■ SOCCER
Portsmouth book UEFA spot
Nico Kranjcar scored the only goal as Portsmouth won 1-0 at West Ham United to cement their hopes of sealing a spot in European soccer. The Croatian turned and shot from the edge of the box on the hour mark to keep them in sixth place, four points clear of Aston Villa and in line for a place in the UEFA Cup. West Ham created very little of note, with an attempt by Dean Ashton their only chance to talk about as David James fumbled his long-range effort. West Ham remain in 10th place, out of trouble but too far behind to win a European place.
■CRICKER
Proteas eager for hat-trick
A buoyant South Africa will be keen to capitalize on India’s form and fitness worries ahead of tomorrow’s third and final Test in Kanpur, India, to complete a hat-trick in the sub-continent.
The visitors lead 1-0 in the series following their crushing win by an innings and 90 runs in the second Test in Ahmedabad last Saturday after the opening match ended in a draw in Chennai. South Africa need only a draw to make it three-in-a-row in the sub-continent, having clinched Test series in Pakistan last year and in Bangladesh this year. Adaptability is the key to South Africa’s success in recent months in South Asia, where home spinners usually make merry on low, slow pitches. Graeme Smith’s South Africans look better prepared than most of the visiting teams as they have not allowed the home spinners to dictate terms with their determined batting. India’s spin duo of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, proven match-winners at home, looked below their best in the last two Tests while pacemen failed to match their South African counterparts.
■HOCKEY
Canada into women’s final
Sarah Vaillancourt scored a pair of goals in the second period yesterday as Canada defeated Finland 4-2 in Harbin, China, to advance to the final of the World Women’s Hockey Championship. Vaillancourt scored a powerplay goal 11:23 into the second period and added another 37 seconds later to give the Canadians a 3-1 lead. Canada, the US and Finland are playing in the round-robin playoffs. The teams with the two best records meet again for the gold medal on Saturday. Katie Weatherston made it 4-1 for Canada late in the second. Jayna Hefford scored in the first period for the Canadians. Finland upset the US 1-0 on Tuesday. The US needs a win today against Canada if they are going to play for gold again on Saturday. Finland, with two points in the group, can still earn a spot in the final. As long as the US earns no more than one point against Canada today, Finland and Canada will meet in the gold-medal game. Should the US win in regulation or overtime, they would be the second team in the final.
■ GYMNASTICS
Hypolito beats dengue fever
Gymnastics world champion Diego Hypolito was released from hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Tuesday, a day after being diagnosed with dengue fever. “My recovery process will continue from home,” Hypolito told reporters. “I’m optimistic. A mosquito will not get in the way of my preparation for the Olympics Games in Beijing.” Hypolito had been hospitalized at the Copa D’Or Hospital in Rio de Janeiro since last Thursday with symptoms of the mosquito-borne disease, which causes high a fever, severe headaches and joint pain. The 21-year-old Hypolito contracted dengue fever while recovering from right knee arthroscopic surgery on March 25.
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
“Please love us. Please cheer us on. We have been working hard. Do not give up on us.” Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien’s heartfelt plea echoed across the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 tournament after a historic victory. Rather than boasting, Chen was making an earnest appeal after leading Taiwan to a 4-0 victory over Japan to claim their first major international baseball title at the senior level. Chen’s decisive three-run homer in the fifth inning and his Premier12 leading .632 batting average secured him the Premier12’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) title. He was also named one of the tournament’s outstanding defensive players
WELL-AGED: Although the youngest team in the tournament, Taiwan featured several veteran stars, including Sunday’s home-run hero Chen Chieh-hsien “I will never forget today,” veteran Taiwanese pitcher Chen Kuan-yu said after Taiwan on Sunday night blanked Japan to secure their first ever gold in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 championship. Chen, who at 34 is the oldest member on the team, said Taiwan “made every difficult step to come to today’s victory. I will never forget today.” Taiwan made history when they won their first gold medal of the Premier12 tournament, beating Japan in a 4-0 shutout victory in the final at the Tokyo Dome. It was a jaw-dropping victory for many baseball commentators who went into the game with
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
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