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THURSDAY, JULY 20, 2017 SPORTS World Cup finalists England yet to hit peak form: Knight BRISTOL: Captain Heather Knight India at Derby today. “We haven’t put put our perfect performance in then I’ll from the game. But Knight admitted in the last 18 months has been said England are yet to reach their in the perfect performance together,” be a very happy captain.” Set 219 to book England could now allow themselves towards that.” best in the Women’s World Cup, Knight said afterwards, acknowledg- a place in the showpiece finale, England to think about playing at the ‘home of Although defeated, South Africa despite beating South Africa by two ing there were areas England needed made hard work of completing the chase cricket’. “It’s special,” Knight added, captain Dane van Niekerk heralded wickets at Bristol on Tuesday to reach to improve in ahead of the final. after losing six wickets for 78 runs. reflecting on England reaching their her team’s effort, as they competed in the final. Sarah Taylor top-scored for “The wicket was used and quite But they kept their cool in a nervy seventh World Cup final. their first World Cup semi-final since England with a crucial 76-ball 54 as tired, so we were quite smart with our final over as Anya Shrubsole - with two “We’ve known that the final is at 2000, and hoped reaching the knock- South Africa fought back hard in the bowling. “Potentially in the field runs required from three balls - hit her Lord’s for a long time now and, trying out round will inspire a new genera- latter stages to take the semi-final there’s a few extra runs in a close first delivery for four to secure victory. not to think about it too much, it’s tion of players back home. down to the clsoing over in their match like that that plays on your That England were in a position to win been at the forefront of our minds. It’s “After this tournament and the per- attempt of defending 218. mind as it gets close. It’s not ideal that the match after such a collapse was hard not to think about it. “A final at formances our team have put in, you Two-time World Cup winners one of the top five didn’t bat through thanks to the third-wicket partnership Lord’s at a home World Cup, sold out, know, a lot of girls get a bit more England will find out who they play in and be there at the end. It would have of 78 from Knight and Taylor, who there’s nothing better than that for interested in the game and try and Sunday’s sold-out final at Lord’s when made it a lot easier. returned to the England fold for this me. “We set out to try and sing that play it and hopefully get excited for reigning champions Australia take on “There’s still one game to go and if we tournament after a year-long break song at Lord’s, everything we’ve done the game,” she said. —AFP Mourinho ‘ready for 15 years’ at Old Trafford LOS ANGELES: Manchester United man- ple say-that we have to win, but in reality ager Jose Mourinho has revealed he is tar- only one can win and every year it is get- geting a 15-year stay at Old Trafford, telling ting more difficult. ESPN in an interview on Tuesday he wants “This club, for so many years, was Sir to restore the stability of the Alex Ferguson Alex. People got used to it; people under- era. Mourinho, who took over the Premier stood the great consequences of that sta- League giants last year, told the network’s bility. “After David [Moyes] and Mr. [Louis] website that he is desperate to deliver sus- Van Gaal, I come to my second year and tained success over a long-term period just hopefully I can stay and give that stability as Ferguson did over nearly three decades. that the club wants. I will try, but again, I United have not won the Premier League will have to try to deserve that, but that’s title since Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, what I try every day that I work.” with the club struggling to rediscover its Mourinho believes Ferguson’s 27-year dominance under David Moyes and Louis reign at United will never be emulated in van Gaal. the modern game. “I think Sir Alex’s career Mourinho has never spent longer than is unique,” Mourinho said. “I don’t think it is three years as manager of a club during his possible to emulate. “Nobody is going to be trophy-laden career. But the 54-year-old, in the same club for so many years, be in speaking as his team prepare to face the same league for so many years. I think Manchester City in Houston today in the [Arsenal manager Arsene] Wenger will be latest leg of their US tour, insisted he saw the last with a similar story in terms of stay- United as a long-term project. ing at a club for so many years. “I am ready for this,” Mourinho told “But I what I try to do in modern foot- ESPN. “I am ready for the next 15, I would ball nowadays is to try to deserve to stay in say. Here? Yes, why not? “I have to admit the club, because in this moment, it is that it is very difficult because of the pres- about success. You have success, you stay sure around our jobs, everybody putting in the club. You don’t have success, you pressure on managers and things that peo- don’t stay.” — AFP Arsenal stun Bayern on TILBURG: France’s forward Eugenie Le Sommer celebrates after scoring during the UEFA Women’s Euro 2017 football match between France and penalties in Shanghai Iceland at Stadium Koning Wilhelm II in Tilburg on Tuesday. — AFP SHANGHAI: Arsenal were outplayed for Wenger had his arms outstretched in frustra- SOCCER long periods by Bayern Munich before sal- tion. And at the end of a first half in which vaging a last-gasp draw and then winning Bayern could have scored another five times 3-2 on penalties in a Shanghai friendly yes- but for goalkeeper Petr Cech, Arsenal play- terday. Reserve goalkeeper Emiliano maker Mesut Ozil booted the ball high into Martinez was the unlikely hero for the the air in anger. The future of the German France edge Iceland Premier League side, saving Juan Bernat’s international, and that of Chilean star Alexis soft spot kick after Arsenal substitute Alex Sanchez, is in major doubt with both stalling Iwobi made it 1-1 right at the end of nor- over new contracts. mal time. Sanchez is enjoying extra time off and is It may only have been a friendly and not in China after his involvement in the 1-0 at women’s Euro Arsenal emerged victorious, but it made for Confederations Cup. But he may not have painful viewing at times for manager made a difference against Carlo Ancelotti’s Arsene Wenger, whose side suffered a 10-2 side, who took the lead after Ainsley DEVENTER: Eugenie Le Sommer converted a aggregate drubbing to Bayern in last sea- Maitland-Niles had brought down Bernat in late penalty to lift France past diehard Iceland son’s Champions League. Robert the box and Lewandowski did the rest. Lewandowski needed just nine minutes to Iwobi’s injury-time leveller sent the 1-0 while Nina Burger’s early goal gave Austria Arrested Spanish federation fire Bayern ahead from the penalty spot as game straight to penalties. Both sides field- an equally slim win over 10-player Switzerland the German champions dominated before ed a mixture of first-team regulars and at the women’s Euro on Tuesday. Iwobi headed in at the death. reserves, with new Bayern signing James In Tilburg, Le Sommer sent Iceland’s keeper chief faces bleak future There will be no Champions League for Rodriguez and new Arsenal striker Gudbjerg Gunnarsdottir the wrong way to Arsenal this term and a gulf in class was evi- Alexandre Lacazette starting. Arsenal face score from the spot on 86 minutes after sub- MADRID: Angel Maria Villar’s future as the should be a “first step for a reform and dent. At one point in the opening period at Chelsea in Beijing in their next warm-up stitute striker Elin Metta Jensen had brought head of the Spanish football federation complete regeneration of football institu- Shanghai Stadium, where temperatures game at the weekend, while Bayern play AC down Amandine Henry in the box. In the was in serious doubt yesterday following tions.” “For Villar, the eternal president, this hovered around 36 degrees Celsius (97F), Milan in Shenzhen, southern China. —AFP Group C opener in Deventer earlier on his arrest as part of a vast anti-corruption is the end. It should have happened earli- Tuesday, Austrian captain Burger scored 15 probe. Villar, his son Gorka Villar, and sev- er,” the newspaper added in its editorial. minutes in with a clinical right-foot finish after eral Spanish Villar, a former a pass from Sarah Zadrazil in a clash of Euro federation acting presi- newcomers. executives dent and cur- Switzerland were reduced to 10 players were detained rent vice presi- after Rahel Kiwic was sent off for bringing by police in a dent of down Burger just outside the box with half an series of early European foot- hour to go.