SOCCER
Real to keep calm, carry on
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane said his side did not view Monday’s 1-1 draw at home to Real Sociedad as a missed opportunity to get back into the title race and called for calm ahead of Sunday’s clash at leaders Atletico Madrid. Real Madrid would have gone into the derby with the chance to move level on points with Atletico had they beaten Sociedad, but in the end only managed a draw after Vinicius Jr snatched a late equalizer to cancel out Portu’s opening goal. “We have to stay calm. We played well and created three or four clear chances, but were up against a side that also created chances. Now we need to be patient, keep our cool and rest,” the Frenchman said.
SOCCER
‘Barcagate’ arrests made
Former Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu was on Monday arrested as part of a police investigation into last year’s “Barcagate” scandal, a source with knowledge of the case said. Bartomeu, who resigned as president in October last year, was among four arrests made just six days ahead of the club’s new presidential elections on Sunday. Barcelona chief executive Oscar Grau, head of legal services Roma Gomez Ponti and Bartomeu’s advisor, Jaume Masferrer, were also arrested by Catalan police, who searched the club’s offices on Monday morning. Grau and Gomez Ponti were released, but Bartomeu and Masferrer were to spend the night in a cell before appearing before a judge yesterday, Spanish media reported. Barcelona said in a statement that the operation was related to last year’s scandal in which club officials were accused of launching a smear campaign against current and former players who were critical of the club and Bartomeu.
TENNIS
Djokovic equals Federer
Novak Djokovic is gaining on Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the Grand Slam standings, and has already caught Federer in another significant statistic: As of Monday, Djokovic has been No. 1 in the ATP rankings for a total of 310 weeks. That equals Federer’s career record for most time spent atop the rankings, and no matter what happens over the next week, Djokovic is assured of breaking Federer’s mark on Monday. Pete Sampras is third on the list, with 286 weeks. Djokovic’s Australian Open championship last month gave the 33-year-old from Serbia 18 Grand Slam singles trophies. Only Federer and Nadal, each with 20, have more.
Football
J.J. Watt heads to Cardinals
Three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt on Monday confirmed he is joining the Arizona Cardinals following his release by the Houston Texans. Multiple reports said the 31-year-old had signed a two-year deal worth US$31 million.
CRICKET
Zim ahead in Abu Dhabi
Fifteen wickets fell on day one of the first Test between Zimbabwe and Afghanistan at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi yesterday. Afghanistan won the toss and opted to bat, but Blessing Muzarabani and Victor Nyauchi wreaked havoc as the pair took seven wickets between them, leaving the hosts with a score of 131 all out. At stumps Zimbabwe led by two runs at 133-5, with skipper Sean Williams on 54 not out and Ryan Burl on 8 not out.
The US’ bid for a fourth consecutive CONCACAF Nations League title came to a stunning end as they fell 1-0 to Panama after a stoppage-time goal from Cecilio Waterman on Thursday in Inglewood, California. Despite dominating possession, the US struggled to break down a resilient Panama side for long periods. Panama spent the bulk of the match defending, but pounced on a giveaway by the US before substitute forward Waterman sent a shot from the right side of the area to the bottom left corner late in stoppage time. Up next for Panama in tomorrow’s final is to be Mexico, who beat
DOMINATION: McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris took the first two spots as Mercedes’ George Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen followed them Australian Oscar Piastri yesterday roared back from season-opening disappointment in his home race by winning the Formula One Chinese Grand Prix from pole position in a McLaren one-two with championship-leading teammate Lando Norris. George Russell finished third for Mercedes, ahead of Red Bull’s reigning champion Max Verstappen with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Saturday’s sprint winner Lewis Hamilton fifth and sixth respectively. Piastri’s win denied Norris a third victory in a row, including last year’s Abu Dhabi season-ender, but left champions McLaren unbeaten in two races so far this year. “Mega job guys. The car was very, very lovely,” Piastri said
TO FINAL FOUR: France had 22 chances and scored two goals, while Croatia could not manage a single shot on target in 120 minutes. Les Bleus won 5-4 on penalties France on Sunday overturned a two-goal deficit to qualify for the UEFA Nations League Final Four by eliminating Croatia 5-4 on penalties after a 2-0 victory in their quarter-final second leg at the Stade de France. Dayot Upamecano scored the winning spot kick in a nail-biting shootout in which France keeper Mike Maignan made two saves, sending Les Bleus into the semi-finals against Spain. Michael Olise opened the scoring and Ousmane Dembele doubled their lead 10 minutes from time to send the tie into extra time after their 2-0 loss in Split, Croatia, on Thursday. France had a total of
Armand Duplantis will be among the reigning Olympic champions adding star power to the world indoor championships this weekend when the Chinese city of Nanjing hosts the first major global athletics meet since the Paris Games last year. The three-day event was originally slated for 2020 and faced multiple postponements due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Nanjing’s Sports Training Center would finally welcome more than 570 athletes for the start of the showpiece today. One of the main attractions would be pole vaulter “Mondo” Duplantis, who soared 6.27m to break the world record for a staggering 11th time in Clermont-Ferrand last
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