CRICKET
West Indies eye lead
The West Indies were on track to take a lead in the first Test against England yesterday, reaching 192-5 in the second session with five wickets in hand. Resuming on 57-1, the touring side lost the wickets of Shai Hope (16) and Kraigg Brathwaite (65) in the first session at the Rose Bowl after England posted 204 all out on day 2. Shamarh Brooks (39), John Campbell (28) and Jermaine Blackwood (12) were out in the second session, with Roston Chase (16 not out) and Shane Dowrich (10 not out) at the crease at press time last night as the visitors eyed a first-innings lead.
SOCCER
Man United extend run
Manchester United extended their unbeaten run to 17 games with a 3-0 win against Aston Villa on Thursday, becoming the first team in Premier League history to win four consecutive games by a three-goal margin. Mason Greenwood continued his rise to stardom with another thunderous finish after Bruno Fernandes’ penalty opened the scoring. Fernandes then teed up Paul Pogba to score his first goal in more than a year as United closed to within a point of the top four. Villa’s winless run stretches to 10 games as Dean Smith’s men remain rooted in the bottom three, four points adrift of safety with just four games to go. Elsewhere, AFC Bournemouth had a 90th-minute goal ruled out for handball and had to settle for a 0-0 draw against Tottenham Hotspur, while Everton and Southampton drew 1-1.
SOCCER
Inter stumble again
Inter allowed yet another game to slip from their grasp as Hellas Verona snatched a late equalizer to hold them to a 2-2 draw in Serie A on Thursday. Antonio Conte’s side appeared to have done the difficult part when they came from behind to lead 2-1 early in the second half only for Miguel Veloso to level for Verona with five minutes left. In Thursday’s other game, Udinese defeated SPAL 3-0.
SOCCER
Sevilla defeat Bilbao
Sevilla rallied in the second half to beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 in La Liga on Thursday. The victory in Bilbao left Sevilla tied on points with third-place Atletico Madrid and increased the gap to fifth-place Villarreal to six points with three rounds to go. Only the top four qualify for next season’s Champions League. Japanese teenager Takefusa Kubo scored late to help RCD Mallorca beat Levante UD 2-0. Sociedad Deportiva Eibar stayed four points from safety after being held to a 0-0 draw at home by CD Leganes.
BADMINTON
Lin Dan may play again
Lin Dan has opened the door to playing again next year, just days after announcing his retirement from international competition at the age of 36. Lin on Saturday last week said that he would no longer compete for China, giving up on his hopes of qualifying for next year’s postponed Tokyo Olympics. However, he told the Beijing Youth Daily that he has an eye on playing at China’s National Games next year. “If I gain weight in March next year, I won’t compete anymore,” he said. “If I don’t gain weight, I will continue to work hard. I also hope to have such an opportunity to work hard to participate in the 2021 National Games.”
New Taipei Kings guard Jeremy Lin on Friday was named the Taiwan Professional Basketball League’s (TPBL) Player of the Month, the first domestic player to win the award, while the Hsinchu Toplus Lioneers are to welcome their third head coach in less than a year. Lin averaged 22 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.6 assists over five games in October and last month, helping the Kings to second in the standings with a 4-2 record as of Friday. The Kings last night defeated the Lioneers 96-78 to move level with the top-of-the-table Formosa Dreamers (5-2), while in the night game, the New Taipei
‘REMARKABLE’: Gaelic football is a traditional Irish sport that blends the skills of soccer and rugby, and hurling is an ancient sport played with a wooden stick and ‘sliotar’ The Taiwan Celts Gaelic Football Club marked a milestone achievement at the Asian Gaelic Games in Bangkok on Nov. 23 and 24, with two sides advancing to the knockout stages and competing at hurling for the first time. The event brought together 68 teams from 16 clubs across Asia, with more than 800 players in men’s and women’s tournaments. Gaelic football is a traditional Irish team sport that blends the skills of soccer, rugby union and basketball. Hurling is an ancient Irish sport played with a wooden stick, called a hurley, and a small ball, or sliotar. The Taiwan Celts’ women’s team reached
LIVERPOOL WIN: The 50th Champions League goal by Mohamed Salah helped the leaders of the Premier League to keep their perfect record intact Real Madrid’s big stars on Tuesday turned on the style to revive the Spanish giant’s faltering UEFA Champions League title defense. Galacticos Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham all scored in a thrilling 3-2 win against Serie A leaders Atalanta BC. However, Madrid still had to ride their luck as Mateo Retegui fired over from in front of goal in stoppage-time when handed a golden chance to level the game. It was only Madrid’s third win in the competition’s revamped league phase and leaves the 15-time champions in the unseeded playoff positions in 18th place. “It’s a very important win. Not everyone wins
TO NO AVAIL: The Denver Nuggets’ Serbian center Nikola Jokic surpassed his 53-point performance in the 2023 Western Conference semi-finals against Phoenix The Washington Wizards withstood a 56-point explosion from Denver star Nikola Jokic to beat the Nuggets 122-113 on Saturday and snap their 16-game NBA losing streak. Jokic, who won his third NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) award last season, posted a career scoring high — surpassing a 53-point performance in game four of the 2023 Western Conference semi-finals against Phoenix and a 50-point regular-season best against Sacramento in 2021. The Serbian big man added 16 rebounds and eight assists, but it was all to no avail as Washington, buoyed by 39 points from Jordan Poole, won for the first time
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