re goals from Celtic Celtic coach Brendan Rodgers and players celebrate after winning the Scottish Premiership title after thrashing Hearts 5-0 at Tynecastle, Scotland. (Reuters) friend Christoph Nowak, who is turned the game on its head. Dillingen’s chairman. Sinclair took out three defenders as he played playing a superbly weighted pass through to Sin- elling Celtic support didn’t have to wait long as lected a pass at the edge of the box before sending a Instead of the usual a give-and-go with Roberts and then lashed in a clair, who took two touches before drilling a low Armstrong made it 3-0 in the 55th minute. curling eff ort into the top corner. 60-strong crowd for a Dillingen fi erce strike high into the roof of the net leaving eff ort past Hamilton. Kieran Tierney’s ball from the left was dummied Sinclair sealed the win from the penalty spot in home game, around 2,000 Jack Hamilton with no chance in the 24th minute. Celtic had the ball in the net again in the 51st by McGregor allowing the Scottish midfi elder the 84th minute. He won the spot-kick after he turned up to watch Wiese, who Sinclair grabbed a second just three minutes later. minute when a sliding Tasos Avlonitis diverted Armstrong time and space to send an unstoppable was brought down by Avlonitis and the 28-year- made six Germany appearances Only in the starting line-up due to an injury to a low James Forrest eff ort into his own net, but strike into the bottom corner. old expertly despatched his eff ort past Hamilton and was part of the squad which French striker Moussa Dembele, Roberts was again an off side fl ag went up against Sinclair, who was Roberts got the goal his play deserved in the 61st for his 21st of an impressive debut season in Scot- came third at the 2010 World the provider. He jinked past a challenge before waiting to tap home for his hat-trick. The trav- minute. The on-loan Manchester City star col- land. Cup in South Africa.

4TH NATIONAL SHOWJUMPING CHAMPIONSHIP LOCAL GOLF Mercedes Trophy Golf attracts 90 players asser Bin Khaled Automobiles, the ex- clusive dealers of Mercedes-Benz in Qatar, hosted the second Mercedes Tro- phy Golf tournament on Saturday at the NDoha Golf Club. The second edition of the tournament saw 90 players competing in three main categories: men A (0-12 handicap), men B (13-24 handicap) and women. Reiterating its commitment to the local com- munity, Nasser Bin Khaled (NBK) Automobiles honoured the emerging local golf talents, who play for Qatar National team. Sager al-Naimi and Sami Qush surprised the competitors with their skills that put al-Naimi in the lead. Khaled Sha’aban, NBK Automobiles General Manager said: “Following the success of the fi rst edition last year, Nasser Bin Khaled Automo- biles is pleased to host the second Mercedes Tro- phy Golf tournament in Qatar. It is through such A young rider in action during the Future Riders Championship tournaments we reiterate our commitment to A Qatari rider competes at the 4th National Showjumping at the Qatar Equestrian Federation’s outdoor arena on Saturday. promote sports and social engagement with our championship, organised by the Qatar Equestrian Federation. PICTURES: Lotfi Garsi valued customers and golf enthusiasts in Qatar. We are pleased This year to welcome two of the emerging stars of Qatar national team.” Qatar national player Sager al-Naimi (right) won The sessions witnessed healthy competi- in the men’s category A scoring 43 points. FOCUS tion where al-Naimi won in the men’s category A scoring 43 points, while Richard Bartlett and Four players also received special prizes for their Alan Bassnett got the second and third places re- exceptional performance, including Rick Bartlett spectively. In men’s category B, Andrew Dunlop for the longest drive, Ben San Jose for longest putt scored 45 points to take the fi rst place followed holed, PK Mathew for the nearest to the rope and Neymar Jr’s Five returns to Qatar by Christer Olsson in the second and Johan Riv- Teresa Gow for the nearest to the pin. era in the third. In the women’s category, Chere- All participants got valuable gifts from NBK or the second year in a row, the love hzade Pedder scored 41 points and won the tro- Automobiles and event partners Blue Salon, Total for ‘The Beautiful Game’ is gathering phy, while Tasnim Kazi was the fi rst runner up and Zeibart while the winners received their tro- amateur football players in Qatar, be- and Lorraine Boydell was the second Runner up. phies and prizes during the awards ceremony. tween the age of 16 and 25 to compete inF the Neymar Jr’s international fi ve-aside tournament. Six qualifi ers were held in the last 4 weeks at Education City and Al Sadd Club, which saw total of sixteen teams make it to the next round. These teams will compete in the national fi nal, to be held this Friday, 7th April at Aspire Park – Opposite Al Forousiya Road, in Doha. The winning team will represent Qatar to compete against the winning teams from 53 countries during the world fi nal in Brazil, which will take place later this year at Insti- tuto Projeto Neymar Jr. The grand prize for the champions is they get to meet Neymar Jr in Barcelona, Spain and winner and they travelled in July 2016 and second year in 2017. Qatar qualifi er is organ- be his guest at the famous Camp Nou for a participated in the world fi nals. Neymar Jr’s ised in collaboration with Instituto Projeto match of FC Barcelona! Five is the world’s fi rst and only Neymar Jr’s Neymar Jr, Qatar Stars League, Vodafone, As- In 2016, FC Skyber team was the national signature football tournament going into its pire and Q Sports League. Gulf Times Monday, April 3, 2017 5 SPORT

NBA BATTLE Celtics, Cavaliers in unfamiliar roles as Butler brilliance showdown looms sparks Bulls as Lakers lose again File picture of Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens (C) ‘Nobody picked us to be in the playoff s, nobody picked us to win. I’m just out there congratulating Boston Celtics guard Terry Rozier (L). playing basketball. I want to win — I think everybody knows that’ DPA The change took place rather Washington quickly. Even after a 103-99 win over Cleveland on March 1, Boston he change at the top of still trailed by four games in the the Eastern Conference loss column. standings has left both But the Celtics have won fi ve the Boston Celtics and of their last six games while TCleveland Cavaliers in unfamil- the Cavs have lost four of six, iar roles. prompting a players-only meet- When the Celtics overtook ing earlier this week. the Cavaliers a few days ago, it “Our on-the-court chemis- marked the fi rst time they held try took a hit. Our camaraderie fi rst place in the East since March didn’t,” explained James, one of 22, 2011, when Shaquille O’Neal the great leaders in NBA history. - now in the Hall of Fame - was “At the end of the day, we have to still playing and wearing green. fi x it and we’re here to fi x it.” Shifting from hunter to hunt- The repairs started with Satur- ed is a novel experience for this day’s home win over Philadelphia, group of Celtics (49-27), who are a step in the right direction as recognizing the accompanying Cleveland prepares for Wednes- pressure that comes with it. day’s visit to Boston that likely will “This time it’s like teams are decide which team has home court chasing us. Me and Jae (Crowder) advantage throughout the Eastern were talking about it,” Celtics All- Conference playoff s. Star guard Isaiah Thomas said. If the Celtics win, they will “Usually we’re the team that’s widen their lead while enjoying going after other teams. And the easier remaining schedule. it feels like now teams are just If the Cavaliers win, they will ready to play us from the jump.” hold the tiebreaker. Crowder said: “You can defi - The top seed would host Game nitely feel it. You can defi nitely 7 in a potential conference fi nals tell.” matchup, but Thomas said the Conversely, the Cavaliers (48- Celtics are not caught up in that. 27) are looking up in the East for “We don’t really talk about the the fi rst time in two seasons after playoff s,” he said. “We don’t re- going 7-10 in March. ally talk about standings or fi rst Superstar LeBron James - who place.” has played in the NBA Finals in Meanwhile, James doesn’t each of the last six years - isn’t go- sound too concerned with his ing to dwell on what went wrong. team’s current schedule predica- “I’m never a guy to look back,” ment, either. James said. “No reason. Push for- “As we continue to get our ward. The past is the past. We’ve guys healthy and we continue to got to focus on the present and get back into the fl ow of things, that’s what we’re going to do.” we’ll fi gure it out,” he said. Chicago Bulls forward Jimmy Butler (21) looks to pass the ball around Atlanta Hawks forward Mike Muscala (31) during the first quarter at the United Center.

AFP hide his admiration for Butler. Results pers’ failure to kill off opponents was a Wizards’ Wall blasts refs aft er loss to Jazz Los Angeles “He was phenomenal,” Hoiberg said. concern. “Jimmy did everything again. He just (home team in CAPS) “It’s still something that needs to be Washington guard John Wall the third quarter. found a way to get to the basket... obvi- PORTLAND 130 Phoenix 117 worked out,” said Griffi n. “I thought at lashed out at game off icials Wall dubbed the call “out- immy Butler scored 33 points to ously, he was a huge part of that win.” Sacramento 123 MINNESOTA 117 times we came out to start the game the after the Wizards’ 95-88 NBA rageous,” insisting it was maintain Chicago’s push for the Butler was backed by Rajon Rondo, BROOKLYN 121 Orlando 111 right way and then we took our foot off loss to the Utah Jazz in Salt incidental contact. playoff s on Saturday as the Los who had 25 points and 11 rebounds, while CHICAGO 106 Atlanta 104 the gas. Lake City on Friday. He said game off icials should Angeles Clippers overcame a late Denzel Valentine weighed in with 13 and LA CLIPPERS 115 LA Lakers 104 “I thought we let our off ense dictate Wall was irked that the take into account the Wizards’ wobbleJ to subdue the Lakers. Paul Zipser added 10. our defense, had some bad turnovers Wizards were sent to the free aggressive style. Butler scored the fi nal nine points for Hoiberg meanwhile praised his team’s early in the fi rst quarter and it got them throw line just 16 times, while “We’re a good team and we’re the Bulls in their 106-104 win over the never-say-die attitude as they prepare to their city rivals the Lakers, who are lan- going a little bit. the Jazz had 31 free throw not a sorry team,” Wall said. Atlanta Hawks at the United Center as embark on a demanding four-game road guishing at the foot of the table at 21-55. “I thought we came out well in the attempts. “We’re a good team that Chicago overcame a nine-point defi cit to trip which starts Sunday. Blake Griffi n scored 36 points in a 115- third quarter, but we just haven’t put the “We didn’t lose this game,” comes out and plays hard seal the win. “It’s an important step when you can 104 victory that gave coach Doc Rivers lid on games very well,” added Griffi n, Wall huff ed. “The refs made us every night and we deserve The victory saw Chicago improve to fi ght through adversity and fi nd a way to his 800th career win as the Clippers im- calling on his team-mates to sharpen up lose this game. We fought hard certain calls.” 37-39, lifting them into a virtual three- come back from a big defi cit like that,” proved to 47-31. for the playoff s. to give ourselves a chance. The playoff -bound Wizards are way tie with the Miami Heat and Indiana Hoiberg said. Rivers side are now within one game “You can’t win games in the playoff s But you don’t shoot no 31 free now tied for the third seed in Pacers for the seventh playoff spot on of- “It’s a couple of times in a row when of the Utah Jazz in the race for the fourth playing inconsistently, so it is concern- throws to 16 the way we attack the Eastern Conference with fer from the Eastern Conference. we’ve fought back. We haven’t put our seed slot in the Western Conference. ing,” Griffi n said. “How much concern? the basket as a team. That’s Toronto, who beat the Indiana “Nobody picked us to be in the play- heads down and we continue to compete But Griffi n — who topped 10,000 ca- I’m not really sure. I just know we can’t how I feel about it.” Pacers 111-100 on Friday. off s, nobody picked us to win,” Butler — that’s what it’s all about.” reer points in the fi rst quarter — was un- do this in the playoff s and win games be- Wall was also whistled for a The Jazz maintained their said. “I’m just out there playing basket- happy with an inconsistent display which cause every team that makes the playoff s technical foul after striking hold on the number four seed ball. I want to win — I think everybody GRIFFIN WARNING FOR CLIPPERS saw the Lakers (21-55) reduce a 21-point is a good team and knows how to play and Jazz big man Rudy Gobert be- in the West, 1 1/2 games ahead knows that.” In the Western Conference meanwhile, the lead to eight during the closing stages. knows how to fi nish games. We have to do low the belt midway through of the Los Angeles Clippers. Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg could not fi fth ranked Clippers were too strong for Griffi n later admitted that the Clip- better.”

NHL Oilers top Ducks in OT, grab top spot in division

MCT ward and when you go down like that, overtime hasn’t been our friend this the Ducks, if not for Gibson as the goal- Edmonton, Canada it’s an odd-man rush no matter what.” year, that’s for sure. We slip and fall, ie showed that he was fully recovered The Ducks fell to 2-10 in the fi ve- give up a two-on-one and the game’s from the lower-body issues that had minute overtime period but they got over.” kept him out for all but one game since lags with the familiar blue Oil- there largely because of Gibson’s he- The Oilers seemed to feed off the Feb 20. A response was badly needed ers wordmark and orange oil roics. In his fi rst game in three weeks, buzz in the air as they had a dominating and it came in the second. drop logo have popped up on Gibson made several big stops among fi rst period. McDavid led two odd-man From the opening shift, the Ducks Fcars in this proud hockey city his 34 saves. rushes before the Ducks could even got two shots on Oilers goalie Cam Tal- and jerseys fi lled Rogers Place on Sat- Patrick Eaves gave the Ducks a 2-1 settle into the game. At times, they had bot and began to make him work. And urday night as its favourite sons have lead at 8:58 of the third as the winger Gibson under siege. then they got one by him, using a power Edmonton back in the playoff s for the fi nished a pass from Antoine Vermette, But Gibson delivered some big saves play that’s slumped all the way to the fi rst time in 11 years. who was left wide open. It was their on McDavid and Jordan Eberle, giving bottom third among the league’s 30 First place in the Pacifi c Division also second power-play goal in the two hope for the Ducks to come out of the teams. became possible and the Oilers took chances they had. fi rst unscathed. Instead, they couldn’t “He was outstanding,” Carlyle said. that away from the Anaheim Ducks. Gibson kept the Oilers at bay until stop the leading Hart Trophy contender “Specifi cally in the fi rst. We didn’t have Leon Draisaitl continued to terrorize 1:58 remained when Milan Lucic cashed or their former teammate. much going in the fi rst. We were slow them, giving Edmonton a 3-2 win with in Vermette’s hooking penalty by bang- Patrick Maroon is having a career and off the mark. It just seems that his overtime goal that had the sold-out ing in a rebound after an initial save was season and the winger that the Ducks early in some of these hockey games, arena at fever pitch. made on Draisaitl. McDavid, the NHL’s traded to the Oilers at last year’s dead- we don’t seem to get our feet moving.” Draisiatl scored his sixth goal against leading scorer, would factor in all three line burned his former team with a Talbot kept it a one-goal diff erence the Ducks in the teams’ fi ve meetings. Edmonton goals. nice stickhandling move past Hampus by stopping Ducks winger Corey Perry The winger got pass from Connor Mc- “It stings because we take a penalty Lindholm to get behind the net and look on a breakaway. The workhorse goalie David on and odd-man rush and put a late in the third period,” Ducks coach for McDavid in front. played his NHL-high 70th game of the one-time shot past John Gibson. The Randy Carlyle said. “We didn’t get the Ducks center Ryan Kesler had an op- season and won his 40th to tie Grant rush occurred when Ducks captain puck out along the wall and then we portunity to clear the puck away but Fuhr’s single-season Oilers record. Ryan Getzlaf fell in the off ensive zone Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid (L) battles with Anaheim Ducks take a lazy hooking penalty that basi- fanned on his attempt. The puck got to and lost the puck. defensemen Cam Fowler (4) during the third period at Rogers Place. cally forces the referee to call it. And McDavid and the 20-year-old super- RESULTS The Oilers (44-25-9) and Ducks (42- then we have a couple opportunities to star put away his 29th goal of the sea- Devils 0 Flyers 3; Senators 2 Jets 4; 23-13) both have 97 points but Edmon- “It’s my responsibility with the over too sharp and caught my foot. But clear the puck on the penalty kill and we son. It also became his NHL-leading Maple Leafs 5 Red Wings 4; Canadiens 2 ton holds the tiebreaker with one more puck,” Getzlaf said. “I can’t turn it three-on-three hockey, that’s where it don’t get it down the ice. 92nd point. Lightning 1; Stars 3 Hurricanes 0; regulation and overtime win. over. Obviously it’s not ideal. I turned it gets exposed. Everyone’s moving for- “They score a goal there and then It could have been much worse for Ducks 2 Oilers 3 Gulf Times 6 Monday, April 3, 2017 SPORT

BADMINTON England’s Hameed Stadium on April 4 and 6. faces anxious wait Squad: Mashrafe Mortaz aft er injury (capt), Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Mohammad , Mosaddek Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Sindhu conquers Mehedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Subashis Roy, Sanjamul Islam, Nurul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin. BCCI announces IPL England batsman Haseeb knockout venues Hameed faces a nervous wait Marin to bag fi rst to discover the extent of the Hyderabad will host the final hand injury that forced him to of the upcoming edition of retire hurt during his opening the Indian Premier League first-class game of the season (IPL), the Board of Control for Lancashire. for Cricket in India (BCCI) an- Hameed, who made a solid nounced yesterday. start to his England career The IPL, which will run from during their tour of India, April 5 to May 21, will see title withdrew after facing 23 balls Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium in Lancashire’s game with hosting Qualifier 1, the first Cambridge MCCU on Sunday. match in the knockout stage ‘It was a very intense first game and it was crucial that I won it. We were not in the The 20-year-old has been on May 16. taken for a scan on his hand Bengaluru will host two knock- mood to give it away and played long rallies and eventually I came out on top’ and will hope the damage isn’t out matches -- the Eliminator severe enough to stop him (May 17) and the Qualifier 2 IANS Marin seemed to be struggling with making a strong start to the May 19. New Delhi her movement due to a right foot niggle. English county season. “A reserve day is available for But the warrior that she is, the Spaniard Hameed scored 219 runs the Final but not the other fought back to come within a point of in three Tests against India three playoff matches,” the ndia’s Olympic 2016 silver medallist equalising at the seven-point mark. before a finger injury forced BCCI statement added. P.V. Sindhu overcame her Rio Games But Sindhu pushed on, holding an 11-7 him out of the final match of Qualifier 1 is played between conqueror Carolina Marin of Spain lead at the mid-game break. Marin fi red the five-game series, which the top two teams of the league in straight games to win her maiden two angling smashes to make it 9-11 be- England lost 4-0. stage. The winners enter the IIndia Open Superseries title fore the Indian snatched three consecutive He hit an unbeaten 59 from summit clash while the losing at a packed Siri Fort Sports Complex here points to have a fi ve-point advantage. 156 deliveries while batting team takes on the winners yesterday. Then onwards, double World Cham- with a broken finger during of the Eliminator — played The match-up between Sindhu and pionship bronze medallist Sindhu never the third Test in Mohali. between the third and fourth Marin was a repeat of the 2016 Rio Olympic looked back and sealed the match with a Hameed also played three placed teams — for the other fi nal which saw the Spaniard win gold. 21-16 victory. matches for England Lions final slot in the Qualifier 2. But in front of her home fans here, This was also her second title of the in Sri Lanka in February, but third seed Sindhu posted a 21-19, 21-16 season after her win at the Syed Modi managed just 78 runs in six Pathan backs KKR triumph in 46 minutes to give another Grand Prix in Lucknow early this year. innings. bowling line-up display of her fast-rising career. “It was a very intense fi rst game and Since the Rio fi nal, it was the second it was crucial that I won it. It was a close Bangladesh skipper Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) contest between the two shuttlers and encounter and tied at 19-19, any of us suspended for slow strength in the Indian Premier the 21-year-old Hyderabadi has won could have won it from here. We were not over rate League (IPL) this season will both. With this win, Sindhu also equal- in the mood to give it away and played be their bowling, long-serving ised 5-5 in career meetings against the long rallies and eventually I came out on all-rounder Yusuf Pathan said two-time reigning world champion. top,” the Hyderabadi said. here yesterday. The Spanish top seed struggled with Marin though disheartened after losing “We have quality bowlers in her net game which proved to be the dif- the fi nal, praised her opponent. “It was af- this team this time. We were ference between the two. But Sindhu also ter a long time that I have reached a fi nal. It lacking good bowling options had to be credited for showing her ever- did not turn out to be a good match for me previously. But this time we improving game, especially in the cross- but I am happy that I have reached the fi - have a lot of variety, not only court net-game and defence. nals,” Marin said after the match. in bowling but in all depart- Backed by a partisan crowd, Sindhu “On-court we might be rivals but off - ments,” Pathan who has been got off to a fl ying start, opening up a 6-1 court we are very good friends and I am donning KKR’s purple shirt lead but Marin got her act together to re- happy for her that she won as she was the since 2011, told reporters. duce the defi cit to one at 6-7, thanks to better player on the day,” she added. Bangladesh captain Mashrafe KKR have roped in England’s her delectable half smashes. In the men’s fi nal, top seed Viktor Ax- Mortaza has been suspended Chris Woakes and New Zea- Sindhu then upped the ante and then elsen of Denmark won his fi rst India Open for one match for a slow over land’s Trent Boult ahead of the pushed Marin into all corners. Hitting to title as he thrashed Chinese Taipei’s Chou rate during the third one-day 2017 edition of the IPL. the right of left-hander Marin, Sindhu Chen Tien 21-13, 21-10 in 36 minutes. international against Sri Lan- The two-time IPL champions gained the ascendancy even though the The men’s doubles title went to In- ka, the International Cricket also have Australian Nathan fi ghting Marin kept coming back at her. donesian fourth seeds Marcus Gideon Council (ICC) said yesterday. Coulter-Nile, in-form Umesh Sindhu felt the pressure as Marin Fernaldi and Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo, This means he will be barred Yadav, and Jamaican Rovman equalised at the 16-point mark and for who saw off compatriots Ricky Karanda from playing in the first ODI Powell, among others, in their the fi rst took the lead at the next point. Suwardi and 21-11, 21-15. against Ireland at a tri-nations pace line-up. The see-saw game continued till the In the women’s doubles fi nal, Japa- tournament in May. In the spin department, West 19-point mark. Then, a powerful stroke nese seventh seeds’s and The right-arm paceman was Indies star , - from Sindhu to which Marin put it wide defeated compatriot also fined 40 percent of his man Kuldeep Yadav, Piyush made it 20-19 for the Indian. Sindhu then third seeds Naoko Fukuman and Kurumi match fee, with the other Chawla, and all-rounders sealed the fi rst game when Marin was Yonao 16-21, 21-19, 21-10. players losing 20 percent of Shakib Al Hasan and Pathan slow to defend a half smash. In an all-Chinese mixed doubles clash, their fees. complete the list. The second game also saw Sindhu get- second seeds Lu Kai and His team was two overs short “This year we have batting all- ting in the lead early, forcing Marin to got the better of top seeds of the target during Saturday’s rounders, spinning all-round- play the catch-up game. and 22-24, 21-14, 21-17. match at the Sinhalese Sports ers, all-rounders. Club ground in Colombo, So when you have such which Sri Lanka won. players in the side adding so The off ence was Mortaza’s much variety, the competi- second within 12 months tion for first XI is high and it is regarding the over rate, trig- very healthy,” the 34-year-old gering the suspension. Pathan said. The previous one was in an On Kuldeep, who recently ODI against New Zealand in made a dream debut for India Christchurch. in the fourth Test against According to the ICC Code of Australia returning best first Conduct, players are fined 10 innings figures of 4/68, Pathan percent of their match fees for said the Kanpur lad has a every over their side fails to bright future. bowl in the allotted time. “He made a great debut. He It was the second time Mor- has a bright future. I think we taza has been banned for a will do very well with him and slow over rate since taking also with Umesh (Yadav) as he Sindhu with her Spanish counterpart Carolina Marin during the presentation Indian shuttler P.V. Sindhu celebrates after winning India Open Superseries badminton over as the ODI skipper in too has bowled superbly for ceremony of India Open Superseries badminton tournament yesterday. title at Siri Fort Sports Complex in New Delhi yeterday. November 2014. India. It will be beneficial for He was suspended for one team.” match after Bangladesh’s Andre Russell’s absence will WEST INDIES VS PAKISTAN, 3RD T20I World Cup 2015 quarter-final be felt more in the dressing against India in Melbourne. room, Pathan said, adding he As a result he missed an ODI was a great character to have against Pakistan. in the side. Russell has been handed a Bangladesh pick one-year ban for violating uncapped all-rounder anti-doping regulations. Lewis helps Windies win big “We are not on the backfoot for T20s AFP plastered for 24 runs in the 14th extent, the other top-order (as Russell is not playing). Port of Spain over of the innings, an assault that batsmen. Bangladesh yesterday named Russell was an important ended the match as a contest. “We didn’t take advantage uncapped all-rounder Moham- cog in our wheel not only on Marlon Samuels helped him of the good position we were in mad Saifuddin in a 16-man field, but in the dressing room vin Lewis thrashed his add 56 runs for the second wicket going into the last eight overs of squad for two inter- also. He is a great character way to 91 off 51 balls as and debutant Jason Mohammed our innings,” said a disappointed nationals against Sri Lanka in to have. There are situations the West Indies swept looked composed in a third-wick- Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed. Colombo next week. when players miss out. He aside Pakistan by seven et stand of 76, his contribution “We are still ahead in the se- “We had been looking for a will be missed in the dressing wicketsE in the third T20 Inter- being an unbeaten 17. ries though and I expect a much pace bowling all-rounder for a room. But we have to look national at the Queen’s Park But everything else in the better eff ort in the last match.” long time who could give our ahead and work with what we Oval in Trinidad on Saturday. match paled in comparison to Veteran Akmal (48) and Azam batting some depth, espe- have.” Responding to the visitors’ to- Lewis’ relentless assault which (43) had the visitors well poised cially, in limited-overs cricket,” Woakes arrived last night, tal of 137 for eight, Lewis hoisted ended with victory in sight as for a total in excess of 160 after Chief selector Minhajul Abedin and Pathan said the England nine sixes and belted fi ve fours Wahab Riaz held the catch at Ahmed chose to bat fi rst as they told AFP. all-rounder will strengthen the in a hurricane innings that kept long-off to give Shadab Khan put on 88 runs for the second “He is a good bat down the team. the series alive going into the fi - the wicket. wicket. order and can bowl well too.” “Obviously, the team has been nal match on Sunday at the same “I just needed to get a start Samuel Badree had removed The 20-year-old Saifuddin strengthened. The team will venue with Pakistan holding a this time and decided to keep Ahmed Shehzad and Imad played in last year’s Under-19 be balanced more with him 2-1 advantage. on playing my shots,” said Lewis Wasim in the fi rst over of the World Cup. in our ranks as he bowls and His assault was in stark con- after receiving the man of the match. Bangladesh also named left- bats also.” trast to the struggles of most match award. However the introduction of arm spinner Sanjamul Islam, On a diff erent note, Pathan, of the Pakistani batsmen, with “It’s been a bit of a strug- Samuels for his fi rst bowl in in- pace bowler Subashis Roy and who was part of India’s 2011 the notable exception of Kam- gle since getting that hundred ternational cricket for 18 months off -spinner Mehedi Hasan, World Cup winning squad, ran Akmal and Babar Azam, against India (last August in Fort following the remodelling of his who are yet to be capped in said the moment can never be as a strong position was frit- Lauderdale) but I’m delighted to action earned the home side a the shortest format. erased out of memory on its tered away by the combination West Indies’ Evin Lewis plays a shot during the third T20I. be back among the runs.” vital breakthrough and turned Pace bowler Rubel Hossain, sixth anniversary. “It is a very of careless strokeplay and dis- Khan, man of the match with the tide of play. all-rounder Shuvagata Hom proud moment for the entire ciplined West Indies bowling the chase to an excellent diving suff er the most to the fl ailing his potent leg-spinners and and left-arm spinner Taijul country. We won the World through the fi nal eight overs of catch by Fakhar Zaman running blade of the left-hander. googlies in the fi rst two outings, BRIEF SCORES: West Indies 138 Islam have been excluded. Cup after so long. After 1983, their innings. in from the square-leg boundary Summoned by captain Sarfraz struggled to recapture the same for 3 (Lewis 91) beat Pakistan 137 Both will be played we won it. The memories will Lewis lost opening partner off Sohail Tanvir. Ahmed in a desperate attempt to control under the pressure im- for 8 (Kamran 48, Babar 43) by in Colombo’s Premadasa forever be fresh in our minds.” Chadwick Walton early on in Yet it was Tanvir who would stem the fl ood of runs, Tanvir was posed by Lewis, and to a lesser seven wickets Gulf Times Monday, April 3, 2017 7 SPORT

TENNIS GOLF / HOUSTON OPEN South Korea’s Kang Miami win puts leads Fowler by three in Houston

Konta in spotlight AFP Los Angeles British 25-year-old will rise to career-high seventh in world rankings next week outh Korean Kang Sung’s third- AFP round 71 was good enough for Miami a three-shot lead on Saturday after American Rickie Fowler’s lateS stumble at the US PGA Houston ohanna Konta’s days of fl ying Open. under the radar are numbered Kang, a 29-year-old chasing a fi rst now that the Briton has bagged US PGA Tour title that would give him her biggest title yet at the Mi- a late invitation to next week’s Masters, amiJ Open. couldn’t match his sizzling 63 of Friday. The 25-year-old will rise to a ca- But his one-under eff ort for a 17-un- reer-high seventh in the world rank- der-par total of 199 still left him a slight ings next week after a start to the year cushion going into the fi nal round. in which she won in Sydney, reached Kang’s round of four birdies and the quarter-fi nals of the Australian three bogeys helped him withstand the Open and then claimed her fi rst pre- pressure applied by Fowler, who had mier mandatory tournament on the eight birdies in his fi rst 14 holes to grab hard courts of Key Biscayne. a share of the lead before fi nishing with Konta recently noted that the suc- a bogey at 17 and a double-bogey at the cess of world number one Andy Mur- last. ray in the men’s game has kept the at- Fowler settled for a 67 for 202 — one tention and pressure of the media and stroke in front of American Russell Kang Sung of South Korea gestures fans in Britain away from her, but she Henley, who signed for a 69. after putting on the 18th green during can be sure that the level of expecta- Kang, who started the week ranked round three of the Houston Open in tion will rise sharply ahead of this 202nd in the world, began the round Humble, Texas, on Saturday. (AFP) year’s Wimbledon. with an impressive six-shot lead, but Former leading British women’s Fowler wasted little time in eating into some birdies today and it did help me player Sam Smith, now a television that. out a lot.” analyst, told AFP that while Konta After birdies at the third and fi fth, Fowler said he “can’t really dwell” on may not yet be aware of how her status Fowler rolled in a 47-foot putt at the his last two holes. in British sport is about to change, she seventh to ignite a string of three “I just got funky on the greens last is confi dent Konta can handle what is straight birides to cap the front nine. two holes,” he said. “But we put our- coming her way. He strung together three more bird- selves in a position to win.” “Someone needs to tell her ‘Jo it is Johanna Konta of Great Britain poses in front of the Cape Florida Lighthouse after her win in the Miami Open in Key ies at 12. 13 and 14 to briefl y join Kang With possibly severe storms ex- going to be diff erent’ but you know Biscayne, Florida, on Saturday. (Below) Konta (right) poses with the winner’s trophy after beating Caroline Wozniacki (left) atop the leaderboard. pected to move into the area on Sunday what, I think she will handle it. I think of Denmark in the final. (AFP) But he gave a stroke back at the 17th, afternoon, tournament offi cials moved she will probably speak to Andy as where he was in two bunkers then fi red up fourth-round tee times in hopes of well, because it is going to be really big a gradual one, but she sees no reason his tee shot well right at 18. Although beating the weather. if she continues this upward progres- why that should limit her chances of he was able to fi nd the green with his At least 18 players who made the cut sion,” Smith said. succeeding at the very top. second shot, Fowler rattled his par- — Kang could be the 19th — are due to Murray’s advice, if requested, will “I think as tennis is progressing and saving putt from inside four feet past head from Houston to Augusta, Geor- no doubt be forthcoming and, given becoming more physical (develop- the hole, then missed the bogey putt gia, to begin preparations for the Mas- the Scotsman has come through years ment) has become later and later,” she coming back. ters, increasing the pressure to avoid a of hype around Wimbledon, sage. said. Fowler’s four-putt fi nish off ered Monday fi nish. Smith’s confi dence in Konta’s abil- “I wasn’t a bad junior either. I got to breathing room to Kang, whose bogey ity to cope with the attention is largely 11 in the world. I don’t think it was that at 16 had dropped him into a tie for the LEADING THIRD ROUND SCORES based on the Sydney-born player’s much of an anomaly. I think I just kept lead for the second time on the back 199 — Kang Sung (KOR) 65-63-71 evident intelligence, professionalism doing what I love, and that’s working nine. 202 — Rickie Fowler (USA) 64-71-67 and calmness. hard. Kang knew that something was up in 203 — Russell Henley (USA) 67-67-69 But those qualities, essential “I was very fortunate that through- the group ahead of his. 204 — Luke List (USA) 68-71-65 though they are, do not weaken in any out the years I’ve managed to have “On 15 or 16, I looked at the leader- 208 — Rafael Campos (PUR) 69-71-68, way Konta’s drive and ambition to get some very, very good people around board, and Rickie was at like eight un- Daniel Berger (USA) 70-67-71, Kyle to the very top in the sport. me. der par for the day. It was real impres- Stanley (USA) 66-71-71 “I think I’ve always had the belief “I think the more I was able to ab- sive. Unfortunately, he putted poorly 209 — Aaron Baddeley (AUS) 68-68-73, of wanting to become a Grand Slam sorb from them, their knowledge and on the last hole.” Hudson Swaff ord (USA) 67-67-75 champion, wanting to become the wisdom, and the more I was able to 210 — Jhonattan Vegas (VEN) 66-74-70, best in the world,” Konta said after reinvest that into the matches that KANG PLAYING HARD Michael Kim (USA) 70-70-70, Andrew downing former world number one I played, and on a consistent basis, I Kang, who hasn’t posted a victory since Loupe (USA) 68-70-72, Danny Lee (NZL) Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets in “Then it’s about keeping things to say that I really maximised my full think that’s part of reason I’m here the 2013 Korean Open, settled in with 69-69-72, Stewart Cink (USA) 66-71-73, the Miami fi nal on Saturday. simple and working for me,” she add- ability and gave everything inside me.” now,” she said. birdies at the fi rst and fourth holes. Jason Dufner (USA) 68-69-73 “I think that stays throughout, with ed. “I just want to work and try to re- Perhaps Murray, with his under- After bogeys at fi ve and seven he rolled 211 — J.T. Poston (USA) 70-71-70, Kevin every player I imagine, their career. ally bring out in myself the most that ABSORBING WISDOM standing of the pressures of expecta- in birdie putts of 20 feet at the 11th and Chappell (USA) 72-71-68, Andy Sullivan Without that, I don’t think it makes the I have. Wherever that gets me that’s While the WTA tour has no shortage tions, will provide some more of that 15th, and capped his round with a tough (USA) 68-76-67, Justin Rose (ENG) 67-71- victories as sweet or, I think, the defeats where it will get me, but hopefully the of players who shone as teenagers and knowledge and wisdom that Konta is four-footer for par. 73, Zac Blair (USA) 69-67-75 as motivating. I think that stays. day I hang up my racquets I will be able quickly faded, Konta’s rise has been clearly benefi ting from. “I was playing very hard today,” 212 — Harold Varner (USA) 68-73-71, Kang said. “The wind was murder. Robert Garrigus (USA) 68-73-71, Michael The greens got a lot fi rmer because we Thompson (USA) 70-73-69, Jon Rahm BOTTOMLINE played in the afternoon. The greens got (ESP) 71-72-69, Charley Hoff man (USA) a lot faster. Fortunately, I started with 71-72-69

GOLF / ANA INSPIRATION Spieth faces meltdown American Thompson memories as McIlroy, DJ did grabs two-shot lead

AFP Spieth has similar emotions, say- Reuters Augusta, United States ing: “No matter what happens at this Los Angeles year’s Masters, whether I can grab the jacket back or I miss the cut or I fi nish ordan Spieth says he is over 30th, it will be nice having this Mas- merican Lexi Thompson last year’s Masters meltdown, ters go by.” built on her success at the where a fi nal round collapse ANA Inspiration with a third- wrecked his dream of being the ‘HE’S GOING TO BE FINE’ round fi ve-under-par 67 on fiJ rst back-to-back green jacket winner Australia’s Jason Day, whose fi rst ma- ASaturday to grab a two-shot lead head- since 2002. jor win came at the 2015 PGA Cham- ing into the fi nal round. But the acid test of his recovery pionship, can relate to the sting of Thompson completed the fi nal 10 comes next week at Augusta National, missed opportunities that Spieth holes of her delayed second round early 12 months after the implosion which might face with six other top-4 major in the day, carding a 67, and then re- saw him blow a fi ve-stroke lead with fi nishes. turned to make six birdies and one bo- nine holes to play, to hand England’s “It goes in there and kind of sits gey in her third round to reach 13-un- Danny Willett the title. around in your head a little bit but der. “We won in Colonial three starts sooner or later it kind of goes off and Norwegian Suzann Pettersen shot later so as far as aff ecting me on course you’re done with it,” Day said. “It hurt a third-round 68 and was two back at when I’m in a tournament, I think that and stung (Spieth) at the time. But he 11-under. I’ve got a big job to do tomorrow. answer is clear, it doesn’t do that,” has done pretty good with his career At 10-under 206 were South Koreans “I mean, the leaderboard is packed Spieth said. “As far as just having all thus far. He’s going to be fi ne going Hur Mi-jung, Park In-bee and Ryu So- behind me as well. You’ve got to expect the questions be done, I’m pretty sure In this April 10, 2016, picture, Jordan Spieth (left) of the United States and cad- into Augusta.” yeon and Minjee Lee of Australia. to go out there and shoot low. There’s a they will be.” die Michael Greller line up a putt on the first green during the final round of the Reigning US Open champion and Tied at eight-under 208 were Cristie lot at stake, but I’m all in for it.” Spieth, the 2015 Masters and US Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. (AFP) world number one Dustin Johnson, a Kerr, Michelle Wie, Ariya Jutanugarn of Open winner, faces bad memories Masters favourite after winning his past and Karine Icher of France. LEADING THIRD-ROUND SCORES similar to those that haunt other major back nine at Augusta in 2011,” McIlroy ting back up on the horse and getting three starts, knows frustration as well. The 22-year-old Thompson has 203 — Lexi Thompson 69-67-67 champions, including Rory McIlroy, said. “It’s just something you have to after it again. He led the 2010 PGA by one stroke twice held the 54-hole lead in this 205 — Suzann Pettersen (NOR) 68-69- who can complete a career Grand Slam deal with. It’s something that hap- “I think once Jordan gets past the on the last tee. event, going on to win in 2014, and is 68 with a Masters victory. pened. It’s not going to go away. It’s 12th hole in the fi rst round this year, Instead of a bogey and a playoff , looking for her second Major victory. 206 — Hur Mi-Jung (KOR) 70-71-65, McIlroy appeared set to claim his there and it always will be.” it will be over and done with,” McIlroy Johnson was ruled to have grounded “Yeah, well, that experience always Minjee Lee (AUS) 70-68-68, Park In-Bee fi rst major title at Augusta National added, referring to the par-three hole his club in a bunker, a two-shot pen- helps me out, but I’m just going to fo- (KOR) 69-69-68, Ryu So-Yeon (KOR) back in 2011, leading by four shots as QUESTIONS WILL REMAIN which saw Spieth post a quadruple- alty that doomed his title chances and cus on tomorrow, focus on one shot at 68-69-69 the last round began. Instead, he fi red Regarding Spieth, McIlroy notes “no bogey last year. stays with him, calling it the worst of a time, relax out there between shots 208 — Ariya Jutanugarn (THA) 70-70- an eight-over-par 80, an off -target matter what happens this year, those “Same thing with me, once I got several major near misses. and just focus on doing my routine,” 68, Karine Icher (FRA) 67-73-68, Cristie shocker off the 10th tee heralding a questions will still be there and lin- past the 10th hole in 2012 and the fi rst “It wasn’t hard to get over, but it Thompson told reporters. Kerr 67-71-70, Michelle Wie 68-69-71 back-nine disaster as Charl Schwart- ger a little bit,” but the US star can feel round, it was me, I was done. I looked was just pretty disappointing, when Pettersen is a 15-time winner on the 211 — Amy Yang (KOR) 73-71-67, Marina zel took the title. better having won the 2015 Masters. over, I saw where I hit it, I had a bit of you think you’re going into a play- LPGA Tour but has never won a major. Alex 72-71-68, Sarah Jane Smith (AUS) But the Northern Ireland star “When he opens his wardrobe and a laugh and then that was it. And it’s off and then 30 seconds later, nope, She has fi nished as the runner-up three 70-72-69, Jessica Korda 74-67-70, Per- bounced back to win his next major already sees a green jacket in there, I’m done, it’s over, you move forward and you’re not,” said Johnson, who en- times at the event at the Mission Hills nilla Lindberg (SWE) 70-71-70, Lydia Ko start, taking the US Open at Con- sure he can console himself,” McIlroy you don’t think about it again.” dured several other near misses before Country Club course. (NZL) 70-70-71, Charley Hull (ENG) 68- gressional two months later by eight said. McIlroy said that in 2012, “I couldn’t a major win. “I’m driving the ball well and that’s 72-71, Park Sung-Hyun (KOR) 68-69-74 strokes with a tournament-record low “It happens. Everyone has had wait for the Masters to start because I “I feel like I could have had a few a major key on this golf course,” Pet- 212 — Alison Lee 71-73-68, Anna Nor- score. tough losses where things haven’t wanted redemption and I wanted a more, but that’s just major champion- tersen said. “And if you do, you can dqvist (SWE) 70-72-70, Lee Jeong-Eun “I still get questioned about the went their way and it’s just about get- chance to prove myself again.” ships — it’s very hard to get it done.” kind of attack it as well. So far, so good. (KOR) 72-69-71, Nelly Korda 69-69-74

Monday, April 3, 2017 GULF TIMES SPORT

ABU DHABI DESERT CHALLENGE SPOTLIGHT Josoor launches Al-Attiyah, Sunderland research division for Mena Sports and continue winning ways Events industries By Sports Reporter Doha

osoor Institute has an- on fi rst desert stage nounced the launch of its research services, a new di- Qatari leads by 11min 35.1sec from Abu Dhabi Racing’s Sheikh Khalid al-Qassimi Jvision that is leading the or- ganisation’s research initiatives on the Middle East and North Agencies Africa’s (Mena) nascent sports Qasr Al Sarab, UAE Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah has a comfortable and events industries. The two lead in the car section. projects carried to date by Josoor Institute revealed proprietary atar’s Nasser Saleh al-Attiyah knowledge and insights gath- and Dubai-based Sam Sunder- ered for the fi rst time about the land extended their leads in the region. Qcar and motorcycle categories After successfully launching by claiming victories through the open- its educational off erings in 2013, ing 276.59km selective section of the Abu Josoor Institute has kept in line Afraa al-Noami, acting executive Dhabi Desert Challenge yesterday. with its mandate of bridging the director of Josoor Institute The stage started east of Arjan, south of knowledge gap in the Mena re- Abu Dhabi, and fi nished north of the re- gion by identifying the challeng- the value of the Mena sports and mote desert resort of Qasr Al Sarab. es and the opportunities that af- events industries that stand at Al-Attiyah cruised to the stage win in fect the growth of the industries. QR57.6 billion (USD 15.8 billion) the cars and his Overdrive Racing Toy- As a centre of excellence in- and QR29.5 billion (USD 8.7 bil- ota Hilux now leads the event by 11min spired and developed by the Su- lion) respectively. 35.1sec from Abu Dhabi Racing’s Sheikh preme Committee for Delivery The report uncovered some Khalid al-Qassimi. & Legacy (SC), Josoor Institute common rising trends among the Al-Attiyah said, “Today was not easy, serves as a catalyst for building 17 studied markets that showed but we had a good start position – sixth. the sports and events industries the rapid growth of health and fi t- We push very hard in the fi rst 70km and across the region. Working in ness cultures, breakthroughs in pass everybody just to make the gap big. collaboration with leading re- women’s sports, increased major We don’t have any problems. Everything search analysts, Josoor Insti- event capabilities, a shift towards is working very well. Our Toyota is good. tute led the development of two private ownership, rising demand It was very hot. Inside the cabin it was 52 pioneering researches titled for developed human capital and (Centigrade). We try and drink water and “Research of Sports and Events a media landscape increasingly some energy liquid. Now we see for the industries” and “Middle East shaped by digital and social media. next day.” Football Fan Engagement”. Football was found to be the Russian Vladimir Vasilyev fi nished Speaking about Josoor Insti- main sport in all 17 countries in third in his X-raid Mini All4 Racing, tute’s new service off ering, Afraa the Mena region in terms of both Czech Miroslav Zapletal was fourth and al-Noami, acting executive direc- following and participation. fellow countryman Martin Prokop pro- tor of Josoor Institute, said, “To- “This is the largest ever evalu- duced an impressive performance in his day marks a great milestone in ation of the sports and events Ford to claim the fi fth fastest time. Italian our journey to develop and grow industries in the region,” said Eugenio Amos was a surprise sixth in the 1. Nasser al-Attiyah (QAT)/Matthieu the sports and events industries Jon Long, Managing Director of unoffi cial standings. Baumel (FRA) Toyota Hilux Overdrive 3hr across the Mena region. After Nielsen Sports and Entertain- Dakar Rally winner Sunderland started 16min 03.7sec setting up our educational off er- ment for the Mena region. last on the road, claimed the win by just 2. Khalid al-Qassimi (ARE)/Khaled al-Kendi ings, Josoor Institute sought to Josoor Institute’s second re- three seconds and holds an overnight ad- (ARE) Peugeot 3008 DKR 3hr 27min expand its services to bridge the search project on “Middle East vantage of just 5.7 seconds over the Chil- 38.8sec knowledge gap in the industry that Football Fan Engagement” was ean defending FIM Cross-Country Ral- 3. Vladimir Vasilyev (RUS)/Konstantin stretches beyond human capital. conducted in collaboration with lies World Champion Pablo Quintanilla, Zhiltsov (RUS) Mini All4 Racing 3hr 31min When looking at the landscape of Deloitte. riding his Husqvarna. 49.6sec our industries, we realised that the The study examines the moti- Sunderland said, “It was good to win 4. Miroslav Zapletal (CZE)/Marek Sykora biggest gap exists due to the lack vations, behaviours and loyalties the stage yesterday and have the choice of (SLO) Hummer H3 Evo VII 3hr 42min of sports and events industries in- of football fans across Bahrain, position, because this race is quite strate- 36.2sec sights about the Mena region. The Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, gic. It was a heavy day, really tough, and 5. Martin Prokop (CZE)/Jan Tomanek knowledge we’ve gathered to date Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tur- we had to push a lot. To start last and fi n- (CZE) Ford F-150 Evo 3hr 51min 20.1sec has helped us better understand key and UAE. ish fi rst was not easy. The deserts are real- our industry and its potential, and The study found that the love ly unpredictable out there. The rain of the BIKES (TOP 5) we will continue to dig deeper to for football transcends national past weeks, I lost the front (of the bike) in 1. Sam Sunderland (GBR) KTM 450 Rally draw on the insights we need to boundaries with 73 percent of the sand, in the soft dunes, braking a few Factory 3hr 31min 09.5sec move forward.” participants stating that the sport times. This caused a bit of stress. But the 2. Pablo Quintanilla (CHI) Husqvarna 450 The Josoor Institute research is very important to them and 89 bike is working good. I will take each day Rally 3hr 31min 15.2sec division is led by a team of ex- percent of respondents watch as it comes. Obviously starting fi rst to- 3. Matthias Walkner (AUT) KTM 450 Rally perts who are passionate about football whenever they can. morrow, I will lose time. But we will see.” Factory 3hr 32min 16.6sec bringing forward the opportu- The research also explored Kuwait’s Mohamed Jaff ar and Abu 4. Paolo Gonçalves (PRT) Honda 450 CRF nities of the industries and ad- fans loyalty to local vs interna- Dhabi’s Mohamed al-Balooshi reached Sam Sunderland leads the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge by 5.7 seconds after leg one. Rally 3hr 34min 19.8sec dressing the roadblocks that tional clubs and found that in the fi nish in eighth and ninth overall on 5. Pierre Alexander Renet (FRA) Husq- stand against allowing the region spite of a strong following of in- their respective KTMs. longer sections of dunes over the coming before PC1. Meanwhile, Marat Abykayev’s varna 450 Rally 3hr 37min 49.3sec to reach its full potential. ternational clubs, fans across the Fahad al-Musallam’s advantage in the days,” said event founder and ATCUAE challenge for T2 honours suff ered a ter- Josoor Institute’s fi rst research Middle East are more likely to be quad section was short-lived and the president Mohamed Ben Sulayem. minal blow when the Kazakh crashed his QUADS (TOP 5) project titled “Sports and Event lifelong fans of local teams than Kuwaiti slipped out of the top fi ve in the Saudi Arabia’s Yasir Saeidan has un- Toyota Land Cruiser heavily early in the 1. Kamal Wisniewski (POL) Yamaha Raptor Industries in Mena” was devel- international teams. quad category behind Poland’s stage- fi nished business in the T2 category af- stage and co-driver Andrey Chipenko 700 R 4hr 45min 51.4sec oped in collaboration with Repu- Julian Hawkins, CEO of Con- winning Kamil Wisniewski and Guate- ter missing out on last year’s title and sustained an injury. The medical helicop- 2. Rodolfo Schippers (GUA) Yamaha Rap- com (now Nielsen Sports). The sulting for Deloitte Middle East, mala’s Rodolfo Schippers. Italy’s Camelia he made a strong start to his Abu Dhabi ter was summoned and his co-driver was tor 700 R 4hr 46min 45.9sec research was undertaken in 17 said, “We are particularly pleased Liparoti produced a good performance to Desert Challenge campaign and was the airlifted to Madinat Zayed hospital with 3. Khalifa al-Raeesi (ARE) Honda TRX 700 countries including Algeria, Bah- that so many of the fi ndings in the fi nish third. front-running T2 driver at the early pas- a head injury. He was conscious and in a 4hr 54min 31.8sec rain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, study can be directly taken up by “The fi rst stage has never been easy as sage control checks. stable condition. 4. Camelia Liparoti (ITA) Yamaha Raptor Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, football administrators across today has proved. But it’s a way for the Local driver Mansoor al-Helai’s plan 700 R 4hr 55min 18.4sec Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the region and used to guide competitors to acclimatise to the heat and to push hard in the T2 category suff ered POSITIONS AFTER LEG 1 5. Maxim Antimirov (KAZ) Honda TRX 700 Tunisia, Turkey, UAE and Yemen. new strategies and initiatives for the conditions before they enter much a severe setback when he ground to a halt CARS (TOP 5) 4hr 57min 32.4sec The research was able to draw building fan engagement.”

QATAR AIRWAYS CRICKET TOURNAMENT United Challengers lift Div B title, Phantom Club takes Div C

By Sports Reporter Doha

iksy and Imran anchored United Challengers Club to a fi ne three-wicket victory against Mannai Club and the NDivision B title in the Qatar Airways Cricket Tournament at the West Bay Complex. After being put into bat fi rst in the fi nal, Mannai Club found it hard to ne- gotiate United Challengers’ bowlers. Satish, who picked two wickets for just 18 runs, Imran (1/22) and Nifraz (1/23) limited them to a modest 118 for fi ve in 20 overs. Phantom Club beat Texas Club to lift the Division C title. Gopal was the most successful Man- nai Club batsman, hitting 33 off 37 24, including fi ve fours. Hamees hit 15 of honour and gave away the prizes. balls. His knock was punctuated by a and B Mansoor scored a six-ball 13 with six and six fours. three boundaries. BRIEF SCORES Chameera and Manoj were other Asif and Ashif made light of the Tex- Mannai Club 118 for five in 20 overs double-digit contributors. Both Cha- as Club bowling and enabled their team (Gopal 33, Chameera 22, Manoj 21; meera and Manoj hit 22-run knocks, to hit the target in the 14th over. Asif Satish 2/18, Imran 1/22, Nifraz 1/23) lost with three boundaries each. clobbered an unbeaten 56 off 38 balls. to United Challengers 121 for seven in In reply, United Challengers suff ered His splendid innings had two sixes and 16.5 overs (Niksy 35, Imran 19 not out; blows at regular interval. However, the six boundaries. Ashif also raced to a 27- Suresh 2/19, Akash 2/30, Chameera small target did not pose many prob- United Challengers Club registered a three-wicket victory over Mannai Club to win Division B. ball 41. He had seven hits to the rope, 2/39) by three wickets. Man of the Final: lems as Niksy smashed a match-high while one went beyond. Niksy of United Challengers 35. His 23-ball blitz was studded with Chameera (2/39) made a commendable pulled off a dominant eight-wicket tri- ting line-up. Biju returned four play- Biju earned the coveted Man of the Texas Club 111 all out in 16.1 overs three sixes and as many boundaries. attempt with the ball. umph against Texas Club to clinch the ers back to the pavilion, while Azim Final award for his brilliant bowling. (Marso 24, Hamees 15; Biju 4/22, Azim Imran cracked four hits to the fence on For his responsible and vital knock, crown. scalped three. Qatar Cricket Association offi cials 3/14) lost to Phantom Club 114 for two in his way to a valuable 19 not out, which Niksy was adjudged the Man of the Fi- The decision of sending Texas Club As a result, Texas Club folded at just Gul Khan Jadoon, head of domestic 13.2 overs (Asif 56 not out, Ashif 41; Sha- set up the victory in 17 overs. nal. in to bat fi rst proved a boon with Biju 111 in 16.1 overs. Marso got the maxi- cricket, and Amin Ul Islam, head of kir 1/10, Rasmy 1/35) by eight wickets. Suresh (2/19), Akash (2/30) and In the Division C fi nal, Phantom Club and Azim ripping through the rival bat- mum runs for his team – a run-a-ball School Boys’ Cricket, were the guests Man of the Final: Biju of Phantom Club