■ SOCCER
Zola impresses Hammers
Gianfranco Zola has impressed West Ham during an interview and has been shortlisted to succeed Alan Curbishley. The shortlist to take over at the Premiership club is now Zola, Roberto Donadoni and Slaven Bilic, with Michael Laudrup still a possibility. A top-level club source said: “Zola not only has impressive credentials but also came across incredibly well in our talks today.” Meanwhile, Bilic’s advisors told West Ham he would not be available until January and if the Croatia coach sticks to that timescale then the club will not wait for him. Donadoni also made a good impression on officials when he was interviewed last week, while Laudrup will have talks with the club today. Zola, the former Chelsea midfielder, has years of experience in English socer under his belt and that stood him in good stead when he met club chiefs on Saturday. The fact Zola and Donadoni are Italians could also be a factor given that West Ham’s director of football Gianluca Nani is a compatriot, and that they would be much happier with the continental-style working relationship than Curbishley was.
■ CRICKET
Aussies raring to go
Australia’s stars said they were fit and raring to face India after their one-day clean sweep against Bangladesh. The world’s top team embark on a gruelling tour against their fierce rivals in two weeks time. Stand-in captain Michael Clarke said Australia were super-fit and acclimatized to the expected heat after the 3-0 series win in tropical northern Australia. “It’s been great preparation. It’s been so warm up here, the guys have had a great time, we’ve had brilliant training facilities and we’ve been doing plenty of fitness,” Clarke said. “I think all the boys are in pretty good shape and looking forward to getting over to India and having a good Test series.” Ricky Ponting is expected to recover from injury to captain Australia with bowler Brett Lee and batsman Matthew Hayden also back. Troubled all-rounder Andrew Symonds has been ruled out and told to get psychological help. Australia are expected to name their squad next week.
■ RUGBY UNION
SARU denies coach claims
The South Africa Rugby Union (SARU) denied on Saturday a report claiming national coach Peter de Villiers was the victim of blackmail. A newspaper said an unnamed rugby official and a ’Bok squad member threatened to release a video allegedly showing De Villiers involved in sexual activities if the player was dropped. “Peter de Villiers and SARU categorically deny there has been any attempts to blackmail or coerce him over the selection of any player to the national squad,” a SARU statement said. “SARU can confirm that a company employee did approach De Villiers on Aug. 15 in Cape Town. The employee made certain extraordinary claims which SARU looked into but has been unable to find any basis to support in fact. The employee was advised on Aug. 25 that he would be called to an internal misconduct hearing, the charge sheet for which is still being prepared.”
■ CRICKET
Proteas say no to Pakistan
South Africa have turned down a request from the Pakistan Cricket Board to organize a one-day series this month, saying their players needed a rest after a hectic tour of England. The Pakistan board had approached Cricket South Africa to host a tri-series also involving Sri Lanka after the postponement of the Champions Trophy which was to have been held in Pakistan this month.
■ COLLEGE FOOTBALL
West Virginia stunned
Eighth-ranked West Virginia were upset 24-3 by East Carolina on Saturday, the second straight defeat of a ranked opponent by the Pirates. Quarter-back Patrick Pinkney was 22-28 with 236 with a touchdown for East Carolina and running back Jonathan Williams scored two touchdowns and ran for 69 yards. The Mountaineers, playing on the road in Greenville, North Carolina, lost two fumbles and scored their only points on a 26-yard field goal in the second quarter. Last week, East Carolina beat Virginia Tech, then ranked No. 17, on a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown in the game’s final minutes. West Virginia were the No. 8 team in both the writers’ and the coaches’ polls. In Columbus, third-ranked Ohio State trailed Ohio 14-12 after three quarters and scored two touchdowns to pull out a victory at home.
■ CYCLING
Ballan wins in Andorra
Italian Alessandro Ballan of Lampre won Saturday’s seventh stage of the Tour of Spain, a 223.2km ride from Barbastro to La Rabassa in Andorra, to take the overall lead, as the peleton moved into the mountains. Riders had to negotiate not just the climbs, but the unseasonably inclement weather as rain fell persistently amid the foggy and cold conditions going into Andorra. “It’s the first time that I have led in a major race,” Ballan said. “I dedicate this win to my little daughter, who was born on Aug. 11.” Spanish star Alberto Contador, one of the favorites, snatched back a few seconds on compatriot and rival Carlos Sastre, the Tour de France winner, and almost a minute on another would-be winner, Alejandro Valverde. But Frenchman Sylvain Chavanel, leader going into the stage, struggled and finished up more than three minutes off the pace.
■ GOLF
Five-year-old bags an ace
Look out Tiger Woods, five-year-old Drew Gray’s got game. The kindergartner had a hole-in-one — though it does not count because it was on par-three course — last week on the 75-yard, fifth hole at Yorktown Golf Club in Belleville, Illinois. The shot was witnessed by several family members and was verified by course owner John Bethard. Drew is the youngest player to ace a hole at the course, Bethard said. Drew has been playing golf on family outings for two years. He played this summer in the club’s golf camp for four to eight-year-olds, Bethard said.
■ CYCLING
Gerdemann wins Tour
Yellow-jersey holder Linus Gerdemann won the Tour of Germany on Saturday after the eighth and final stage in Bremen as Columbia teammate and compatriot Tony Martin won the 34km time trial. Gerdemann, 25, wore the yellow jersey for the duration of the competition and finished fourth in Saturday’s time trial to win the tour overall. After the Tour’s nine-days, Gerdemann won by 52 seconds from second-placed teammate Thomas Lovkvist from Sweden. Third overall was Slovenia’s Janez Brajkovic, who rides for Astana.
■ BOXING
Cook captures WBO title
Nicky Cook captured the World Boxing Organization super-featherweight title from fellow Briton Alex Arthur in a unanimous points verdict on Saturday. Cook took the belt with a 112-117, 111-117, 114-115 win at the MEN Arena in Manchester, England. He therefore ended Arthur’s year-long reign after being the aggressor for most of the absorbing encounter to lift his first world title.
‘SOURCE OF PRIDE’: Newspapers rushed out special editions and the government sent their congratulations as Shohei Ohtani became the first player to enter the 50-50 club Japan reacted with incredulity and pride yesterday after Shohei Ohtani became the first player in Major League Baseball to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The Los Angeles Dodgers star from Japan made history with a seventh-inning homer in a 20-4 victory over the Marlins in Miami. “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our heart,” top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We sincerely hope Mr Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further,” he added. The landmark achievement dominated Japanese morning news
When Wang Tao ran away from home aged 17 to become a professional wrestler, he knew it would be a hard slog to succeed in China’s passionate but underdeveloped scene. Years later, he has endured family disapproval, countless side gigs and thousands of hours of brutal training to become China’s “Belt and Road Champion” — but the struggle is far from over. Despite a promising potential domestic market, the Chinese pro wrestling community has been battling for recognition and financial stability for decades. “I have done all kinds of jobs [on the side]... Because in the end, it is very
No team in the CPBL can surpass the Taipei Dome attendance record set by the CTBC Brothers, except when the Brothers team up with Taiwanese rock band Mayday. A record-high 40,000 fans turned out at the indoor baseball venue on Saturday for Brothers veteran Chou Szu-chi’s first farewell game, which was followed by a mini post-game concert featuring Mayday. This broke the previous CPBL record of 34,506 set by the Brothers in early last month, when K-pop singer Hyuna performed after the game, and the dome’s overall record of 37,890 set in early March, which featured the Brothers and the
With a quivering finger, England Subbuteo veteran Rudi Peterschinigg conceded the free-kick that sent his country’s World Cup quarter-final into extra-time before smashing his plastic goalkeeper on the floor in frustration. In the genteel southern English town of Tunbridge Wells, 300 elite players have gathered to play the game they love. “I won’t say this is the best weekend I’ve ever had in my life, but it’s certainly in the top two,” said Hughie Best, 58, who flew in from Perth, Australia, to compete and commentate at the event. Tunbridge Wells is the “spiritual home” of Subbuteo, which was invented there in 1946