ICE HOCKEY
Blues’ streak reaches five
Vladimir Tarasenko scored in the third round of the shootout to help the St Louis Blues stretch their winning streak to five games with a 4-3 victory over the New York Rangers in the NHL on Monday. Tarasenko, who had a goal and an assist in regulation, fired a shot past Cam Talbot to end the game and give the Blues their eighth win in their last nine visits to New York City’s Madison Square Garden. The Rangers lost at home in a shootout for the second straight game, following a 1-0 defeat against Winnipeg on Saturday. Alexander Steen also scored in the shootout, and Patrik Berglund and Jay Bouwmeester added goals in regulation for the Blues, who lost a 2-1 lead in the third period before tying it at 3. Brian Elliott made 36 saves.
TENNIS
Konjuh aces first round
Croatian teenager Ana Konjuh rallied to beat fourth-seeded Annika Beck 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Monday in the first round of the inaugural Limoges Open in France, part of the WTA 125K series. Konjuh hit seven aces in a nearly two-hour match featuring 10 breaks of serve. Regarded as one of the most promising young talents, the 16-year-old Konjuh has improved to 90th in the WTA rankings from 274th at the end of last season. The sixth-seeded Alison Van Uytvank of Belgium also progressed to the second round after routing Italian qualifier Gioia Barbieri 6-0, 6-1. In an all-French encounter, wild-card entry Oceane Dodin ousted eighth-seeded Pauline Parmentier 7-6 (7/5), 6-2. Tournaments in the WTA 125K series are a step below full tour level.
BASEBALL
Kershaw wins two awards
Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was voted the player of the year in balloting by his fellow Major League Baseball players. The players’ union on Monday said that Kershaw also won the Marvin Miller Man of the Year award. Kershaw was 21-3 with an MLB-best 1.77 ERA. He was voted the National League’s outstanding pitcher and became the first player to win three Players Choice awards in one season since voting began in 1992. Voting was conducted on Sept. 16. That was before Kershaw went 0-2 with a 7.82 ERA in a pair of postseason starts against St Louis. The Miller award is for a player who most inspires others through his efforts on and off the field. Kershaw and his wife, Ellen, funded construction of homes for homeless children in Zambia. Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton was voted the NL’s outstanding player and the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout was selected the American League’s outstanding player. Seattle’s Felix Hernandez was voted the AL’s outstanding pitcher.
BASKETBALL
NBA fines Kevin Martin
The NBA on Monday fined Minnesota Timberwolves guard Kevin Martin US$15,000 for what officials deemed a “lewd gesture” in celebrating a three-point shot. After hitting a long-range shot that gave Minnesota a 102-100 lead with 1:37 to play against Chicago on Saturday, Martin gestured with cupped hands near his crotch while looking toward the bench. It is a gesture that was popularized by former Timberwolves guard Sam Cassell, but NBA officials apparently want to stamp it out. They have fined Marco Belinelli, Andray Blatche, Caron butler and Jameer Nelson for similar demonstrations. Andy Greder of the St Paul Pioneer Press called Martin’s celebratory move “the most enjoyable moment” of the game, but the league did not see any entertainment value in it. Martin scored a season-high 33 points for the game, but the Bulls won 106-105.
SSC Napoli’s Italian Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale with closest rivals Inter just one point behind. The hosts remain top with 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier on Sunday, with two rounds remaining. To make matters worse for Napoli, midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, struggling with an ankle injury, was forced off just minutes after the match began. Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got
Harry Kane opened the scoring ahead of lifting his first career silverware as Bayern Munich beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-0, with veteran Thomas Mueller playing his last home game for the club. Bayern officially won the title on May 4 when defending champions Bayer Leverkusen were held to a 2-2 draw at Freiburg, but were presented with the Bundesliga shield in front of their home fans at full-time. Dripping wet after being showered with beer by teammates, Kane said the title win was “an incredible feeling,” and hoped it would be “the first of many.” “It’s been lot of hard work, a lot of
Taiwanese e-sports veteran Lin “ET” Chia-hung yesterday successfully defended his King of Fighters XV title at this year’s Evolution Championship Series: Japan (EVO Japan), securing his second consecutive championship. Lin claimed victory with a 3-1 win over Japanese pro gamer “mok” in the grand final, repeating his earlier 3-1 win against the same opponent in the winners’ final. The 40-year-old earned a ￥1 million (US$6,897) cash prize at the two-day tournament, which drew 294 competitors. Mok, Lin’s toughest rival in the bracket, took home ￥400,000 as runner-up. Lin remains undefeated in match sets against mok in King of Fighters XV, holding a 10-0 record,
Batting great Virat Kohli yesterday announced his immediate retirement from Test cricket, just days before India name their squad for a tour to England. Kohli, who scored 9,230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85, posted his decision on Instagram five days after India captain Rohit Sharma called time on his own Test career. Since making his debut in 2011, Kohli struck 30 hundreds and 31 fifties with a highest score of 254 not out, mainly batting at number four in the order. “It’s been 14 years since I first wore the baggy blue in Test cricket,” the
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