BASKETBALL
Kanter to gain ‘Freedom’
Enes Kanter, the Boston Celtics center from Turkey, was planning to change his name to Enes Kanter Freedom after he gained US citizenship yesterday, The Athletic sports Web site reported. Kanter, 29, has long been a vocal critic of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, dubbing him the “Hitler of our century” in 2017. He has not reserved his criticism for Turkey, condemning the human rights record of China, while earlier this month voicing support for Taiwan.
FORMULA ONE
Ecclestone recalls Williams
Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone paid tribute to the late Frank Williams as a pioneer who helped to build the modern sport. Williams, who had been quadriplegic since a 1986 car accident in France, died on Sunday aged 79, his family said in a statement. The eponymous team he founded, still the second-most successful in terms of constructors’ championships and third-oldest, was sold to Dorilton Capital last year. Williams came from an era where title-winning teams were run by their founders, men such as Enzo Ferrari and Ken Tyrrell. “Without those type of people I doubt whether Formula One would have still been going now. Probably Ferrari would have stopped and that would have been it,” 91-year-old Ecclestone said. He recalled Williams as an old friend who got over life’s financial and physical obstacles with charm and determination. “Frank was a little bit special as a person, and that sort of showed in the way he kept going,” he said. “Things were never really bad as far as Frank was concerned, he never complained about things. He got on with things the best way he could, and that’s the reason he was so successful. He was a racer through and through.”
TENNIS
Spain out of Davis Cup
Russia on Sunday knocked reigning champion Spain out of the Davis Cup to set up a quarter-final against Sweden. The Russians’ tie against the depleted Spanish team came down to a late-night doubles encounter in Madrid. Aslan Karatsev and world No. 5 Andrey Rublev won 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 against Marcel Granollers and Feliciano Lopez to win Group A and deprive the Spanish team of the chance to play in front of a home crowd in Madrid on Thursday. Karatsev and Rublev, playing under the name the Russian Tennis Federation because of sanctions against Russian sport for doping, made a bad start to the tie when Lopez beat Rublev 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the opening singles rubber. US Open champion Daniil Medvedev stepped up to bring the tie level with a 6-2, 7-6 (7/3) win over Pablo Carreno Busta, before the doubles decided the match.
ICE HOCKEY
Toronto tie team record
Michael Bunting, Alexander Kerfoot and William Nylander each had a goal and an assist, and the Toronto Maple Leafs completed their most successful month in franchise history by beating the Anaheim Ducks 5-1 on Sunday night. The Maple Leafs went 12-2-0 this month, becoming the eighth NHL team to win 12 games in November. Toronto also tied a franchise record with its seventh straight road victory. The team also had seven straight road wins in the 1940-1941, 1960-1961 and 2002-2003 seasons. “The mood in the room is upbeat, everyone’s happy, so it’s really fun to be a part of,” Bunting said.
STILL IN THE HUNT: Rasmus Hojlund took his goal tally for SSC Napoli to nine as the champions cruised to a win at US Cremonese and stayed two points behind the leaders Inter on Sunday stayed at the Serie A summit after beating Atalanta BC 1-0 to maintain their slender lead over local rivals AC Milan. Lautaro Martinez netted the only goal of the game in Bergamo for Inter, who lead Milan, 3-0 winners against Hellas Verona thanks to Christoper Nkunku’s first Serie A goals, by a single point at the top of the division. The Argentina striker has scored in four consecutive league matches to end what has been a tricky year in positive style. “I ended last season in a lot of pain... I kept going during the Club World Cup and international
Hosts Morocco on Friday were held to a 1-1 draw by Mali at the Africa Cup of Nations, ending their world record run of wins and leaving them still to make sure of progress to the next stage. Midfielder Brahim Diaz tucked away a penalty in stoppage-time at the end of the first half, but Mali equalized from the spot midway through the second half through Lassine Sinayoko. Both penalties were awarded after video reviews in a tempestuous clash at the end of a busy day of action at the tournament. Morocco were atop the Group A standings with four points, while Zambia,
Algeria on Sunday became the third country after Egypt and Nigeria to qualify for the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations by edging Burkina Faso 1-0 in Rabat through a Riyad Mahrez penalty. Defending champions Ivory Coast failed to join the trio after drawing 1-1 with Cameroon in a lively showdown in Marrakesh. Elsewhere, Mozambique ended a 39-match wait for a first victory by beating Gabon 3-2, while Sudan got back into contention for a last-16 slot by beating Equatorial Guinea 1-0 in Casablanca. Captain Mahrez converted from the penalty spot midway through the first half and Algeria then held on
Supermaxis Master Lock Comanche and defending champions LawConnect yesterday continued their close duel on the second day of the 80th running of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Just over 27 hours into the race that began on Friday in Sydney Harbour and is to end on the island state of Tasmania, Comanche had a 4 nautical mile (7.4km) lead over LawConnect. LawConnect was forced to contend with a broken mainsheet and halyard overnight, but fixed both issues and remained in pursuit of Comanche, which is skippered by Matt Allen and James Mayo. “We had a few things slow us down and Comanche’s
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