UAE facing exit from T20 World Cup after loss to Sri Lanka

UAE’s Karthik Palaniapan Meiyappan is stumped by Sri Lanka’s Kusal Mendis (R) during the ICC men’s T20 World Cup 2022 cricket match. (AFP)
UAE’s Karthik Palaniapan Meiyappan is stumped by Sri Lanka’s Kusal Mendis (R) during the ICC men’s T20 World Cup 2022 cricket match. (AFP)
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Updated 18 October 2022

UAE facing exit from T20 World Cup after loss to Sri Lanka

UAE facing exit from T20 World Cup after loss to Sri Lanka
  • Having lost their opener to the Netherlands, the UAE require an almost impossible combination of results to progress even if they beat Zambia in their last match

MELBOURNE: The UAE were all but knocked out of the T20 World Cup after suffering a comprehensive 79-run loss to Sri Lanka.

Following their narrow loss to the Netherlands on the opening day, the UAE had to beat Asia Cup winners Sri Lanka in order to stand any chance of progressing to the Super 12s stage of the competition.

However, despite a magical spell of bowling from Karthik Meiyappan, who became the first UAE player to take a T20I hat-trick in history, the UAE collapsed in a heap with the bat, all out for 73.

“Lately the batting hasn’t clicked for us,” said Meiyappan at the close of play, “and that is something that we have to be concerned about. Firstly, to only put up 112 against the Netherlands … and today again, it felt like the batters could’ve cashed in as it felt like 152 on that wicket was quite chaseable.”

The result means that the UAE are all but officially knocked out of the competition and are still without a win in T20 World Cups after going none from two so far in Australia and losing all three of their games when they last qualified in 2014.

Matches have so far been low-scoring in Geelong, where the slow wicket combined with a thick outfield has made runs hard to come by.

And so, having won the toss and elected to field, the UAE had cause for concern when Sri Lanka got off to a flier. After five overs, the score was 47-1 with opener Pathum Nissanka (74 off 60) setting the early pace.

Along with Dhanjaya de Silva, the pair seemed to be taking the game comfortably in Sri Lanka’s direction, as they took the score to 92-1 after 11 overs and then 117-2 after 15.5.

But then carnage would ensue in the UAE’s brightest period of the game, as 22-year-old leg spinner Meiyappan, who trained with Indian Premier League side Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2021, became the first UAE player in history to take a T20I hat-trick and just the fifth player to do so at a T20 World Cup.

First, he had Banuka Rajapaksa caught at deep cover, before consecutive googlies removed Charith Asalanka and captain Dasun Shanaka. The last wicket ripping through bat-and-pad sent Meiyappan on a celebratory lap of the ground.

“It still hasn’t sunk in the fact that I’ve got a hat-trick in a T20 World Cup, and to be the first UAE bowler to do so,” said Meiyappan. “It’s a really proud moment and feels amazing.”

Things would get even better for the UAE, as they would take a fourth wicket in seven balls as 16-year-old Aayan Khan had Wanindu Hasaranga caught on the boundary to leave Sri Lanka 120-6 and the match in the balance.

But, that would be as good as it got, as a late flourish from Nissanka would lift Sri Lanka to a strong final total of 152-8.

The UAE needed a bright start in response, but their chase was immediately derailed when Sri Lankan fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera took three wickets in the powerplay, before Chirag Suri fell to Pramod Liyanagamage to leave the UAE 21-4 and see the game all but finished before UAE’s innings had even really begun.

There would be no let up from Sri Lanka either, as the introduction of spin and Hasaranga (4-1-8-3) to the attack made things even worse for the UAE as the wickets continued to tumble with regularity. Out of the 11 batters that took to the crease, only Suri (14), Aayan Khan (19) and Junaid Siddique (18) made double figures.

“Obviously, making the World Cup was an achievement  itself, but the main goal was to reach the Super 12s,” said Meiyappan.

“As of now I think going forward for us will be the 2023 World Cup in India and that’s what we’ll be preparing for.”

For Sri Lanka, the result means they go into what is in effect a knockout match against the Netherlands in two days time to decide who will make it through to the next round, meanwhile the UAE will finish their competition against Namibia requiring a mathematically miraculous combination of results to see them through.


McIlroy: Saudi, PGA Tour deal ‘good for golf’

McIlroy: Saudi, PGA Tour deal ‘good for golf’
Updated 28 sec ago

McIlroy: Saudi, PGA Tour deal ‘good for golf’

McIlroy: Saudi, PGA Tour deal ‘good for golf’

LOS ANGELES: Rory McIlroy on Wednesday welcomed the PGA Tour’s merger with the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf.

According to the Northern Ireland star, Tuesday’s deal would secure the financial future of the sport.

“I think ultimately, when I try to remove myself from the situation and I look at the bigger picture and I look at 10 years down the line, I think ultimately this is going to be good for the game of professional golf,” McIlroy said.

“It unifies it and it secures its financial future.”

McIlroy was speaking on the eve of this week’s PGA Canadian Open in Toronto in his first comments since Tuesday’s agreement was revealed.

Under the new deal, the PGA Tour and Europe’s DP World Tour said they had signed an agreement with LIV’s Saudi backers that will lead to ‘a new collectively owned, for-profit entity.’

McIlroy is widely reported to have turned down an offer in the region of $400 million to switch to LIV but on Wednesday denied ever receiving a bid for his services.

“I was never offered any money,” McIlroy said. The Northern Irishman, however, said he understood anger from fellow professionals against PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan — but insisted he still had confidence in the under-fire tour chief.

“I’ve dealt with Jay a lot closer than a lot of those guys have,” McIlroy said.

“From where we were a couple of weeks ago to where we are today, I think the future of the PGA Tour looks brighter as a whole, as an entity.”


Lionel Messi: 'I've decided to go to Inter Miami'

Lionel Messi: 'I've decided to go to Inter Miami'
Updated 16 min 49 sec ago

Lionel Messi: 'I've decided to go to Inter Miami'

Lionel Messi: 'I've decided to go to Inter Miami'

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi will sign for Major League Soccer side Inter Miami, the player said Wednesday in interviews with Spanish media, choosing the United States as his next destination over a Barcelona reunion or blockbuster deal to play in Saudi Arabia.
The Argentine forward, 35, has spent the last two seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, playing his final game for the club on Saturday, after moving from Barcelona in 2021, where he spent the majority of his career.
Messi said that he did not want to have to wait for Barcelona to find a formula to be able to sign him given their financial situation — they were unable to keep him before his move to PSG, leading to a tearful departure.
“I was afraid that it would happen again,” Messi told Spanish newspapers Diario Sport and Mundo Deportivo.
“I’ve taken the decision that I am going to Miami, I don’t have (the deal) 100 percent sealed or maybe there’s something left to do, but we decided to continue our path there.
“(I decided) to leave Europe, it’s true that I had offers from another European team but I didn’t even think about it because in Europe, my idea was only to go to Barcelona.
“After winning the World Cup and not being able to go to Barca, it’s time to go to MLS to live football in a different way and enjoy my day to day life more.
“Obviously with the same responsibility and desire to win, and to do things well, but with more calm.”
Messi is a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner and is expected to earn the individual accolade once more after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in December 2022.
The football world was eagerly awaiting Messi’s decision after PSG confirmed this week the playmaker, widely considered the best player in the history of football, was departing.
Inter Miami, co-owned by former England international David Beckham and founded in 2018, sacked coach Phil Neville last week with the team bottom of the Eastern Conference — with Argentine Javier Morales taking over on an interim basis.
The romance of a Barcelona return and prospect of eye-watering riches in Saudi Arabia fell by the wayside as Messi opted to join MLS, with sun-soaked Miami a city he has holidayed in on previous occasions.
Some reports say key MLS sponsors including sportswear brand Adidas and Apple TV, who own the league’s domestic broadcasting rights, may be contributing to his deal.


Saudi woman to become 1st female referee at Mt. Everest International Yoga Championship

Saudi woman to become 1st female referee at Mt. Everest International Yoga Championship
Updated 58 min 11 sec ago

Saudi woman to become 1st female referee at Mt. Everest International Yoga Championship

Saudi woman to become 1st female referee at Mt. Everest International Yoga Championship
  • Abdulmajeed was among Saudi Arabia’s first batch of 19 female and two male yogasana referees who graduated in October at an event in Riyadh
  • Nouf Al-Marwaai, president of the Saudi Yoga Committee, said she was proud that Abdulmajeed would be participating alongside the Saudi team

JEDDAH: Mashael Akram Abdulmajeed will on Thursday make history when she becomes the first Saudi woman to referee at the Mt. Everest International Yoga Championship.
The second edition of the event has been organized by the Nepal Yoga Association and the International Yoga Sports Federation.
Abdulmajeed was among Saudi Arabia’s first batch of 19 female and two male yogasana referees who graduated in October at an event in Riyadh.
Nouf Al-Marwaai, president of the Saudi Yoga Committee, said she was proud that Abdulmajeed would be participating alongside the Saudi team, competing for the first time in an international championship.
She noted that considerable planning had gone into helping more Saudis qualify as referees to officiate at local, regional, and international championships.
“With the increasing number of yoga practitioners and professionals in all parts of the Kingdom, there has been an urgent need to equip national cadres of male and female referees to supervise the arbitration of local championships.
“To achieve this goal, the Saudi Yoga Committee hosted experts from the Asian Yoga Federation to qualify young cadres of both sexes through training courses. Intensive training for referees,” Al-Marwaai added.
Abdulmajeed will be the first Saudi referee to participate in an international championship since the establishment of the yoga committee, although Nouf bint Muhammad Al-Maroui had officiated at the level prior its setup.
 


Kyle Walker: Manchester City one step away from ‘invincibility’

Kyle Walker: Manchester City one step away from ‘invincibility’
Updated 07 June 2023

Kyle Walker: Manchester City one step away from ‘invincibility’

Kyle Walker: Manchester City one step away from ‘invincibility’
  • Pep Guardiola’s team face will complete a glorious treble if they beat Inter Milan in Saturday’s Champions League final
  • “I think that United team, along with the Invincibles, is probably up there with the best Premier League teams of all time,” said Walker

LONDON: English football player Kyle Walker says Manchester City are a step away from invincibility and matching football’s greatest sides.
Having won the Premier League and FA Cup, Pep Guardiola’s team will seal a treble if they beat Inter Milan in Saturday’s Champions League final.
Only Manchester United, back in 1999 under Sir Alex Ferguson, have ever achieved that feat among English clubs.
Walker says United and Arsenal — who went through the entire 2003-04 Premier League season unbeaten and were known as the Invincibles — are the standard-bearers in the modern era for the best English clubs.
Now, he hopes City will confirm their status among them with success in Istanbul.
“I think that United team, along with the Invincibles, is probably up there with the best Premier League teams of all time,” said Walker, who joined City from Tottenham Hotspur in 2017 for £50 million ($62 million).
“(United) have got the big Champions League trophy that we can never say we have got.”
Inter Milan, he added, also “need to be considered as a great team.”
While City have enjoyed domestic success — they have now won five of the last six Premier League titles — they crave European glory.
But Walker, 33, added: “It doesn’t define what this squad has achieved over the last six years. It doesn’t define us if we go on and win this or not.
“It helps massively to say that we can be put in that category of probably one of the best Premier League teams of all time, but we don’t win five Premier Leagues in six years if we are not a good team.
“We … know we are a good team, but to be recognized globally as one of the best teams, you need to win the Champions League.
“We are not beating around the bush with that; we know this is now a great opportunity. We have a second chance definitely with Pep and the group of players who have stayed around, and we need to put right the wrongs we did against Chelsea.”
That 1-0 defeat to Chelsea came in the 2021 Champions League final in Porto, where City were below par.
Walker, John Stones and Phil Foden then went on to lose the European Championship final with England against Italy at Wembley to cap a painful period for club and country.
“I didn’t really have much time to get over the 2021 final as I had to tune back into England and go and compete in a tournament for my country,” he added.
“It was hard seeing all the Chelsea boys there. You say congratulations to them because they are your teammates now, but it was tough.
“Then I experienced a loss against Italy in the final and I had to pick myself up again and get ready for the season.”
Walker says it is part and parcel of football to experience such disappointment.
“I don’t think any great team goes straight to the final and wins it,” he said. “I think you always have to go through setbacks … Hopefully big things are around the corner.”
Walker has endured a frustrating season with injuries forcing him on the sidelines and then Guardiola preferring Stones, Manuel Akanji and teenager Rico Lewis in the right-sided position, where players have moved into midfield during games.
The City boss felt Walker was not capable of playing that role, saying he did not have the “educated movements” of Stones.
While the criticism hurt, the defender said he did not let it affect him, and he has responded with impressive displays to be a starter again.
“No, it’s his opinion,” said Walker. “He’s my manager and I have to listen to him. If his opinion is right or wrong — it’s not my decision.
“He’s the boss of this club and makes the decision of who goes onto the field, and I have to accept that, right or wrong, get my head down, do my extra work in the gym, make sure I am putting in performances on the training field so when I am called upon, he’s not saying, ‘That’s why I was dropping you, because you are not playing well.’
“When I have got the chance, I have tried to do what I do, play good football and defend well, and hopefully that will give him the confidence to carry on picking me in the big games.
“I wasn’t playing at the start of the season, but things change in football.”
Walker’s upbringing has helped him cope with setbacks. He grew up on a Sheffield estate where he witnessed a fatal arson attack and the dead body of a person who had committed suicide next to his front door.
“When I say certain things about it, people look at me thinking, ‘What actually happened?’, but that was my upbringing,” he said. “It has channeled me into this path where I am now. Do I think I can overcome certain things when the going gets tough, can I stand my heels in the ground and then keep moving? I think I can do that.
“That is just the way I have been brought up, especially in England where people bring (you) up to pull you back down.”


Team Jayco Alula welcomes Saudi cycling talent Moroj Adil to European training camp

Team Jayco Alula welcomes Saudi cycling talent Moroj Adil to European training camp
Updated 07 June 2023

Team Jayco Alula welcomes Saudi cycling talent Moroj Adil to European training camp

Team Jayco Alula welcomes Saudi cycling talent Moroj Adil to European training camp
  • 24-year-old describes move as ‘a major step for my career’
  • Adil first met the team in Alula a few days after the UCI Saudi Tour in February, where she attended key presentations and underwent valuable training

ALULA: Professional road race cycling team Team Jayco Alula has welcomed young Saudi Arabian talent Moroj Adil to their European training camp.
The 24-year-old is in Girona, Spain, a European base for many of the team’s riders and staff. There, Adil took part in more training in the pursuit of becoming a professional rider in the women’s WorldTour peloton.
Adil first met the team in Alula a few days after the UCI Saudi Tour in February, where she attended key presentations and underwent valuable training.
She said it was a great step to join the camp in Spain, and progress for a sport she began as a hobby at just one and a half years old.
“I used to be really attached to my father and whatever he would do, I would do with him. After he passed away, I wanted to find a new hobby. I found cycling and it helped me cope with stress and allowed me to spend more time outdoors.
“As my love for cycling grew, I was determined to become a professional cyclist and compete,” she added. “Being part of the training with Team Jayco Alula is a major step for my career and I’m grateful for such a wonderful opportunity.
“It’s been an honor to be part of the growing cycling community in Alula, and I’m excited for what’s to come.”
Philip Jones, Chief Tourism Officer of The Royal Commission for Alula, said: “Moroj is an incredible talent, embodying the spirit of cycling and inspiring Saudi women and men. I’m thrilled that our collaboration with Team Jayco Alula has empowered her to experience this transformative milestone.
“Moroj’s story is a core part of what Alula is striving to achieve as a destination for cycling, with its scenic roads and mountains, historic landscape and robust infrastructure that is rapidly expanding. We hope that Alula will be a source of motivation and a dynamic hub for even more athletes.”
Brent Copeland, Team Jayco Alula General Manager said that his organization is “very excited” to work with the Royal Commission for Alula and the Saudi Cycling Federation for future camps.
“Despite her relatively recent start in cycling, the team is fully dedicated to supporting her. We all hope Moroj’s unique experience will inspire more Saudi women and men to embrace cycling not just as a potential profession but as a lifestyle choice.”
When Moroj began cycling, she was determined to participate and compete in local cycling competitions and was selected by the Saudi Cycling Racing Federation to join the Women’s Saudi National Team to compete regionally and internationally.
In 2022, her determination enabled her to enter the four-day MTB race in NEOM Titan Desert Saudi Arabia. The race covered a total of 427 km with more than 3,500 meters altitude gain.
Fares Alotaibi, Adviser Saudi Cycling Federation, said: “The Saudi Cycling Federation is proud of Moroj Adil, a young and talented woman who is passionate about cycling.
“Moroj loves cycling and wants to improve her quality of life by achieving her goal of becoming a pro cyclist.
“We, at the Saudi Cycling Federation, will continue to support Saudi cyclists to help them achieve their dreams and will extend our support to our partners in Alula, The Royal Commission for Alula and Team Jayco Alula.
“We strive to achieve common objectives such as engaging more young Saudi men and women to take up cycling and make it a lifestyle choice, while also helping them improve their performances to be able to compete like pro riders.”