TENNIS
Fernandez wins Japan Open
Leylah Fernandez beat 18-year-old qualifier Tereza Valentova 6-0, 5-7, 6-3 in the final of the WTA’s Japan Open yesterday for her fifth career title. Playing in her eighth career final, the one-time US Open runner-up raced through the first set in 29 minutes, before Valentova settled her nerves in the second set and found a way to level the match when she broke Fernandez in the 12th game. In the deciding set, the 27th-ranked Fernandez made a crucial break in the fourth game and then saw off a late challenge by the Czech player to claim her second title of the season after taking the WTA 500 DC Open in July. The Japan Open’s top seed, former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka, pulled out ahead of her quarter-final after failing to recover from a leg injury.
Photo: EP
Fernandez is to compete at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, which runs from today through Sunday.
ICE HOCKEY
Sharks sorry for message
The San Jose Sharks apologized for a message that was displayed on the video board that appeared to praise US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on a night the team celebrated Hispanic heritage. A message from a fan was shown on the videoboard during the first intermission of San Jose’s game against Pittsburgh on Saturday night that said, “SJ SHARKS FANS/LOVE ICE !!/GET ‘EM BOYZ !” The Sharks issued an apology later in the game, saying “an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard.” “Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s values, was not detected during our standard review process,” the statement said. “The Sharks organization sincerely apologizes for this oversight, and we are actively working to determine the origin of the message,” it said. The Sharks were holding their ninth annual celebration of Hispanic heritage on what they call “Los Tiburones Night.”
MOTOGP
Fernandez gets maiden win
Raul Fernandez delivered a dominant performance to claim his maiden MotoGP victory at the Australian Grand Prix yesterday, securing a first-ever triumph for Trackhouse Racing in the premier class. Sprint-winner Marco Bezzecchi, who began second on the grid, made an electric start to snatch the lead from pole-sitter Fabio Quartararo before the first corner. The Italian’s rapid getaway also allowed Fernandez and Pedro Acosta to overtake Quartararo, who had set a record-breaking lap in Saturday’s qualifying. However, Bezzecchi’s charge was short-lived, as he had to serve a double long lap penalty for his collision with newly-crowned MotoGP champion Marc Marquez at the Indonesian Grand Prix. The Aprilia rider served his penalty and fought his way back to an impressive third-place finish. Fernandez capitalized on Bezzecchi’s setback to take the lead, and once he found himself with a clear track ahead, the 24-year-old Spaniard was untouchable. Acosta, Alex Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio traded places in a fierce contest before VR46 Racing’s Di Giannantonio managed to clinch second place, with Bezzecchi completing the podium after his remarkable recovery.
BOUNCE BACK: Curry scored 46 points in the Warriors’ victory over the Spurs, after ‘everybody stepped up’ following Tuesday’s blowout loss to Oklahoma City Nikola Jokic scoring 50 or more points had never been enough for the Denver Nuggets to win — until now. Jokic on Wednesday night tied the highest-scoring performance in the NBA this season with 55 points, as the Nuggets beat the Los Angeles Clippers 130-116 for their sixth straight victory. The Nuggets were 0-4 in his previous 50-point outbursts. “It’s a good feeling,” the three-time NBA Most Valuable Player said. He equaled Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had 55 in a double-overtime game at the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 23. Jokic has been on a roll during Denver’s winning streak. He is the
TIGHT GAME: The Detroit Pistons, the NBA’s second-best team, barely outlasted the Washington Wizards, who fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss Cade Cunningham’s triple double, Daniss Jenkins’ three-pointer at the buzzer and Javonte Green’s overtime dunk lifted Detroit past Washington 137-135 on Monday, stretching the Pistons’ win streak to seven games. In an unexpected thriller, the NBA’s second-best team barely outlasted a Wizards club that fell to an NBA-worst 1-10 with their ninth consecutive loss. “We knew how big this game was for us,” Jenkins said. “We wasn’t going to let nothing stop us from getting this W.” Cunningham made 14-of-45 shots and 16-of-18 free throws for a career-high 46 points, and added 12 rebounds, 11 assists, five steals and two
The tri-nation Twenty20 international series featuring hosts Pakistan, as well as Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, is to be played entirely in Rawalpindi from Tuesday next week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said yesterday, after this week’s suicide bombing in the capital, Islamabad. The change came after at least eight Sri Lankan players asked to leave over security fears following Tuesday’s bombing that killed 12 people and wounded 27. Their country’s cricket board issued a stern directive to the team to stay put or face consequences. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said the decision to stay was taken after “close consultations” with hosts Pakistan who
LIKE FINE WINE: Thirty-eight-year-old Djokovic won his 101st title of his career in Athens, becoming the oldest tournament winner since Ken Roswell, 44, in 1977 Elena Rybakina on Saturday clinched her biggest title since Wimbledon in 2022, defeating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 7-6 (7/0) at the WTA Finals in Riyadh. The world No. 6 put on yet another serving masterclass and was at her returning best as she became the first Kazakh and the first player representing an Asian country to lift the WTA Finals singles trophy. Having gone 3-0 in round-robin play, Rybakina earned a record US$5.235 million and would finish the year ranked No. 5 in the world. “It’s been an incredible week, I honestly didn’t expect any result, and to go so far,
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