Page 239 - Sports
Zampa confident of posing dual spin threat with Lyon in World Cup
Adam Zampa believes his attacking leg-spin combined with Nathan Lyon's precise off-spin can prove to be an important weapon for Australia as they look to defend their title at the ICC World Cup beginning May 30. Zampa and Lyon snapped 12 wickets between them in the five-match ODI series win over Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates. "I think it was a few months ago where we actually spoke to each other and said, 'I reckon we can play a huge role coming up in the World Cup together so let's do everything we can to make sure we're both there'," Zampa told reporters. "We play two different roles. (Lyon) is so accurate, a beautiful off-spinner, bowls to his field really well and bowls really tight. That means I can attack from the other end." Zampa, who has played in English conditions following a spell at Essex last summer, said communication is the key to their success. "We've communicated really well over the last few months. We speak a lot in the nets, we speak a lot in the field, ...
Guardiola convinced Kompany will return to Man City sooner or later
English football club Manchester City's manager Pep Guardiola on Tuesday said that he is convinced that Vincent Kompany will return to the team sooner or later."I think we're going to miss him (Kompany) a lot. I'm going to miss him, but he is going to see us in the future because he is coming back sooner or later," Goal.comn quoted Guardiola as saying.Kompany had announced on Sunday, May 19, that he is going to leave the club for a player-manager role at Belgian football club R.S.C. Anderlecht.The 33-year-old defender had spent 11 years at Manchester City and enjoyed huge success with the club. He was able to win all the major trophies with the club, barring the Champions League title.His final success came on Saturday, May 18, when City defeated Watford 6-0 to win the FA Cup, adding another trophy to their cabinet. This year the club was able to win the Premier League title and EFL Cup as well.Guardiola said it was the best way to bid him goodbye after winning all the major trophies .
'Bangladesh is stronger within the squad': Coach Steve Rhodes
Bangladesh head coach, Steve Rodes on Tuesday said that the team's recent success in the Tri-nation series proves that the team is stronger within the squad and there's more to the side than just their big five players."There have been two or three guys who have played special innings. If you think of Mosaddek, for example, he is a guy now who is going to keep everybody on their toes. That's the depth of the squad and he might not play, and if he doesn't, then what a great position we have. It gives us the confidence that we can win some big games as well," International Cricket Council (ICC) quoted Rhodes as saying."That means Bangladesh is stronger within the squad, and that's what we want as we want more depth, and if we get that depth, then people will stop talking about the big five," he added.Bangladesh defeated West Indies in the finals of the Tri-nation series on Friday, May 17. In the match, Bangladesh was without their star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan as he was ruled out of .
Valencia called up by Ecuador for Copa America
A week after his 10-year stay at Manchester United ended, Antonio Valencia was on Monday called up by coach Hernan Dario Gomez to Ecuador's Copa America squad. The 33-year-old's inclusion has received criticism in some quarters as Valencia has played less than 10 matches in an injury-ravaged season. "There are players who haven't played much but they are players that you know will be important when they're in the national team," said Gomez. "I'm not going to throw out Valencia until he tells me he's quitting." Valencia, 33, is the Ecuador captain and has won 94 caps, scoring 11 goals. Although he spent the last few years of his Old Trafford career as a right back, Gomez said he sees Valencia as a right winger, the position where he made his name and earned a move to United after a string of sparkling displays at minnows Wigan Athletic. Ecuador have been drawn in a tough Group C at the Copa America hosted by Brazil, where they will face holders Chile, record 15-time winners Uruguay and
Treble winners Man City enjoy parade
Manchester City celebrated their domestic treble with an open-top bus parade on Monday, drawing an estimated 100,000 fans to the streets of the city centre. Pep Guardiola's City side became the first to complete a clean sweep of all three major English trophies with Saturday's 6-0 thrashing of Watford in the FA Cup final at Wembley. They clinched a second successive Premier League title the previous week and also won the Carabao Cup in February. It was the fourth time in seven years the club had taken over the city centre for an afternoon with a celebratory parade. Adding the Community Shield to the tally, the club had banners branding themselves as "The Fourmidables". The victorious squad were joined by members of the City women's team, who also won an FA Cup and League Cup double this year. Guardiola insisted he has not thought about next season but admitted captain Vincent Kompany will be missed at the club after the defender confirmed his departure to become player-manager at ...
Three weeks before final, qualifiers begin long road to French Open glory
Almost three weeks before the world's best fight it out for the French Open titles, hundreds of players, including grizzled veterans and teenage hopefuls, have descended on Roland Garros for qualifying. The men's opening round got underway on Monday, despite the tournament proper not due to start until Sunday, with 128 entrants playing for only 16 spots in the main draw. On Tuesday, 96 women will start their bids for just 12 places, with the potential rewards life-changing. While former Grand Slam surprise packages Denis Istomin and Dustin Brown were going toe-to-toe in front of a smattering of spectators on Court 7, 23-time major champion Serena Williams was practising on the Philippe Chatrier show-court. Just two years ago, Istomin stunned Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open second round, but on the Parisian clay he fell to Brown -- the camper-van driving, shock Wimbledon conqueror of Rafael Nadal in 2015. Serbian Viktor Troicki was ranked 12th in the world only eight years ago ...
Bologna earn 'miracle' Serie A survival in six-goal Lazio thriller
Bologna coach Sinisa Mihajlovic hailed his team for pulling off a "miracle" to secure their top flight survival with a 3-3 draw at Lazio on Monday enough to keep the northerners in Serie A next season. It was a vital point for Bologna who have been transformed since the arrival of Serbian coach Mihajlovic in place of Filippo Inzaghi, brother of Lazio coach Simone, last February. "Nobody, or at least very few believed in us staying up a few months ago," said Serb Mihajlovic, a former Yugoslavia international player. "I was one of the few. The more that time went by, the more convinced I was that we were on the right road but it was still something of a small miracle." The club were 18th with just two wins from 21 games when the former Serbia, AC Milan and Torino coach arrived, but since have won eight matches out of 16 and are now positioned 12th. "Now, we're aiming to pull off a real masterstroke on Saturday (against Napoli) to finish tenth," he added. Lazio are already through to ...
Aussie opener Burns leaves Lancashire 'for personal reasons'
Joe Burns' Ashes chances have taken a hit with the Australian batsman calling time on his stint with English county side Lancashire and heading home "for personal reasons". The 29-year-old, who scored a career-best 180 in Australia's last Test, against Sri Lanka in Canberra, signed as the club's overseas player as part of his build-up to the Ashes series against England, which starts on August 1. He was due to be with them for most of the County Championship season, but made just one appearance. "Lancashire Cricket can confirm that overseas batsman Joe Burns has returned to Australia due to personal reasons, and will now not be available for the club's 2019 campaign," it said in a statement. "Lancashire Cricket wishes Joe all the best, and it would be appreciated if his privacy is respected during this time." The reason for his departure was not clear. Burns has been replaced in the Lancashire squad by fellow Australian Jake Lehmann, son of former national coach Darren Lehmann.
Semenya to race 3,000m at Diamond League's Prefontaine
Two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya will race the 3,000 meters at the Diamond League Prefontaine Classic on June 30, a distance she can contest without reducing her testosterone levels. The South African has won two Olympic golds at 800 meters, and has insisted she will not take medication to comply with new International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) rules governing testosterone levels in women athletes that went into effect on May 8. The new rules require women with higher than normal male hormone levels -- so-called "hyperandrogenic" athletes -- to artificially lower the amount of testosterone in their bodies if they are to compete in races over distances of 400m to the mile. Semenya won the 800m at the Doha Diamond League meeting this month in her first race since losing her appeal of the controversial ruling at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. South Africa have said they will lodge an appeal of the CAS ruling with the Switzerland Federal Tribunal citing lack
Kedhar Jadhav declared fit, no changes in India WC squad
All-rounder Kedar Jadhav, who had sustained a shoulder injury during the recently concluded edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been declared fit, ensuring no changes will be made to the 15-member India squad for the upcoming World Cup beginning May 30 in England and Wales.
Cooper named Dottin's replacement for Ireland and England tours
Cricket West Indies named Britney Cooper as the replacement for injured Deandra Dottin on Monday (local time) in the team's women's squad for the tour of Ireland and England.Dottin suffered damage to her right shoulder and she will require corrective surgery, ruling her out of the upcoming series.This is a huge blow for the Windies as Dottin has been in remarkable form, rising to the number one position in the ICC Women's T20 all-rounder rankings.She was named the player of the series in the Wst Indies tour to Pakistan in February this year, scoring 158 runs and taking 3 wickets." Obviously it's very unfortunate with Deandra having to do surgery. She is certainly a key player for us and we wish her a speedy recovery to come back and win matches for the West Indies. Britney has previous experience at the international level and we believe she will make a positive contribution," Interim Chairman of Selectors Robert Haynes said in an official statement.West Indies team has been in a ...
'Truth is bitter,' says Junaid Khan after World Cup exclusion
It seems like exclusion from Pakistan's World Cup squad has not gone down well with the pacer Junaid Khan, who stated that 'truth is bitter'.The 29-year old posted a picture of himself on Twitter with a black tape on his mouth and wrote: "I dont want to say anything. Truth is bitter. (Sach karwa hotha hai)."However, a few hours later Khan deleted his tweet.Khan found a spot in the preliminary World Cup squad which was announced on April 2018. However, after the conclusion of their five-match ODI series against England, Pakistan named their final World Cup squad on Monday, from which his name was dropped.Khan is not the only player who was ruled out of the final squad after being named in the preliminary squad. Abid Ali and Faheem Ashraf were among the other players who will not get to participate in the quadrennial tournament.However, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz and Asif Ali have been named in Pakistan's final World Cup squad.After the first match got abandoned due to rain, Pakistan ...
Grieving Asif, Aamir, Wahab named in Pakistan's World Cup squad
Grieving father Asif Ali and the experienced pace duo of Mohammad Aamir and Wahab Riaz were Monday included in Pakistan's final 15-man squad for the upcoming World Cup in the United Kingdom. Asif's 19-month-old daughter Noor Fatima, who had been undergoing cancer treatment in the US, died on Sunday but he is set to join his teammates after her funeral in Lahore, chief selector Inzaman-ul-Haq said at a press conference here. "We are with Asif in this tough time. He will return to Pakistan and then go back before the warm-up matches," he said. Aamir and Riaz were included in the squad following Pakistan's 0-4 loss to England in the ODI series. Both the bowlers were not included in the initial World Cup squad announced last month but Aamir, who is yet to recover from chicken pox, was named for the one-day series against England which Pakistan completed on Sunday. The selectors have axed all-rounder Faheem Ashraf and left-arm pacer Junaid Khan from their initial World Cup squad to make ...
India dominates on first day of India Open International Boxing Tournament
Sonia Lather, Manisha Moun, and Sachin Siwach gave India a scintillating start in the second edition of India Open International Boxing Tournament here on Monday after registering a dominating win over their opponents.2016 World Championships silver medallist Lather (57 kg) registered a 5-0 over Nepal's Chandra Kala Thapa while Asian Championships bronze medallist Moun (57 kg) overpowered Nesthy Alcayde Petecio (Philippines) to claim a 4-1 win and with this victory both entered into the quarter-finals.Former world youth champion Siwach also displayed an impeccable performance to claim a 5-0 win over Argentina's Ramon Nicanor Quiroga.In 60kg, Preeti Beniwal boosted her medal-winning hopes with a commanding 5-0 win over Nepal's Sangita Sunar. Whereas, Jyoti (51 kg), Anamika (51 kg) and Sashi Chopra (60 kg) led the youth brigade to wins as all seven Indians emerged victorious on an opening day to move into the quarter-finals.Mary Kom, who will be making her competitive debut in 51 kg, ...
Langer defends decision of picking Kane Richardson over Josh Hazlewood
Australia coach Justin Langer has backed the decision of giving Kane Richardson a World Cup call instead of Josh Hazlewood after Jhy Richardson sustained a shoulder injury during their five-match one-day international (ODI) series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates."He just hasn't been playing any [T20 and one-day] cricket. He's come off a second stress fracture in his back and while he's just starting to get up and running in the nets now, I think he's played six white ball games in the last 18 months," ICC quoted Langer, as saying.Although Langer praised Hazlewood but said that the 28-year old pacer has not played enough cricket over the last 18 months which played a role in overlooking him."We know he's a great bowler. He's a brilliant bowler, but it was just such bad timing for him. He's a terrific bloke, he's been vice-captain of the team. He's a brilliant bowler ... his numbers over the last four years have been good. But over the last 18 months, he just hasn't played .
Ashish to lead 3-member Indian gymnastics team in World Challenge Cup
A three-member team led by 2010 Asian Games bronze medallist Ashish Kumar will represent India at the second World Challenge Cup Series gymnastics tournament in Osijek, Croatia from May 23 to 26. Besides Ashish, who won bronze medal at the floor exercise in 2020 Guangzhou Asiad, the Indian contingent will also have Rakesh Kumar Patra and Shraddha Talekar. While Ashish will participate in four men's events -- floor, vault, parallel bars and horizontal bars, Rakesh will take part in three categories -- rings, parallel bars and horizontal bars. Sharaddha will make her international debut at the second of the seven World Cup and participate in three events namely, uneven bars, beam and floor. The gymnasts will accompanied by their personal coaches, Ashwini Samantaray, Manoj Rana and Pravin Dhage. The World Challenge Cup is a major FIG event with a broader participation of 110 gymnasts from 30 different countries.
Croatia's Dalic calls up rookie pair for pivotal Wales Euro qualifier
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic named two uncapped players in his squad for next month's crucial Euro 2020 qualifier against Wales on Monday as the World Cup runners-up look to react after a shock defeat by Hungary. The two newcomers are Leicester defender Filip Benkovic, who has spent the season on loan with Celtic, and left-back Dario Melnjak, who has scored four goals in 15 games since joining Turkish side Rizespor in January. "It is clear that we must target three points against Wales," Dalic said. "I believe in the squad, we have not much choice after our failure against Hungary. We must be more focused in the future," added Dalic, whose team lost 2-1 in Budapest in March. Ante Rebic, who scored in the loss, is included despite suffering a back injury for club Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday. Croatia also play Tunisia in a friendly on June 8, three days after hosting Ryan Giggs' Wales in Osijek. In Group E, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia and Wales have three points each, while Azerbaijan .
Mbappe 'bombshell' places pressure on PSG as Madrid lurk
France star Kylian Mbappe has cast doubt on his Paris Saint-Germain future, cranking up the pressure on the club's hierarchy as Real Madrid reportedly attempt to lure him to Spain. The 20-year-old Mbappe fuelled transfer speculation at Sunday's French league awards ceremony after saying that he wants "responsibilities, maybe at PSG, maybe elsewhere". It appeared a calculated move by Mbappe, who succeeded team-mate Neymar as the Ligue 1 player of the year, after he again brought it up in front of reporters moments later. "I said what I had to say. When you're on stage you can send messages, I think I got mine across. If I keep talking it would be too much and that's not the message I want to send," Mbappe explained. He has been regularly linked with a potential move to Madrid since breaking through with Monaco's 2017 Ligue 1 title-winning team, but instead made the switch to PSG, initially on loan, and then for 180 million euros. But since Zinedine Zidane's return to the Real dugout ...
Alonso rejects McLaren offer to buy him Indy 500 seat
McLaren offered to buy Fernando Alonso a seat in the Indianapolis 500, but the Formula One champion told the team he was uncomfortable replacing a driver who had earned a spot in the race. Alonso, with McLaren, failed to qualify for next Sunday's race , a humiliation for the proud racing team. Alonso is trying to win motorsports' version of the Triple Crown and Indy is his last remaining goal. McLaren was back at the 500 for the first time since it dominated in the 1970s. McLaren CEO Zak Brown told The Associated Press the team would not buy its way into the 500 and was halting this year's effort. Bob Fernley, president of the IndyCar operation, was fired Sunday night after McLaren missed the race. The team then made a few inquiries into buying out another driver to give Alonso a spot in the 33-car field in a non-McLaren backed effort. Brown said Alonso initially supported McLaren running a car for him if it was the right business decision to satisfy sponsor obligations. But once the .
McKenna wants to take Manchester United to 'next level'
Manchester United had a disappointing season and Kieran McKenna, who will continue to stay alongside manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the next season, expressed his desire of taking the players to the 'next level'."I think that's one of the main things as coaches that at this level you're always looking at ways to improve yourself first of all. Then come up with new ideas and keep things fresh and interesting for the players to make sure you keep challenging them," the club's official website quoted McKenna as saying."Obviously a lot of the players have been at the top level and are working at the top level so we need to make sure that we make things challenging for them and keep pushing them to try to get them to the next level - for themselves individually and try to get the team to the next level," he added.Solskjaer himself confirm that McKenna will continue to be a part of his backroom team next season. And while backing the current coaching set-up of Manchester United, McKenna ...