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Wednesday, December 30, 2020 FOOTBALL Jumada I 15, 1442 AH PSG sack Tuchel, GULF TIMES Pochettino favourite to take over SPORT Page 3 QATAR INTERNATIONAL HANDBALL TOURNAMENT TENNIS Former boys’ singles Qatar fi nish second, champs headline qualifi ers in Doha

By Sports Reporter ond round at the 2020 edition, get vital prep ahead Doha making him the AO’s oldest sin- gles match winner since Austral- ia’s Ken Rosewall in 1978. ising stars and former Australians , Bernard Australian Open boys’ Tomic, Andrew Harris, Thanasi singles champions Se- Kokkinakis and Aleksandar Vu- bastian Korda (2018) kic are also on the entry list. Rand Lorenzo Musetti (2019) “We are grateful to our friends of World C’ships headline a thrilling entry list of in Qatar for hosting the Austral- talents that will be on display at ian Open 2021 men’s qualifying the Australian Open 2021 men’s event in Doha,” Australian Open With two wins and a draw, Spain finish on top of the four-nation friendly league qualifi ers in Doha. Tournament Director Craig Tiley By Sports Reporter The tournament, to be held said. Doha from January 10-13 at the Khalifa He also said: “Staging the AO International Tennis and Squash qualifying event, and providing Complex in Doha, will feature a players with the opportunity to atar went down fi ght- total of 128 players who will be both earn prize money and win ing to Spain 26-28 in competing for sixteen qualify- the chance to play their fi nal match of the ing spots in the Australian Open tennis during this diffi cult time Qatar International main draw to be held in Mel- has been a key objective in all our HandballQ Tournament at the Al bourne from February 8-21. planning. “ Duhail Indoor Hall yesterday. World No.118-ranked Korda, “I’d particularly like to thank The hosts put up a valiant a 20-year-old American who Nasser al-Khelaifi , fi ght against the European made the fourth round at Roland and Qatar Tennis Federation who champions, but fell short in the Garros as a qualifi er earlier this have led the charge to help us end. At half-time Qatar were year, is the son of 1998 Austral- stage this event due to the cur- just a point behind Spain at 12- ian Open champion . rent travel restrictions into Aus- 13. World No.128-ranked Musetti, tralia,’ he added. Spain by virtue of winning aged 18, also enjoyed a breakout Players will need to win three two matches and drawing one, 2020 season, winning his maiden qualifying matches to qualify for topped the four-nation friendly ATP Challenger title and scoring the main draw and all matches event with fi ve points. Asian his fi rst top-20 victory against are best of three sets. Following champions Qatar were second Stan Wawrinka in Rome. the event the 16 qualifi ers will be with four points, having won Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, a joined by a further six alternate two matches prior to their loss 17-year-old ranked No.141 who players and travel to to to Spain. won three ATP Challenger ti- undertake 14 days of mandatory Argentina fi nished third after tles in 2020 and was voted the quarantine with other main draw they edged past Tunisia 28-27 ATP Tour’s Newcomer of the players. yesterday. Year, and France’s Hugo Gaston, Qatar Tennis Federation (QTF) The friendly tournament was a 20-year-old who made the Board Member Karim Alami said, being conducted as Qatar and Roland Garros fourth round in “We are very delighted to host three other teams prepare for the 2020, are also on the list of play- the 2021 Australian Open quali- World Championship in Egypt ers to watch. fying matches – the fi rst time it to be held from January 13-31. More familiar names in the is being held outside its tradi- At next month’s IHF event, Al draw include former world No.5 tional home in Melbourne. Se- Annabi, drawn in Group C, open and 2007 Australian Open quar- lecting Doha as hosts is further their campaign against Angola ter-fi nalist , proof of the confi dence the ten- in what will be a rematch of one and 36-year-old Italian Andreas nis family have in us as wonder- of the most memorable matches Seppi, a former world No.18 who ful hosts, and we are grateful for from the 2019 World Champi- Qatar’s Rafael Da Costa Capote (left) is poised to score against Spain in the Qatar International Handball Tournament at the Al Duhail Indoor advanced to the Australian Open the opportunity. All the partici- onships. Hall yesterday. PICTURES: Shemeer Rasheed fourth round on four occasions pants are assured of a very safe The EURO 2020 runners-up and boasts wins over Roger Fe- tournament and our top-notch Croatia and Japan are the other pandemic meant Qatar had to events,” he added. derer and at Mel- hospitality as usual. We look for- teams in their group. train at home. Qatar player Wagdy Sinan bourne Park. ward to welcoming everybody to Qatar coach Valero Rivera had Meanwhile, Qatar Handball said the tournament was a vital Former world No.10 Ernests Doha.” hoped to test the squad against Association president Ahmed rehearsal for the World Champi- Gulbis, former world No.12 The qualifying draw will take tough opponents ahead of the al-Shaabi said the tournament onships. Viktor Troicki and big-serving place at 3pm January 9 and will Worlds and he would have been had achieved its goals. “The tournament was a former world No.14 Ivo Karlovic be streamed live on all QTF and pleased with what he saw from “The tournament achieved strong dress rehearsal for the will also rely on their experience AO social media accounts as well. his players. Rafael Da Costa Ca- its objectives, which was to World Championship next at the top of the game to progress Live scoring and live streaming pote, Youssef Benali and Ahmed provide teams with game time. month. We came away with to the main draw. Karlovic, aged of qualifying, where available, Madadi all impressed in the The tournament witnessed high some useful match practice 41 and the tallest top-20 player will be hosted via ausopen.com tournament, while goalkeeper quality matches from top teams. against some tough opponents. in history, advanced to the sec- and the AO app. Medan Abdi also stood out with All the teams that participated We succeeded in achieving the his terrifi c saving skills. have benefi ted from the tourna- goal we had set out and we look In the last few months, the ment and the international fed- forward to working hard ahead Qatar team underwent several eration (IHF) has praised the or- of the Worlds,” Sinan said. training camps besides featuring ganisation of the tournament,” in a number of friendly matches, al-Shaabi said. including games against top “We have received praise from Action from the match between clubs of Qatar. Rivera wanted offi cials of the IHF for hosting Spain (in white) and Qatar (in to have a camp in a European this tournament in the diffi cult maroon) in Qatar International country but the travel restric- times. Qatar, is always a safe Handball Tournament at the Al tions in place due to Covid-19 place to host various sporting Duhail Indoor Hall yesterday.

SPOTLIGHT Doha to host Judo Masters in Jan, Worlds in 2023

By Sports Reporter needs and expectations of all our stake- Championships” to Qatar. anyone preventing us,” he said. Doha holders. We are very pleased to welcome “We remain convinced that the Mas- “In that regard, I would like to thank our best judokas and guests in our hos- ters will have a great impact on judo the commitment of the Qatar Judo Fed- pitable city of Doha,” al-Attiyah said. promotion and development in Qatar. eration, whose eff ort has been enormous, he world’s top judokas will be “Doha has always been a lively and We wish the participants all the best,” ensuring everything is ready on time. The seen in action at the Doha Mas- dynamic place to discover and stage he added. Masters is therefore ready to begin! ters to be organised by the Qa- high-performance events. We are very Meanwhile, Vizer praised Qatar’s The Doha Masters is an important tar Taekwondo, Judo and Kara- grateful to our highest authorities for enthusiasm and commitment to sports qualifying tournament for the Tokyo teT Federation from January 11 to 13. The all their continued backing,” he added. despite the complications stemming Olympic Games, with the crème de la event is part of the World Judo Tour. The Doha Masters precedes the from the Covid-19 pandemic. crème of the World Judo Tour battling Federation president Khalid Hamad World Championships which Qatar will “As you all know, this is a compli- to earn the valuable points. al-Attiyah said in a statement that Qa- host in 2023. cated year. The coronavirus pandemic “It will happen in Doha, a place tied tar will provide the strictest of health Al-Attiyah thanked International has forced us all to modify established fi rmly to its history but that bets on the protocols to the athletes and offi cials Judo Federation president Marius Viz- plans, for the good of judo and the future, with its avant-garde architec- taking part in the prestigious event. er for “his ongoing support and trust world. Now here we are, willing to con- ture, its green spaces and its desire to “We are quite aware that we need to in allocating the organisation of the tinue our lives and continue to promote be a hub of culture, sports and business. In this October 4, 2020, picture, Sebastian Korda of the US serves the put in a lot of eff ort to meet the specifi c Doha Masters event and the 2023 World our beloved sport, without anything or This is Doha!” said Vizer. ball to Spain’s Rafael Nadal (not pictured) during their fourth round match at Roland Garros in Paris. (AFP) Gulf Times 2 Wednesday, December 30, 2020 FOOTBALL

PREMIER LEAGUE LA LIGA Barcelona held by Arsenal ease pressure Eibar as injured Messi watches on on Arteta, Leeds smash Reuters with a 2-0 victory over Villar- Barcelona real to move into the Champions League places. The year has been a magical one for the Andalusian arcelona suff ered in the side, fi rst earning Champions absence of the injured League qualifi cation courtesy of fi ve past West Brom Lionel Messi as they their league fi nish in 2019/20 and drew 1-1 at home to then winning yet another Europa strugglingB Eibar in La Liga yes- League trophy, defeating Inter in terday after Martin Braithwaite the fi nal. Villarreal have enjoyed Burnley beat Sheff ield United to move five points clear of the relegation zone missed a penalty for the Cata- a fantastic 2020/21 season to this lans. Eibar, who went into the point as well, with an unbeaten AFP game sitting one place above the run stretching back to Septem- London relegation zone, took a shock ber seeing them sit in fi fth place. lead in the 57th minute through However, their visit to the Esta- striker Kike Garcia before Barca dio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan was rsenal further eased the pres- substitute Ousmane Dembele a chastening experience and re- sure on manager Mikel Arteta levelled for 10 minutes later. minded them of the progress still with a 1-0 win at Brighton yes- Messi had returned to Barcelo- needed. terday, but the continuation of na from Argentina earlier yester- Lucas Ocampos opened the theA Premier League in the coming weeks day but watched from the stands scoring for the hosts with a was cast into doubt after a record 18 posi- as he is still recovering from an penalty, whilst it was Youssef tive tests for coronavirus among players ankle problem and, while his side En-Nesyri who completed the and staff earlier in the day. played well without him, they scoring when he added a second. After Manchester City’s trip to Everton lacked the cutting edge he so of- Diego Carlos was instrumental on Monday was postponed due to a Covid ten provides. in shutting down what has been outbreak in Pep Guardiola’s squad, all fi ve Braithwaite missed the tar- an effi cient Villarreal team, per- matches scheduled yesterday went ahead get from the spot in the fi rst half forming to his market value. despite disruption for Sheffi eld United then had a goal ruled off side by At the other end it was a tale of and Southampton. VAR while the Dane also missed missed chances for Los Rojiblan- Bottom-of-the-table United revealed a chance to grab the winner from cos, as Sevilla could have won by they had suff ered a number of positive point-blank range when the ball three or four goals. Carlos him- Covid-19 cases but were still able to fi eld a bounced off his chest on the re- self missed two free headers from squad of 18 for their 1-0 defeat at Burnley. bound and squirmed wide. set pieces, whilst Marcos Acuna Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl Earlier, Sevilla capped off also got forward from left-back coached his side from his home for a 0-0 their year in a perfect fashion with regular ease. draw against West Ham after a member of his household tested positive. On the fi eld, Arsenal eased fears they could be dragged into a relegation battle with a 3-1 win over Chelsea on Saturday and can now look up the table with hope thanks to consecutive league wins for the fi rst time since the opening two games of the season. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang returned from injury in the place of Alexandre Lacazette in the only change made by Arteta. But Lacazette came off the bench to make an instant impact and win the game with a fi ne near-post fi nish from Bukayo Saka’s pass just 26 seconds after coming on Victory moves the Gunners up to 13th, within seven points of the top Eibar’s Marko Dmitrovic (left) saves a shot from Barcelona’s Martin four. Braithwaite in the La Liga in Barcelona yesterday. (AFP) Arteta said: “We know we’ve been struggling with results. The fact we won against Chelsea was a big boost. To come FOCUS here and get another win was massively important. I’m proud for the boys and happy for the result. [Alexandre] Laca- zette is in a good moment. He’s full of QFA appoints Chile’s confi dence. We wanted to change the team in the second half and give it some freshness. We weren’t threatening in cer- Cordova U-23 coach tain areas. In the second half we looked much more confi dent and we were play- atar Football As- ing more forward. The best medicine is sociation (QFA) has wins. It’s a diff erent world and a diff erent announced Chilean story. The picture looks much better.” Arsenal’s Alexandre Lacazette (centre) celebrates with Bukayo Saka (left) after scoring against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Pre- Nicolas Cordova as West Brom are next up for Arsenal at mier League in Brighton, southern England, yesterday. (AFP) theQ new Qatar under 23 coach. the weekend and the Baggies confi dence The former midfi elder will man- after a shock 1-1 draw at Liverpool on “We took control of the game and we the chance to move into the top four as PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS age the Qatar’s U-23 squad which Sunday quickly evaporated in a 5-0 ham- capitalise on any chances that we had. they failed to score for the third consecu- Brighton 0 Arsenal 1 (Lacazette 66); is getting ready for key events in mering by Leeds. A miserable night for With Marcelo [Bielsa], he wants us to be tive game in a 0-0 draw with West Ham. Burnley 1 (Mee 32) Sheff ield United 0; 2021 and beyond. West Brom started with a self-infl icted aggressive and when we do that, we can Danny Ings had an early goal ruled out Southampton 0 West Ham 0; West Brom Cordova has played for several wound as Romain Sawyers scored a re- create problems for the defenders. Once for off side against Che Adams and de- 0 Leeds 5 (Sawyers 9-og, Alioski 31, South American clubs and has markable own goal as his backpass sailed we created that danger, we were able to spite the Saints’ dominance they were experience of representing Chile past Sam Johnstone. build off of that and it was a good starting nearly hit by a sucker punch late on when Harrison 36, Rodrigo 40, Raphinha 72); national teams. He also coached Ezgjan Alioski smashed a strike in off point for us.” Alex McCarthy had to spread himself to Playing today: Tottenham v Fulham the Chile U-20 team in 2015. the post before Jack Harrison slotted Sheffi eld United are the only side below block Said Benrahma’s shot from point- (1800), Newcastle v Liverpool (2000) Cordova began his career in home the third after a neat one-two with West Brom in the table and their chances blank range. Colo-Colo of Chile in the top Played Monday: Crystal Palace 1 (Zaha Patrick Bamford. Rodrigo’s defl ected of survival are diminishing rapidly with Southampton remain ninth with West fl ight. He played from 1997 un- strike made it 4-0 before half-time and just two points from their opening 16 Ham three points further back in 10th. 58) Leicester 1 (Barnes 83); Chelsea (Gir- til 2001 playing 54 matches and Raphinha’s powerful strike into the top games. Ben Mee scored the only goal at Manchester United can move up to sec- oud 34) Aston Villa 1 (El Ghazi 50) scoring three goals. In the 2004- corner infl icted Sam Allardyce’s heaviest Turf Moor as Burnley moved fi ve points ond and within two points of leaders Liv- Everton v Manchester City — match 05 season, he played Livorno. In will partake in the 2022 AFC ever home defeat in the Premier League. clear of the relegation zone and above erpool as they were hosting Wolves late postponed due to coronavirus September 2008, he was signed U-23 Championship qualifying Leeds goalscorer Jack Harrison said: Brighton into 16th. Southampton missed last night at Old Traff ord. infections. for Grosseto. Qatar U-23 squad phase at a later date next year.

ROUND-UP SPOTLIGHT Hazard to return for Real Madrid Striker Costa ends second spell at Atletico against Elche, says Zidane Reuters Madrid Reuters tive wins in all competitions, Klopp said Thiago was mak- Madrid which has coincided with him ing encouraging progress but rotating his squad to a lesser ex- will not be rushed back into the tletico Madrid and their enigmatic tent than at the start of the cam- team until he had completed a striker Diego Costa have parted den Hazard will return paign, when the team suff ered as few more training sessions. “On ways for the second time after the to the Real Madrid side a result and lost fi ve matches in Friday, he trained the full session La Liga leaders agreed to the play- for today’s La Liga match three months. but it was a reduced session,” er’sA request to rescind his contract yesterday away to Elche after over The French coach conceded Klopp told reporters. An Atletico statement said the 32-year- aE month out injured, coach Zin- that his recent team selections “He has to be part of team old, whose contract ran out in June 2021, edine Zidane has said. Real’s demanded more of his players training, it’s not about training had asked several days ago to leave the club record signing has only been able but said there was no increased one day with the team and then immediately for personal reasons and yes- to make three league starts this risk of injuries. you can play football in the Pre- terday he signed his release from the deal. season and has not featured since He added it was hard to re- mier League again. It looks quite Atletico coach Diego Simeone paid trib- injuring his hamstring in a No- peatedly leave out long-serving promising in the moment but I ute to the striker who was so infl uential in vember defeat to Alaves. players such as Marcelo and Isco, cannot say more about it, to be the team’s 2013-14 La Liga title. “We have His last campaign was blighted but does not want to let either of honest. I don’t know.” spent a lot of time together over the years, by two serious ankle injuries. them go in the January transfer Liverpool, who sit three points he has given us a lot and we have given him “Eden will be there tomorrow window. above Leicester City, missed an a lot too,” Simeone told a news conference. and our plan is for him to play a opportunity to extend their lead “We spoke about his personal issues and the bit,” Zidane told a news confer- KLOPP WON’T RUSH BACK on Sunday against a struggling club wanted to help him without harming ence. “The other day we decided IMPROVING THIAGO West Bromwich Albion side that its own interests and we feel better now we not to but we want him to play Premier League leaders Liverpool held the champions to a 1-1 draw have resolved the issue.” and to make the most of him.” were handed a fi tness boost with at Anfi eld. Costa helped Atletico to the Spanish title Hazard’s return comes at the midfi elder Thiago Alcantara’s Liverpool dropped points at with 27 goals and they also reached the 2014 Diego Costa, whose Atletico Madrid contract ran out in June 2021, had asked several days right time for Madrid, who are return to training but manager home for the fi rst time this sea- Champions League fi nal but lost 4-1 to ri- ago to leave the club immediately for personal reasons. (Reuters) expected to be without Brazilian Juergen Klopp has said the Span- son as a result and Klopp warned vals Real Madrid in extra-time after Costa forward Rodrygo for up to three iard will not be available for to- his players to be cautious to avoid was forced off early with a hamstring injury. The Brazilian-born Spain striker scored Joao Felix and Luis Suarez. Costa scored in months after injuring his ham- day’s trip to Newcastle United. similar results. He joined Chelsea in 2014 for 35mn euros the winner in a Europa League semi-fi nal Atletico’s 3-1 win over Elche on Dec. 19 and string in the 2-0 win over Gra- Thiago, who joined Liverpool “We are not happy about it, and was an instant hit, fi ring Chelsea to the against Arsenal on their way to winning the said he was looking forward to healthy com- nada before the Christmas break. from Bayern Munich during the we are actually the opposite, but 2014-15 and 2016-17 Premier League titles competition in 2018 and in the UEFA Super petition with Suarez, only to ask to leave days Real are second in the stand- close season, has not played now it’s over,” he said. “We can- with 20 goals in each campaign. He could Cup victory over Real, although his second later. “He felt the need to fi nd a new chal- ings and level on points with since October when he picked not change that anymore, we just hardly have had a more fi tting second de- spell was mostly disappointing. lenge, and I’m sure wherever he goes he will leaders Atletico Madrid, who up a knock from a challenge by can make sure that in exactly the but after returning to Atletico for a reported Injuries limited him to 43 La Liga starts in do well, because he’s a fi ghter,” added Sime- have two games in hand. Zidane’s Everton’s Richarlison during same situation it doesn’t happen 57mn euros, scoring and getting sent off in a three years, scoring 12 goals, and opportuni- one. “We want to thank him, Diego has given side are on a run of six consecu- their Merseyside derby draw. exactly the same again.” 2-0 win over Getafe. ties were further limited by the signings of us everything as a player and as a human.” Gulf Times Wednesday, December 30, 2020 3 SPORT

SPOTLIGHT Tuchel sacked, Pochettino favourite to take over at PSG ‘Thomas has put a lot of energy and passion into the job, and we will of course remember the good moments we shared together’

AFP Pochettino was let go after fi ve Paris and a half years at Tottenham in the aftermath of leading the north London side to their fi rst aris Saint-Germain yes- ever appearance in a Champions terday confi rmed the League fi nal against Liverpool in sacking of coach Thomas 2019. Although he has yet to win Tuchel, who had been at any silverware the former PSG Pthe club since July 2018, but did defender’s stock is high in mana- not name his successor. gerial circles. The Parisians will “After an in-depth analysis be keen to complete his signing of its sporting situation, Paris and avoid missing their man who Saint-Germain decided to termi- has been linked to the likes of Real nate Thomas Tuchel’s contract,” Madrid, Manchester United and the French giants announced in a Barca in recent months. statement. Importantly, Pochettino, like Argentinian Mauricio Pochet- Tuchel, is at ease in man-man- tino, the ex-Tottenham coach aging a dressing room crammed and a former PSG player, is wide- with a galaxy of stars. ly reported to be the favourite to Neymar has been at the centre take over. Tuchel, whose axing of new controversy this week af- was widely reported but uncon- ter Brazilian media reported that fi rmed last week, managed PSG he is organising a huge New Year’s 127 times in all competitions, Eve party despite the coronavirus with 95 wins, 12 draws and 20 de- pandemic — claims his lawyers feats. have denied. His trophy haul featured Pochettino is the son of a two Ligue 1 titles (2019, 2020) farmer from Murphy, in the north as well as the French Cup and of Argentina. He is known as a French League Cup in 2020. The stickler for detail, which coupled 47-year-old German also led the with his tactical acumen, devo- Parisian club to their fi rst ever tion to an attractive style of play Champions League fi nal last Au- and his popularity amongst Pa- gust, which they lost 1-0 to Bay- risian fans, makes him a poten- ern Munich. tially ideal fi t as the new occupant Despite appearing to be adept of the PSG dugout. at man-managing PSG’s squad of He would have under his wing superstar players such as Neymar several compatriots such as Mau- and Kylian Mbappe, Tuchel re- ro Icardi, Angel Di Maria and Le- portedly upset the Qatari-backed andro Paredes. His anticipated club after complaining about an arrival before the winter transfer apparent lack of recognition at window will allow him to bring in leading PSG to the Champions new faces, potentially one former League fi nal. Spurs charge, Inter Milan’s at- “I would like to thank Thomas tacking midfi elder Christian Tuchel and his staff for all they Eriksen. have contributed to the club,” And looking further ahead, said PSG chairman Nasser al- This file photo taken on October 24, 2018 at the Parc des Princes stadium, in Paris shows Paris Saint-Germain’s coach Thomas Tuchel. given their Argentine ties, Po- Khelaifi . chettino may be the catalyst for “Thomas has put a lot of en- future.” Less than three months bouare was replaced by Carlo Barcelona and PSG sitting third Should Pochettino take over, on February 16, the Argentinian six-time Ballon d’Or winner ergy and passion into the job, and on from the fi nal defeat to Bayern Ancelotti in December 2011. in Ligue 1 — a point shy of leaders his opening match in charge could face his fi rst massive test Messi to start regarding PSG as we will of course remember the Munich in Lisbon, Tuchel has be- Tuchel departs the Parc des Lyon — despite being plagued by will be January 6’s trip to Saint- against his compatriot Lionel potential new employers when good moments we shared togeth- come the fi rst PSG coach to leave Princes having secured a last 16 injuries, suspensions and coro- Etienne on Ligue 1’s resumption Messi’s Barcelona, with the re- he is free to move from the Camp er. I wish him all the best for the mid-season since Antoine Kom- Champions League clash with navirus infections. after the winter break. Then, turn leg on March 6. Nou at the end of the season.

FOCUS Spurs’ Bale out for ‘few weeks’ with calf injury, says Mourinho

London: Tottenham Hotspur match against Fulham. London side this season. overall there was a big evolu- forward Gareth Bale will miss “No, I don’t expect him (Bale) to Mourinho was also happy with tion,” Mourinho said. the next “few weeks” after he be fit and also I have my doubts Tanguy Ndombele’s improve- “To play at this intensity — Pre- Premier League sustained a calf injury in their that Lucas and Vinicius can be ment in recent games, especial- mier League intensity — and to League Cup quarter-final win at fit for Fulham,” Mourinho told ly after he scored in Sunday’s 1-1 last for 90 minutes is, of course, Stoke City last week, manager reporters when asked about draw at Wolverhampton Wan- another step in the direction Jose Mourinho has said. Bale’s status. derers, but said he is not yet of his fitness. But he’s a player Bale, who is on loan from Span- “I wouldn’t say it’s serious (for fit to play the full 90 minutes. who is playing very well and records new high ish side Real Madrid, started Bale) but I’d say a few weeks.” The 24-year-old Frenchman has is giving some good things to and scored in the 3-1 win but Bale, who was named Player struggled with injuries since the team. was withdrawn at halftime. of the Year in his final season his arrival last season and he “Some players are very Mourinho is short of backup at Spurs before a then-world has completed a full game only physical, some are very intense. options in attack with the Por- record move to Real Madrid twice this season. Others are more explosive but of 18 positive cases tuguese manager saying Lucas in 2013, has yet to live up “We are happy, apart from a they don’t last for 90 minutes AFP Moura and Carlos Vinicius were to those standards, scoring couple of matches where his or they have diff iculties lasting London also doubts for Wednesday’s only three times for the north performances were not good, 90 minutes.”

he Premier League con- fi rmed yesterday that RUGBY 18 players and staff Thave tested positive for coronavirus, the highest number since weekly testing began. Manchester City’s clash at Everton was postponed on Mon- day after an outbreak of multiple Ball to end Wales career positive cases at City. Kyle Walker of “The Premier League can to- Manchester City day confi rm that between Mon- has tested positive day 21 December and Sunday for Covid-19. 27 December, 1,479 players and to return to Australia club staff were tested for Cov- has tested positive. like the three-month stoppage AFP seasons I have been here. I love id-19,” the league said in a state- City had already announced between March and June earlier London the Scarlets and playing with ment. on Christmas Day there had been this year. Wales has been unbelievable “Of these, there were 18 new four positive tests at the club for “The Premier League con- and something I will never for- positive tests. Players or club players Kyle Walker and Gabriel tinues to have full confi dence in ake Ball (pictured run- get,” added Ball. staff who have tested positive Jesus and two staff members its protocols and rules, and the ning with ball) will ef- “It has been a massive hon- will self-isolate for a period of 10 prior to the latest positive cases way in which all clubs are imple- fectively end his Wales our to represent my country, days.” on Monday. menting them,” the league said career by leaving the but at the end of the day I made That fi gure surpassed the pre- The club’s training ground has in a statement on Monday. ScarletsJ at the end of the season a huge sacrifi ce in staying be- vious highest fi gure recorded of been closed for an “indetermi- Further down the English to return to Australia for family hind for a year without my fam- 16 for November 9-15. nate period” with further testing football pyramid, postpone- reasons. ily. I have four kids now and I Sheffi eld United said they have on players and staff to take place ments are mounting with seven The 29-year-old lock has won’t have seen them for close recorded a number of positive before it can reopen. of the 12 games scheduled for won 49 caps since his debut in on a year.” tests, but their trip to Burnley City are due to face Chelsea Tuesday in League One called off 2014, becoming one of Wales’ Scarlets head coach Glenn later on Tuesday and the other away in the Premier League on due to Covid-19 infections. frontline tight-fi ve forwards. Delaney paid tribute to Ball, six Premier League games this Sunday and Manchester United The number of positive tests Wales players must pass 60 confi rming the club’s full re- midweek are still set to go ahead. in the League Cup semi-fi nals on recorded over a 24-hour period in caps to play for the nation while spect for the lock forward’s de- “Sheffi eld United can confi rm January 6. England and Wales hit new high based overseas in club rugby. cision to put his family fi rst. the club recorded a number of The Everton-City postpone- of 41,385 on Monday, according to Ball, however, has opted to “As a club we fully respect positive coronavirus tests after ment was just the second time UK government fi gures. return to Australia after miss- Jake’s decision. Family is a mas- the latest round of testing,” the that a Premier League game has “I think we all sensed this next ing the birth of his fourth child sive part of the Scarlets and Jake Blades said in a statement. been called off due to Covid-19 period might be a tough one with in November. has sacrifi ced a huge amount “The individuals who have since the 2019/20 season re- what’s been happening pre- “It has been a diffi cult de- being away from Christie and tested positive have now entered sumed in June. Christmas with Covid in gener- cision to make but one I have his children for so long,” said into a period of self-isolation in Aston Villa’s clash with New- al,” said Chelsea manager Frank made for the family,” said Ball. around her. away from her family again.” Delaney. accordance with Premier League castle earlier this month was Lampard with Sunday’s clash “My wife was expecting our “Max was born last month. Ball was born in Berkshire but “He has been a wonder- and Government guidelines.” postponed due to an outbreak at with City now in doubt. fourth child and, with Covid There have been Zoom calls and grew up in Australia, qualifying ful servant for the Scarlets, Southampton revealed that Newcastle’s training ground. “I think the Premier League around and players having to be things, but I haven’t seen him for Wales through his father. an outstanding player, a great manager Ralph Hassenhuttl However, the Premier League and clubs have done a great job in bubbles and everything, we yet and it has been diffi cult. As After rising to prominence bloke around the group and has will not be in attendance for his insisted the protocols put in to keep football going in diffi cult made the decision that she and the season goes on, it would be with Western Force, he signed been a fantastic mentor to the side’s match against West Ham place are still stringent enough circumstances, so let’s hope we the kids should go home to have pretty tough of me to ask (his for the Scarlets in 2012. young players who are coming as a member of his household to prevent another shutdown can keep it going.” some family help and support wife) Christie to come back here “It has been a fantastic nine through.” Gulf Times 4 Wednesday, December 30, 2020 SPORT

SPOTLIGHT Al-Marri clinches horseback archery championship Qatar Equestrian Federation president Hamad al-Attiyah says event to be included in the annual calendar after a good turnout

By Sports Reporter Doha

he fi rst horseback archery competition (Al Nashaab Championship) organised by the Qatar Equestrian Federa- Ttion and Modern Pentathlon was suc- cessfully held on Monday evening in co-operation with the Horseback Ar- chery Society at the outdoor area of the Qatar Equestrian Federation. A strong competition ensued where Badr Mubarak al-Marri emerged as the winner in the men’s category on his mount Mokhlis scoring 22.37 points. Abdulaziz al-Qahtani (also riding Mokhlis) fi nished second with 20.92 points, while Ali al-Kuwari on Izz Al- zobara was third with a score of 19.51 points. In the youth category, Abdullah al- Jumaili stood fi rst on his horse Fajer with 20.72 points. Abdul Rahman al- Hajri on Izz Alzobara was second with 18.94 points, and Mohamed al-Jumaili on Fajer third with 18.65 points. Hamad bin Abdulrahman al-Atti- yah, President of the Asian and Qatari Equestrian Federations, and Chair- man of the Organising Committee of the horseback archery Championship, praised the good turnout of horseback archers pointing out that the champi- onship is one of the competitions that President of the Asian and Qatar Equestrian Federations Hamad bin Abdulrahman al-Attiyah, tournament director Fouad al-Mudahka and QEF Secretary General Ali Al-Rumaihi pose with the podium finishers the federation aims to set up in order to and other off icials at the horseback archery competition (Al Nashaab Championship) at the Qatar Equestrian Federation’s outdoor area. support sports tourism in the country. He added that the championship was successful since its fi rst day of qualifi - ers as it witnessed a great competition between the horseback archers who showed high enthusiasm and skills in achieving their best results. Al-Attiyah explained that the horse- back archery competition is spread in many countries and is one of the her- itage sports and is expected to grow in Qatar in the future. He noted that in the future the federation will work to host the championship at an international level and that QEF is happy to include it in the annual calendar. Fouad al-Mudahka, the tournament director, said that the event achieved the success that the organising com- mittee was aiming for in terms of the presence of a good number of partici- pants at both youth and senior level. He said that the organising commit- tee will study the results of the fi rst edi- tion in order to prepare for its presence in the local calendar of the federation Participants in action at the horseback archery competition on Monday evening. so that it is held annually and includes more than one round in the season. Al-Mudahka, who is also the Presi- dent of Horseback Archery Society, confi rmed that Qatar is the third coun- Asian and Qatar Equestrian Federations President Hamad bin Abdulrahman al-Attiyah presents a memento to tournament try in the region to organise these com- director Fouad al-Mudahka. petitions, which has an international federation that includes more than 30 horseback in a 90m arena. Participants activity in Qatar. The organisers aim to The team was participating for a national federations, adding that the needed to have a passport for their attract youth with such skills to take third time in this event held at Sokcho Horseback Archery Society along with horses who must be vaccinated and up the sport. A team from the Horse- in South Korea and had 69 competitors the Qatar Equestrian Federation will were required to clear a test before the back Archery Society, represented by from 22 countries. work to prepare Qatari horseback arch- event. Participants also had to obtain al-Mudhahka and Abdulaziz al-Qahta- Al-Mudhahka said that the team ers to represent the national teams in a rider’s ID from the technical offi ce of ni, participated in the 15th edition of was proud of the results and the appre- international tournaments. the QEF. World Horse Shooting Championship ciation they received from the inter- For the qualifi cation skill test, par- Horseback archery is considered as in South Korea in 2019, where they national federation for developing the ticipants had to aim at targets from a one of the important upcoming sports achieved good results. game in the Arab region.

FOCUS QMMF to host FIM Bajas World Cup in April next year By Sports Reporter points in at least one of the events of the Doha qualifying series. Only these competi- QMMF has been promoting events for tors will be eligible for the fi nal ranking bikes, with the governing body hosting of the FIM Bajas World Cup. he Qatar Motor and Motorcycle two rounds at the Qatar National Baja in The fi nal ranking of the FIM Ba- Federation (QMMF) will host November and December. jas World Cup will be established on the third round of the FIM Ba- the basis of the two best results of the jas World Cup from April 8 to qualifying series, added to the points T10 next year. The FIM released the 2021 awarded in the fi nal. This is valid in all calendar, with ten events scheduled for three categories (Motorbikes, Quads next year from February to October. and SSV) and in all three classes (Wom- QMMF has been promoting events en’s, Junior and Veteran). for bikes, with the governing body hosting two rounds at the Qatar Na- FIM BAJAS WORLD CUP tional Baja in November and Decem- 2021 CALENDAR ber. QMMF Executive Director Amro al-Hamad said: “Qatar is hosting one QMMF Executive Director Amro February 18-20: Dubai International Baja, of the rounds of the FIM World Cham- al-Hamad expects a high number of United Arab Emirates pionships for Motorbikes. It’s going to local entries for the Bajas World Cup. March 18-20: Jordan Baja, Aqaba, Jordan be in April, just a couple of days before Ramadan. We got a confi rmation from championship. It’s going to be like a April 8-10: QMMF Qatar FIM yesterday.” training ground for good riders and we International Baja, Doha, Qatar Al-Hamad expected a good number will see if they have the skills to com- May 28-30: Baja do Pinhal, Serta, Portugal of local entries for the World Cup, hav- pete in the rest of the World Cup,” al- ing seen a huge number of participants Hamad said. June 17-19 : Baja Jalapao 500, Sao Felix at the Qatar National Baja. The FIM Bajas World Cup will be do Tocantins, Brazil “We are hosting the event after Jor- held in a format in 2021, the FIM said in July 23-25: Baja Aragon, Teruel, Spain a statement. The event takes place over dan, so we expect a lot of competitors August 5-8: Hungarian Baja, Varpalota, from the Middle East to compete in Qa- a series of qualifying events as well as a Hungary tar. There are also a lot of riders here in fi nal. Each event in the qualifying series Doha, who will also participate. So this has a scoring coeffi cient of 1, while the August 29-September 1: Atacama Baja 1, is a very good achievement for QMMF so I do believe we will have at least 15 to cally there will be a lot of riders taking of local riders’ skill level. “Will there fi nal has a scoring coeffi cient of 2. Copiapo, Chile to host an international event for our 20 riders. There could be more entries part in the event,” al-Hamad added. be anyone from Qatar who is going to The fi nal is open to all competitors. September 2-4: Atacama Baja 2, Chile local riders,” the QMMF offi cial said. as it’s a bucket list for riders to compete The QMMF Executive Director said continue participating in the World In order to be included in the ranking “We already had 30 riders from Qatar in the FIM Bajas World Cup. I can’t give the World Cup, besides being an inter- championship. Maybe it’s possible. We of the FIM Bajas World Cup, competi- October 28-30: Baja Portalegre, taking part in the Qatar National Baja, an exact number, but I am confi dent lo- national exposure will also give an idea will fi nd out that in the Qatar off -road tors must have completed and scored Portalegre, Portugal Gulf Times Wednesday, December 30, 2020 5 SPORT

NBA Grizzlies’ Morant hurt in win over Nets, Blazers beat Lakers LeBron’s Lakers, heavy favourites to win a second straight title, suff ered their second defeat in four games

AFP Los Angeles, United States RESULTS Atlanta 128-120 Detroit he Memphis Grizzlies’ Memphis 116-111 Brooklyn fi rst win of the NBA sea- (OT) son was a costly one, as Utah 110-109 Oklahoma Rookie of the Year Ja Mo- Trant limped out with a sprained Denver 124-111 Houston ankle in the fi rst half of a 116-111 Portland 115-107 LA Lakers overtime triumph over the short- handed Brooklyn Nets on Mon- day. return to Oklahoma City for the Morant rose to block a shot by fi rst time since March 11 — when Brooklyn’s French forward Tim- Gobert became the fi rst NBA othe Luwawu-Cabarrot with less player to test positive for Cov- than three minutes remaining in id-19 and league play shuddered the fi rst half, rolling his ankle as to halt, resuming four months he came down and hopping to later in a quarantine bubble in the baseline where he fell to the Orlando, Florida. court. “Obviously you have all the He was taken to the locker memories coming back,” said room in a wheelchair, with the French big man Gobert, who fi n- Grizzlies tweeting that the ini- ished with 12 points, 10 rebounds tial diagnosis was a sprained left and four blocked shots. “It’s a lit- ankle. tle bit of a weird atmosphere. Morant watched from the “But I’m happy we were able to sidelines as the Grizzlies rallied come back and get the win.” for the victory, standing through the fi nal minutes — a protective JOKIC TRIPLE-DOUBLE boot on his injured ankle. Although the NBA managed to Kyle Anderson led the Griz- resume and crown a champion, zlies with 28 points — with a the pandemic continues to aff ect career-best four three-pointers the new season with games being — and Dillon Brooks added 24. played in largely empty arenas. It was Anderson who drained The Houston Rockets, without three of four free-throws in the John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, waning seconds of overtime, Eric Gordon and Mason Jones after he’d grabbed the rebound because of Covid-19 health and of when Brooklyn’s Joe Harris safety protocols, fell 124-111 to couldn’t get a potential game- the Nuggets in Denver, where winning three-pointer to drop Serbian center Nikola Jokic had a with 5.6 seconds remaining. triple-double of 19 points, 12 re- “You always want to get that bounds and 18 assists to lead the fi rst one in the books to start roll- hosts. ing, so this was a big one,” Ander- Jamal Murray added 21 points son said. “We had to get this one.” before departing after a hard But the loss of Morant was a Brooklyn Nets center DeAndre Jordan (right) blocks a shot by Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (left) during the first half of the NBA game at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, fall in the third quarter and Paul potentially huge blow for the United States, on Monday. (USA TODAY Sports) Millsap added 19 points as seven Grizzlies. The 21-year-old star Nuggets players scored in double had averaged 36 points in the fi rst The Nets were also without ond defeat in four games in the Damian Lillard led the Blazers seized a 13-point lead in the fi rst game-winner with seven sec- fi gures. two games of the season. Spencer Dinwiddie, who will new season, falling 115-107 to the with 31 points and Gary Trent Jr. quarter. “When they made their onds remaining — and Rudy Rockets star James Harden Caris LeVert led the Nets with have surgery to repair a partially Portland Trail Blazers. added 28 off the bench as Port- runs we weren’t able to sustain Gobert shut down Oklahoma scored 34 points for Houston, 28 points and 11 assists. Brook- torn right knee ligament suff ered LeBron James led the Lakers land’s reserves out-scored the the energy we began the game City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who were still without John Wall, lyn rested stars Kevin Durant and on Sunday. with 29 points, nine rebounds Lakers bench 45-23. with.” at the rim as time expired to give DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Gor- Kyrie Irving — both coming off The Los Angeles Lakers, and six assists and Anthony Dav- “I thought we came out with In Salt Lake City, Utah’s Do- the Jazz a 110-109 victory over don and Mason Jones because of long injury layoff s after the ab- heavy favourites to win a second is returned from a night off with great energy,” said Los Angeles novan Mitchell scored the Jazz’s the Thunder. Covid-19 health and safety pro- breviated off -season. straight title, suff ered their sec- 13 points and 10 rebounds. coach Frank Vogel, whose Lakers fi nal 12 points — including the The game marked the Jazz’s tocols.

QOC BEACH GAMES Space Jam win QBF Ladies Championship Men’s handball and volleyball events attract capacity crowd

By Sports Reporter Doha

he ongoing maiden edi- tion of the QOC Beach Games being held at the Aspire Park in Doha has Tcontinued to generate massive interests from the populace with an increasing number of specta- tors attending the four diff erent events, beach volleyball, beach 3x3 basketball, beach handball and beach football, daily. The men’s beach handball and the men’s volleyball were the main attractions on Monday. The two events witnessed impressive Winners Space Jam celebrate on the podium of the Qatar Basketball Federation (QBF) Ladies Championship with Prosports finishing attendances with the stands al- Al Fohoud in Group A. Al Nosour tested Group A beach volleyball second and Qatar women’s team third on Monday. Space Jam edged out Prosports 42-41 in the final, in the presence of Qatar Olympic most fi lled to capacity, an indica- proved too hot to handle for their match between Al Adaam and Committee Secretary-General HE Jassim al-Buainain and QBF President Ahmed al-Muftah and other off icials. tion of the general acceptance of opponent as they ran away with Nawakhza ended with Al Adaam not only the games but the tour- a 2-0 victory while the other winning 2-0 while Al Nojoom nament as a whole. match in the Group between Al were the winners in their match The ticket-free tournament Edaid and Al Soqour also ended against the Lusail team, winning has struck a responsive chord 2-0 in favour of Al Edaid. 2-1. with the adults and young since In Group B, El Khafj i defeated The two-week QOC Beach it started. Al Ruwais 2-0 while Al Hazm Games will close on Saturday, Four games were played in the won against Al Nomour B also by January 2, 2021, with a spectacu- men’s beach handball on the day the same scoreline. lar closing ceremony at the As- with Al Nosour going up against Meanwhile, the keenly con- pire Park.

Space Jam players celebrate their win over Prosports in the QBF Ladies Championship final on Monday. Gulf Times 6 Wednesday, December 30, 2020 SPORT

NFL SPOTLIGHT Washington dumps Haskins aft er Covid Patriots prove no violations, NFL loss

AFP rooting for. Washington, United States “I take full responsibility for not meeting the standards of an NFL QB & will become a better ashington quar- man & player because of this ex- match for division terback Dwayne perience.” Haskins was re- Washington (6-9) can win the leased on Monday NFC East division title by win- Wby the NFL team, days after Cov- ning Sunday at Philadelphia but id-19 violations that cost him his a loss means the Dallas-New captaincy and hours after poor York Giants winner gets the divi- play in a key defeat. sion crown, a post-season berth Washington Football Team and a home playoff game. champions Bills coach Ron Rivera announced Haskins, selected 15th over- Haskins’ dismissal a day after the all in last year’s NFL Draft, was side lost 20-13 at home to Caro- removed in the fourth quarter ‘Tonight we didn’t play as well as we’re capable of and Buff alo played well’ lina, missing a chance to clinch a Sunday after losing a fumble and division title and playoff berth. tossing two interceptions. By Mark Daniels Allen hitting Dawson Knox for a “This afternoon I met with The 23-year-old signal caller Providence Journal (TNS) gain of 12. Allen then converted Dwayne and informed him that started against Carolina in place on a third down, rushing for 11. we would be releasing him,” Riv- of injured Alex Smith despite Two plays later, the quarterback era said in a statement. violating NFL Covid-19 rules by onday night at Gil- hit tight end Lee Smith for a “I told him that I believe it attending a party last week with- lette Stadium rep- 4-yard touchdown at 5:32 of the benefi ts both parties that we go out wearing a face mask. resented the end second quarter. our separate ways. We want to Haskins was stripped of his of one era and the Buff alo opened the fl oodgates thank Dwayne for his contribu- ’s role and fi ned $40,000 Mbeginning of another. The Buf- following a Patriots three-and- tions these last two seasons and (32,772 euros) for the violations. falo Bills fl ew into New England out. At 3:55 of the second quar- wish him well moving forward.” Before the announcement, as the AFC champions for the ter, Allen hit Diggs for a 50-yard Haskins took responsibility for Rivera had said he would start fi rst time in 25 years. They exited touchdown and the Bills led, his ouster in a tweet, vowing the third-string quarterback Taylor Foxboro with their fi rst sweep of 24-9. experience would improve him Heinicke, who replaced Haskins the Patriots since 1999. It didn’t get any better for the should another NFL club give on Sunday, against Philadelphia This one wasn’t pretty. Patriots as the Bills started the him a chance. if Smith was still out with a right Leading up to this game, Bill second half with another touch- “My time with the WFT has calf injury. Belichick faced questions as to down. This time Allen hit Diggs unfortunately come to an end,” Haskins completed 148 of 241 whether he should start Jarrett for an 18-yard score at 11:28 of Haskins tweeted. “I thank the passes for 1,439 yards with fi ve Stidham over Cam Newton. The the third quarter and Buff alo led team & fans for the opportunity touchdowns and seven intercep- Patriots coach stuck with his 31-9. Meanwhile the Patriots of- to play for the team I grew up tions this season. starting quarterback on Monday fence looked the exact opposite night, but it turned out to be an- of dynamic. Following Buff alo’s other dreadful night for Newton fourth touchdown of the game, and the Patriots off ence. the off ence went three-and-out In the end, Newton was on the for the third time of the night in fi eld for six series. The off ence six drives. went three-and-out three times That ended Newton’s night. and the Pats scored nine points. Stidham, who entered the It clearly wasn’t enough to keep game at 8:30 of the third quar- up with the high-powered Josh ter, went 2-for-5 for 28 yards Allen-led Buff alo off ence in this on his fi rst series. The drive was embarrassing 38-9 loss. The extended due to a roughing the Pats drop to 6-9 and the Bills passer call. The second-year improve to 12-3. quarterback’s fi rst completion “Tonight we didn’t play as went for 22 yards to Jakobi Mey- well as we’re capable of and ers. On Third-and-10, he hit Buff alo played well,” Belichick Buff alo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (right) throws the ball against the New England Patriots during the first James White for a gain of six and said. “They’re certainly the bet- quarter of the NFL game in Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States, on Monday. (USA TODAY Sports) the series ended with another ter team tonight. Better than we Patriots punt. were in all phases of the game: ing Allen, who threw 320 yards fi eld goal from Tyler Bass at 6:43 yard run. J.J. Taylor followed The Bills then added to the off ence, defence, special teams, with four touchdowns, three to of the fi rst quarter. with a 28-yard run on the next embarrassment going up 38-9 playing, coaching, fundamen- receiver Stefon Diggs (145 yards) Following a Patriots’ three- play. Two snaps later, Newton as Allen hit Diggs for the pair’s tals. They did a better job than The Patriots got off to a fast and-out, the Bills marched shook off a sack, evaded mul- third score on an 8-yard pass at we did.” start thanks to Sony Michel. down the fi eld to take a 10-3 tiple Bills defenders and ran 13:16 of the fourth quarter. Newton didn’t last three full The running back, starting in lead. This drive saw Buff alo con- into the end zone for a 9-yard Stidham’s second drive didn’t quarters before being benched place of the injured Damien vert on two fourth downs. The touchdown at 10:39 of the sec- go much better. The quarter- for Stidham at 8:20 of the third. Harris, ran for a 29 yards to get fi rst, a fourth-and-5, was a fake ond quarter. Nick Folk missed back found Meyers for six yards Washington Football Team quarterback Dwayne Haskins (left) looks Newton fi nished 5 for 10 with the off ence across midfi eld. Al- punt as safety Jaquan Johnson the extra point and the Bills led, to start, but threw the ball away on from the sidelines after being benched against the Carolina 34 passing yards to go with 24 though Damiere Byrd dropped a received the direct snap and hit 10-9. after being pressured on sec- Panthers in the fourth quarter at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, rushing yards and a rushing pass that looked like a potential safety Siran Neal for 13 yards. On the score, Newton tied ond down. On third down, he United States, on Sunday. (USA TODAY Sports) touchdown. According to Pro- touchdown, the Pats still came Four plays later, on fourth- Steve Grogan (1976) for the most was sacked for another Patriots FootballReference, the 34 pass- away with a 3-0 lead when Nick and-1, Allen faked a handoff rushing touchdowns by a quar- three-and-out. ing yards are the fewest by a Pa- Folk hit the 45-yard fi eld goal at and ran for 22 yards. The plays terback in Patriots franchise Stidham was under pres- FOCUS triots starting quarterback since 12:44 of the fi rst quarter. helped set up a 5-yard Zack history with 12. sure for most of his third series, Scott Secules had 16 in a 1993 The Bills came right back to Moss touchdown run at 14:50 of For the Pats, that’s as close as which also ended with a punt. loss against the Bills. even the score, 3-3. Devin Mc- the second quarter. they would get. The quarterback was hit or Stidham didn’t fare much Courty came up with a big run The Pats leaned on their The Bills came right back, ex- pressured on 3-of-4 drop backs China drops 76ers NBA better, going 4 of 11 for 44 yards. stuff on Devin Singletary on ground game to close the gap in tending their lead to 17-9 on the as his only completion was a 10- The quarterback combination third-and-2, at 3-yard line, and the next series. Michel jump- next drive. Once again, Buff alo yard third-down conversion to didn’t come close to match- the Bills settled for a 22-yard started the drive with a 21-yard converted on fourth down with White. broadcasts as Hong Kong row rumbles on Patriots’ Newton vents aft er loss, confi rms sleep issues AFP Morey, then the Rockets’ gen- Beijing, China eral manager, tweeted “Fight for By Andrew Callahan much,” Newton said. “(You’re) a subtle acknowledgement of yards and a touchdown. He was Freedom, stand with Hong Kong” Boston Herald (TNS) talking to a person who ain’t the off ence’s other troubles benched midway through the in October 2019, referring to the seen his kids in three months. with pass protection and drops. third quarter for backup Jar- hinese streaming giant pro-democracy protests that Bei- Obviously the contract is what Though Newton didn’t agree rett Stidham, who performed Tencent has stopped live jing calls separatist and seditious. ou can say this for Cam it is. Submitting myself to this with that assessment. no better, going 4-of-11 for 44 broadcasts of games by When the NBA backed Mo- Newton. team is something I’ve been “I wouldn’t say that. I would say yards. Newton has now been the NBA’s Philadelphia rey’s right to free speech, CCTV YHis season-long strug- doing since Day 1. ... I’m more or any time — I’ll put it like this: benched in three games this C76ers in apparent protest at their responded by pulling broadcasts, gles haven’t been for a lack of less venting right now because, You don’t get pulled out just season, all within the past 10 new president Daryl Morey, who although it made a “goodwill” trying. yeah, I’ve sacrificed so much because you’re having a stan- weeks. sparked a row by voicing sup- gesture by airing Game 5 from After the Pats’ 38-9 loss to the this year. dup game. I can tell you that,” It’s been six weeks since port for Hong Kong protesters the NBA Finals series in October. Bills, Newton confirmed he’s “I mean, it hurts when you Newton said. “I’d be the first Newton completed better than last year. Tencent has continued been sleeping less than five have the outing that you have person to say that. There are 65% of his passes in a game. Tencent has been off ering text streaming games, but only text hours a night and spending the tonight, just to go home, then some things I feel like I could Monday marked the fourth updates only for Sixers games as updates were available for the great majority of his waking start it over for a whole another have done better. But what my time this season he’s passed well as those involving the Hou- Sixers’ season-opening win over hours at Gillette Stadium, as week.” standard is for myself, it’s never for fewer than 100 yards. Since ston Rockets, Morey’s former the Washington Wizards on De- first reported on ESPN’s tel- Newton shared that regular to just blend in and just be the the summer, Patriots players employer. It also refused to screen cember 23. evision broadcast on Monday sleep has been a longtime issue It’s unclear if Newton naps in status quo. and coaches have consist- Rockets games last season. Two other Sixers games over night. According to a graphic for him, even dating to years the team facility, where sleep “There’s some plays that need ently praised Newton’s work State broadcaster CCTV, the weekend — against the New shown in the first half, Newton in Carolina, where he went to rooms are available for players to have been made on my part ethic and leadership, but there’s which holds China’s exclusive York Knicks and Cleveland Cav- leaves for Foxboro at 4:30 most a Super Bowl and won an MVP to aid recovery after workouts that I feel like I could have done been no denying — even by TV rights for the NBA, has not aliers — also had text updates. mornings and does not go to award. or practices. What was clear a better job at doing. You just Newton himself — that his pass- aired any games since the season Rockets games remain text- sleep until 11:30pm. “But it is what it is. You know Monday is that Newton has have to review the film and get ing production has severely opened on December 22. only this season, despite the “That’s been my schedule for what I’m saying?” he said. failed to improve as a passer in back to it. As a signal-caller, as a disappointed. Tencent’s refusal to stream popularity in China of Yao 90% of the time I’ve been here. “Obviously it ain’t the sleep, recent weeks, finishing 5-of-10 person who is a dynamic player “It’s extremely frustrating, Sixers and Rockets games, and Ming’s former team. So you can kind of understand because of the success, yeah.” for 34 yards. on this team, I need to impact knowing what you’re capable CCTV’s continued black-out, Morey, who joined the 76ers the frustration I do have when The Sleep Foundation and CDC Pats coach Bill Belichick said the game more, and it just of, having belief in yourself,” extends a year-long stand-off in in early November, told ESPN I don’t have the outcome both recommend adults sleep post-game Newton did a good didn’t happen tonight.” Newton said. “It’s just not show- the NBA’s biggest international last week that he once feared his because I’m sacrificing so at least seven hours per night. job and wasn’t “the problem,” Newton added 24 rushing ing when it counts the most.” market that has cost it hundreds tweet supporting Hong Kong ac- of millions of dollars. tivists could end his NBA career.

MLB San Diego Padres acquire right-hander Darvish in seven-player trade: reports

Reuters reported by MLB.com, comes catcher Victor Caratini from the deal worth around $7mn a sea- He fi nished last season with an really comfortable in who he is,” The Cubs have not announced New York, United States one day after San Diego landed Cubs, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand son, according to MLB Network. 8-3 record and a 2.01 ERA in 12 Cubs manager David Ross said a rebuild, but they have taken left-hander Blake Snell from the reported. In exchange, the Cubs Kim starred in Korea, where he starts, and he struck out 93 bat- last season. “There’s so much to steps to break up the core of a Tampa Bay Rays. The Padres’ acquired right-hander Zach has hit.307, slugged 49 home ters in 76 innings. be said for that.” team that captured the 2016 he San Diego Padres’ starting rotation now is set to Davies and four minor-league runs and swiped 56 bases since In eight big-league seasons, Caratini, 27, gives the Pa- World Series title. Joe Maddon whirlwind off season include Snell, Darvish, Dinel- prospects: shortstop Reginald 2019. He start at second base for Darvish is 71-56 with a 3.47 ERA in dres depth behind the plate. He left as manager, Theo Epstein continued on Monday son Lamet, Chris Paddack and Preciado, outfi elder Owen Cais- the Padres. 182 starts. He spent the past three hit.241 with one homer and 16 left as president and the team re- night as they report- MacKenzie Gore, with injured sie, outfi elder Ismael Mena and The main prize of Monday years in Chicago after starting his RBIs in 44 games in 2019, fol- cently announced that it would Tedly acquired right-hander Yu veteran Mike Clevinger is set to shortstop Yeison Santana. night’s deal is Darvish, 34, a career with the Texas Rangers and lowing up on an impressive 2019 not tender a contract to slugger Darvish from the Chicago Cubs return from Tommy John surgery Earlier in the day, San Diego four-time All-Star who fi nished spending part of one season for the campaign in which he hit.266 Kyle Schwarber. Other players as part of a seven-player deal. in 2022. signed free-agent infi elder Ha- second in the voting for National Los Angeles Dodgers. with 11 homers and 34 RBIs in 95 who could be moved include Kris The trade, which was fi rst The Padres also acquired Seong Kim, 25, to a multi-year League Cy Young Award in 2020. “He’s just at a point where he’s games. Bryant and Javier Baez. Gulf Times Wednesday, December 30, 2020 7 SPORT

REPORT SPOTLIGHT South Africa thrash Lanka by an innings Southee leads NZ and 45 runs: 1st Test charge to leave Pak on the ropes Pakistan, set an unlikely target of 373, will go into the final day at 71 for three

South Africa’s Lutho Sipamla (R) celebrates with Aiden Markram after the dismissal of Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga during the fourth day of the first Test at SuperSport Park in Centurion yesterday.

AFP from the medium-paced Mulder Centurion which cut back off the pitch. Mulder, 22, followed up by having Niroshan Dickwella outh Africa wrapped up caught behind. He provided the victory by an innings control that was missing from and 45 runs shortly after much of South Africa’s bowling lunch on the fourth day in the fi rst innings during a spell Sof the fi rst Test against Sri Lanka of two for 29 in nine overs. at SuperSport Park in Centurion Fast bowler Anrich Nortje had yesterday. the left-handed Perera caught Sri Lanka, needing 225 runs behind off a faint edge, with to avoid an innings defeat, were South Africa successfully re- bowled out for 180. viewing what was originally a Kusal Perera hit a spirited 64 not-out decision. Perera hit 10 off 87 balls for the tourists and fours. debutant Wanindu Hasaranga Debutant Lutho Sipamla and slammed 59 off 53 balls, taking Nortje both fi nished with two advantage as South Africa seem- , while Vishwa Fernando New Zealand’s Tim Southee (C) and teammates celebrate after the fall of Pakistan’s Shan Masood during the fourth day of the first Test match at the Bay Oval in Mount ingly tried to lift their over-rate was run out without scoring. Maunganui yesterday. by rushing through six overs of The second and fi nal Test slow bowling after lunch. starts in nearby Johannesburg Sri Lanka resumed at 65 for on Sunday. AFP to have none for four. two yesterday but never recov- Mount Maunganui, New Zealand MOUNT MAUNGANUI SCORECARD New Zealand began their second in- ered after all-rounder Wiaan Sri Lanka, first innings, 396 nings at the start of the day with Tom Mulder dismissed overnight South Africa, first innings, 621 New Zealand 1st innings 431(K. Wil- (4nb), Ashraf 4-1-18-0, Yasir Shah 6-0-21-0, Latham and Tom Blundell putting on 98 batsman Dinesh Chandimal and Sri Lanka, second innings wing king Tim Southee celebrat- liamson 129, B. Watling 73, R. Taylor 70, H. Masood 1-0-4-0 in the fi rst session. Niroshan Dickwella in quick (overnight 65-2) ed his milestone 300th as Nicholls 56; Afridi 4-109, Yasir Shah 3-113) Mohammad Abbas briefl y troubled succession. D. Karunaratne b Ngidi ...... 6 New Zealand sensed victory over Pakistan 1st innings 239 (F. Ashraf 91, M. Pakistan 2nd innings Latham, who sent three edges towards Batsman Dhananjaya de Silva, K. Perera c De Kock b Nortje ...... 64 Pakistan at stumps on day four of Rizwan 71; Jamieson 3-35, Wagner 2-50) S. Masood c Taylor b Southee ...... 0 the slips, while a loud lbw appeal against who retired hurt after making 79 K. Mendis c Van der Dussen b Ngidi ....0 theS fi rst Test in Mount Maunganui yes- New Zealand 2nd innings Abid Ali c Watling b Boult ...... 0 Blundell was turned down with the TV in the fi rst innings, did not bat D. Chandimal b Mulder ...... 25 terday. T. Latham c Abid Ali b Naseem Shah ...... 53 Azhar Ali not out ...... 34 umpire unable to distinguish whether the for Sri Lanka. He was ruled out N. Dickwella c De Kock b Mulder ...... 10 New Zealand declared their second in- T. Blundell b Abbas ...... 64 H. Sohail c Santner b Southee ...... 9 ball hit bat or pad fi rst. of the rest of the tour with a torn D. Shanaka c De Kock b Sipamla...... 6 nings at 180 for fi ve and Pakistan, set an K. Williamson c Rizwan b Naseem Shah .. F. Alam not out ...... 21 Otherwise the batsmen were untrou- thigh muscle. W. Hasaranga c Bavuma b Sipamla....59 unlikely target of 373, will go into the fi nal ...... 21 Extras (b4, lb2, w1) ...... 7 bled, until after lunch when it was clear Sri Lanka suff ered a spate of V. Fernando run out (Maharaj) ...... 0 day at 71 for three. R. Taylor not out ...... 12 Total (three wickets; 38 overs) ...... 71 the declaration was approaching and injuries during the match but K. Rajitha c Maharaj b Nortje ...... 0 Azhar Ali will resume on 34 with Fawad H. Nicholls c Abbas b Naseem Shah ...... 11 Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Abid Ali), 2-0 New Zealand dropped their risk-free ap- bowlers Kasun Rajitha and La- L. Kumara not out...... 0 Alam on 21. B. Watling run out (sub/Rizwan) ...... 5 (Masood), 3-37 (Sohail) proach and wickets fell as the total rose. hiru Kumara hobbled to the D. de Silva absent hurt The Black Caps need to sweep the two- M. Santner not out ...... 6 Bowling: Southee 9-5-15-2, Boult 10-4-24- Blundell was bowled for 64 when try- crease to delay the inevitable. Extras (b4, lb2, nb3) ...... 10 Test series if they are to be in contention Extras (lb2, w1, nb5) ...... 8 1 (1w), Jamieson 7-6-3-0, Wagner 6-3-4-0, ing to slog Abbas over midwicket and Both suff ered groin injuries Total (46.1 overs) ...... 180 to make the World Test Championship fi - Total (five wickets dec; 45.3 overs)180 Santner 6-1-19-0 New Zealand were 111 for 1. while bowling. Fall of wickets: 1-10 (Karunaratne), nal at Lords in June. Fall of wickets: 1-111 (Blundell), 2-139 Toss: Pakistan Eleven overs later they were fi ve for 170 Sri Lanka started the match 2-22 (Mendis), 3-85 (Chandimal), 4-99 In New Zealand’s second innings, the (Latham), 3-147 (Williamson), 4-165 (Ni- Umpires: Chris Gaff aney (NZL), Wayne as Pakistan bought wickets with a short- well, making 396 after winning (Dickwella), 5-114 (Perera), 6-142 (Shana- Pakistan quicks struggled to get any as- cholls), 5-170 (Watling) Knights (NZL) ball approach. the toss but an injury-depleted ka), 7-148 (Fernando), 8-179 (Hasaranga), sistance from the fourth-day wicket, but Bowling:Afridi 11-0-47-0 (1w), Abbas TV Umpire: Chris Brown (NZL) Latham, who had feasted on ones and bowling attack conceded 621 9-180 (Rajitha) Southee and Trent Boult immediately had 11-2-33-1 (1nb), Naseem Shah 12.3-1-55-3 : (NZL) twos, opened up with a textbook cover runs when South Africa batted, Bowling: Ngidi 10-2-38-2 (1nb), Nortje the ball dancing to their tune. drive to the boundary to reach his 20th with former captain Faf du Ples- 10.1-1-47-2 (1nb), Mulder 12-1-39-2 (1nb), Abid Ali fended a rising Boult deliv- half-century. sis hitting 199. Du Plessis was Sipamla 5-0-24-2, Maharaj 6-3-20-0, ery and was caught behind, while Shan nip away and get caught behind,” he said. wicket if they are to avoid defeat. He was dismissed soon after for 53 named man of the match. Markram 3-2-6-0 Masood was caught at fi rst slip off South- “But the surface obviously dictates “Obviously losing three wickets when he mistimed a pull shot and was It was South Africa’s sec- Result: South Africa won by an innings ee and Pakistan were two down for no what you’re trying to achieve and the doesn’t help,” said the batsman. caught in the deep. ond win in eight matches in and 45 runs runs after 14 deliveries. wicket is obviously a bit slower so those “You’ve seen some balls keep low and it Kane Williamson’s attempted pull shot the world Test championship. Series: South Africa lead the two- Azhar Ali and Haris Sohail provided catches in front of the wicket become im- (the pitch) is getting slower so it’s hard to was top edged to wicketkeeper Moham- They have suff ered six defeats. match series 1-0 some resistance for 15 overs and 37 runs portant.” time the ball. ed Rizwan and he was gone for 21, while Sri Lanka have won one, lost Toss: Sri Lanka before Sohail chipped Southee to Mitchell Southee said the target now was to ex- “It will be will be challenging and all Henry Nicholls went for 11 when his pull three and drawn one of their fi ve Santner at short cover — making Southee tend New Zealand’s 15-match unbeaten we can do is focus on playing the ball on shot was caught by Abbas at fi ne leg. matches. Umpires: Marais Erasmus, Adrian only the third New Zealander, after Rich- streak on home pitches. merit as much as we can.” For Pakistan, Naseem Shah was the Chandimal, who appeared Holdstock (both RSA) ard Hadlee and Daniel Vettori, to take 300 “The boys will recover well tonight and Southee has two for 15, and Boult one most eff ective bowler with three for 55. to suff er a groin injury towards TV umpire: Allahudien Paleker (RSA) Test wickets. turn up with that chance of achieving for 24. Neil Wagner, who was thought Separately, New Zealand quick Kyle the end of Monday’s play, re- Match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM) But Southee said the landmark something special tomorrow.” to have broken one toe while batting on Jamieson was fi ned 25% of his match fee sumed his innings on Tuesday was not the one he was looking for. For Pakistan, much hinges on Azhar Ali Sunday, but has now been diagnosed with for a dangerous throw towards batsman and survived for 40 minutes be- Remaining match: “I would have loved one to pitch off and staying at the crease on a deteriorating a second broken toe, sent down six overs Faheen Ashraf on Monday. fore being bowled for 25 by a ball January 3-7, Johannesburg

Indian Wells tournament postponed BOTTOMLINE due to Covid-19 concerns

Los Angeles: The BNP Paribas 8-21, attracts the game’s top Open tennis tournament in players from both the men’s Indian Wells that was scheduled and women’s sides. to be held in California in March A statement on the tourna- Federer and Nadal re-elected has been postponed due to ment’s website said organis- Covid-19 concerns, tennis gov- ers are working with the ATP erning body ATP said yesterday. and WTA Tours as well as title It marks the second con- sponsor BNP Paribas to confirm secutive year the tournament, dates later in the year to hold to ATP players’ council which is considered the most the event. prestigious event outside the “Details will be released in Agencies Auger-Aliassime, Australian of retired players and coaches way Professional Tennis Play- also resigned from the coun- four Grand Slams, has been the near future as plans are Paris , South African respectively. The council’s pres- ers’ Association (PTPA) on the cil earlier this year to support impacted by the virus as the finalised,” the statement read. Kevin Anderson, Briton Andy ident and vice-president will eve of the US Open in Septem- Djokovic’s eff orts in the forma- 2019 edition was cancelled. “This decision was made after Murray and Brazilian Bruno be elected at its fi rst meeting in ber after he resigned as the head tion of PTPA. “Due to the impact of Covid-19, thorough consultation with ennis legends Rafael Soares. 2021. It was presided over until of the player council. The decision to form the the BNP Paribas Open in Indian state and local health authori- Nadal and Roger Fed- In addition, France’s Gilles last year by world number one Last month, the Serb con- PTPA blindsided many players Wells will not be held on its ties and tournament owner erer, ranked second and Simon returns to the council Novak Djokovic. fi rmed he had been nominated with Federer and Nadal voicing customary dates in March,” ATP Larry Ellison.” fi fth in the world re- having served previous terms, But the Serb broke away in for the council election by his their opposition. said in a statement. The start of the 2021 Austral- spectively,T have been re-elected while newcomers Pablo Andu- August to establish a new play- fellow professionals. But Djokovic has maintained “Alternative dates are being ian Open, the year’s first Grand to the ATP players’ council, jar of Spain and New Zealander ers’ association which he said However, the Serb was forced that the PTPA wants to co-exist assessed for the tournament Slam, has already been delayed whose term runs until June Marcus Daniell will serve their would include women and was to withdraw from the election with the sport’s governing bod- to potentially take place later in for three weeks until Feb. 8 due 2022. fi rst term. intended to bring players to- after a new ATP rule deemed his ies, saying it was not a rival or- the year.” to the country’s strict border The council, as voted by ATP Briton Colin Dowdeswell and gether to give them a louder role with the PTPA a confl ict of ganisation and that it was set up The event, which next year was rules to curb the spread of the player members, also saw the Venezuela’s Daniel Vallverdu voice in decision-making. interest. to better protect the interests of scheduled to be held March novel coronavirus. re-election of Canadian Felix were elected as representatives Djokovic set up the breaka- Canadian Vasek Pospisil had the players.

Wednesday, December 30, 2020 GULF TIMES

SPOTLIGHT FOCUS India coach hails ‘one of the great Resilient India comebacks in thump Australia in cricket history’ Melbourne Test Siraj took 3-37 with Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravi Ashwin grabbing two each

Ravi Shastri (L) shakes hands with Australian coach Justin Langer (R) at the end of the second cricket Test match at the MCG in Melbourne yesterday.

AFP great to see,” he said. Melbourne “Today Siraj, his effort was outstanding. He might not have the numbers to show for ndia coach Ravi Shastri it, but the discipline and the hailed his team’s eight- ability to bowl long spells was wicket win over Aus- outstanding. Itralia yesterday as one “More than anything, they of the great comebacks of all have shown great character.” time, praising their character Shastri paid particular after a crushing loss in the tribute to Rahane, who in first Test last week. Despite contrast to Kohli is a less missing superstar Virat Koh- flamboyant captain, but li, the Indians outplayed the equally effective. hosts in Melbourne to silence “He is a very shrewd leader, their critics after being dis- he has a good understanding missed for 36 in Adelaide on of the game, he’s a good read- their way to an eight-wicket er of the game,” he said. defeat. “And I thought his calm “I think this will go down composure out there in the in the annals of Indian crick- middle, it helped the debu- et, world cricket, as one of tants and I think it helped the great comebacks in the the bowlers as well. It was a history of the game,” said calming influence.” Shastri after they levelled the Despite winning, India series 1-1. “To be rolled over head into the third Test next for 36, then three days later to week with selection dilem- get up and be ready to punch mas. Shastri said they were was outstanding. monitoring Yadav but would Australian players congratulate Ajinkya Rahane (C) after he led India to victory in the second Test at the MCG in Melbourne yesterday.

AFP MELBOURNE SCORECARD 15 and 19, but when Bumrah took Melbourne the new ball he fi nally fell, gloving Australia first innings 195 (M. M. Starc not out ...... 14 C. Pujara c Green b Cummins ...... 3 a rising delivery to Agarwal. Labuschagne 48; J. Bumrah 4-56, N. Lyon c Pant b Siraj ...... 3 A. Rahane not out ...... 27 Starc was unbeaten on 14 with tand-in captain Ajinkya R. Ashwin 3-35) J. Hazlewood b Ashwin ...... 10 Extras ...... 0 Nathan Lyon caught behind off Rahane led India to a India first innings 326 (A. Ra- Extras (lb5, nb3) ...... 8 Total (two wickets, 15.5 overs) 70 Siraj for three, and Hazlewood dominant eight-wicket hane 112, R. Jadeja 57, S. Gill 45; N. Total (10 wickets, 103.1 overs) ...... Fall of wickets: 1-16 (Agarwal) making 10. Swin over Australia in the Lyon 3-72, M. Starc 3-78) ...... 200 2-19 (Pujara) Australia’s hopes rested with second Test yesterday, levelling Australia second innings (over- Fall of wickets: 1-4 (Burns), 2-42 Bowling: Starc 4-0-20-1, Cum- the tail-enders after their top the series 1-1 and capping an ex- night 133 for six) (Labuschagne), 3-71 (Smith), 4-98 mins 5-0-22-1, Hazlewood 3-1-14-0, order failed to fi re, exposing the traordinary turnaround after their J. Burns c Pant b Yadav ...... 4 (Wade), 5-98 (Head), 6-99 (Paine), Lyon 2.5-0-5-0, Labuschagne fragile nature of their batting in record collapse in the opening M. Wade b Jadeja ...... 40 7-156 (Cummins), 8-177 (Green), 1-0-9-0 the absence of the injured David game. M. Labuschagne c Rahane b 9-185 (Lyon), 10-200 (Hazlewood) Toss: Australia Warner. Rahane, deputising for Virat Ashwin ...... 28 Bowling: Bumrah 27-6-54-2, Result: India won by eight Opener Joe Burns again fl opped, Kohli who is on paternity leave, S. Smith b Bumrah ...... 8 Yadav 3.3-0-5-1, Siraj 21.3-4-37-3, wickets out for four, to put his place in the Australia’s Cameron Green (R) reacts after been dismissed by hit an unbeaten 27 in Melbourne T. Head c Agarwal b Siraj ...... 17 Ashwin 37.1-6-71-2, Jadeja 14-5-28-2 Umpires: Paul Reiff el (AUS), team for the third Test next week Mohammed Siraj yesterday in Melbourne. — after a century in the fi rst in- C. Green c Jadeja b Siraj ...... 45 Bruce Oxenford (AUS at risk, while Travis Head (17) also nings — as India reached the mea- T. Paine c Pant b Jadeja ...... 1 India second innings TV umpire: Paul Wilson (AUS) disappointed and ’s “I think the boys deserve be sticking with their five- gre target of 70 for the loss of two P. Cummins c Agarwal b Bumrah M. Agarwal c Paine b Starc ...... 5 Match referee: poor run continued, gone for all the credit for showing bowler strategy, having in- wickets...... 22 S. Gill not out ...... 35 (AUS) eight. real character.” India’s win cluded allrounder Ravindra It capped a remarkable come- Their troubles came despite was built on a first-innings Jadeja for Melbourne. back for an Indian side desperate India being a bowler down fol- century by stand-in captain They also have key bats- to make amends after losing in he said. “Couldn’t be happier for Rahane and Gill (35) then saw group, but two Tests to go.” lowing Umesh Yadav’s calf strain Ajinkya Rahane on their way man Rohit Sharma out of Adelaide by eight wickets, when the boys and specially Jinks (Ra- India home, but not before some To make matters worse for Aus- on Monday, a further setback for to 326 in reply to Australia’s mandatory quarantine and they posted their lowest ever score hane) who led the team to victory nervous moments. tralia, they were fi ned 40 % of a team already missing Mohamed 195, with young debutant ready to join the team after of 36 and were widely criticised at amazingly.” Mitchell Starc got a nick from their match fee and docked four Shami and Ishant Sharma. Shubman Gill also excelling recovering from a hamstring home. Under the mild-mannered Ra- the out-of-form Mayank Agarwal World Test Championship points But India’s weakened attack with the bat. But their bowl- injury. And they bounced back without hane, India battled hard to dismiss (5), which Tim Paine caught, then for a slow over-rate. rose to the occasion, with Bumrah ing attack, minus Umesh Ya- “We will stick to five bowl- superstar and batting maintstay Australia for 195 in the fi rst in- Pat Cummins snared Cheteshwar Australia had collapsed to 99 at the top of his game and Siraj im- dav who pulled out injured on ers,” Shastri said. Kohli, who has returned home for nings and then posted 326 in reply. Pujara for three, edged to Green at for six in the run chase on Mon- pressing, while experienced spin- Monday, also delivered, with “On Rohit, he joins the the birth of his fi rst child. Australia resumed their sec- gully. day before Green and Cummins ners Jadeja and Ashwin consist- a standout performance from team tomorrow so we will “Really proud of all the players,” ond innings on day four on 133 It left India on 19 for two before knuckled down to weather 18 ently posed problems. But it was Mohammed Siraj, another have a chat with him to see said Rahane. for six with a two-run lead, and they regained their composure to overs and steer them to stumps. Rahane’s gritty 112 that ultimately on debut. Shastri said both where he is placed physically, “I want to give credit to the their hopes resting on 21-year- seal the win. Green showed glimpses of his proved match-winning. Siraj and Gill had big futures because he’s been in quar- debutants (Mohammed) Siraj and old rookie all-rounder Cameron “Very disappointed, played magic, cutting Ashwin and driv- He came to the crease with his ahead. antine for the last couple of (Shubman) Gill, the character they Green. poor cricket, sloppy cricket,” said ing Bumrah beautifully for fours, team in trouble at 64 for three and, “These two debutants weeks. We also need to see showed after the Adelaide loss was He made 45 as they battled to Australia captain Paine. while also exhibiting patience. against one of the world’s most showed a maturity and flair how he feels before we make great to see. Character was impor- 200 before tail-ender Josh Hazle- “Let’s not take anything away But in only his second Test, potent bowling attacks, reached a and discipline and it was the call.” tant for us.” wood was the last man to fall be- from India, they forced us to make he was undone by Siraj, caught 12th Test century, one that pundits Kohli, watching at home in In- fore lunch. mistakes. They bowled beauti- by Jadeja as he looked to fi nd the rated as perhaps his most impor- dia, tweeted his congratulations. Siraj took 3-37 with Jasprit fully, we haven’t adapted as well as boundary with a pull shot, ending tant ever. Sydney confi rmed as third Test venue “What a win this is, absolutely Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravi we would’ve liked. a 146-ball stay. The third Test is due to start on amazing eff ort by the whole team,” Ashwin grabbing two each. “Disappointed as a batting Cummins survived chances on January 7 in Sydney. Melbourne: The third Test support staff expected to en- between Australia and India ter some sort of quarantine will remain in Sydney, cricket in Brisbane. BOTTOMLINE chiefs said yesterday despite “Despite the many challeng- a coronavirus outbreak in the es presented by the Covid-19 city, with Brisbane holding pandemic, I am delighted to the final clash as scheduled. say Cricket Australia remains Holder to miss Bangladesh tour amid Covid fears A Covid-19 cluster emerged on track to deliver the men’s in Sydney earlier this month, international series as sched- AFP CWI said its Covid-19 policy run until February 15. Reifer, Jomel Warrican with parts of the city in lock- uled,” he said in a statement. St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda “allows any player to opt out of “Tours of Bangladesh are nev- down and restrictions placed “In response to the public selection for an overseas tour, er easy as they always play well in West Indies ODI squad on travel to other states. health situation in NSW and only when based on the player’s their own conditions,” said West Jason Mohammed (capt), Sunil With the situation uncer- the requirements of the kipper Jason Holder own safety fears or concerns”. Indies coach Roger Harper. Ambris, Nkrumah Bonner, Josh- tain, Melbourne was put on Queensland government, CA is one of 10 players who “Such decisions will not im- “Although a number of the ua Da Silva, Jahmar Hamilton, standby to host back-to-back will put in place appropriate will miss his country’s pact their consideration for fu- senior players are missing in Chemar Holder, Akeal Hosein, Al- Tests. But Cricket Australia in- biosecurity measures and Stour of Bangladesh be- ture selection.” both formats, I expect our teams zarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Andre terim chief Nick Hockley said we thank all players, staff cause of “Covid-19 related con- The Test squad will be led to be very competitive.” McCarthy, Kjorn Ottley, Rovman the match starting January and broadcasters for their cerns or personal fears”, Cricket by the experienced Kraigg Powell, Raymon Reifer, Romario 7 would stay in Sydney after cooperation.” West Indies (CWI) announced Brathwaite, with Jermaine West Indies Test squad Shepherd, Hayden Walsh health advice from the New Australia won the opening yesterday. Blackwood as vice-captain. Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), South Wales government. Test in Adelaide by eight Holder, Kieron Pollard, Dar- Former West Indies A team cap- Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Tour schedule Complicating matters wickets, with India level- ren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Ros- tain Jason Mohammed will lead Bonner, John Campbell, Rah- Jan 20: 1st ODI at Dhaka had been a closure of the ling the series on Tuesday ton Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin the ODI team with Sunil Ambris keem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Jan 22: 2nd ODI at Dhaka Queensland border to with an eight wicket win in Lewis, Shai Hope, Shimron Het- Tests in Chattogram and Dhaka. as vice-captain. Shannon Gabriel, Kavem Hodge, Jan 25: 3rd ODI at Chattogram anyone coming from Sydney, Melbourne. myer and Nicholas Pooran pulled Fabian Allen and Shane Dow- The West Indies touring par- Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Feb 3-7: 1st Test at Chattogram but that issue has also been The final Brisbane Test starts out of the tour that includes three rich are also unavailable for per- ty is due to arrive in Dhaka on Shayne Moseley, Veerasammy Feb 11-15: 2nd Test Match at resolved with players and on January 15. one-day internationals and two sonal reasons. January 10 and the series will Permaul, Kemar Roach, Raymon Dhaka