BADMINTON
Hangzhou awarded finals
International badminton’s flagship event, the World Tour Finals, are to be held in Hangzhou, China, for the next four years. The world’s second-largest economy is seen as a key area for the sport’s growth and development. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has previously talked of “ever-growing numbers of both competitive and recreational-level players” and a sky-rocketing fanbase in the nation. This year’s season-ending BWF World Tour Finals are to be held from Dec. 13 to 17, the federation announced on Wednesday. “Hangzhou with its superb sporting infrastructure and experience in staging elite international events is an ideal host for our finals,” BWF secretary-general Thomas Lund said.
RUGBY UNION
Joseph to return to Otago
Japan coach Jamie Joseph is to return to the Otago Highlanders after the Rugby World Cup to take up a new head of rugby role overseeing recruitment, retention and mentoring head coach Clarke Dermody at the Super Rugby team. The former All Blacks and Japan flanker coached the Dunedin-based Highlanders to their only Super Rugby trophy in 2015 before taking charge of Japan the following year. Joseph said that the four-year deal with the Highlanders was a great opportunity to “give back” to the club and the region. “I did my study at the University of Otago, played for Otago, and my family have enjoyed being raised and schooled in Dunedin,” he said in a statement. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time as head coach of the Highlanders, so I am genuinely excited about returning to the south [of New Zealand] to offer my services to the club in 2024.” The departures from Otago of Aaron Smith, Shannon Frizell and Josh Dickson to Japan after the World Cup would add to Joseph and Dermody’s challenge to turn around the fortunes of the worst-performing New Zealand Super Rugby side in this year’s tournament.
CRICKET
Johnson takes 3 for 1
Oval Invincibles fast bowler Spencer Johnson on Wednesday produced the most economical 20-ball effort in The Hundred, claiming three wickets for just one run in his stunning debut in the tournament. Two days after being picked in the Australia squad for the T20 International series in South Africa later this month, the 27-year-old justified his selection by firing down 19 dot balls from a maximum of 20 deliveries as his team trumped the Manchester Originals by 94 runs. After the Invincibles racked up 186-5, Johnson did not concede any runs in his first five balls, and gave away only a single to England white-ball captain Jos Buttler in his second set of five. The left-arm quick returned to bowl 10 straight deliveries during which he mowed down the Manchester lower order, taking three wickets including two bowled. “I’m speechless, not really sure what’s going on,” said Johnson, who played the final of the Global T20 Canada on Sunday. “I’m pinching myself... I’ve had a bit of a tough run with injury, but I’m 27 now and come out the other side. I’m just really enjoying my cricket and lucky to be here.” Oval captain Sam Billings admired Johnson’s ability to swing the bowl at high pace. “To provide a performance like that against Jos Buttler and Phil Salt as well, two of the best players in the world at the moment, I can’t really put into words how special that bowling performance is,” Billings said.
‘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