■ Cricket
Pollock to the rescue
Injury-hit South Africa were boosted yesterday by the news that veteran all-rounder Shaun Pollock will arrive in Sri Lanka later this week following the birth of his second child. The 33-year-old will reach here on Thursday, missing the first of the two Test matches which starts at the Sinhalese sports club the same day, team spokesman Gordon Templeton said. Pollock, however, will have enough time to acclimatize to the hot and humid weather in the Sri Lankan capital before he takes the field in the second Test at the Sara stadium from August 4. The tourists, led by their first non-white captain Ashwell Prince, need Pollock's experience to tackle the formidable hosts in the absence of regular captain Graeme Smith and leading all-rounder Jacques Kallis. Smith was ruled out of the six-week tour, which also includes a limited-overs tri-series with India, when he suffered an ankle injury earlier this month. Kallis is still recovering from a tennis elbow injury and remains uncertain for the ICC Champions Trophy one-day tournament to be held in India in October-November.
■ Soccer
Bayern sweetens Ruud offer
Bayern Munich have upped their offer for Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, the German club's general manager Uli Hoeness said on Sunday. "Ruud wants to come to Bayern," Hoeness said after his side drew 1-1 with Austrian second division team Linz in a friendly match. Hoeness did not reveal the size of Bayern's new offer but United are believed to be holding out for around £15 million (US$28 million) and Real Madrid are already believed to have had a bid of £12 million turned down. Earlier in the day, Bayern general director Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he was already negotiating terms with the Dutch striker, but said it would be Manchester United who would make the final decision. "Van Nistelrooy has told us he would like to play for us next season," Rummenigge told Sunday's Bild newspaper.
■ Rugby
Wallabies mull Blake recall
Australia are considering recalling giant prop Rodney Blake to their side for Saturday's Tri-Nations match against New Zealand in Brisbane. The 23-year-old made his international debut against England last month but missed Australia's last three tests due to an ankle injury. Blake played for Australia A against Fiji on Friday, however, and came through the match unscathed. "He got through it pretty well," Australia coach John Connolly said. "We'll definitely consider him." Connolly will be keen to restore Blake to his front row to counter the powerful New Zealand scrum and may also be tempted to call Cameron Shepherd into his squad after the fullback's impressive performances in both Australia A games against Fiji.
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Teenage star Lamine Yamal’s superbly-taken goal on Saturday earned Barcelona a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao in Spanish La Liga. The champions restored their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who had on Friday temporarily closed the gap by beating Celta Vigo. Atletico Madrid tightened their grip on third with an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Sociedad. Yamal, 18, curled into the top corner after 68 minutes to split the sides at Athletic’s San Mames stadium. “We’re already seeing what Lamine can do — he puts it right in the top corner, and there’s nothing the keeper can do,” Barca
Liverpool on Tuesday suffered an embarrassing 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers as Andre’s stoppage-time strike sealed a dramatic victory for the English Premier League’s bottom club. Arne Slot’s side fell behind to Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the closing stages at Molineux. Mohamed Salah hauled Liverpool level with his first goal in 11 top-flight games dating back to November last year. However, Andre’s first goal for Wolves inflicted the latest humbling loss in a chastening season for Liverpool. It was the first time the Premier League’s bottom club had beaten the reigning champions since Crystal Palace defeated Chelsea in 2017. Liverpool
CHANCE TO QUALIFY: Both teams now have three points from two games, and Taiwan sit ahead of Vietnam and behind Japan, who last night beat India 11-0 Taiwan yesterday defeated Vietnam 1-0 to move into second place in Group C at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with one match remaining. Su Yu-hsuan scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute after Taiwan midfielder Saki Matsunaga’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving Su to nod the rebound into an empty net for the team which won the last of their three Asian Cup titles in 1981. It was a deserved victory for Taiwan, 2-0 losers to Japan on Wednesday, who created several chances to extend their lead. Vietnam, the 2022 quarter-finalist, beat India in their opener, but struggled to
RSS