TENNIS
Chans exit in France
Taiwanese sisters Latisha Chan and Chan Hao-ching yesterday crashed out at the Internationaux de Strasbourg in France, beaten 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, 10-6 by Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan of China in the semi-finals of the women’s doubles. The Chans fell behind early in the first set to trail 0-3, but fought back, converting all three of their break-point opportunities. However, they were dominated in the second set and again fell behind early in the tiebreaker. The Chans defeated Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and partner Wang Xinyu of China 6-4, 5-7, 10-8 in the quarter-finals on Wednesday. The other semi-final was yet to be scheduled as of press time last night.
SOCCER
Iniesta to depart Kobe
Andres Iniesta, who won the FIFA World Cup with Spain in 2010, and four Champions League titles and nine La Liga championships with Barcelona, is leaving Japanese club Vissel Kobe. Iniesta brushed back tears yesterday as he announced he was leaving and indicated he planned to keep playing, but did not say where. Asked where he might play, he replied in Spanish: “I have to tell you the truth, I don’t know. I want to keep playing football. I feel like I am capable of still playing, but as this chapter closes, we’ll see what’s possible. I want to finish my career on the pitch playing, and this is what I’m hoping to do.” News reports suggested a stint in the Middle East, but with no details about clubs. After finishing his long tenure at Barcelona, Iniesta joined the Japanese club in 2018 on a three-year deal, and prolonged his stay with a two-year extension. News reports indicate his reason for leaving is because he wants more playing time. Iniesta just turned 39 and made the announcement at a club news conference in Kobe. His last game for the club is expected to be at home on July 1, a farewell to fans. Vissel Kobe are leading the J-League standings after 14 rounds.
BOXING
Alvarez seeks Bivol rematch
After his victory over Britain’s John Ryder earlier this month, undisputed super middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez on Wednesday said that he wants another fight with Dmitry Bivol, who handed him a rare loss last year. The win over Ryder brought Alvarez’s record up to 59-2-2 in front of a home crowd in Guadalajara, Mexico. “That’s the idea, a rematch with Bivol,” Alvarez said on the sidelines of a real-estate conference. One of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the sport, Alvarez said that he wanted the rematch to be at light heavyweight again. Russian Bivol, the WBA light heavyweight champion, told ESPN earlier this month he was more interested in moving down to super middleweight in a bid for Alvarez’s championship. Should Bivol refuse to meet the terms, Alvarez said “there are other fights out there,” mentioning twins Jermell and Jermall Charlo, and Mexican-American David Benavidez as potential challengers. Benavidez — whom Alvarez called “a great fighter” — has publicly called for a fight between the two. Talks for Alvarez’s next fight, set to take place in September to coincide with Mexico’s Independence Day, would begin next week. “Right now I’m resting, more than anything,” Alvarez said.
North Korea’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup-winning team on Saturday received a heroes’ welcome back in the capital, Pyongyang, with hundreds of people on the streets to celebrate their success. They had defeated Spain on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the U17 World Cup final in the Dominican Republic on Nov. 3. It was the second global title in two months for secretive North Korea — largely closed off to the outside world; they also lifted the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in September. Officials and players’ families gathered at Pyongyang International Airport to wave flowers and North Korea flags as the
Taiwan’s top table tennis player Lin Yun-ju made his debut in the US professional table tennis scene by taking on a new role as a team’s co-owner. On Wednesday, Major League Table Tennis (MLTT), founded in September last year, announced on its official Web site that Lin had become part of the ownership group of the Princeton Revolution, one of the league’s eight teams. MLTT chief executive officer Flint Lane described Lin’s investment as “another great milestone for table tennis in America,” saying that the league’s “commitment to growth and innovation is drawing attention from the best in the sport, and we’re
Coco Gauff of the US on Friday defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 to set up a showdown with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in the final of the WTA Finals, while in the doubles, Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching was eliminated. Gauff generated six break points to Belarusian Sabalenka’s four and built on early momentum in the opening set’s tiebreak that she carried through to the second set. She is the youngest player at 20 to make the final at the WTA Finals since Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. Zheng earlier defeated Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 7-5 to book
For King Faisal, a 20-year-old winger from Ghana, the invitation to move to Brazil to play soccer “was a dream.” “I believed when I came here, it would help me change the life of my family and many other people,” he said in Sao Paulo. For the past year and a half, he has been playing on the under-20s squad for Sao Paulo FC, one of South America’s most prominent clubs. He and a small number of other Africans are tearing across pitches in a country known as the biggest producer and exporter of soccer stars in the world, from Pele to Neymar. For
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