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.
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
‘SETTING THE TONE’: Donovan Mitchell said that their determination to dominate had nothing to do with past results, but was about a potential post-season clash The Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday boosted their NBA-best record with a 142-105 romp past the New York Knicks, tightening their grip on the Eastern Conference lead with an all-around dominant display. Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points to lead six Cavs players to score in double figures, connecting on five of seven three-pointers as Cleveland drilled 19 from beyond the arc. “I think the biggest thing was just try to set the tone early,” Mitchell said, adding that the determination to dominate had nothing to do with the Knicks’ first-round playoff win over the Cavs two seasons ago and everything to do with
BELGIANS ADVANCE: Club Brugge gave Atalanta a lesson in efficiency, as Gian Piero Gasperini’s team had 29 efforts at goal, compared with seven from the visitors Seldom has a player’s sending off had such an influence on a game. AC Milan was to left rue Theo Hernandez’s second yellow card — for diving — as Feyenoord advanced to the UEFA Champions League last 16 at the former European champion’s expense with a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their playoff on Tuesday, giving the Dutch team a 2-1 win on aggregate. Bayern Munich, Club Brugge and Benfica also won their playoffs, eliminating Celtic, UEFA Europa League winner Atalanta BC and French team AS Monaco respectively. “In soccer everything changes in a second,” said Milan forward
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