TUPIZA, Bolivia: Defending motorcycle champion Toby Price of Australia was forced out of the Dakar Rally on Thursday after breaking his left leg in a fall, race officials said.
Price suffered the injury when he tumbled off his KTM motorbike after 371km of the fourth stage from San Salvador de Jujuy in Argentina to Tupiza in Bolivia as the 9,000km race climbed into the dizzying altitudes of the Andes.
Earlier in the day, Qatari two-time auto winner Nasser Al-Attiyah was also forced to pull out, his Toyota team said.
The 46-year-old, the 2011 and 2015 champion, did not start Thursday’s stage after losing the wheel of his car during the previous day’s special, leaving him down in 25th in the overall standings overnight.
Meanwhile, defending champion Stephane Peterhansel led a Peugeot sweep of the top-three finishing spots on the third stage of the Dakar Rally on Wednesday with teammate Sebastien Loeb narrowly retaining the overall lead.
Peterhansel, 51, seeking a 13th career triumph in the gruelling 9,000km endurance event, finished the San Miguel de Tucuman to San Salvador de Jujuy stage in Argentina in 4 hours 18 min 17 sec.
Carlos Sainz, the 2010 champion, was second, coming home 1 min 54 sec behind the Frenchman Peterhansel. Third was nine-time world rally champion Loeb at 3 min 8 sec off the lead.
Loeb stays in the overall lead with a paper-thin 0.42sec advantage over Sainz and a 4.18sec gap on Peterhansel.
“It’s a really good day for Peugeot. We’ve lost, not completely but probably, two rivals in Nasser Al Attiyah and Giniel de Villiers, so it’s a little bit clearer at the front of the race,” said Peterhansel, who had struggled in the first two stages, finishing seventh and 12th.
Wednesday’s stage was split into two sections with the second part over a 124km timed run seeing the competitors race at altitude hitting 5,000m for the first time in the 2017 event.
However, it was a test too far for Toyota, who are seen as Peugeot’s major rivals for the title.
Broken leg forces defending champion Price out of Dakar
Broken leg forces defending champion Price out of Dakar
Vinicius hits brace as Real Madrid come back to snatch draw at Bayern
- The draw puts Madrid in the driving seat ahead of next week’s return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu. Bayern, who dominated large parts of the match, will still have hopes of making it to Wembley’s final in June
MUNICH, Germany: Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior scored a double, including an 83rd-minute equalising penalty, to snatch a 2-2 draw at Bayern Munich in Tuesday’s Champions League semifinal first leg.
Vinicius gave Real the lead after 24 minutes but Bayern scored twice in four second-half minutes to wrestle back control of the match, Leroy Sane with a stunning opener and Harry Kane converting a penalty.
Kim Min-jae judo tackled Rodrygo Goes in the box with eight minutes remaining and Vinicius stepped up, drowning out a chorous of boos and whistles to blast home.
“In this competition it’s important not to lose, and we’re here because we haven’t lost yet,” said Vinicius.
“I’m very happy that I was able score two goals, and now we need to have a magical night at home,” he added.
The draw puts Madrid in the driving seat ahead of next week’s return leg at the Santiago Bernabeu. Bayern, who dominated large parts of the match, will still have hopes of making it to Wembley’s final in June.
“It’s a good result for the second leg,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “But nothing has been decided yet.
“Bayern have high quality. They have players like Musiala or Sane who can hurt us.”
“It feels a bit strange,” said Bayern manager Thomas Tuchel.
“But the situation is very clear. Win in Madrid, then off to Wembley. The winner takes it all.
“We will be ready and we accept the fight. We will go to Madrid with self-confidence. We have to be brave.”
Before the match, the Bayern fans unveiled a giant banner depicting Franz Beckenbauer which spanned all the way from the grass to the rafters. It was a fitting tribute on a night featuring the most-played fixture in European Cup history.
Famed for their composure on the biggest of stages in this competition, the 14-time winners struggled early, Bayern dominating possession and field position while spurred on by a ferocious home crowd.
Sane had a chance after just 40 seconds and another minutes later, while Kane chipped a shot from halfway just over the bar as the leggy visitors struggled to cope.
Madrid’s continued success in this competition, including in their quarter-final win over Manchester City, has been built on absorbing pressure before striking.
The visitors repeated the trick for the opener, breaking Bayern’s dominance in ruthlessly simple fashion while showing the hosts how easy scoring goals can be.
Toni Kroos collected the ball from a corner and drilled a defense-splitting pass along the ground which found Vinicius galloping in acres of space on the edge of the area.
Without a Bayern player in range, Vinicius calmly slotted the opener past a helpless Manuel Neuer, changing the complexion of the match completely.
Bayern, who have six European Cups of their own, were not awed and continued to push but could not break through; their best chance of the remainder of the half came through a free kick, with Kane finding a huge gap in the wall but blasting wide.
With Real seemingly in cruise control, Bayern grabbed hold of the match early in the second-half, scoring twice in four minutes.
Eric Dier found Sane down the right flank. The Germany winger, who had missed several chances in the first half, dribbled into the box before unleashing an unstoppable rocket at the near post, his first goal for Bayern in any competition since October.
The hosts’ next attack came down the left, with the ever-dangerous Jamal Musiala felled by Lucas Vazquez in the box. Referee Clement Turpin pointed straight to the spot and Kane duly sent Andriy Lunin the wrong way to take the lead.
With Bayern in control, Real went on the counter and it was Kim’s turn to give away a clumsy penalty, with Vinicius confidently slotting in the equalizer.
“We have to continue with cool heads, rest until next week, and we will give everything to leave the Bernabeu qualified for London,” said Madrid’s goal hero on the night.
All-round Stoinis helps Lucknow beat Mumbai in IPL
- Stoinis top-scored in Lucknow’s modest chase of 145 against Mumbai Indians as the home team achieved their target with four wickets and four balls to spare
- Mumbai managed 144-7 courtesy Nehal Wadhera’s 46 and an unbeaten 18-ball 35 by Tim David after being invited to bat first
LUCKNOW: All-rounder Marcus Stoinis smashed 62 after he took a wicket on Tuesday to guide Lucknow Super Giants to an IPL win on the eve of Australia’s T20 World Cup team announcement.
Stoinis top-scored in Lucknow’s modest chase of 145 against Mumbai Indians as the home team achieved their target with four wickets and four balls to spare.
Lucknow moved to third spot in the 10-team table led by Rajasthan Royals. Five-time winners Mumbai remained ninth above wooden spooners Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Lucknow skipper KL Rahul fell for 28, hours after being snubbed by India’s selectors, who on Tuesday afternoon named the team for the T20 World Cup in June.
Mumbai skipper Hardik Pandya was named deputy to India captain Rohit Sharma for the World Cup in the West Indies and the US, but the star all-rounder fell for a duck and his team to their seventh loss in 10 matches.
“Sometimes you will be down, sometimes you will be up, just that you got to give it your all,” Pandya said. “Looks difficult but a lot of things that you can learn from this game.”
Birthday boy Rohit, who turned 37, Japsrit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav are three of the four players from Mumbai to make the Indian team for the World Cup starting June 2.
Mumbai managed 144-7 courtesy Nehal Wadhera’s 46 and an unbeaten 18-ball 35 by Tim David after being invited to bat first.
Pandya said Wadhera will “play a lot of IPL and (represent) India eventually.”
Lucknow left-arm quick Mohsin Khan took two wickets after he struck first with the wicket of Rohit, who was caught out for four by Stoinis at extra cover.
Stoinis got the key wicket of Yadav for 10 and Mumbai were soon 27-4 when Naveen-ul-Haq got Pandya for a first-ball duck.
But Pandya returned to take two wickets with his pace bowling.
Stoinis turned up with the bat to raise his second fifty — he has also hit a century — of the season with hours left for the Australian selectors to announce the T20 team on Wednesday.
He fell to Afghanistan spinner Mohammad Nabi after his 42-ball knock laced with seven fours and two sixes.
Lucknow lost two more wickets to raise Mumbai’s hopes of a turnaround, but Nicholas Pooran steered the team home in the final over.
Jeddah hosts Saudi Smash 2024 table tennis championship from May 1-11
- The prestigious championship will see the world’s top table tennis players in action, including rising star Wang Chuqin
- The championship is set to further solidify the Kingdom’s position as a preferred destination for global sporting events
RIAYDH: Jeddah is gearing up for the commencement of the Saudi Smash 2024 table tennis championship scheduled to take place May 1-11.
The event marks the second run in the series of the Grand Smash tournaments on this year’s World Table Tennis Organization calendar.
Saudi Arabia hosts the 10-day tournament which is being organized by the Saudi Table Tennis Federation under the supervision of the Ministry of Sports and in collaboration with WTT.
The prestigious championship will see the world’s top table tennis players in action, including rising star Wang Chuqin, the Grand Smash Singapore 2024 winner Fan Zhendong, and French talent Felix Lebrun among others.
In the women’s singles category, elite players like Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Chen Meng, Hina Hayata, Shin Yu-bin, Bernadette Szocs, and Adriana Diaz Gonzalez will showcase their skills on the international stage.
Saudi fans are eagerly anticipating the debut of local table tennis players such as Ali Al-Khudrawi in the men’s singles event, alongside Abdulaziz Boushlbi, Khaled Al-Sherif, Hadi Abu Al-Raha, Turki Al-Mutairi, Salem Al-Swailem, and Mohamed Al-Qasab.
This championship offers a unique opportunity for Saudi players to shine globally and compete against the world’s best table tennis players.
The championship is set to further solidify the Kingdom’s position as a preferred destination for global sporting events, fostering the development of sports at the grassroots level and supporting the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030 to promote sports as an integral part of society.
Those interested in witnessing the excitement of the tournament can secure their tickets through the official website: SaudiSmash.com/Visitor
India recalls Rishabh Pant for T20 World Cup after near-fatal car crash
- Pant was India’s first-choice wicketkeeper across all three formats until December 2022 when he crashed and dislocated his right knee
- Pant feared amputation. He returned to competitive cricket last month for the ongoing Indian Premier League and has proved himself
NEW DELHI: Rishabh Pant was restored to the India squad for the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, 16 months after a near-fatal car crash.
Allrounder Shivam Dube, recalled by India last August after more than two years out, also made the cut, and star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were confirmed for the tournament in June in the Caribbean and the United States.
Pant was India’s first-choice wicketkeeper across all three formats until December 2022 when he crashed and dislocated his right knee. He was pulled out by passersby before the car caught fire. Pant feared amputation. He returned to competitive cricket last month for the ongoing Indian Premier League and has proved himself.
Pant has 398 runs in 11 innings — good for fourth overall — at a strike rate of 158.56.
Dube has also lit up the IPL with 350 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 172.41.
Wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, the only bowler to take 200 wickets in IPL history, was a surprise inclusion because he wasn’t used at the Cricket World Cup that India hosted late last year. Chahal has 13 wickets in nine IPL games at an economy of 9.
India has picked three other spinners; left-arm unorthodox wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, and left-arm spin allrounders Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Sharma and Kohli were informally announced as selections in February by Jay Shah, the secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
“In the 2023 (final) at Ahmedabad, even though we did not win the World Cup after 10 straight wins, we won hearts,” Shah said then. “I want to promise you that in 2024, under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, we will hoist the Indian flag in Barbados (in the final on June 29).”
Sharma and Kohli are in good form in the IPL. Kohli leads the run-scorers’ charts with 500 in 10 innings, including one hundred and four half-centuries. Sharma has 311 in nine games at a strike rate of 160.30.
Despite Kohli opening the innings in the IPL, he should bat at number three while left-handed youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal opens with Sharma.
The world No. 1-ranked T20 batter, Suryakumar Yadav, will be at number four.
Nine of the 15-man squad were at the 2022 T20 World Cup, where India lost in the semifinals to eventual champion England.
India begins the World Cup on June 5 against Ireland. It will also play Pakistan and tournament host the US; all three games will be at the purpose-built Nassau County International Cricket Stadium on Long Island. India will meet Canada in Florida.
Jofra Archer picked by England for T20 World Cup after cruel run of injuries
- Jofra Archer, 29, is considered one of cricket’s most exciting fast bowlers
- England will hope Archer stays fit for four-match T20 series against Pakistan
Jofra Archer was selected in England’s provisional squad for the T20 World Cup on Tuesday, setting up a much-awaited international return for one of cricket’s most exciting bowlers whose career has been derailed by injuries.
The 29-year-old Archer has barely featured for England in any format since 2021, mainly because of ongoing issues with his right elbow for which he has undergone two operations. A back injury ruled him out of most of 2022.
The Barbados-born pacer was a breath of fresh air after switching nationality to be eligible for England ahead of the 2019 Cricket World Cup, which he helped his adopted country win on home soil. Then he played a starring role in the Ashes that year.
England will hope he stays fit to play in a four-match Twenty20 series against Pakistan and then the World Cup, which is being held in the Caribbean and the United States.
England’s opening match is against Scotland on June 4 at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
Also in the 15-man squad were Jonny Bairstow and Will Jacks, who have hit big knocks in the Indian Premier League in recent weeks. Left-arm spinning allrounder Tom Hartley is the sole uncapped player in the group.
England will be captained by Jos Buttler, with the team seeking a second T20 World Cup title.
England: Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Tom Hartley, Will Jacks, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, Mark Wood.
