CRICKET
Aussies sweep T20 series
England’s sorry tour of Australia finally ended with a whimper on Sunday — a crushing 84-run defeat to give the hosts a clean sweep of the three-game Twenty20 series. Australia, with man-of-the-match George Bailey smashing an unbeaten 49 off 20 balls, scored 195-6 after winning the toss in Sydney. The hosts then dismissed the psychologically scarred tourists for 111 in the 18th over to sweep the series. It marked the end of a disastrous 103-day tour for England, who lost the Ashes Tests 5-0 and the one-day international series 4-1, meaning Australia won 12-1 across the three formats. In between the losses, the international careers of spinner Graeme Swann and coach Andy Flower have been ended.
TENNIS
Makarova wins in Pattaya
Ekaterina Makarova won her second career title on Sunday, claiming a 6-3 7-6 (9/7) victory over Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic at the Pattaya Open. The Russian left-hander, whose only previous title came when she won in Eastbourne, England, in 2010, withstood a strong challenge in both sets, but her greater consistency and more aggressive play in the tiebreak earned her the victory. In a dramatic finale, Makarova built a 5-2 lead in the tiebreak, but faced set point at 6-5 after she netted a smash. Pliskova, though, hit her only double fault of the match and also failed to win a second set point at 7-6, before Makarova secured victory on her first match point.
GOLF
Stadler captures first title
Kevin Stadler captured his first PGA Tour title in his 239th start on Sunday, firing a final-round 68 for a one-shot Phoenix Open win over Bubba Watson and Graham DeLaet. Stadler’s three-under effort gave him a 16-under total of 268. Stadler and 2012 Masters winner Watson were tied heading into the 72nd hole at 16-under. Stadler found the fairway off the tee, while Watson was in the right rough. Watson flew the green as Stadler landed his second shot 11 feet from the pin. Stadler just missed his birdie putt and tapped in for par. Watson, who chipped on, missed a five-footer and settled for a bogey and a share of second place.
BASKETBALL
Celtics snap losing streak
Rajon Rondo had season highs with 19 points and 10 assists as the Boston Celtics ended a four-game losing streak with a 96-89 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday. Jared Sullinger scored seven of his 21 points in the fourth quarter for the Celtics, who let a 12-point lead slip to one in the final period, before pulling away at the end. Brandon Bass had 19 points and nine rebounds, while Avery Bradley scored 17 on his return after missing five games with a sprained ankle.
ICE HOCKEY
Capitals edge Red Wings
Alex Ovechkin scored his NHL-leading 39th goal on a power play 2 minutes, 37 seconds into overtime as the Washington Capitals beat the Detroit Red Wings 6-5 on Sunday to earn a split of a home-and-home set, tightening things up in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference. Ovechkin’s one-timer from the left circle was no match for goaltender Jimmy Howard, who had only three teammates on the ice with him after Brendan Smith was sent off for tripping 1:26 into the extra period. In Montreal, Michael Frolik scored in the third period to give the Winnipeg Jets a 2-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Tobias Enstrom also scored for the Jets, while Al Montoya stopped 30 shots.
Badminton world No. 3 Anders Antonsen clinched his first Indonesia Open title yesterday after beating Taiwan’s Chou Tien-chen, while South Korea’s An Se-young won her second championship in Jakarta. The 28-year-old Dane sank world No. 7 Chou at the Indonesian capital’s Istora Senayan arena, winning 22-20, 21-14 in a 60-minute match to secure the prestigious Super 1000 event. Antonsen came out on top in a tightly contested first game before cruising to victory in the second. In a more closely fought women’s singles final, South Korean ace and world No. 1 An fought back from one game down to beat China’s
Spain starlets Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams dazzled on Thursday as La Roja beat France 5-4 in a thriller in Stuttgart, Germany, to set up a UEFA Nations League final with Portugal. Yamal bagged a brace, while Williams scored and provided an assist as the two wingers cut France’s makeshift defense to ribbons. Mikel Merino and Pedri were also on the score sheet for the UEFA Euro 2024 champions. Kylian Mbappe netted a second-half penalty, but Spain were 5-1 up and cruising, before Les Bleus suddenly woke up as their opponents took their foot off the pedal. France’s three late goals — a
Italy crashed to a 3-0 loss away to Norway, as the four-time FIFA World Cup champions made a disastrous start to their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign on Friday, while Belgium had to settle for a draw in North Macedonia. Alexander Sorloth, Antonio Nusa and Erling Haaland all scored in the first half in pouring rain in Oslo as Norway made it a night to forget for Italy, who missed out on the past two World Cups. “I have no explanation. Our supporters don’t deserve this kind of match. We need to do some soul-searching. It’s unacceptable,” Italy captain and goalkeeper Gianluigi
The Crusaders yesterday produced a clinical performance in difficult conditions to beat the Queensland Reds 32-12 and claim home advantage in next week’s Super Rugby semi-finals. Lock Scott Barrett and prop Tamaiti Williams scored first-half tries to reward an outstanding performance from the Crusaders’ forwards in wet, slippery conditions and bitterly cold temperatures. Scrumhalf Noah Hotham defied the conditions in the second half to score a superb solo try and, after kicking a conversion and penalty to make the score 22-0 at the hour mark, flyhalf Rivez Reihana scored a try which took the game beyond the Reds. “Typical Christchurch weather, cold, wet
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