■RUGBY UNION
Russia qualify for World Cup
Russia have qualified for the World Cup for the first time following Saturday’s 21-21 draw with Romania in the European Nations Cup, officials confirmed on Sunday. Organizers originally said that Russia’s draw meant they were not yet guaranteed their place in New Zealand next year but said on Sunday that because of their superior head-to-head record against Germany and Romania — their only remaining challengers — they were assured of progress. Russia are on 21 points in the Nations Cup standings, two behind Georgia, who secured their qualification on Saturday with a 17-9 victory over Spain. With two matches still to play Russia will post a minimum of 23 points even if they lose to both Germany and Georgia, with a point awarded for a defeat in the Nations Cup competition, which spans two seasons. Portugal or Romania can also reach 23 points if they win their remaining games but Russia would still finish second as they have the superior record, having beaten Portugal twice and the Romanians once. The Georgia v Russia match on March 20 is likely to be the decider in terms of final standings and consequently which World Cup pool the teams will enter.
■BASKETBALL
Minnesota suspend center
The Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday suspended center Al Jefferson for two NBA games after he was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving. The Minnesota State Patrol said an officer stopped the 25-year-old Jefferson early on Sunday for speeding and changing lanes without signaling. Jefferson was taken to a hospital for a blood test, then to jail on suspicion of driving while impaired. He was freed after an hour in jail and is scheduled to appear in court on April 23. David Kahn, Timberwolves president of basketball operations, said Jefferson “feels terrible” about the incident, but said the team felt it appropriate that he be sanctioned.
■BASKETBALL
Shaq to have thumb surgery
Cleveland Cavaliers center Shaquille O’Neal will undergo surgery to repair an injured right thumb, the team reported on their Web site on Sunday without indicating when the veteran was likely to return to action. O’Neal was originally hurt in a game against the Boston Celtics on Thursday and after further evaluation in Maryland two days later, the center was informed he would require an operation on the injury. The surgery was due to take place yesterday and one local newspaper speculated that the 37-year-old could miss the remainder of the regular season.
■CRICKET
England include new faces
England included five uncapped players in their provisional 30-man squad for the World Twenty20 to be staged in the Caribbean from April 30 this year, announced yesterday. Middlesex pace bowler Steven Finn, Hampshire batsman Michael Lumb, seamers Peter Trego of Somerset and Warwickshire’s Chris Woakes as well as Yorkshire spinner David Wainwright will all hope to avoid the cut when the squad is halved at the end of this month. The squad will be captained by Paul Collingwood as regular Test captain Andrew Strauss and his current stand-in in Bangladesh Alastair Cook are not involved with England at Twenty20 level. “The World Twenty20 is an exciting tournament and we have selected an exciting crop of players in this provisional squad,” national selector Geoff Miller said in a statement.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Forget Real Madrid, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s best soccer team — statistically speaking — might be a little-known outfit from the closed central Asian nation of Turkmenistan. Founded last year, Arkadag, named in honor of former Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, have been unstoppable, notching up 36 consecutive domestic victories in a run still ongoing. The side have not lost a single competitive match and swept to a league and cup double in their inaugural season — success unthinkable almost anywhere else. However, in Turkmenistan, it could hardly have gone any other way. The energy-rich country is one of the most closed
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and