AFP – BERLIN

Norwegian sensation Erling Braut Haaland stole the lime-light yesterday as the German Bundesliga became the first major European football league to return since the coronavirus lockdown, with teams playing in empty, echoing stadiums.

The 19-year-old striker claimed the first goal in Ger-many’s top flight for over two months to set Borussia Dortmund on the way to a 4-0 win over local rivals Schalke.

Portuguese international Raphael Guerreiro then added two goals either side of a Thorgan Hazard strike.

Second-placed Dortmund moved to within a point of leaders Bayern Munich, who are chasing an eighth straight title and play Union Berlin away on Sunday.

Haaland steered a low Thorgan Hazard cross into the far corner on 29 minutes to claim his 10th goal in just nine Bundesliga matches.

It was his 41st goal this season in all competitions and his 13th for Dortmund in just 12 games since joining in January from Red Bull Salzburg.

Haaland celebrated by dancing alone -- making no contact with team-mates, who clapped him on -- to comply with the strict hygiene guide-lines which allowed the league to return.

All matches are being played behind closed doors, with no more than 300 people permitted inside stadiums.

Normally Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park would be packed with over 81,000 fans for the Ruhr derby, one of the biggest fixtures in German football.

After Haaland’s opener, an error by Schalke goalkeeper Markus Schubert led to

Guerreiro making it 2-0 before half-time.

Haaland then played a role in the build-up to the third goal before Julian Brandt set up Hazard to fire home on 48 minutes.

Schalke looked short of match fitness while Dortmund were sharper, and Guerreiro grabbed his second in style after a one-two with Haaland in the 63rd minute.

Elsewhere, third-placed RB Leipzig were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Freiburg, leaving them four points off top spot.

Defender Manuel Gulde gave visitors Freiburg a shock lead and celebrated by elbow-bumping teammates, before Leipzig striker Yussuf Poulsen grabbed a late equaliser. Freiburg were then denied a stoppage-time winner when a VAR check spotted an offside.

Later, Borussia Moencheng-ladbach can leapfrog Leipzig if they win at Eintracht Frankfurt.

Bruno Labbadia, who was named as Jurgen Klinsmann’s replacement during the lockdown, made a winning start as Hertha Berlin coach with a 3-0 success at Hoffenheim.

The goals came in quick succession with a Kevin Akpoguma own-goal being

followed by Hertha captain Vedad Ibisevic grabbing a second. Brazilian Matheus Cunha then made it 3-0.

In contrast to elsewhere, Hertha players celebrated their goals by hugging each other, flaunting the league’s hygiene guidelines, but Labbadia defended his team.

A German Football League (DFL) spokesman confirmed there will be no punishment, as it had only offered “guidelines” on how goals should be celebrated.

In order to get the political green light to resume this weekend, the DFL has tested players and coaches regularly for the virus and teams have been in quarantine for the past week.

Teams arrived at stadiums in several buses in order to meet social distancing requirements inside vehicles.

The DFL has made no secret of the fact that several clubs are already in a dire financial situ-ation as a result of the lockdown.

If they are able to complete the nine remaining rounds of matches by June 30, clubs could receive around €300m ($324m) in money from television contracts.

Clubs in England, Spain and Italy, where leagues are weeks away from returning, will be watching to see how the weekend goes.

SPORT | 08

Slim chance of

T20 World Cup

taking place:

Hayden

SPORTKyrgios tells

Murray ‘you are

better than

Djokovic’

SPORT | 09

SUNDAY 17 MAY 2020

WHO head urges global unity to help make Tokyo Olympics safeAP – GENEVA

The head of the World Health Organ-isation said yesterday it will not be easy to make next year’s Tokyo Olympics a safe global gathering after the pandemic.

Speaking at a joint news con-ference with the IOC, the WHO’s director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for “national unity and global solidarity” to fight the coronavirus outbreak ahead of the Olympics. The Games, postponed this year, should bring athletes from more than 200 countries to Japan.

The Summer Games opening ceremony is now due on July 23, 2021, after the International Olympic Committee and organizers in Japan used WHO advice in March before agreeing a one-year delay.

“We hope Tokyo will be a place where humanity will gather with triumph against COVID,” Tedros said at WHO headquarters.

Around 11,000 athletes from more than 200 teams are due to compete at the Tokyo Olympics. Most would be joined by team offi-cials staying in an athletes village complex of 5,600 apartments at Tokyo Bay. Health experts, including in Japan, have questioned how the 33-sport Olympics can be run before an effective global vaccine program is in place.

“Nobody can at this moment in time really give you a reliable answer on how the world will look like in July 2021,” IOC President Thomas Bach acknowledged.

“It is too early to start speculation on different scenarios and what it may need at the time to guarantee this safe environment for all participants.”

Sport could rebel against pandemic rules, says CoeAFP – NEW DELHI

World athletics chief Sebastian Coe has warned that sports leaders may rebel against pandemic restrictions as they struggle to get major events back on track.

Coe expressed the frustrations felt by many sports chiefs when he said it was crucial to get top events started again even as the corona-virus takes a mounting toll around the world.

“We have to be guided by what governments, the WHO and local authorities are telling us, but we also have to make our own deci-sions and make sensible compro-mises,” Coe, 63, told Indian tele-vision channel WION.

“There may be a moment when a sport decides that it is ready to stage events even if it is not always with the approval of those authorities.

“We will be respectful, but we have to make decisions in the best interest of our sport and our ath-letes,” the British former track legend insisted.

Athletics like other key sports has seen its calendar and finances badly hit by the postponement of this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The world athletics champi-onships planned for 2021 have had to be pushed back by a year to allow for a provisional plan to stage the Tokyo Games next year instead.

Coe said no one could give a cast-iron assurance that the Olympics will be held.

“Speculating about something that is over a year away is unhelpful,” said the former chief of the 2012 London Olympics.

“We are trying to give the ath-letes some clarity about the cal-endar and speculation from scientists and medical experts does not help.

“I hope that the

pandemic will be contained so that we don’t have to cancel the Games.” Athletics’ Diamond League may only start in August and finish in October. Coe said competitions will look very dif-ferent with athletes battling each other in empty stadiums.

“Meeting directors will have to take their own decisions about how to get athletes to competition in a safe and secure manner that doesn’t risk infection,” he said.

“Each event will have to decide on a format for competition with these safety considerations two months in advance.

“Everybody is waiting to return to competition and organisers will have to be as creative and ingenious as possible in the current circumstances.” In a separate interview with Indian media, Coe said there would be greater use of technology to make events “more exciting” for television viewers and to adapt to the coronavirus threat.

“If you think of relay, the baton exchange could be another source of infection, but we are finding ways to organise it,” the World Athletics chief said.

“As a runner I can feel the emotions of the athletes if there is only training and no competition. Therefore we want to provide them with an oppor-tuni ty to compete and perform.”

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Singapore F1 promoters say closed-doors race is not feasibleREUTERS – SINGAPORE

Singapore Grand Prix promoters have ruled out holding their Formula One race without spectators, casting further uncertainty over the likelihood of the September event going ahead.

Formula One plans to start its stalled season in July with races behind closed doors in Austria and Britain due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The sport has not given up on crowds returning later in the year, however.

Singapore GP promoters told The Straits Times newspaper yesterday that they were maintaining an open dialogue with Formula One but it was “not feasible to conduct the race behind closed doors”.

“The top priority remains the well-being and safety of our fans, volunteers, and all Singaporeans,” a spokesman said.

He added “works typically require three months to complete, and this will depend on whether such activities are permitted under the prevailing government regulations”.

Last year’s race on the Marina Bay street circuit was watched by 268,000 spectators

over the three days, with overseas visitors making up 40% of the crowd.

Formula One has yet to publish a revised calendar, with three races cancelled and seven postponed so far, but draft versions have appeared on the internet without fea-turing Singapore.

The island nation has reported nearly 27,000 cases of coronavirus, the highest per capita infection rate in Asia, largely due to mass outbreaks in cramped accom-modation for foreign labourers.

The government has ordered a nationwide lockdown due to run until June 1.

Haaland stars in big Dortmund win Bundesliga makes 'contactless' comeback in front of empty stands

Dortmund’s Raphael Guerreiro scores the his side’s 4th goal against Schalke during the Bundesliga match played in Dortmund, western Germany as the season resumed following a two-month absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic, yesterday.

Formula One plans to start its stalled season in July with races behind closed doors in Austria and Britain due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year’s race on the Marina Bay street circuit was watched by 268,000 spectators over the three days, with overseas visitors making up 40% of the crowd.

This file photo shows a general view of the Marina Bay racing track in Singapore.

Wolfsburg’s Daniel Ginczek (left) celebrates with team-mate Kevin Mbabu after scoring a goal against FC Augsburg.

A matchball is being disinfected during the match between RB Leipzig and SC Freiburg, yesterday.

Sebastian Coe

07SUNDAY 17 MAY 2020 SPORT

Qatar Racing’s silks ready for action in EnglandAFP – LONDON

Horse racing’s planned resumption on June 1 in England is a godsend for the ‘Sport of Kings’ as it is “only so long you can tread water before you sink”, Qatar Racing’s manager David Redvers told AFP.

Newcastle will host the first meeting behind closed doors since racing was suspended on March 18 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

That will serve as an appe-tiser before it really kicks into gear with the first classics -- races for three year-olds only -- the 1000 and 2000 Guineas to be run at Newmarket on the first weekend of June.

Flat racing’s showpiece meeting Royal Ascot it is hoped will follow shortly afterwards on June 16.

However, it will do so without racegoers, including its most notable attendee Queen Elizabeth II who although pres-ently residing in adjacent Windsor Castle will miss it for the first time since 1952.

Racecourses have been taking a heavy hit with the Racecourse Association esti-mating they are losing over £8m ($9.7m) a month.

Redvers, though, is just

thankful Qatar Racing’s silks and those of their rivals will be once again seen in competitive action.

“It has been hugely con-cerning for everyone as it is only so long you can tread water before you sink,” he told AFP.

“It is looking a much better chance things will take off and on June 1 we come out all guns blazing.”

England will follow France who resumed racing last Monday, with jockeys required to wear masks.

French trainer Nicolas Clement said attending the meeting at Longchamp was like “walking into a hospital”.

Ireland has brought forward its return by three weeks to June 8 after Prime Minister Leo Var-adkar acknowledged on Friday

“this is a big economic sector”.Strict regulations will be

enforced in England with trainers, jockeys and grooms obliged to wear masks and owners not permitted to attend.

However, Redvers says all those rules and sacrifices are worth it so long as the show is back on the road.

“It is a long way from being a complete disaster and one must be thankful for small mercies,” he said.

“Behind closed doors at least gives us horse racing.

“Without horse racing then there would be no hope and the industry would crumble very quickly so it could be worse.”

Qatar Racing’s Sheikh Fahad Al Thani will be one of those owners who misses out -- Kameko is one of the favourites for the 2000 Guineas.

His trainer Andrew Balding is yet to win the race -- which is sponsored like many of the top races in England by the Sheikh’s family business Qatar Investment and Project Development Holding Company (QIPCO).

However, he admits for him and his fellow trainers due to the coronavirus it is a journey into the unknown.

“What we have been able to do with the horses should not be much reason for excuses,” he said.

“The horses have done more than they usually do on the gallops.

“Some horses need a run and others don’t and there are all sorts of other factors such as adrenalin and a long break which can influence the way a

horse races.” Although some have raised concerns Balding believes going to the race-courses carries very little risk.

“There will certainly be more bio security steps in place than going to a supermarket,” he said.

“The last thing Newmarket or Ascot will wish to do is put people in jeopardy.”

Sheikh Fahad and his fam-ily’s devotion to English racing has definitely helped for the very rainy days economically the sport is facing.

R a c i n g a u t h o r i t i e s announced on Thursday a drastic reduction in prizemoney for Group races although spon-sorship money will soften some of the blow.

Redvers hopes that at the very least Sheikh Fahad and his brothers will be able to attend the QIPCO-sponsored Cham-pions Day in October which will be its 10th anniversary.

He does glimpse a ray of hope for the industry.

“Like anything any downturn gives everybody plenty of opportunity to see where we are and how we can improve our situation,” he said.

“Hopefully we can rise from the ashes as a fitter leaner hun-grier model.”

Boxing legend Leonard turns 64REUTERS – LONDON

Boxers are often remembered for epic one-off fights or career-defining rivalries but few faced as many truly bril-liant rivals as Sugar Ray Leonard or beat them with enough regularity to be considered peerless in a time of greats.

Leonard, who turns 64 today, won six world titles in five weight divisions but his career was as much about who he fought and how he fought them as what he won.

As the 1970s ended, the iconic heavyweight era of Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and Joe Frazier was over and Leonard was moving to centre stage along with three other men, whose careers would all be defined by their rivalry.

Leonard, Roberto Duran, Marvin Hagler and Thomas Hearns fought each other nine times between 1980 and 1989 in the welterweight or middleweight divisions.

“Each of the nine bouts between the four men was memorable in its own way and at least two of them are commonly included on any list of the greatest fights of all time,” George Kimball wrote in his book Four Kings, a study of their rivalry.

Leonard, who burst on to the scene with a gold medal at the 1976 Olympics, saw boxing as a branch of the entertainment business and he and his rivals created dis-tinct personas to ramp up the rivalries.

Hearns was “The Hitman”, known for his destructive right hand. Hagler styled himself as Marvelous Marvin Hagler. Duran, the unapologetic street brawler, went by the nickname “Manos de Piedra”, or Hands of Stone.

The photogenic Sugar Ray, meanwhile, had the smile and the charm.

In the ring, though, Leonard did himself proud and he remembers each of his

rivals in their own way. He called a 1981 win over Hearns “my defining moment as a fighter”.

Beating Hagler in 1987 after three years out of the game with a detached retina was, he said, his “proudest” moment.

Yet even today, more than three decades after they last squared up, he is most closely linked with Duran.

Before their first fight in June 1980, Duran got inside Leonard’s head with a string of crude jibes aimed at him and his family. It worked and Duran beat Leonard to take the WBC welterweight title the American had won less than a year before.

Leonard regained his title five months later in the rematch known as the ‘No Mas’ (no more) fight in

which Duran simply waved Leonard away and gave up near the end of round eight.

It remains one of the most unforgettable boxing matches of all time and it still con-founds the victor.

“The No Mas thing was so bizarre,” Leonard told Reuters in an interview.

The fight, and its denouement, was so aston-ishing that a third decider had to happen.

After beating and drawing with Hearns and overcoming Hagler in a highly contro-versial split-decision, Leonard faced Duran again in 1989, beating the 38-year-old to retain the WBC super-middleweight belt.

It was sweet revenge, and Leonard still credits Duran for much of his success.

“As crazy as it may sound my first fight against Roberto Duran that I lost was one of my proudest moments,” Leonard said.

Leonard, who now fronts the Sugar Ray Leonard Foundation to knock out Type 1 and 2 diabetes, is still friendly with Hearns, who he said recently floated the idea of the two men fighting again - an idea he swiftly rejected.

More surprisingly, he has become close buddies with his old nemesis Duran.

“Of all the people in the world I never thought in a million years I would be friends with Roberto Duran,” he said.

League focusing on scenarios to play: WNBA commissioner

AP – NEW YORK

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is focusing on about a half dozen scenarios for the league to begin play this summer

Engelbert did not go into detail about each scenario, but told AP yesterday that the league is looking at playing at one site, a few possibly at most instead of at every home arena.

“I feel really good about how things are now evolving and settling,” Engelbert said in a phone interview. “There’s still no date (to start the season). We have had a variety of conversations moving forward. None are without challenge.”

Despite the challenges, the commissioner is opti-mistic “”we can have a season this summer.”

What that season will look like is still unclear. The league has some added flexibility in it scheduling since it was originally taking off most of July and the early part of August for the 2020 Olympics. The postponement of the Tokyo Games gives the league more of a chance to have a full season.

“We haven’t taken off the table having a full season while other scenarios have a reduced amount of games,” the commissioner said. “A lot depends on the trajectory and restrictions in markets.”

Engelbert said many times during the nearly 30-minute interview that the health of the players, league and team staff was of the utmost importance.

The commissioner feels she knows a lot more about the logistical and operational challenges, as well the financial and medical hurdles, than she did when she postponed the start of the season at the beginning of April.

Engelbert said that testing for the virus is obviously a big component to having a season. She is encouraged by the increase in the number of tests and the availa-bility of them over the last two months.

“Things are starting to open and starting to settle,” she said. “Medical experts are starting to feel better about testing and protocols, There’s still a lot of things to get through.”

She said many of the scenarios being reviewed have games being played without fans, but said if that happens, the league would be working with its broadcast partners to help expand the fan experience.

Engelbert said while the WNBA is in constant contact with the NBA and shares many resources including medical experts, it was unlikely that the two leagues would play in the same city and venues.

“I think it might behoove us to have our own sites certainly,” she said. “From the NBA or other professional sports. Many of the leagues are looking at the same cities.”

The commissioner said that the league would start paying its players on June 1 - the date they were scheduled to start getting paid for the season. But there are still ongoing talks between the union and the league.

The salary talks with the union include how the pay will work, roster size and salary cap that teams will have. The commissioner expects to have more details worked out before the first check is cut. Most teams have already cut down their rosters to 15 players with a couple still at 16.

It’s very possible the teams could have to get down to 12 players to fit under the cap by June 1, which means some could get cut without ever being in training camp.

Tirico hosting live golf from 1,000 miles awayAP – NEW YORK

Mike Tirico returns to his role as host today on NBC when live golf is shown on television for the first time in more than two months, and he can’t wait.

“Someone gets over a ball and we don’t know the outcome,” Tirico said yesterday.

This is hardly a return to normal.The charity Skins game - Rory McIlroy

and Dustin Johnson against Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff - will be at Seminole Golf Club, the fabled Donald Ross design in south Florida that has never been seen on television.

Tirico will be in the corner of his office in Michigan, some 1,300 miles away.

The soft return of golf includes testing for COVID-19, thermal readings, social distancing and limited access. That goes for the television production crew.

Rich Lerner from Golf Channel is doing play by play, with NBC analysts Paul Azinger and Gary Koch. All three will be at PGA Tour Entertainment offices in St. Augustine, Florida, about 200 miles up I-95.

Steve Sands and Jerry Foltz will be the only reporters on the grounds. Throw in the players (no caddies), television production crew, rules officials, and no more than about 50 people are expected at Seminole.

“It will be different not being in the same part of the country,” Tirico said. “It won’t be drastically different because it’s not as though I’d be sitting in a tower looking down on 18 green. And we do end up calling a lot of golf off a monitor. But it’s the stuff like access, riding around the golf course, picturing shots, seeing landing areas, talking to players and caddies and setup people. That’s a significant part to me.”

It’s all part of the adjustment when more sports return, assuming they do.

What should help is the nature of the event, called “TaylorMade Driving Relief.” The players are donating their time, and United-Health Group has pledged $3m stakes that will go to the American Nurses Foundation and the CDC Foundation, depending on which team wins more skins.

Tirico has experience from his years at ABC when it televised the original Skins Game on Thanksgiving weekend in the California desert, back when the four players included the likes of Fred Couples and Mark O’Meara, and occasionally Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.

It helps having McIlroy, who along with being the No. 1 player in the world has developed into one of the sport’s biggest per-sonalities. Tirico believes this could be a chance for Johnson to convey some of his insight, grossly underrated because he typi-cally is only heard in post-round interviews in which he often shares that he was hitting the ball well.

And it’s a chance for Wolff to introduce himself to a wider audience. A dynamic 21-year-old Californian, Wolff was barely a month removed from his sophomore year at Oklahoma State when he won the 3M Open in Minnesota.

Tirico had planned on this being the busiest summer of his career. The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness, Indy 500, various Olympic trials, the British Open, the Olympics.

Instead, he has been hosting “Lunch Talk Live” once a week from his home office. His fix on sports has been mainly like everyone else, watching reruns of great moments in sports. What stood out to Tirico was not the outcome (which he already knew) but the environment.

Challenger Sugar Ray Leonard (left) in action

against defending champion Hector “Macho”

Camacho during the first round of their IBC

middleweight title fight in Atlantic City, March 1 ,

1997 file photo.

Qatar Racing’s Roaring Lion (left) winning the Juddmonte International Stakes (Gr1) at York in this file photo.

As crazy as it may sound my first fight against Roberto Duran that I lost was one of my proudest moments. Of all the people in the world I never thought in a million years I would be friends with Roberto Duran. But I am. I love the guy, I respect the guy, I honour the guy and we are friends, no question about that. He is special to me: Sugar Ray Leonard

Sugar Ray Leonard (right) and actor Hugh Jackman pose on the field before the NFL’s Super Bowl XLV football game in Arlington, Texas, in this February 6, 2011, file photo.

It is a long way from being a complete disaster and one must be thankful for small mercies. Behind closed doors at least gives us horse racing. Without horse racing then there would be no hope and the industry would crumble very quickly so it could be worse: Qatar Racing’s Manager David Redvers

WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert

08 SUNDAY 17 MAY 2020SPORT

Slim chance of T20 World Cup taking place: HaydenIANS - SYDNEY

Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden (pictured) doesn’t see the T20 World Cup taking place Down Under in October-November amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The entire cricket calendar has been on a standstill since mid-March fol-lowing the outbreak of novel corona-virus which has so far claimed more than 300,000 lives across the world.

A series of bilateral tournaments and franchise cricket, including the Indian Premier League, have been post-poned and with the surge in COVID-19 cases, the chances of cricket resuming in the near future are grim.

“It’s very difficult to see any live cricket happening at the moment. However, in Australia, we have largely remained unaffected by COVID-19. I will imagine the ICC will be taking all nec-essary precautions to ensure that not only the players are safe but the spec-tators are also safe if at all the T20 World Cup does take place,” Hayden told IANS.

“The current situation in Australia is that a person is not allowed to travel in between borders, there’s very little movement of people. So, at this stage its very hard to see any kind of global tournament proceeding,” he added.

According to Hayden, who is now a commentator for the online cricket game World Cricket Championship (WCC), people do want to see live cricket but that can only happen only

if there are no medical risks involved for both players and the spectators.

“We do want to see live sport when it comes around to the backend of the year when the world is back to its feet.

“It will be a really good sign that the world is moving forward if the global cricket tournament can go ahead. So my fingers are crossed that it does happen. But I am sure it won’t happen if there’s any medical risk to players and spectators,” said the former left-handed batsman.

After the T20 World Cup, India are scheduled to tour Australia for a four-Test series and three ODIs. It is expected that Cricket Australia will suffer a loss of almost A$300m if the tour is cancelled.

“Certainly I think it should proceed if all health and safety issues are not com-promised. If Cricket Australia can ensure clean stadiums then I think it should proceed but not until every last health authority in Australia is consulted with. No r i s k s

should be taken,” said Hayden while speaking about the much-anticipated and highly staked Border-Gavaskar trophy.

Speaking about the 13th IPL edition which currently stands postponed, Hayden believes the lucrative league can be held without the participation of foreign players if the need arises.

“Certainly the IPL could take exist without foreign players. I think it would be a product that is being compromised naturally because foreign players do add a lot to the IPL. They raise the level of awareness and excitement among fans. Getting nations together has infact

made IPL the fun that it has been.Hayden further said that if

it’s not possible to stage the tournament in India, it can be held in other nation like Sri Lanka where a city like Colombo has three or four international

venues -- pro-vided all nec-essary health precautions are

taken care of and there’s no risk to the players, support staff and the broad-casting team that would be travelling.

Also, now with IPL getting delayed and questions over T20 World Cup, many in the cricket fraternity believe it’s the end of the road for veteran M S Dhoni as far as India career is con-cerned. However, Hayden believes Dhoni knows best when to draw cur-tains on his international career.

“It’s always very hard as a personal friend of MS to comment on his career. I think every champion, and I consider MS to be a champion, always know the enough time to put themselves out of the game and not feeling that forced feeling of getting towards the end of the career when the time is ticking.

“I am sure he will make the best decision for himself as he has done throughout his whole career,” he said.

One of the talking points of the post-COVID cricket has been the ban over the usage of saliva to shine the ball when the sport resumes in order to stop the transmission of the virus.

“If the game needs any saliva rule, I think the expectations would be that it’s not just about saliva, it’s about sweat, it’s bumping into each other -- these are the whole set of circumstances, you have to question that game couldn’t be going on if you are worrying about just saliva on the ball. If it’s that serious then potentially the game shouldn’t be hap-pening,” he signed off.

No crowds, no problem for England’s AndersonAFP - LONDON

James Anderson (pictured) has insisted he is still excited about playing for England this season, even if matches are played behind closed doors.

England cricketers are set to return to limited individual training next week, with bowlers such as Anderson leading the way, amid assurances that health protocols will make their sessions less risky than going to a supermarket.

The England and Wales Cricket Board hope they can kickstart a season delayed by the coronavirus by rescheduling for July a three-Test series at home to the West Indies that was meant to take place in June.

But officials have conceded the only way international matches can be staged in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic is by barring spectators from what will be ‘biosecure’ grounds.

Anderson though has lost none of his enthusiasm when it comes to the prospect of adding to his England record tally of 584 Test wickets.

“It’s exciting in a way we’re actually talking about the possi-bility of playing cricket this summer,” paceman Anderson said yesterday in an Instagram Live with longstanding new-ball col-league Stuart Broad.

“I think as long as everything is place with safety concerns then I’ll be pretty comfortable playing.

“We’ve been a part of the

England set up for a long time now. We’ve got some great people working on every possibility and outcome from this summer and going forwards.”

As for playing in matches with no spectators, Anderson reckoned his experienced of taking part in some sparsely attended county matches for Lancashire would stand him in good stead.

“It’s quite easy to play in front of a big crowd because of the intensity, you have to be on top of your game,” explained Anderson, a 37-year-old veteran of 151 Tests.

“If there’s no people there you have to try and find your own energy and intensity from somewhere.

“To be honest it will be pretty similar to county cricket!”

The ECB’s plan in having the bowlers go back first is to try to

give then a seven-week lead-in to a rescheduled first Test in July.

And with Britain in a state of lockdown, Broad said they would need that time to get themselves somewhere near match fitness.

“It’s going to take us eight or nine bowling sessions I reckon for us to feel like our bodies are ready to get going,” Broad said.

Anderson added: “Yeah it’s hard. As much as you can bowl in your garden or with a tennis ball or whatever, nothing replicates practice or (being) out in the middle so we’ve got to give ourselves time to get back into it.

“And I think the other thing is not to get frustrated again because it’s been so long since we bowled.

“If a few balls go where you don’t want them, you’ve just got to bide your time while you get back into it.”

People are seen playing cricket in nets at Clapham Common, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London, Britain, in this May 13, 2020, file photo.

Star Afridi buys Rahim’s bat to raise funds for COVID-19 reliefIANS - DHAKA

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi (pictured) has bought the bat put up for auction by Bangladesh wicket-keeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim in order to raise funds for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Afridi has bought the bat for $20,000.

Last month, Mushfiqur had put the bat -- with which he scored his first double hundred against Sri Lanka at Galle in 2013 -- for online sale and had urged people to contribute to the cause so that maximum funds can be gen-erated for the poor.

“Shahid Afridi bought my bat on behalf of his foundation. I feel privileged and honoured that someone like him has joined our great cause,” Rahim was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

Mushfiqur also revealed that they had to suspend the auction following fraud biddings.

“We had to suspend the auction due to some fraud bidders, which was unexpected. Shahid bhai personally contacted me after seeing the news (of my bat put on auction). He sent an offer letter on May 13 that he was inter-ested to buy for $20,000, which is almost BDT 16.8 lakh.”

The Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batsman also posted a video message from Afridi on his Twitter handle.

“The work you are doing is great. Only real life heros do this. We are going through a tough phase in such times we need the love and support of each other,” Afridi said in the video.

E n g l a n d batsman Jos Butter had earlier raised more t h a n £65,000 for two

London-based hospitals by auctioning the shirt which he wore in the 2019 World Cup final. Legendary Pakistan bowler Wasim Akram also auctioned a bat and ball signed by him to raise funds for a charity.

Royal Challengers Bangalore team-mates Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers have also announced they were giving away items from their historic 226-run stand against Gujarat Lions for auction as the entire world fights against COVID-19 pandemic which has so far claimed more than 300,000 lives globally.

Meanwhile, India’s limited-overs vice captain Rohit Sharma admitted that Bang-ladesh is the only place where the Indian team does not get too much support.

The two neighbours have faced each other in bilateral series and ICC tournaments a number of times since Bangladesh were made a Full Member by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2000.

“India and Bangladesh have passionate cricket fans, when we make mistakes, we are criticised from all corners, I know it is similar in Bangladesh, I know how passionate fans can get in Bangladesh, when we come to the ground to play the match, it is unbelievable. India is not used to playing without any sort of crowd support, Bangladesh is the only place where we do not get any support,” Rohit told Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal in an Instagram live video chat between the two.

A number of opposition players and cap-tains have noted how their teams often get booed in their own home grounds by expa-triate Indian fans when they play India.

However, that is rarely the case in Bang-ladesh, according to Rohit. He also praised Tamim and the Bangladesh team for becoming a major force in cricket over the years.

“We get support wherever we go, Bang-ladesh is the only place where we do not get any support. I know Bangladesh fans really get behind you, this is a totally different Bang-ladesh side now, you have a sense of eagerness in your team now, everybody says that, we h a v e seen with your perform-

ances during the 2019 World Cup as

well,” he added.

West Indies chief says board has suffered a ‘stroke’IANS - KINGSTON

With cricket tours around the world coming to a standstill, Cricket West Indies (CWI) chief Ricky Skerritt has said that the coronavirus pandemic has badly affected the cricket body and pushed it into ‘Intensive Care Unit’.

Cost cutting measure are a priority for CWI keeping an eye on how the pandemic has seen cricket tours being cancelled or postponed.

“This crisis has put our already poor financial state into ICU. It is like going to the doctor with an illness, and as he is about to prescribe the medi-cation, you get a stroke,” Skerritt said in an interview to Guardian Media Sports.

He went on to explain how a committee has been set up to assess the future with tours being rescheduled or cancelled and a report is expected to come on May 27 at the board’s next quarterly meeting.

“What this committee will do is to look at that and also look at the emergency situation that this Covid-19 pandemic has thrown us into

and recommend what can be done,” he said. “This committee may expect to be looking to not massage on the body but make deep surgical incisions, as far as the cutting-back process goes. What we have been doing all the while is cost saving, but I think the time has come for cost cutting. We have about 100 crick-eters on retainers, and the board has had to fund this professional league. This has come at great expense to us, and all these things will be looked at.”

Interestingly, an official of one of the full member boards of the ICC said after the CEC meeting that it is important for the BCCI and the ECB to stand up and come together to help other member boards out of the mess.

“The BCCI and the ECB need to come together and help the game out. You have to understand that at this point in time, the member boards need the Indian and English teams to play everyone to help recover from the economical setback and for that you need strong leadership coming in from BCCI. You need someone from BCCI to be sitting in the principal’s chair,” he explained.

Gavaskar picks Hanif and Sehwag to open in his Indo-Pak XI

IANS - NEW DELHI

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar made a combined India and Pakistan XI out of players that he would love to see play. He admitted that this may not be the best eleven players that may have represented the two sides statistically, but these are players that he would like to see playing together.

Interacting with former Pakistan skipper Ramiz Raja on the Sony Ten show Pit Stop, Gavaskar said that regardless of what happens if this team actually played or not, he expects the dressing room to be “hilarious.”

“It will be difficult to get the boys out of the dressing room because they will be having so much fun,” he said.

Gavaskar chose the an opening pair of retired Virender Sehwag and the leg-endary Pakistan batsman Hanif Mohammad.

Hanif was the first batsman outside of Australia and England, to score a triple century (337) in Test cricket and who was originally called the ‘Little Master’ before the title was assumed by Gavaskar himself and later Sachin Ten-dulkar. Pakistan great Zaheer Abbas comes in at no.3 and India’s Sachin Ten-dulkar follows.

Gavaskar’s India-Pakistan XI: Hanif Mohammad, Virender Sehwag,

Zaheer Abbas, Sachin Tendulkar, Gun-dappa Viswanath, Kapil Dev, Imran Khan, Syed Kirmani, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Abdul Qadir

that Cricket Australia will suffer a loss of almost A$300m if the touris cancelled.

“Certainly I think it should proceed if all health and safety issues are not com-promised. If Cricket Australia can ensure clean stadiums then I think it should proceed but not until every last health authority in Australia is consulted with. No r i s k s

made IPL the fun that it has been.Hayden further said that if

it’s not possible to stage the tournament in India, it canbe held in other nation like Sri Lanka where a city likeColombo has three or four international

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09SUNDAY 17 MAY 2020 SPORT

It’s TV at home as German football returns with ‘ghost games’AFP - DORTMUND, GERMANY

Nicole Bartelt has been a loyal fan at all but two of Borussia Dort-mund’s home matches since 2008, but when the Bundesliga restarted yesterday after a two-month hiatus because of the coronavirus, she was forced to keep away from the stands.

Nevertheless, Bartelt, 44, was not complaining that the derby with Schalke was played behind closed doors.

“It’s better to have ‘ghost games’ to slow the epidemic than to have a health catastrophe,” she said.

“Even if we detest Schalke, a season without such a derby doesn’t have the same flavour,” added Bartelt, wearing a black Dortmund jersey.

Bartelt watched the game from her friends’ place.

Likewise, Marco Perz, 45, who has been a regular at Dortmund matches since 1987, was in front of the television at his friends’.

“It’s sad that matches are played in empty stadiums, but it’s better than nothing -- the more we keep to health rules, the sooner we can return to normality,” said Perz, with a beer in hand.

It would be “absurd and dan-gerous” to not allow the season to run its course, said Perz, who was wearing a jacket emblazoned with a dozen Dortmund logos.

“Not necessarily for the players, who may have to buy one less Lam-borghini, but for the economy that depends on it -- the technicians, gardeners, fan shops. On a match day, some shops, including fast-food stands, rake in revenues equivalent to that of a normal week.”

Unlike typical match days when the city centre would be buzzing with fans, the atmosphere downtown this time was muted. Sports bars and restaurants have reopened, but they are far from full for the match.

“We can take in only 50 people, compared to 500 usually,” said Joerg Kemper, who manages Wenkers pub, popular with Dortmund fans.

“People are also not very com-fortable about gathering in the current context,” he said.

In restaurant, decked out with

a dozen black and yellow BVB jerseys, the flooring is now marked with tape denoting the required physical distance.

“Usually such a derby would draw euphoria but this time, we’re happy even with very little,” he said, adding that on a regular match day, revenues are comparable to that of a week’s takings.

Ahead of the match, police sent out repeated appeals on Twitter, urging fans to stay home to enjoy the game.

Police were in out in force, with several vans parked at the city centre and outside the main train

station, with the twin task of stopping fans from assembling in large groups as well as to maintain order as anti-lockdown demonstra-tions were expected at the same time.

While stay-at-home measures have largely been lifted, social dis-tancing rules keeping no more than two families from mingling are in place.

People are also required to stand 1.5 metres (five feet) apart, to avoid contagion of the virus.

Likewise outside the stadium, the atmosphere was markedly calm.

Only the occasional cyclists and people out for a stroll were to be seen while the shutters remained down over ticket-counters.

The only signs that something may be stirring were vest-clad stadium staff wearing face masks standing at the main entrances and police patrolling.

For some, the change was just too much to swallow.

Nicolai,a regular contributor on fan forum “Black-yellow” said he was boycotting the derby if he can’t watch it at the stadium.

“Football won’t be at the centre of the attention,” he wrote.

Dortmund’s players celebrate their 4-0 victory over Schalke 04 after their German first division Bundesliga football match in Dortmund, western Germany, yesterday. The season resumed following a two-month absence due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Tennis: Kyrgios tells Murray ‘you are better than Djokovic’AFP - LONDON

Nick Kyrgios told Andy Murray yesterday the British tennis star was better than world number one Novak Djokovic, claiming the Serb “dodges” his serve while the Scot “is on it like a light”.

Kyrgios logged on from his Canberra home for an Instagram live chat with Murray that started after midnight for the Australian.

Kyrgios, well known for his withering com-ments about leading tennis players, even though the undeniably talented world number 40 has never gone beyond the quarter-finals of a major championship.

Murray, however, appears to be one of his few rivals Kyrgios respects, with the Scot having defeated Djokovic in both the 2012 US Open and 2013 Wimbledon finals.

Djokovic, however, leads their head-to-head record 25-11 and has won 17 Grand Slam singles titles to Murray’s three.

That didn’t stop Kyrgios telling Murray: “I think you should have one of the best careers ever. I think you are better than Djokovic.

“Djokovic was playing dodgeball on my serve and you were slapping it for a winner. He was trying to dodge it, you were on it like a light.”

Murray responded by saying: “The results would suggest otherwise.”

Kyrgios has endured a rocky relationship with Djokovic, once describing the Serb’s post-match ‘cup of love’ celebrations as “cringeworthy”.

Djokovic, claimed the Australian, had a “sick obsession with wanting to be liked”.

In one of the less bizarre parts of their con-versation Kyrgios asked Murray, who has long been sidelined with hip, and more recently, thigh injuries when he might be back on court following the coronavirus outbreak.

Murray, who celebrated his 33rd birthday on Friday, said: “I feel pretty good I was doing well before the injury at the Davis Cup. I think when things get back to normal I think I will be alright.”

Kyrgios suggested the pair should play doubles together, prompting a wry Murray to reply: “Only if you promise to behave, you said you were going to.”

Journalists are seen at the press tribune as play resumes behind closed doors following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease. The match was between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04 at Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund, Germany, yesterday.

Klopp says Liverpool can win title without being at their bestAFP - LONDON

Jurgen Klopp has insisted Liverpool have no need to be at their “all-time best” in order to clinch a first English league title in 30 years.

Premier League officials are now aiming to restart the season in mid-June, with Liverpool just two wins away from the title when the campaign was postponed on March 13 because of the coronavirus outbreak.

For so long the dominant force in English football, the Merseysiders have not been crowned domestic champions in the Premier League

era, with the last of their league titles coming when they won the old First Division crown in 1990.

But as teams start returning to training, Liverpool manager Klopp has tried to ease any mounting pressure on his runaway leaders who are 25 points clear at the top.

“Football is a game where eve-ryone is pretty much in the same situation we play against another team and we don’t have to be at our all-time best we have to be at our best possible and that’s exactly the same for the other teams,” he told the BBC’s Football Focus programme.

“Whenever we will start we will have had the same time for prep-aration and our job was always, and always will be, to use the situation you are in. We will be in as good a shape as possible.”

Meanwhile the German boss said he was desperate to return to “normal life” after an unexpected two-month break by getting back to Liverpool’s Melwood training base, where players will initially train in small groups.

“Lockdown has been as good as possible it’s not exactly what I want to do but it’s what we all have to do so we try to make the best of

it,” said Klopp.“We started eight weeks ago and now you feel eve-ryone is desperate to get back to a ‘new’ normal life.

“I have missed the boys the most because we have created a group there not only the boys but all the people at Melwood because we have a really good relationship and we became friends over the last four-and-a-half years.

“We see each other pretty often with Zoom and those things but it’s still not the same and going back to Melwood and doing all the things we usually do is something I really miss.”

ANATOLIA - ISTANBUL

There is no current plan to cancel the Europa League football competition that was suspended because of the coro-navirus pandemic, UEFA Pres-ident Aleksander Ceferin said yesterday.

Ceferin told beIN Sports that UEFA does not want to focus on negative scenarios.

“Things can get better or worse. We need to stay positive and hope that they will be better. We have a concrete plan to finish European Leagues. We will play without spectators and finish seasons. We are not thinking of canceling Europa cups for now,” he said.

And there are plans to finish the season in August.

“Anything can be cancelled in the world at any time, Covid-19 or not. I don’t know what will happen in the next two months. But

if things continue as it is, I am certain we will end the season in August.

“In terms of national leagues, their fate will be decided by themselves. But I believe at least 80% of them will complete seasons. Those who won’t finish the season will play in European cups’ preliminaries. They need to take this into consideration,”

Ceferin added. More than 4.5 million people have tested positive for coronavirus globally with more than 307,600 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University’s running tally. An excess of 1.6 million have recovered.

Serena Williams recalls first time she met OhanianIANS - NEW YORK

American tennis great Serena Williams spoke recently about how she met her husband, Redditt co-founder Alexis Ohanian. Williams posted a video of the couple on Instagram taking a “road trip,” which Ohanian says in the video was basically driving in circles around their home.

“This trip started in Roma 5 or 6 years ago lol I’m the worst with time lines. He sat at my table. I asked him to leave. He refused. I found that hot. I asked him if he liked truffles. He said yes. Eventually I said yes. And here we are. 5 or 6 years later @alexisohanian,” she said in a caption to the video.

Williams and Ohanian had their first daughter in September 2017.

She had won the Australian Open earlier in the year when she was roughly eight to nine weeks pregnant.

She took a lengthy break from tennis during the pregnancy and her first tournament on return was at the Fed Cup in February 2018 in a doubles match with her sister Venus Williams.

She made her return to Grand Slam tennis at the French Open that year. Williams has since reached the final of the Wimbledon and US Open in 2018 and 2019 and was eliminated from the Australian Open this year in the third round.

Federer to NYC nurse: 'You Are The Hero'WWW.ATPTOUR.COM - ZURICH

Ask tennis fans to name a hero and Roger Federer (pictured) will be at the top of the list.

But the Swiss star recently took time to thank heroes from a more important field: frontline healthcare workers risking their lives to help others during the COVID-19 pandemic. Christianne Calderon is a nurse practitioner at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, where she has been on the frontlines battling against the coronavirus. ESPN recently gathered some of the world’s best athletes, who gave their thanks to Calderon, including Federer.

“Oh my God!” Calderon said when she saw Federer appear on a screen. “I’m shaking.”

Federer is in Switzerland, but he wanted to make sure Calderon and other healthcare workers like her know that they have f a n s throughout the world.

“ P e o p l e think we are s u p e r -heroes, we the ath-letes , ” Federer said.

A general view of a football on the pitch ahead of a Bundesliga match between FC

Augsburg and VfL Wolfsburg at WWK Arena, Augsburg, Germany, yesterday.

No plans to cancel Europa League, says UEFA chief

rer is in Switzerland, but he wanted to make deron and other healthcare workers nowhave

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