CHINTHANA WASALA THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder played a perfect role as the captain as Al Gharafa signed off with a 3-0 win against Qatar SC to seal the fourth spot of the QNB Stars League (QSL) season yesterday.

In front of their home fans, Sneijder gave his team the much needed lead in the 45th minute as a brilliant double by Mehdi Taremi (68th and 85th minutes) made the day for coach Bulent Ugyun’s team.

Yesterday’s win also secured Al Gharafa their place in the elite Qatar Cup and will be joining the QSL champions Al Duhail, runner up Al Sadd and third placed Al Rayyan in the tournament which commences on April 21.

Elsewhere, a second-half goal by Bilal Rajab yesterday saved the day for bottom-placed Al Markhiya who held Umm Salal to a 1-1 draw on the final day of the League.

At Al Ahli Stadium, Mohammed Mawas opened the scoring for Umm Salal in just the second minute, clipping a lose ball into the net from close range as Al Markhiya goalkeeper Muntata Khuroob could not effect a save.

It was Mawas’s third goal of the season.

In the 11th minute, Al Markhiya’s Leonardo Hen-rique attempted a bicycle kick from the edge of the box but his feeble shot was easily pocketed by veteran Umm Salal goalkeeper Baba Malick who went on to defend well for most part of the game.

In the 21st minute, Umm Salal’s Ramy Fayez was booked for bringing down Eric de Olieveira with a rough sliding tackle that was quickly noted by referee Abdulrahman Al Jassim.

In the 29th minute, Al Makrkhiya’s Saleh Badr Al Y a z i d i u n l e a s h e d

a superbly-taken curling left-footed drive that was punched by a diving Malick. At the end of the first half hour mark, Al Markhiya sur-prisingly had more of the ball possession (62 percent) over their rivals in all black.

Five minutes later, Umm Salal’s Mahir Issa completely mistimed his snap-header as he had an open goal to meet his target with keeper Khubroo embarrassingly out of position.

Rajab equalised for Al Markhiya in the 73rd minute with a snap-header from close range, causing Umm Salal to lose ground on fourth-placed Al Gharafa.

At Al Sadd Stadium, Al Rayyan proved to be too strong for Al Ahli as skipper Rodrigo Tabata scored twice to seal a 4-1 win yesterday.

Tabata scored in the 18th and 49th minutes ’

while Gonzalo Viera (44’) and Andres Quintana (90’+2’) rounded up Al Rayyan’s score.

John Benson scored the only goal for Al Ahli in the 80th minute.

At Al Khor Stadium, hosts beat Al Arabi 2-1 thanks to a brilliant double by Ariel Ngueukam (15’ and 87’). Suad Natiq (71’) added the only goal for the losing side. The win also secured them the eighth spot in the final QSL standings.

THE PENINSULA

MIAMI: Qatar’s popular riding star Bassem Mohammed produced a flawless routine with 12-year-old Gunder to finish second at the Longines Global Champions Tour of Grand Prix of Miami Beach on Saturday.

Australia’s Edwina Tops-Alexander (California) topped the event while Ireland’s Darragh Kenny (Cassini Z) sealed the third spot.

Belgium’s Pieter Devos (Claire Z) and Spain’s Eduardo Alvarez Aznar (Fidux) completed the top five.

Showing a near-perfect routine, Bassem and Gunder cleared the first jump-off without any hiccups.

The carefully undertaken ride put the Qatari rider ahead of his rivals.

However, the formidable Edwina, who had the advantage of complete intel about the course, sealed the win with a slight advantage over the second-placed Qatari.

The Australian picked up the top prize by managing a three-second pace better than Bassem’s effort. Last year in November, Bassem regaled Doha fans with a sublime performance to win the LGCT leg held at Al Shaqab Arena.

Bassem has also featured at Olympic Games when he made his showjumping debut in Rio De Janeiro in 2016.

The overall LGCT Ranking battle is already an intense affair,

with Brash of Great Britain leading the charge for the 2018 season. Edwina is the second rider — after Mexico City Grand Prix winner Brash — to qualify for the Longines Global Champions Super Grand Prix which will take place at the GC Prague Play Offs this December.

At the Miami Beach, Edwina once again stepped up to the top of the podium in the balmy evening - repeating her feat from 2016, when she won on Lintea Tequila. Competing on her gutsy

11-year-old Dutch mare, Cali-fornia, she snatched glory as the final combination to jump in today’s LGCT Grand Prix of Miami Beach, edging out Bassem, the only other rider who pulled off a double clear.

The ever-consistent Bassem and 12-year-old Gunder put in the first clear of the jump-off, making absolutely sure every rail stayed up. It was a cautious, tac-tically ridden round that did the job and put him at the head of affairs with only one rider left to

jump. But it wasn’t pedal to the metal — and that one rider was the formidable Edwina.

Her round on the 11-year-old Esprit mare California shaved more than three seconds off Bassem’s time, handing her victory and the lion’s share of the class’s €300,000 prize-fund.

“I watched some of Bassem’s round on the screen (in the warm-up) and I knew he could have gone faster,” added Edwina, who has partnered California since taking over the ride from

Egypt’s Abdel Said in 2016. “Still, I didn’t think I’d won or that I was going that fast and I kept having to look at the screen to check.”

This class concluded action

at the Miami Beach leg of the Longines Global Champions Tour. The next edition takes place in Shanghai from April 28 to 30 as the world’s best head to Asia’s Tour destination.

SPORTMonday 9 April 2018

QSL title ‘just a start’ as ambitious Duhail eye

Asian glory, Qatar treble

Super Al Sulaiti defends histitle at LIC

PAGE | 31 PAGE | 32-33 PAGE | 36 Blake coasts in 100;

hammer time forEngland’s Miller

Bl

FROM LEFT: Qatar’s Bassem Mohammed, Australia’s Edwina Tops-Alexander and Ireland’s Darragh Kenny on the podium after finishing second, first and third respectively at the Longines Global Champions Tour of Grand Prix of Miami Beach on Saturday. LEFT: Bassem Mohammed guides Gunder over an obstacle during the event in Miami, USA.

Qatar’s riding star Bassem seals second spot in Miami

LGCT MIAMI BEACH: TOP SIX1: Edwina Tops-Alexander (AUS) on California

2: Bassem Mohammed (QAT) on Gunder

3: Darragh Kenny (IRL) on Cassini Z

4: Pieter Devos (BEL) on Claire Z

5: Eduardo Alvarez Aznar (ESP) on Fidux

6: Gregory Wathelet (BEL) on Coree

Al Gharafa secure top four finish as Umm Salal, Al Markhiya share points

Al Rayyan’s Rodrigo Tabata (left) celebrates with a team-mate after scoring against Al Ahli yesterday.

Al Gharafa’s Wesley Sneijder shoots to score during their final QNB Stars League match of the season against Qatar SC at the Al Gharafa Stadium yesterday.

FINAL ROUND RESULTSAl Duhail 5 - 2 Al Sailiya

Al Sadd 9 - 1 Al Kharaitiyat Al Ahli 1 - 4 Al Rayyan

Al Khor 2 - 1 Al Arabi Umm Salal 1 - 1 Al Markhiya Qatar SC 0 - 3 Al Gharafa

30 MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018SPORT

Clarke offers to play for AustraliaAFP

SYDNEY: Retired cricket Test captain Michael Clarke (pictured) yesterday offered to play for Australia for free to help the team recover after the downfall of his successor Steve Smith over a ball-tampering scandal in South Africa.

Smith and vice-captain David Warner were stripped of their lead-ership roles and banned from the sport for one year after a plot to alter the ball’s condition during the third Test in March.

“I would do anything to help the Australian cricket team,” the 37-year-old told Sydney’s Sunday Telegraph.

“Age is age. Is 17 too young? I’ve never cared about age. Brad Hogg played at 45. I don’t think it’s about a number. I think it’s about com-mitment and devotion.

“It’s like getting back on a bike. I’m as fit and healthy as I’ve ever been. The time away has been great for my body.” The former batsman, who is in India to cover the IPL and comments on the sport for Aus-tralia’s Nine Network, said he had messaged Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive James Sutherland but had not received a reply.

The ex-skipper retired in 2015 after his 115th and final Test of the Ashes series against England and said his experience could be useful for the embattled team either on or off the field.

“I’ve experienced a lot of great things in cricket but some tough times as well,” he told the

newspaper. “I’ve got the experience to help these young players and that’s where our focus should be right now until the other guys come back.” Smith, Warner and bowler Cameron Bancroft -- who was banned for nine months -- decided not to challenge their sanctions imposed by CA last week.

This means Smith and Warner will not be eligible to play for Aus-tralia until March next year, with wicketkeeper Tim Paine appointed captain.

Clarke said the ball-tampering affair, as Australia slips to fourth in the world Test rankings, could set the team back for years.

“I’m worried about it. I don’t want us to be like the West Indies,” he added.

“We’re not talking about the next five years. It’s the next six months and we need to fix it now. If Cricket Australia asks me, I’d drop everything to help out.”

IPL: Rahul and Nair guide Punjab to win over DelhiIANS

MOHALI: Opener Lokesh Rahul’s (51) fastest fifty in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history and Karun Nair’s explosive fifty helped Kings XI Punjab beat Delhi Daredevils by six wickets in the second match here yesterday.

Chasing modest target 167, Rahul slamming 50 of just 14 balls, gave a flying start to his team before being dismissed for 51 off Trent Boult in the fourth over after Mayank Agarwal (7) fell cheaply. In the first over, Rahul smashed Boult for 16 runs.

Yuvraj Singh also joined the party and hit a couple of boundaries but could not

continue for long as he was dismissed by Chris Morris in the 10th over.

Middle-order batsmen Nair and David Miller (24 not out) then came and played carefully. Nair was at his best,

thrashing Delhi bowlers at will while Miller was rotating the strike.

But with 29 runs needing in 27 balls, Nair was sent packing by pacer Daniel Christian.

Atletico hold Real Madrid AP

MADRID: Cristiano Ronaldo and Antoine Griezmann each scored yeserday as Atletico Madrid held Real Madrid 1-1 at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium to keep a four-point lead over its city rival in the fight for second place in the Spanish league.

The result benefited league leader Barcelona, which defeated Leganes 3-1 on Saturday with a hat trick by Lionel Messi. Bar-celona has an 11-point lead over Atletico at the top of the standings with seven matches left.

Atletico won La Liga in 2013-14 but has finished third behind either Barcelona or Real Madrid in all other years since 2012-13, which was the team’s first full season under coach Diego Simeone.

Madrid hasn’t finished worse than second since 2014, when it trailed Atletico and Barcelona. The other time it failed to finish in the top two was in 2003-04, when it was fourth behind Valencia, Barcelona and Deportivo La Coruna.

Ronaldo opened the scoring early in the second half with a shot from near the far post after a long cross by Gareth Bale from the left flank.

Griezmann equalized less than five minutes later with a strike from near the penalty spot after a move started by Vitolo inside the area.

Ronaldo had scored 20 goals in his last 10 matches in all com-petitions, including his acclaimed bicycle kick in the 3-0 first-leg win at Juventus in the Champions League quarterfinals midweek.

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane rested some of his regular starters ahead of the return leg against Juventus on Wednesday at Bernabeu, including midfielders Luka Modric and Casemiro. Striker Karim Benzema also started from the bench, replacing Ronaldo in the 64th.

Atletico hasn’t lost at Bernabeu in four seasons in the Spanish league.

Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann reacts during the Spanish League match against Real Madrid CF at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid yesterday.

Vettel wins Bahrain Grand Prix for FerrariAP

SAKHIR, BAHRAIN: Sebastian Vettel just held on to win a dramatic Bahrain Grand Prix from pole position yesterday and extended his championship lead over Lewis Hamilton, who finished third behind teammate Valtteri Bottas despite starting from ninth.

Vettel was almost overtaken by Bottas on the last lap, but made a crucial blocking move and won by only 0.6 seconds.

Hamilton was gifted a podium spot after Ferrari botched Kimi Raikkonen’s second tire change. A rear wheel was not fitted properly and, in his haste to get back into the race, Raikkonen’s car hit a team mechanic. Ferrari said the mechanic was taken to the hos-pital for treatment. There was no immediate update on his condition or the nature of his injury.

Vettel made it two straight F1 wins after victory at the season-opening Australian GP two weeks ago, sealing his 49th career win on his 200th race start.

“A bit sad because one of our mechanics got injured,” Vettel said. “A mixed day overall.”

Red Bull had an awful race, with Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen retiring early on. In an ironic twist, Red Bull’s feeder team Toro Rosso had arguably the result of the day - with

French driver Pierre Gasly driving superbly to finish a career-best fourth. But it was determined and astute defending from Vettel, who drove just like a four-time F1 champion. He was u n d e r s e r i o u s pressure from the faster car of Bottas, who was on better tires, but did not crack.

Vettel whooped with joy as he crossed the finish line, although his team’s celebrations were more low-key than usual following the m e c h a n i c ’ s hospitalization.

Raikkonen came in for his second tire change of the race after 36 of 57 laps of the 5.4-kilometer (3.3-mile) desert circuit, but the left rear tire was not secured properly. Raikkonen was given the green light to go but it was an unsafe release and, as he pulled away, he hit one of the mechanics.

Results of the Bahrain Grand Prix yesterday:

1. Sebastian Vettel (GER/Ferrari) 1hr 31min 59.491sec, 2. Valtteri

Bottas (FIN/Mercedes) at 0.699sec, 3. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mer-

cedes) 6.512, 4. Pierre Gasly (FRA/Toro Rosso) 1:02.234, 5. Kevin

Magnussen (DEN/Haas) 1:15.046, 6. Nico Huelkenberg (GER/Re-

nault) 1:39.024, 7. Fernando Alonso (ESP/McLaren) 1 lap, 8. Stoffel

Vandoorne (BEL/McLaren) 1 lap, 9. Marcus Ericsson (SWE/Sauber-

Ferrari) 1 lap, 10. Esteban Ocon (FRA/Force India) 1 lap, 11. Carlos

Sainz Jr (ESP/Renault) 1 lap, 12. Sergio Perez (MEX/Force India) 1

lap, 13. Brendon Hartley (NZL/Toro Rosso) 1 lap, 14. Charles Leclerc

(MON/Sauber) 1 lap, 15. Romain Grosjean (FRA/Haas) 1 lap, 16.

Lance Stroll (CAN/Williams) 1 lap, 17. Sergey Sirotkin (RUS/Williams)

1 lap

Championship standingsDrivers

1. Sebastian Vettel (GER) 50 pts, 2. Lewis Hamilton (GBR) 33, 3.

Valtteri Bottas (FIN) 22, 4. Fernando Alonso (ESP) 16, 5. Kimi

Raikkonen (FIN) 15, 6. Nico Huelkenberg (GER) 14, 7. Pierre Gasly

(FRA) 12, 8. Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) 12, 9. Kevin Magnussen (DEN)

10, 10. Max Verstappen (NED) 8, 11. Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL) 6,

12. Marcus Ericsson (SWE) 2, 13. Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP) 1, 14. Este-

ban Ocon (FRA) 1

BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX RESULTS

Chelsea’s top-four bid in tattersAFP

LONDON: Chelsea’s faint hopes of a top-four finish in the Premier League suffered a potentially fatal blow as Javier Hernandez’s late equaliser gave struggling West Ham a 1-1 draw yesterday.

Antonio Conte’s side went ahead through Cesar Azpilicueta’s first-half strike at Stamford Bridge.

But Chelsea missed a host of chances to increase their advantage and were made to pay when Hernandez came off the bench to snatch the leveller with 17 minutes left.

Conte had admitted losing at home to Tottenham for the first time in 28 years last weekend was a huge setback in Chelsea’s bid to salvage a dismal campaign by quali-fying for the Champions League.

With fifth-placed Chelsea lagging 10 points behind fourth-placed Tottenham with only six games remaining, this frustrating result should end their top-four challenge.

West Ham, now six points clear of the relegation zone, were ecstatic to escape with a point despite a largely limp display.

But it was a disappointing conclusion to a miserable week for Chelsea, who were mourning the death of their former star Ray Wilkins.

Wilkins died at the age of 61 after suffering a cardiac arrest.

The former England mid-fielder, who played for Chelsea for six years in the 1970s and had several spells as the club’s assistant coach, was remembered by fans who laid flowers outside the stadium.

Inside, Chelsea and West Ham supporters, usually fierce rivals, united to sing “there’s only one Ray Wilkins” and held aloft a huge flag with his image.

Four-wicket win for KKR against RCBIANS

KOLKATA: Sunile Narine slammed a quick-fire fifty to help Kolkata Knight Riders beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by four wickets in their opening match of Indian Premier League season 11 at the Edens Gardens in Kolkata yesterday.

Set a 177-run target, hosts KKR chased down the target in 18.5 overs. Skipper Dinesh Karthik, 35 not out off 29 balls, took the team home with seven balls to spare. Chris Woakes (3/36) and Umesh Yadav (2/27) shared five KKR wickets.

Earlier, AB De Villiers and Brendon McCullum scored 43 and 44 respec-tively while Mandeep Singh smashed a 18-ball 37 to help RCB post 176 for 7 in 20 overs.

KKR took wickets at regular intervals but in the last over, Mandeep’s pyro-technics guided RCB to a fighting total at the packed Eden Gardens. As many as 16 runs were leaked in the final over by Karnataka pacer R. Vinay Kumar who had a for-gettable comeback for KKR. Two wickets also fell in that over.

De Villiers was at his imperious best, his 23-ball 44 laced with five sixes and one four. McCullum too looked good for his 27-ball 43 at the start.

Delhi Daredevils C Munro lbw b Mujeeb Ur Rahman ..................4

G Gambhir (c) run out (Mujeeb Ur Rahman) 55

SS Iyer c Rahul b Patel ...................................... 11

V Shankar c Patel b Sharma ........................... 13

RR Pant c Tye b Mujeeb Ur Rahman ..............28

R Tewatia lbw b Ashwin ....................................9

CH Morris (not out) ..........................................27

DT Christian b Sharma ..................................... 13

Extras (B 1, LB 1, NB 1, W 3) ...........................6

Total ..............................................166/7Did not bat: A Mishra, TA Boult, Mohammed Shami

Fall of wickets: 1-12, 2-54, 3-77, 4-111, 5-123,

6-125, 7-166

Bowling: R Ashwin 4-0-23-1-4; MM Sharma 4-0-

33-2; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 4-0-28-2; AR Patel 3-0-

35-1; AJ Tye 4-0-38-0; MP Stoinis 1-0-7-0

Kings XI PunjabKL Rahul c Mohammed Shami b Boult...........51

MA Agarwal c Mohammed Shami b Morris .... 7

Yuvraj Singh c Shankar b Tewatia .................. 12

KK Nair c Boult b Christian..............................50

DA Miller (not out) ...........................................24

MP Stoinis (not out) .........................................22

Extras (NB 1) ......................................................1

Total .............................................. 167/4 Yet to bat: AR Patel, R Ashwin (c), AJ Tye, MM Shar-

ma, Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Fall of wickets: 1-58, 2-64, 3-97, 4-138

Bowling: TA Boult 3.5-0-34-1; Mohammed Shami

2-0-26-0; A Mishra 4-0-46-0; CH Morris-3-0-25-1 ;

DT Christian 2-0-12-1; R Tewatia 4-0-24-1

SCOREBOARD

Ferrari’s German driver Sebastian Vettel jumps out of his car after winning the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix at the Sakhir Circuit in Manama yesterday.

Kings XI Punjab batsman KL Rahul raises his bat after he completes his half century during the IPL Twenty20 match against Delhi Daredevils at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali yesterday.

AFP

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA: Scotland’s Duncan Scott punched well above his weight by bagging a stunning Commonwealth Games gold in the men’s 100 metres freestyle yesterday in the biggest swimming upset so far.

In a frantic finish, the slender 20-year-old mowed down Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers and South African superstar Chad le Clos with a siz-zling last 25 metres to win in 48.02 seconds.

Later, Australian flyer Cate Campbell romped to her third title of the Games in the women’s 50m butterfly as the host nation finished the day on 12 swimming gold medals -- well clear of second-placed England’s five.

Scott, who had already pocketed three bronze medals in the Gold Coast pool, slapped the water and let out a roar of delight after flooring heavy-weights le Clos and Chalmers to win Scotland’s first-ever Com-monwealth title in swimming’s blue riband event.

“I’m speechless, it doesn’t happen very often,” said Scott, whose skinny build belies a fero-cious competitive spirit.

“I just stuck to what I’m good at and that’s bringing it home, so

I just stayed quite composed and let Chad le Clos go out and tried

to hunt him down.” “He’s beaten the god of swimming, Michael

Phelps,” added Scott after winning his country’s first

swimming gold in Australia.“And I’m sure he’s going to

become a great himself, if he’s not already a great.” Scott revealed that le Clos, who is chasing a butterfly treble in Aus-tralia, had been the first to shake his hand.

“He was the first person to say congratulations,” said Scott.

“He’s an awesome gen-tleman and one that a sport like swimming really needs. It’s good to beat him but he’s an incredible athlete.” Le Clos and Australian Chalmers tied for silver in 48.15.

- ‘Please no, please no!’ - “It’s unbelievable, I’m very proud,” said le Clos.

“Fair play to Duncan. I could see him coming from behind and it was like ‘please no, please no!’ But it’s a personal best time for me so you can’t complain.” Golden girl Campbell romped to

victory in the 50m fly, clocking 25.59 after winning the 50m free and helping set a world record in the 4x100m final earlier in the meet.

“I’m really stoked with that one,” she said, after leading an Aussie clean sweep.

“I picked up the 50m but-terfly as a bit of a joke towards the end of last year for World Cups -- then I qualified for Com-monwealth Games and it sud-denly didn’t become such a joke.” Olympic champion Adam Peaty backed up his 100m breaststroke gold by topping the qualifying for the one-lap final in a Games record of 26.49.

Elsewhere, Kylie Masse com-pleted a backstroke double by storming to gold in the women’s 200m in a Games record of 2:05.98.

The 100m world champion led a Canadian one-two from teenage sensation Taylor Ruck (2:06.42), who pocketed her sixth medal of a breakout meet, as Australia’s Emily Seebohm took bronze. Australian Mitch Larkin added the 50m backstroke crown to the 100m he won last week, while the home team set another Games record to win the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay, anchor leg Mack Horton stopping the clock in 7:05.97.

31MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018 SPORT

In a frantic finish, the slender 20-year-old Scott mowed down Olympic champion Chalmers and South African superstar Le Clos with a sizzling last 25 metres to win in 48.02 seconds.

1 Australia 31 25 28 84

2 England 19 19 9 47

3 Canada 7 15 10 32

4 India 7 2 3 12

5 Scotland 6 7 10 23

6 New Zealand 4 7 6 17

7 South Africa 4 1 49 8

8 Wales 3 4 3 10

9 Cyprus 2 0 2 4

10 Malaysia 2 0 1 3

11 Papua New Guinea 1 2 0 3

12 Bermuda 1 0 0 1

12 Northern Ireland 1 0 0 1

12 Uganda 1 0 0 1

15 Sri Lanka 0 1 2 3

16 Bangladesh 0 1 0 1

16 Jamaica 0 1 0 1

16 Mauritius 0 1 0 1

16 Samoa 0 1 0 1

16 Singapore 0 1 0 1

16 Trinidad and Tobago 0 1 0 1

22 Kenya 0 0 2 2

23 Fiji 0 0 1 1

23 Norfolk Island 0 0 1 1

23 Pakistan 0 0 1 1

23 Solomon Islands 0 0 1 1

COMMONWEALTH GAMES

MEDALS TALLY

Scott pulls off stunning win in 100m freestyle

Duncan Scott of Scotland celebrates while Chad Le Clos of South Africa watches the giant screen during the Men’s 100m Freestyle final at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games - in Optus Aquatic Centre, Gold Coast, Australia, yesterday.

Squash legend David calls time on CWG as reign endsAFP

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA: Squash legend Nicol David said the Commonwealth Games in Australia will probably be her last after the Malaysian was beaten in the semi-finals yesterday to dash her dreams of a third straight gold.

The 34-year-old, who spent a record 108 consecutive months (2006-2015) on top of the official women’s world rankings, was well beaten 3-1 by New Zea-land’s Joelle King, the second seed.

The best that David, the third seed, can now hope for is bronze.

“I think it will probably be my last Commonwealth Games,” said David, as she approaches the end of her glorious career.

“The new generation is always going to change. You also

rediscover things and start trying to push to improve. The exciting part is what we can get from the next face of squash.”

David added: “I gave it my all and that’s all you can do. Joelle has been really consistent, it was going to be tough to beat

her. “I gave it my best but some-times your best is not enough.” David, the eight-time world champion, will face Tesni Evans of Wales today for bronze, in what is her sixth Commonwealth Games.

She won singles gold at Delhi

2010 and Glasgow 2014. “Of course losing today is disap-pointing, but I need to focus on the bronze medal now,” said David.

King plays number four seed Sarah-Jane Perry of England for the title.

‘Small step’ as Australia clean up in cyclingAFP

BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA: The head of Australian cycling said his team had taken only a “small step” yesterday after the rejuvenated hosts domi-nated four days of track competition at the Common-wealth Games.

A rampant Australia cel-ebrated a hat-trick of titles on the final day to take their haul of gold medals to 10 and help banish the bitter memories of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The Australian cyclists failed to win a single gold in Rio in one of their poorest Olympic performances for decades.

There have since been swingeing changes at the top of Australian cycling, with Simon Jones drafted in last year as high-performance director from his position as head of innovation at Britain’s Team Sky.

“It has exceeded our expectations and overall fan-tastically happy,” said Jones, who saw the Australians smash the world record in the men’s team pursuit and with road cycling yet to come.

“We’ve had a plan and we’ve done a few things dif-ferently. I think that’s all it needed -- a slightly different perspective.

“We’ve got some great people and some really good teamwork and we have done a lot of work on the people and I guess the way that we work,” said Jones, for whom the Commonwealths were seen as the first real test of his tenure. But Jones, a respected figure in the sport who was also at British Cycling, had a warning for the Australians.

“This project is going to take a long time,” he cau-tioned. “It’s a Commonwealth Games, it’s not a world-level competition.

“We’ve had some fan-tastic performances, but it’s just a small step in the right direction. It’s not the desti-nation for us.” - ‘Work on being better’ - On Sunday, in front of another capacity 4,000 crowd at the Anna Meares Velodrome, Matt Gla-etzer blitzed his way to gold in the last outing in the 1,000m time trial.

Blake coasts in 100; hammer time for England’s MillerAP

GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA Yohan Blake received an encour-aging message from Usain Bolt before his Commonwealth Games debut, telling him: “I believe in you.”

That came in the wake of another one from his fellow Jamaican that was more direct, Blake recalled: “You’ve got to win... or you can’t go home.”

No pressure at all. The 2011 world champion kicked off his Gold Coast 2018 campaign by qualifying fastest for the final after winning his semifinal heat in 10.06 seconds yesterday. That followed a 10.15 in his opening heat on the first afternoon of the track and field competition at the Carrara Stadium.

Blake wants to add a Com-monwealth title to his collection from the Olympics and world championships and, considering Bolt is the only person who has ever run faster times in the 100, he has a good chance.

“There’s a lot more in the tank,” Blake said. Kemar Hyman

of the Cayman Islands was next-quickest qualifier for today’s final in 10.10, fractionally ahead

of Adam Gimili of England and Akani Simbine of South Africa.

England’s Asha Philip led

qualifiers into the women’s 100 final by winning her semifinal heat in 11.21 seconds.

She was 0.01 ahead of Jamaica’s Christania Williams and 0.04 ahead of Michelle-Lee Ahye of Trinidad and Tobago.

Elsewhere at the games Uganda got its first gold medal of the games when Joshua Kiprui Cheptegei won the 5,000 meters in 13 minutes, 50.83 seconds from Mohammed Ahmed of Canada and Kenya’s Edward Pingua Zakayo.

The first gold medal inside the track and field stadium went to England’s Nick Miller, who broke a 12-year-old games record with a hammer throw of 80.26 meters.

Australia’s Matt Denny took silver at 74.88m and Mark Dry of Scotland produced a final throw of 73.12 to overtake Can-ada’s Adam Keenan for bronze.

The first gold medals in the athletics program were awarded in the 20-kilometer race walks, with Australia winning both the morning events.

Jemima Montag won the women’s gold after race-leading Claire Tallent was disqualified with two kilometers to go.

Malaysia’s Nicol David plays a shot against England’s Alison Waters in the women’s singles quarter-final squash match during the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Jamaica’s Yohan Blake competes in the athletics men’s 100m heats during the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games at the Carrara Stadium on the Gold Coast yesterday.

32 MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018SPORT 33MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018 SPORT

Al Duhail coach Djamel Belmadi

Qatar Stars League Management

(QSLM) CEO Hani Taleb Ballan

TOP SCORERS THIS SEASONRANK NAME TEAM GOALS MATCHES1 Youssef El Arabi Al Duhail 26 20

2 Youssef Msakni Al Duhail 25 22

3 Abd Al Razke Hamdalah Al Rayyan 18 20

4 Baghdad Bounedjah Al Sadd 16 11

5 Rodrigo Tabata Al Rayyan 15 21

6 Rachid Tiberkanine Al Kharaitiyat 13 20

7 Wagner Ribeiro Al Sailiya 12 19

8 Hasan Al Haydos Al Sadd 12 21

8 Nam Taehee Al Duhail 12 21

10 Jugurtha Hamroun Al Sadd 11 19

11 Madson Al Khor 10 19

12 Yannick Sagbo Umm Salal 10 20

12 Andres Quintana Al Rayyan 10 20

14 Temurkhuja Abdukhaliqov Al Sailiya 10 22

15 Wesley Sneijder Al Gharafa 9 11

CLUBS M W D L GF GA GD POINTSAl Duhail 22 19 3 0 86 27 59 60

Al Sadd 22 16 1 5 68 25 43 49

Al Rayyan 22 13 4 5 54 39 15 43

Al Gharafa 22 10 5 7 43 34 9 35

Umm Salal 22 8 9 5 33 34 -1 33

Al Sailiya 22 8 4 10 40 42 -2 28

Al Arabi 22 6 6 10 30 42 -12 24

Al Khor 22 7 3 12 24 39 -15 24

Al Ahli 22 6 4 12 25 43 -18 22

Qatar SC 22 6 4 12 24 46 -22 22

Al Kharaitiyat 22 4 4 14 29 62 -33 16

Al Markhiya 22 2 7 13 19 42 -23 13

M = Matches, W = Won, D = Drawn, L = Lost, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, GD =

Goal Difference

Sep 15, 2017Beat Qatar SC 3-2

Sep 23, 2017Beat Al Arabi 2-0

Sep 29, 2017Beat Al Rayyan 5-3

Oct 15, 2017Beat Al Ahli 6-1

Oct 21, 2017Beat Umm Salal 4-1

Oct 28, 2017Drew with Al Gharafa 1-1

Nov 3, 2017Beat Al Khor 4-2

Nov 19, 2017Beat Al Kharaitiyat 8-2

Nov 24, 2017Beat Al Sadd 4-2

Dec 2, 2017Beat Al Markhiya 2-1

Dec 7, 2017Drew with Al Sailiya 1-1

Jan 13, 2018Beat Qatar SC 6-0

Jan 19, 2018Beat Al Arabi 1-0

Jan 27, 2018Drew with Al Rayyan 3-3

Feb 2, 2018Beat Al Ahli 4-0

Feb 8, 2018Beat Al Gharafa 5-1

Feb 15, 2018Beat Umm Salal 5-0

Feb 24, 2018Beat Al Khor 4-0

Mar 1, 2018Beat Al Sadd 4-3

Mar 9, 2018Beat Al Kharaitiyat 5-0

Mar 17, 2018Beat Al Markhiya 4-2

Apr 7, 2018Beat Al Sailiya 5-2

FAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Al Duhail enjoyed a near-perfect season to win the QNB Stars League (QSL) title but the Djamel Belmadi’s are hungry for more and are daring to chal-lenge their continental counterparts as they set their sights on the Asian Cham-pions League glory apart from sealing the Qatar treble.

On Saturday, the team was crowned the QSL champions after nine months of dominating football which saw them clinching 19 victories and securing three draws to end as winners without much resistance. They thrashed Al Sailiya 5-2 in their final game before receiving the ‘Falcon Shield’ to stay unbeaten through-out the contest.

They were superb in the attack scor-ing a whopping 86 goals from 22 matches averaging almost 4 goals per match with their ‘Y Force’ - Youssef El Arabi and Youssef Msakni – contributing more than half of their goals’ tally. Caen-born El Arabi ended as top scorer with 26 goals while Tunisia-based Msakni scored a total of 25 goals.

Not just in the QSL, Al Duhail also dominated their group in the Asian Champions League, sealing five out of five victories to enter the knock-out stage.

Their clinical performance so far in the season has made the players and offi-cial to believe that by maintaining their form, Al Duhail have a good chance of sealing the Asian title as well as Qatar Cup and Emir Cup trophies.

“This (QSL) title is just the first step, we’re not stopping here,” Al Duhail foot-ball chief Adnan Ali said after his players were crowned the champions.

“We started the season with a lot of ambitions and winning the QSL was just our first target. We are looking for more titles (Qatar Cup and Emir Cup) here and then winning the Asian Champions League is our main target this season,” he added.

“The way team is performing, they can achieve much more and I am pretty confident about that. I would like to con-gratulate all the team members including players and officials,” he added.

Ismail Mohammed, who scored two

goals in 5-2 win over Al Sailiya said the QSL title-triumph will boost the team’s confidence.

“We have more challenges ahead and the QSL glory will help us in the rest of the season. This achievement came after a teamwork. All the team members including all the players and officials played their part and if we continue the same stuff we can achieve next targets too.” Another Al Duhail talent echoed his team-mate’s comments.

“We are in full confidence and looking forward to winning every match. Our form has been phenomenal and all we need is to continue playing good football and keep an eye on improvement at the same time.”

How they fared this QSL season

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Hard work. Hard work… That is what Al Duhail coach Djamel Belmadi said when asked about the recipe behind their 2017-18 QNB Stars League triumph.

The jubilant Algerian made these remarks during their coronation cere-mony on home turf on Saturday night.

Al Duhail, maintaining an unbeaten record, clinched their sixth Qatar Stars League title and first after they were formed by merging Lekhwiya with El Jaish.

Four of them (2010-11, 2011-12, 2016-17 and 2017-18) came when Belmadi was at the helm. The Red Knights had sealed the title after Week 20 with an unassail-able lead.

“Hard work was the secret of our suc-cess. Winning the league is a different matter altogether. You can’t win it just like that. You’ve to work harder and stay focused week in, week out and make win-ning a habit,” said Belmadi.

“We had started strongly preparing for the QNB Stars League in the pre-sea-son with special focus on the fitness aspect of players. At the same time, we made sure they stayed mentally fit as well.

“You got to work on a daily basis for a weekly-once game on an average. You can lift the Qatar Cup by winning two games! What primarily makes the league different is that you’ve to be prepared to win all 22 games,” he said.

The coach was extremely delighted with his team’s performance.

“We beat a lot of records, a lot of

statistics, which is amazing. It shows how the club works. We won six titles in the last eight years and it is not easy. It’s a lot of hard work from everyone at the club. From the players, the administration, the support staff. So it’s a great achievement,” said Belmadi.

“The most special thing about this tri-umph is that we did it by being unbeaten. In the AFC Champions League also, we played five games and won all. Our young players are doing very well. So everything is working well for us.

“The only sour note is the injury to Youssef Msakni. He isn’t a striker and for him to score so many goals is amazing. Both Msakni and (Youssef) El Arabi deserved to be the top scorer,” he added.

Al Duhail skipper Msakni emerged as the second-best scorer in the tournament with 25 goals, one less than team-mate and Moroccan striker El Arabi.

Jubilant Belmadi credits hard work for success

QSL title ‘just a start’ as ambitious Duhail eye Asian glory, Qatar treble

QSL CEO congratulates ‘worthy champions’

Skipper Msakni out for six months, misses World CupAFP

DOHA: Tunisia forward Youssef Msakni has been ruled out of the World Cup after agonisingly suffering a cruciate ligament injury while playing his final Qatar Stars League game of the season.

In a statement yesterday, Al Duhail said Msakni would not play until October at the earliest after injuring his knee.

“Msakni will be absent for six months, and with this injury he... will be absent from participation with his national team in the World Cup in Russia,” read the

statement. The World Cup begins on June 14.

The 27-year-old, who had been instrumental in helping Tuni-sia qualify for the finals, announced on his Instagram page that he was “very sad” to miss the tournament.

His absence is a major blow to Tunisia’s hopes of progressing from a group also including Bel-gium, England and Panama.

Msakni injured himself play-ing in Al Duhail’s final League match against Al Sailiya on Sunday which saw them being crowned in front of the home crowd.

We had one clear goal since the beginning

of the season which was winning the league

title. We’ve accomplished this goal under

huge pressure and difficult conditions. I’m

so happy with this title and now we’ve to set

sights on the other tournaments such as Qatar

Cup, Emir’s Cup and AFC Champions League.

We’ve already reached the knockout stage of

Asian competition.

I’m proud to be a part of a big club such as Al

Duhail who have players and technical staff

of high calibre.

I would like to thank everyone for supporting

me as I promise them to keep serving the

side and national team well. Al Duhail have

become a strong force to be reckoned with

in Qatar football. We seek to compete for

more titles.

Defender Bassam Al Rawi

Our team deserved the league title because

of our excellent performance and results. This

may only be the beginning as we’re competing

for many titles. I hope we’ll keep doing well

in the AFC Champions League.

Al Duhail striker Youssef El Arabi

We hope to continue with the same success.

We’re capable of winning more titles.

Al Duhail midfielder Murad Naji

Al Duhail forward Ismail Mohammed

We beat a lot of records, a lot of statistics, which is amazing. We won six titles in the last eight years and it is not easy. It’s a lot of hard work from everyone at the club. From the players, the administration, the support staff: Djamel Belmadi

We started the season with a lot of ambitions and winning the QSL was just our first target. We are looking for more titles (Qatar Cup and Emir Cup) here and then winning the Asian Champions League is our main target this season: Al Duhail football chief Adnan Ali

THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Qatar Stars League Management (QSLM) CEO Hani Taleb Ballan congrat-ulated Al Duhail, who were crowned the 2017-18 season QNB Stars League cham-pions on Saturday night.

It was the second successive league triumph and sixth overall for Lekhwiya, relaunched as Al Duhail this season fol-lowing the former’s merger with El Jaish.

“I would like to extend the sincere congratulations on behalf of the QSLM to the Al Duhail club management, play-ers, technical staff and officials on their success in winning the league shield this season. We wish them all the best in their future engagements at both domestic and continental levels, such as the AFC Cham-pions League. That they have achieved good results and qualified for the Round of 16 with an all-win record clearly shows their strength,” Hani said.

He described Al Duhail as worthy

champions, who excelled in figures and statistics as well, saying the team dem-onstrated remarkable levels of performance since the beginning of the season.

“It’s a huge achievement for the club management, players, technical staff and officials who worked very hard since the beginning of the season, resulting in their second consecutive and sixth league title,” he said.

The QSL CEO expressed his satisfac-tion over the ceremonies, organised on the sidelines of the QNB Stars League Week 22 match between Al Duhail and Al Sailiya, that culminated in The Red Knights’ coronation.

“We always cherish and take pride in the successes achieved by our clubs, in Qatar and beyond. Al Duhail are a good example of professional football in the country. The QSL is always partnering the clubs in the continuous development process which benefit professional foot-ball and consequently the Qatar national teams as well as clubs,” Hani said.

He also stressed the fact that this league season witnessed many exciting battles between the teams.

“The competition was fair and open. I also extend appreciation to all partners, sponsors and stakeholders of the QSL as well as the media and other entities that

contributed to the success of the QNB Stars League. We’re always keen

to work closely with all part-ners, sponsors and stakeholders in the QSLM’s forthcoming events and competi-

tions,” Hani said.

QNB Stars League champions Al

Duhail players and officials celebrate

on the podium after receiving the

Falcon Shield after winning their final

League match against Al Sailiya 5-2

at the Al Duhail Stadium yesterday.

Al Duhail skipper Youssef Msakni receiving the Falcon Shield from Qatar Football

Association Vice-President Saoud Al Mohannadi on Saturday.Pictures: Baher Amin / The Peninsula

Not just in the QSL, Al Duhail also dominated their group in the Asian Champions League, sealing five out of five victories to enter the knock-out stage.

Al Duhail players

celebrate during

their final QNB Stars

League match played

on Saturday.

FINAL STANDINGS

REUTERS

NEW YORK: Will Barton scored 31 points and Nikola Jokic added 23 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his ninth triple-double of the season as the Denver Nuggets rolled past the Los Angeles Clippers 134-115 on Saturday afternoon at Staples Center in Los Angeles and remained in the hunt for the postseason.

The win was the fifth straight for the Nuggets, who are still out of the play-off picture but tied, record-wise, with eighth-place Minnesota.

The Timberwolves hold the head-to-head tiebreaker between the two teams, but there is still plenty to be decided between now and April 11, the final day of the NBA’s regular season.

The Clippers were eliminated from play-off consideration with Saturday’s loss. Los Angeles (42-38) has lost four of its past five games.

Denver (45-35) outscored the Clippers in every quarter and put the game away with a final decisive run in the first half of the fourth period that garnered the Nuggets a 119-101 lead.

Thunder 108, Rockets 102 Russell Westbrook recorded

24 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and four steals to help Oklahoma City post a crucial victory over Houston, snapping the Rockets’ 20-game home winning streak. Paul George also

scored 24 points and Carmelo Anthony added 22 for the Thunder, who won for just the second time in the past six games. Steven Adams con-tributed 12 points and eight rebounds and Jerami Grant also scored 12 points for Oklahoma City.

The victory leaves the Thunder (46-34) tied with the New Orleans Pelicans and San

Antonio Spurs, who both won Saturday, for fifth place in the Western Conference playoff race. Oklahoma City needs to win one of its final two games to clinch a play-off berth.

Pelicans 126, Warriors 120 Rajon Rondo stripped the ball from Kevin Durant and E’Twaun Moore converted the steal into a short jumper at the other end with 23.5 seconds remaining,

allowing New Orleans to hold on for a key victory over host Golden State.

Down 121-113 after an Anthony Davis basket with 3:22 left, Golden State scratched back within two on hoops by Durant, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala, the latter a dunk with 1:01 to play.

But with a chance to tie, Durant (41 points, 10 rebounds) had the ball knocked away by the much smaller Rondo with 31.3 seconds left, and Moore followed with his key hoop almost eight seconds later.

Spurs 116, Trail Blazers 105 LaMarcus Aldridge scored 28

points and Manu Ginobili came off the bench for 10 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter in San Antonio’s win over visiting Portland.

Ginobili was 7-for-7 from the field -- 3-for-3 from 3-point range -- in helping the Spurs claim their 10th straight win at home.

Damian Lillard scored 33 points for the Trail Blazers, who lost their third straight game. Evan Turner added 18 points and CJ McCollum 17 for Portland.

Bucks 115, Knicks 102 Eric Bledsoe and Khris Mid-

dleton each had 22 points to lead all five starters in double figures as Milwaukee defeated host New York.

Jarrett Jack had a team-high 18 points off the bench to lead the Knicks, who dropped their fifth game in their last six

contests. New York (28-52) failed to score for a four-minute stretch late in the fourth quarter as the Bucks broke open the game, securing the first double-digit lead for either team. Milwaukee trailed 95-94 with 5:51 left in the game, but the Bucks used a 12-0 run to go up 11 before cruising to the win.

Nets 124, Bulls 96 Unloading a non-stop

barrage of 3-pointers, Brooklyn routed host Chicago. The Nets

sank 24 of 55 attempts from behind the arc, with eight players hitting at least one 3-pointer and six making multiple threes. Leading a balanced attack was reserve Quincy Acy with a game-high 21 points, all but three of them on 3-pointers. Allen Crabbe added 20 while Joe Harris chipped in 16 points.

In contrast to Brooklyn’s assault from the perimeter, Chicago made just 6 of 29 3-point tries.

34 MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018SPORT

NBA: Nuggets roll past Clippers to stay alive

Nikola Jokic (right) shines in Nuggets win over Clippers.

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Russell Westbrook (right) dribbles the ball as Houston Rockets guard James Harden defends during the first quarter at Toyota Center on Saturday.

Jankowski stars in big win for FlamesAP

CALGARY: Mark Jankowski had four goals, including his first NHL hat-trick, and the Calgary Flames beat the Vegas Golden Knights 7-1 Saturday night to finish a disappointing season.

Spencer Foo, Garnet Hathaway and Johnny Gaudreau also scored for the Flames, who had only nine goals while losing eight of their previous nine. Calgary finished the season 37-35-10, and will miss the playoffs for the seventh time in nine seasons.

A big factor was its 17-20-4 home record, the worst since going 12-18-11 in 2000-01.

Cody Eakin scored for Vegas (51-24-7), which will open the play-offs on home ice after fin-ishing first in the Pacific in its inaugural season.

The Golden Knights, who will play Los Angeles in the first round, are the first modern-era expansion team in any of the four North America pro spots to win their division.

Ten seconds after Gaudreau one-timed in a slick cross-ice pass from Michael Ferland at 4:03 of the first period,

Jankowski scored on a nearly identical play with Gaudreau on the setup.

Jankowski added his second, backhanding the puck in off the skate of goaltender Marc-Andre

Fleury at 7:31 of the first to make it 3-0.

Vegas got on the scoreboard 51 seconds into the second as Eakin beat Jon Gillies through the pads after Gaudreau’s errant

pass at the Golden Knights’ blue line sprung him on a breakaway.

However, the Flames responded with three goals before the second intermission. Hathaway converted a

tic-tac-toe passing play with fourth liners Curtis Lazar and Matt Stajan at 10:27.

Ninety seconds later, Foo made it two goals in two games, firing a shot through Fleury’s pads off a set-up from Mikael Backlund. Jankowski capped off his hat trick and made it 6-1 with a short-handed goal at 18:06, bringing over 100 hats raining down onto the ice.

The 23-year-old capped off his big night 1:32 into the third period, chipping his 17th of the season past Malcolm Subban on the power play.

It was the first goal on the man advantage for Calgary in 14 games, snapping a 0-for-35 skid.

Gillies had 26 stops to finish the season 3-5-1. The rookie’s best save came midway through the second when he whipped out his glove to rob Ryan Reaves on a rebound.

Fleury gave up six goals on 18 shots before being replaced to start the third period.

He fell to 29-13-4. It was the most goals surrendered by Fleury since a 6-3 loss to Detroit on October 13. Subban had 12 stops in relief.

Calgary Flames centre Mark Jankowski (left) controls the puck against the Vegas Golden Knights during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome on Saturday.

Rangers fire head coach after missing play-offsREUTERS

NEW YORK: The New York Rangers have fired head coach Alain Vigneault after missing the play-offs for the first time in eight years, the team announced on Saturday.

The decision was revealed following the team’s 5-0 season-ending loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Rangers finished dead last in the Metropolitan Division, with just 77 points, and will be an observer of the post-season for the first time since the 2009-10 campaign. Vigneault spent five seasons at the helm, compiling a 226-147-37 record in the regular season with a play-off record of 31-30.

T h e 5 6 - y e a r - o l d Vigneault took the Rangers to the Stanley Cup season during his first season in New York in 2013-14. The team lost to the Los Angeles Kings in five games.

Rockies edge Braves on game-ending walk in 10th inningAP

DENVER: Tony Wolters drew a bases-loaded walk off Arodys Vizcaino with two outs in the 10th inning, sending the Colorado Rockies to a 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves following a thrilling battle on Saturday night.

After Carlos Gonzalez doubled down the left field line with one out, Vizcaino (1-1) struck out Ian Desmond and

intentionally walked Gerardo Parra.

The runners advanced on a wild pitch before Vizcaino walked Trevor Story to load the bases.

Wolters looked at four straight pitches out of the strike zone, making a winner out of Adam Ottavino (2-0).

The right-hander escaped a jam in the ninth when shortstop Story leaped to snare a two-out line drive by Nick Markakis that

otherwise would have brought home Ozzie Albies.

Albies also flashed some great defense.

After Ryan Flaherty tied it with a single in the ninth off Rockies closer Wade Davis, Atlanta’s second baseman saved the game - momentarily - with a diving catch of DJ LeMahieu’s line drive up the middle for a rally-snuffing double play. Wolters, who might have scored the winning

run, instead was doubled off second base.

In the 10th, Albies was plunked by Ottavino and with two outs stole second and advanced to third when catcher Wolter’s throw sailed into center field.

Chad Bettis stood to get the win after giving up just one run and four hits in 5 2/3 innings, but the Braves rallied against Davis in the ninth to erase a 2-1 deficit.

It was his first blown save in five chances.

The Braves went into the game with the major’s most pro-ductive lineup, averaging eight runs a game and leading the majors with a .298 batting average and a .381 on-base per-centage. But they were stifled by Bettis and the Rockies’ refur-bished bullpen until rallying in the ninth.

Anibal Sanchez is unbeaten in six career starts against the

Rockies. He allowed two runs and seven hits over five innings. He struck out six and walked a pair of batters before leaving with Atlanta trailing 2-0 after five innings.

Story homered for the second straight game, sending a fastball into the left field seats in the fourth, one inning after Nolan Arenado singled in a run.

Freddie Freeman’s RBI double with two outs in the sixth made it 2-1 and chased Bettis.

35MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018 SPORT

Reed strengthens Masters hold with three-shot lead AFP

AUGUSTA: Patrick Reed fired two late eagles on a rain-softened Augusta National course to seize a three-shot lead over Rory McIlroy after the third round of the Masters on Saturday.

Reed’s 5-under par 67 for a 14-under total of 202 through 54 holes was his third straight round in the 60s and more than enough to keep him atop the leaderboard in search of his first major title, even as McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm all posted 7-under par 65s.

“I think the biggest thing is just going out and playing golf, trying not to let the moment overwhelm me,” said Reed, who notched his first top-10 at a major last August at the PGA Championship.

“I feel like I’m hitting the ball well enough, I feel like I’m putting well enough. I just need to go out and play the game.”

Reed certainly did that, his four birdies including three in a row at the eighth, ninth and 10th after McIlroy had pitched in for eagle at the eighth to pull level.

McIlroy, who can complete a career Grand Slam with a first Masters win, was alone in second on 205 with Fowler third on 207 and world number three Rahm on 208 after a day when threatened thunderstorms failed to materialize.

Instead, intermittent showers only served to make Augusta’s treacherous greens a little more benign.

Famed for his unflinching play on US Ryder Cup match play teams, 27-year-old Reed threatened to make it a runaway with his eagles at 13 and 15, swelling his lead to as many as five shots.

He curled in a 14-foot eagle putt at the 13th, then saw his chip at 15 hit the green and race toward the hole, striking the pin and dropping in.

“It was breaking so hard to the left, I couldn’t tell if it was going to go in or if it was just going to burn edges,” Reed said.

Northern Ireland’s McIlroy, who started the day five shots off Reed’s halfway lead, started narrowing the gap with back-to-back birdies at the third and fourth.

After an unlikely par at the fifth, where his shot from the fairway bunker caught the lip but kept trav-elling, he tapped in for birdie at the sixth before holing his sand wedge for eagle at the eighth.

A run of six straight pars included a save at the 13th, where he waded into the azalea bushes to hit his third shot.

And just when Reed was getting away, McIlroy added birdies at 15 and 18 -- where he drained a 17-foot birdie putt after a lucky carom off a tree.

“A great day,” McIlroy said. “I rode my luck a little bit out there.

You know, the chip-in on the eighth hole, finding my ball in the azaleas on 13.

“Then hitting the tree on 18 and coming back in the fairway and making a birdie from that -- hopefully I don’t have to rely on it too much tomorrow.”

Although Reed and McIlroy are old Ryder Cup foes, both said they couldn’t afford to focus on each other.

Fowler, also seeking a first major title, kick-started his round with an eagle at the par-5 second and added five more birdies in a bogey-free

effort. Spain’s Rahm, 23, also played without a bogey and was one stroke in front of former British Open champion Henrik Stenson of Sweden, who carded a 70 for 209.

Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson posted a 68 to share sixth on 210 with England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Australian Marc Leishman. Fleetwood’s 66 included five straight birdies on the back nine while Leishman, who entered the day trailing Reed by two, had just one bogey in his 1-over 73.

Four-time Masters winner Tiger

Woods was left spinning his wheels on Moving Day.

The 14-time major champion, who insisted as he set out to close a 13-shot deficit on Saturday that he was looking for a “special weekend”, opened with back-to-back bogeys on the way to a 72.

Woods, back at Augusta for the first time in three years, hit 4-of-14 fairways but said his real problem continued to be poor iron play.

“It has been scratchy this week. I’m not getting it done. My swing is just off with my irons,” said Woods.

Patrick Reed during the third round of the 2018 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Saturday.

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

205 - Rory McIlroy (NIR) 69-71-65

207 - Rickie Fowler (USA) 70-72-65

208 - Jon Rahm (ESP) 75-68-65

209 - Henrik Stenson (SWE) 69-70-70

210 - Tommy Fleetwood (ENG) 72-72-66, Bubba

Watson (USA) 73-69-68, Marc Leishman (AUS) 70-67-73

211 - Justin Thomas (USA) 74-67-70, Jordan Spieth

(USA) 66-74-71

212 - Dustin Johnson (USA) 73-68-71

213 - Cameron Smith (AUS) 71-72-70, Justin Rose (ENG)

72-70-71, Louis Oosthuizen (RSA) 71-71-71

215 - Jason Day (AUS) 75-71-69, Bernd Wiesberger

(AUT) 70-73-72, Jimmy Walker (USA) 73-71-71, Matt

Kuchar (USA) 68-75-72, Charley Hoffman 69-73-73, Tony

Finau (USA) 68-74-73

216 - Matthew Fitzpatrick (ENG) 75-74-67, Kim Si-Woo

(KOR) 75-73-68, Kevin Kisner (USA) 72-75-69, Francesco

Molinari (ITA) 72-74-70, Satoshi Kodaira (JPN) 71-74-71,

Russell Henley (USA) 73-72-71, Adam Hadwin (CAN)

69-75-72, Hideki Matsuyama (JPN) 73-71-72

217 - Li Haotong (CHN) 69-76-72

218 - Paul Casey (ENG) 74-75-69, Adam Scott (AUS)

75-73-70, Daniel Berger (USA) 73-74-71, Ryan Moore

(USA) 74-72-72, Jhonattan Vegas (VEN) 77-69-72, Zach

Johnson (USA) 70-74-74

219 - Webb Simpson (USA) 76-73-70, Bernhard Langer

(GER) 74-74-71, Fred Couples (USA) 72-74-73, Rafael

Cabrera Bello (ESP) 69-76-74

220 - Tiger Woods (USA) 73-75-72, Bryson DeCham-

beau (USA) 74-74-72, Branden Grace (RSA) 73-73-74

221 - Kiradech Aphibarnrat (THA) 79-70-72, Xander

Schauffele (USA) 71-78-72, Martin Kaymer (GER) 74-73-

74, Kyle Stanley (USA) 72-74-75

222 - Tyrrell Hatton (ENG) 74-75-73, a-Doug Ghim (USA)

72-76-74, Chez Reavie (USA) 76-71-75

223 - Phil Mickelson (79USA) 70-79-74, Ian Poulter

(ENG) 74-75-74, Brian Harman (USA) 73-74-76

224 - Vijay Singh (FIJ) 71-74-

MASTERS SCORES

I feel like I’m hitting the ball well enough, I feel like I’m putting well enough. I just need to go out and play the game: Patrick Reed

Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walks up the 18th green during the

third round of the 2018 Masters

Tournament at Augusta National

Golf Club on Saturday.

Woods frustrated, disappointed after struggles at Augusta AFP

AUGUSTA: Tiger Woods admitted frustration and disap-pointment with slow progress in his comeback from back surgery after struggling off the tee again in Saturday’s third round of the Masters.

The 14-time major winner, who had not competed at Augusta National since 2015 because of nagging back issues, fired a level-par 72 to stand on 4-over 220 after 54 holes in his first major since 2015.

The 42-year-old American, who underwent spinal fusion surgery last year, had notched two top-5 finishes in tuneups last month to spark “Tiger-mania” excitement that he was ready to again contend in majors.

But he hit only 4-of-14 fairways and again struggled with iron shots on a course where he won four green jackets after having no such issues coming into the week.

“That’s why it’s disap-pointing and a little bit frus-trating,” Woods said.

“But I haven’t been sharp with them. Given the fact that I was playing well coming in,

my practice sessions have been good, I just have not executed the way that I have been.” It’s not like Woods isn’t trying to solve his iron deficiencies.

“I know what the problem is,” he said.

“I’m struggling trying to fix it on the fly and trusting it.” Where Woods and his fans had

dreamed of seeing him on Sunday chase a 15th major title, and first since the 2008 US Open, they will settle for him trying to shoot 67 or 68 and finish at par or better for the week.

“I wish this week would have been a little bit better,” Woods said.

“Hopefully tomorrow I can shoot something, get me to even par or even in the red. That will be a good goal tomorrow and hopefully I can get it done.”

Once a maestro over Augusta National’s four par-5 holes, Woods is simply a mess now, 1-under on them for the

week with two bogeys and a birdie Saturday.

“Played the par-5s awful,” Woods said. “I’m hitting so many good putts. They’re just not going in. But I’m not hitting it close enough. I’m not getting up there and not taking advantage of the par-5s and consequently a good round is even par.”

What he wants to see is improvement in his short game as a sign of progress to the long-term goal of competing in majors once again, his next chance coming in June’s US Open at Shinnecock.

“Hopefully I can hit my irons better. It has been scratchy this week. I just haven’t gotten it done,” Woods said.

“And when I did miss I missed in the wrong spots. My swing’s just off with my irons just at the wrong time.” Woods opened with back-to-back bogeys, his worst start of the week after finding bunkers at the first green and second fairway. He answered with 7-foot birdie putts at the par-3 sixth and par-5 eighth sand-wiched around an 8-foot par-save putt at seven.

Tiger Woods of the United

States waits on the first fairway during the third

round of the 2018 Masters

Tournament on Saturday.

Given the fact that I was playing well coming in, my practice sessions have been good, I just have not executed the way that I have been: Tiger Woods

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36MONDAY 9 APRIL 2018

“I’ve never cared about age. Brad Hogg played at 45. I don’t

think it’s about a number. I think it’s about commitment

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Michael Clarkeis thinking of

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Qatar Superstock 600 Championship: Super Al Sulaiti defends his title at LICTHE PENINSULA

DOHA: Popular Qatari rider Saeed Al Sulaiti yesterday defended his Qatar Superstock 600 title by winning Race 1 of the sixth and final round of the championship.

With riders battling for honours under lights at Losail International Circuit, Al Sulaiti edged out arch-rival and pole winner Mashel Al Naimi after a thrilling battle in Race 1.

Al Naimi, struggling with health issues, remained in the lead for the first seven laps but Al Sulaiti eventually overtook the former Moto2 rider and sealed his win in Race 1.

Young Abdullah Al Qubaisi finished second while seasoned rider Nasser Al Malki grabbed the third place, a notch above Al Naimi who clearly struggled for lack of fitness .

With the championship title already secured, Al Sulaiti focussed more on completing Race 2 which was skipped by an unfit Al Naimi.

Al Qubaisi finished ahead of title winner Al Sulaiti and topped Race 2 while Hungarian rider Balint Kovacs completed the podium.

Al Sulaiti ended up with 211 points, followed by Al Naimi (180 points), Al Malki (165), Al Qubaisi (153), Fahad Al Sowaidi (113) and Kovacs (98).

“There are no words to describe my feelings, winning the championship again,” a beaming Al Sulaiti said.

“It has been a very tough season and my performances and results have been better than last year. I won more races this year than last year.

“When I crashed in round 2 and 4, I thought winning the championship would be very dif-ficult. There was a lot of pressure when I reached the final round only a point behind Mishal,” he added.

“But at the end of the day, me and my team remained focused and we took the victory,” Al Sulaiti said.

“I want to thank everyone who has stood with me this

season. I salute my team and my friends for giving me the moti-vation to do well. My team worked really good on the set up,” Al Sulaiti said.

Al Sulaiti, who has raced extensively in Spain also besides featuring in races across France

and other European countries, praised the performance of 18-year-old Al Qubaisi.

“I am really happy with the overall performance of Abdullah this season. He worked a lot and now he gets all the good results that he deserves,” Al Sulaiti said.

“Winning Race 2 and recording his top lap time by 2:04.9 in the Superpole is a great feat. For us, it took us years to do that and this is amazing what he has done. He proved he is really strong and for next year I think we may have a new challenger

fighting for the championship,” Al Sulaiti said.

Al Sulaiti also took the opportunity to thank QMMF and LCSC for their ‘whole-hearted support’. “I want to thank Mr Abdulrahman Al Mannai, the President of QMMF, and Losail Circuit Sports Club’s Mr Khalid Al Remaihi for setting up this great championship. Their support during the season has been wonderful.

“I big ‘thank you’ to Ooredoo for sponsoring me and believing in me. Nothing would be possible without their sponsorship,” Al Sulaiti said.

Al Malki, who finished third in Race 2, wasn’t a pleased rider at the end of the proceedings at LIC.

Al Malki pushed hard from the beginning of the race and was in the lead until the ninth lap but suffered due to mechanical problems with the bike’s throttle as he lost pace on fellow riders and finished fourth.

“I am not happy at all because I worked hard all the season to have a good feeling with the bike. But I managed to have the good feeling only in the

last round,” Al Malki said. “In the last race, I was doing my way and led almost all the race, until the ninth lap but I had a mechanical problems with my throttle and it was dangerous to push so I slowed down and finished fourth. I hope I can come back stronger for the next season and be better prepared than this year. I take this opportunity to say congratulations to Saeed and Mishal for an amazing season,” Al Malki said.

Al Naimi said things could have been different had he not fallen sick going into the last round.

“In general, I had a very good season. Until the last round, I had the chance to win the champi-onship as I was one point ahead of Saeed but in the last round I fell very sick from mid-week,” Al Naimi said.

“In Race 1 of the final round, I felt very dizzy and I was losing concentration. So I said to myself that if I am not able to win the first race, it will be very difficult to do it in the second race. I went to the medical centre after the first race and it was a difficult decision not to take part in the second race as I was not fit enough. Also, I did not want to take any risk as far as I was con-cerned and for the rest of the riders,” Al Naimi said.

“I want to thank the QMMF and Losail Circuit Sports Club for this great championship. A big ‘thank you’ to Ooredoo for spon-soring me and for the support they gave me all this time. I hope to come back next season stronger and to fight for the title,” Al Naimi said.

Hungarian rider Kovacs said: “This was a great season for me. I am very happy with my per-formance as it was my first time. I found the perfect championship to train in the winter season since I will now feature in the German Championship with Suzuki in mid-April.”

He added: “ We decided to come and race here. With another podium has been great for me and overall, I take with me a very positive experience. I hope to come back next season.”

Saeed Al Sulaiti receives the winner’s trophy from Abdulrazak Al Kuwari, Secretary General of QMMF, at Losail International Circuit. BELOW: Al Sulaiti is seen in action while racing against Mashel Al Naimi and Nasser Al Malki.

Top Qatari athletes confirmed for Doha Diamond League THE PENINSULA

DOHA: Team Qatar will be out in full force at this year’s Doha Diamond League.

2017 World bronze medallist, Abdaleleh Haroun, 2017 Doha Diamond League winner, Abder-rahaman Samba and Olympian and World Championship finalist Ahmed Bader Magour, will feature amongst the 14-strong squad challenging athletics’ superstars at Qatar Sports Club on May 4, organisers said yesterday.

Tickets are on sale now online at https://bit.ly/2GVnHqN and at Virgin Megastores for the action-packed evening of world-class athletics.

Ferocious young talent, 21-year-old Haroun, got his 2018 season off to an electric start at the Asian Indoor Championships

in Tehran in February when he became the first back-to-back winner of an Asian indoor 400m title.

The 2016 Under 20 World Champion and World Indoor silver medallist claimed his first senior outdoor title last year with bronze at the London IAAF World Championships.

Haroun will line up in an incredibly strong field that fea-tures last year’s World silver medallist Steven Gardiner of the Bahamas and 2017 Diamond League Champion, Isaac Makwala of Botswana.

Another rising Qatari star, Mohamed Nasir Abbas, will also be looking to get his outdoor season off to a strong start ahead of this year’s Asian Games in Indonesia.

The 2014 U20 Asian Champion claimed bronze

behind Haroun at this year’s Asian Indoor Championships with a personal best time.

Speaking ahead of the Doha Diamond League, Haroun, said: “I was so proud to win bronze for Qatar in the London World Championships last year but I want to achieve even more success in the future. I can’t wait to get out on the track at Qatar Sports Club and compete in front of the home crowd in the Diamond League.”

Samba stunned an incredibly strong field of experienced ath-letes in only his third attempt at the 400m hurdles to storm to victory in last year’s Doha Diamond League.

Samba, 22, will be looking to overcome his disappointment and use the experience from last year’s World Championships when he entered the final hurdle

in a medal position but stumbled to finish in seventh place. Aspire Academy graduate, Bader will line up in what promises to be a thrilling javelin final, featuring reigning Olympic Champion, Thomas Röhler of Germany, reigning World Champion Johannes Vetter, also of Germany, reigning World silver medallist and 2018 Diamond League Champion, Yakub Vadlejch of the Czech Republic, and reigning Olympic silver medallist, Julian Yego of Kenya.

Two Team Qatar athletes, Jamal Hairane and Abubaker Haydar Abdalla, will feature in an exciting Men’s 800m, which includes 2017 World silver and bronze medallists Adam Kszczot of Poland and Kipyegon Bett of Kenya respectively.

Team Qatar athletes com-peting on May 4 will also include

2010 Youth Olympic Games silver medallist and 2012 World Under 20 Champion, Hamza Drioch, who will join Asian Under 20 5000m and 3000m steeplechase champion Adam Ali Mousab and Said Aden in the Men’s 1500m, 2018 Asian Indoor

silver medallist in both the 1500m and 3000m, Yaser Salem Bagharab and 2012 Under 20 3000m steeplechase champion, Hashim Mohamed Salah and 2010 Asian Games bronze med-allist Rashid Ahmed Al Mannai (triple jump).

Abderrahaman Samba