RUGBY UNION
Barrett open to captaincy
Scott Barrett yesterday said that he is open to taking the All Blacks captaincy if offered it by new coach Scott Robertson. Barrett and loose forward Ardie Savea are considered the strongest candidates to succeed former skipper Sam Cane and lead the team to the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. “I guess that’s something I’d be open to,” Barrett told New Zealand media, adding: “It’d be a huge honor to do that ... but my focus right now is to get back on the park.” The lock’s comments followed New Zealand Rugby’s announcement that he and veteran hooker Codie Taylor had recommitted to the All Blacks through to the 2027 tournament. Barrett said that being a part of near-misses at the past two tournaments — the final last year in France and the semi-finals in Japan in 2019 — were motivation. “There’s certainly a lot of pain for the last couple of World Cups, personally,” he said. “Scars, I guess, that probably won’t go away. That’s a big driver to give myself another opportunity to go to a World Cup — if I’m playing and performing well.” Barrett has been battling a back injury that saw him miss most of the Super Rugby Pacific season for the Canterbury Crusaders. He is still not fully recovered from a bulged disc in his back, but said he was “tracking alright” ahead of the All Blacks’ season, which is to start at home against England next month.
BOXING
Usyk eyes cruiserweight
Undisputed heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk said that he might return to the cruiserweight division following his rematch with British heavyweight Tyson Fury later this year. Usyk — now the WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO champion — defeated Fury by a split decision in a thrilling contest at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh to become undisputed heavyweight champion. The Ukrainian was previously the undisputed cruiserweight champion before moving up to heavyweight in 2019. “I think maybe after the rematch, I am going to go down in weight to cruiserweight. I want more cruiserweight,” Usyk said in an episode of the 3 Knockdown Rule podcast released on Wednesday. “Maybe I can be undisputed for a second time in the cruiserweight division, it’s my plan. When I start to prepare for my training camp [as a heavyweight], I have to eat all the time. For me it’s hard, I don’t like it.” Usyk, 37, is the first undisputed heavyweight champion since the end of Lennox Lewis’ reign in April 2000. He faces Fury in a rematch on Dec. 21 in Riyadh
SOCCER
Tudor resigns from Lazio
Igor Tudor has resigned from his role as manager of SS Lazio, after less than three months in charge, the Serie A club said on Wednesday. Tudor replaced Maurizio Sarri when he resigned as manager in March, and signed an 18-month contract. At the time, Lazio were ninth in the standings. Tudor took them to a seventh-placed finish and UEFA Europa League qualification. “SS Lazio announces that, today, Igor Tudor has resigned as head of the first team,” the club said in a statement. “The club would like to thank the coach for his work and wishes him the best of luck personally and professionally.” The 46-year-old Croatian has previously managed Hellas Verona and Udinese in Italy, and took Olympique de Marseille to a third-placed finish in Ligue 1 in the 2022-23 season before leaving the club in June last year.
“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
Major League Baseball (MLB) star Shohei Ohtani wants his former interpreter to hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of baseball cards he says were fraudulently bought using his money. The Los Angeles Dodgers star is also requesting Ippei Mizuhara, who previously pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud for stealing nearly US$17 million from the unsuspecting athlete, return signed collectible baseball cards depicting Ohtani that were in Mizuhara’s “unauthorized and wrongful possession,” court documents filed on Tuesday said. The legal filing alleges Mizuhara accessed Ohtani’s bank account beginning in about November 2021, changing his security protocols so that he
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