Sports

Two deposed captains, Virat Kohli and Quinton de Kock, could play significant roles in a three-match one-day international series between South Africa and India, starting at Boland Park in Paarl on Wednesday. Both former skippers have the potential to be the leading batters for their respective sides. For Kohli, it will be the first ODI series since Rohit Sharma was named …

MADRID: The Copa del Rey match suspended after an object was thrown from the stands resumed on Sunday behind closed doors and without the Sevilla player hit in the head in what the club called “an appalling attack”. Sevilla midfielder Joan Jordan was doing well but did not play in their 2-1 loss to Real Betis in a match that …

LONDON: Liverpool found the goal-scoring alternatives needed in the absence of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane as their stand-ins stepped up in a 3-0 win over Brentford at Anfield to climb up to second in the Premier League on Sunday. Midfielder Fabinho proved an unlikely solution with his third goal in eight days with the opener just before halftime when …

KANDY: Dinesh Chandimal and Charith Asalanka smashed half-centuries to guide Sri Lanka to a comfortable five-wicket win over Zimbabwe in the first one-day international on Sunday. Chasing 297 for victory, Sri Lanka rode on a 129-run stand between man-of-the-match Chandimal (75) and Asalanka (71) to achieve the target with nine balls to spare and take a 1-0 lead in the …

MELBOURNE: An extraordinary Australian Open dogged by unprecedented controversy and confusion finally gets under way on Monday -— without defending champion Novak Djokovic. The Serbian world number one’s decision not to get vaccinated against Covid-19 sparked a saga which dragged through the courts and culminated in him facing deportation on Sunday. “I am uncomfortable that the focus of the past …

LAHORE: Despite announcing the squads for the ongoing National U-13 and U-16 tournaments after conducting wrist tests of the participating players, the Pakistan Cricket Board went for a second round of tests across the weekend. Wrist tests of players of 12 teams — two each of six provincial cricket associations — in the U-16 event being held in Multan were …

KARACHI: The title was Waheed Baloch’s to lose. He almost did, only to win it in an enthralling climax on a day where competition was fierce and twists and turns were aplenty. Holding a five-shot leading heading into the final round of the Rashid D. Habib Memorial National Professional Golf Tournament on Sunday, Waheed was odds-on, going by his performance …

Tennis superstar Novak Djokovic flew out of Australia on Sunday after a court upheld the government’s decision to cancel his visa, capping days of drama over the country’s Covid-19 entry rules and his unvaccinated status. The unanimous ruling by a three-judge Federal Court bench dealt a final blow to Djokovic’s hopes of chasing a record 21st Grand Slam win at …

After Virat Kohli’s sudden resignation the spotlight turned to his likely successor as India Test captain on Sunday, with white-ball skipper Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul favourites to take over the high-pressure job. Kohli, 33, shocked the cricket-crazy nation on Saturday by stepping down following the team’s 2-1 series loss in South Africa. The superstar batsman walks away as India’s most successful Test leader, …

Novak Djokovic said he was disappointed that a court on Sunday dismissed his challenge to a deportation order and accepted his hopes of playing at the Australian Open were dashed. The top-ranked tennis star released a statement shortly after three Federal Court judges unanimously upheld a decision made on Friday by Immigration Minister Alex Hawke to cancel the 34-year-old Serb’s …