SOCCER
South Africa sack Mosimane
South Africa fired national coach Pitso Mosimane yesterday in reaction to their disappointing start to the World Cup qualifiers at the weekend. Mosimane is the first victim of the African qualifying campaign for the 2014 finals in Brazil after his side were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Ethiopia, 71 places below them in the FIFA rankings, in their opening Group A qualifier on Sunday. The announcement by the governing body in a statement came after a meeting with officials that went on late into Monday night. Mosimane had stated before the Ethiopia match that it was a “must win” affair for his team. The 47-year-old coach has been a beleaguered figure since his horror error last year when he botched the calculations for his side to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations finals. South Africa were comfortably placed going into their final group game at home, but they played for a draw and what they presumed was top place by virtue of goal-difference. However, the rules stated that in the case of a tie in the standings, the tiebreaker would be head-to-head results and South Africa lost out to Niger.
SOCCER
QPR’s Barton arrested
Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton was arrested on Monday on suspicion of affray after a brawl outside a Liverpool nightclub. Barton, 29, was involved in trouble in the early hours while on a night out with his girlfriend in Liverpool city center. Two men, aged 21, were arrested on suspicion of a public order offense at about 5:30am on Sunday at the scene of the incident outside Garlands nightclub in the city, but after they were held in custody and questioned, Barton and a 20-year-old man were also arrested. All have been bailed pending further inquiries, apart from Barton, who remained in police custody.
BOXING
Mosley hangs up gloves
Boxer “Sugar” Shane Mosley is retiring, ending a career in which he won titles in three different weight classes, beat Oscar de la Hoya twice and was never knocked out. The 40-year-old announced on Twitter that he was hanging up his gloves, saying he “loved every moment of it. Win, lose or draw.” Mosley lost three of his last four fights, including a dreary bout against Manny Pacquiao in May last year in which he mostly seemed to be avoiding the Filipino star in the ring. His last fight was on May 5 on the undercard of the fight between Floyd Mayweather and Miguel Cotto. Mosley lost a lopsided decision to rising Mexican star Canelo Alvarez. The loss dropped his record to 46-8-1.
CRICKET
West Indies call up Gayle
Former captain Chris Gayle has been chosen by the West Indies for the first time in 14 months as part of the one-day squad to tour England later this month. The 32-year-old opener, whose public spat with the West Indies Cricket Board resulted in him being ineligible for nearly a year, was included in a 15-man squad announced on Monday for the three-match series that begins on June 16.
BASKETBALL
Wizards appoint Wittman
Randy Wittman is returning as head coach of the Washington Wizards next season to provide some stability for the once-proud franchise, the team said on Monday. Wittman was named interim coach in January when Flip Saunders was fired after the team’s 2-15 start. Under Wittman, the Wizards were 18-31, winning eight of their final 10 games.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
The Minnesota Timberwolves, with so many promising performances spoiled by late mistakes fresh in their memory bank, sure timed this strong finish well. Jaden McDaniels scored a career playoff-high 30 points and spearheaded Minnesota’s stifling defense on an ailing Luka Doncic, and the Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Lakers 116-104 to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Friday night. “Jaden never looks tired. He looks like he could play 48 minutes,” said teammate Anthony Edwards, who had 29 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Julius Randle added 22 points for the Wolves, who outscored
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
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