SHARJAH: Rassie van der Dussen smashed an unbeaten 94 as South Africa beat England by 10 runs but failed to qualify for the semifinals of the Twenty20 World Cup on Saturday.
Group 1 winners England and Australia, who beat West Indies in the first match of the day, made the final four from the six-team pool.
South Africa posted 189 for two after Van de Dussen smashed six sixes in his 60-ball knock but needed to limit England to 131 or fewer to edge out Australia on net run-rate.
England, who topped the group when they passed 109, finished on 179-8 after a hat-trick by Kagiso Rabada in the final over. It was England’s first loss in five matches.
Pakistan are already through to the semifinals from Group 2 with India, New Zealand and Afghanistan fighting for the last spot.
“The win was important, but a bittersweet ending for us,” said South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma after his side finished on eight points, the same as England and Australia.
“Tough to bring net run-rate into effect in our last game, especially against a side like England.”
Van der Dussen and Aiden Markram, who hit 52 off 25 balls, put on an unbeaten attacking partnership of 103 for the third wicket to give their team a challenging total.
England elected to field first and Moeen Ali struck early when he bowled Reeza Hendricks for two.
Quinton de Kock and Van der Dussen rebuilt the innings with their second-wicket stand of 71.
Adil Rashid broke the stand as he sent back De Kock out for 34 with his leg spin.
But Van der Dussen stood firm and mixed the right dose of caution and aggression to reach his half-century in 37 balls.
He then combined with Markram to take the assault to the bowlers. The pair attacked Chris Woakes in his fourth over — the 16th of the innings, hitting three sixes between them to add 21 runs.
Markram reached his fifty off 24 balls with a six off Chris Jordan. He hit two fours and four sixes.
In reply, England started well with Jason Roy and Jos Buttler hitting boundaries in the first four overs.
But Roy suffered a calf injury issue while taking a run with Buttler and had to be helped off the field.
“Jason Roy going down doesn’t help, but we thought we were right in it throughout. Every game tests us in different ways,” said England captain Eoin Morgan.
South Africa seized the opportunity and Anrich Nortje send back Buttler, for 26, in the next over. Then Tabraiz Shamsi trapped Jonny Bairstow lbw for one.
Moeen, who struck 37 off 27 balls, and Dawid Malan hit back in a partnership of 51 but Shamsi once again put the brakes.
Moeen hit Shamsi for a towering six but got out next ball attempting another big one which instead went straight into the hands of David Miller.
Malan kept up the attack with Liam Livingston, who hit Rabada for three straight sixes, to keep the chase on track despite losing his partner in the next over.
But Livingstone fell for 28 and South African bowlers took charge. Rabada sent back Chris Woakes, Morgan and Chris Jordan for the tournament’s third hat-trick.
England, Australia into T20 World Cup semifinals as South Africa exit
https://arab.news/nn54a
England, Australia into T20 World Cup semifinals as South Africa exit
- Pakistan are already through to the semifinals from Group 2 with India, New Zealand and Afghanistan fighting for the last spot
Max Verstappen heads into Red Bull’s home race with upgrades and growing uncertainty
Verstappen remains at risk of a one-race ban for too many penalty points
VIENNA: Max Verstappen at the Red Bull Ring is usually a recipe for success.
The defending Formula 1 champion has an upgraded car for his team’s home race in Austria — where he’s won five times — on the back of an encouraging second place in Canada, where his two McLaren rivals collided.
Zoom out, though, and the situation is much more uncertain.
Verstappen remains at risk of a one-race ban for too many penalty points, Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda is usually too far adrift to help him, and Verstappen’s own future is far from clear.
“I don’t think we need to talk about that,” Verstappen said Thursday when asked to confirm whether he’ll stay with the team for 2026. “It’s not really in my mind. It’s just driving and trying to push the performance, you know. And then we focus on next year.”
Fast in Friday practice
Red Bull’s upgrades seemed to work well in Verstappen’s first outing in Friday practice. He was second-fastest, 0.065 of a second off George Russell for Mercedes.
Standings leader Oscar Piastri was third-fastest for McLaren, .155 off the pace, but the star of the session was young driver Alex Dunne, who took over Lando Norris’ McLaren for the session and placed fourth.
Lewis Hamilton was ninth-fastest for Ferrari and Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda only 17th.
What are Verstappen’s options?
Verstappen has a long-term contract through 2028, so in theory his Red Bull seat should be one of the safest on the grid. However, the deal has performance-related clauses which could reportedly allow a move.
In that case, the most obvious option could be Mercedes, which has yet to confirm either driver for 2026. That would mean Verstappen teaming up with an old foe in Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who’d also have to choose to drop either Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
Dramatic changes to how F1 cars look and perform are coming in 2026, and Red Bull has to adapt more than most.
For the first time in nearly two decades, it heads into a new era of F1 rules without design guru Adrian Newey, who left last year and is now at Aston Martin.
The other leading teams are sticking with their current engine arrangements, but not Red Bull. The team has an in-house engine developer, Red Bull Powertrains, but it’s switching partners for 2026 from Honda to newcomer Ford.
The second seat
No team in F1 depends as much on one driver as Red Bull does on Verstappen. He’s scored 155 of the team’s 162 points this season.
His teammates — first Liam Lawson, then Tsunoda — have struggled all season. That’s helped to restore the reputation of Sergio Perez, who was dropped by Red Bull after scoring barely one-third of Verstappen’s points last season.
“I know, deep down, they really regret it,” Perez said on a podcast this week. “And I know that from a very reliable source. It’s tough. I have very good friends there, and people might think I take pleasure in what happened, but no.”
Red Bull’s car seems to favor Verstappen’s driving style over anyone else’s, but the Dutch driver says he can’t diagnose the issue because he’s been with the team since 2016 and has nothing else to compare it with.
“The thing is that I don’t know any better, right?” he said Thursday. “I mean, I’ve basically started with Red bull, so I only know one car and that’s how I drive. I adapt to it. Is it the best? Is it the fastest? Is it not? I don’t know.”
Brentford appoint set-piece coach Andrews as manager to replace Frank
- Andrews began his coaching career as assistant manager at MK Dons
- “He is someone we have known for a while,” Brentford Director of Football Phil Giles said
LONDON: Brentford have named former Ireland international Keith Andrews as manager on a three-year contract to replace Thomas Frank, Sky Sports reported on Friday, continuing the West London club’s trend of promoting from within.
Frank, who left to take over at Tottenham Hotspur, stepped up from the assistant role at Brentford to take charge in 2018, and now Andrews has been handed his first managerial role having served as the club’s set-piece coach for one season.
Andrews, who made 35 appearances for Ireland, began his coaching career as assistant manager at MK Dons where he finished playing in 2015 before joining the Ireland Under-21 set-up as assistant coach to Stephen Kenny.
Kenny became manager of Ireland’s senior side in 2020, taking Andrews with him, where they both remained until Kenny’s contract ended three years later, but Andrews found himself newly employed in a matter of weeks.
Andrews joined Sheffield United’s coaching staff when Chris Wilder took over in December 2023, with the Irishman leaving at the end of the season to take up his role at Brentford.
“He is someone we have known for a while and always had in mind for a role at some point in the future,” Brentford Director of Football Phil Giles said at the time of the appointment.
While Frank took assistant first-team coach Justin Cochrane, head of athletic performance Chris Haslam and first-team analyst Joe Newton with him to Spurs, Andrews remained at Brentford, a clue perhaps to his future at the club.
Frank, who took Brentford into the top flight for the first time in 74 years and made them a competitive force in the Premier League, will be a hard act to follow for the inexperienced Andrews, but his predecessor also went into the job relatively unknown.
Swiatek cruises past second-seed Paolini to reach first ever grass final
- “I just did my job and I knew what I wanted to play and I went for it,” Swiatek said
- The Pole did not play any other grass tournaments this season
BAD HOMBURG, Germany: Five-times Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek crushed second seed Jasmine Paolini 6-1 6-3 on Friday to reach the Bad Homburg Open final and stay in the hunt for her first career title on grass.
With Wimbledon starting next week, the former world number one showed she was on the right track on the surface, outclassing the Italian, last year’s Wimbledon finalist.
“I am super happy and I was not expecting this. I just did my job and I knew what I wanted to play and I went for it,” Swiatek said in a post-match interview.
“I’m happy I kept the momentum going until the end of the match. Jasmine, you can’t let her get back in the game because she’s a fighter. I just wanted to go for it, and go for my shots.” Swiatek has a 5-0 lead in their head-to-head matches.
The Pole, who has won the French Open four times along with one US Open, did not play any other grass tournaments this season ahead of next week’s Wimbledon start, instead opting for a week of training in Mallorca before competing in Bad Homburg.
She was never troubled by the Italian in the first set as she raced through it in 29 minutes courtesy of three breaks.
The pair traded breaks at the start of the second set but Paolini continued to struggle to hold serve and contain the aggressive Pole who went 4-2 up.
Swiatek sealed victory with a forehand winner on her third match point to book a final spot where she will face either top seed Jessica Pegula or Czech Linda Noskova in Saturday’s final.
Top seed Sabalenka draws qualifier Branstine in Wimbledon first round
- Friday’s draw also pitched defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, the 17th seed, against Alexandra Eala of the Philippines
LONDON: World number one Aryna Sabalenka’s quest for her first Wimbledon title will begin against Canadian qualifier Carson Branstine while second seed Coco Gauff’s opener will be versus Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska.
Friday’s draw also pitched defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, the 17th seed, against Alexandra Eala of the Philippines.
Third seed Jessica Pegula’s first-round opponent is Italian qualifier Elisabetta Cocciaretto, while fourth seed Jasmine Paolini, runner-up last year, faces Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia.
Belarusian Sabalenka could meet Paolini in the semifinals while Gauff is in line for a clash with fellow American Pegula.
British number one Emma Raducanu faces an intriguing opening round match against compatriot Mingge Xu, one of three British teenaged wildcards in the draw.
5 things we learned from Al-Hilal’s FIFA Club World Cup win over CF Pachuca
- Al-Dawsari shines again, defense holds strong and Al-Hilal fans sport cowboy hats as Mexicans are beaten 2-0
- Saudi team progress to Round of 16 to face Manchester City in Orlando on Monday
NASHVILLE: Al-Hilal held their composure to defeat CF Pachuca of Mexico 2-0 in Nashville and book their place in the FIFA Club World Cup Round of 16.
The hard-fought victory means coach Simone Inzaghi’s side are the only team from Asia, Africa and Oceania to progress in the 32-team tournament. The Riyadh club will now meet Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City in Orlando on Monday.
Defense holds strong
CF Pachuca started the match the better side, with former Newcastle United striker Salomon Rondon threatening to stretch the Al-Hilal defense early on. Hassan Al-Tambakti, the Saudi center-back who was a doubt after limping off against Red Bull Salzburg, put a confident display, stepping in twice in the opening 15 minutes when Rondon looked like he would test Yassine Bounou.
Of the three games Al-Hilal have played in the US this month, this match in “Music City” was — somewhat ironically given his nickname — Bono’s quietest. Pachuca managed 12 shots, but only two hit the target; both were central and neither worried the Moroccan, even if he did seem to give Rondon a sniff of a follow-up in the first half.
Pachuca, the reigning Concacaf champions, had scored in both their previous matches against Salzburg and Real Madrid, yet never came close here. Every great team is built on a solid defense and Inzaghi, now with two successive clean sheets, certainly seems to have organized his backline.
Al-Dawsari does it again
Dressed all in white in the land of the “Man in Black” — country star Johnny Cash — the Blues soon found their rhythm. They settled into the match with the help of captain Salem Al-Dawsari, who raised the heart rate of right-back Eduardo Bauermann as well as the noise levels inside GEODIS Park during a busy first half. Intent on driving at his Brazilian full-back, Al-Dawsari showed speed and trickery every time he touched the ball, to the delight of the 14,147 fans.
His moment came in the 22nd minute. Nasser Al-Dawsari noticed his captain running in behind and lofted the ball forwards. Salem still had much to do, but he is not a player who struggles in high-pressure moments. The Saudi flyer needed just one touch to compose himself, before lifting the ball high and over Pachuca goalkeeper Sebastian Jurado. As the ball hung in the air so did a silence, but Al-Dawsari knew it was going in and reeled off to celebrate his 27th goal of the season with the customary cartwheel and backflip.
“Al-Hilal has been working well since last season and we believe we are on the right track,” he told the media. “Our organization does not change just because the coach changes or a player leaves or arrives. Al-Hilal is built by many, many people — that is the secret of our continuity. Tonight we will celebrate, but tomorrow the focus switches to the next match.”
Misfiring Marcos Leonardo
For 95 minutes it looked like Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo would rue missed opportunities once again. The former Santos forward arrived at the Club World Cup having scored 26 times since joining Al-Hilal from Benfica last summer for $46.8m (€40m) and came close against both Madrid and Salzburg. Ultimately, he fumbled at the crucial moments — and it seemed more of the same against Pachuca, until the dying minutes.
Lovely first-half play out from the back led to Malcom feeding the 22-year-old, but he had strayed offside. Later, Al-Hilal’s No. 11 saw his header flash high and wide. As the match wore on, with nerves building and Pachuca pushing for an equalizer, Malcom picked his compatriot out again. He did well to chip it over the onrushing Jurado but failed to get enough power in the shot and the covering Bauermann cleared comfortably.
With the match into the last of six additional minutes, however, Leonardo finally scored after collecting a long ball forward, rounding the Pachuca goalkeeper, and rolling it into an empty net. His own celebrations were muted, his team’s ecstatic. The hope is this will give the Brazilian confidence going into the match against Manchester City, when chances will surely be slim.
Mission accomplished, for now
Inzaghi spoke of his “great satisfaction” and revealed his target at the start of the month was to reach the Round of 16 — which his side has achieved. However, club president Fahad bin Nafel, speaking to Arab news, is now looking deeper into the expanded tournament.
“We are the only Arab club, the only Asian club, to progress to the Round of 16, so we are very proud of what we have achieved tonight,” he said. “We are a great team with great players, great technical team and management. I am really supportive. That is our job — to fully support them, so they can push on and continue these great achievements and, inshallah, win the next game too.”
Blue Wave in high spirits
The Blue Wave swept through GEODIS Park on Thursday night. Nerves coursed through the concourse pre-match, while sheer joy was on display afterwards. Some Saudi fans paired cowboy hats with kanduras, while others draped the Kingdom’s flag over their shoulders and danced in jubilation. The Saudi spectators may have been outnumbered by their Mexican opposites, but they were rarely outdone in terms of noise.
As the Al-Hilal players headed down the tunnel after a short on-field celebration, a mass of blue fans gathered under the stands to savor the moment, wave their scarves and sing club songs. “Bring on City! Bring on City,” they chanted.
The Al-Hilal faithful, having traveled from Miami to Washington to Nashville, will now go to Orlando. They have proved both popular and respectful, posing for photos with other teams’ fans and enjoying the chance to bring Saudi soccer culture to a wider audience. The victory against a team already eliminated allowed them to celebrate with no possibility of perceived antagonism.
Their hope is that this victory, historic though it is, is not yet the highlight of their US road trip.
