SOCCER
Games return to South Africa
Soccer on Saturday resumed in South Africa after a 145-day COVID-19-induced shutdown with Bloemfontein Celtic reaching the Nedbank Cup final behind closed doors. The semi-final at Orlando Stadium in Soweto saw Celtic score in first-half stoppage time after Baroka had a man sent off, and twice more during the second half for a 3-0 win. After Namibian Ananias Gebhardt was red-carded for a late, studs-up tackle, captain Ndumiso Mabena put Celtic ahead and substitute Sepana Letsoalo netted twice in the closing stages. The teams walked separately onto the pitch, which resembled a dustbowl in parts after several months without rain, then stood still and clapped to honor COVID-19 victims.
BASEBALL
More Cardinals test positive
The St Louis Cardinals have had another two players and a staff member test positive for COVID-19, and as a result their entire three-game weekend series against the visiting Chicago Cubs has been postponed, Major League Baseball said on Friday. The Cardinals have not played since July 29 due to positive COVID-19 tests and had previously said their traveling party had returned 13 positive tests, including seven from players. MLB initially postponed the Friday series opener and then “out of an abundance of caution” decided to postpone the games that were scheduled for Saturday and yesterday as well. St Louis have now had 11 games postponed in a 60-game season that began two weeks ago.
GOLF
McIlroy praised for integrity
World number three Rory McIlroy has earned praise for upholding the spirit of the game after a bizarre incident in his second round at the PGA Championship. The Northern Irishman’s tee shot on the third hole sailed way right of the green on Friday, before the ball was accidentally stepped on by a TV reporter in the rough. McIlroy was entitled to replace the ball under the supervision of the official without penalty, but said he was “uncomfortable” having it dropped in a more favorable lie, which gave him a potential chance to save par. “The rule is try to replicate the [original] lie,” he said. He pushed the ball much deeper into the rough and eventually had to settle for a two-putt bogey. “At the end of the day golf is a game of integrity, and I never try to get away with anything out there,” said McIlroy, who signed for a 69 to finish one-under for the tournament. The 31-year-old earned plaudits on social media and during the television commentary. One Twitter user wrote: “Class from Rory as he asks for a worse lie #integrity.”
CRICKET
England beat Pakistan
Chris Woakes on Saturday hit an unbeaten 84 as England came from behind to beat Pakistan by three wickets in the first Test at Old Trafford. England were struggling in pursuit of a victory target of 277 after collapsing to 117-5 on the fourth day. Man-of-the-match Woakes, who had helped drag England back into this contest with 2-11 in just five overs late on Friday, and fellow World Cup winner Jos Buttler turned the tide with a stand of 139. “It was a brilliant chase,” said England captain Joe Root at the presentation ceremony. “I couldn’t be more proud of the lads.”
North Korea’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup-winning team on Saturday received a heroes’ welcome back in the capital, Pyongyang, with hundreds of people on the streets to celebrate their success. They had defeated Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the U17 World Cup final in the Dominican Republic on Nov. 3. It was the second global title in two months for secretive North Korea — largely closed off to the outside world; they also lifted the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in September. Officials and players’ families gathered at Pyongyang International Airport to wave flowers and North Korea flags as the
Taiwan’s top table tennis player Lin Yun-ju made his debut in the US professional table tennis scene by taking on a new role as a team’s co-owner. On Wednesday, Major League Table Tennis (MLTT), founded in September last year, announced on its official Web site that Lin had become part of the ownership group of the Princeton Revolution, one of the league’s eight teams. MLTT chief executive officer Flint Lane described Lin’s investment as “another great milestone for table tennis in America,” saying that the league’s “commitment to growth and innovation is drawing attention from the best in the sport, and we’re
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book
For King Faisal, a 20-year-old winger from Ghana, the invitation to move to Brazil to play soccer “was a dream.” “I believed when I came here, it would help me change the life of my family and many other people,” he said in Sao Paulo. For the past year and a half, he has been playing on the under-20s squad for Sao Paulo FC, one of South America’s most prominent clubs. He and a small number of other Africans are tearing across pitches in a country known as the biggest producer and exporter of soccer stars in the world, from Pele to Neymar. For