■ CRICKET
ICC error saved Harbhajan
An administrative mistake by the International Cricket Council (ICC) saved Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh from a possible suspension, the judge who heard his case said yesterday. Harbhajan was fined half his match fee after pleading guilty to using offensive language against Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds during the second Test in Sydney earlier this month. However, New Zealand High Court judge John Hansen said Harbhajan might have received a tougher penalty had the ICC correctly informed him about all his prior convictions. Hansen said the ICC told him Harbhajan had only one prior offense, but after he had handed down his penalty, he discovered the Indian spinner had four previous offenses. The most serious of these occurred in South Africa in 2001 when Harbhajan was given a suspended sentence for showing dissent and trying to influence an umpire. "If I had been aware of the serious transgression in November 2001 I would have required more extensive submissions as to the offense in mitigation which could have led to a different penalty," Hansen wrote in his 49-page judgment released yesterday.
■ BASEBALL
Exhibition game to be last
The US Baseball Hall of Fame Game, an annual tradition in Cooperstown for more than six decades, will end after this year's contest between the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres. Hall of Fame officials say Major League Baseball decided keeping the game was too difficult because of the complexities of the major league schedule and "all its inherent challenges." The first Hall of Fame Game was in 1940, and its the last surviving in-season exhibition game on the major league schedule. This year's game is slated for June 16.
■ RUGBY UNION
All Blacks to support US
The US rugby team will get help from one of the best and well-organized outfits in the sport, the New Zealand All Blacks. The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) said yesterday it had signed a five-year memorandum of agreement with USA Rugby to promote rugby in the US and look into joint sponsorships and merchandising agreements. "The rugby world wants to see the game grow in the United States and we're taking concrete steps to help USA Rugby," NZRU chief executive Steve Tew said in a statement. Tew said as a first step, the NZRU will give coaching background and other resources to USA Rugby at no charge, supporting the US union's youth, referee and coaching development programs. The two groups also plan to "explore opportunities for high-profile matches" in the US as well as age-grade competition between the two countries. No further details on where or when the matches would be played was provided.
■ SOCCER
Galaxyto visit Asia
David Beckham will lead the Los Angeles Galaxy into South Korea and China in March as part of a pre-season Asia tour announced on Tuesday by the Major League Soccer club. Galaxy will meet FC Seoul on March 1 at the World Cup stadium and visit Shanghai on March 5 to face a China All-Star Union side of young talents, each stop capitalizing on Beckham's incredible popularity in Asia. Manchester United and Real Madrid also made several Asian tours with Beckham in the line-up. "These are important games in our club's preparation for the MLS season and I expect fans in Seoul and Shanghai will remember the LA Galaxy visiting their cities for a very long time," Galaxy assistant general manager Tom Payne said.
SS Lazio on Monday fired the far-right sympathizer who handles their eagle mascot after he posted online a series of videos and pictures of his erect penis. Falconer Juan Bernabe, who has been present at Lazio home matches with Olimpia the eagle since the 2010-2011 season, posted the footage on social media after having surgery on Saturday to implant a penile prosthesis to improve his sexual performance. Lazio said that they had “terminated, with immediate effect” their relationship with Bernabe “due to the seriousness of his conduct,” adding that they were “shocked” by the images. The Serie A club added that Bernabe’s dismissal
‘TOUGH TO BREATHE’: Tunisian three-time Grand Slam finalist Ons Jabeur suffered an asthma attack in her 7-5, 6-3 victory over Colombia’s Camila Osorio Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday cruised into the second round of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Iga Swiatek romped into a third-round women’s singles showdown with Emma Raducanu and Taylor Fritz was just as emphatic in his pursuit of a maiden Grand Slam title. Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, the third seeds, defeated Slovakia’s Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls of Britain 7-5, 6-2 in 90 minutes in Melbourne. Ostapenko and Hsieh — who won the women’s doubles and mixed doubles at the Australian Open last year — hit 25 winners and converted five of nine break points to set
Dubbed a “motorway for cyclists” where avid amateurs can chase Tadej Pogacar up mountains teeming with the highest concentration of professional cyclists per square kilometer in the world, Spain’s Costa Blanca has forged a new reputation for itself in the past few years. Long known as the ideal summer destination for those in search of sun, sea and sand, the stretch of coast between Valencia and Alicante now has a winter vocation too. During the season break in December and January, the region experiences an invasion of cyclists. Star names such as three-time Tour de France winner Pogacar, Remco Evenepoel and Julian Alaphilippe
AGING WELL: Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen, 22, was sent packing after being dispatched by world No. 97, Laura Siegemund, the second-oldest player in the draw at 36 Novak Djokovic yesterday created a slice of Grand Slam history on his way into the Australian Open third round, but last year’s women’s finalist Zheng Qinwen was knocked out in the biggest shock so far. Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka, in-form Coco Gauff, two-time Melbourne winner Naomi Osaka and a rampant Carlos Alcaraz were all victors on a rainy day four. Play was suspended on the outside courts for a couple of hours in the early evening because of the wet weather. That led to the rescheduling of a women’s doubles match between wild-cards Tsao Chia-yi of Taiwan and Thailand’s Peangtarn Plipuech and 11th
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