SOCCER
Bale trains with Real
Gareth Bale trained with Real Madrid on Wednesday for the first time since his move from Tottenham Hotspur to the Spanish capital. Madrid published a photograph on their Web site of Bale being greeted by Cristiano Ronaldo at the club’s Valdebebas training ground after returning from international duty with Wales. Bale, 24, joined Madrid for an undisclosed fee that many reports say was higher than the world-record 94 million euros (US$125 million) paid by the club to Manchester United for Ronaldo in 2009. Bale played the final half-hour of Wales’ 3-0 defeat to Serbia in Cardiff in a World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. It was his first taste of action this season, but he may well make his debut for his new club in tomorrow’s trip to Villarreal in La Liga.
SOCCER
No Kerimov warrant: Interpol
Interpol on Wednesday said it has not issued an international arrest warrant for the billionaire owner of Russian soccer club Anzhi Makhachkala, Suleiman Kerimov, who is wanted by Belarus as part of a criminal probe into the potash sector that has already strained ties between Moscow and Minsk. Belarus last week opened a probe against Kerimov into suspected abuse of authority which has a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison. Minsk said then that Kerimov, who is based in Russia, should be placed under arrest and that it has issued an arrest warrant for his detention. Interpol said it received a request from Belarussian authorities on Sept. 2 for a Red Notice to be issued for Kerimov. It said that a week earlier, it had also received a separate “request from Belarus requesting that Red Notices be issued against four other individuals linked to the same case.” However, these “Red Notice requests are currently under review,” the statement added. The Belarussian charges relate to a probe that saw the chief executive of Russia’s main potash producer Uralkali, Vladislav Baumgertner, detained at Minsk airport and placed in custody at the end of last month. Belarussian investigators allege an illegal scheme by Baumgertner and other Uralkali managers to enrich themselves at a cost of US$100 million to Belarus.
SOCCER
Hunt out for four months
Crystal Palace signing Jack Hunt is unlikely to make his debut for the promoted Premier League club until next year after breaking his ankle in training. The 22-year-old defender, who signed from Huddersfield Town at the end of last month, will be out for up to four months, the BBC reported on Wednesday. “Absolutely devastated to have broken my ankle in training,” Hunt said on Twitter earlier this week. “Got to take the positives, clean break and no operation needed.” The rightback made 104 appearances for Championship side Huddersfield before making the switch to Selhurst Park.
TENNIS
Jovanovski into semis
Bojana Jovanovski of Serbia was the only seeded player to make it to the semi-finals of the Tashkent Open, beating Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan 1-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) yesterday. The top-seeded Jovnovski won as the three other seeded players in the quarter-finals all lost. Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor of Spain defeated third-seeded Yvonne Meusburger of Austria 6-3, 6-0, Mandy Minella of Luxembourg beat fourth-seeded Nastassja Burnett of Italy 7-6 (7/4), 7-5, and Olga Govortsova of Belarus beat fifth-seeded Alexandra Cadantu of Romania 6-3, 6-2. In the semi-finals, Jonanovski will play Torro-Flor, while Govortsova will meet Minella.
Shohei Ohtani and his wife arrived in South Korea with his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates yesterday ahead of their season-opening games with the San Diego Padres next week. Ohtani, wearing a black training suit and a cap backwards, was the first Dodgers player who showed up at the arrival gate of Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul. His wife, Mamiko Tanaka, walked several steps behind him. As a crowd of fans, many wearing Dodgers jerseys, shouted his name and cheered slogans, Ohtani briefly waved his hand, but did not say anything before he entered a limousine bus with his wife. Fans held placards
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals at the All England Open, beating Kim Ga-eun of South Korea 21-17, 21-15. With the win, Tai earned a semi-final against China’s He Bingjiao, who beat Michelle Li of Canada 21-9, 21-9. Defending champion An Se-young defeated India’s P.V. Sindhu 21-19, 21-11. An on Wednesday cruised into the second round, unlike last year’s men’s winner, Li Shifeng, who suffered a shock defeat. South Korea’s An, the world No. 1, overcame Taiwan’s Hsu Wen-chi 21-17, 21-16 to set up the match against Sindhu. In other women’s singles matches, Taiwan’s Sung Shuo-yun lost 21-18, 24-22 against Carolina Marin of
EYEING TOP SPOT: A victory in today’s final against Storm Hunter and Katerina Siniakova would return 38-year-old Hsieh Su-wei to the world No. 1 ranking Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens on Thursday secured a spot in the women’s doubles finals at the BNP Paribas Open after dispatching Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) at Indian Wells. Hsieh and her Belgian partner Mertens, who won the Australian Open in late January, coasted through the first set after breaking their opponents’ serve twice, but found the going tougher in the second. Both pairs could only muster one break point over 12 games, neither of which were converted, leaving the set to be decided by a tiebreaker. Hsieh and Mertens took a 6-3 lead,
DOUBLES PAYBACK: Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Martens avenged their defeat in the quarters at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open against Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California. Hsieh and partner Elise Mertens of Belgium dispatched Demi Schuurs and Luisa Stefani 6-1, 6-4 to set up a clash against Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US and Australia’s Ellen Perez for a spot in the final of the WTA 1000 tournament. Hsieh and Martens made a blistering start to their rematch after they lost to Schuurs and Stefani in the quarter-finals at the Qatar TotalEnergies Open last month, winning three games without reply at the start of the first set