Zambia came from behind to force a 1-1 draw with Egypt at Cairo Stadium on Sunday as the 2010 World Cup-African Nations Cup qualifying shocks continued.
Wigan striker Amr Zaki put the “Pharaohs” ahead on 27 minutes only for defender Dennis Banda to equalize early in the second half.
The shock result at the 70,000-seat national stadium in the Egyptian capital came 24 hours after unexpected victories for Togo and Gabon in Group A.
PHOTO: EPA
Such was the embarrassment of riches at the disposal of coach Hassan Shehata that he could afford to leave midfield stars Mohamed Aboutraika and Hosny Abd Rabou and Wigan striker Mido on the substitutes bench.
Aboutraika and Mido were introduced after Zambia levelled but could not turn the tide as the Chipolopolo (Copper Bullets) grew in stature to hold Egypt.
Rwanda and Algeria drew 0-0 in Kigali on Saturday in the other Group C match leaving the four contenders with one point each.
A first-minute goal from striker Prince Tagoe on Sunday earned Ghana a 1-0 victory over Benin in Kumasi and top place in Group D after Sudan and Mali drew 1-1 on Saturday.
Meanwhile Mozambique had two goals disallowed when held 0-0 by Nigeria on Sunday.
Striker Dario Monteiro was the unluckiest player on the Machava Stadium pitch in Maputo as he netted twice during the first half only to be ruled offside each time.
While the Mozambican Mambas did not protest too much when an early Monteiro header was disallowed, the decision of the Eritrean match officials to disallow another goal strirred unhappiness.
Mozambique looked more likely to break the deadlock before a sell-out 35,000 crowd while Nigeria defended solidly throughout.
While Mozambique applied most of the first half pressure, Obafemi Martins had a good chance to break the deadlock when he burst through only to be thwarted by goalkeeper Joao Kapango.
There was another scare for the Mambas when an Ikechukwu Uche header had to be cleared off the line.
The second half offered less drama with Mozambique on top territorially while a Obinna Nsofor shot from the edge of the penalty area drew a superb reflex save from Kapango.
Didier Drogba scored two goals on Sunday, captaining the Ivory Coast to a 5-0 win over Malawi in their opening World Cup qualifier. The game was marred by the deaths of 22 fans in a stampede.
The Chelsea striker, who missed the first six qualifiers due to a knee injury, converted a seventh-minute penalty and followed up with a 27th-minute goal as the Elephants romped home in Abidjan in their Group E opener.
The Ivory Coast went a goal ahead in the first-minute through a goal from Christian Koffi Ndri before Drogba’s double ensured a 3-0 half-time lead. Salomon Kalou added a fourth midway through the first half before Bakary Kone completed the rout.
The Ivorians share top place with Burkina Faso.
Jonas Vingegaard on Tuesday claimed the overall Vuelta a Espana lead while Jay Vine earned the stage 10 victory for his second triumph of the race. Two-time Tour de France winner Vingegaard overhauled Torstein Traen’s lead to head the general classification by 26 seconds from the Norwegian, with Joao Almeida third and trailing the Dane by 38 seconds. Vine put in an unmatchable performance on the final climb to finish ahead of Spanish Movistar riders Pablo Castrillo and Javier Romo. “Back in red, I’m happy with it, it’s a beautiful jersey,” Vingegaard said. “I’m happy with how the day went,
RIVALRY: Carlos Alcaraz lost his previous two matches against Serbia’s Novak Djokovic, in the Australian Open quarter-finals this year and Paris Olympics final last year Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday dazzled at the US Open to make the semi-finals before Novak Djokovic of Serbia danced his way through to book a New York showdown with the Spaniard that would mark the latest chapter in their generational rivalry. Former champion Alcaraz produced yet another entertaining display at Flushing Meadows to dismantle 20th seed Jiri Lehecka 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 at a sunbathed Arthur Ashe Stadium, securing his place in the last four without dropping a set this year. “Sometimes I play a shot that I should not play in that moment, but it’s the way I love
Australian Alex de Minaur reached the second week of the US Open for the third year in a row with little fanfare on Saturday and said he intended to keep winning until the tournament organizers were forced to give him better billing. Despite being the eighth seed and a quarter-finalist last year at Flushing Meadows, De Minaur’s third-round match against German Daniel Altmaier was scheduled for Court 17 — the smallest of the four stadium venues in the precinct. “It is a little bit of a headscratcher for me. I’m not gonna lie,” he told reporters after progressing 6-7 (9/7), 6-3, 6-4,
Spain are in danger of not getting out of EuroBasket Group C after losing 67-63 to Italy on Tuesday, but the defending champions still control their destiny. Marco Spissu put Italy in front for good at 64-63 with two free throws with 31 seconds left and made two more with 14 seconds remaining. Giampaolo Ricci converted one of two free throws with eight seconds on the clock. Spain, which in 2022 won their fourth title, are tied with Georgia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 2-2 each. Greece and Italy have clinched two of the group’s four spots in the round-of-16,
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