DUBAI: Iran’s World Cup soccer team declined to sing their national anthem before their opening match against England on Monday after many fans back home accused the squad of siding with a violent state crackdown on persistent popular unrest.
Protests demanding the fall of the ruling Shiite Muslim theocracy have gripped Iran since the death two months ago of young woman Mahsa Amini after her arrest for flouting the strict Islamic dress code.
Dozens of Iranian public figures, athletes and artists have displayed solidarity with the protesters — but not the national soccer team, until Monday’s match when all team members remained silent when the national anthem was played.
Iranian state television did not show the players lined up for the anthem before the match got under way in Qatar, just across the Gulf from their homeland.
The Iranian squad could not avoid being overshadowed by the anti-government unrest that has rattled Iran’s Shiite Muslim theocracy, while other World Cup teams were squarely focused on their tactics on the pitch.
Ahead of the match, no Iranian player had voiced support for the demonstrations by compatriots from all walks of life, one of the most sustained challenges to the cleric elite since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In the past, the Iranian soccer team was a source of fired up national pride throughout the country. Now, with mass protests, many would prefer it withdrew from the World Cup.
Before traveling to Doha the team met with hard-line Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. Photos of the players with Raisi, one of them bowing in front of him, went viral while the street unrest raged on, drawing an outcry on social media.
“I have mixed feelings. I love football but with all these children, women and men killed in Iran, I think the national team should not play,” university student Elmira, 24, said, speaking by telephone from Tehran before the match.
“It is not Iran’s team, it is the Islamic Republic’s team.
“Show solidarity”
“They could refuse to take part in the World Cup or even refuse to play if they were forced to go, to show that they are part of the nation, to show solidarity with mothers in Iran whose children were killed by the regime (during protests).”
The activist HRANA news agency said 410 protesters had been killed in the unrest as of Saturday, including 58 minors.
Some 54 members of the security forces had also been killed, HRANA said, with at least 17,251 people arrested. Authorities have not provided an estimate of any wider death count.
Iranians are especially outraged because athletes around the world have been speaking out for the demonstrators in Iran while their team has remained largely silent.
“I know it is their job to play football but with all those children killed in Iran, they should have stood in solidarity with the people. Especially when the England team is going to kneel (in solidarity), how can the national team show no solidarity?” high school student Setareh, 17, said by telephone from the northwestern city of Urmia.
“FIFA should not have included the team because of protests in Iran and the regime’s violation of human rights. That did not happen, so then the team should not have gone in order to show solidarity with the protesters.”
Some Iranian fans who went to Qatar for the World Cup made no secret of their solidarity with the unrest.
They carried banners that read “Woman, Life Freedom” in support of the protests. “Freedom for Iran. Stop killing children in the streets!” shouted one Iranian woman.
Another Iranian woman with the colors of an Iranian flag painted on her face said Iran is a football-crazed nation.
“But this year,” she said, “everything is different, all we care about is this revolution and for people to get their freedom back, and not be scared to just walk on the street, do and dress as they want, and say what they want.”
In the capital Tehran, some banners of the national team have been burned by angry protesters.
Other Iranians like Zeynab Mohammadi wished success for the team. “I will watch the game with my friends at home. I will pray for my team to win,” Mohammadi, 21, said in Tehran, echoing other supporters who took to social media to cheer the players.
However, pictures of children killed in the protests were widely shared by Iranians on Twitter, with messages such as: “They loved football too, but they were killed by the Islamic Republic.”
“Those children took risks for their country and were killed by the regime. The national team should take risks and show solidarity with the nation,” said Hamidreza, 19, a university student in southern Iran.
“For our nation, for Iran, for all those children, men, women killed in the past weeks by the regime, be our voice in Qatar. Show solidarity if you are Iran’s national soccer team.”
Iranian World Cup squad declines to sing national anthem, backing protests
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Iranian World Cup squad declines to sing national anthem, backing protests
- All of the starting 11 players were silent as the anthem was played at the Khalifa International Stadium
Australia out for 104 against India after Starc digs in
- Jasprit Bumrah was India’s chief destroyer with 5-30, Harshit Rana chipped in with 3-48
- India have won their last two Border-Gavaskar trophy series against Australia in Australia
PERTH: Mitchell Starc hit a defiant 26 to keep Australia in touch on day two of the opening Test at Perth, with the hosts all out for 104 at lunch on Saturday to trail India by 46.
Australia lost Alex Carey and Nathan Lyon during an intense session on a lively deck before Starc and Josh Hazlewood dug in.
They reached three figures courtesy of a dogged last-wicket holdout by the pair — their 25-run stand was the longest of the Australian innings. Hazlewood was not-out seven.
Jasprit Bumrah was India’s chief destroyer with 5-30, his 11th five-wicket haul in Tests. Harshit Rana chipped in with 3-48.
Australia resumed on 67-7, trailing by 83, after an astonishing 17 wickets fell on a chaotic opening day when India were all out for 150.
Home hopes rested on Carey as he began on 19, but after nudging two from Rana he came up against an irrepressible Bumrah.
Coming round the wicket, the Indian captain made Carey play and he nicked to wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.
Lyon (5) did well to hang around for 16 fiery balls before gloving a short one from Rana to KL Rahul in the slips.
That brought Hazlewood to the crease and it seemed only a matter of time before India were batting again, but he and Starc gamely stuck around, bringing up the 100 to huge cheers from the crowd.
It was an intelligent innings by Starc, who doggedly faced 112 balls and protected Hazlewood to add crucial extra runs before holing out Rana to Pant.
India have won their last two Border-Gavaskar trophy series in Australia.
Perth is the first of five Tests in the series.
Spanish sailors ride wave of $2m win, Olympic gold medal to lead Los Gallos into SailGP’s Season 5
- SailGP’s Season 5 starts with the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix on Saturday and Sunday
- After ending the Aussies’ dominance, Los Gallos are a proven entity heading into a new season that features a fleet that’s grown to 12 boats and a 14-regatta schedule that will end with the $2 million dash for cash
SAN DIEGO, California: Spaniards Diego Botin and Florian Trittel experienced an adrenaline rush last summer that’s never been seen in sailing.
On July 14 on San Francisco Bay, they helped sail Los Gallos’ foiling catamaran to a stunning upset over heavyweights Tom Slingsby of Australia and Peter Burling of New Zealand and claim the $2 million, winner-take-all prize as SailGP’s Season 4 champions.
Just 19 days later, the 30-year-olds won the Olympic gold medal in the high-performance 49er class in Marseille, France. They later met King Felipe VI of Spain, himself a former Olympic sailor.
They needed some time to catch their breath after their wild ride.
“I’m not going to lie. Right after the games I was saturated,” said Botin, who skippers the SailGP crew while Trittel trims the wingsail.
After a break of a few months, Los Gallos — “roosters” in Spanish — are preparing to defend their title in Larry Ellison’s global league. SailGP’s Season 5 starts with the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix on Saturday and Sunday.
“Now I’m starting to feel those butterflies and I look forward now to start the next season,” Botin said recently in a video interview with The Associated Press.
In early January, SailGP saw two of its marquee names step away from skippering their teams, Ben Ainslie to focus on his British team in the America’s Cup and Jimmy Spithill to start forming his own Italian-based SailGP team.
Three-time defending SailGP champion Tom Slingsby of Australia, who suddenly became the league’s senior statesman, said it was time for younger skippers to step up “and try to knock us older guys off the perch.”
Said Botin: “It probably pushed us a bit to even put more energy in and try to get there.”
Botin and Trittel’s Olympic campaign coincided with SailGP’s schedule.
In early July, “We looked at ourselves and said, ‘The two biggest goals of our lives are going to be decided in the next three weeks,’” Botin said. “And it was a massive challenge, what we did, deciding to do the two projects at the same time. But we believed that by doing the two projects we were going to end up being the best sailors we could be.
“Obviously, we didn’t know if things were going to go so well. But yeah, it’s super satisfying. What we achieved is amazing. A life highlight.”
After ending the Aussies’ dominance, Los Gallos are a proven entity heading into a new season that features a fleet that’s grown to 12 boats and a 14-regatta schedule that will end with the $2 million dash for cash.
Spithill launched his Italian team Thursday and poached Australian wing trimmer Kyle Langford. Olympic gold medalist Giles Scott moved from Britain to Canada in the sport’s first transfer fee deal. Two-time Olympic gold medalist Martine Grael of Brazil will become the first woman to helm a SailGP boat. Burling is coming off Emirates Team New Zealand’s third straight America’s Cup victory and Slingsby is always motivated to win.
“I think we have the team to challenge those teams,” Botin said. “I think we have the potential to keep fighting at the top of the league. I think we need to remind ourselves how much work it took us to be able to be competitive in this league, to maintain ourselves there. We need to work in a very intelligent way and I really believe we have the team to be at the top of the league.”
The Spanish team’s 50-foot foiling catamaran has a red outline of a rooster on its wingsail.
Botin said the Los Gallos nickname started with the Spanish team in the 2017 Youth America’s Cup.
“In the north of Spain, it’s really typical instead of saying ‘buddy’ or ‘mate,’ you say, ‘gallo.’ And we’re calling ourselves ‘gallos’ all the time — ‘gallo, gallo, gallo.’ We ended up being in the press and everywhere as Los Gallos. And that’s why we decided to link our team to this icon.”
Botin and Trittel were named the male Rolex World Sailors of the Year this month.
“If that’s a sign of what’s coming through in terms of the next stars of our sport, we’re in good hands,” Spithill said. “They’re such awesome athletes but just awesome dudes as well.”
Netherlands beat Germany to reach first Davis Cup final
- The Dutch knocked out Rafael Nadal’s Spain in the last eight on Tuesday on the way to their first final in 104 years of competing
- Tallon Griekspoor ground down Jan-Lennard Struff 6-7 (4/7), 7-5, 6-4 in the second singles rubber to eliminate the three-time winners in the semifinals
MALAGA, Spain: Netherlands reached the Davis Cup final for the first time with a battling 2-0 win over Germany on Friday.
Tallon Griekspoor ground down Jan-Lennard Struff 6-7 (4/7), 7-5, 6-4 in the second singles rubber to eliminate the three-time winners in the semifinals.
Botic van de Zandschulp beat Daniel Altmaier 6-4, 6-7 (12/14), 6-3 in a hard-fought opening match to set Netherlands on their way.
The Dutch knocked out Rafael Nadal’s Spain in the last eight on Tuesday on the way to their first final in 104 years of competing.
They then ousted Germany, who last triumphed in 1993 and were hoping to reach a sixth final.
“I’m unbelievably proud, they played so well,” said Dutch captain Paul Haarhuis, who was part of the team last time they made the semifinals 23 years ago.
Van de Zandschulp kicked off the tie by claiming a scrappy victory with his 10th match point in two hours 44 minutes.
“It could have been easier but I did it the hard way,” said the Dutchman who sent 22-time Grand Slam title winner Nadal into retirement on Tuesday with a famous win.
“At some point, I didn’t know what to do any more on the match points.”
Neither player blinked in a first set with few thrills, until the Dutchman, ranked 80th, nosed ahead for a 5-4 lead which he served out, clinching when Altmaier went wide.
Van de Zandschulp broke in the fifth game of the second set and consolidated for a 4-2 lead, taking full control of the match.
The Dutchman forced four break points in the next game, but the world number 88 managed to escape with three aces to avoid a double break.
Moving into a higher gear the German was able to get back on serve at 4-4, converting his third break point at the end of the match’s longest rally when Van de Zandschulp failed at the net.
The Dutch player brought up five match points in the tie-break but could not hold his nerve and Altmaier took his fourth set point with a smash to force a third set.
Van de Zandschulp broke in the second game, but Altmaier immediately responded.
The Dutchman produced another break of serve to open up a 5-3 lead and, after wasting four more match points, wrapped up the win with his 10th as Altmaier could not return a powerful serve.
“I had the toughest match of my life on Tuesday (against Nadal), so everything that comes next is a little bit easier,” added Van de Zandschulp.
Big servers Struff and Griekspoor could not force a break in the first set, or even a break point, and a tie-break quickly became inevitable.
The German imposed himself with two mini-breaks and took his third set point.
Griekspoor battled hard to hold in the eighth game of the second set, the first in the match to go to deuce, and the Dutchman saved two break points.
The world No. 40 produced one of his own to snatch a 6-5 lead against Struff, ranked three places lower, and polished off the set with an ace blasted down the middle.
Struff hammered a poor smash into the net from a Griekspoor lob to gift a break in the first game of the third set and the Dutchman produced five holds to triumph, barely allowing his opponent a sniff on his serve.
Griekspoor finished the tie with an ace, his 25th of the night, and fell to his knees in celebration as orange-clad Dutch fans celebrated with glee.
“I felt like the level of the match was unbelievable, both of us were serving unreal,” said Griekspoor.
“Big respect to him but very happy to make the final.”
Saudi team reignite qualification hopes by beating Bhutan in T20 World Cup qualifier
- With the win, Saudi Arabia left the bottom of the table, climb to fifth place
- Malaysia and Kuwait have already booked their spot from Asia Group A qualifier
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia registered their first victory in the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier B as they beat Bhutan in Doha, Qatar on Friday.
Saudi Arabia were dominant in all fronts as they overcame Bhutan’s challenge by huge margin of 85 runs. Bhutan could only muster 85-8 in reply to Saudi’s 170-7 in 20 overs.
Bhutan invited Saudi Arabia to have a bit first at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium and the openers used it to their advantage. Abdul Waheed and Faisal Khan brought up 50-run partnership in just 23 balls. Waheed, who hit 18 off 15 holed out to long on in second ball of sixth over.
Faisal, who hit Karma Dorji for 24 runs in the fourth over then went boundary-less for the next nine balls and ultimately fell to Sagar Pradhan. He hit 3 fours and 4 sixes in his 20-ball-42.
Skipper Waji Ul Hassan then steadied the ship for Saudi Arabia as he stitched mini partnerships with Usman Khalid (14) and Manan Ali (12). While Waji kept the scoreboard ticking his partners were slower than run-a-ball against Bhutan’s bowlers.
Player of the match Waji brought on his second T20 half century hitting Dorji for a six and a four in 16th over. He then followed one wide but hit straight to mid wicket. He ended scoring 52 runs off 39 balls with 3 fours and sixes each.
Zain Ul Abidin and Usman Najeeb hit a six each towards the end as Saudi reached 170 mark.
In reply, Ishtiaq Ahmad rocked the top order of Bhutan with double blow. After giving away single in first over he came back to take wickets of Tenjin Ragbey and skipper Thinley Jamtsho in consecutive deliveries, both for nought.
Bhutan were soon reduced to 10-3 as Usman. Najeeb hit Mikyo Dorji’s off stump.
Bhutan were 29-4 midway through their innings. But Jigme Singye’s 35 runs helped Bhutan to 85 runs in 20 overs. Singye, who 2 fours and sixes each in 41 balls was run out in the last over. Ishtiaq and Usman took 2 wickets each while Shahzaib, Zain Ul Abidin and Abdul Waheed got one each.
Despite losing first two matches in the tournament, Skipper Waji was hopeful of making it to the next round. ‘We didn’t achieve expected result in first two matches, but this win will help us. The tournament is long and we are hopeful of getting results to aid our target,’ he said.
Saudi Arabia have left the bottom of the table with this win as they climb to fifth. UAE, who beat Cambodia by 5 wickets have maximum 6 points in 3 matches. Hosts Qatar and Thailand have 4 points each. Bahrain are on level with Saudi while Bhutan and Cambodia are yet to open their account.
Top two teams from this qualifier will play the regional final, which serves as pathway for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup to be held in 2026.
Malaysia and Kuwait have already booked their spot from Asia Group A qualifier, while Samoa and Japan are representing the East Asia-Pacific region. Nepal, Oman and Papua New Guinea will also compete in the regional finals.
PSG beat Toulouse 3-0, Akliouche double gives Monaco home win over Brest
- The scoreline was harsh on Toulouse, who came into the game in a more even second half
- The win was a confidence boost for Luis Enrique’s side ahead of next Tuesday’s Champions League encounter at Bayern Munich
PARIS: Paris Saint-Germain retained a six-point lead at the top of Ligue 1 after a labored 3-0 home win over Toulouse on Friday.
The defending champion dominated the first half but it took until the 35th minute to open the scoring.
Young Portuguese midfielder Joao Neves spun to meet a cross from the right and struck a superb half volley from just outside the box.
Lucas Beraldo got a second with six minutes remaining when he pounced on loose ball and fired home.
Vitinha made it 3-0 in stoppage time when he showed fine footwork inside the box to finish off a quick counterattack.
The scoreline was harsh on Toulouse, who came into the game in a more even second half.
Only Vitinha’s last-gasp tackle stopped Zakaria Aboukhlal from equalizing after 69 minutes and then Shavy Babicka blazed over from close range a minute later when he should have hit the target.
The win was a confidence boost for Luis Enrique’s side ahead of next Tuesday’s Champions League encounter at Bayern Munich.
PSG lie in 25th place in the 36-team Champions League table with one win in four matches and outside the playoff spots.
Monaco beat Brest
The win came immediately after second-placed Monaco beat Brest 3-2 to briefly close the gap at the top to three points.
Brest, who face Barcelona next week in the Champions League, turned in another inconsistent French league performance and not the sparkling form they have shown in Europe.
Brest have struggled in Ligue 1, where they remain 12th, but shone with three wins from four in their first-ever Champions League campaign.
It was behind after just five minutes on Friday when Maghnes Akliouche scored with a superb airborne volley, and 2-0 down after 24 minutes thanks to Aleksandr Golovin.
The Russian striker seized on a poor pass just outside the Brest penalty area and his low shot was perfectly placed to sneak in off the post and give him his first goal in nine league appearances.
On-loan Brighton striker Abdallah Sima used his 1.88-meter frame to outjump the Monaco defense four minutes into the second half and cut the deficit but Akliouche restored Monaco’s two-goal cushion when he brilliantly finished a quick counterattack in stoppage time.
Ludovic Ajorque got a second for Brest in the sixth minute of added time but it was not enough in a second half most notable for the red card shown to Brest coach Eric Roy.
