■BASKETBALL
Yao sits out next season
Encouraged by progress in his recovery from major foot surgery, Yao Ming says he will return to action — just not next season. “The [X-ray] picture looks good. The bones heal well,” he said in an interview with Houston television station KRIV on Wednesday. He also said, however, that there was no chance that he will play in the 2009-2010 NBA season. “The answer is no. You don’t want to rush it, because they want it to totally heal this time. I have been in this situation enough,” he said. The 2.29m Chinese star underwent surgery in May to repair a hairline fracture in his left foot suffered late in a May 8 NBA playoff game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The injury had raised questions, especially in China, about Yao’s playing future. This week, he said he expects his career will take on new life. “I am able to play again,” he said. However, there may be a change in the style of his play. “Obviously, I want to play basketball. This is my life right there,” he said. “But for long term, believe me for long term, I need to slow down.”
■BASEBALL
US win, Taiwan lose again
Terry Tiffee hit his fourth home run of the baseball World Cup as the US beat Cuba 5-3 in Rome on Thursday in a likely preview of this weekend’s final. The US stretched its winning streak to 12 games after opening the competition with a loss to Venezuela. Lucas Harrell earned the win, allowing only one hit over four innings, and Ehren Wasserman got the save, also allowing only one hit in 2-1/3 innings. Puerto Rico defeated Taiwan 8-2, while Venezuela beat Australia 9-4 and Canada downed the Netherlands 11-5.
■BOXING
Japan to get heavy again
Japan plans to reintroduce domestic heavyweight boxing rankings after a gap of 51 years. The Japan Boxing Commission (JBC) will give tests to 10 applicants, including kickboxers and mixed martial arts fighters hoping to join the professional ranks from late November. “The heavyweight division existed in Japan, but there were insufficient boxers above super middleweight to sustain a ranking system,” the JBC’s Eiichiro Sameshima said yesterday. “We have had 10 applications for tests above the 75kg class [super middle].” JBC officials are also bringing in light heavyweight and cruiserweight rankings in a bid to boost the sport’s image in the country and generate more revenue.
■ATHLETICS
ASA chief to keep his job
Athletics South Africa (ASA) president Leonard Chuene will keep his job despite government calls for him to be fired for lying about gender tests made on runner Caster Semenya, SAPA news agency reported on Thursday. SAPA said the athletics federation’s board had decided to keep Chuene in his post at a meeting to discuss the controversy surrounding whether gender tests were conducted on Semenya before her world championship 800m victory last month. “The meeting unanimously expressed confidence in the current ASA leadership,” the agency quoted the federation as saying. Chuene said last week that Semenya had undergone tests before the world championships in Berlin, something he had previously denied. He said he had lied to protect the gold medalist’s privacy and said a team doctor had advised that she should be withdrawn from last month’s championships.
■SKIING
Miller rejoins US team
Three-time Olympian Bode Miller announced on Thursday that he is returning to the US ski team after a two-year solo adventure with mixed results. Miller, who battled injuries at the end of last season and pondered retirement, said he telephoned US ski team coach Sasha Rearick four weeks ago and asked to rejoin the team for the upcoming World Cup ski season. “I asked what is your program and how do I look like I can fit into that,” Miller said. “It didn’t take a lot of encouragement when I reached out to Sasha. Everyone on the team is on the same page and when you talk about important issues they are dealt with.” The two-time World Cup overall champion is also hoping to qualify for his fourth Winter Olympics, which begin in Vancouver in just over four months.
■SOCCER
Keeper moves goalposts
IFK Goteborg goalkeeper Kim Christensen could face a suspension or fine after moving the posts to make the goal slightly smaller during a Swedish first division match. Christensen was caught by TV cameras pushing the posts toward each other, moving the bottom parts inward by a few centimeters, before Thursday night’s game against Orebro. Referee Stefan Johannesson spotted that the posts had been moved about 20 minutes into the game and pushed them back into their original place. He was unsure, however, who had moved them and did not take any action against Christensen. The Danish goalkeeper later admitted that he had done the same thing before several previous games, when the same type of goal was used. The Swedish Football Association is investigating the incident. “I have never heard anything like this before, it’s unique,” the Swedish FA’s disciplinary committee chairman Kheneth Tallinger told daily Aftonbladet.
■SOCCER
Bellamy probe dropped
Police have dropped an investigation into a clash between Craig Bellamy and a fan who ran onto the pitch at last weekend’s explosive Manchester derby, a spokesman said on Thursday. The Manchester City player was warned by the Football Association after he responded to the fan by pushing him in the face on Sunday, while the police said they had launched a probe. A Greater Manchester Police spokesman, however, said on Thursday: “We have received no complaints about this incident and are currently not investigating the matter.” The fan involved will appear in court on Wednesday charged with going on to a playing area without lawful authority. Gary Neville, a non-playing Manchester United substitute, was also investigated for his actions in celebrating the home side’s winner by running down the touchline toward the City fans, but the FA have decided against charging either player with improper conduct.
■SOCCER
Burglars confront Jagielka
Everton defender Phil Jagielka was confronted by knife-wielding burglars, the latest Premier League star to fall victim to gangs raiding the homes of soccer’s super-rich. The 27-year-old, who is currently injured, was watching his team on TV on Wednesday when three men burst into the father-of-two’s plush home in Knutsford, northwest England. He was threatened with a knife and forced to hand over jewelry and the keys to his car. Last month, Blackburn Rovers midfielder Vince Grella was also held at knife-point when thieves smashed their way into his home in Wilmslow, also in Cheshire.
BUMRAH WATCH: Captain Jasprit Bumrah left the SCG for scans for back spasms and although he returned to the ground, there was no word on if he would play Rishabh Pant’s blistering counterattack yesterday capped a chaotic second day of the fifth and final Test between Australia and India, with 15 wickets falling and the star bowler of the series leaving the Sydney Cricket Ground with an ambulance escort. Yet the Border-Gavaskar trophy still remains very much in the balance as India reached 141-6, holding a 145-run lead over Australia with three days remaining. “Low-scoring games like this, it just heightens the pressure within it, so long way still to go,” Australia coach Andrew McDonald said. “There’s gonna be plenty of cricket, so we’ll see what happens.” Australia were bowled out for
Five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek yesterday beat Elena Rybakina in straight sets to take Poland into the final of the mixed-teams United Cup with victory over Kazakhstan. Last year’s runners-up face the US today for the title in Sydney after they beat the Czech Republic in the other semi-final. “This win makes me really proud,” Swiatek said after seeing off Rybakina 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 to give Poland an unassailable 2-0 lead in the tie. It was a statement of intent from the world number two with the first major of the year to start on Jan. 12. “It is perfect preparation for the
Taiwan’s Wu Fang-hsien and Jiang Xinyu of China yesterday won the women’s doubles title at the ASB Classic in Auckland, while Naomi Osaka retired from the women’s singles final with an abdominal injury. Second seeds Wu and Jiang defeated Serbia’s Aleksandra Krunic and Sabrina Santamaria of the US 6-3, 6-4 on ASB Tennis Centre’s Stadium Court in 1 hour, 5 minutes. The WTA 250 victory was 25-year-old Wu’s second WTA Tour title, after winning the 2023 Hua Hin Championships in Thailand with Taiwanese partner Chan Hao-ching. Later that year, Wu and Taiwan’s Hsu Yu-hsiou won the mixed doubles gold at the World
SHORT-HANDED: Reigning champions the Boston Celtics were without stars Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis, but they still downed the Timberwolves Oklahoma City on Thursday stretched the NBA’s best winning streak to 13 games with a home victory, while reigning champions the Boston Celtics held on for a last-shot triumph at Minnesota. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had game highs of 29 points and eight assists to spark the Thunder over the Los Angeles Clippers 116-98, improving the Western Conference leaders to 28-5. The Thunder’s winning streak is the longest since the team relocated from Seattle after the 2007-2008 season. “It’s just being present, going day by day, working on ourselves, and I think we’re doing a good job on that,” said Isaiah Hartenstein, who added 11
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