SOCCER
Play resumes in Vietnam
Soccer was back and so were the spectators in Vietnam on Friday when the top domestic league resumed after a shutdown amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Fans were allowed into Ho Chi Minh City’s scoreless draw with Hai Phong among three matches, with more than 1,000 people at the V-League game. The number, affected by an inconvenient start time, was small compared with the league’s average attendance of more than 7,000 last year. Fans had their temperature checked as they entered the stadiums, which were limited to half of normal capacity. They were not required to wear masks. “Obviously we are happy to play in front of fans as this is what makes football special,” Ho Chi Minh coach Jung Hae-sung said. “We have been waiting a long time for the league to restart.” In the other matches, more than 3,000 saw Nam Dinh lose 2-1 at home to The Cong, while about 800 attended Sai Gon’s 0-0 draw with Binh Duong.
SOCCER
Bulgarian fans flout rules
The Bulgarian league resumed on Friday after an almost three-month break due to the COVID-19 pandemic with fans allowed at stadiums, but many of them violated a rule for occupying every third seat in the stands. On Tuesday, Bulgarian Minister of Sports Krasen Kralev issued an order allowing spectators at stadiums if they took up no more than 30 percent of a venue’s capacity and with supporters sitting on every third seat. However, television footage showed that at least several dozen fans failed to observe the rule in front of Kralev in Plovdiv, where second-placed Lokomotiv Plovdiv beat Etar Veliko Tarnovo 2-0. Striker Dominique Malonga scored his first goal for Bulgarian Cup winners Lokomotiv after coming on in the second half and the hosts needed an own-goal by Etar’s Anton Ognyanov to put the game beyond doubt. The ministry said in a statement issued after the final whistle that the match went ahead with fans observing the seats rule, adding that the stadium announcer called on all spectators to maintain their distance. There were also several seating violations during league leaders Ludogorets’ 1-0 win against Levski Sofia as the Razgrad-based club took a big step toward winning their ninth consecutive title.
GOLF
Fans approved for Memorial
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine on Friday approved a plan for Muirfield Village Golf Club to have at least some fans at the Memorial next month, which would make it the first PGA Tour event with a crowd since the tour was shut down March 13 by the COVID-19 pandemic. DeWine wrote on Twitter that casinos, racinos, amusement parks and water parks will be able to open on June 19. “In addition, we received safety plans for the Memorial Golf Tournament to be held July 13-19,” he wrote. “We are approving that plan.” DeWine wrote that the Memorial, parks and casinos “have come up plans that reduce the number of people, provide for sanitation, and in some cases, provide for one-way traffic. “They are elaborate plans that we believe are consistent with protecting the public,” he wrote. The PGA Tour resumes its schedule on Thursday with the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas. The tour said the opening four events would not have spectators. In a statement, the Memorial praised DeWine and his staff, and said it would work with state, county and city leaders to use the tournament “as an example of how public gathering events can be developed and implemented with approved and accepted protocols in place.”
BOUNCE BACK: Curry scored 46 points in the Warriors’ victory over the Spurs, after ‘everybody stepped up’ following Tuesday’s blowout loss to Oklahoma City Nikola Jokic scoring 50 or more points had never been enough for the Denver Nuggets to win — until now. Jokic on Wednesday night tied the highest-scoring performance in the NBA this season with 55 points, as the Nuggets beat the Los Angeles Clippers 130-116 for their sixth straight victory. The Nuggets were 0-4 in his previous 50-point outbursts. “It’s a good feeling,” the three-time NBA Most Valuable Player said. He equaled Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 55 in a double-overtime game at the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 23. Jokic has been on a roll during Denver’s winning streak. He is the
TIGHT GAME: The Detroit Pistons, the NBA’s second-best team, barely outlasted the Washington Wizards, who fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss Cade Cunningham’s triple double, Daniss Jenkins’ three-pointer at the buzzer and Javonte Green’s overtime dunk lifted Detroit past Washington 137-135 on Monday, stretching the Pistons’ win streak to seven games. In an unexpected thriller, the NBA’s second-best team barely outlasted a Wizards club that fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss. “We knew how big this game was for us,” Jenkins said. “We wasn’t going to let nothing stop us from getting this W.” Cunningham made 14-of-45 shots and 16-of-18 free throws for a career-high 46 points, and added 12 rebounds, 11 assists, five steals and two
The tri-nation Twenty20 international series featuring hosts Pakistan, as well as Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, is to be played entirely in Rawalpindi from Tuesday next week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said yesterday, after this week’s suicide bombing in the capital, Islamabad. The change came after at least eight Sri Lankan players asked to leave over security fears following Tuesday’s bombing that killed 12 people and wounded 27. Their country’s cricket board issued a stern directive to the team to stay put or face consequences. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said the decision to stay was taken after “close consultations” with hosts Pakistan who
Australian restaurant chain Grill’d has made a cheeky apology for putting a “curse” on Oscar Piastri’s Formula One title hopes with their offer of a free burger for every time the McLaren driver gets on the podium. The Melbourne native has not finished in the top three since the promotion relaunched five races ago, losing the championship lead to teammate Lando Norris and now 24 points behind. Online conspiracy theorists have been quick to put two and two together. The chain’s Piastri 81 Burger debuted ahead of the Australian Grand Prix in March, with his endorsement, and was relaunched in September after he
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