■CRICKET
Zimbabwe top Kenya in ODI
Zimbabwe beat Kenya by 66 runs to secure a fourth consecutive victory in their one-day international series in Nairobi on Sunday after some punishing displays by batsmen Forster Mutizwa and Hamilton Masakadza. Masakadza opened up with a 58-run knock which included eight fours off 56 balls, while Mutizwa rounded off the Zimbabwe innings with 61 as the visitors rattled up a total of 285-8 off 50 overs at Nairobi’s Gymkhana Club Ground. Kenya replied with a fighting 219 all out, thanks to an outstanding unbeaten 96 from batsmen Alex Obanda. The five-match ODI series finishes at the Gymkhana Club Ground tomorrow.
■CYCLING
Wiggins takes yellow jersey
Bradley Wiggins of Britain took the yellow jersey and his team, Garmin Slipstream, won the time trial in Doha on Sunday on the opening day of the Tour of Qatar. Wiggins finished the 6km race in six minutes, 34 seconds. Seventeen teams are taking part in the six-day race, which ends on Friday.
■GOLF
Perry wins FBR Open title
US Ryder Cup player Kenny Perry survived a scare on Sunday, winning at the third playoff hole to top Charley Hoffman for the title at the US$6 million FBR Open in Scottsdale, Arizona. Perry had a chance to win in regulation but bogeyed from a bunker at the 72nd hole for a 69 that saw him join Hoffman (67) on 14-under 270. Perry salvaged the win with a 20-foot birdie putt at the third hole of sudden death, the par-four 17th. “Those are the putts you think about when you’re a kid — you’re on the putting green saying, ‘This is to win the Masters’ or whatever, and I finally made one. It took me a long time to do it,” Perry said.
Perry, 48, captured his 13th USPGA Tour title. Three of them came last year as he played his way onto the US Ryder Cup team that triumphed over Europe in September in his native Kentucky.
■RUGBY UNION
Dan Carter’s season finished
All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter was on Sunday ruled out for the rest of the French season because of an Achilles tendon injury, having played just five matches for Perpignan. “It is a partial tear of the Achilles tendon, which means he will be unavailable for around six months,” spokesman Benoit Brazes said. The 26-year-old Carter, who was signed by the Catalan club on a lucrative six-month deal worth a reported 35,000 euros (US$45,000) a match was hurt in Saturday’s 13-13 draw with Stade Francais. His brief stay with the French side, which began in December, was plagued by injury and his time on the pitch amounted to just 361 playing minutes.
■BASEBALL
Caribbean Series opens
San Diego Padres slugger Adrian Gonzalez was to lead Mexico against the winter league champions of Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela in the annual Caribbean Series that began in Mexicali, Mexico, yesterday. Gonzalez won the Mexican winter league tournament with Mazatlan’s Venados and the team is seeking its second Caribbean Series title. “I came to have a good time with my teammates,” said Gonzalez, who led the Padres with 36 home runs and 119 RBI’s in 2008. The Dominican Republic’s Licey Tigers are the defending champions. Licey is the all-time leader with 10 Caribbean tittles, and the Dominican Republic leads all countries with 17 crowns.
SIBLING RIVALRY: Marc Marquez was locked in a duel with his little brother, falling behind at one point before recovering for his first season-opening victory since 2014 Six-time world champion Marc Marquez yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening Thailand Grand Prix to complete a dominant debut weekend at his new Ducati Lenovo Team, having also romped to Saturday’s sprint. The Spanish great took the 26-lap grand prix by 1.732 seconds for his 63rd MotoGP victory from younger brother Alex Marquez, who is still seeking a first checkered flag, with Francesco Bagnaia third to complete an all-Ducati podium. It completed a perfect weekend for Marc Marquez, who took pole position, the sprint victory and the grand prix win for a maximum 37 points to open the 22-leg 2025 campaign. He led from
AC Milan’s slender hopes of reaching next season’s UEFA Champions League took another hit on Thursday with a 2-1 defeat at Bologna which left them eight points from Serie A’s top four. Sergio Conceicao’s team sit eighth, some way behind fourth-placed Juventus after losing an entertaining contest at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, a match which was rescheduled from October last year due to torrential rain and flooding. Swathes of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy, much of which is fertile agricultural land, had been left under water following a massive autumn downpour. Dan Ndoye prodded home the decisive goal in the 82nd minute
Former Australian motorcycle gang member-turned-golfer Ryan Peake, who served a lengthy jail term for assault, yesterday produced a “life-changing” maiden win to qualify for The Open Championship. Peake held his nerve for a one-stroke victory at the New Zealand Open, earning him a berth at the major in Portrush, Northern Ireland, in July, pending clearance to travel as a convicted criminal. The 31-year-old from Perth celebrated animatedly and was showered with champagne by friends on the 18th green of the Millbrook Resort course near Queenstown after a redemption story rarely seen in the refined sport of golf. Peake held back tears as he
MILWAUKEE PREVAIL: Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 28 points as the Bucks withstood Nikola Jokic’s 27th triple-double of the season to beat the Nuggets Golden State star Stephen Curry on Thursday drilled 12 three-pointers in a scintillating 56-point display that carried the Warriors to a 121-115 victory over the Orlando Magic. Curry’s explosive performance helped the Warriors dig themselves out of a 17-point hole, with the point guard signaling the start of the fightback with a three-pointer from beyond the half-court line to end the first half that pulled the Warriors within 66-52 at the break. In the third quarter, he single-handedly outscored the Magic with 22 points to Orlando’s 21. The four-time NBA champion finished two three-pointers shy of former teammate Klay Thompson’s record for most
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