BASKETBALL
Cousins out for season
New Orleans Pelicans forward LaMarcus Cousins, set for a starting appearance in the NBA All-Star Game next month, is to miss the remainder of the season, the club announced on Saturday. Cousins is to undergo surgery to repair a ruptured left Achilles tendon suffered when he was going for a rebound late in the Pelicans’ 115-113 victory over Houston on Friday. Cousins’ spot on the LeBron James All-Star roster is to be taken by Oklahoma City’s Paul George, but it will be James who decides which player replaces Cousins as a starter. Cousins is averaging 25.2 points and 1.6 blocked shots a game, as well as career highs of 12.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists a game. He ranked third in the league in rebounds and eighth in scoring.
CYCLING
Local rider wins ocean race
Jay McCarthy yesterday became the first local rider to win the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race in Geelong, Australia, battling through extreme heat to finish in a sprint ahead of Italian Elia Viviani. McCarthy took the fourth edition of the 164km race in 4 hours, 4 minutes. Viviani and South Africa’s Daryl Impey were in second and third place respectively with the same time. McCarthy, 25, said he was speechless at finishing his last race in Australia with a win before heading back to Europe. He had talked up his chances of a win before the race as teammate and three-time world cycling champion Peter Sagan had left Australia after the Tour Down Under. The riders endured searing heat conditions that saw the mercury soar above 40°C. Race commentators said road surface temperatures rose to 50°C.
GOLF
Hsu in third in Bahamas
Canada’s Brooke Henderson on Saturday battled another day of windy conditions to finish her second round five-under-par overall and with a one-stroke lead at the season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic. Strong winds, which have already forced organizers to cut the competition from 72 to 54 holes, delayed the start of play at the Paradise Island Ocean Golf Club before the second round was suspended due to darkness. On the last shot of the day, Feng Shanshan sank a putt on the par-five 18th for birdie to give her sole possession of second place with nine holes of her second round left to play yesterday. Taiwan’s Hsu Wei-ling shot a 69 to gain a share of a five-way tie for third place that includes Americans Lexi Thompson, Danielle Kang and Ryann O’Toole, as well as rookie Luna Sobron Galmes of Spain.
CRICKET
Pakistan downs NZ by 18
Pakistan yesterday beat New Zealand by 18 runs in the series-deciding Twenty20 match at Mount Maunganui. The victory gave Pakistan a come-from-behind 2-1 series win that will see them overtake New Zealand at the top of the world rankings. Pakistan made 181-6 batting first with Fakhar Zaman making 46, while Umar Amin clipped 21 off seven deliveries. New Zealand were 163-6 after their 20 overs with Martin Guptill making 59. The consecutive defeats, following an 13-match winning streak across all formats against the West Indies and Pakistan, put a dampener on New Zealand’s preparation for next month’s triangular series with Australia and England.
The Kansas City Chiefs wrapped up a brief visit to Brazil on Friday with a season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, but despite the defeat, the team outshone their divisional rivals in the fight for the hearts and minds of Brazilian fans. In Sao Paulo for just the second-ever NFL game in the city, Chiefs players — especially quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce — were treated as major celebrities throughout their stay, turning Corinthians Arena into a scene reminiscent of the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium. Before kickoff, crowds of fans gathered around the Chiefs’ tunnel, eager to catch a
New Zealand stayed firm at their Eden Park fortress to claim an attritional 24-17 win over South Africa in a heavyweight clash between the world’s top two rugby sides yesterday. Under pressure after conceding a first-ever defeat on Argentine soil against the Pumas two weeks ago, the All Blacks responded with a performance of grit and discipline to stretch their unbeaten run at their Auckland stronghold to 51 matches. Two well-taken tries by Emoni Narawa and Will Jordan set up a 14-3 lead at halftime before Quinn Tupaea grabbed a third five-pointer for the hosts 13 minutes from time. Well-held for most of
Boston Red Sox pitcher Connelly Early on Tuesday struck out 11 in five shutout innings to match a franchise record during his MLB debut against the Oakland Athletics. “Pretty sick performance,” teammate Romy Gonzalez said. “It was fun to watch.” The only other Red Sox starter to rack up 11 strikeouts in his first career game was Don Aase versus the Milwaukee Brewers on July 26, 1977. “It was amazing, just to go out there and have that first opportunity,” Early said after getting the win in a 6-0 victory. “A long day of travel yesterday and just getting to the field, seeing
Mikel Merino on Sunday scored a hat-trick as a majestic Spain thumped Turkey 6-0 away in World Cup qualifying, while a brilliant Florian Wirtz free-kick helped Germany beat Northern Ireland 3-1 to get their bid up and running. European champions Spain were in unstoppable form in the central Turkish city of Konya, claiming their second biggest-ever away win in World Cup qualifying as Arsenal midfielder Merino scored his first professional hat-trick. Barcelona playmaker Pedri Gonzalez opened the scoring inside six minutes and later completed the scoring, with Ferran Torres netting the visitors’ other goal. The quality of Merino’s strikes was remarkable, with his
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