Sports

KARACHI: In a nail-biting finish to the Kashmir Premier League (KPL) Qualifier on Saturday in Muzaffarabad, tournament hosts Muzaffarabad Tigers edged past Rawalakot Hawks by seven runs to seal their place in the final. Discarded Pakistan seamer Sohail Tanvir starred for the Tigers with four wickets as the Hawks — which had topped the six-team league standings — were bowled …

Jamaica: Skipper Babar Azam stood tall from the one end and stroked a gutsy half-century on Day three of the first Test. The 26-year-old Babar is unbeaten on 54 alongside all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, who is on 12. Pakistan finished on 160/5 at stumps on Day three and have a crucial lead of 124 runs. In the morning session, they were …

LONDON: Manchester United enjoyed a dream start to the Premier League season as Bruno Fernandes scored a hat-trick in a 5-1 thrashing of Leeds United in front of 73,000 at Old Trafford, while Chelsea swept aside Crystal Palace 3-0 on Saturday. Over 300,000 fans are expected to attend the opening weekend of the season with full crowds restored following the …

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi is now in Barcelona’s past and the club must live in the present, coach Ronald Koeman said on Saturday, as his side prepare for a new La Liga season without their greatest ever player — and battling through a financial crisis. Barca are still reeling from the departure of their all-time top scorer to Paris St Germain …

TORONTO: Top seed Daniil Medvedev powered through a rough patch to beat James Duckworth 6-2, 6-4 on Thursday and reach the quarter-finals of the ATP Toronto Masters. Medvedev finished with 10 aces as he reached his eighth quarter-final at the Masters level on the way into a quarter-final against Pole Hubert Hurkacz, who scored a 6-7 (7-9), 6-4, 6-4 win …

LONDON: England paceman James Anderson claimed his 31st five-wicket haul in Tests as the resurgent hosts restricted India to 364 in their first innings before making 23-0 at tea on the second day of the second Test at Lord’s on Friday. The 39-year-old finished with figures of 5-62 while Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson took two wickets each as England …

ISLAMABAD / KARACHI / LAHORE: The government wants to revive Pakistan’s sporting fortunes, starting with asking the country’s Olympic chief to leave his post. The demand came from Shahbaz Gill, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, at a news conference held at the Press Information Department on Friday, asking retired Lt Gen Arif Hasan to resign as the Pakistan Olympic …

West Indian captain Kraigg Brathwaite was run out for 97 after a 96-run partnership with former skipper Jason Holder which helped guide the team to a first-innings lead over Pakistan on the second day of the first Test. Brathwaite turned a ball to fine leg and was attempting a second run when he was beaten by Hasan Ali’s direct hit at …

Two wickets in two balls by Mohammad Abbas just before the close of play put the West Indies immediately on the back foot in reply to Pakistan’s first innings total of 217 on the rain-affected opening day of the first Test at Sabina Park on Thursday. At 2-2 going into the second day, with captain Kraigg Brathwaite and Roston Chase …

LONDON: The compact surroundings of the recently built, 17,250-seat Brentford Community Stadium will usher in another Premier League campaign on Friday. In reality, though, a season that will be marked by the return of capacity crowds for the first time in 17 pandemic-blighted months will only start in earnest once a summer-long, potentially title-defining transfer saga is settled one way …