Mexico and the US qualified for the 2010 World Cup with impressive triumphs on Saturday, while Costa Rica and Honduras will carry their quest for South Africa to the final matches.
Conor Casey scored two goals and Landon Donovan curled a free-kick into the net in the 70th minute to give the US a 3-2 victory at Honduras, ending the hosts’ eight-match home qualifying win streak.
The Mexicans started slow, but netted three goals in the last 20 minutes for a 4-1 victory over El Salvador, who were eliminated from contention for next year’s global soccer showdown as a result of the defeat.
With one match remaining, the US top the table with 19 points, while Mexico are second with 18.
Costa Rica blanked already-eliminated Trinidad and Tobago 4-0, the Ticos winning their first match under new coach Rene Simoes.
Costa Rica have 15 points, while Honduras have 13 points.
One of them will seize the third and last North American regional automatic qualifying spot after Wednesday’s last qualifiers, which see Costa Rica in the US, Honduras in El Salvador and Mexico in Trinidad and Tobago.
Either Honduras or Costa Rica will finish fourth and face the fifth-placed team from South America.
At San Pedro Sula, Julio de Leon opened the scoring in the first minute of the second half to give hosts Honduras the lead against the US.
Casey nodded home the equalizer in the 54th minute and took a pass from Donovan to fire the US in front past goalkeeper Noel Valladares in the 65th minute. Donovan netted his free-kick and de Leon found the net again as the tension grew.
Honduras had a penalty kick in the 86th minute after a handball by Stuart Holden, but Carlos Pavon sent his shot over the crossbar, squandering a golden chance for the equalizer.
In Mexico City, Mexico took the lead after an own-goal by Marvin Gonzalez of El Salvador in the 25th minute. Tension mounted as Mexico continued to be denied, but Cuauhtemoc Blanco broke through in the 70th minute to give the hosts a 2-0 lead and Francisco Palencia added an insurance goal for the Tricolores in the 84th minute.
Julio Martinez ended the shutout for the Salvadorans in the 87th minute, but Carlos Vela answered for Mexico in the last minute.
An own-goal also opened the scoring for Costa Rica, with Trinidad and Tobago defender Radanfah Abu Bark finding his own net in the 26th minute.
Walter Centeno found the net in the 50th minute and Alvoro Saborio scored in the 61st minute and 63rd minute to complete the rout for Costa Rica.
TAIWANESE EXITS: Fellow Australian Christopher O’Connell joined Tristan Schoolkate as a winner following his 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Tseng Hsin-chun Australian qualifier Tristan Schoolkate on Monday dispatched rising Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 at the ATP Toronto Masters, ensuring a breakthrough into the world top 100. The 24-year-old from Perth moved to 98th in the ongoing live rankings as he claimed his biggest career victory by knocking out the ATP NextGen champion from November last year. Schoolkate, son of a tennis coach, won his first match over a top-50 opponent on his sixth attempt as he ousted the world No. 49 teenager from Brazil. The qualifier played a quarter-final this month in Los Cabos and won through qualifying for his
Top seeds Alexander Zverev of Germany and American Coco Gauff on Tuesday advanced to the third round of the Canadian Open after both players were pushed hard by their opponents. World No. 3 Zverev, playing in his first match since his first-round loss at Wimbledon, was far from his best, but emerged with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win over Adam Walton under the lights in Toronto. Momentum shifted firmly in Zverev’s favor when he won a 52-shot rally in the first set tiebreak and he sealed the win on a double fault by the Australian in the second set. “It was a very
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Alex Michelsen on Thursday rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 upset victory over third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the men’s singles, converting his seventh match point to reach the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Michelsen reached the last 16 of a Masters 1000 for the first time with his second win over a top-10 player in eight attempts. The 20-year-old American survived nearly 50 unforced errors and converted just two of nine break chances, but it was enough to vanquish Italy’s Musetti, a two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist ranked 10th in the world. “It feels really good,” the 26th-ranked Michelsen said. “I’ve put
RSS