BADMINTON
Tai retires hurt in HK
Taiwan’s Tai Tzu-ying yesterday retired from her match against world No. 31 Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia at the Hong Kong Open. Wardani, who beat Tai at the Taipei Open last week, was leading 6-2 when the Taiwanese star had to stop. In the men’s singles on Wednesday, Taiwanese world No. 9 Chou Tien-chen beat Canada’s Sheng Xiaodong 21-18, 21-12 and yesterday eliminated Saran Jamsri of Thailand 21-15 21-19. At the Vietnam Open, Taiwan’s Tung Ciou-tong and Lin Hsiang-ti face each other today in the quarter-finals. World No. 65 Lin defeated compatriot Huang Yu-hsun 21-16, 21-9, while world No. 102 Tung ousted Keisha Fatimah Azzahra of Azerbaijan 8-21, 21-15, 21-14 at the US$100,000 event. Other Taiwanese were to play after press time last night at both tournaments.
Photo: CNA
TABLE TENNIS
Lin Yun-ju wins in Macau
Taiwan’s Lin Yun-ju yesterday defeated Anton Kallberg of Sweden 3-0 (11-4, 11-5, 11-9) in the men’s singles at the World Table Tennis Champions Macau. With the round-of-16 win, Lin earned a place in the quarter-finals today against Lin Shidong of China. Taiwan’s Kao Cheng-jui also advanced to the quarters, beating Chinese player Lin Gaoyuan 3-1 (11-7, 11-6, 9-11, 11-9). Kao faces Sweden’s Truls Moregard today. In the women’s singles, Taiwan’s Cheng I-ching booked a quarter-final against Wang Manyu of China with a 3-1 (11-7, 12-10, 10-12, 11-6) victory over Orawan Paranang of Thailand. Cheng ousted compatriot Chien Tung-chuan in the round-of-32.
BASEBALL
Taiwan smash Colombia
Taiwan yesterday piled on six runs in the final frame as they beat Colombia 10-0 at the WBSC Under-23 Baseball World Cup in Shaoxing, China. Lead pitcher Huang Zi-hao conceded four hits in five scoreless innings before Chen Ping-hong closed out the seven-innings game at the Shaoxing Baseball and Softball Sports Culture Center. Second baseman Tseng Yu-ching, third baseman Wang Nian-hao and designated hitter Lin Chia-wei each had two RBIs as Taiwan won their first game in the Placement Round. They face Australia today.
SOCCER
Kuwaiti officials sacked
The Kuwait Football Association has suspended one of its top bosses and its head of public relations over failings that left fans in sweltering temperatures for hours during a FIFA World Cup qualifier against Iraq. The association in a statement on Wednesday expressed its “deep regret” for ticketing and other logistical problems that marred the game at the 60,000-capacity Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium on Tuesday. It also said it would launch a probe into the shortcomings, which resulted in fans fainting in temperatures of more than 40°C as they pleaded with staff for water, with videos of the incidents shared on social media. The game was a 0-0 draw.
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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