SPORT | 14

Coleman must be

more responsible

after missed

tests: Noah Lyles

SPORTXavi back in

business as Al Sadd

vow to fight ‘until

the last minute’

SPORT | 15

MONDAY 3 AUGUST 2020

Hamilton wins British GP on 3 wheelsAFP – SILVERSTONE

World championship leader Lewis Hamilton survived a tense last lap drama with a deflated and shredded tyre to clinch a record seventh victory in yesterday’s British Grand Prix, claiming “my heart almost stopped”.

The six-time world champion led from lights to flag, and through two Safety Car interventions, before he suffered a front left tyre failure on his final lap, leaving him to nurse his Mercedes home with second-placed Max Verstappen in hot pursuit in his Red Bull.

He finished 5.9 seconds behind.The Dutchman had inherited second

when Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas, running comfortably in second for most of the contest, was hit by the same problem, his front-left delami-nating and deflating on his penultimate lap.

The Finn limped back to the pits and fin-ished pointless in 11th place while his rivals slowed to preserve their rubber, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc taking third place behind Verstappen ahead of Daniel Ricciardo of Renault and Lando Norris of McLaren.

Hamilton’s victory was the 87th of his career and moved him within four of Michael Schumacher’s record of 91.

Norris’s team-mate Carlos Sainz was also a puncture victim in the closing laps of an exciting race that saw him fall from fourth to 13th.

Esteban Ocon finished sixth in the second Renault ahead of Pierre Gasly of Alpha Tauri, Alex Albon in the second Red Bull, Lance Stroll of Racing Point and four-time champion Sebastian Vettel, in his final season with Ferrari.

“In the last few laps, I started to back off and then on the last lap, it just deflated,” said Hamilton.

“It was heart in the mouth. I nearly didn’t get round the last two corners. I was man-aging it and praying to get round and not be too slow.

“I have definitely never experienced any-thing like that on the last lap and my heart definitely nearly stopped.”

In the drivers championship, he leads with 88 points after four races, a lead of 30 ahead of the luckless Bottas.

|”It was lucky and unlucky for us,” said Verstappen.

“The Mercedes were too quick. The tyres didn’t look great with 10 laps to go and then Valtteri got a puncture and they boxed me to go for fastest lap... Second is a good result.”

Leclerc said: “It was a tricky race - as soon as I heard Valtteri had a tyre problem, I slowed down quite a lot. We took our opportunities.” On another bright, but windy day, Hamilton overcame an imperfect start from his 91st pole position and record seventh in Britain.

He led as he pulled clear before a final corner collision, on the opening lap, involving Kevin Magnussen and the luckless Albon led to the first deployment of a Safety Car.

The Dane’s Haas car was on the outside of Albon’s Red Bull, with the Thai driver refusing to concede, when they crashed and Magnussen spun into a gravel trap, his front left wheel smashing off in the barriers.

The stewards blamed Albon and gave him a five-second penalty.

The Safety Car led the field for five laps before handing back to Hamilton who stayed in control until lap 13 when Daniil

Kvyat suffered a right rear puncture and crashed heavily at Maggots, where both rear wheels smashed off his Alpha Tauri.

He was unhurt, but a second Safety Car was required for five laps while debris was cleared.

This reduced the field to 17, Nico Hulkenberg having failed to start on his dra-matic return, with Racing Point, as stand-in for coronavirus victim Sergio Perez.

T h e interruptions did nothing to halt Mercedes’ progress at the front, Hamilton and Bottas pulling clear of

Verstappen with some ease.

By lap 30, the gap was eight

s e c o n d s w i t h

Leclerc 14 seconds adrift.

Behind them, Grosjean and Sainz were engaged in a fierce battle for fifth, which saw the Frenchman weaving to resist at Brooklands.

The Frenchman continued his aggressive approach, however, in a duel with Ricciardo.

It was duly noted by the stewards as more “moving under braking”. Ric-ciardo called it “sketchy”.

Championship leader clinches seventh victory at Silverstone with a shredded tyre

FORMULA ONE: BRITISH GP1. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1 h 29:51.105, 2. Max Verstappen (NED/

Red Bull-Honda) at 5.856, 3. Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) 18.474, 4. Daniel

Ricciardo (AUS/Renault) 19.650, 5. Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren-Renault)

22.277, 6. Esteban Ocon (FRA/Renault) 26.937, 7. Pierre Gasly (FRA/

AlphaTauri-Honda) 31.188, 8. Alexander Albon (THA/Red Bull-Honda) 32.670,

9. Lance Stroll (CAN/Racing Point-Mercedes) 37.311, 10. Sebastian Vettel (GER/

Ferrari) 41.857,

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

DRIVERS:1. Lewis Hamilton (GBR) 88 pts,

2. Valtteri Bottas (FIN) 58, 3.

Max Verstappen (NED) 52, 4.

Lando Norris (GBR) 36, 5.

Charles Leclerc (MON) 33,

6. Alexander Albon (THA)

26, 7. Sergio Pérez (MEX)

22, 8. Lance Stroll (CAN) 20,

9. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS)

20, 10. Carlos Sainz (ESP)

15

T h e interruptions did nothing to halt Mercedes’ progress at the front, Hamilton andBottas pulling clear of

Verstappen with some ease.

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CHINTHANA WASALA THE PENINSULA

Goals from Mohammed Muntari (4) and substitute Paulo Edmilson (80) helped title-chasers Al Duhail go four points clear at the top of the QNB Stars League (QSL) standings following a 2-0 win over Al Gharafa at Al Sadd Stadium yesterday.

Al Duhail now have 46 points in their account as the Slavisa Jokanovic-coached side moved one step closer to secure the coveted Falcon Shield.

Al Rayyan, on Saturday, had the opportunity to take the lead in the points table, but a disappointing goalless draw against Al Arabi dented their hopes.

Al Duhail, who were held by Umm Salal in a one-all draw in their first match after the resumption of the League on July 25, had beaten Al Gharafa 2-1 in the first leg.

For Al Gharafa, who had beaten Al Arabi 1-0 last week, Al Duhail proved to be too strong to handle, but they managed to remain in the top four despite the loss.

Defender Sultan Al Breik had a role in Al Duhail’s both goals as he provided the assists for Muntari and Edmilson.

Muntari was on target as he sent home a rebound after Almoez Ali’s shot came off the rival defence, with

Karim Boudiaf setting the stage with a chested-down cross from Al Breik.

Al Gharafa struck back through Jonathan Kodjia, their missed the opportunity to score as the hero in victory over Al Arabi sent his shot wide.

Al Duhail could have scored two more but Asim Madibo and Almoez's efforts were spoiled by Al Gharafa custodian Qasim Burhan,

Edmilson, who replaced Almoez, brought them result as the Belgian midfielder doubled their lead by directing Al Breik’s cross into the net.

Al Duhail’s Han Kwang-Song then headed the ball against the right

post off a free-kick from Ali Afif, both being substitutes.

Earlier, Al Khor and Al Wakrah played out a 1-1 draw.

Mohamed Benyettou put Al Wakrah ahead in the 17th minute, while Lucca Borges pulled Al Khor level in the 67th minute.

Al Khor and Al Wakrah now have 15 and 21 points respectively.

Al Khor were fighting to avoid relegation, while Al Wakrah, playing in the top flight after a gap of two seasons, were looking to improve their position in the league.

It was Al Wakrah’s second suc-cessive draw, following their goalless result against Al Sailiya in Week 18.

Their first-leg match also ended in a draw, with both teams failing to score.

Al Sadd star Afif suffers ankle injuryTHE PENINSULA – DOHA

Al Sadd's star Akram Afif (pictured) has been ruled out of action for the upcoming period due to an ankle injury sustained while training, the club announced yesterday.

"After a medical examination, the extent of the injury was revealed and the Qatari inter-national will now require 3-4 weeks of treatment and recuperation before rejoining the team for training," a report on Club website said yesterday.

That would mean the AFC Player of the Year will miss few games in the QNB Stars League, including today's Round 19 clash against Al Ahli, which will be played at Al Janoub Stadium.

ROUND 19RESULTS

Al Rayyan 0 - 0 Al Arabi

Al Sailiya 2 - 2 Al Shahania

Al Khor 1 - 1 Al Wakrah

Al Gharafa 0 - 2 Al Duhail

TODAY'S FIXTURESAl Ahli vs Al Sadd at Al Janoub Stadium (16:30)

Qatar SC vs Umm Salal at Al Sadd Stadium

(18:45)

ROUND 19

Al Duhail's Mohammed Muntari (left) celebrates after scoring the first goal against Al Gharafa, yesterday.

Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton inspects his punctured tyre after the race.

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton on his way to win his seventh British Grand Prix title with a punctured tyre on the last lap at the Silverstone Circuit in Silverstone, yesterday.

Al Duhail beat Al Gharafa to go four points clear

On the fourth tee I said to Tim,

‘This is so much fun. I’m having so

much fun because I can feel my

game turn around. I’m starting

to play well again. I’m starting to

putt well and starting to drive the

ball well ... I just think the results

are going to start to slowly come

back: Phil Mickelson.Mickelson was one-over-par

through three holes during the

third round at the WGC

FedEx St. Jude Invitational

on Saturday but still

felt inspired to send

his brother and

caddie a positive

message.

14 MONDAY 3 AUGUST 2020SPORT

Merritt makes eight birdies to grab PGA Barracuda leadAFP – LOS ANGELES

American Troy Merritt made eight birdies against two bogeys to grab 14 points on Saturday and seize the lead after three rounds of the US PGA Barracuda Champi-onship.

The unique event uses a Modified Stableford scoring system that awards points for birdies, eagles and all sub-par scores but subtracts points for bogeys and worse with no points for par.

Merritt, whose PGA titles include the 2015 National and the 2018 Barbasol Championship, opened and closed his front nine with back-to-back birdies and closed his round with double birdies again at 17 and 18.

That lifted Merritt to 33 points and put him atop the leaderboard at the Old Greenwood course at Tahoe Mountain Club in Truckee, California.

Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo, who made six birdies against a lone bogey for 11 points in Saturday, and American Maverick McNeeley shared second on 29 total points with American Robert Streb another point back in fourth.

Todd hangs on to lead ahead of final round in MemphisREUTERS – MEMPHIS

Brendon Todd held on to the lead at the WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational on Saturday, despite an uneven third round that saw him hit four bogeys and five birdies to finish the day at a one-under par 69.

Todd, who sunk a 22-foot putt for a birdie on eight, said he was battling with his swing throughout the day.

“I was just fading a little bit more off the tee than I would like to. And I generally do fade the ball a little bit off the tee, but I missed a handful of fairways,” said Todd, who won two PGA Tour titles on consecutive starts last November.

“You know, a yard right and that was just far enough from the fairway to end up with a pretty bad lie and not have a chance to get to the green.”

The 35-year-old American shot back-to-back birdies on 12 and 13, only to land in the water on 14, a costly mistake that rattled his typically calm demeanor.

“That’s the easiest to put on the green, to not hit in the water,” said Todd. “It was a swing that was out of rhythm that was a little bit too often today and to know I hit the water there, it made me pretty mad.” An Byeong-hun sits one stroke behind Todd headed into Sunday’s final round. He landed in the water for a double-bogey on 11 before sinking four back-to-back birdies on 13 through 16, finishing with a four-under-par 66 at the fanless event.

Returning champion Brooks Koepka (68) slipped to fourth, shooting a double bogey on two and a bogey on six, before redeeming himself with five birdies on the back nine.

Van Niekerk tests positive for COVID-19

REUTERS – MILAN

South Africa’s Olympic 400 metres champion Wayde van Niekerk tested positive for

COVID-19 in Italy last week.

Van Niekerk, who romped to Olympic gold four years ago in a world record time of 43.03

seconds, was set to partic-ipate in a meet in Trieste - his first competition outside of South Africa since 2017.

“I don’t know how it’s possible. Wayde has been training for the whole week and never had any symptom, not even after testing pos-itive. He hasn’t had a fever,” his manager Peet Van Zyl said.

Coleman must be more responsible after missed tests: LylesREUTERS – LONDON

World 200 metres champion Noah Lyles (pictured) has said fellow American sprinter Christian Coleman must show more responsibility after he was provisionally suspended for breaching whereabouts rules.

Coleman, the 100m world champion, narrowly escaped a ban last year for missing three doping tests but was suspended in June after again breaching the rules. He may now miss next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Lyles, who along with Coleman was part of the United States relay team that won the 4x100m gold at the world championships in 2019, said a potential

ban for his 24-year-old team mate could hurt their chances at the Tokyo Games.

“You are just hoping for a little more responsibility,” Lyles told the BBC.

“It hurts because we want to go to Tokyo and aim for the world record.”

Lyles, 23, had previously told US media that his relationship with Coleman was not good, but he said he did not want to see his compatriot banned.

Three failures to properly file whereabouts information or being absent at the hour stated, all within a 12-month period, can result in a one- or two-year suspension.

“You don’t wish anyone to be

missing tests. That’s the quickest way to an accidental suspension. It hurts to see it in the track world,” Lyles added.

“The whereabouts system has been pretty easy for me. I believe I’ve had two instances where I missed tests, one their fault, one mine. They happened in completely different years and ever since then I haven’t had any missed tests.

“If you have missed one, defi-nitely get someone to watch over that for you, to be that nagging voice in your ear,” he said.

Lowry shines as Raptors restart NBA title defenceAFP – MIAMI

Kyle Lowry scored 33 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lift the defending NBA champion Toronto Raptors over the Los Angeles Lakers 107-92 in a showdown of title contenders yesterday.

Lakers star LeBron James scored 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while Anthony Davis added 14 points, but the Lakers suf-fered their worst shooting per-formance of the season, hitting 35.8 percent from the floor making just 29 of 82 shots.

“Against a couple of great guys, we came in wanting to play well and we did a good job,” Lowry said.

James went 7-of-15 from the floor while his fellow starters com-bined for a 5-of-24 shooting effort, their combined 42 points a season low.

“We just have to step up and knock them down,” James said.

“When you make shots, it loosens up the defense and we didn’t do that.”

The Lakers-Raptors matchup was the feature contest on the third day of regular-season games in a bubble quarantine atmosphere at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, as the NBA restarts after a four-month COVID-19 shutdown.

The Lakers, atop the Western Conference at 50-15, and Toronto, second in the Eastern Conference at 47-18, are both preparing for the playoff fight to come.

“Time will tell,” James said. “We’ll use these eight games to try and gear up for the post-season but it’s going to take time. Every game is an opportunity for us to get better.” Toronto took a 13-0 lead as

the Lakers went 4:51 before scoring, but the Lakers rallied within 23-21 after the first quarter.

“They have a great defense,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said.

“We did some good things, just didn’t capitalize.” A 22-3 spurt early in the third quarter pulled Toronto ahead 63-50 and a 7-0 run with James on the Lakers bench in the fourth quarter sealed the victory.

“We just got aggressive, wanted to go out there and get the win,” Lowry said.

“We were out there doing too much talking. We just wanted to lock in and do our jobs.”

The Los Angeles Clippers set a team record with 25 three-point baskets in a 126-103 romp over the New Orleans Pelicans.

Paul George scored 28 points and Kawhi Leonard, a key player in Toronto’s 2019 title run before joining LA, added 24 to lead the Clippers, who improved to 45-21.

The Clippers seized a 77-45 halftime lead and cruised after falling to the Lakers on Thursday.

“As a group, we thought we weren’t ourselves (against the Lakers),” said George.

“We tried to get our identity back. We put the work in and it paid off in the end.” The Clippers hit 25-of-47 shots from three-point range, led by Paul George’s 8-for-11 touch from beyond the arc, although he went 0-for-6 from

two-point range. The Pelicans were led by reserve Nickeil Alex-ander-Walker’s 15 points. Rookie sensation Zion Williamson had seven points and five rebounds.

Indiana’s TJ Warren scored 53 points in powering the Pacers over the Philadelphia 76ers 127-121.

Warren hit 20-of-29 shots from the floor, 9-of-12 from three-point range, and sank 4-of-4 from the free throw line.

Victor Oladipo and Aaron Holiday each added 15 points for Indiana, who improved to 40-26, a game ahead of the Sixers.

Cameroonian star big man Joel Embiid scored 41 points on 15-of-23 shooting and grabbed a game-high 21 rebounds for the Sixers. Tobias Harris added 30 points and Australian guard Ben Simmons had 19 points and 13 rebounds.

Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each scored 22 points and Kylly Olynyk added 20 off the bench to lead the Miami Heat over Denver 125-105.

The Heat, 42-24, stayed two games in front of Indiana at fourth in the East while the Nuggets, led by 19 points each from Nikola Jokic and reserve Jerami Grant, fell to 43-23 but stayed third in the West.

Oklahoma City pulled within a half-game of Utah for fourth in the West by thumping the Jazz 110-94. Utah (42-24) trailed 66-42 at halftime and never recovered.

The Thunder (41-24) boasted six double-figure scorers, led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with 19 points, Chris Paul with 18 and New Zealander Steven Adams, who had 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.

MLB: Judge homers again, Yankees sink Red Sox

AGENCIES - NEW YORK

Aaron Judge homered for a career-high fourth straight game, Gio Urshela hit his first career grand slam and the New York Yankees continued their hot start to the abbreviated season with a 5-2 victory over the visiting Boston Red Sox on Saturday night.

The Yankees won their fifth straight thanks to the early power by Judge and Urshela and now have 14 homers in their first seven games while getting off to a 6-1 start.

Xander Bogaerts hit a two-run double off Masahiro Tanaka as Boston lost for the 10th time in its last 11 games at Yankee Stadium, including the fifth straight. Tanaka returned from a mild concussion -- sus-tained when he was struck by a line drive by Giancarlo Stanton on July 4 -- and allowed two runs on three hits in 2 2/3 innings. He struck out three, walked one, threw 51 pitches and was lifted after Bogaerts doubled.

Angels 5, Astros 4 (10 innings)

Michael Hermosillo’s sacrifice fly scored Matt Thaiss from third base in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift Los Angeles over Houston in Anaheim, Calif. The Angels began the 10th with Thaiss on second base, and David Fletcher moved him to third with a single to right field.

After Brian Goodwin struck out and Anthony Rendon was intentionally walked, Hermosillo lifted a fly ball to right field off Nivaldo Rodriguez (0-1) deep enough to score Thaiss and give the Angels the win.

Astros starter Zack Greinke was sharp from the outset. He was perfect through 5 1/3 innings, retiring the first 16 batters he faced until Taylor Ward singled with one out in the sixth. The Angels then surged to a 3-1 lead before the Astros jumped ahead 4-3 in the ninth, only for Los Angeles to force extra innings.

Dodgers 11, Diamond-backs 2

Los Angeles powered up for four home runs, including a three-run shot from Chris Taylor, on its way past Arizona in Phoenix.

Edwin Rios and Matt Beatty made the most of their infrequent chance to be in the lineup, each hitting a home run, and AJ Pollock added a two-run shot. Justin Turner just missed a home run, settling for a two-run triple, and hot-hitting Corey Seager had two hits.

MLB RESULTSAthletics 3, Mariners 2 (10

innings)Orioles 5, Rays 4 (11

innings)Cubs 4, Pirates 3

Twins 3, Indians 0Braves 7, Mets 1

Giants 7, Rangers 3White Sox 11, Royals 5

REUTERS – MILA

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Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (left) shoots the ball against Los Angeles Lakers guard JR Smith during the second half of their NBA game at The Arena, in Lake Buena Vista, USA, on Saturday.

Kawhi Leonard (left) of the LA Clippers looks to shoot at the basket during the NBA game against while New Orleans Pelicans at HP Field House at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on Saturday.

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Brendon Todd of the United States reacts on the 12th hole during the third round of the World Golf Championship-FedEx St Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, on Saturday.

NBA RESLTSMiami 125 - Denver 105

Oklahoma City 110 - Utah 94 LA Clippers 126 - New Orleans

103 Indiana 127 - Philadelphia 121

FAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

Coach Xavi Hernandez will return to Al Sadd dug out after missing his team’s previous QNB Stars League (QSL) round match due to COVID-19, hoping to guide his ranks to victory over Al Ahli today.

Xavi contracted coronavirus which he announced last Saturday, witnessing his team defeating Al Khor in Round 18 while in quarantine.

He joined Al Sadd’s training session on Wednesday and is feeling ‘perfect’ as Al Sadd take on Al Ahli in Round 19 at Al Janoub Stadium.

“Yes, thanks to God, I did not feel anything with the virus during the last two weeks that I spent in the hotel, in quarantine. I feel 100% now, I feel perfect and I’m very happy to return to training normally and I am also very happy to return to normal life with the family at home,” said Xavi at a pre-match press conference.

“I am very happy and excited to return to the bench and thankfully, we had a really good game against Al Khor, after 3-4 months without competing,” he added.

Al Sadd who are third in the points standings with 35 points – eight points behind leaders Al Duhail – have an outside chance to claim top spot as the

league nears conclusion. The Barcelona legend said his team was just focusing on winning the remaining matches.

“We will play against Al Ahli and hopefully we can win again. We still have 4 finals; of course, it’s really difficult to win this league because we can’t depend on just ourselves but until the end, we will compete. This is Al Sadd, we are winners and we will compete until the last minute in these four finals,” said Xavi

“We have to win. Of course, we are favourites, but we have to show our strength on the pitch as well. We have been training well and I am very happy with the performance of the players in training and also in the last game,” he added.

Al Sadd player Hossam Kamal said: “We are ready for the next game against Al Ahli. It will be difficult, our victory against Al Khor is a motivation for us to provide a better level against a strong opponent. I hope that we will show a good level in this match and the upcoming matches because our target is to win all of them.

“We faced some difficulties in the Al Khor match and that was the first after the break. We could have ended up losing the three points, but the players’ desire to win prevailed and we have to work hard in the coming period to reach the best level.”

Meanwhile, Al Ahli coach N e b o j s a Jovovic said his team will look to bounce back setback against Al Shahania.

“I will not look for excuses in the upcoming games. We know our team’s problems during the

match against Al Shahania. The players must take advantage of

the Al Sadd match and provide their best,” said Jovovic.

“Al Sadd are a strong team and have distinguished players who represent the

national team. We respect them a lot, but that does not mean we will be

pushovers. "Our aim to

achieve a p o s i t i v e r e s u l t . After the Al Shahania m a t c h , there was no choice but to work to correct

mistakes. We have a good

g r o u p o f players and I

have big confi-dence in them and their abilities

in order to achieve the required result,” he added.

15MONDAY 3 AUGUST 2020 SPORT

Xavi back in business as Al Sadd vow to fight ‘until the last minute’

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very happy to return to training

normally and I am also very

happy to return to normal life

with the family at home: Al Sadd coach Xavi Hernandez

Xavi Hernandez

Manchester City could be tested by counter-attacking Real, says RooneyREUTERS —LONDON

Manchester City struggle to prevent the best teams from scoring against them and their central defenders could be targeted in Friday’s Champions League clash against Spanish champions Real Madrid, former England skipper Wayne Rooney said.

Pep Guardiola’s (pictured) Man-chester City lead Real after they won the away leg of their last-16 tie 2-1 in March, before Europe’s elite club compe-tition was s u s p e n d e d due to the COVID-19 pan-demic. Rooney, who won the com-petition with M a n c h e s t e r

United in 2008, said City have their best

opportunity yet to lift the trophy for the first time.

“City may never have a better chance to win the Cham-pions League,” Rooney wrote in his column for

the Sunday Times.

“Sergio Ramos is suspended which is a

huge loss to the Real defence and I think City will score. Whether they are solid enough

at the back them-selves is my only question.

“Real will target

their centre halves and it’s a worry that this season every other (Premier League) ‘Big Six’ club beat City... This shows Guardiola’s team can struggle to keep the best sides out.”

Rooney said he expected Real Madrid to allow Manchester City to dominate pos-session and then aim to hit them on the counter.

“I saw Zinedine Zidane do it in his first spell as Real coach when he played against Guardiola-style teams in big games, and it brought him successes,” Rooney added.

“Yet my money is still on City. They don’t have to chase the game. They don’t have to score. They can even afford to lose 1-0 and go through, and in the first leg they surprised Madrid by sitting in themselves.

“It was the first time I’ve seen Guardiola play like that and I’ve a feeling he’ll do the same at the Etihad. It could be a game of cat-and-mouse.”

Serie A: Juve crash in season finale

REUTERS — TURIN

Serie A champions Juventus suffered their first home league defeat for over two years when they finished the season by losing 3-1 against AS Roma on Saturday.

The Turin side, last beaten on their own ground in a Serie A match by Napoli in April 2018, have lost both their games since clinching the title one week ago and finished the campaign with 83 points, one ahead of Inter Milan.

Juventus, who host Olym-pique Lyonnais in a Cham-pions League round of 16, second leg on Friday, rested several regulars including Cristiano Ronaldo.

—LONDON

ter City struggle to prevent the best om scoring against them and their defenders could be targeted in Champions League clash againstchampions Real Madrid, former skipper Wayne Rooney said.

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Kyrgios pulls out of US Open over virus fearsAFP — SYDNEY

Outspoken Nick Kyrgios (pictured above) pulled out of the US Open yesterday, saying he was giving it a miss for “the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have lost their lives”.

His decision follows fellow Australian and world number one Ashleigh Barty last week withdrawing from the Grand Slam in New York, citing “sig-nificant risks” from the coro-navirus pandemic.

“Dear Tennis, I will not be playing this year at the US Open. It hurts me at my core,” Kyrgios said in a video posted on Twitter.

“But I’m sitting out for the people, for my Aussies, for the hundreds of thousands of Americans who have lost their lives, for all of you.”

The opinionated Kyrgios, ranked just 40 but a major drawcard, last month blasted the ATP as “selfish” for pressing ahead with plans for the US Open, which is scheduled to start in New York on August 31.

He has since waged a running battle on social media with some of the top names in the game who played at Novak Djokovic’s recent ill-fated Adria Tour tennis exhibition, blasting their “stupidity” and risky behaviour.

Djokovic, Grigor Dimitrov, Borna Coric and Viktor Troicki all tested positive for COVID-19.

The tennis season has been at a standstill since mid-March due to the virus outbreak worldwide.

IPL confirms September start in UAE pendinggovernment clearancesAFP/IANS — NEW DELHI

The Indian Premier League (IPL) yesterday confirmed that the much-delayed 2020 tour-nament will finally start in the United Arab Emirates in September because of the mounting coronavirus pandemic in India.

It will be the third time that the world’s richest cricket tour-nament has had to be held outside its home country.

The tournament will start on September 19 and the final will be on November 10, said Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Jay Shah in a statement after a video meeting of the IPL governing council.

“Taking note of the pre-vailing COVID-19 situation in India, the IPL governing council decided to stage the tournament in the United Arab Emirates and the matches will be played in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi subject to necessary clearances from the government of India,” said Shah.

Ten of the matches will be held in the afternoon while the rest will all be in the evening.

The statement said the gov-erning council discussed health procedures for the eight teams but did not say whether the players would have to undergo quarantine in the UAE before the tournament starts.

The UAE currently requires tourists to be in isolation for 14 days.

The tournament normally starts in late March or April but was repeatedly postponed because of pandemic.

India currently has 1.75 million coronavirus cases, the world’s third highest.

The IPL was previously held outside of India in 2009, when it was played in South Africa, and 2014 in the UAE because it clashed with national elections.

Meanwhile, the BCCI has made it clear to all the IPL fran-chises that no team can leave for the UAE before August 20. There were reports that both Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians could be looking to leave for Abu Dhabi around August 10 or 12. But those plans need to be put on hold as of now.

A franchise official said that the IPL Governing Council has sent in a mail which has clearly told them that the teams can leave for UAE not before August 20.

"We have been informed by a mail from the IPL GC that we can leave for UAE after August 20. So, there is no question of anyone going there before that. The diktat is pretty clear here," the official said.

"We have not got the SOPs yet, but we have been given the go-ahead to start preparation and the visa process will start from tomorrow onwards. The hotels have already been blocked so that is no issue."

England’s Stuart Broad

celebrates after taking

his 500th Test wicket

in this file photo.

Considered retirement after Southampton snub, says paceman BroadREUTERS — LONDON

England’s Stuart Broad said he considered retiring after being omitted for last month’s series opener against West Indies at Southampton.

England’s decision to go with James Anderson, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood for the first match, which West Indies won by four wickets, snapped the 34-year-old Broad’s run of 51 consecutive home tests.

The right-arm quick returned to claim 16 wickets in the next two Tests as England won back-to-back matches to triumph 2-1, with Broad picked as the player of the series. “Were there thoughts of retirement

going round my head? One hundred per cent. Because I was so down,” Broad told the Mail yesterday.

“I can’t think of many times I have been down like that. When I have been dropped before, I can go ‘Fair enough, good decision, can’t really argue with that’.

“This time, when Stokesy told me I wasn’t playing, I felt my body go into shakes. I could barely speak,” he said, referring to acting captain Ben Stokes.

Playing the series in a bio-secure bubble, to prevent the COVID-19 spread, made dealing with the disappointment a lot more difficult, he said.

Broad, with 501

wickets, is second only to new ball colleague James Anderson (589) in the list of most test wickets by an English bowler. “Could I get 600? Absolutely I think I

could. Jimmy was 35 and one month when he got 500. I was 34 and one month."

“Jimmy is now within touching distance of 600. S o s t a t s w i s e , absolutely.”

Women’s T20 Challenge very much on: GangulyAFP — NEW DELHI

Indian cricket president Sourav Ganguly yesterday said the women’s T20 Challenge was “very much on” after the IPL confirmed the virus-delayed men’s tournament would get underway in September.

Last year, a women’s T20 Challenge involving three teams was played alongside

the cash-rich, globally popular Indian Premier League.

“I can confirm to you that the women’s IPL is very much on and we do have a plan in place for the national team also,” Ganguly told the Press Trust of India news agency.

He added that “we have a plan in place and we will have a camp (before the tour-nament) for women, I can tell you that”.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India president did not reveal any potential dates, but another official told PTI it was “likely to be held between November 1-10”.

The IPL chairman Brijesh Patel said in late July the men’s star-studded competition would start on September 19 in the United Arab Emirates, with players possibly having to undergo quarantine.

India’s cricket authorities are still awaiting government approval to hold the event.

The 13th year of the IPL was meant to have started in March but has been repeatedly postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Dates were finally set after the T20 World Cup, which was scheduled to start in Australia in October, was postponed.