RIZWAN REHMAT THE PENINSULA

The wait is finally over for veteran rider Saeed Al Sulaiti. The multiple Qatar national champion, Al Sulaiti has returned to clocking practice rounds at the Qatar Motor Academy course inside Losail International Circuit.

Despite hot and humid conditions two days before Eid Al Adha celebra-tions, nothing seemed to affect Al Sulaiti’s desire to snap out of the break caused by the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping the globe for the last five months.

“It’s amazing to be back. I don’t remember ever training at this time of the year. It’s extremely hot. We have been wanting to ride for a long time,” Al Sulaiti said in his first interview since taking a break in March.

“For us riders it’s just a mental thing, we just wanted to put our suits on and start riding. It’s good to be back and we are looking forward for more. I hope the weather gets better, which I doubt, but we’ll keep riding,” Al Sauliti, despite sweating profusely, said with his trademark smile in place.

Al Sulaiti, 35, said it was a mental battle to keep fit during the lull caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I have been working out regularly. Let me tell you this, whoever wants to be fit, he can do it in the gym or without the gym. It’s all about the mental thing. If you want to do it, you will do it. I have been working out whenever I get a chance,” Al Sulaiti said.

The seasoned Qatari rider said he is hoping to train in Spain - a country he visits often during the regular off-season - provided that it is safe to fly out of the country.

“Personally, I already have a bike in Spain. I am just waiting for them

to open the port there and just do a month of training there. I am really looking forward to go there and get ready for the championship here (set to resume in October,” Al Sulaiti said.

“There is no plan to race in Spain at the moment. It’s obvi-ously very difficult but there is a plan in my mind to go and train there. The weather is great there now. To go and just try the

bike in a different circuit is even better than racing

here in one circuit. So it’s very important to go and train there and

I will try and to my best to do it.

“Maybe by October or November. That’s a personal plan. That’s what I am aiming at. I don’t know anything about QMMF’s plan to train abroad for the riders. But for me per-sonally few months ago I decided that I will go to Spain whenever eve-rything opens up there, refresh my mind and just train.” Al Sulaiti said.

Al Sulaiti said he is enjoying chat sessions with Qatar’s young riders, sharing his

experience of racing at some of the world’s best circuits.

“Last year as a coach, I was delighted to see Abdullah Al Qubaisi winning QSTK600 and also Hamad Al Sahouti (only 14 years of age) winning 300cc. As a coach, I won both the cham-pionship,” Al Sulaiti said.

“There are some upcoming new riders in the academy, but off lately I have been away from the academy. The academy has Spanish coaches to take care of the young riders. I always keep supporting the young guys. Right now, I am only focussing on Abdullah and Hamad,” he added.

Al Sauliti said he realised he can’t stay away from bike action and has no plans to retire.

“Before the coronavirus I was thinking of maybe it’s time to rest and just coach the young riders. But after this break I realised that I can’t stay without the bike,” Al Sulaiti said.

“It has given me the motivation to keep going for some more time. I know it’s a difficult time for everybody. But for me, it has given me an opportunity to clear up lot of things in my head and I see myself racing in the future,” he added.

During the last few months, Al

Sulaiti actively took part in the Qatar Online Racing Championship (QORC).

“For me personally I loved racing online. I have been training in simulation for the last five years. When QMMF con-ducted the online championship, I thought the young guys will be very good at the PlayStation,” Al Sulaiti said.

“Obviously they have been prac-tising more than me. But like I said before, when I was in the world cham-pionship in 2016, it was a big help to learn the tracks from the simulators. It was very easy to catch up for me with the fastest riders in the world,” he added.

been wanting to ride for a long time,” Al Sulaiti said in his first interview since taking a break in March.

The seasoned Qatari riderhoping to train in Spain - a covisits often during the regseason - provided that it is sout of the country.

“Personally, I already hain Spain. I am just waiting

to open the port there ana month of training threally looking forwathere and get readychampionship hereresume in October,”said.

“There is no planSpain at the momentously very difficult bua plan in my mind ttrain there. The weaththere now. To go and ju

bike in a different even better th

here in one it’s very impgo and train

I will try and tto do it.

“Maybe byor Novemberpersonal planwhat I am aimdon’t know about QMMFtrain abroadriders. But forsonally few mI decided thatto Spain whenrything opensrefresh my mjust train.” Asaid.

Al Sulaiti enjoying chatwith Qatar’riders, shar

SPORT | 14

Justin Thomas

back at number

one after winning

in Memphis

SPORTEngland's pace

aces create

‘headache’ for

captain Root

SPORT | 15

TUESDAY 4 AUGUST 2020

It’s good to be back in action: Al Sulaiti Doha Diamond League to take place on Sept 25

REUTERS – DOHA

This year’s Diamond League athletics meeting in Doha, initially scheduled for October 9, has been brought forward by a fortnight and will take place on September 25, organisers announced yesterday.

The event in Doha, which serves as the traditional season opener, had previously been pushed back from its April 17 slot due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Due to the ongoing global health situation and ever-changing COVID-19 regula-tions, the 2020 Wanda Diamond League calendar remains provisional and subject to further changes,” organisers said in a statement.

The competitive season is set to begin in Monaco on August 14 followed by meetings in Stockholm, Lausanne, Brussels, Rome/Naples, Doha and a yet to be determined location in China.

Diamond League meetings in Eugene, London, Paris, Rabat, Gateshead and Shanghai have been cancelled.

DIAMOND LEAGUE CALENDAR 2020

Monaco: August 14

Stockholm, Sweden: August 23

Lausanne, Switzerland: September 2

(WDL exhibition street event)

Brussels, Belgium: September 4

Rome/Naples, Italy: September 17

Doha, Qatar: September 25

China2, China: October 17 (Venue TBA)

The 2020 editions of the following

meetings have been cancelled:

Eugene, London, Paris, Rabat,

Gateshead, Shanghai

Al Haydos strikes as Al Sadd beat Al AhliFAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

A stunning strike from captain Hassan Al Haydos handed Al Sadd a 1-0 victory over Al Ahli in their Week 19 clash of the QNB Stars League (QSL) at Al Janoub Stadium, yesterday.

The victory, which saw the return of coach Xavi Her-nandez after recovering from the coronavirus, took third-placed Al Sadd to 38 points, eight points behind leaders Al Duhail and four points behind Al Rayyan.

Al Haydos’ strike came in the 43rd minute after Al Sadd, who started strongly, were denied goals following several attempts. The Al Sadd captain who shot just over the bar in the 25th minute, fired a clinical hit from outside the circle on assist from Hashim Ali, beating Al Ahli goalkeeper Ivanildo Rodrigues with the ball landing on his right corner.

The goal proved decisive keeping Al Sadd in the title hunt mathematically

although there is a slim chance for them with just three rounds remaining.

Earlier in the fourth minute, feared Al Sadd striker Baghdad Bounedjah created a chance but the move was thwarted by Rodrigues with fine blocking. Al Ahli also posed some threat to Al Sadd with few attacks and were disallowed a goal when Hernan Perez was declared offside after he hit the target in the 12th minute. Perez also missed a chance in the 65th minute after being blocked by Al Sadd goalkeeper Saad Al Dossari.

Rodrigo Tabata was also seen in action in the Wolves jersey after he joined Al Sadd last week, replacing Al Haydos and making his presence felt immediately with an attacking approach in the second half.

Al Sadd continued to push for more goals and could have finished with two-goal win but Bounedjah’s goal in the 84th minute was disallowed by the referee.

It was Al Sadd’s second

consecutive victory since QSL resumed on July 24 as they defeated Al Khor 2-1 last week.

Meanwhile, in yesterday’s second match, Qatar SC and Umm Salal played out a 1-1 draw at Al Sadd Stadium.

After a goalless first half, Kayke Rodrigues put Qatar SC ahead with a goal in the 52nd minute, with Fahd Khalfan levelling the score for Umm Salal on a 72nd minute penalty kick.

The valuable point after

the draw put Umm Salal ahead of Al Khor and bottom-placed Al Shahania with 16 points while Qatar SC moved to 9th spot with 18 points. The Week 20 of the QSL will begin on August 6.

Bounedjah, El Arabi included in AFC's list of best forwards

THE PENINSULA – DOHA

The Asian Football Confederation has ranked Al Sadd's charismatic striker Baghdad Bounjah (pictured) as one of the most prominent candidates for the AFC Champions League 2018 team.

Bounedjah is included in a vote launched by the continental Federation through its official website.

Apart from Bounjah, Al Duhail's former Moroccan player Youssef El Arabi has also made it to the list. The final team will be announced on August 8. The Algerian star scored most number of goals (13) during the Champions League 2018, including 25 shots on goal.

His performances earned him the championship's top scorer award.

El Arabi, who emerged among the best attackers in the same tour-nament, scored nine goals.

Al Sadd's Hassan Al Haydos (centre) is congratulated by team-mates after he scored a goal against Al Ahli.

Saeed Al Sulaiti celebrates after winning a Qatar

Superstock 600 race at the Losail International Circuit,

in this file photo.

I have been working out regularly. Let me tell you

this, whoever wants to be fit, he can do it in the gym or without the gym. It’s all about the mental thing. If you want to do it, you will do it. I have been working

out whenever I get a chance: Saeed Al Sulaiti

AGENCIES – ORLANDO

Russell Westbrook sank four free throws inside the final 28.5 seconds and the Houston Rockets topped the Milwaukee Bucks 120-116 on Sunday at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando.

Westbrook scored a team-high 31 points while adding eight assists, and his clutch effort at the charity stripe enabled the Rockets (42-24) to outlast the Bucks (54-13) down a back-and-forth closing stretch. Danuel House Jr. converted two free throws with 14 seconds left as the Rockets finished 27 of 31 from the line.

Giannis Antetokounmpo totaled 36 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists for his 15th 30-15-5 game this season while Khris Middleton (27 points, 12 rebounds) and Brook Lopez (23 points, 12 rebounds) posted double-doubles for the Bucks, who posted a 65-36 rebounding advantage and limited the Rockets to 34.4 percent (21 of 61) shooting from behind the 3-point line -- yet lost the game. Milwaukee did commit 22 turnovers -- including a bad pass by Antetokounmpo that House picked off prior to his clinching free throws -- which the Rockets converted into 30 points in the victory.

Orlando Magic 132 - Sacramento Kings 116

Terrence Ross scored 25 points off the bench, Nikola Vucevic posted a double-double of 23 points and 11 rebounds, and Orlando cruised past Sacramento in a seeding game.

The Magic (32-35) maintained their half-game lead for the Eastern Conference’s No. 7 seed with a commanding performance against the Kings (28-38). Orlando jumped ahead early, made 18 of 38 3-point shots and grew its lead to as many as 36 points in the third quarter.

Harry Giles III led the Kings with 23 points off the bench.

Brooklyn Nets 118 - Washington Wizards 110

Caris LeVert scored 34 points as host Brooklyn made all the plays down the stretch and recorded a pivotal victory over Washington at HP Field House near Orlando.

The Nets (31-35) moved seven games ahead of Washington (24-42) in the Eastern Conference. LeVert helped the Nets close out the game with an 18-10 run over the final five-plus minutes. Joe Harris added a season-high 27 on 10 of 13 from the field,

Jarrett Allen collected 22 points and 15 rebounds while Chris Chiozza contributed 14 as Brooklyn shot 42.2 percent.

Boston Celtics 128 - Portland Trail Blazers 124

Jayson Tatum scored a game-high 34 points and Jaylen Brown added 30 to lead Boston past Portland.

Brown scored 22 points in the second half, including a 3-pointer with 32.3 seconds left that stretched Boston’s lead to 125-119. Gordon Hayward added 22 points for Boston, going 4-for-5 on 3-pointers.

San Antonio Spurs 108 - Memphis Grizzlies 106

DeMar DeRozan hit a pair of free throws with 1 second to play and San Antonio survived to beat Memphis and close in on the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Phoenix Suns 117 - Dallas Mavericks 115 Devin Booker’s 30 points helped

Phoenix come back from a 15-point deficit and stun Dallas, which clinched a Western Conference playoff spot when the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies lost earlier in the day.

14 TUESDAY 4 AUGUST 2020SPORT

NBA: Westbrook, Rockets outlast Giannis, Bucks

'Relieved' Hamilton enjoys double successAFP – SILVERSTONE

As the dust settled, world championship leader Lewis Hamilton (pictured) reflected with some relief on two important successes after his dramatic three-wheel triumph in the British Grand Prix.

His victory for Mercedes on Sunday lifted Hamilton 30 points clear of team-mate Valtteri Bottas in this year’s title race. The race helped him take another step towards hs goal of a record-equalling seventh championship, and a much better-organised pre-race cer-emony offered a clearer demonstration of the sport’s proclaimed anti-racism stance.

But his first thoughts yesterday centred on what might have happened when his front left tyre laminated and disintegrated on the final lap.

“As the minutes go by I feel worse

and worse when I think about what just happened,” he said late Sunday evening.

“In the heat of the moment, the adrenaline is going, but if the tyre gave up in a high-speed corner, it would have been a much different picture so I feel incredibly grateful that it didn’t...”

Hamilton’s plight after his front left-tyre failed, leaving him running on three wheels while his car lurched and sparked on the surface of the circuit was, he said, with a heart-stopping experience.

“It was my survival instinct that came out and I was able to stay calm and really measured to bring the thing home,” he said.

“I’ve never known anything like that before.” On his final lap, a luxurious lead of more than 30 seconds was cut to only 5.8 as he reached the chequered flag ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. The

Dutchman was 28 seconds faster than Hamilton on the lap.

For team boss Toto Wolff, Hamil-ton’s battle to survive and Bottas’ iden-tical problem two laps earlier, which forced him to pit from second and finish 11th, was proof that repeated warnings to his team to guard against compla-cency were justified, even though Mer-cedes had outclassed their opponents in the three season-opening races.

“I know that I get lots of criticism when I point out that black swan events happen, that once you think everything is smooth and you’re just cruising into the sunset, these things can unfold,” said Wolff.

“But we could have easily lost two cars today, been out of the points and then our points advantage would have vanished in a second. We may have had the fastest car at Silverstone, but come home with zero.

“The race isn’t over until the flag drops.” Wolff added that the team did not know the exact cause of the punctures.

“It could have been debris,” he said.

Hamilton himself said he felt sat-isfied at the more organised anti-racism protest on the start-finish line before the race.

Seven drivers chose to stand while 13 took a knee, Kevin Magnussen of Haas joining the six who had stood at the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix before the chaotic and muddled displays at the second and third races.

“I am happy with what happened,” said Hamilton, the sport’s only black driver.

“Formula One did a much, much better job after a lot of discussion last week about how we can come together and do it.”

Cincinnati Reds sweep Tigers in historic MLB doubleheaderAGENCIES - DETROIT

The Cincinnati Reds swept a doubleheader against the host Detroit Tigers on Sunday, a day that saw plenty of dominating pitching performances -- and quite a bit of history, as well.

The day was already set to make history as this was the first doubleheader played under MLB’s new coronavirus-related rules in which each game of a doubleheader during this shortened season would be seven innings.

In the first game, a 4-3 Reds win, Nick Castellanos belted two homers to help Cincinnati win despite committing a three-run error -- and despite Detroit left-hander Tyler Alexander setting a major league record for relievers by striking out nine consecutive batters.

In the second game, starter Trevor Bauer took advantage of the shortened-innings rule to go the distance and shut out

the Tigers as the Reds won 4-0. Bauer allowed two hits, struck out seven and walked two in his seven innings to earn his first win of the season.

Yankees 9, Red Sox 7

Aaron Judge hit his second homer of the game with two outs in the eighth inning to lift host New York to a three-game sweep of Boston.

Judge hit a three-run homer in the second off Matt Hall and then hit the decisive homer when he hammered a 2-0 cur-veball from Matt Barnes (0-1) over the visiting bullpen and into the left-center field bleachers to give the Yankees a 9-7 lead. Judge homered for a career-high fifth straight game. He became the first Yankee to homer in five straight since Alex Rodriguez did so in September 2007.

Xander Bogaerts enjoyed a big night for the Red Sox with a pair of homers while tying a

career high with four hits. He hit a two-run homer four batters into the game off James Paxton and then slugged a solo drive in the fifth off King. Bogaerts finished with his eighth career multi-homer game. The shortstop also

produced at least four hits for the 16th time in his career.

Dodgers 3, Diamondbacks 0 Clayton Kershaw threw 5 2/3

shutout innings in his season debut to lead Los Angeles over Arizona in the finale of a

four-game series in Phoenix. Cody Bellinger and Mookie Betts homered for the Dodgers, who have won five of their past six. Betts departed in the top of the seventh inning with a sore middle finger on his left hand. The injury appeared to occur when Betts fouled off a pitch in the fifth inning. Betts also doubled, and Justin Turner had two hits and scored a run.

Kershaw (1-0), a three-time National League Cy Young Award winner, allowed three hits, struck out six and didn’t walk a batter in 81 pitches. He was scratched from the season opener on July 23 because he injured his back two days earlier.

Astros 6, Angels 5 (11 inn.) Alex Bregman’s one-out

single in the top of the 11th inning scored designated runner George Springer from second base, lifting Houston to a win over Los Angeles in Anaheim, Calif.

Astros reliever Blake Taylor survived the bottom of the 11th, getting Brian Goodwin on a fly out to center field with the bases loaded to end it and earn his first career major league win. Michael Brantley had three hits, and Bregman had a home run in addition to his game-winning single.

Albert Pujols gave the Angels a 4-2 lead in the third inning with a grand slam, the 15th of his career. It also was his 658th career home run, two shy of Willie Mays for No. 5 on the all-time list.

MLB RESULTSOrioles 5, Rays 1

Twins 3, Indians 1Rockies 9, Padres 6

Braves 4, Mets 0Cubs 2, Pirates 1 (11 inn.)

Athletics 3, Mariners 2Rangers 9, Giants 5

White Sox 9, Royals 2

Shogo Akiyama of the Cincinnati Reds bats against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning at Comerica Park, in Detroit, Michigan, on Saturday.

Justin Thomas back at number one after winning in MemphisREUTERS – MEMPHIS

Justin Thomas clinched his 13th PGA Tour victory on Sunday, winning the WGC FedEx St. Jude Invitational by a three-stroke margin and claiming the world number-one ranking in the process.

The 27-year-old American put up a near-flawless, five-under par 65 to win at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Ten-nessee, with a four-way tie for second place between Amer-icans Daniel Berger, Phil Mick-elson and returning champion Brooks Koepka, as well as Eng-land’s Tom Lewis.

Thomas and Koepka, who were 202 and 201 through 54 holes, respectively, went toe-to-toe in the final round, with Koepka draining a more than 39-foot putt for birdie on 17.

But Thomas, who locked in four birdies on the front nine, kept his nerve for the win, his first since the tour returned from a coronavirus hiatus.

The win cut short Jon Rahm’s reign at the top of the rankings, with the 25-year-old Spaniard spending just two weeks as the world number one.

“It was a hard-fought day,” said Thomas. “Besides that ter-rible wedge on 12, I played so well for 14 holes. I drove the

ball just perfectly ... I realisti-cally could have birdied my first 10 holes today and that is kind of bizarre to say.” Any hope Koepka had of claiming a last-minute victory evapo-rated on 18, as he drove his ball into the water for a double-bogey.

“I feel good. I feel like my game’s right there, everything’s solid. I hit a lot of good putts today, just didn’t go in,” said Koepka.

“Obviously drained a big one on 17 and then you’re down one. You’ve got to take an aggressive line on 18, so it is what it is.” An electrifying per-formance with five birdies on the front nine helped Lewis (66) to surge up the leaderboard in early play on Sunday, after he carded nine-under par 61 on Saturday, but a pair of bogeys on 13 and 17 had him settling for second. Brendon Todd, the leader heading into Sunday, carded a disastrous five-over par 75, losing his edge and shooting three straight bogeys on 13 through 15.

Rickie Fowler started the day in contention for the win but finished the final round with a disappointing three-over par 73, thwarting his attempt to pick up his first PGA Tour victory since last year’s Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Justin Thomas poses with the World Golf Championship

trophy after winning the WGC - FedEx

St. Jude Invitational, on Saturday.

Russell Westbrook of

the Houston Rockets goes up

for a shot against Eric Bledsoe of the Milwaukee

Bucks at The Arena at ESPN Wide World Of

Sports Complex in Lake Buena

Vista, Florida, on Sunday.

15TUESDAY 4 AUGUST 2020 SPORT

Pace aces create ‘headache’ for RootAFP — LONDON

England have the luxury of six specialist pacemen in their 14-man squad for this week’s first Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford -- a welcome “headache” for captain Joe Root.

The skipper can call on veteran new-ball partners James Anderson and Stuart Broad, the express pace of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood and the impressive Sam Curran and Chris Woakes.

The hosts rotated their quicks during last month’s 2-1 series win over the West Indies which, together with the upcoming campaign against Pakistan, forms a programme of six Tests in seven weeks.

That is a particularly tough schedule for fast bowlers in a season cut short by the corona-virus pandemic.

England’s management has argued no paceman can play all six Tests, with the restrictions imposed by maintaining a bio-secure “bubble” requiring several options to be immedi-ately at hand.

But it is an issue they will need to handle with care given they have now lost the opener in eight of their past 10 multi-match Test series, which for all their resil-ience could prove costly if it happens against Pakistan.

Broad revealed on Sunday he felt

“so low” after being omitted from the West Indies opener that he considered retiring.

The recalled Broad responded with 16 wickets at a miserly average of under 11 in the next two matches as he joined long-standing England new-ball colleague Anderson as one of a select group of seven bowlers to have taken 500 Test wickets.

At 34, and bowling a gen-erally fuller length which makes his ability to move the ball late off the seam an even more chal-lenging proposition, Broad is in arguably the best form of his career.

Anderson, four years older and a swing bowler who thrives in home conditions, is closing in on 600 Test wickets, with

England’s all-time leading bowler clearly not

done yet.World Cup winners A r c h e r

and Wood provide England with the option of genuine 90-miles-per-

hour-plus pace,

with speed through the air an asset even when pitch and overhead conditions favour the batsmen.

Then there is Curran, whose left-arm angle adds variety to an otherwise all right-arm attack. The Surrey bowler has won every Test he has played in at home.

Woakes, who took 5-50 in the West Indies decider, has a better home average than either Broad or Anderson, with his 81 Test wickets in England coming at just 22 apiece.

Woakes is now more inclined to deploy a sharp bouncer, which makes it harder for batsmen to routinely push forward in the hope of blunting his movement.

That still leaves the pace bowling of star all-rounder Ben Stokes who, as he showed before guiding England to an astounding one-wicket win with a bril-liant century during last year’s Headingley Test against Australia, can also drag his side back into matches by sheer force of personality with the ball.

But the West Indies finale may serve as a model for England.

Stokes was unfit to bowl, although he featured as a batsman, and that meant England deployed Anderson, Broad, Archer and Woakes in an attack featuring spinner Dom Bess after omitting batsman Zak Crawley.

England could now drop Bess or still play four specialist quicks even if Stokes is fit to

bowl for the first Test, which starts at Old Trafford on Wednesday. There were times when Archer, who clearly thrives on responsibility, was relegated to the role of first and second change during the West Indies finale and appeared to bowl accordingly.

Archer was making his return after missing the second Test due to a breach of corona-virus protocols.

It may be, however, that even Anderson and Broad will have to accept they cannot always be the “main men” from now on.

“With the talent that’s waiting in the wings it’s an exciting place to be and long may those headaches continue,” said Root.

England have 6 specialist fast bowlers ahead of first Pakistan Test

But it is an issue they will need to handle with care given they have now lost the opener in eight of their past 10 multi-match Test series, which for all their resil-ience could provecostly if it happens against Pakistan.

Broad revealed on Sunday he felt

in on 600 Test wickets, with England’s all-time leading

bowler clearly not done yet.

World Cup winners A r c h e r

and Wood provide Englandwith the option of genuine 90-miles-per-

hour-plus pace,

James Anderson

AFP — LONDON

Pakistan coach Misbah-ul-Haq (pictured) has urged his side to get off to a flying start in their Test series with England, saying they must be at their best “right from the word ‘go’”.

England are notoriously sluggish starters and have lost the opener in eight of their

past 10 Test series, including a recent 2-1 home success against the West Indies that marked international

cricket’s return from the coronavirus lockdown.

They now return to Old Trafford, the scene of their two victories over Jason

Holder’s men, for the first Test in another

three-match series, against Pakistan, s t a r t i n g o n Wednesday.

Misbah, sug-gesting England would have the advantage of momentum, told reporters yesterday: “We

should be ready for an England

team that have already had three matches of

experience and they won their last two Test matches.

“We have to really come in this Test series right from the word ‘go’ at our best if we want to

win a Test series or a Test match here.

“We are aware that England have a slight

advantage but if we are

alert and go 100 percent in the first Test match, that is the only way we can beat England, otherwise we will find ourselves in difficulty.”

Both England and Pakistan, who have played two intra-squad warm-up matches, boast talented pace attacks but Misbah, Pakistan’s captain when they drew a four-match series in England four years ago, believes his side also have the batsmen to give their bowlers enough runs to defend.

“It’s always tough with the Duke ball in England where the ball moves around off the seam and also in the air,” Misbah said.

“But this is where you can really fight and our batting looked in great shape in the last two series. We played in Pakistan but even in Australia we managed to score good runs in almost every innings."

“It’s a challenge for us against an experienced and very good seam attack of England but I think we’ve got potential,” said Misbah.

The skipper can call on veteran new-ball partners James Anderson and Stuart Broad, the express pace of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood and the impressive Sam Curran and Chris Woakes. The hosts rotated their quicks during last month’s 2-1 series win over the West Indies which, together with the upcoming campaign against Pakistan, forms a programme of six Tests in seven weeks.

Murray wants assurance on quarantine issues before US OpenREUTERS — LONDON

Players need assurance that they would not face mandatory quarantine upon returning to Europe from the US Open before travelling to New York amid the COVID-19 pandemic, former world number one Andy Murray has said.

Organisers United States Tennis Association (USTA) will set up a strict bio-security ‘bubble’ to minimise the risk of contracting the novel corona-virus during the Grand Slam, which will be played from August 31-September 13. Mandatory quarantine would rule out players’ participation in other ATP and WTA claycourt events scheduled in Europe before the French Open from the end of September.

“My understanding is that it would be sorted before we go to America. But things can change in the next 10 to 12 days,” Murray told British media.

“Hopefully before we leave, the players will have the assurances that, when they come back from America, they won’t have to quarantine for two weeks.

“If that is the case, and if you do well in the US Open, you can’t just arrive on the Sunday before the French Open starts on the Monday. That’s not going to work.”

Andy Murray

LONDON — REUTERS

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard (pictured) says starting the new Premier League season on September 12 is too early and his players run the risk of sustaining injuries given the short turnaround between campaigns.

Chelsea trail Bayern Munich 3-0 heading into the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Sat-urday and even if they fail to overcome the deficit Lampard’s side will have little over a month to recover before the new season begins.

“I am guessing we will be told when we start and that will be dependent on how we go against Bayern,” Lampard told British media.

“It is not ideal if we carry on against Bayern - the players need to be given a break to play at the level and the quality product that the Premier League is.

“Even in a worst-case scenario, we don’t go through against Bayern, the 12th feels too early for me for the players to start playing again.” Cesar Azpilicueta, Christian Pulisic and Pedro picked up injuries during Chel-sea’s 2-1 defeat by Arsenal in the FA Cup final and Lampard fears other players could meet a similar fate.

“The players need a break. That is why we have pulled two hamstrings and had players pull out of the game before this. I would like to think the Premier League would look seriously at that,” he said.

Meanwhile, Liverpool midfielder James Milner has warned his team-mates it would be "criminal" for them to lose their focus after one Premier League title triumph.

Jurgen Klopp's side ended a 30-year wait to be crowned English champions in June.

Form dipped once the title had

been secured, with two of the three league defeats they suffered all season coming in their final seven matches, while their 100 percent home record also fell in a draw against Burnley.

The players are currently on a break before pre-season begins but Milner, who won two titles in three years with Manchester City, says they have to be switched on when they return.

"I think it's getting that balance right. We have to enjoy it because we know how hard it is to win trophies," the 34-year-old told liverpoolfc.com.

"We've been very good to do it but also lucky to win the amount of tro-phies we have had this year."

"Trent (Alexander-Arnold) thinks it's absolutely easy, he just turns up and wins trophies every year but I can assure you, with the amount of years I've had in my career, it's not that easy."

On track for Tour de France challenge: FroomeREUTERS — PARIS

Chris Froome (pictured) says the two-month delay to the Tour de France has helped him make up the training time he lost while recovering from a horrific crash last year and he is now on track to compete for a record-equalling fifth title.

The Tour de France had been scheduled to start on June 27 but was pushed back to Aug. 29 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Froome, who spent more than three weeks in hospital after breaking his neck, femur, elbow, hip and ribs in a high-speed crash last year, returned to action in February but was nowhere near peak condition and there were doubts that he had enough time to get in shape for the gruelling race.

“I feel like I’m on the right

trajectory in terms of the Tour de France,” Froome, 35, told Cycling News on the sidelines of the Route d’Occitanie, his first race since the cycling season was suspended in February.

“There’s still a bit of work to do, but that’s all part of the Tour build-up.

“The delay to the major races has helped me take the next step in terms of being back to my normal self. I think that given where we are right now, with just about a month to the Tour, I’m on the right trajectory. I’m happy with where I’m at.”

Froome has won the Tour four times with Team INEOS but will leave the British outfit at the end of the season.

“There are going to be a lot of changes, but that’s still a few months away, so I’m not really

thinking about that now. I’m just focused on getting the best out of myself for the rest of the season,” he added.

Meanwhile, Denmark's staging of the Tour de France's start, known as the 'Grand Depart', h a s b e e n pushed back a year to 2022, Danish organ-isers said in a s t a t e m e n t yesterday.

The Danish organisation charged w i t h

planning the start of the Tour de France has come to an agreement with French Tour organisers, Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O), to

postpone hosting the first three days of the tour,

it said.The start of next

year's Tour de France was last week brought forward by six

days to avoid clashing with the

men's road race a t t h e

rescheduled Tokyo Olympics. The new June 26 start date of the 2021 Tour, however, created a clash for Denmark with soccer's European Cham-pionship, which is being held in cities across Europe, including Copenhagen.

The Danish start to the Tour will now be held from July 1-3, 2022, the Danish organisers said.

"I am happy that we have succeeded in securing a Danish tour start in 2022," mayor of Copenhagen and chairman of Grand Depart Copenhagen Denmark, Frank Jensen, said in a statement.

"We are many who have been looking forward to getting the Tour de France to Denmark next year, and now we unfortunately have to wait a little longer," Jensen said.

Meanwhile, Denmark s staging of the Tour de France's start, known as the'Grand Depart', h a s b e e n pushed back a year to 2022,Danish organ-isers said in a s t a t e m e n tyesterday.

The Danish organisation chargedw i t h

Organisation (A.S.O), to postpone hosting the first

three days of the tour, it said.

The start of next year's Tour deFrance was lastweek brought forward by six

days to avoid clashing with the

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