BADMINTON
Taiwanese win German Open
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan yesterday edged China’s He Jiting and Ren Xiangyu 15-21, 23-21, 23-21 to win the men’s doubles title at the German Open in Mulheim. The world No. 16 pairing of Lee and Yang on Saturday defeated Denmark’s Rasmus Kjaer and Frederik Sogaard 22-20, 21-11 in the semi-finals. In women’s doubles on Saturday, Taiwan’s Hsu Ya-ching and Lin Wan-ching lost 21-17, 21-18 to China’s Li Yijing and Luo Xumin.
CRICKET
Australia best NZ in first Test
Australia captain Pat Cummins yesterday heaped praise on teammates Nathan Lyon and Cameron Green for match-winning performances as his side secured a 172-run triumph over New Zealand in the first Test. Lyon spun the visitors to victory in the morning session on day four in Wellington, taking six wickets as New Zealand crumbled to 196 all out. Green’s career-high unbeaten 174 on day one rescued Australia from 89-4, having been put into bat, to reach 383 and set up a decisive 204-run first-innings lead. It gave Green the nod over Lyon as man of the match and Cummins said that was a fair outcome. “Cam was amazing, he was really the difference in the end,” Cummins said. “I thought the way he went about it, with that intent, really put the pressure back on the bowlers on day one. There was as much bounce as I’ve seen in any wicket for a long time but thankfully it spun which, with Nathan in our side, is always a pretty good thing.”
MOTORSPORTS
Verstappen wins Bahrain
Three-time world champion Max Verstappen on Saturday began his title defense in flawless fashion when he guided his Red Bull team to a crushing one-two triumph, ahead of teammate Sergio Perez, at the Bahrain Grand Prix. In a statement of emphatic superiority, the 26-year-old Dutchman came home 22.5 seconds clear of Perez, who started from fifth, to ease some of the pressure on team boss Christian Horner. By claiming the 33rd pole of his career, fastest lap and race win, Verstappen delivered the 12th “hat-trick” of his career, leaving only the seven-time champions Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton ahead on 22 and 19 trebles respectively. It was Verstappen’s eighth successive win, his 55th race victory and 99th podium finish.
BOXING
Ray Ford wins featherweight
American Ray Ford on Saturday clinched the vacant WBA featherweight world title with a thrilling 12th round last-minute stoppage of Uzbekistan’s Otabek Kholmatov. Ford was down 106-103 on two of the scorecards going into the final round, but the New Jersey fighter landed a strong right hook that left Kholmatov reeling. With Ford, now 15-0 with one drawn and eight knockouts, raining punches on the wobbling Uzbekistani, the referee stepped in. “I always knew I had it in me. I come from a rough background. There’s nothing that can stop me ever,” said Ford, bleeding from the eye after an accidental clash of heads. “I always knew I had a better inside game to him. I didn’t expect him to be as sharp as he was as a boxer and he used his legs as much as he could. I knew I had to dig down to his body and bring it sharp hooks up upstairs and you know that’s my money punch, so I knew I could get him out with one of those.”
Manchester United on Tuesday confirmed Michael Carrick as interim manager until the end of the season, tasking him with leading the Red Devils back into the UEFA Champions League. “Having the responsibility to lead Manchester United is an honor,” said Carrick, 44, who won 12 major trophies in his 12-year playing career at United. The former midfielder previously had an unbeaten three-game stint as caretaker boss at Old Trafford in 2021. Carrick then took on his first permanent managerial role at second-tier Middlesbrough in October 2022 and was sacked in June last year after the club finished 10th in the
Mohamed Salah’s Egypt knocked reigning champions Ivory Coast out of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) with a 3-2 win in the quarter-finals on Saturday, while Victor Osimhen starred as Nigeria beat Algeria 2-0 to set up a clash with hosts Morocco. In Agadir, Morocco, a thrilling last-eight tie saw Omar Marmoush and Ramy Rabia net in the first half for the Pharaohs before an own goal by Ahmed Aboul-Fetouh brought the Ivorians back into it. Salah then got Egypt’s third early in the second half and they held on after Guela Doue again reduced the deficit. Egypt is to face Senegal
AUSTRALIAN ADVENTURE: Sabalenka aims to follow up with a third Australian Open win, while Taiwanese Joanna Garland claimed a WTA 125 title in Canberra Aryna Sabalenka beat Karolina Muchova in straight sets to reach her third Brisbane International final in a row yesterday, a week ahead of the Australian Open. Sabalenka looked in great touch against the tricky Czech, who had won their last three meetings and went into the match as one of the few players with a winning record over the world No. 1. However, Sabalenka showed her class and power as she broke Muchova once in each set to take the semi-final 6-3, 6-4 in 89 minutes to face Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in the final. “I struggled against her a couple of times [in
Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday sparked defending champions Oklahoma City to victory, while Anthony Edwards led Minnesota’s last-minute fightback to beat San Antonio. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points while adding eight assists and five rebounds in the Thunder’s 124-112 home victory over Miami, improving the NBA’s best record to 33-7 after outscoring the Heat 70-53 in the second half. “We locked in defensively. We were finally able to get some stops,” Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins said. “We were able to get out in transition a little bit, get going offensively and find the flow.” Jalen Williams scored 18 points, while
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