BADMINTON
Chou ousted in first match
Taiwanese men’s singles star Chou Tien-chen yesterday lost his first match of the Victor China Open to world No. 7 Li Shifeng of China. The world No. 11 was defeated 21-14, 18-21, 21-18. Taiwan’s Lin Chun-yi fared better in Changzhou, beating France’s Toma Junior Popov 21-15, 10-21, 21-16. Among other Taiwanese results, mixed doubles pair Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin thrashed the Netherlands’ Robin Tabeling and Selena Piek 21-13, 21-13. In the men’s doubles, Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin upset compatriots Su Ching-heng and Ye 21-14, 21-14, while Chang Ko-chi and Po Li-wei lost 21-14, 21-17 to China’s He Jiting and Zhou Haodong. Sung Shuo-yun was beaten 21-15, 21-13 by China’s He Bingjiao in the women’s singles.
CRICKET
NZ level England T20 series
Mitchell Santner starred with the ball on Tuesday, before Tim Seifert led the way with the bat as New Zealand beat England by six wickets at Trent Bridge to end a four-match Twenty20 series all square at 2-2. When Jonny Bairstow was making a quickfire 73, T20 world champions England were on course for a huge total. However, with England white-ball captain Jos Buttler rested from the game, New Zealand took four wickets for 35 runs — with left-arm spinner Santner returning fine figures of 3-30. New Zealand controlled their chase, with Seifert making 48 and the in-form Glenn Phillips 42 before Mark Chapman’s unbeaten 40 completed a comfortable win with 16 balls left. “They [England] got off to a great start tonight, but we knew that if we kept taking wickets it was the best way to slow them down,” New Zealand captain Tim Southee said. “We were trying to be smart and make them take aggressive options.”
BASKETBALL
Stewart breaks WNBA record
New York Liberty’s Breanna Stewart on Tuesday broke the WNBA record for most points scored in a single season after her 40 against the Dallas Wings took her tally to 885 points from 38 games. The five-time All Star forward moved past the 860 points set by Phoenix Mercury guard Diana Taurasi in 2006 when the regular season was 34 games. Stewart has two games left — against Los Angeles Sparks on Thursday and Washington Mystics on Sunday — to add to her tally. “I have something I can hold over her head a little bit,” Stewart, 29, said, jokingly. “It means a lot. Any time I’m in the same limelight as ‘D’ it’s a huge honor. I really appreciate everything I’ve been able to do, and wouldn’t be able to do it without my teammates.”
SOCCER
Messi mural goes viral
High-school students in Argentina pieced together a massive mural of soccer superstar Lionel Messi out of thousands of recycled plastic bottle caps. The mural fills the floor of an open-air high school courtyard in the Grand Bourg neighborhood, just outside the capital, Buenos Aires. It depicts the beaming forward holding aloft the golden FIFA World Cup trophy from last year’s win in Qatar, along with a caption offering thanks to Argentina’s tattooed captain. Sebastian Ramirez, a teacher at the school, posted a video clip on social media that went viral summing up a widely-held assessment of Messi’s legacy. “A tribute to the greatest,” he said.
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
“Please love us. Please cheer us on. We have been working hard. Do not give up on us.” Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien’s heartfelt plea echoed across the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 tournament after a historic victory. Rather than boasting, Chen was making an earnest appeal after leading Taiwan to a 4-0 victory over Japan to claim their first major international baseball title at the senior level. Chen’s decisive three-run homer in the fifth inning and his Premier12 leading .632 batting average secured him the Premier12’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) title. He was also named one of the tournament’s outstanding defensive players
WELL-AGED: Although the youngest team in the tournament, Taiwan featured several veteran stars, including Sunday’s home-run hero Chen Chieh-hsien “I will never forget today,” veteran Taiwanese pitcher Chen Kuan-yu said after Taiwan on Sunday night blanked Japan to secure their first ever gold in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 championship. Chen, who at 34 is the oldest member on the team, said Taiwan “made every difficult step to come to today’s victory. I will never forget today.” Taiwan made history when they won their first gold medal of the Premier12 tournament, beating Japan in a 4-0 shutout victory in the final at the Tokyo Dome. It was a jaw-dropping victory for many baseball commentators who went into the game with
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
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