07MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020 SPORT

SPORTI see it rather positive because from now on we can play free football again. We don't have to defend or try to get a record: Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp says after 3-0 shock defeat at Watford.

Second Test, Day 3: New Zealand

vs India in Christchurch

Pakistan Super League: Peshawar Zalmi vs Karachi Kings

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NBA: Westbrook sizzles as Rockets edge Celtics; Grizzlies shock LakersAFP — LOS ANGELES

Russell Westbrook delivered a game-high 41 points as the Houston Rockets defeated Boston 111-110 in overtime to cap a season sweep of the Celtics.

James Harden, who made just seven of 31 baskets and had five turnovers, gained a small measure of redemption from his poor shooting night by making two late free throws in the win.

Harden’s free throws gave Houston the lead and then Rockets defence took over forcing Boston’s Jaylen Brown to miss his late shot to clinch the victory.

Harden finished with 21 points after being double teamed most of the night. Robert Covington had a double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds for Houston, who won their sixth straight.

“We had a lot of attention on James Harden,” Celtics guard Brown said.

“We forgot about the other MVP over there.”

Jayson Tatum finished with 32 points and 13 rebounds, and Brown added 22 points for the Celtics. Marcus Smart scored 26 points and Daniel Theis tallied 15 rebounds and three blocks in the loss.

Brown hit the buzzer-beating three-pointer that forced overtime. He grabbed a loose ball after Tatum missed two free throws with five seconds left and Boston trailing 104-101.

“I thought the right team won,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. “I thought they were better than us -- not by much, but at least by one.”

Elsewhere, the Memphis Grizzlies, clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the NBA Western Conference, snapped a five-game skid with a 105-88 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Rookie Ja Morant scored 27

points and tied his season high with 14 assists for the Grizzlies, who led by as many as 22 points in the third quarter.

The victory in Memphis snapped the West-leading Lakers’ seven-game winning streak.

The Grizzlies out-rebounded the Lakers 51-45 and harried Los Angeles into 16 turnovers leading to 22 Memphis points. “They came

out and played with a sense of desperation,” Lakers star Anthony Davis said. “They wanted it more than us tonight, and it showed.”

Dillon Brooks scored 24 points and Jonas Valanciunas added 22 points and 20 rebounds for the Grizzlies.

LeBron James scored 19 points and Davis added 15 with nine rebounds.

The Lakers sliced the deficit to nine points with less than seven minutes remaining, but the Grizzlies pushed the lead back to 18 and Lakers coach Frank Vogel emptied his bench for the waning minutes.

“We knew they were going to play with desperation,” Vogel said. “They’re currently the eighth seed in the playoffs and they lost five straight.

“Our guys have done a great job throughout most of the year playing with energy and matching the energy of the home team -- we just fell short with that tonight.”

The Grizzlies went into the night two games ahead of the New Orleans Pelicans for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West.

Davis said the Lakers’ road trip won’t get any easier when they arrive at New Orleans on Sunday.

“Tomorrow we’re going into another arena where a team is fighting for the same (eighth) spot, so it’s a precursor of what we’re going to see tomorrow,” he said.

Russell Westbrook (left) of the Houston Rockets takes a shot against Marcus Smart (centre) of the Boston Celtics during their NBA game.

Boston 110, Houston 111 (OT)

Cleveland 104, Indiana 113

San Antonio 114, Orlando 113

Atlanta 129, Portland 117

Miami 116, Brooklyn 113

Phoenix 99, Golden State 115

Memphis 105, LA Lakers 88

New York 125, Chicago 115

NBA RESULTS

NHL: Blues stay hot with win over Dallas StarsREUTERS — ST. LOUIS

Ryan O’Reilly scored the winning shootout goal to lead the St. Louis Blues past the visiting Dallas Stars 4-3 for their seventh consecutive victory.

The Stars rallied from a 3-1 deficit to force overtime -- with John Klingberg scoring the tying goal with 19 seconds left in regulation.

But O’Reilly scored the only goal in the shootout. The Central Division-leading Blues have had three winning streaks of at least seven games this season, a franchise first.

Bruins 4, Islanders 0 David Pastrnak scored his

47th goal, defenseman Charlie McAvoy had one goal with two assists and Tuukka Rask needed just 25 saves for his 49th career shutout as Boston extended its road winning streak over New York to 10 games with a shutout in Uniondale, N.Y.

Brad Marchand recorded a goal with an assist, and Matt Grzelcyk scored for the first time since November as the Bruins won for the 13th time in their last 16 games.

Lightning 4, Flames 3 Tampa Bay’s special teams

scored three times against vis-iting Calgary just after it was announced that captain Steven Stamkos (lingering core muscle injury) would miss the remainder of the Lightning’s regular season.

Tyler Johnson and Ondrej Palat netted power-play goals, Yanni Gourde had a short-handed tally, and Alex Killorn added a marker. Nikita Kucherov and Mikhail Ser-gachev each contributed two assists.

Avalanche 3, Predators 2 Erik Johnson had a goal and

an assist, Pavel Francouz stopped 30 shots, and visiting Colorado beat Nashville as Johnson’s two points gave him 300 for his career.

Gabriel Landeskog and

Martin Kaut also had goals for Colorado, which has won a franchise-best eight straight road games and six in a row overall.

Sharks 5, Penguins 0 Evander Kane and Timo

Meier each had a goal and an assist, and goaltender Martin Jones posted his second shutout of the season as host San Jose blanked Pittsburgh to spoil the return of Patrick Marleau.

Joel Kellman, Logan Couture and Joe Thornton also scored for San Jose, which won its second in a row after snapping a five-game losing streak. Jones made 30 saves for the 24th shutout of his seven-year career.

Oilers 3, Jets 2 Leon Draisaitl scored two

goals and had an assist, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tallied three points, including the game-winning goal with 5:16 remaining, to lead Edmonton over visiting Winnipeg.

It was the fourth game-winning goal of the season for Nugent-Hopkins, who took a feed from Draisaitl in the right circle and fired a shot inside the left post past Connor Helle-buyck for his 19th goal of the season.

Maple Leafs 4, Canucks 2 Defenceman Martin Mar-

incin scored his first goal of the season 18 seconds into the third period to break a tie and Toronto went on to defeat vis-iting Vancouver.

Frederik Gauthier, Auston Matthews and Zach Hyman also scored for the Maple Leafs.

Ondrej Kase (foreground) of the Boston Bruins is checked by Matt Martin (right) of the New York Islanders during their NHL game.

Davis-Gaither to have foot surgeryREUTERS — NEW YORK

Appalachian State line-backer Akeem Davis-Gaither will have surgery to repair a stress fracture in his right foot, according to multiple reports Saturday from the NFL Scouting Combine.

He posted 21 reps in the 225-pound bench press in Indianapolis, but he will not participate in any more workouts before the NFL draft in April.

CBS Sports rated him as the No. 5 linebacker in the draft pool before the combine but said he had improved his draft stock after measuring “a little taller and heavier than expected.” Davis-Gaither will have surgery Tuesday with Dr. Robert Anderson in Green Bay, Wis., and faces a recovery time of 6-8 weeks, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported.

“It was a hard decision whether to have the surgery at the end of the season or not,” Davis-Gaither said according to SI.com.

The Senior Bowl par-ticipant played with the injury during the 2019 season, when he tallied 104 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss and five sacks and was named Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year.

08 MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020SPORT

List of sports events affected by virus from ChinaARCHERYISSF International Solidarity Championships in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Feb. 22-28 postponed.World Cup in Shanghai from May 4-10 cancelled.ATHLETICSWorld indoor championships in Nanjing from March 13-15 postponed to March 2021.Hong Kong Marathon on Feb. 9 cancelled.Asian indoor championships in Hangzhou from Feb. 12-13 canceled.Asian cross-country championships in Hong Kong on March 29 postponed.Tokyo Marathon on March 1: Restricted to elite runners.Nagoya Women’s Marathon on March 8: Restricted to elite runners.Pyongyang Marathon in North Korea on April 12 cancelled.AUTO RACINGFormula One’s Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai on April 19 postponed.Formula E’s Sanya E-Prix in Sanya on March 21 cancelled.BADMINTONChina Masters in Hainan from Feb. 25-March 1 postponed.Asian team championships in Manila from Feb. 11-16: China and Hong Kong withdrew.German Open in Mulheim from March 3-8 cancelled.Polish Open in Krakow from March 26-29 postponed.Vietnam International Challenge in Hanoi postponed from March 24-29 to June 2-7.BASEBALLNippon Professional Baseball: All preseason games from Feb. 26-March 15, no spectators.BASKETBALLWomen’s Olympic qualifying tournament moved from Foshan, China, to Belgrade, Serbia, from Feb. 6-9.Asia Cup qualifiers postponed: Philippines vs. Thailand on Feb. 20; Japan vs. China on Feb. 21; China vs. Malaysia on Feb. 24. Matches scheduled for Hong Kong moved to opponents’ homes.South Korean Basketball League: All games from Feb. 25-March 31 no spectators.Women’s Chinese Basketball Association League: All games postponed.BOXINGAsia-Oceania Olympic qualifier moved from Wuhan, China, to Amman, Jordan, from March 3-11.CYCLINGUAE Tour cancelled on Feb. 27 after 5 of 7 stages.EQUESTRIANHK showjumping leg of Longines Masters Series from Feb. 14-16 cancelled.FIELD HOCKEYHockey Pro League matches between China and Belgium on Feb. 8-9 and Australia on March 14-15 postponed.India women’s tour of China from March 14-25 cancelled.Ireland women’s tour of Malaysia in March-April cancelled.GOLFLPGA TourHonda LPGA Thailand in Pattaya from Feb. 20-23 cancelled.HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore from Feb. 27-March 1 cancelled.Blue Bay LPGA on Hainan Island from March 5-8 cancelled.European TourMaybank Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from April 16-19 postponed.China Open in Shenzhen from April 23-26 postponed.Japan LPGA TourDaikin Orchid Ladies in Okinawa from March 5-8: Spectators banned.GYMNASTICSArtistic World Cup in Melbourne, Australia, from Feb. 20-23: China team withdrew.American Cup in Milwaukee on March 7: Russia team withdrew.HANDBALLOlympic women’s qualifying tournament in Montenegro from March 20-22: China withdrew. Hong Kong declined invitation to attend.HORSE RACINGJapan Racing Association: All races from Feb. 27 to have no spectators, indefinitely.ICE HOCKEYChinese clubs in Supreme Hockey League playing home games in Russia.Women’s Challenge Cup of Asia in Manila, Philippines, from Feb. 23-28 cancelled.US-Based Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association tour of Japan from March 4-7 cancelled.JUDOParis Grand Slam on Feb. 8-9: China team withdrew.Dusseldorf Grand Slam on Feb. 21-23: China team withdrew.MODERN PENTATHLONWorld championships moved from Xiamen to Cancun, Mexico, from May 25-31.World laser run championships moved from Xiamen in May to Weiden, Germany, in August.ROWINGAsia and Oceania Olympic qualifying regatta in Chungju, South Korea from April 27-30 cancelled.RUGBYSix Nations: Ireland vs. Italy in Dublin on March 7 postponed.Women’s Six Nations: Italy vs. Scotland in Legnano on Feb. 23, Ireland vs. Italy in Dublin on March 8 postponed.Pro14 in Italy: Zebre vs. Ospreys, Treviso vs. Ulster on Feb. 29 postponed.Super Rugby: Sunwolves vs. ACT Brumbies in Osaka on March 8 to be relocated.Japan’s Top League: Round 7 on Feb. 29-March 1 and Round 8 on March 7-8 postponed.Hong Kong Sevens moved from April 3-5 to Oct. 16-18.Singapore Sevens moved from April 11-12 to Oct. 10-11.Asia women’s championship in Hong Kong moved from March 14-22 to May 8-16.SAILINGAsian Nacra 17 Championship in Shanghai from March 1-6 moved to Genoa, Italy, from April 12-19.Asian 49erFX Championship in Hainan, China from March 20-29 moved to Genoa, Italy, from April 12-19.SKIINGAlpine World Cup in Yanqing, China from Feb. 15-16 cancelled.Engadin Skimarathon in Switzerland on March 8 canceled.SOCCERAsian Champions League: Matches involving Chinese clubs Guangzhou Evergrande, Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai SIPG postponed to April-May. Beijing FC allowed to play from Feb. 18. Matches involving South Korean clubs Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, Suwon Samsung Bluewings and FC Seoul to be played with no spectators from March 3. Matches involving Iranian clubs Esteghlal, Persepolis, Shahr Khodro, Sepahan on March 2-3 postponed.Europa League: Inter Milan vs. Ludogorets on Feb. 27 behind closed doors.Asian women’s Olympic qualifying Group B tournament relocated from Wuhan to Sydney from Feb. 3-13. China vs. South Korea playoff on March 11 moved from China to Sydney.2022 World Cup qualifying: China vs. Maldives on March 26 and vs. Guam on March 31 moved to Buriram, Thailand. Spectators banned.AFC Cup: All group stage and playoff matches in east zone delayed to April 7.Chinese Super League, due to start on Feb. 22, delayed.Serie A, B, C, D and Women’s Serie A matches in Lombardy and Veneto regions postponed from Feb. 22. Serie A: 5 matches on Feb. 29-March 1 postponed to May 13.Iran Pro League: Spectators banned from all matches from Feb. 24.K League in South Korea, due to start on Feb. 29, delayed.J League in Japan: All matches from Feb. 25-March 15 postponed.Swiss Super League and Challenge League from Feb. 28-March 15 postponed.Asian men’s futsal championship in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, from Feb. 26-March 8 postponed.Japan vs. South Africa men’s friendly on March 27 cancelled.FIFA Council meeting in Asuncion, Paraguay, on March 20 changed to video conference.SPEED SKATINGShort track world championships in Seoul from March 13-15 postponed until at least October.SUMO WRESTLINGSpring grand sumo tournament in Osaka, Japan from March 8-22 to have no spectators.SWIMMINGAsian water polo championships in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, from Feb. 12-16 cancelled.Diving Grand Prix in Madrid from Feb. 14-16: China team withdrew.Diving world series event in Beijing from March 7-9 cancelled.China Olympic trials in Qingdao from March 28-April 4 moved to May 10-16.TABLE TENNISWorld team championships in Busan, South Korea, postponed from May 22-29 to June 21-28.South Korea Open in Busan on June 16-21 suspended.Australian Open in Geelong on June 23-28 suspended.TAEKWONDOAsian Olympic qualifying tournament on April 10-11 moved from Wuxi, China to Amman, Jordan.TENNISFed Cup Asia-Oceania Group I tournament moved from Dongguan, China to Dubai, United Arab Emirates from March 3-7.Davis Cup: China forfeited World Group I playoff vs. Romania in Piatra Neamt on March 6-7.WTA: Xi’an Open from April 13-19 cancelled.VOLLEYBALLBeach volleyball World Cup in Yangzhou, China from April 22-26 postponed.WEIGHTLIFTINGAsian Championships from April 18-25 moved from Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan, to Tashkent, Uzbekistan.WRESTLINGAsian Championships in New Delhi from Feb. 20-23: China, North Korea, Turkmenistan teams withdrew.Asian Olympic qualifying event from March 27-29 moved from Xi’an, China to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

This collage show runners fill the street at the start of the Tokyo Marathon 2019 in Tokyo, Japan in this March 3, 2019 (right) and runners start at the Tokyo Marathon 2020 in Tokyo, Japan yesterday. The 2020 Tokyo Marathon was limited to elite runners marking the latest sports events to be affected by fears over the new coronavirus.

Ethiopia's Birhanu wins virus-hit Tokyo MarathonAFP — TOKYO

Birhanu Legese of Ethiopia won the virus-hit Tokyo Marathon reduced from a mass partici-pation event of 38,000 runners to just elite athletes yesterday because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The race, which doubled up as an trial for Japanese athletes hoping to run in their home Tokyo Olympics later this year, was limited to 200 participants including wheelchair racers.

Legese won his second successive Tokyo mar-athon in 2hr 4min 15sec with Bashir Abdi of Belgium second in 2:04.49 followed by Sisay Lemma of Ethiopia 2:04:51.

“I’m very happy,” said Legese, who crossed the line 33 seconds quicker than when winning last year.

“The time is good, although I’d thought I would be able to run faster.

“But today was a bit windy and my pace in the early stage of the race was not very good, so I accept it,” he said.

Lonah Chemtai Salpeter of Israel won the women’s race in 2:17.45 ahead of Ethiopian runners Birhane Dibaba and Sutume Asefa Kebede in 2:18:35 and 2:20:30 respectively.

The Tokyo marathon is one of the biggest

sporting events to be affected by the coronavirus in Japan, with the Olympic Games opening cer-emony less than five months away.

Last week, the International Tennis Feder-ation said Japan’s home Davis Cup tie against Ecuador in Miki next weekend will be played behind closed doors.

The Japanese Football Association has post-poned all top-flight J-League matches until March 15.

The International Olympic Committee said last week it was “fully committed” to holding the 2020 Games in Tokyo as planned, despite the widening new coronavirus outbreak.

The viral outbreak across Japan and dozens of other countries has fuelled concerns about the Summer Games, which open on July 24.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stepped up national measures to contain the virus, calling on organisers of large events to consider can-celling or delaying them.

Disruption caused by the virus has affected Olympic qualifying in several sports, including football, boxing, badminton, handball and wres-tling and sailing.

Tokyo’s Olympic organisers have repeatedly said they are focused on holding a safe Olympics and Paralympics with the IOC’s full backing.

Record entries to take part in Ooredoo Ride of ChampionsTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

The 2020 Ooredoo Ride of Champions is set to enjoy record participation from Qatar’s youth thanks to high levels of participation from schools in the country.

With just 10 days to go until the close of registration of the event (which will be held on March 13), schools are showing their support by registering stu-dents to the Ooredoo Ride of Champions.

In appreciation, event organisers are providing exhi-bition space at the event for schools, with more than 50 reg-istrations, to exhibit their learning programs to pro-spective parents.

Students from Newton International School Lagoon are also coming together to show their excitement for the

Ooredoo Ride of Champions on 13th March.

The Principal of Newton International School Lagoon, Ms Trudie Masterson said: “We are really happy to support the Ooredoo Ride of Champions. We have more than 2,000 stu-dents at our school and nine schools in our group, and we have informed principals around the country to encourage their children to ride.”

Ms. Masterson added: “I know for sure that Lagoon will have the biggest student body going because we are pro-moting this with a passion. We feel, as a school, it is extremely important for children to get involved in activities in the community, particularly those involving sport. We are delighted to launch this programme.”

Spaces are still available for this year’s event, in all age classes, with registration open at www.rocdoha.qa. First 2,000 participants will receive limited edition bike jerseys (for age 9+) and event bike bottles.

Official Partners and Sup-porters of the Ooredoo Ride of Champions include Ooredoo Qatar, Qatar National Tourism Council, Dolphin Energy, Qatar Stock Exchange (presenting partner of the QSE Corporate Challenge), Turkish Airlines, Qatar Foundation, Ministry of Culture and Sports of Qatar, Qatar Cycling Federation, Rasen Sports, Garmin Lingawi and Rayyan Water, Best Buddies Qatar and Accessible Qatar.

To learn more about Ooredoo Ride of Champions, fans can visit www.rocdoha.qa or follow @rocdoha on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

09MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020 SPORT

Players with most singles titles

Player Era Titles

Jimmy Connors † 1972–96 109Roger Federer * 1998– 103Ivan Lendl † 1978–94 94Rafael Nadal * 2001– 85Novak Djokovic * 2003– 79Rod Laver † 1968–76 74Pete Sampras † 1988–02 64Björn Borg † 1973–83 64Guillermo Vilas † 1968–92 62Andre Agassi † 1986–06 60

† denotes tennis Hall of Fame member* denotes player is currently active

Players ranked No.1 since 19731 Ilie Nastase August 23, 1973 2 John Newcombe June 3, 1974 3 Jimmy Connors July 29, 1974 4 Björn Borg August 23, 19775 John McEnroe March 3, 19806 Ivan Lendl February 28, 19837 Mats Wilander September 12, 19888 Stefan Edberg August 13, 1990 9 Boris Becker January 28, 199110 Jim Courier February 10, 199211 Pete Sampras April 12, 199312 Andre Agassi April 10, 199513 Thomas Muster February 12, 199614 Marcelo Ríos March 30, 199815 Carlos Moya March 15, 199916 Yevgeny Kafelnikov May 3, 199917 Patrick Rafter July 26, 199918 Marat Safin November 20, 2000 19 Gustavo Kuerten December 4, 200020 Lleyton Hewitt November 19, 200121 Juan Carlos Ferrero September 8, 2003 22 Andy Roddick November 3, 2003 23 Roger Federer February 2, 2004 24 Rafael Nadal August 18, 200825 Novak Djokovic July 4, 201126 Andy Murray November 7, 2016 ** Active players in bold

Nadal crushes Fritz to win Mexican Open titleREUTERS — ACAPULCO

Rafael Nadal captured his third Mexican Open title on Saturday, continuing his good form with a 6-3 6-2 triumph in the final over Taylor Fritz.

Nadal now has 85 career singles title wins and his first of the season.

Nadal survived 10 aces from Fritz and broke his service three times to outperform the 22-year-old American.

“I couldn’t be happier. I played a great event from the beginning to the end,” Nadal told reporters.

“Acapulco was the first big title that I won in my career, so to be able to stay here after 15 years is amazing. I can’t thank enough the people who make me feel at home every single time.”

”After not competing since Australia, it’s an important week for me and an important moment,” Nadal said. “I played solid, with the right intensity

and the right passion, and my forehand worked well.

“This title doesn’t mean that I will have a great season. It means another good start of the season for me. It gives me con-fidence, allows me to be in a privileged position in the ATP Race (To London). At the end of the day, I’m still competing for these feelings that I am having right now. Regardless of the result, I am always happy after playing here. Now imagine how I am after getting the title!”

The Spanish world No. 2, who first won the title in 2005 and took it again in 2013, stormed through the draw without dropping a set.

Nadal moved to 20-2 in Acapulco, joining David Ferrer and Thomas Muster as the only players to win at least three singles titles at this event.

Fritz had reached the final by rallying from a set and 2-4 behind against John Isner but he could mount no such comeback against Nadal.

Fritz, playing his first final at an ATP 500 event, became the only American besides Sam Querrey in 2017 to reach the Acapulco final.

”He’s one of the best players to ever play the game and he showed me why that is tonight,” Fritz said.

“This is one of my favourite tournaments to come to every year. I’m just glad that I could have a good week at one of my favourite events. I felt a lot of love all week.

"You always wish you could win, but I still have to take pos-itives out of this week. It was an honour to step on the court with Rafa. I've played Roger and Novak, the other two people I watched when I was a kid. To play with Rafa, who I've watched since I was a kid, it's pretty crazy when you step back to think about it."

Britain’s seventh seed Heather Watson needed 10 championship points to overcome Canadian teenager

Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-7(8) 6-1 in the women’s final.

Watson saw her first five championship points slip away in the second-set tiebreak before regaining her composure to lose just one game in the final set. Victory ensured Watson’s first WTA title since she won the Monterrey Open in 2016, and

her fourth overall, and she will re-enter the top 50 of the WTA rankings today.

“It’s been a few years, so I’m just really, really happy I came through that match,” said Watson.

It was a breakthrough week for the 17-year-old Fernandez, who reached her first WTA

quarter-final, semi-final, and final after starting as a qualifier.

“I think it’s her mental toughness that really stands out,” Watson said. “I think she’s going to have a great career ahead of her and rise up the rankings very quickly if she keeps playing like this.”

Spain’s Rafael Nadal celebrates after winning the Mexican Open final against USA’s Taylor Fritz.

Imperious Djokovic marks Tsitsipas as future World No.1REUTERS — DUBAI

Stefanos Tsitsipas has what it takes to win Grand Slam titles and become a future world number one, top-ranked Novak Djokovic said after downing the Greek to win the Dubai Tennis Cham-pionships title on Saturday.

Djokovic, Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer have shared all Grand Slams between them since Stan Wawrinka won at the 2016 US Open and Tsitsipas has been marked as one of the few players capable of breaking that stranglehold in 2020.

The 21-year-old Greek has climbed to number six in world rankings and ended the 2019 season by winning the ATP Finals crown.

Tsitsipas fell in the Dubai final for the second straight time, having lost to Federer in the title clash last year.

“I love the fact that he is more than just a tennis player and he’s always looking to learn from the experience and to understand something new about himself so he can improve, get better,” Djokovic said after his 6-3 6-4 victory.

“That for me is a trait of a champion, of someone that for sure has a great potential to be No. 1 of the world and win Grand Slams and be a great ambas-sador of our sport. He already is, but he has a great future ahead of him, I’m sure.

“You go through the process of self-realisation and learning, maturing, then understanding what’s good for you in life, in your career. He’s a mature man already. He’s very smart, very wise.”

Djokovic’s triumph was his fifth at the Dubai Tennis Championships and

extended his unbeaten run to 21. He has won 18 matches this season, lifting the ATP Cup with Serbia before a record-extending eighth Australian Open title in Melbourne.

Djokovic has earned a winning streak of at least 20 matches for the seventh time in his career and in the 2011 season he went 41-0 during a 43-match winning streak before losing in the Roland Garros semi-finals.

“One of the targets is to go unbeaten the whole season,” Djokovic said in an on-court interview before bursting into

laughter. “No, I’m kidding. I’m not kidding, actually.”

His streak came tantalisingly close to an end when he fought off three match points to overcome Frenchman Gael Monfils in the semi-finals in Dubai.

“I’m trying to embrace the moment and appreciate where I am,” he later told reporters, clarifying he was not serious about going unbeaten. “I think this has been one of the best starts of all seasons I had in my career. I feel great on the court. I’ve won many matches now in a row. I’ll try to keep that run going.”

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas shaking hands after their final match in Dubai on Saturday.

Bottas puts Mercedes on top but Hamilton still ‘not perfect’AFP — MONTMELÓ, SPAIN

Valterri Bottas took his Mercedes to the top of the time charts once again on Friday’s final day of pre-season Formula One testing but team-mate and world champion Lewis Hamilton warned performances were “not perfect”.

Two weeks out from the season-opener in Melbourne, Bottas, runner-up to Hamilton in the world championship in 2019, clocked a best run of 1min 16.196sec off a total of 79 laps.

The Finn also finished the two sessions of winter testing with the fastest overall time of 1:15.732, the only driver to dip below the 1min 16sec mark.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo filled out the top three on Friday with Hamilton in fifth.

“On the whole, these tests were good but not perfect,” admitted Hamilton, who this season eyes equalling the record of seven world titles held by German legend Michael Schumacher.

“We have had a lot of problems that we are trying to solve,” he added in reference to the need for the team and clients Williams having to change power units after

breakdowns. “We will see how long it will take to resolve them, but it is better to discover these things in tests.”

Mercedes put in most laps in Barcelona with 903 ahead of Ferrari (844) and McLaren (802).

They also introduced the revolutionary DAS (Dual Axis Steering) system last week which had rivals scratching their heads over its potential impact in the forthcoming championship.

“Their form is good and it’s better to have concerns during the tests than in the race,” said Christian Horner, the boss of Red Bull.

Horner had the satisfaction of seeing Verstappen, who was third in the 2019 standings and is widely-viewed as a world champion-in-waiting, second fastest Friday and second overall.

Ferrari, the only team not to have beaten their times of 2019 on the same circuit, were left in cautious mood.

They dominated testing 12 months ago but once they got to Australia, reality hit them hard when Bottas swept to victory, the first of eight wins for Mercedes.

Ferrari had to wait until

September, the 13th race of the 2019 campaign, to win a race courtesy of Charles Leclerc.

“We are not hiding,” said Ferrari team chief Mattia Binotto. “We are not yet fast enough to hope to win in Aus-tralia. But the season is long -- we will have the opportunity to improve and be ready to win.”

Test times: Valtteri Bottas

(FIN/Mercedes) 1:16.196 (79 laps), Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) 1:16.269 (45), Daniel Ric-ciardo (AUS/Renault) 1:16.276 (65), Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) 1:16.360 (181), Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1:16.410 (90), Esteban Ocon (FRA/Renault) 1:16.433 (75), Sergio Perez (MEX/Racing Point) 1:16.634 (154), Carlos Sainz Jr

(ESP/McLaren) 1:16.820 (163), George Russell (GBR/Williams) 1:16.871 (146), Daniil Kvyat (RUS/AlphaTauri) 1:16.914 (160), Romain Grosjean (FRA/Haas) 1:17.037 (86), Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Alfa Romeo) 1:17.415 (115), Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas) 1:17.495 (29), Alexander Albon (THA/Red Bull) 1:17.803 (59)

Best driver times from six

days of testing: Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) 1:15.732 (437 laps), Max Ver-stappen (NED/Red Bull) 1:16.269 (414), Daniel Ric-ciardo (AUS/Renault) 1:16.276 (368), Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) 1:16.360 (442), Lewis Ham-ilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1:16.410 (466), Esteban Ocon (FRA/Renault) 1:16.433 (376), Sergio Perez (MEX/Racing Point) 1:16.634 (441), Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/McLaren) 1:16.820 (446), Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 1:16.841 (402), George Russell (GBR/Williams) 1:16.871 (394), Daniil Kvyat (RUS/Alpha-Tauri) 1:16.914 (399), Robert Kubica (POL/Alfa Romeo) 1:16.942 (112), Romain Grosjean (FRA/Haas) 1:17.037 (399), Pierre Gasly (FRA/AlphaTauri) 1:17.066 (370), Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/

Alfa Romeo) 1:17.091 (300), Lance Stroll (CAN/Racing Point) 1:17.118 (341), Nicholas Latifi (CAN/Williams) 1:17.313 (343), Antonio Giovinazzi (ITA/Alfa Romeo) 1:17.469 (323), Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas) 1:17.495 (250), Alexander Albon (THA/Red Bull) 1:17.550 (366), Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren) 1:17.573 (356)

Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton poses with a fan during a launch of the TommyXLewis SP20 collection in Bijenkorf, Amsterdam.

Rafael Nadal earned 500 ATP Rankings points and $372,785 in prize money. Fritz picked up 300 points and $187,110.

10 MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020SPORT

Kiwis bowling ‘pack’ leaves India reeling at 90-6 in second innings AFP — CHRISTCHURCH

New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boult said his side’s “pack” mentality had left India reeling on day two of the second Test on which 16 wickets fell including another cheap dismissal for Virat Kohli in Christchurch yesterday.

At stumps India led by just 97 lead with only four wickets remaining and three days to play.

Kohli’s side dismissed New Zealand for 235 to take a seven-run first innings lead, but they stuttered to 90 for six at stumps with Boult taking three for 12 off nine overs.

“The bowlers obviously pitched the ball up nicely and got rewards seeing the ball move around like it did. I feel we’re in a decent position,” Boult said.

“We’re all enjoying hunting out there as a pack, getting the ball to move around, and I think

the bowling unit is very clear about how we’re trying to target the opposition.”

The tourists were left to rue their inability to remove tailenders when New Zealand’s last three wickets put on 82, led by a polished 49 from Kyle Jamieson.

With a small first-innings advantage India needed to build a substantial total for New Zealand to chase but they went off script from the start with Mayank Agarwal out for three in the second over.

Prithvi Shaw followed for 14 and at 26 for two, with India needing a win to square the series, the opportunity was ripe for a captain’s knock from Kohli.

But on 14, a full delivery from Colin de Grandhomme cut back into his pads and he was gone.

“It was a good feeling to see the back of him,” Boult said of Kohli’s dismissal.

“Obviously he’s a big player for them and we were just try to put enough pressure on him, keep him quiet and it was nice to see him make a few errors.”

The 31-year-old, who came to New Zealand as the world’s top-ranked batsman, has scored only 2, 19, 3 and 14 in the Series.

Ajinkya Rahane was bowled for nine, Cheteshwar Pujara went for 24 and Umesh Yadav for one in the last six overs of the day.

After New Zealand resumed the day at 63 without loss the combined efforts of Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja has seen them slump to 153 for seven, before

Jamieson, in his second Test, underscored his allround cre-dentials having taken five wickets in India’s first innings.

Colin de Grandhomme with 26 and Neil Wagner’s 21 were the other key contributors in the late run spree with Wagner’s dismissal the result of an excep-tional one-handed catch by a leaping Jadeja at square leg.

The India pace bowlers, who struggled in the first Test and at the start of the second, finally got to grips with the stock New Zealand conditions of a green-tinged pitch and a moderate breeze.

They found that anything pitched up and close to the off

stump put pressure on the New Zealand batsmen and quickly picked off the top five before lunch.

Tom, added one to his over-night 29 before he was removed and Kane Williamson (three), Ross Taylor (15), Henry Nicholls (14) quickly followed.

Tom Latham, who top-scored with 52, miscalculated a Shami delivery and did not play a shot only to watch the ball angle into the stumps.

Shami finished with figures of four for 81, Bumrah, who removed New Zealand tal-isman Williamson, took three for 52 while Jadeja had two for 22.

New Zealand’s Trent Boult appeals for the wicket of India’s Mayank Agarwal yesterday.

India 1st innings 242New Zealand 1st inningsT. Latham b Shami .............................................52T. Blundell lbw Yadav ........................................30K. Williamson c Pant b Bumrah ........................ 3R. Taylor c Yadav b Jadeja ................................ 15H. Nicholls c Kohli b Shami ...............................14B. Watling c Jadeja b Bumrah ...........................0C. de Grandhomme b Jadeja ...........................26T. Southee c Pant b Bumrah ...............................0K. Jamieson c Pant b Shami ............................ 49N. Wagner c Jadeja b Shami ........................... 21T. Boult not out ......................................................1Extras (b20, lb4) ..............................................24Total (all out, 73.1 overs) ..........................235Fall of wickets: 1-66 (Blundell), 2-69 (Williamson), 3-109 (Taylor), 4-130 (Latham), 5-133 (Nicholls), 6-153 (Watling), 7-153 (Southee), 8-177 (de Grand-homme), 9-228 (Wagner), 10-235 (Jamieson)

Bowling: Bumrah 22-5-62-3, Yadav 18-2-46-1, Shami 23.1-3-81-4, Jadeja 10-2-22-2India 2nd inningsP. Shaw c Latham b Southee ...........................14M. Agarwal lbw Boult ......................................... 3C. Pujara b Boult .................................................24V. Kohli lbw de Grandhomme ..........................14A. Rahane b Wagner ...........................................9U. Yadav b Boult ....................................................1H. Vihari not out ................................................... 5R. Pant not out ......................................................1Extras: (b9, lb10) ............................................. 19Total: (6 wickets; 36 overs) .......................90Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Agarwal), 2-26 (Shaw), 3-51 (Kohli), 4-72 (Rahane), 5-84 (Pujara), 6-89 (Yadav)Bowling: Southee 6-2-20-1, Boult 9-3-12-3, Jamieson 8-4-18-0, de Grandhomme 5-3-3-1, Wagner 8-1-18-1

SCOREBOARD

AFP — SYLHET, BANGLADESH

Liton Das struck his second one-day international century to set up a crushing 169-run win for Bangladesh in the first ODI against Zimbabwe in Sylhet yesterday.

Liton hit 126 off 105 balls with 13 fours and two sixes as Bangladesh posted 321-6, their highest score against Zimbabwe, before they bowled out the vis-itors for 152 runs in 39.1 overs for their biggest ever ODI win.

The feat surpasses Bangla-desh’s 163-run victory over Sri Lanka in 2018 and is also their 14th consecutive win against familiar foes Zimbabwe, giving them a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Mohammad Saifuddin starred for Bangladesh, playing his first match since the World Cup last year, and managed 3-22, while skipper Mashrafe Mortaza and spinner Mehidy Hasan chipped in with 2-35 and 2-33 respectively.

Chasing a mammoth target, Zimbabwe’s innings never got going after Saifuddin took two wickets in his opening spell before Mashrafe took his first

wicket in six matches to reduce the side to 23-3.

Teenage debutant Wesley Madhevere made 35 runs while Tinotenda Mutombodzi made 24 before he became the last man dismissed.

Mohammad Mithun earlier hit 50 off 41 balls and Saifuddin remained unbeaten on 28 off 16 balls to provide a late impetus in Bangladesh’s innings after Liton’s blazing hundred.

“It’s not been going well the last 3-4 matches for us in this format. We hadn’t been up to the mark in those games, but today we were up for it,” Mashrafe said i n t h e p o s t - m a t c h presentation.

Liton and Tamim Iqbal put on 60 runs in the opening stand

before all-rounder Madhevere trapped Tamim in front for 24 for Zimbabwe’s f irst breakthrough.

Najmul Hossain along with Liton then added 80 runs for the second, but several dismissals slowed their innings as Najmul fell for 29 and Mushfiqur Rahim departed for 19.

Liton brought his first hundred since the Asia Cup final in 2018 before he limped off the ground with a muscle cramp.

Mithun and Mahmudullah Riyad added 68 runs for the fourth wicket to set-up the base for a late onslaught.

The second match of the series will be held at the same venue tomorrow.

Bangladesh’s Liton Das celebrates after scoring a century, yesterday.

Liton stars in record Bangladesh win

Bangladesh 321 for 6 (Das 126, Mit-

hun 50, Mpofu 2-68) v Zimbabwe

152 all out in 39.1 overs (W Madhe-

vere 35, M. Saifuddin 3-22)

Result: Bangladesh won by 169 runs

BRIEF SCORES

SA, England join India in women’s World Cup semi-finalsREUTERS — SYDNEY

South Africa and England registered comfortable victories against Pakistan and West Indies respec-tively in their Group B matches yesterday to seal their spots in the semi-finals of the Women’s Twenty20 World Cup.

Group A leaders India were the first to reach the last four and the final place will go to the winner of today’s clash between hosts Australia and their trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand.

After South Africa reg-istered a 17-run win against Pakistan, England thumped West Indies by 46 runs to claim their third win and climb to the top of Group B on net run rate. South Africa, however, have a game in hand against the Car-ibbean side.

Laura Wolvaardt did not get a chance to bat in the previous two matches but made a brisk, unbeaten half-century to help South Africa to a win over Pakistan for their third victory from as many matches.

Pakistan’s Diana Baig dismissed Lizelle Lee and Dane van Niekerk with the new ball to peg back South Africa before the experienced pair of Mar-izanne Kapp, who made 31, and Mignon du Preez propped up the innings.

Wolvaardt produced the late fireworks during her knock of 53 off 36 balls that helped South Africa to post 136-6 after opting to bat first.

The 20-year-old hit five boundaries from the last six deliveries she faced to provide momentum to South Africa’s innings, which proved beyond Pakistan’s reach as they finished on 119-5.

Pakistan got off to a poor start in their chase and were reduced to 26-3 inside the seventh over before Javeria Khan, leading the side instead of injured captain Bismah Maroof, started Pakistan’s recovery with a knock of 31. Pakistan eventually fell short despite an unbeaten 47-run sixth-wicket stand between Aliya Riaz, who hit 39 from 32, and Iram Javed.

Natalie Sciver played Wolvaardt’s role for England, anchoring the innings for the 2018 finalists with a 56-ball 57 to help them to post 143-5.

West Indies struggled in their chase and were dealt a huge blow when captain Stafanie Taylor had to be carried off on a stretcher after she suffered a leg injury while batting. on 15.

AGENCIES — RAWALPINDI

Karachi Kings kept their nerves in check to defeat Islamabad United by five wickets at the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in Rawalpindi, yesterday.

Chasing 184, the Kings reached the target with eight balls to spare. Alex Hales (52 off 30) was star for the winning side while Sharjeel Khan also added a valuable contribution of 38.

Earlier, Kings opted to field first after winning the toss. United were well served by opener Luke Ronchi who remained unbeaten with 85 off 58 balls. The wicketkeeper batsman struck nine fours and two sixes in his innings.

Ronchi added 106 runs for the unbroken fourth wicket partnership with Shadab who stroked 54 off 31 balls with the help of four sixes and three fours. For Kings left-arm-spinner Umer Khan who dismissed Rizwan Hussain (22) was the pick of the bowlers with figures of one for 24 in four overs.

AFP — PALLEKELE

Angelo Mathews held his nerve with the ball to help Sri Lanka clinch a tense six-run win over West Indies in the third one-day international and sweep the series 3-0 yesterday.

Mathews claimed four wickets and denied West Indies 13 runs in the last over, restricting the tourists to 301 for nine in their chase of 308 in Pallekele.

Fabian Allen smashed 37 off 15 balls to close in on the West Indies target but fell to Mathews while going for a six in the second ball of the 50th over.

Kusal Mendis top-scored with 55 in Sri Lanka’s 307 all out after electing to bat first and then took a crucial catch at deep mid-wicket to send back Allen.

Valiant knocks from Shai Hope (72), Sunil Ambris (60), Nicholas Pooran (50) and skipper Kieron Pollard (49) also kept West Indies in the hunt till the last over.

Mathews returned

figures of 4-59 in his 10 overs of medium-pace bowling.

Earlier, West Indies paceman Alzarri Joseph claimed four wickets as Sri Lanka were bowled out in 50 overs.

Avishka Fernando and skipper Dimuth Karu-naratne gave the hosts a brisk start with a 60-run opening stand before the West Indies struck.

Joseph got Fernando caught behind for 29, and

spinner Roston Chase caught and bowled Karu-naratne for 44.

Kusal Perera, who made 44, and Mendis then rebuilt the innings during their 89-run stand to take the attack to the opposition. The in-form Mendis, who hit a century in his team’s 161-run thrashing of West Indies on Wednesday, com-pleted his 17th ODI fifty before falling to Joseph.

Fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell bowled Mathews

for 12, but the rest of the batsmen kept up the charge.

Dhananjaya De Silva, who completed his fifty in just 45 balls with a boundary off Jason Holder, and Thisara Perera put on 64 runs for the sixth wicket.

Joseph broke the stand with the wicket of De Silva and sent Perera back to the pavilion for 38, but the damage had already been done. The two teams will now play two Twenty20 i n t e r n a t i o n a l s o n Wednesday and Friday in Pallekele.

Sri LankaA. Fernando c Hope b Joseph .........................29D. Karunaratne c & b Chase ............................ 44K. Perera c Hope b Pollard .............................. 44K. Mendis c Pollard b Joseph ...........................55A. Mathews b Cottrell ........................................ 12D. de Silva c Pollard b Joseph ...........................51T. Perera c sub (R Powell) b Joseph ...............38W. Hasaranga b Holder .................................... 16I. Udana c Pollard b Holder ................................ 2L. Sandakan run out (Hope/Holder) ................0N. Pradeep not out ..............................................0Extras (lb9, w7) ................................................ 16Total (all out, 50 overs) .............................307Fall of wickets: 1-60 (Fernando), 2-88 (Karu-naratne), 3-177 (K. Perera), 4-185 (Mendis), 5-214 (Mathews), 6-278 (De Silva), 7-293 (T. Perera), 8-306 (Hasaranga), 9-306 (Sandakan), 10-307 (Udana)Bowling: Cottrell 10-1-58-1, Holder 10-0-68-2 (3w), Jospeh 10-0-65-4 (4w), Chase 10-0-51-1, Walsh 3-0-20-0, Pollard 7-0-36-1

West Indies S. Hope c Mendis b Udana ................................72S. Ambris b Hasaranga ..................................... 60N. Pooran c sub (Shanaka) b Mathews .........50K. Pollard c Udana b Mathews ....................... 49D. Bravo run out (K Perera/Karunaratne) .......8J. Holder c Mendis b Mathews ...........................8F. Allen c Mendis b Mathews ........................... 37H. Walsh run out (sub-Shanaka/T Perera) ..... 2R. Chase run out (Hasaranga/T Perera) ..........0A. Joseph not out .................................................0S. Cottrell not out ..................................................1Extras (b3, lb2, w9) 14Total (9 wickets, 50 overs) ......................301Fall of wickets: 1-111 (Ambris), 2-171 (Hope), 3-218 (Pooran), 4-240 (Bravo), 5-253 (Pollard), 6-275 (Holder), 7-287 (Walsh), 8-294 (Chase), 9-299 (Allen)Bowling: Pradeep 4.3-1-22-0, T. Perera 7.3-0-54-0, Udana 10-0-76-1 (2w), Mathews 10-0-59-4 (1w), Sandakan 3-0-31-0 (1w), Hasaranga 10-0-41-1 (5w), De Silva 5-0-13-0

SCOREBOARD

Mathews stars as Sri Lanka whitewash West Indies 3-0

Karachi down Islamabad by five wickets

Islamabad United 183 for 3, 20 overs (Luke Ronchi 85

not out, Shadab Khan 54 not out; Umer Khan 1-24,

Imad Wasim 1-31)

Karachi Kings 187 for 5, 18.4 overs (Alex Hales 52,

Sharjeel Khan 38, Cameron Delport 38; Ahmed Safi

1-21, Rumman Raees 1-27)

Result: Karachi Kings win by five wickets

PSL: BRIEF SCORES

Mathews claimed

four wickets and

denied West Indies 13

runs in the last over,

restricting the tourists

to 301 for nine in

their chase of 308 in

Pallekele.

The two teams will

now play two Twenty20

internationals on

Wednesday and Friday

in Pallekele.

SPORT | 09

In-form Nadal

beats Fritz to

win title in

Acapulco

SPORTKiwis bowling

‘pack’ leaves India

reeling at 90-6 in

second innings

SPORT | 10

MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020

2020 Copa America: Qatar eye improved show in second stintTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

After impressing on their debut last year, Qatar will be hoping for an improved performance at the 2020 Copa America in which the Asian champions are set to play five matches in the group phase.

Qatar - the 2022 World Cup hosts - appearing as a guest side along with Japan in the 2019 edition, lost to Argentina (2-0) but drew 2-2 against Paraguay before being edged out by Colombia (1-0).

According to details, the 2020 Copa America will be held from June 12 to July 12, with Qatar and Australia also being invited as guests team.

While Qatar featured in three matches last year, the Felix Sanchez’s side will have five confirmed fixtures this summer.

They have been tagged with Colombia, reigning champion Brazil, Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru in Group B. Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay will battle in Group A.

Last year, five-time FIFA World Cup champions Brazil

won the final against Peru. Qatar will open their campaign against Peru on June 14, fol-lowed by matches against Ecuador (June 18), Brazil (June

23), Venezuela (June 28) and Columbia (July 1).

According to the new system of the tournament, the first four teams from each group will qualify for t h e q u a r t e r -finals.

The tour-n a m e n t , which for the first time in history has two host countries, will distribute

38 matches within the two host countries, Colombia and Argentina.

The objective is to bring South American soccer to all the fans in the continent.

Each of the host countries will

hold

t h e matches of the North Zone or South Zone groups, as well as, two quarter-final matches and a semifinal match, respectively.

nezuela (June 28) and ia (July 1).ording to the new of the tournament, the ur teams from eachwill qualify for

e e r -

tour-n t ,

or the e in history has two untries, will distribute

38 matches within the two host countries, Colombia and Argentina.

The objective is tobring South American soccer to all the fans in the continent.

Each of the host countries will

hold

t h e matches of the North Zone or South Zone groups, aswell as, two quarter-final matches and asemifinal match, respectively.

June 14: Qatar vs Peru

June 18: Qatar vs Ecuador

June 23: Qatar vs Brazil

June 28: Qatar vs Venezuela

July 01: Qatar vs Columbia

QATAR'S FIXTURES

The CONMEBOL Copa America 2020 is in a calendar

approved by FIFA. The new edition of the tournament

will start on June 12, 2020 in Argentina, and the final

match will be held in Colombia.

For the first time the tournament will have two host

countries. The objective is to bring South American

soccer to all the fans in the continent. Each of the host

countries will have group phase matches, two quarter

final matches and a semi-final match respectively.

With this new format a total of 38 matches will be

held, and each team will play at least 5 matches in

the nearest host country. Australia and Qatar, two

last Asian Cup champions, will participate as guest

countries and will be placed by lottery in each of the

groups formed in the North Zone and South Zone.

Qatar coach Felix Sanchez

Bekele breaks Farah’s London half-marathon record

AFP — LONDON

Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele broke Mo Farah’s course record as he won the London half-marathon yesterday in a time of one hour and 22 seconds.

Bekele took 1min 18sec off the record set in 2019 by British distance great Farah, who missed this year’s edition with an achilles injury.

Britain’s Christopher Thompson finished second, with Jake Smith third.

Yesterday’s event served as a warm-up event for the full London Marathon on April 26. That race is set to see Bekele go up against Eliud Kipchoge, the reigning Olympic champion from Kenya, as the two fastest marathon runners of all time meet in the British capital.

“The new course record is a great bonus. I wasn’t focused on time today, I just wanted to win,” Bekele, three times an Olympic gold medallist on the track, told the BBC.

“I’m on schedule in my preparation for the London Marathon in April.

“There’s no question about the crowds in London being great. They were cheering all around the course and it felt like a great place to be.”

Farah decided to concen-trate on the marathon having won gold in the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres at both the London and Rio Games, but a relative lack of success on the road has seen him turn his attention back to the track ahead of this year’s Olympics in Tokyo.

Virus forces Japan Sumo event behind closed doorsAFP — TOKYO

Sumo’s spring tournament will be held behind closed doors, the sport’s governing body said yesterday, the latest big event in Japan to be hit by the coronavirus less than five months before the Tokyo Olympics.

The Japan Sumo Association said spectators would be barred the tournament in Osaka scheduled for March 8-22.

“We made this decision to help end the spread of the infection,” it said on its website.

The virus has infected at least 230 people across Japan and been linked to five deaths. The sumo decision comes after the Interna-tional Tennis Federation said Japan’s home Davis Cup tie against Ecuador on March 6-7 would also be played behind closed doors.

Football’s top-flight J-League, meanwhile, has postponed all matches until March 15. All tickets for the spring sumo tournament were sold out with some 7,000 spectators a day expected to visit the venue in the western city.

The viral outbreak across Japan and dozens of other countries has fuelled concerns about the Summer Olympics, which open on July 24.

The International Olympic Committee said last week, however, it was “fully committed” to holding the 2020 Games in Tokyo as planned despite the outbreak.

QSL: Al Duhail keep four-point lead on top of the standingsTHE PENINSULA —DOHA

The 2019-20 QNB Stars League’s Week 16 action which concluded on Saturday was also full of excitement.

Only one of the five matches ended in a draw and a total of 14 goals were scored.

The much-anticipated Qatar Derby between reigning champions Al Sadd and Al Arabi ended in a 1-1 draw.

While Al Arabi earned a crucial point in their bid to finish among the top four and thus stand a chance for an AFC Champions League berth, Al Sadd dropped two valuable points in successive weeks even though they stayed third in the standings. They were held 2-2 by Umm Salal in the previous week.

The standings remained unchanged except for one position, just like in the pre-vious week. Al Sailiya dis-placed Al Arabi from the fifth position with 23 points fol-lowing their impressive 2-0 victory Al Gharafa.

Nadir Belhadj and Mohammed Mudather scored Al Sailiya’s goals and it was the

seventh victory of The Per-egrines, who had finished a creditable third last season.

Al Sailiya had beaten Al Gharafa (3-1) in the first leg as well. Al Gharafa stood on 25 points despite the setback.

Al Duhail kept their four-point lead on top of the standings following their 3-1 victory over Al Shahania.

Han Kwang-Song, Karim Boudiaf and Paulo Edmilson scored for Al Duhail, and Ahmed Akaichi for Al Sha-hania. Al Duhail thus further enhanced their QNB Stars League credentials as they moved on to 39 points, while Al Shahania stayed rooted to the bottom with nine points.

Second-placed Al Rayyan moved to 35 points after their 1-0 victory over Al Ahli, who stayed eighth in the table with 18 points. Algerian attacking midfielder Yacine Brahimi scored the winner from the penalty spot.

Al Khor, placed 10th, and Umm Salal, placed 11th, both collected three crucial points to move further from the danger zone to be on 14 and 13 points respectively.

Week 16 Review

Al Duhail's Ali Afif (left) in action against Al Shahania's player during their Round of 16 match.

Man City hold off Aston Villa to retain League CupAFP — LONDON

Manchester City claimed the League Cup for the fourth time in five seasons by beating Aston Villa 2-1 at Wembley yesterday thanks to goals from Sergio Aguero and Rodrigo.

Mbwana Samatta pulled a goal back for Villa, but their wait for the club’s first sil-verware since 1996 goes on as Pep Guardiola’s men have now won six of the last seven major trophies in English football.

Guardiola made eight changes from the side that won 2-1 at Real Madrid in the Cham-pions League on Wednesday with Kevin De Bruyne among those left on the bench.

However, it mattered little as City had the luxury of recalling Aguero, Raheem Sterling and David Silva to the starting XI, and the gulf in class showed.

Guardiola’s raft of changes also handed a rare start to Phil Foden and the 19-year-old more than justified his selection.

Rodrigo’s fine pass picked

out Foden to head back into the path of Aguero and the Argen-tine’s deflected effort beat Orjan Nyland in the Villa goal to open the scoring on 20 minutes.

Foden was then inches away from a goal himself with a deflected shot that flew inches wide.

Villa felt aggrieved when City were awarded another corner moments later after Jack Grealish fired the ball off Ilkay Gundogan for what should have been a goal kick.

Instead, City doubled their lead as Gundogan’s corner was met with a powerful downward header from Rodrigo.

Villa could barely even get a touch for the next 10 minutes as the holders threatened to run riot in a repeat of the 6-1 thrashing they handed the hosts at Villa Park last month.

Sterling had a glorious chance for his first goal of 2020 deflected behind by a brave block from Tyrone Mings.

But moments later the reason Mings is ahead of John Stones in the pecking order for

England selection became clear as the City defender inexpli-cably fell to the floor to give Villa a lifeline.

A long ball forward even-tually came to Anwar El Ghazi and from his cross Samatta headed low past Claudio Bravo to the delight of the travelling thousands from Birmingham and Villa fan Prince William in the stands.

The difference in the des-peration for success between the supports was obvious as Villa were roared on vocifer-ously throughout, while City failed to sell out their allocation.

That did not compensate for the difference in quality on the field as City quickly settled back into their rhythm and could then introduce De Bruyne for the final half hour.

However, City failed to turn their dominance into more goals as Rodrigo was denied by a fine save by Nyland from another corner before Aguero then fired into the side-netting to give Villa hope for the last 10 minutes.

Manchester City’s players pose with the trophy.

12 MONDAY 2 MARCH 2020SPORT