CRICKET
Super 11 win in Taipei
Taipei Super 11 yesterday won their opening match in Group A of the Taiwan Premier League, beating the Taipei Indians by three wickets at the Yingfeng Cricket Ground in Taipei’s Songshan District. The Indians reached 136-8 batting first and had their eye on two points for the win when they had reduced Super 11 to 99-6 on the fifth ball of the 16th over in the T20 tournament. However, Sathishkumar Chinnapaiyan walked to the crease and smacked 30 not out from just 11 deliveries, four of which went for six, to guide his team home with one ball to spare. In the afternoon game, the Taiwan Stars’ Adeel Ahmad Jamil struck 86 not out from 38 deliveries to lead his side to a three-wicket win over Formosa in Group B.
CRICKET
US reach Super Eight
The US on Friday made history by reaching the second round in their debut at the T20 World Cup after their last group game against Ireland was washed out. Rain meant the match at Broward County Stadium was abandoned without a ball bowled, advancing the US to the Super Eight stage and automatically qualifying them for the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. In other games, New Zealand thrashed Uganda by nine wickets in a Group C clash of already-eliminated teams in Trinidad, while South Africa survived a scare from Nepal in scrambling a one-run victory in their final Group D match in St Vincent.
SOCCER
Messi scores brace
Lionel Messi on Friday scored twice and assisted on another goal in his first international start since November last year as Argentina outclassed Guatemala 4-1 to complete their Copa America preparations. Messi played the full 90 minutes for manager Lionel Scaloni after playing 35 minutes off the bench in a 1-0 win over fellow Copa America contenders Ecuador in Chicago last weekend. He previously missed a pair of international friendlies in March with a hamstring issue. His sharp performance on Friday should ease Argentine concerns ahead of their Group A opener against Canada in Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday.
OLYMPICS
Tests deem Seine unsafe
Water in the Seine River had unsafe elevated levels of Escherichia coli less than two months before swimming competitions are scheduled to take place in it during the Paris Olympics, test results published on Friday showed. Contamination levels in the first eight days of this month, after persistent heavy rain in Paris, showed bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci beyond limits judged safe for athletes. The report was published by monitoring group Eau de Paris one day after a senior International Olympic Committee executive said there were “no reasons to doubt” races would go ahead as scheduled in a historic downtown stretch of the Seine near the Eiffel Tower. The final decision on approving the events safe for athletes rests with the governing bodies of individual sports. According to European standards, the safe limit for E coli is 900 colony-forming units per 100ml. During the first eight days of this month, test results showed that E coli levels frequently exceeded the threshold. Enterococci levels were better, mostly staying within safe limits.
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
BRING THE NOISE: Brazil’s Fonseca attracted a boisterous crowd that brought such dominant soccer-style energy the referee switched to Portuguese to ask for quiet Australia’s Alex de Minaur on Monday put an end to Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca’s challenge at the Miami Open, outlasting the 18-year-old 5-7, 7-5, 6-3 in an enthralling contest. Attendance on stadium court had been sparse throughout the day, but the Hard Rock Stadium turned into a mini-Maracana Stadium for Fonseca’s match, complete with Brazilian flags and soccer-style chanting. Fonseca brought his energetic brand of ultra-attacking tennis, but De Minaur was up to the challenge, coping with blistering forehands and a partisan crowd. Such was the dominance of Fonseca’s raucous support that the referee switched to Portuguese for his appeals for quiet. However, De
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