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Garcia, Shinkwin share lead into final round at KLM Open

Published in Golf
Saturday, 14 September 2019 04:53

AMSTERDAM – Sergio Garcia and Callum Shinkwin shot 6-under 66s and shared the lead at 15 under after the third round of the KLM Open on Saturday.

Playing together in the second-to-last pairing at The International on the outskirts of Amsterdam, Garcia and Shinkwin traded birdies all day.

Garcia drew level on the par-5 18th, just missing a tricky eagle putt over a slope on the undulating green before tapping in for birdie, while Shinkwin could manage only a par after finding a bunker behind the green with his second shot.

The Spaniard has made just one bogey in the first three rounds.

"That's always a nice thing to have on a week," Garcia said. "Enjoying that, and we'll try to do more of the same tomorrow."

Nicolai Hojgaard, an 18-year-old Dane, was alone in third place, two strokes back.

Abraham scores 3, own goal in Chelsea win

Published in Soccer
Saturday, 14 September 2019 09:58

Tammy Abraham scored a hat trick and an own goal as Chelsea secured an impressive 5-2 victory against Wolves at Molineux on Saturday.

Chelsea scored three goals in the first half including a wonder strike from Fikayo Tomori as they picked up their second Premier League win under Frank Lampard.

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It was an even affair until the half hour mark when the visitors opened the scoring in sensational style.

The ball was cleared from a short corner and it fell to Tomori who produced a fantastic curling effort into the roof of the net.

The visitors doubled their lead three minutes later when Abraham picked up a loose ball in the area and finished past Rui Patricio.

Abraham got his second just before the break when he produced a fine header from a Marcos Alonso cross.

The striker completed his hat trick early in the second half when he collected a long pass from Jorginho and dinked the ball into the net.

With seven goals in five games, the 21-year-old Abraham is now the Premier League's top scorer, one ahead of Manchester City's Sergio Aguero.

"I hope this is my season. I have to keep working hard in every training session, every game. Every game I want to prove myself to the gaffer," he said.

The hosts scored two goals late on through an Abraham own goal and Patrick Cutrone but Mason Mount scored Chelsea's fifth with the last kick of the game.

Wolves coach Nuno Espirito Santo was deeply disappointed by his side's performance, which featured plenty of slick passing but very little in the way of defensive stability.

"That was a bad, bad performance. We started the game well but the mistakes we made, we cannot go and repeat them. We know they cannot happen again," he said.

"It was defensive errors, the game changed with the goal. We lost concentration. I am dissatisfied. There is no point being angry at them, but I need them to get better."

Chelsea, who host Liverpool next week, are up to sixth on eight points while Wolves, who visit Crystal Palace looking for their first win of the season, are 19th on three points.

7/10 Maguire keeps former club Leicester quiet

Published in Soccer
Saturday, 14 September 2019 10:33

MANCHESTER, England -- An early Marcus Rashford penalty proved to be decisive as Manchester United secured their first win since the opening day of the season with a 1-0 victory against Leicester City on Saturday.

Positives

United's penalty demons have been banished, for the time being at least, thanks to Rashford's assured finish from the spot in the eighth minute. Meanwhile, a first clean sheet since the 4-0 victory over Chelsea in August will do Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side the world of good.

Negatives

Early goals tend to open games up, but United were unable to capitalise on a great start. A distinct lack of creativity will be a cause for concern ahead of the start of their Europa League campaign next week.

Manager rating out of 10

7 -- The absence of Paul Pogba meant Solskjaer had to freshen things up in midfield, and his decision to star Nemanja Matic gave the United side a much more solid look when out of possession.

Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best, players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

GK David De Gea, 7 -- A great save with his feet to deny James Maddison early on, and had to be alert to tip over a long-range Ben Chilwell effort on the half-hour mark.

DF Aaron Wan-Bissaka, 6 -- A typical no-nonsense display from the 21-year-old. Never troubled out wide by an often tricky Leicester attack, but didn't get forward to do much attacking of his own.

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DF Victor Lindelof, 6 -- An uncertain start saw him get himself in an almighty mess to give Maddison a glorious chance in the opening five minutes, but recovered well to deliver an assured display.

DF Harry Maguire, 7 -- Plenty of attention on the former Leicester man in the buildup, but had a relatively quiet afternoon, with Jamie Vardy providing very little threat in the final third.

DF Ashley Young, 6 -- A cagey first half meant he had little to do from a defensive point of view, but as Leicester grew in belief he was given a stiffer examination in the final half hour, particularly after the introduction of Leicester's Ayoze Perez.

MF Scott McTominay, 7 -- A performance full of aggression and enterprise from a player who has had a good start to the season. The Scotland international drove his team forward, and enjoyed a well-fought physical battle with Maddison.

MF Nemanja Matic, 6 -- The Serbian was making his first Premier League start of the season, and looked rusty at times on the ball, and was replaced with a quarter of the game remaining when he started to look leggy, although his presence made the United unit a tough one to break down.

MF Andreas Pereira, 7 -- Forced a good save from Kasper Schmeichel with an early free kick from the corner of the penalty area. A solid, energetic display from the Brazilian.

MF Juan Mata, 6 -- Given the free role by Solskjaer in behind Rashford, the Spaniard knitted things together nicely in the United midfield without providing that extra moment of quality needed in a game that never quite caught a spark. Replaced by youngster Tahith Chong for the final 20 minutes.

MF Daniel James, 6 -- Didn't see as much of the ball when compared to previous games, but chipped in with occasional moments of danger to give Leicester food for thought. Booked for a challenge on Maddison late on. Replaced in injury time by Axel Tuanzebe.

FW Marcus Rashford, 7 -- Clever play to draw the foul from Caglar Soyuncu for the early United penalty, which he confidently dispatched, and almost added to his tally in sublime passion with a curling free kick that crashed off the bar in the closing stages.

Substitutes

MF Fred, 6 -- Came on for his first appearance of the season in an attempt to stifle the creativity of Maddison, and the Brazilian provided some excellent pressing to break up Leicester's build-up play.

MF Tahith Chong, 6 -- Slotted into the No. 10 role and showed some nice flashes of skill to beat defenders. An encouraging cameo from the 19-year-old.

DF Axel Tuanzebe, N/R -- Not enough time to make an impact.

LIVE: Man City visit Norwich

Published in Soccer
Saturday, 14 September 2019 10:10

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Australian selection to be overhauled for T20 era

Published in Cricket
Saturday, 14 September 2019 08:46

Australia's selection panel is to be overhauled over the next six months, with the imminent retirement of Greg Chappell and the expiry of Trevor Hohns' contract at the end of the home summer ushering a generational change to better reflect the Twenty20 era the game has now spent more than a decade in.

Reshaping the way Australian teams are chosen is a key plank of the job for the new head of national teams Ben Oliver, who commenced his role at the outset of the Ashes series after a lengthy interim stint by Belinda Clark. Kevin Roberts, the Cricket Australia chief executive, has flagged it to be one of the first issues he and Oliver will address upon his return home from England, via a brief visit to Pakistan that is part of CA's wider efforts to improve relationships with other boards.

Nevertheless, there have already been plenty of moves afoot around the selection area, ever since ESPNcricinfo revealed that Chappell would exit at the end of the Ashes. Discussions have revolved around whether or not the current panel format should be retained or pared down to a single selection convener working with the national team coach Justin Langer and the state and Big Bash League coaches, and also the need for more contemporary voices, particularly relevant to T20. The likes of Cameron White and Michael Klinger have been raised as possible selectors, though there is also a view that selection, complete with an ever more comprehensive use of statistics and analytics, is a skill requiring more than playing experience.

"Certainly we need to take into account the sorts of experience that are required," Roberts said. "If you look at the shape of the panel now, one of the things we'd like to have more of in the future is more experience in T20 games as an example. So rather than targeting an individual person, it's really about determining what are the characteristics or capabilities we need among the panel and who are the people in Australian cricket who can fulfil those.

"I think it's knowledge of the T20 game, whether it be playing, coaching, and various other roles in the T20 game. So I probably wouldn't describe it as generational change but I would absolutely say it is a matter of having a really deep knowledge of T20 cricket. A lot of Australians have been involved in the IPL and the BBL as well and some of those are young, some are not so young. Really it's about the experience they've had as opposed to when they might've been born.

A hallmark of Roberts' tenure so far has been to repeatedly emphasise the need for deeper and better relationships between CA and the state associations, something he said needed also to be reflected in the way selection was done. "The main thing I would say is certain is that we need to deepen the links through the state system and domestic competitions and make sure that we've got the best possible view of all players who are in contention to play," Roberts said.

"What sort of form are they in, how's their physical health, how's their mental well-being. That's a key consideration these days in all walks of life and the same certainly goes for players. One of the benefits of splitting the old role and having Ben Oliver playing the national teams role and Drew Ginn the high performance role working with the states is Drew can then work with the states and make sure we've got a very clear overview of the top X number of players, their position in terms of form, physical and mental well-being and everything else that contributes to how they're going as a player. I'm really looking forward to that coming to fruition too."

"I don't think there's another leader in Australian men's cricket that could've done the job that Tim Paine has done over the last 18 months." CA chief Kevin Roberts

Following the successful retention of the Ashes, the next major goals for Australian cricket are the women's and men's Twenty20 World Cups on home soil in 2020, while balancing a sustained bid to contest the first World Test Championship final in 2021. Roberts was rich in his praise for Langer and the Test captain Tim Paine, declaring that no other figure in Australian cricket could have led the team through the choppy waters of 2018 and into the success of this Ashes tour.

"I don't think there's another leader in Australian men's cricket that could've done the job that he's done over the last 18 months," Roberts said. "I also think he's only been able to do that job because if you think about his challenges over the years he was almost out of the game for a number of years with a smashed finger. He gained some life experience during that time that's really set him up to be the leader that he is and without that I'm not sure he could've done it the way that he has.

"We've just been so happy with the way he's led from the front and there's no thought of succession planning at this stage. He's got our support to continue leading from the front the way that he has done so far. We couldn't be happier with the performance of Justin or Tim in terms of the cultural transformation of the men's team and what that's contributed to Australian cricket more broadly."

Most pointedly, the Australians have avoided run-ins with officialdom or opponents since the Newlands scandal, returning a clear rap sheet in terms of ICC code of conduct breaches for more than 18 months. "Look at the commitment they've made to make Australians proud, and also the commitment we've all made as an organisation," Roberts said. "We've said before it's a professional sport so the goal will always be to win and we shouldn't hide from that.

"The opposition should always know they're in a contest when they play against Australian but at the same time the non-negotiable expectation we have of ourselves on and off the field is we compete with respect. And Justin has really led that strongly, a values-driven culture. Tim has complemented Justin brilliantly and led with real courage. They deserve huge credit. There's been so many milestones in the way the men's team has performed on the field, but the way they've done it as well.

"If you look at the code of conduct charges, or the lack thereof, over the Australian summer, no code of conduct charges against the men's team - first time in many many years and not surprisingly that saw a similar trend right across Australian cricket because of the role models the men are. The women's team are obviously outstanding ambassadors for the game and for our country as well. It's brilliant to know I can sleep soundly at night in the knowledge we've got a men's team and a women's team living the sort of values and behaviours that we aspire to as a sport."

As for the use of the Dukes ball in Sheffield Shield cricket, something that better equipped the likes of Marnus Labuschagne, Matthew Wade and Michael Neser for their selection on this tour, Roberts indicated that CA should maintain a habit of ensuring players are bred to be versatile. "I think if you ask Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Steven Smith they'd say it's been tremendously successful, coming into this day Josh and Pat were averaging less than 20 and going for about two and a half runs an over and of course Steve has shot the lights out with the bat," he said. "In all seriousness we need to keep preparing our players to play in different conditions overseas, whether it be the swinging ball or the spinning ball."

Injured Deandra Dottin misses out on West Indies T20I squad

Published in Cricket
Saturday, 14 September 2019 09:18

A still recovering Deandra Dottin couldn't make it to West Indies women's squad to face Australia women in a three-match T20I series starting on Saturday. There were several other senior players making way as well, including opener Hayley Matthews who had been suspended from taking part in the recently concluded ODI series between both teams.

West Indies haven't played any T20I cricket since June, when they beat Ireland 3-0 but lost to England 1-0, with two matches washed out. Six of the players who went to the UK could not find a place in this squad, making way for new face such as wicketkeeper Reniece Boyce, offspinner Sheneta Grimmond and allrounder Shabika Gajnabi. Both players - in fact all 13 members - were part of the squad that had been picked for the third ODI against Australia earlier this week.

Kycia Knight remains sidelined by a back injury she picked up during those 50-over games while legspinner Anisa Mohammed makes a T20 comeback having played her last short-format game in February 2019.

Raptors launch branded hijabs in fan outreach

Published in Basketball
Saturday, 14 September 2019 10:04

TORONTO -- The Raptors say a new line of team-branded hijabs is part of an effort to be more inclusive to fans of all cultures.

The team's parent company, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, unveiled the Nike Pro hijabs emblazoned with the team logo in a social media post Friday. The Raptors say they are the first NBA team to offer an athletic hijab for Muslim women.

MLSE senior marketing director Jerry Ferguson says the organization was inspired to create the hijabs by a local Muslim women's organization known as the Hijabi Ballers. The women regularly play basketball at a community court associated with the team.

Ferguson told The Canadian Press the Raptors organization wants to send a message of inclusion to its diverse fan base, which grew substantially during last season's run to the team's first NBA title.

"One of the things that we are very interested in is moving from saying we are just about inclusivity and accessibility, and finding ways to bring products and ideas to market that actually prove that," he said by phone.

The International Basketball Federation and FIFA lifted bans on head coverings in recent years.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims praised the Hijabi Ballers for spurring the Raptors to act. Mustafa Farooq, the council's executive director, acknowledged that the issue of hijabs in sports has proved divisive. Opponents have called them a symbol of oppression.

"It's hard for me to understand that," Farooq said. "One of the beautiful things about sports is that everyone can play. Highlighting that ... everyone should get a shot is such a beautiful thing to do, so obviously we thank the Raptors for taking this step."

Jays' Mayza has torn UCL following painful pitch

Published in Baseball
Saturday, 14 September 2019 10:47

Toronto Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza will undergo Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow.

The news comes a day after Mayza dropped to his knees in pain after delivering an awkward pitch that sailed behind New York Yankees batter Didi Gregorius.

Mayza clutched his pitching arm and covered his face with his right hand as concerned teammates gathered around him at the mound. He left the field with a team trainer.

Friday's game marked Mayza's team-high 68th appearance of the year, tied for fourth most in the American League, though he has had at least two days off after his previous four appearances. He is 1-3 with a 4.91 ERA on the season.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Robbie Henshaw is reported to be a fitness concern for Ireland's World Cup opener against Scotland on 22 September because of a hamstring injury.

The Irish Times is among media outlets reporting that the Leinster centre has suffered the injury.

Henshaw, 26, looked set to partner Bundee Aki in the Ireland midfield after the duo impressed in the final warm-up win over Wales last weekend.

Garry Ringrose or Chris Farrell would be in line to replace Henshaw.

If Henshaw's injury puts his entire World Cup participation under threat, Ulster's utility back Will Addison is the obvious candidate to be drafted into Joe Schmidt's squad.

Addison was scheduled to start at full-back for Ulster in Saturday's pre-season friendly in Glasgow but a late change saw him dropping to the replacements.

Henshaw missed Ireland's two opening games at the 2015 World Cup because of a hamstring injury, although he played in his country's final three games in the tournament.

Will Inkster's decision to sit the Kordas pay off?

Published in Golf
Saturday, 14 September 2019 03:09

GLENEAGLES, Scotland – The Korda sisters were benched Saturday afternoon at the Solheim Cup.

Though Jessica and Nelly Korda are both undefeated, each with 2-0-1 records this week, U.S. captain Juli Inkster will rest them in the fourballs session.

Is it a mistake?

Even Brittany Lincicome, a six-time Solheim Cup veteran, with two of those appearances with Inkster as her captain, can’t help wondering.

Inkster is 2-0 as the American skipper, and she’s sticking with a strategy that has worked well in both her team’s victories. She has never played anyone in all five matches since becoming the U.S. captain. She wants all her players rested for the vital Sunday singles finish.

Though it is a strategy that has worked well for Inkster, it is bound to be second guessed if the Americans lose this week.

Europe’s Catriona Matthew will play her Spaniards, Carlota Ciganda and Azahara Munoz, in all five matches this week.

The Korda sisters didn’t seem bothered by the decision after they teamed to win another foursomes match in a rout Saturday morning. They defeated Ciganda and Bronte Law, 6 and 5. They beat Caroline Masson and Jodi Ewart Shadoff, 6 and 4, in Friday’s opening foursomes session. The Kordas were split up for Friday fourballs, with each winning a half-point with their new partners.

“We’re going to rest up today and give it our all tomorrow,” Nelly Korda said.

Inkster didn’t play anyone all five sessions when she was captain two years ago in Iowa, nor when she led the team in Germany four years ago, even with her team facing large deficits all weekend. Inkster’s team was down 8-4 going into Saturday foursomes in Germany and she still sat Michelle Wie, Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel and Angela Stanford in that last session of partnered play to give all her players rest.

This strategy of resting everyone has become an American staple. No U.S. player has competed in all five matches since Creamer did so in Ireland in 2011, with Rosie Jones as her captain. Cristie Kerr was also scheduled to go five matches that week but withdrew from Sunday singles with a wrist injury. American captain Beth Daniel didn’t play anyone five matches in ’09 when she led the team to victory at Rich Harvest Farms outside Chicago.

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