■FIELD HOCKEY
Kiwis qualify for World Cup
The New Zealand men’s hockey team capped a successful weekend for the South Pacific nation yesterday when they joined their soccer counterparts as World Cup qualifiers. New Zealand booked their ticket to February’s hockey World Cup tournament in India when they came from behind to beat Malaysia 2-1 in the final of the qualifying tournament in the southern New Zealand city of Invercargill. Malaysia took a 1-0 lead in the 18th minute when Razie Abd Rahim found the net from a penalty corner. It was the first time in the tournament New Zealand had trailed and it took until late in the second half before they were able to draw level and then take the lead. The tournament’s top scorer Andy Hayward provided both goals with drag flicks from penalty corners, the first in the 57th minute and again three minutes later. New Zealand coach Shane McLeod said his squad had watched and been inspired by the soccer win. “All sports get motivated by the success of others, I think it assisted us with our campaign,” he said.
■RUGBY LEAGUE
England coach resigns
England coach Tony Smith announced yesterday he was standing down with immediate effect. The decision came after Saturday’s Four Nations final defeat to Australia in Leeds. But the Australian-born coach said the crushing 46-16 defeat had no bearing on his decision. He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “I’m stepping down ... even if we had won last night I’d still have stepped down.” He said he made the decision largely for family reasons but will help the Rugby Football League find a successor. “I have greatly enjoyed my time as national coach and wish the team all the best in the future,” Smith said.
■CRICKET
Sri Lanka receive boost
Sri Lanka’s hopes of winning their first ever Test on Indian soil were given a huge lift yesterday when Tillakaratne Dilshan was declared fit to play after an ankle injury. The dashing batsman twisted an ankle in Mumbai last week and was not available for the three-day tour opener against the Indian board president’s XI. But Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara said Dilshan was certain to take his place at the top of the order in the first match of the three-Test series starting today. “Dilshan is fully fit and will play,” Sangakkara told reporters. “He went well at practice today and looked in good touch.” Dilshan has enjoyed a successful run over the past 12 months, scoring 910 runs in nine Tests at an average of 65.00 with a best of 162 against Bangladesh. Sri Lanka are brimming with confidence after back-to-back series wins at home against Pakistan and New Zealand, which lifted them to the No. 2 spot in the Test rankings behind South Africa.
■VOLLEYBALL
Italy beat Japan to win Cup
European champions Italy captured their first World Grand Champions Cup women’s volleyball tournament when they defeated Japan to complete a clean sweep yesterday. With a 32-30, 25-22, 24-26, 25-18 win, Italy ended the six-team round robin competition with five straight wins against no defeats, beating defending champions Brazil into second place. The Brazilians, who also finished runners-up to Italy in the 2007 World Cup, outgunned Asian champions Thailand 25-22, 25-20, 25-18 earlier in the day for a 4-1 win-loss record. The Dominican Republic, the winners over South Korea 25-17, 25-18, 25-22, were third with a 3-2 record, followed by Japan with 2-3, South Korea with 1-4 and Thailand with 0-5.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two