SPORTS - Page 13

The world champion Springboks will play Wales in a one-off test at neutral Twickenham on June 22 ahead of their tour of Australia. It will be the first fixture since Rassie Erasmus took over as head coach following their Rugby World Cup triumph in France last year. They will also aim to maintain their number one ranking in the world rankings against Ireland in two home tests later this summer. Warren Gatland’s side will then travel to Australia for two

World number two Carlos Alcaraz is to have tests on his ankle after sustaining an injury that forced him to retire from his Rio Open first-round match against Thiago Monteiro on Tuesday. The reigning Wimbledon champion needed medical attention after twisting his right ankle on the second point of the contest. He returned to the court a little later with heavy strapping and broke Monteiro’s serve, but after dropping his own in the next game, he decided to call it

On Monday, Lionel Messi utilized one of China’s prominent social media platforms to clarify speculation surrounding his absence in a recent friendly match held by Inter Miami in Hong Kong. The Argentina star’s absence triggered anger among fans in the city and mainland China who paid hundreds of dollars to see him play. Some even demanded refunds. But three days later, the 36-year-old Argentine forward came off the bench in a friendly match in Tokyo, easing tensions. “I want to

While fellow NASCAR Xfinity Series drivers were busy racing and experiencing collisions during the United Rentals 300 at Daytona International Speedway on Monday night, Austin Hill chose a different activity – engaging in a game of Monopoly. The 29-year-old driver of the No. 21 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet drove his way to victory in the Xfinity season opener at the World Center of Racing for the third straight year. Despite a slew of misfortunes, Hill still managed to pull away

“Winning is addictive,” declares Aryna Sabalenka, the reigning Australian Open champion, on the eve of her Dubai Championships debut. Returning to action with an insatiable hunger for success, the Belarusian is determined to build upon her recent triumph. Last month, Sabalenka stormed to her second Grand Slam title, dominating Zheng Qinwen in straight sets to become the first woman in over a decade to defend the Melbourne Park crown. Now undefeated for the season and eyeing the world No. 1

As Xabi Alonso takes control of Bayer Leverkusen’s training session in the suite overlooking the club’s BayArena pitch, there is no hint of nerves. The former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder, 42, is remarkably relaxed despite being in the spotlight after leading his side to a 3-0 win over Bayern Munich on Sunday that left them five points clear at the top of the Bundesliga and close to matching Bayern’s unbeaten record. It is no surprise that Alonso is attracting

Luis Enrique had only been in charge as Paris St Germain’s manager for a day when he was asked about Kylian Mbappe on Friday. The former Barcelona and Spain coach was in his first press conference ahead of PSG’s inaugural Ligue 1 match against Lorient. However, the “Mbappe Saga” continued to heat up as speculation over his future at the club intensified. Mbappe’s contract at PSG expires at the end of this season, and the France superstar has told the

Kylian Mbappe and Bradley Barcola handed Paris St Germain a hard-fought 2-0 win over visitors Real Sociedad in the first leg of their last-16 Champions League tie on Wednesday. The Basque club, who arrived at the Parc des Princes unbeaten in this year’s competition after topping Group D, were arguably the better side until Mbappe fired home a volley to give the French champions the lead in the 58th minute. Barcola then sliced through the visiting defense on the left

On Wednesday, in Ghana’s capital, Accra, a multitude of soccer enthusiasts gathered on the streets, advocating for improved football governance following their team’s failure to advance beyond the group stage in this year’s Africa Cup of Nations. Wearing black and red T-shirts with the inscription “Save Ghana football” and displaying placards, the demonstrators, expressing their discontent over the Black Stars’ subpar performances in recent major tournaments, marched through the main thorough fares. A group of senior sports journalists organized the

During the Doha World Championships on Wednesday, Pan Zhanle, the recently established world record holder from China, secured the highest qualifying position for the men’s 100-meter freestyle semi-finals. In the morning session at the Aspire Dome pool, he clocked in at 47.82 seconds, slightly exceeding the remarkable record of 46.80 seconds that he had set on Sunday during his impressive lead-off swim in the relay, which China won. His time puts him right in the gold-medal conversation, even though the