Semenya Says Gender Rules
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CCRICKETRICKET | Page 7 South Africa seek to bounce back aft er Perera heroics Wednesday, February 20, 2019 FOOTBALL Jumada II 15, 1440 AH Atletico Madrid GULF TIMES meet Juventus in a clash of high stakes SPORT Page 2 FOOTBALL Al Rayyan seal Champions Rayyan’s newly-signed striker Rivas scores a brace in The Lions’ 3-1 victory over Saipa; three second half goals League spot by Zobahan halt Al Gharafa’s progress Al Rayyan players celebrate their victory over Iran’s Saipa during their AFC Champions League group stage match yesterday. from the home side, Ali Daei’s selves as some shocking defend- downfall as Amir Motahari rose men defended well and relied on ing allowed Zobahan to complete above Lucas Mendes to head counter-attacks and set-pieces a historic comeback win. Ghara- home Zobahan’s equaliser from as they looked to upset Rayyan. fa broke the deadlock halfway Mohamed Reza Hosseini’s pin- Samuel Sarfo came close for through the opening period after point cross in the 63rd minute. Saipa with a header nine minutes midfi elder Abdelaziz Hatim chest- The Iranian side completed their into the second half and Moein ed down a long pass and set up miraculous comeback in the 79th Abbasian wasn’t any luckier, fellow Qatar international Ahmed minute through Mohammed Ne- fl uffi ng his lines from close range Alaaeldin, who fi red fi rst time with jad Mehdi. in the 64th minute. his left into the top corner for the Al Gharafa’s defence failed The Iranian defence fi nally hosts’ fi rst of the game. to deal with the aerial chal- Al Rayyan’s Gelmin Rivas (left) in action against Saipa during their AFC Champions League group stage match at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in broke under the pressure, and it Alaaeldin turned from scorer lenge once more and Osaguona’s Doha yesterday. PICTURES: Noushad Thekkayil was again Tabata’s magical touch to provider in the 36th minute, headed pass found its way to Me- that created the opportunity for laying off the ball to Mehdi hdi who drilled on the half-volley By Sports Reporter before Gharafa shockingly let his football journey in Qatar so tested goalkeeper Hossein Ak- Al Rayyan. The former Qatari in- Taremi, who slid home from the to round off a famous victory. Doha Zobahan off the hook as the Ira- far for Rivas, who in his debut barmonadi from distance, but the ternational sent a long ball from edge of the penalty box to double Zobahan retreated for the fi nal nian side scored three times in match for his new club scored Saipa custodian was alert to the a set-piece that was guided ex- the Qatari side’s lead before the 10 minutes and formed a com- the second half. two goals and set up another danger. Borges then nearly found pertly by Sebastian Soria’s head- break. pact unit, denying Al Gharafa any l Rayyan joined Al Du- Rayyan, however, fi nished against Al Arabi in the QNB Stars the back of the net, but his header er to turn the table in favour of Whatever it was that coach clear opportunities. hail and Al Sadd as strongly against Iran’s Saipa as two League last week, from Rodrigo Tabata’s set-piece the home team with one minute Alireza Mansourian said at The hosts resorted to long- the third Qatari team last-minute goals gave them a 3-1 It wasn’t a bright start for cannoned off the crossbar and to go. the break, it worked wonders range shots, but in the absence in the AFC Champi- victory at Jassim bin Hamad Stadi- Rayyan though, as the home fans into the hands of Akbarmonadi. Saipa threw bodies forward as as Zobahan returned from the of the injured Wesley Sneijder Aons League group stage, but Al um. In the group stage, Al Rayyan were left stunned after Saipa Rivas marked his continental they looked to grab a late equal- dressing room a completely dif- it was down to Hatim to try to Gharafa threw away two-goal are drawn with two-time cham- took lead inside four minutes. debut for Rayyan with a goal. The iser, but spaces opened at the ferent side. rescue his side, but the Qatari advantage in the play-off tie to pions Al Ittihad of Saudi as well as Mohamedreza Soleiman nodded Venezuelan, formerly of Al Hilal back allowing Al Rayyan to strike Within two minutes of the re- international was unable to rep- bow out of the competition with UAE’s Al Wahda and Uzbekistan’s the ball on to the path of Arman and Al Ittihad, received Tabata’s again. Rivas doubled his tally and start, the visitors had pulled one licate his 2019 AFC Asian Cup a 2-3 loss yesterday. PFC Lokomotiv in Group B. Ramezani, who capitalised on a pass inside the box and stuck on confi rmed his side’s progress into back. Nigerian striker Christian heroics which saw him score two For a large part, it looked like Rayyan’s newly-signed striker defensive mix-up to stab home the half-volley. His 27th minute the group stage after curling in Osaguona powered in a header long-range drives. Zobahan join all the four giants of Qatar foot- Gelmin Rivas was the standout the opener. shot hit the upright on its way from Koh Myong-jin’s intelligent past the helpless Youssef Has- Al Wasl from the UAE, Al Zawraa ball would play in the continen- player as the Venezuelan struck Rayyan attempted to bounce into the back of the net. pass. san to half the defi cit. Aerial from Iraq as well as Saudi Ara- tal club championship this year, twice. It’s been a dream start to back quickly, but Lucca Borges Despite sustained pressure Gharafa will be blaming them- balls proved to be Al Gharafa’s bia’s Al Nassr. MOTORCYCLING Tests at Losail circuit up next for MotoGP caravan fter three days of test- as well as comparing new data in acceleration. and past Ducati, traditionally the ing at Sepang, it’s over with their fi ndings from the very Aerodynamics, formerly win- masters of aero innovation, we to Losail International diff erent venue of Sepang. glets, now ‘aero fairings’, is an- saw plenty of diff erent options Circuit for those last Among the things to look out other key component that teams up and down pitlane. Achanges before the season begins for are engines. must make a fi nal decision on “There are always positives at the Qatar circuit from March Teams without concessions during the Qatar Test. and negatives,” said Vinales of 8-10, 2019. now include Team Suzuki Ecstar This year it’s a simple choice aero, and the Qatar Test is the From the February 23-25, Mo- after their stellar 2018. of two fairings for the year, one last chance for teams to decide toGP will make its fi rst visit of From the start of the season, of which must be decided upon which positives outweigh which the year to Losail International factories aren’t able to make before the season begins, the negatives. Circuit for the second and fi nal changes and the very same Su- other mid-way through, and Another man who will fi nally preseason test of 2019, two weeks zuki showed in 2017 how a slight neither of which can be changed be able to continue his own adap- before the season-opener. misstep can wreak havoc on the once homologated. And this time tation in Qatar is Jorge Lorenzo. Track activity for the Qatar season as a whole. around, they also have to fi t in a After breaking his scaphoid and Test will be from 4pm to 10pm Ducati and Honda also seem specially designed homologa- being forced to miss the Sepang with free entrance to the Grand- happy after Sepang, the latter tion unit that judges the legality Test, the fi ve-time world cham- stand for all the spectators, while trying two specs. Yamaha, after a of the fairing – if it doesn’t fi t, it pion will be able to get back on fans with Grand Prix of Qatar more diffi cult couple of seasons, doesn’t race. his new Repsol Honda machine tickets will also have the chance also saw plenty of positive com- At Sepang, Danilo Petrucci at Losail, and continue getting to enter the paddock during the ments about the engine coming (Mission Winnow Ducati Team) up to speed. So as well as the fi nal test. from Maverick Vinales (Monster and Jack Miller (Alma Pramac adjustments to the machinery, After the fi rst outing in Malay- Energy Yamaha MotoGP) in Ma- Racing) crashed on their diff er- he’s sure to be a key talking point sia, teams now have to make their laysia. They’ve had one to work ent aero fairings they were trying of the Qatar Test come struggle fi nal preparations for the year on with and no direct choice in 2019 so they’ll want to get a little more or shine, as will new teammate In this March 18, 2018, picture, Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso (right), Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez (left) and everything from aero to engines, per se, but the Spaniard specifi - track time under their belts in Marc Marquez after surgery on Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Johann Zarco ride around the Losail International Circuit during the MotoGP race and they’ll be trying new things cally pointed out improvements Qatar before decisions are made, his shoulder.