SOCCER
Lee spot-kick rescues point
Taiwan captain Lee Meng-chian scored a penalty 10 minutes from time against hosts Myanmar to rescue a point in a 1-1 draw in Group A of AFC Challenge Cup qualifying on Monday. With group favorites India making it two wins out of two with a 4-0 win over Guam in the earlier match, the pressure was on the hosts and they looked to be heading for the win they needed when forward Soe Kyaw Kyaw found the back of the net in the 18th minute. However, in the 80th minute the referee awarded Taiwan a penalty, which was successfully converted by Lee to earn Taiwan their first point of the tournament being held at the Yangon Youth Training Center. Taiwan face Guam today in their final group match.
CRICKET
India crush Australia
India won the second Test against Australia in Hyderabad yesterday by an innings and 135 runs, with Ravichandran Ashwin taking 5-53 as Australia were bowled out for 131 in their second innings. “India deserve a lot of credit,” Australia captain Michael Clarke said. “They outplayed us in every facet of the game. There is no doubt we have a lot of work to do. In all facets of the game. There will certainly be no stone left unturned. The batsmen haven’t put enough runs on, and there is no excuse for that. There will be no break between the Test matches. There will be a lot of hard work, I can assure you. You don’t get better sitting on the couch. We have had guys get in and out without making big scores. That’s unacceptable.” The third Test starts on Thursday next week.
BASKETBALL
Lin to play in Philippines
Taiwanese-American NBA star Jeremy Lin and the Houston Rockets are set to face the Indiana Pacers in a pre-season game in the Philippines in October, according to a report on Monday. Neither club nor the NBA has commented on the report, but NBA Philippines Facebook and Twitter accounts have posted messages with the league logo and the phrase “Big Things Are Coming,” with an announcement date of yesterday. The same logo is also found on the Web site of the Mall of Asia arena, where InterAKTV reported the first-ever NBA pre-season exhibition game will match the Rockets and Pacers on Oct. 10. Basketball is popular in the Philippines and Filipino fans have had a taste of NBA talent as recently as 2011 when Kobe Bryant and other top players were there while the league was shut down in a money dispute between players and club owners. No NBA club has played in the Philippines since the Washington Bullets toured Asia in 1979.
TRIATHLON
Alcatraz competitor dies
For the first time in its 33-year history, a participant in the world-renowned “Escape from Alcatraz” triathlon has died. The death of Ross Ehlinger, 46, on Sunday during the swimming portion of the event — held in a frigid San Francisco Bay amid 1.8m swells and a powerful outgoing tide — raised questions about what effect the tough conditions had. This year’s event was held on Sunday rather than in June to accommodate the America’s Cup sailing race. The answer appears to be that the father of three from Austin, Texas, may have had an underlying health problem exposed in an especially grueling triathlon. The San Francisco medical examiner is still investigating the cause of death, but race organizers and a heart surgeon who participated in the race speculated that the attorney succumbed to an underlying health problem, rather than being a victim exclusively of the conditions or drowning.
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Qatar’s Nasser al-Attiyah on Saturday secured his sixth Dakar Rally car title in Saudi Arabia with Luciano Benavides scraping home by two seconds to claim the motorbike title. “We’ve worked very hard since last year. I might not be showing much emotion yet, but it’s there, deep down. We are so happy to win,” al-Attiyah said at the finish. Al-Attiyah, at the wheel of a Dacia, only had to avoid a final day slip-up to top the podium after bringing his career tally of stage wins to 50 on Friday. The 55-year-old, who took clay pigeon shooting bronze at the
Tobias Harris on Monday scored 25 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics to score a 104-103 victory in their top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown. Harris was one of four Detroit players to finish in double figures, with Jalen Duren adding 18 points and point guard Cade Cunningham scoring 16 points with 14 assists. The win sees Detroit extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to 31-10, 5.5 games ahead of second-placed Boston, who fell to 26-16 with the defeat. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics scoring with 32 points and almost snatched victory in the
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