Cheers: Morocco last Arab team left standing in World Cup

Morocco's supporters celebrate their team's qualification for the next round of the World Cup after their victory in the Group F football match against Canada in Doha. (AFP)
Short Url
Updated 02 December 2022
Follow

Cheers: Morocco last Arab team left standing in World Cup

  • Morocco beat Canada 2-1 to finish top of their group in a stadium thronged with their supporters

DOHA/RABAT: Moroccan fans celebrated on Thursday as their country became the only Arab nation to reach the knockout rounds of the first World Cup held in an Arab country, dancing and cheering in the stadium in Qatar and on the streets back home.

Morocco beat Canada 2-1 to finish top of their group in a stadium thronged with their supporters. In earlier matches they had tied with Croatia and scored a surprise win over Belgium, the second-ranked team in the world.

“This team can go all the way in this World Cup!” shouted a young woman draped in a Moroccan flag, leaning from the window of a packed car in Rabat as people rushed toward a central district to join street celebrations.

In Qatar, where the home team along with Saudi Arabia and Tunisia have already been knocked out, Morocco now carries the mantle for an Arab world that has cheered victories by Arab teams against some of the tournament favorites.

Hundreds of fans crowded outside the stadium, some pushing and shoving and others trying to climb a fence to get in even after the game had begun, a Reuters journalist there said. Many lacked tickets but hoped to see the game.

“Fans crowded here because they can’t enter the stadium. Almost all these fans have no ticket and they love Morocco and want to get in,” said one, Abdulmajid Mohammed, from Saudi Arabia.

The crowding also left some fans who said they had tickets unable to enter. “We have tickets but they closed all the doors and are not letting people in,” said Mohammad Abdelhadi from Libya, who said his group’s tickets each cost more than $200.

FIFA and Qatar’s World Cup organizers, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the crowding outside the stadium.

The deafening support has been a 12th man for the side.

“They proved on the pitch that they are lions... honestly as a Saudi we lost yesterday but we made up for that loss with Morocco’s win,” said Talal Ahmed Obeid, watching at a fan zone in Casablanca.

While Morocco is a proud member of the Arab League, the country has also in recent decades embraced its African identity and Berber lineage, enshrining Amazigh as an official language.

“We hope to fly the flag of African football high,” said Morocco coach Walid Regragui on Wednesday.

Mohamed Tahiri, a lawyer out celebrating in Rabat among crowds waving flags and honking car horns despite the rainy weather, said Morocco was the only team left for Arabs to identify with.

“This is a day of celebration not only for us Moroccans but for all Arabs and for all the Amazigh North Africans too,” he said.

People had already been out looking for cafes with televisions to watch the game hours before kickoff.

“My generation is experiencing this for the first time,” said Oufae Abidar, 38, a company employee. She was a toddler when Morocco last reached the knockout phase in 1986. Morocco’s last World Cup appearance, four years ago, ended in the group stage.

Back in Doha, Omani national Saeed Al Maskari, 30, said he would be supporting Morocco now. “We are in the Asian part (of the Arab region) and they are in the African part. But we speak one language,” he said. 


Pakistan Cricket Board announces full ticket refunds for rain-washed Champions Trophy matches

Updated 02 March 2025
Follow

Pakistan Cricket Board announces full ticket refunds for rain-washed Champions Trophy matches

  • The matches were due to be played between Australia and South Africa, Bangladesh and Pakistan
  • Ticket holders are eligible for a full refund if a Champion Trophy match is abandoned before toss

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced a full ticket refund for Champions Trophy matches that were abandoned without a ball being bowled at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium last month, Pakistani state media reported on Sunday. 
The matches were due to be played between Australia and South Africa on Feb. 25, and Bangladesh and Pakistan on Feb. 27, but rain washed out both games in Rawalpindi.
According to the PCB Ticket Refund Policy for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, ticket holders are eligible for a full refund if a match is abandoned before the toss.
“Ticket holders can claim their refund between 10th to 14th of this month [March],” the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.
“The purchaser will have to visit a designated outlet along with the original ticket.”
Hosts Pakistan crashed out of the tournament after a humiliating six-wicket loss to archrivals India.
The winner of Sunday’s match between India and New Zealand will play Australia in the semifinal, with the loser taking on South Africa.
Irrespective of the placing and opponent, India will play the first semifinal in Dubai on Tuesday after they refused to travel to Pakistan because of political tensions.
New Zealand will leave for Lahore after Sunday’s match, with the second semifinal to be played at Qaddafi Stadium on Wednesday.


Champions Trophy: Kohli falls to ‘superman’ Phillips’ catch in 300th ODI

Updated 02 March 2025
Follow

Champions Trophy: Kohli falls to ‘superman’ Phillips’ catch in 300th ODI

  • Kohli fell for 11 runs off 14 balls after New Zealand invited India to bat first in Dubai
  • The result of the match to decide the semifinal line-up of the 50-over tournament

DUBAI: New Zealand’s Glenn Phillips pulled off a stunning catch to dismiss India great Virat Kohli in the batsman’s landmark 300th ODI in the final group match of the Champions Trophy on Sunday.
Kohli fell for 11 off 14 balls after New Zealand invited India to bat first in Dubai with the result of the match to decide the semifinal line-up of the 50-over tournament.
But it was Phillips’ fielding marvel that brought the match alive as he dived full stretch to his right at backward point and held on to the ball traveling at a fast pace from Kohli’s bat off fast bowler Matt Henry.
Kohli, 36, stood in disbelief for a few seconds before trudging back to the pavilion as the fans went silent.
Social media, however, was soon abuzz with reactions to the catch: “The Superman of the tournament,” wrote one fan on X.
The winner of the match will play Australia in the semifinal, with the loser taking on South Africa.
Irrespective of the placing and opponent, India will play the first semifinal in Dubai on Tuesday after they refused to travel to hosts Pakistan because of political tensions.
New Zealand will leave for Lahore after the match, with the second semifinal to be played at the Qaddafi Stadium on Wednesday.


Third-time lucky for Tsitsipas as he overcomes Auger-Aliassime to take Dubai title

Updated 02 March 2025
Follow

Third-time lucky for Tsitsipas as he overcomes Auger-Aliassime to take Dubai title

  • No. 4 seed triumphs over tour’s most in-form player in straight sets at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium to seal a maiden ATP 500 title and return to world’s Top 10

DUBAI: Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas made it third time lucky at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Saturday night, defeating Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 6-3 to claim his maiden ATP 500 title in front of a jubilant Centre Court under the lights at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium.

Making his first Dubai appearance since 2020, when he was defeated in the final by Novak Djokovic, and playing in his third final in four trips to the tournament, the World No. 11’s straight-sets victory ensured he became the first Greek player to claim glory in Dubai.

After eclipsing Lorenzo Sonego, Karen Khachanov, Matteo Berrettini, and Tallon Griekspoor en route to the Auger-Aliassime showdown, Tsitsipas delivered a stunning array of booming serves, powerful baseline winners, and delicate dropshots to dismantle his under-par opponent in an hour and 28 minutes.

Tsitsipas started slowly, forced to save two breakpoints early on and winning only three points across his opponent’s first three service games. Yet it was the No. 4 seed who secured the crucial breaks, first for 4-3 — helped by an Auger-Aliassime double-fault — and again to take the opening set. Crucially, again at 4-3 in the second, he secured the break that would ultimately lead to what he later dubbed his “final redemption” in Dubai.

“This is something that I have been fighting a long time for and it’s great to finally win here in Dubai,” Tsitsipas said after sealing a 12th career title. “My game kind of clicked and things seemed to work really well right from the beginning (of the match). It’s a big relief to finally hold the trophy at the third attempt. It was definitely something in the back of my mind, and I am very happy to have finally accomplished it. I’m proud I managed to handle the pressure and perform in those crucial moments.”

After failing to clinch a hat-trick of 2025 titles following wins in Adelaide and Montpellier earlier this season, a visibly dejected Auger-Aliassime was full of praise for his Greek rival: “It wasn’t to be for me, but congratulations to Stefanos; it’s well deserved. He played at a very high level tonight.

“This is my second time in Dubai, and I will definitely be back,” added the Canadian, who is expected to return to the world’s Top 20 players when new ATP rankings are released on Monday.

In the men’s doubles final, crowd favorites Yuki Bhambri of India and Australia’s Alexei Popyrin — a former ball kid at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship — edged out second seeds Harri Heliovaara of Croatia and Great Britain’s Henry Patten 3-6, 7-6, 10-8 in a marathon two-hour tussle on Centre Court.

Having lost the first set, Bhambri and Popyrin bravely battled back, defending four match points en route to winning a tense second set tiebreak before eventually sealing a super tiebreak win courtesy of a Popyrin ace on the pair’s fourth championship point.

“We were so close to losing in the first round, so it’s unbelievable to be in the final and win it — I don’t think I would ever have dreamt of this,” said Bhambri, before partner Popyrin added: “I’ve been coming to this tournament since I was a kid. I grew up in Dubai, played a lot of junior tournaments here, so it’s always good to come back, and to win a title whether in singles or doubles is always special. It’s been an unbelievable week.”


Australia or South Africa will return to Pakistan from Dubai for semifinal

Updated 02 March 2025
Follow

Australia or South Africa will return to Pakistan from Dubai for semifinal

  • India and New Zealand’s Sunday group match to decide semifinal line-up
  • Irrespective of outcome, India will play the first semifinal in Dubai on Mar. 4

DUBAI: Australia and South Africa have been forced to travel to Dubai from Pakistan, the International Cricket Council confirmed Sunday, due to a tangled schedule at the Champions Trophy.
India and New Zealand play the final group match on Sunday in Dubai and the result of the game will decide the semifinal line-up.
Australia are in Dubai and will train in the afternoon, when South Africa are expected to fly in from Karachi where they hammered England to get top spot in Group B.
The winners of the India-New Zealand clash will play Australia, who finished second to South Africa in their group.
But irrespective of the placing and opponent, India will play the first semifinal in Dubai on March 4 after they refused to travel to hosts Pakistan for political reasons.
That will leave New Zealand and either Australia or South Africa, hours after landing in Dubai, to head back to Pakistan for the second semifinal scheduled on March 5 in Lahore.
Pundits and ex-cricketers had called out the one-venue “farce” at the 50-over tournament after India were allowed to play all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium.
The rest of the seven teams in the eight-nation competition had to shuttle between three Pakistan venues — Karachi, Rawalpindi and Lahore — and the United Arab Emirates.
New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips said his team were not thinking about India staying at one venue for the course of the tournament.
“No, for us there’s no focus on anything like that,” he said on Saturday.
“We have a ‘no-excuses’ mindset.”
The final on March 9 will be in Dubai if India go the distance.
Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium will be the venue if India miss out.


Australia or South Africa will return to Pakistan from Dubai for semifinal

Updated 02 March 2025
Follow

Australia or South Africa will return to Pakistan from Dubai for semifinal

  • Australia and South Africa have been forced to travel to Dubai from Pakistan, the International Cricket Council confirmed Sunday

DUBAI: Australia and South Africa have been forced to travel to Dubai from Pakistan, the International Cricket Council confirmed Sunday, due to a tangled schedule at the Champions Trophy.
India and New Zealand play the final group match on Sunday in Dubai and the result of the game will decide the semifinal line-up.
Australia are in Dubai and will train in the afternoon, when South Africa are expected to fly in from Karachi where they hammered England to get top spot in Group B.
The winners of the India-New Zealand clash will play Australia, who finished second to South Africa in their group.
But irrespective of the placing and opponent, India will play the first semifinal in Dubai on March 4 after they refused to travel to hosts Pakistan for political reasons.
That will leave New Zealand and either Australia or South Africa, hours after landing in Dubai, to head back to Pakistan for the second semifinal scheduled on March 5 in Lahore.
Pundits and ex-cricketers had called out the one-venue “farce” at the 50-over tournament after India were allowed to play all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium.
The rest of the seven teams in the eight-nation competition had to shuttle between three Pakistan venues — Karachi, Rawalpindi and Lahore — and the United Arab Emirates.
New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips said his team were not thinking about India staying at one venue for the course of the tournament.
“No, for us there’s no focus on anything like that,” he said on Saturday.
“We have a ‘no-excuses’ mindset.”
The final on March 9 will be in Dubai if India go the distance.
Lahore’s Qaddafi Stadium will be the venue if India miss out.