THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) held a special ceremony yesterday at Aspire Dome to mark Sport Excellence Day and recognize those who make the country’s sport achievements a reality and advance its sporting march.

Hundreds of Qatar’s athletes, coaches, stakeholders and Aspire student were present to celebrate the successes of Team Qatar over the past year and encourage them to continue to keep their country proud.

Speaking during the event, H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of QOC said: “Development of athletes to reach the highest level is a top priority of the Qatar Olympic Committee as it is a part of the QOC strategy which is aligned to support Qatar National Vision 2030. Team Qatar had a successful year across many sports as medals were won, records were broken. The athletes continued to perform and bring home many glorious titles.

“Thank you for your com-mitment and dedication to building the sporting culture of Qatar. We are here to celebrate some of the successes. It is also important to recognize the commitment and skills of the incredibly talented coaches who support our Team Qatar athletes to reach their full potential.

“Doha in the coming years will continue to host internationally recognised world-class sport events such as IAAF World Ath-letics Championships Doha 2019, 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, World Championships 2023 and IJF Masters 2020, 2023 FINA World Championships,” H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani added.

Showing his support to the ath-letes and administrator, Secretary General of QOC Jassim Al Buenain said: “Qatar is a nation passionate about sport and we strongly believe in the power of sport to unite, inspire, empower and educate people of all ages and abil-ities. Our athletes represent eve-rything that Qatar stands for; hard work, dedication and loyalty. We are extremely proud of them on and off the podium. They are an inspiration to the young generation and a source of pride for all of us.”

“We believe that hard work deserves recognition, and our athletes work tirelessly

to represent Qatar at the highest level and raise the maroon flag around the world. Sport Excellence Day is our way of thanking them, celebrating their success and encouraging them to keep up the hard work.”

During the celebrations, awards were presented to athletes and administrators in different cat-egories. Male athlete of the year was awarded to Mutaz Barshim who opened the 2018 Diamond League season with a world leading jump of 2.40m on his way to victory in Doha in May. He con-tinues to be a tremendous athlete and inspires many from the next generation.

Female athlete of the year was awarded to shooting athlete Al Dana Saad Al Mubarak, who shows success every year as her abilities become stronger. Other awardees include Sport Excellence of the Year, which was awarded to Abdulrahman Samba, who con-tinues to beat records and defeat Olympic and world champions at every opportunity given.

Admirative awards were pre-sented to the Ministry of Education

and Higher Education for its con-tinuous support to the Olympic movement in Qatar and Aspire Zone for supporting sport and organising social sport pro-grammes, which play a critical role in developing athletes from a young age.

Rania Al Naji, Promising Female Athlete of the Year, said: “This award means a lot to me and is a motivation in the start of my sporting career to continue to improve. At the same time, it a motivation to girls to work hard and take up more sports thanks to the support we receive from all

entities.” “It’s a great feeling because this is the first award I

receive and is a great motivation for me in the future,” Al Naji added. Abderrahman Samba, who won the Sport Excellence Award said: “I’m extremely happy to win this award. This gives me extra moti-vation to give even more in the coming years. I’d like to thank the Qatar Olympic Committee family under the leadership of H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani for this great occasion. I hope I will con-tinue to be here in the coming years and win more awards”

Mohammed Al Dosari who was presented with the Male Adminis-trator of the Year stated: “The award is an incentive for all the winning athletes, administrators and feder-ations to continue to excel”.

Development of athletes to

reach the highest level is a top

priority of the Qatar Olympic

Committee (QOC) as it is a part

of the QOC strategy which

is aligned to support Qatar

National Vision 2030. Team

Qatar had a successful year

across many sports as medals

were won, records were

broken. The athletes continued

to perform and bring home

many glorious titles

H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of Qatar Olympic Committee

We believe that

hard work deserves

recognition, and our

athletes work tirelessly

to represent Qatar at

the highest level and

raise the maroon flag

around the world.

Sport Excellence Day

is our way of thanking

them, celebrating

their success and

encouraging them to

keep up the hard work:

Jassim Al Buenain,

Secretary-General of

QOC

I’m extremely happy to win this award. This

gives me extra motivation to give even more

in the coming years. I’d like to thank the Qatar

Olympic Committee family under the leadership

of H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani for

this great occasion. I hope I will continue to be

here in the coming years and win more awards:

Abderrahman Samba, athlete

SPORTMonday 19 November 2018

PAGE | 27 PAGE | 31England seal Sri Lanka

series, eye rankings summit

Upbeat Qatar eye another upset in Iceland friendly

QOC marks Sport Excellence Day, honours top performing athletes

H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, President of Qatar Olympic Committee speaking during the Sport Excellence Day at Aspire Dome yesterday.

Asian Games and Asian para Games Qatari athletes, who excelled at the twin events, honoured during the Sport Excellence Day at Aspire Dome yesterday.

The following is a full list of award winners.

�Male Athlete of the Year Award: Mutaz Essa Barshim, Qatar Athletics Federation - High Jump

� Female Athlete of the Year Award: Al Dana Saad Al Mubarak Qatar Shooting and Archery Fed-

eration

�Male Para-Athlete of the Year Award: Abdulrahman Abdulqader Abdulrahman

� Female Para-Athlete of the Year Award: Sara Hamdi Masoud

�Sport Excellence Award: Abdulrahman Samba, Qatar Athletics Federation

� Promising Male Athlete of the Year Award: Abdelaziz Mohammed and Owab Barow, Qatar

Athletics Federation

�Promising Female Athlete of the Year Award: Rania Raed Al Naji, Qatar Women’s Sport Com-

mittee – Athletics

� Jockey of the Year Award: Faleh Bo Ghneim

� Golden Federation Award: Qatar Athletics Federation

� Men’s Team of the Year Award: Qatar Indoor Handball Team

�Women’s Team of the Year Award: Table Tennis Team,

�Qatar Women’s Sport Committee Sport Achievement Award: * Team Qatar Channel Swim

Qatar Parachuting Team * Nasser Saleh Al Attiyah * Qatar Bowling Team Administration

�Distinguished Governmental Institution in Supporting Olympic Movement in Qatar: Ministry

of Education and Higher Education

�Distinguished Organisation in Supporting Sport and Organising Social Sport Programmes

Award: Aspire Zone Foundation

� Coach of the Year Award: Ibrahim Al Said Hassouna, Qatar Weightlifting and Fencing Federation

� Male Administrator of the Year Award: Mohammed D Al Dosari, Qatar Paralympic Association

� Female Administrator of the Year Award: Qatar Shooting and Archery Federation

� Referee of the Year Award: Ahmed Abdulrahman Al Jaida, Qatar Shooting and Archery Federation

�Camel Trainer of the Year Award: Jaber Salem Jaber Faran

� Camel Owner of the Year Award: Nasser Abdulla Al Mesnad

� Horse Owner of the Year Award: Khalifa S Al Kuwari

� Qatari Horse Trainer of the Year Award: Hadi Nasser Al Ramzany

SPORT EXCELLENCE AWARD WINNERS 2018 ATHLETES

28 MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2018SPORT

Molinari crowned champion after Fleetwood misses outREUTERS

DUBAI: Francesco Molinari clinched the Race to Dubai title after defending champion Tommy Fleetwood failed to win the season-ending DP World Tour Championship yesterday.

Molinari has enjoyed a remarkable season, winning his maiden major championship at the British Open along with his first Rolex Series title at the BMW PGA Championship.

Englishman Fleetwood, who needed to win at the Jumeirah Golf Estates to overtake Molinari in European Tour’s money list, finished with a final-round four-under-par 68 to end 10-under overall, four shots off the current clubhouse target.

“It’s incredible,” Molinari said. “Now I’m going to have time to sit down and relax and really think back about the last few months.

“This morning on the first tee the announcement is the winner of The Open Championship, Race to Dubai leader, it doesn’t sound real at the moment.

“It’s more than I ever dreamed of achieving. I’ve seen guys that I think are better players than me not winning Majors and not winning Order

of Merits or Race to Dubais. To achieve those things in one single season is just incredible.”

Molinari was also part of Team Europe’s Ryder Cup victory over the US at Le Golf National in September, becoming the first European to win five points out of five.

Four of those points were won in a pairing with team mate Fleetwood.

“It’s tough in a way because it would have been probably easier in a way to play against anyone else but him (Fleetwood),” Molinari said yesterday.

“I know how talented he is and I really thought at some point he was going to win it and put me in a tough spot.

“He’s obviously a great guy and a super talented player and I’m sure being younger than me, he’s going to win a few more Races to Dubai.”

Francesco Molinari of Italy poses with the Race to Dubai trophy following the final round of the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates golf course in Dubai yesterday.

Mexico’s Abraham Ancer poses with the winner’s trophy after his victory in the final round of the Australian Open at the Lakes Golf Club at Eastlakes in Sydney yesterday.

Ichihara cards 63 to win Dunlop Phoenix REUTERS

TOKYO: Kodai Ichihara made an up-and-down birdie from 100 yards at the final hole to win the Dunlop Phoenix by one stroke as an out-of-sorts Brooks Koepka finished 12th in Miyazaki yesterday.

World number 425 Ichihara rattled home with an eight-under-par 63, finishing in style by almost holing his third shot at the par-five 18th.

He sank the short birdie putt and secured a surprise victory when fellow Japanese Mikumu Horikawa bogeyed the par-five 18th minutes later.

Horikawa made a com-plete mess of the last, finding a fairway bunker with his tee shot, and a greenside bunker with his third. He missed a 12-foot putt that would have forced a playoff.

Ichihara was on the range preparing for a playoff at Miyazaki Country Club when word filtered through that he had won for the second time this year on the Japan Tour.

He started the day five strokes behind Horikawa, but vaulted into contention with three early birdies, followed by an eagle at the par-four ninth.

Ichihara finished at 15-under 269, while over-night leader Horikawa carded 69 for 14-under.

Australian Brendan Jones (68) was two shots behind in third place. He missed a short birdie putt at the last.

World number one Brooks Koepka, a double major winner in 2018, never looked like making it a hat-trick of victories at the event after starting the final round five shots from the lead.

“I’ve probably hit it the worst I’ve hit all year today, and I didn’t make any putts,” the American said after a 69 that left him six strokes off the pace. It’s hard to really expect anything different. The fans here are great, so polite, so supportive. It’s fun to play in front of them. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t give them any-thing to get excited about this week.”

76ers beat Hornets despite Walker’s 60 points; Mavs shock WarriorsAFP

CHICAGO: Philadelphia’s Jimmy Butler delivered the overtime dagger as the 76ers withstood 60 points from Kemba Walker in a 122-119 NBA victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.

Another nail-biter saw the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors drop a 112-109 decision to the Mavericks in Dallas.

Slovenian rookie Luka Doncic scored 24 points, including the jump shot that put Dallas ahead for good with 1:10 remaining.

The Warriors, missing injured starters Stephen Curry and Draymond Green -- and still smarting from the dust-up between Green and teammate Kevin Durant earlier this week -- led by eight in the second half before Dallas rallied to beat the Warriors for just the second time in their last 19 meetings.

The champions have now lost four of their last six, and have lost two in a row for the first time this season.

Durant scored 32 points, but only three in the fourth quarter. Klay Thompson added 22 for Golden State, but the Warriors had multiple shots in the final minute to tie or take the lead and came up empty.

Far from pushing the panic button, coach Steve Kerr said he was pleased to see the Warriors play well enough to win -- even if they came up short.

“What we did tonight was fantastic,” he said. “The effort was great. We got incredible energy from the bench. Our guys com-peted the whole way through. It’s a first step to kind of getting our groove back.”

In Charlotte, Walker’s career night ended in disappointment as Butler, acquired this week in a blockbuster trade with Min-nesota, blocked a Walker shot to keep it tied at 119-119 with 15.7 seconds left in overtime then drained a 27-foot jump shot with three-tenths of a second remaining to secure the win.

“As much as I wanted the shot to go in to win the game, I also wanted it to go in because I didn’t want Kemba to give me 70,” Butler quipped.

“I wanted it to stop at 60.”Walker, the first player in Hornets history to score 60 points

in a game, connected on 21 of 34 shots from the field and made all 12 of his free throw attempts. He also pulled down seven rebounds, handed out four assists and came up with four steals.

“I’m still proud of -- that’s an unbelievable thing to do,” a frus-trated Walker said. “I’m just mad that we lost. It would have been even better with a win.”

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers saw their promising four-game winning streak come to an end with a listless 130-117 loss to the Orlando Magic in Florida.

Nikola Vucevic scored 24 of his 36 points in the second half and grabbed 13 rebounds for Orlando, who led by as many as 21 points.

Three days after a 44-point performance that saw him move into the top-five on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, James was limited 22 points on eight-of-19 shooting.

He added seven assists and four rebounds, but was on the bench in the fourth quarter, when the Lakers never got the deficit below double digits.

“After the first quarter we were pretty bad defensively,” James said, adding that the young Lakers team had plenty of work to do before they could begin to think of the post-season.

“Right now we’re going to try and get better and better each month. I think we’ve done that -- we can’t think about the playoffs just yet.”

A second straight 40-point night from Anthony Davis pro-pelled the New Orleans Pelicans to a 125-115 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

A day after he scored 43 in a comeback victory over the New York Knicks, Davis got 40 points with eight rebounds and eight assists.

He connected on 10 of 20 shots from the field and made 20 of his 21 free throw attempts.

Julius Randle added 21 points off the bench and Nikola Mirotic added a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Pel-icans notched their fifth win in six games.

Eastern Conference leaders Toronto bounced back from their Friday night loss to Boston with an emphatic 122-83 victory over the Chicago Bulls.

The Celtics, meanwhile, couldn’t build on their come-from-behind win over the Raptors, falling 98-86 to a Utah Jazz team led by the game-high 28 points of Donovan Mitchell.

NBA ResultsLA CLIPPERS 127 BROOKLYN 119

PHILADELPHIA 122 CHARLOTTE 119

INDIANA 97 ATLANTA 89

ORLANDO 130 LA LAKERS 117

NEW ORLEANS 125 DENVER 115

UTAH 98 BOSTON 86

TORONTO 122 CHICAGO 83

HOUSTON 132 SACRAMENTO 112

DALLAS 112 GOLDEN STATE 109

OKLAHOMA CITY 110 PHOENIX 100

NHL ResultsDETROIT 3 NEW JERSEY 2

TAMPA BAY 6 PHILADELPHIA 5

BUFFALO 3 MINNESOTA 2

MONTREAL 3 VANCOUVER 2

OTTAWA 6 PITTSBURGH 4

NY RANGERS 4 FLORIDA 2

COLUMBUS 4 CAROLINA 1

BOSTON 2 ARIZONA 1

NASHVILLE 5 LOS ANGELES 3

CALGARY 4 EDMONTON 2

SAN JOSE 4 ST LOUIS 0

Dubai: Leading final-round scores

yesterday in the $8m DP World

Tour Championship at Jumeirah

Golf Estates (par-72, GBR & IRL

unless stated)

270: Danny Willett 67-67-68-68

272: Matt Wallace 68-65-71-68,

Patrick Reed (USA) 69-66-67-70

274: Jon Rahm (ESP) 67-70-69-

68, Adrian Otaegui (ESP) 66-68-

71-69, Dean Burmester (RSA) 71-

65-68-70,

275: Dylan Frittelli (RSA) 70-73-

66-66, Tom Lewis 69-69-67-70,

276: Kiradech Aphibarnrat (THA)

70-66-71-69, Alexander Noren

(SWE) 69-71-67-69, Sergio Garcia

(ESP) 71-68-67-70.

DP World Tour Championship scores

Ancer wins Australian Open by five strokesREUTERS

SYDNEY: Unheralded Mexican Abraham Ancer ignited his round with a remarkable chip-in before winning the Australian Open by five strokes yesterday to join a host of golfing greats in lifting the Stonehaven Cup.

The world number 96, whose only previous win as a professional came on the Web.com tour in 2015, started the day with a five-shot cushion and a final-round three-under-par 69 proved more than enough for victory on 16-under 272.

Australians Dimitrios Papadatos and Jake McLeod made things interesting for the galleries at The Lakes Golf Club with a glut of birdies but Ancer’s overnight lead always looked like being too large a deficit to overcome.

“I’m really on cloud nine at the moment,” Ancer told reporters. “I’d never been to Australia before this week and I think I’m really starting to love this country.

“I didn’t want to think about my lead, I just wanted

to carry out my plan. I had the lead at a couple of PGA events last year and it didn’t work out. I learned a lot from that and it all worked out today.”

Papadatos (67) finished second on 11-under with McLeod (66) in third a shot further back with both earning the right to play with Ancer at next year’s British Open in Northern Ireland.

Local Marcus Fraser fin-ished with a 70 for fourth on nine-under with a group of five players sharing fifth, including Japanese amateur Keita Nakajima who started the day in second place and rounded out an impressive week with a 72.

American drawcards Keegan Bradley and Matt Kuchar both shot final round 75s to finish well off the pace in a share of 17th and 23rd respectively.

Texas-born Ancer had his game face on for much of the day but even he could not resist a huge grin when he chipped in at the fourth.

The 27-year-old sent the ball well wide of the flag onto a bank at the back of the green

and watched it spin at an extraordinary angle back into the hole for a birdie that extended his lead to seven shots.

The midas touch con-tinued with two more birdies at the eighth and ninth but a bogey at the par-four 12th brought the chasing pack to within four shots. Ancer flirted with the water with his approach shot at the 14th but the ball stuck in the rough as it rolled back towards the lake and he was able to snaffle another birdie.

Born in Texas but raised over the border in Mexico, Ancer joins a glittering honour roll at the Australian Open with Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Greg Norman among the former winners. His margin of victory was the largest since Jordan Spieth tri-umphed by six shots in 2014, a win the American said acted as a springboard to his annus mirabilis when he won two majors the following year.

“This win will give me a lot of confidence and hope-fully it’ll be the case for me as well,” Ancer grinned.

SYDNEY: Top final-round scores at the Aus-

tralian Open at The Lakes in Sydney yesterday

(par 72, AUS unless stated, *denotes ama-

teur):

272 - Abraham Ancer (MEX) 69-69-65-69

277 - Dimitrios Papadatos 69-70-71-67

278 - Jake McLeod 70-67-75-66

279 - Marcus Fraser 69-69-71-70

280 - John Sendon 73-71-70-66, *David

Micheluzzi 68-69-74-69, Matthew Millar

73-68-71-68, Cameron Percy 69-69-72-70,

*Keita Nakajima (JPN) 70-68-70-72

281 - Cameron Smith 74-71-70-66, An

Byeong-hun (KOR) 67-69-76-69

282 - Brendan Steele (USA) 73-69-73-67

Selected

284 - *Takumi Kanaya (JPN) 70-70-72-72,

Keegan Bradley (USA) 72-66-71-75

285 - Matt Kuchar (USA) 70-67-73-75

287 - Mikko Ilonen (FIN) 73-72-68-74

287 - Brandt Snedeker (USA) 73-72-73-69

Australian Open final round scores

29MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2018 SPORT

Repsol Honda’s Spanish rider Dani Pedrosa rides during the third MotoGP free practice session of the Valencia Grand Prix at the Ricardo Tormo racetrack in Cheste.

Dovizioso rides smart to win rain-hit Valencia Grand Prix AP

CHESTE: Andrea Dovizioso of Ducati took advantage of a difficult wet track to win the season-ending Valencia MotoGP yesterday.

Poor conditions forced the race to be interrupted near its halfway point with Alex Rins in the lead on a Suzuki, but Dovizioso took control after the restart to seal his fourth win of the season.

The Italian rider, who had already secured second place in the championship, started third at the Ricardo Tormo circuit. He finished ahead of Rins and Pol Espargaro of KTM, who earned the first podium of his career.

Seven-time MotoGP champion Val-entino Rossi started near the back but recovered to second place before crashing with five laps to go.

He still secured third place in the championship, ahead of teammate Mav-erick Vinales, the pole-sitter who was one of the many riders to go down before the

race was red-flagged because of the treacherous track conditions.

Marquez, who claimed his fifth MotoGP title in Japan three races ago, crashed with 21 laps to go after starting fifth. He competed with pain in his left shoulder after also crashing in qualifying on Saturday.

Andrea Iannone, who is moving from Suzuki to Aprilia next season, also crashed early in the race.

It was the last MotoGP race for Dani Pedrosa, the 33-year-old Spaniard who is retiring as a full-time MotoGP rider and will test with KTM next season. He fin-ished fifth yesterday.

Three-time champion Jorge Lorenzo ended 12th in his final race before moving from Ducati to Honda to replace Pedrosa.

Alvaro Bautista, the 33-year-old Spaniard who will race in Superbikes next season, also was among the riders who crashed.

Earlier yesterday, Turkish rider Can Oncu won his maiden Moto3 race to

become the youngest Grand Prix winner in motorcycling at age 15.

Oncu secured the historic victory by taking advantage of crashes on a wet track in front of him.

He started fourth and moved to third by the end of the first lap, then second-place Marco Bezzecchi crashed early in the race and leader Tony Arbolino went down with 12 laps to go.

Oncu won at 15 years, 115 days, breaking the record held by British rider Scott Redding since 2008.

Oncu also became the first rider to win on his grand prix debut since Japan’s Noboru Ueda in a 125cc race in 1991.

Portuguese rider Miguel Oliveira won the Moto2 race for his third victory of the year, finishing ahead of Spanish riders Iker Lecuona and Alex Marquez, Marc’s younger brother who recovered after crashing while leading the race with 10 laps to go.

Francesco Bagnaia, the Moto2 champion in advance, finished 14th.

Can he? Yes, he can! Oncu, 15, stuns field to create GP historyMOTOGP.COM

CHESTE: Wildcard rider and 2018 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Champion Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo) yesterday became the youngest ever Grand Prix race winner after a simply sensational ride to P1 in wet condi-tions at the Gran Premio Motul de la Comu-nitat Valenciana.

The 15-year-old beat 2018 World Champion Jorge Martin (Del Conca Gresini Moto3) by over four seconds, with John McPhee (CIP – Green Power) completing the podium in the final Moto3™ race of 2018.

It was McPhee who got the initial launch from P3 on the grid but it was pole man Tony Arbolino (Marinelli Snipers Team) and P6 starter Marco Bezzecchi (Redox PruestelGP) who managed to brake later into Turn 1 to gran P1 and P2, with Oncu passing McPhee into Turn 2 after getting a good start from P4. There was drama straight away at Turn 4 though as Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) lost the front of his Honda machine, taking out the helpless Aron Canet (Estrella Galicia 0,0) and Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) in the process.

The top four of Arbolino, Bezzecchi, Oncu and McPhee had an immediate gap to the chasing pack on the opening lap, but after a couple of laps McPhee couldn’t quite keep the pace as Arbolino created a half second lead over Bezzecchi. Then, chasing his com-patriot, Bezzecchi crashed at the treacherous Turn 4 on Lap 4 – the Italian remounting to re-join the race, with second in the Cham-pionship slipping away from his grasp.

This left Arbolino with a two second lead out front, with wildcard Oncu giving chase – the Turkish rider lucky to stay on after a huge scare at Turn 6 though. The Italian’s rhythm was frightening as he looked like he was on rails around the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, edging out the gap to Oncu by a couple of tenths a lap, with McPhee falling into the clutches of the two Del Conca Gresini Moto3 bikes – Fabio Di Giannantonio and Martin, with the former now in a position to

take P2 in the Championship with Bezzecchi crashing.

Then, a huge race-defining moment. Leader Arbolino crashed at Turn 4 with 12 laps remaining to hand the lead to 15-year-old Oncu, his lead? 6.8 seconds over Di Gian-nantonio, Martin and McPhee. Meanwhile, Bezzecchi suffered his second crash of the race at Turn 12, with teammate Jakub Kornfeil also crashing at the same corner.

With 10 laps to go, Oncu had stretched his lead to eight seconds and with eight to go, it remained at eight.

Tensions were high on the Red Bull KTM Ajo pitwall as twin brother Deniz and Team Manager Aki Ajo kept telling Oncu to keep it calm. Meanwhile, Di Giannantonio had a moment at Turn 2, which handed teammate and World Champion Martin P2.

History was inching ever closer and with five to go, Oncu’s lead was still eight seconds. The battle for the final podium spot was being won by McPhee as he got the better of Di Giannantonio, but all eyes were fixated on the leading number 61 KTM.

With three to go, the gap was 7.5 seconds and with two laps remaining, it was still north of seven seconds. Last lap time, the biggest lap of Oncu’s and it was almost disaster at Turn 6 – a huge moment for the second time on the exit, but he kept upright. Then? Jubilation.

Oncu became the youngest ever Grand Prix winner at 15 years and 115 days old, taking the record from Scott Redding, set at Donington Park in 2008.

What a debut and what a future as Oncu also became the first rider to win on their Grand Prix debut since Noboru Ueda won the 125 race at the Japanese GP in 1991, while he also became the first former Asia Talent Cup rider to win a Grand Prix – stunning.

Behind, Martin crossed the line in P2 to cap off an incredible year before he moves to Moto2™, with McPhee taking P3 on his last ride for CIP – Green Power, the first since his German GP podium.

Can Oncu, remember the name – we’ll be seeing him full-time in the lightweight class in 2019 and what a season we’re in for.

Turkish teenager Can Oncu is seen celebrating his record-creating Motor3 win in this photo posted on MotoGP Twitter handle yesterday. At 15, Oncu becomes the youngest rider to win a Grand Prix.

Mayweather and kickboxer will aim to ‘knock each other out’ in boutAFP

TOKYO: Boxing superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr and a Japanese kick-boxer half his age will be aiming to knock each other out next month, d e s p i t e t h e match-up being an exhibition, the fight’s Japanese promoter said yesterday.

T h e b o u t between May-weather and Tenshin Nasukawa, first announced earlier this month, was abruptly scrapped by the American boxer over a “misunderstanding”, according to the CEO of mixed martial arts promotor RIZIN.

But on Friday it was back on for New Year’s Eve.“It will be a non-official bout. It won’t be on record. So it’s an

exhibition match,” Nobuyuki Sakakibara told reporters at Haneda airport in Tokyo returning from talks with Mayweather in Los Angeles.

“But at worst it’s not going to be a sparring... they will fight aiming to knock out,” he added.

The Mayweather side had been confused with the status of the bout as it was unclear if it will be an official fight, according to Sakakibara.

Asked if the bout could be cancelled again, Sakakibara said: “I don’t think there will be a cancellation unless unforeseen cir-cumstances such as extraordinary natural phenomenon occur.”

Mayweather has already said the fight would go ahead in Saitama, north of Tokyo, but would be an exhibition.

“We’re going to make it happen. It’s a no-brainer,” the retired welterweight boxer told the US website TMZ Sports in California on Wednesday.

The unbeaten 41-year-old, who won world titles in five dif-ferent weight divisions, told the site the face-off would involve no kicking, saying: “It’s going to be a little boxing exhibition.”

Sakakibara confirmed the fight would be an orthodox boxing style without kicking, which will be a disadvantage for Nasukawa, an unbeaten kickboxer.

“But I want him to pull off something like a miracle,” he said adding that further details of rules such as a decision will be dis-cussed later.

Sakakibara also said a contract of the bout remained unchanged as the highest paid for such an exhibition, but did not reveal the amount.

Floyd Mayweather Jr smiles after Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett (not pictured) handed him the ball he caught for a touchdown in the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at the Memorial Coliseum in this November 11, 2018, file photo.

RIZIN Fighting Federation’s CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara speaks during a press conference on the exhibition fight between US boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr and Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa, at Haneda airport in Tokyo yesterday.

Somalia holds first boxing competition since civil warAFP

MOGADISHU: Somalia has held its first boxing competition in more than three decades, with young fighters in the conflict-torn nation dreaming of a career in international rings.

The three-day lightweight boxing competition that wrapped up yesterday took place in the capital Mogadishu, where athletes squared off in a ring set up on a basketball court surrounded by ruined buildings that bore witness to the country’s long conflict.

The fighters were cheered by dozens of enthusiastic residents of the capital, many of whom had never seen or heard of boxing before in a country where football and basketball are far more popular, even before the war when such competitions were rare.

The last Somali competition he could recall was in 1982.Ahmed said the competition involved four teams of two people,

all from Mogadishu as “we don’t have access to other regions in the country.”

The winner was 21-year-old Mustafa Mohamed Nur, who said: “This was a big day for me, I have become the first Somali to win a boxing competition inside the country since the civil war.”

Because of the conflict, many Somali athletes compete inter-nationally for adopted nations.

Britain’s most successful track athlete Mo Farah was a Somalian refugee, and title-winning female boxer Ramla Ali and her family fled Mogadishu during the war.

30 MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2018SPORT

Qatar 2022 countdown is on as beIN chalks out special plans

Portugal hold off Italy to reach Nations League semi-finalsAFP

MILAN: European champions Portugal became the first team to qualify for the Nations League semi-finals on Saturday after holding Italy to a 0-0 draw at the San Siro.

The Portuguese -- despite the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo -- progressed with one match to play, and are sure to finish top of Group A3, with Italy’s hopes in the tournament over.

Poland had already been rel-egated to League B.

Roberto Mancini’s Italians needed a win to keep their hopes of advancing to the final four next June alive, but despite pushing Portugal for over an hour in front of 73,000 spec-tators at the San Siro, could not find a way through.

Instead, they earned a goalless draw which echoed the stalemate against Sweden a year ago that ended their hopes of reaching the World Cup in Russia.

“It’s really satisfying to reach the final phase of this compe-tition,” said coach Fernando Santos.

“But it was a very difficult match, above all the first half when I have to admit we had a lot of difficulties.” Portugal host Poland on Tuesday in Gui-maraes, in a match that has no significance for either side.

But Santos insisted: “The final match against Poland will be important because it will be in front of our supporters, who are always with us.

“We have to have a great match and to win.” Santos’ side had beaten Italy 1-0 in Lisbon and withstood early pressure from the hosts with Lorenzo Insigne and Ciro Immobile both going close in the first half.

Portugal threatened after the break as William Carvalho was denied by Gianluigi Don-narumma and substitute Joao Mario fired over the bar.

“I think we played an excellent match but we didn’t manage to score which is an important detail,” said Mancini.

“We dominated Portugal and then had a drop in tempo after 70 minutes, which is only to be expected, as we can’t play in their half for 90 minutes.

“Even if we’re disappointed at not winning I think we have everything and little by little

we’re going to also put the attack into place,” added Mancini after Italy maintained their record of never having been beaten at the San Siro.

Italy captain Giorgio Chiellini celebrated his 100th Italy cap, exactly 14 years to the day since his debut against Finland.

Insigne forced a save from Rui Patricio after five minutes firing in from a distance with the Portuguese goalkeeper clearing into the path of Immobile.

But the Lazio forward sent the rebound over the crossbar, with Alessandro Florenzi also

sending an effort wide from an angle.

Former AC Milan defender Leonardo Bonucci, whistled by the crowd every time he touched the ball after moving back to Juventus this season, headed onto the side-netting from a free-kick.

Federico Chiesa came close on 53 minutes after a cross from Cristiano Biraghi following good work from Marco Verratti but the Portuguese defence cleared.

“I think we’re on the right path, as we controlled it for 70 minutes with a lot of great play

and chances, but we must make more of our scoring opportu-nities,” said defender Chiellini, who is the Azzurri’s top scorer with eight goals.

“We worked so hard and then in the final half-hour we were exhausted, which took away sharpness and meant we were risky at the back.

“We’ve got the foundations, we dominated the reigning European champions and the issue of not scoring goals will improve with time.” Italy play a friendly against the United States in Genk tomorrow.

Italy’s midfielder Nicolo Barella (centre) goes for the ball under pressure from Portugal’s midfielder William Carvalho during the UEFA Nations League group 3 match at the San Siro Stadium in Milan on Saturday.

Loew looking to rebuild after 2018 collapseREUTERS

BERLIN: Germany coach Joachim Loew said the team’s demise in 2018 was unex-pected but part of a normal cycle in sport and he is now focussed on what the former world champions need to do to rise again.

Germany face the Neth-erlands today in their last Nations League group game, having already been rele-gated, and are looking to cap a terrible year with a good performance.

They started the year as reigning world champions and overwhelming favourites to retain the World Cup in Russia.

Yet they exited the tour-nament at their earliest stage in 80 years and are heading into 2019 after a German-record six defeats so far within a calendar year.

Another blow was delivered on Friday when the Dutch beat France to guar-antee Germany’s relegation in the inaugural Nations League competition.

“We now want to say goodbye (to 2018) with a good performance and show the fans that we are on the right track to recovery,” Loew told a news conference.

“We had a decade of rising to the top and there sometimes can be a year where nothing works,” said the German.

“It was something com-pletely new for me. Now we have reached a phase where we have to renew things, improve, start from scratch. We need to draw the right conclusions and take the right measures.” Loew started several youngsters in their 3-0 friendly win over Russia.

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: As the four-year countdown for 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar kicks off on November 21, beIN is dedicating a full day in honour of one of the biggest sporting events in the world on several of its channels, live from the host nation.

From special programs and interviews to reports, beIN will broadcast the captivating history and experiences of the World Cup throughout the years through its unrivalled commentary, expertise, and exclusive footage of some of the most iconic moments in football.

Having been the official broadcaster of the FIFA World Cup since 2010, and also the official broadcaster of 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, several beIN star presenters and guests will report live from several loca-tions around Qatar, including the revamped and ultra-modern Khalifa International Stadium, giving viewers a glimpse into what to expect in just a few short years.

Viewers can tune into beIN’s English and Arabic channels, as well as beIN’s dedicated 4K channel, to catch historic World Cup matches. beIN’s official social media accounts will surprise followers with additional exclusive content and live interviews from Qatar.

Commenting on 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, beIN MEDIA GROUP Sports Advisor Jonathan Whitehead said: “As the official broadcaster, beIN MEDIA GROUP’s prime focus is providing millions of viewers with outstanding, top quality and dynamic coverage of the greatest football tournament in the world. As an organization with a strong and very proud footprint in the Middle East, beIN MEDIA GROUP is tremendously excited that the FIFA World Cup will be coming to the Arab region for the first time”.

“We are also enormously confident in Qatar’s ability to deliver an exceptional World Cup experience, and recent major events in the country have been terrific successes: the 2006 Asian Games, the 2015 World Men’s Handball Championship and next year the World Championships in Athletics. In addition to combining vibrant Qatari culture and hospi-tality with innovative fan and player experiences, the compact nature of 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar will offer millions of fans a unique and dis-tinct experience, and build a lasting legacy in Qatar and the entire MENA region,” he added.

beIN is the official broadcaster for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, having started its journey as the official broadcaster of the FIFA tournament since 2010.

One can follow beIN’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts @beINSPORTS and @beINSPORTS_MENA for Twitter Arabic for all the updates as Qatar counts down to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

31MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2018 SPORT

Upbeat Qatar eye another upset in Iceland friendlyFAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

DOHA: After a stunning victory over World No.8 Swit-zerland, Qatar willl be eyeing a n o t h e r i m p r e s s i v e performance when they take on Iceland in international friendly in Belgium today.

Today’s game in Eupen will be Qatar’s second and final friendly on training tour of Europe where coach Felix Sanchez’s men are preparing for the next year’s Asian Cup. The game will kick off at 9:30pm local time.

Qatar will go into match with full confidence, hoping to replicate their performance of Switzerland match, which they won by 1-0 after a late goal by Akram Afif in Lugano last week.

Iceland, on the other hand, will be hoping to regain

winning form after they were hammered by Belgium 2-0 in Brussels earlier this week.

The European side, ranked 36th in the FIFA rankings, will start as favourite against the 2022 World Cup hosts, who are hoping for significant rise in the rankings from their current 96th spot.

Sanchez, who said the win over Switzerland will motivate players and boost team’s con-fidence, is expected to test new strategies in today’s match.

“When you’re facing a top team we need to do more things that we are not used to do but that’s the way to compete,” said Sanchez.

Today’s match will be Qatar’s 6th international friendly this season, and so far the Al Anabi have shown good performance as they have won four with their only loss this season is a 2-0 defeat to Uzbekistan last month.

The victory over Swit-zerland, however, is deemed

Qatar’s best result which has left the football world whis-pering about the Gulf state’s charge in 2022 World Cup on their home soil.

“We are in a good way,” Spain and Barcelona legend Xavi Hernandez, who captains Al Sadd told AFP recently.

“We have many talented players and it means that (coach) Felix Sanchez is doing a really good job.

“We must keep going like that. It’s a big win, of course,” he said.

Following the European friendlies, Qatar will play more international games next month when they host Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Algeria and Iran on December 17, 23, 25 and 31.

The AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial event, will be held in the UAE from January 5 to February 1, 2019.

Qatar take on Iceland today in Eupen in their final friendly on training tour of Europe.

2022 FIFA World Cup hosts stunned football fraternity with a 1-0 win over World No.8 Switzerland last week.

Qatar coach Sanchez is expected to test new strategies in today’s match.

Qatar’s Hassan nominated for top AFC awardTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar national team defender Abdulkraim Hassan has been nominated for the prestigious 2018 AFC-Player-of-the-Year award, it has been confirmed.

The AFC Player-of-the-Year awards ceremony will be held on November 28 in Muscat, Oman, AFC said earlier this month.

Hassan will compete against Japan’s Yamama Suzuki and Iran’s Ali Reza for the top honours.

The last Qatari player to win the award was striker Khalfan Ibrahim who bagged the prestigious Asian trophy in 2002.

Hassan, an integral part of Qatar football plans, has been seen in top form and fitness in the last few years.

He has rarely missed a Qatar international home or away. The 25-year-old, who plays for QNB Stars League giants

Al Sadd, was the captain of the national side that finished fourth in the AFC U-23 Championship held in Qatar.

He is currently with the national side in Europe where Qatar are playing two friendlies this week. He featured in Qatar’s 1-0 win over Switzerland last Wednesday.

Hassan is expected to play a key role in Qatar’s 2019 Asian Cup campaign to be held in the UAE.

The awards ceremony - to be hosted by Oman Football Association (OFA) will be held at the Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The ceremony will be attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, QFA chief Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, and Sports Minister at the Ministry of Sports Sheikh Saad bin Mohammed bin Said Al Mardhouf Al Saadi, it has been confirmed.

Football officials from 46 member countries of AFC along with dignitaries from Oman will also be attendance.

QFA officials will also attend the awards ceremony.

Qatar national team defender Abdulkraim Hassan (centre) and his team-mates during a training session ahead of international friendly against Iceland in Eupen, Belgium on Saturday.

The third round of the QSL Cup witnessed some exciting battles and interesting results. Atotal of 22 goals were scored across the six fixtures. In the Group A matches played on Sat- urday, Umm Salal drew 1-1 with Al Duhail, Qatar SC defeated Al Arabi 2-1 and Al Gharafa blanked Al Kharaitiyat 3-0. In the Group B games played on Friday, Al Sadd drew 3-3 with AlSailiya, Al Rayyan beat Al Shahania 3-1 and Al Khor defeated Al Ahli 3-1.

Group A *In Group A, defending champions Al Gharafa registered their first victory. The Cheetahs rode on a double from Moayad Hassan and a goal by Dutch star Wesley Sneijder to put itacross Al Kharaitiyat. *Abdulla Kamal put Umm Salal ahead, but Al Duhail equalised through star Moroccan strikerYousef El Arabi, the top scorer in the QNB Stars League in the last two seasons. *Qatar SC put up a strong performance against Al Arabi, who took the lead through GaserZakaria. Ali Jasemi and Eisa Palangi were on target for Qatar SC. *Al Gharafa, Al Duhail, Qatar SC and Umm Salal all have five points each, but Al Gharafa ledthe Group A standings on better goal difference (+3).*Al Duhail, Qatar SC and Umm Salal have scored four, three and two goals respectively.

Group B*In Group B, Ali Asad scored two goals and Hamed Ismail one for Al Sadd. For Al Sailiya, Mohammed Rajab contributed a brace. Abdul Rauf too got on to thescoresheet for The Peregrines. *Lucca Borges, Rodrigo Tabata and Koh Myong-Jin netted Al Rayyan’s goals, while Sultan AlKuwari pulled one back for Al Shahania. Al Rayyan led the group table with nine points. Al Khor too have the same number of points,but were placed below Al Rayyan on goal difference. *Al Sadd (four points), Al Ahli (three), Al Sailiya (one) and Al Shahania (zero) follow in thatorder.

QSL CUP: ROUND THREE HIGHLIGHTS

Ronaldo still very much part of Portugal team, says coachAFP

MILAN: Portugal coach Fernando Santos insisted that superstar Cristiano Ronaldo remains a key part of his national team despite being left out of his Nations League squad, after the European champions became the first team to advance to the semi-finals of the competition.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner spent much of last month vehemently denying alle-gations of rape and was dropped by Santos for the Nations League internationals amid accusations by former model Kathryn Mayorga that Ronaldo raped her in 2009, just before he joined Real Madrid from Man-chester United.

“There are no questions to ask. Ronaldo is part of this team, just read the post he wrote today,” said S a n t o s , referring

to the message the Juventus player sent to wish his team-mates good luck via Twitter.

Portugal booked their ticket to the semi-finals next June after holding Italy to a 0-0 draw at the San Siro on Saturday.

They progressed top of

Group A3 with one match to play, dashing Italy’s hopes in the process.

“The qualification confirms the quality of our football,” said Santos.

“I thought it would be a great match and instead especially in the first half we had a lot of difficulties.

“After the break I explained to them what was happening, and the game became more balanced.”

Portugal host relegated Poland in three days in Gui-maraes, in a match that has no significance for either side.

But Santos insisted: “The final match against Poland will

be important because it will be on front of our public,

who are always with us. “We have to

play well and to win.”

t of his Nations League squad, ter the European champions came the first team to vance to the semi-finals of the mpetition.

The five-time Ballon d’Or nner spent much of last

onth vehemently denying alle-tions of rape and was dropped Santos for the Nations League ernationals amid accusations former model Kathryn

ayorga that Ronaldo raped her 2009, just before he joined

eal Madrid from Man-ester United.

“There are no uestions to ask. onaldo is part of is team, justad the post

e wrote day,” said a n t o s ,ferring

They progressed top of match and instead especially in the first half we had a lot of difficulties.

“After the break I explained to them what was happening, and the game became more balanced.”

Portugal host relegatedPoland in three days in Gui-maraes, in a match that has no significance for either side.

But Santos insisted: “The final match against Poland will

be important because it will be on front of our public,

whw o are always with usu . “We have to

play well and to win.”

Cristiano Ronaldo

Scots close on Nations League promotionAFP

PARIS: Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser scored his maiden international goal as Alex McLeish’s Scotland thrashed 10-man Albania 4-0 in Shkoder to close in on promotion from Nations League C.

The Scots will secure top spot in Group C1 and a Euro 2020 play-off place if they can beat Israel at Hampden Park tomorrow.

“I had a good feeling about it and I felt if the players brought their performance level to the game then it would be positive and that’s how it turned out,” Scotland manager McLeish told Sky Sports after Saturday’s win.

Fraser scored an excellent individual goal to give the vis-itors a 14th-minute lead, latching onto the ball after Ryan Christie won possession, before cutting inside and curling the ball into the far corner to con-tinue his fine form this season.

Scotland were handed a man advantage midway through the first half as Mergim Mavraj was sent off for head-butting Christie. McLeish’s men

Steven Fletcher scores Scotland second goal from the penalty spot against Albania on Saturday.

were awarded a penalty shortly before the interval when Stuart Armstrong’s free-kick struck an arm in the Albanian wall, and Sheffield Wednesday striker Steven Fletcher stepped up to net for his country for the first time since September 2016.

Scotland made the most of the wide-open spaces available to them in the second half, with Christie sending Celtic winger James Forrest clear to loft in his first international goal 10 minutes after the restart.

Fraser turned provider in the 67th minute as his cutback was expertly flicked into the air and

volleyed into the corner by Forrest. The 27-year-old Forrest has now scored 11 goals in all competitions for club and country this term.

“James has been there or thereabouts in the last couple of years for Scotland,” McLeish added. “He’s won a lot of caps.

“He’s been in great scoring form for his club and he con-tinued that which was mar-vellous to see.”

Earlier on Saturday, Kosovo took a big step towards reaching the qualifying play-offs for the Euros with a 5-0 thrashing of Malta.

SPORTUEFA Nations League:

Germany vs Netherlands First Test: Pakistan vsNew Zealand, Day 4

FOOTBALL CRICKET

27MONDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2018

We want to go out and put our

best foot forward and focus on

our game rather than what’s

happening outside.

India’s head coach Ravi

Shastri ahead of series against Australia.

TO

DAY

’SA

CTIO

N

England seal SL series, eye rankings summitAFP

KANDY: Captain Joe Root set his sights on taking England to the top of the world rankings after his spin trio finished off Sri Lanka in the second Test yesterday to seal the series with a match to spare.

England needed just 30 minutes on the fifth day to take the final three Sri Lanka wickets. Jack Leach got last man Malinda Pushpakumara caught and bowled to claim his first five-wicket Test haul.

Moeen Ali took four wickets and Adil Rashid one as England’s three frontline spinners accounted for the whole innings, as well as 18 of Sri Lanka’s 20 wickets in the game overall.

Root’s 124 in England’s second innings also played a key role in the 57-run victory and earned him the man-of-the-match award. Celebrating Eng-land’s first away series win since beating South Africa in 2015-16 and his first away triumph as captain, Root sees England -- who are currently ranked third in the world -- challenging India for the top Test team spot.

“It was a brilliant Test match,” said Root, whose team had to twice fight back after their top order batsmen gave away cheap wickets.

“It ebbed and flowed throughout, like against India in

the summer, and it’s pleasing to see another close game go our way.

“We said we’d come out here and play bold cricket, and be courageous. It’s easy to talk a good game but we’ve backed it up,” Root said.

“We have to keep looking to improve. The team has grown in the last 18 months but we are not the finished article. We want to get to number one in the world and that means per-forming in all conditions around the world.”

Sri Lanka needed 301 in their second innings to register an upset win but managed just 243 at the Pallekele ground.

They started the day needing 75 more runs and with three wickets in hand had an outside chance.

After Niroshan Dickwella was caught by Ben Stokes off Moeen Ali for 35 -- the first

wicket of the morning -- Sri Lanka’s hopes were all but extinguished.

Moeen then struck No. 10 batsman Suranga Lakmal, the Sri Lanka skipper, on the pad next ball for a strong lbw appeal which was turned down. He bowled Lakmal his very next delivery. Pushpakumara lasted only eight balls before chipping the ball back to Leach and the game was over.

Lakmal insisted his side had been “unlucky”.

But England’s triumph fol-lowed a crushing 211-run win in the first Test in Galle, and was set up by masterful performances from Leach, Ali and Rashid.

The spinners were dominant for both sides, as Sri Lanka’s Dil-ruwan Perera took seven wickets in the game and Akila Dananjaya -- who now goes off for an investigation into his bowling action -- eight.

“It feels good to have three spinners in the team. We all know our roles and help each other out. It’s nice to make history and hopefully we can carry that on now,” said Rashid.

Leach, playing just his third Test, said the game had been “unbelievable”.

Root insisted that England will not ease up for the third and final Test which starts in Colombo on Friday.

He faces some tough selection choices after stand-in wicketkeeper Ben Foakes again shone with the bat -- hitting a crucial unbeaten 65 in the second innings -- just as Jonny Bairstow steps up claims for a recall after injury.

Sri Lanka will be looking to strengthen their rebuilding, said c o a c h C h a n d i k a Hathurusingha.

“We’re looking at the bigger picture,” he said.

“This is the first series we lost this year. We won against South Africa 2-0. In these two games there were very close games. We had the opportunity to win both games at times.

“England played better cricket than us. We have to accept that. We have to learn from these mistakes,” he added.

“The skill is still there -- that’s what I’m banking on. That’s the hope that I have with this team.”

England’s captain Joe Root (centre) and team-mates acknowledge spectators after their team won against Sri Lanka on the final day of the second Test match in Kandy yesterday.

England (I Innings) .......................... 290Sri Lanka (I Innings) ........................ 336England(II Innings) ......................... 346Sri Lanka (II Innings) D Karunaratne c Foakes b Rashid .................. 57

K Silva st Foakes b Leach .................................4

D de Silva c Jennings b Leach ...........................1

K Mendis lbw b Leach ........................................1

A Mathews lbw b Moeen ................................88

R Silva c Root b Moeen ................................... 37

N Dickwella c Stokes b Moeen ....................... 35

D Perera lbw b Leach ........................................ 2

A Dananjaya (not out) ......................................8

S Lakmal (capt) b Moeen .................................. 0

M Pushpakumara c and b Leach ......................1

Extras (B5, LB4) ..............................................9

Total (all out) ................................... 243Fall of Wickets: 14-1, 16-2, 26-3, 103-4, 176-5,

221-6, 226-7, 240-8, 240-9, 243-10

Bowling: Anderson 5-2-12-0, Leach 28-2-83-5,

Moeen Ali 19-2-72-4, Adil Rashid 17-1-52-1, Root

5-0-15-0

Result: England win by 57 runs

England take winning 2-0 lead in three-match series

SCOREBOARD

Hasan, Yasir set Pakistan on victory path in first TestAFP

ABU DHABI: Medium pacer Hasan Ali and leg-spinner Yasir Shah took five wickets apiece to set Pakistan on the victory path on the third day of the first Test against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi yesterday.

Hasan took his maiden five-wicket haul with 5-45 while Yasir finished with 5-110 -- his 14th five-wicket feat in an innings -- as New Zealand collapsed from 220-4 to 249 all out soon after tea.

That left Pakistan with 176 to win the Test and at close they were 37-0 with Imam-ul-Haq on 25 not out and Mohammad Hafeez unbeaten on eight, needing another 139 to win with all ten wickets in hand and two days to play.

With the Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch not worrisome for batting Pakistan has high hopes of enforcing a 1-0 lead in the three-match series while New Zealand can take heart from the

fact that Pakistan lost a Test here against Sri Lanka by 21 runs after set 136 to win last year.

Bradley-John Watling with 59 and Henry Nicholls with 55 had defied Pakistan in the post lunch session with a fighting stand of 112 for the fifth wicket but Yasir took four wickets off just 15 balls to bring his team back into contention.

Pakistan took the second new ball with the total at 201-4

soon after tea and Yasir had Nicholls caught beautifully by wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed and then in his next over trapped Coiln de Grandhomme leg-before for three.

Nicholls hit three boundaries in his 171-ball resistance-packed knock. An over later, Yasir ended Watling’s 145-ball defiance with a leg-before and then bowled Neil Wagner for nought. Watling had five boundaries in his knock.

Hasan then wrapped up the innings by bowling Ish Sodhi for 18 and Trent Boult caught off a miscued drive for nought to improve on his previous best figures of 4-51 against England at Lord’s in May this year.

New Zealand were in danger of losing the Test yesterday after three quick wickets fell in the space of just 22 runs in the first session with Hasan taking two in the same over.

But Watling survived a leg-before decision on review after umpire Bruce Oxenford raised his finger off Bilal Asif for 15. Watling took full advantage of the reprieve and added 67 in the second session without losing a wicket.

Hasan, who had opener Tom Latham yesterday, trapped a dangerous looking Taylor leg-before with a sharp incoming delivery for 19 and then had Jeet Raval caught behind by wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed for 46.

Pakistan’s Hasan Ali (left) and Yasir Shah hold the ball in celebration as they leave the ground after New Zealand were all out in their second innings during day 3 of first Test in Abu Dhabi, yesterday.

New Zealand (I Innings) ...................153 Pakistan (I Innings) ..........................227 New Zealand (II Innings) J Raval c Sarfraz b Hasan .............................. 46

T Latham b Hasan .............................................0

K Williamson b Yasir ....................................... 37

R Taylor lbw b Hasan ...................................... 19

H Nicholls c Sarfraz b Yasir ............................55

BJ Watling lbw b Yasir ...................................59

C de Grandhomme lbw b Yasir ........................ 3

I Sodhi b Hasan ................................................ 18

N Wagner b Yasir ..............................................0

Ajaz Patel not out ..............................................6

T Boult c Hafeez b Hasan .................................0

Extras: (B 4, NB 1, W 1) .................................. 6

Total: (all out) .................................. 249Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-86, 3-105, 4-108, 5-220,

6-224, 7-227, 8-227, 9-249

Bowling: Abbas 22-10-31-0, Hasan 17.4-3-45-5

(1nb, 1w), Yasir 37-6-110-5, Sohail 7-1-12-0, Asif 14-

3-43-0, Hafeez 3-1-4-0

Pakistan (II Innings) Imam-ul-Haq (batting) ...................................25

Mohammad Hafeez (batting) ..........................8

Extras: (B4) ......................................................4

Total: (no loss; 8 overs) ......................37Bowling: Boult 3-0-16-0, de Grandhomme 3-0-15-

0, Patel 1-1-0-0, Sodhi 1-0-2-0

SCOREBOARD

India ‘taking no prisoners’ against Australia: ShastriREUTERS

SYDNEY: India’s head coach Ravi Shastri says his side will take no prisoners in their upcoming Test series against Australia, who are still formi-dable opponents despite results going against them in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal.

The scandal, which occurred during the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town in March, resulted in year-long bans to former Aus-tralia captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner, with batsman Cameron Ban-croft suspended for nine months.

Australia have struggled to recover from the crisis, losing a Test series to Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates and being whitewashed 5-0 by England in a one-day international series in June.

They also lost 2-1 to South Africa at home in an ODI series earlier this month.

Shastri, however, believes Australia will still be strong in the four-match series that starts next month and being deprived of key players will not weaken them significantly on home soil.

“I always believe no team is weak at home,” Shastri, whose side have never won a Test series in Australia, told reporters in Brisbane yesterday.

“We might have three or four players not playing when a team comes to India, but God f o r b i d i f a n y o n e says it is a

weak Indian team because you will be surprised.” Shastri said his side would be “taking no prisoners” in their approach to the series.

“We want to go out and put our best foot forward and focus on our game rather than what’s happening outside,” he added.

India will play a three-match Twenty20 series before the first Test starts at Adelaide Oval on December 6.

The Australia series will be the last chance in 2018 for Virat Kohli’s men to match their for-midable home form with success abroad and show the world why they are the world’s top-ranked test side.

India, who last lost a Test series at home in late 2012 against England, started the year with a 2-1 loss in South Africa but then thrashed debu-tants Afghanistan at home in a one-off Test.

They then lost a five-match series 4-1 in England before thrashing West Indies 2-0 at home.

Kohli scored four hundreds during the team’s last trip ‘Down Under’ and Shastri backed the batting ace to come good again.

“He loves coming to Aus-tralia, he’s passionate about his game and the pitches here suit his style of play,” former India all-rounder Shastri said.

“Once you have done well in this part of the world you

always want to come out and play well again.

“It’s a great place to play cricket, they play it hard, the sporting public really appre-ciate good, tough cricket. It

doesn’t matter which side wins as long as there’s competition.”

Test series in Australia, told reporters in Brisbane yesterday.

“We might have three orfour players not playing when a team comes to India, but God f o r b i d i f a n y o n e says it is a

s sty e o p ay, o e dia all-rounder Shastri said.

“Once you have done well in this part of the world you

always want to come out and play well again.

“It’s a great place to play cricket, they play it hard, the sporting public really appre-ciate good, tough cricket. It

doesn’t matter which side wins as long as there’s competition.”

Ravi Shastri