BADMINTON
Tai wins Hong Kong opener
World No. 4 Tai Tzu-ying yesterday launched her Li-Ning Hong Kong Open campaign with a swift victory over Isabelle Rusli. The top seed took just 24 minutes to beat Rusli 21-10, 21-12. If Tai wins a fourth title at this year’s tournament, she would become the most successful women’s singles player, BWF’s Web site said. She is the only former winner competing in this year’s edition. She next faces world No. 31 Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia, who advanced after beating Taiwan’s Sung Shou-yun. In men’s singles, Taiwanese world No. 9 Chou Tien-chen was last night to play Canada’s Sheng Xiaodong after press time, while compatriot Chi Yu-jen defeated Japan’s Yushi Tanaka 21-18, 21-11. In men’s doubles, Taiwanese two-time Olympic champion Wang Chi-lin and new partner Chiu Hsiang-chieh beat Hong Kong’s Hung Kuei Chun and Lui Chun Wai 24-22, 21-8, while Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan defeated compatriots Chiang Chien-wei and Wu Hsuan-yi 21-18, 21-16. In mixed doubles, Taiwan’s Lu Ming-che and Hung En-tzu beat India’s Ashith Surya and Amrutha Pramuthesh 21-16, 22-20.
FIELD HOCKEY
Player banned for cocaine
Australian player Tom Craig has been banned for 12 months following his arrest during the Paris Olympics last month on suspicion of buying cocaine, Hockey Australia said yesterday. Craig would serve at least half of the ban, which began on Monday, with the remaining six months to be suspended if he met conduct requirements, a Hockey Australia statement said. The 29-year-old was released without charge, but was given a warning by a judge after French police detained him for allegedly trying to buy cocaine in Paris days after Australia lost their hockey quarter-final at the Games. “Craig is required to complete mandatory training and education programs as part of his sanction,” the statement said. Craig admitted that he had “made a terrible mistake” following his release from custody and apologized to his family, friends, teammates and the Australia Olympic team. “I have embarrassed you all and am truly sorry,” he said.
CRICKET
NZ-Afghan Test called off
Play in Afghanistan’s one-off Test against New Zealand was yesterday called off without a ball being bowled for a third consecutive day due to rain in India’s Greater Noida region. The area has been deluged by steady rain over the past two weeks and fresh showers early yesterday prompted match officials to abandon play with the toss yet to take place. The match is the first Test to be played at the Shahid Vijay Singh Pathik Sport Complex, which has only basic drainage systems, although it has hosted 11 “home” limited-overs matches for the Afghans. Afghanistan play their “home” matches abroad due to security concerns for touring teams. In response to criticism about the choice of venue, an Afghanistan Cricket Board official told local media it chose Greater Noida ahead of two other options in India because of its proximity to Delhi, which made traveling from Kabul easier. It said in a statement that it had ruled out playing in the United Arab Emirates due to the extreme heat there. “It’s important to understand that the Future Tours Program is typically planned five years in advance, which makes it nearly impossible to predict future circumstances with complete certainty,” the board said.
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