RIYADH: Saudi national football team coach Roberto Mancini on Wednesday named his squad for a training camp ahead of two Asian qualification matches against Tajikistan later this month.
The Green Falcons begin training in Riyadh on Sunday in preparation for the third and fourth rounds of the second stage of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup.
Saudi Arabia will host the Tajikistan national team in Riyadh’s Al-Awaal Park Stadium on March 21, while the away match will be played on March 26 at Central Stadium in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe.
The 28 players named by Mancini for the training camp are Mohammed Al-Owais, Ahmed Al-Kassar, Raghed Al-Najjar, Mohammed Al-Yammi, Saud Abdulhamid, Fawaz Al-Sugor, Ali Albulayhi, Ali Lajami, Awn Al-Saluli, Hassan Kadish, Waleed Al-Ahmad, Rayan Hamed, Yasser Al-Shahrani, Muteb Al-Harbi, Aiman Yahya, Abdullah Al-Khaibari, Mukhtar Ali, Abdulelah Al-Maliki, Mohammed Kanno, Faisal Al-Ghamdi, Nasser Al-Dawsari, Abbas Al-Hassan, Sami Al-Najei, Salem Al-Dawsari, Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Abdullah Radif, Feras Al-Brikan and Saleh Al-Shehri.
The Green Falcons are in group seven of the qualifiers, alongside Jordan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. They top the group on six points after wins against Pakistan and Jordan.
Green Falcons training ahead of Tajikistan qualification matches
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Green Falcons training ahead of Tajikistan qualification matches
- Saudi Arabia preparing for 3rd and 4th rounds of second stage Asian qualifiers for 2026 FIFA World Cup, 2027 Asian Cup
- Side hosts Tajikistan in Riyadh on March 21, with away match on March 26 in Dushanbe
Magomed Ankalaev wins undisputed light heavyweight belt with unanimous decision over Alex Pereira
- All three judges scored in favor of Ankalaev (21-1-1), with scores of 49-46 and two at 48-47
- In the co-main event, the No. 3-ranked lightweight and fan favorite Justin Gaethje (27-5-0) earned a unanimous decision over No. 11 Rafael Fiziev (12-4-0)
LAS VEGAS: Magomed Ankalaev’s plan coming into Saturday’s light heavyweight bout at UFC 313 was to pressure Alex Pereira.
And then add more pressure. And more.
The strategy worked, as Ankalaev scored a stunning upset with a unanimous decision to take Pereira’s undisputed light heavyweight belt.
“I can’t even put it into words,” Ankalaev said in the ring during the post-fight interview through a translator. “It’s been such a long way, and it’s my dream. It’s on my waist.”
All three judges scored in favor of Ankalaev (21-1-1), with scores of 49-46 and two at 48-47.
Ankalaev was never intimidated by his well-decorated opponent, even after enduring a barrage of leg kicks in the first round.
Rather than play things cautiously, Ankalaev went on the offensive and stayed aggressive in backing down Pereira while using an overpowering left hand that continued to stagger UFC’s top active star.
Bruce Buffer’s announcement with the result propelled a chorus of boos from the pro-Pereira crowd.
“I knew it would be a war,” said Pereira (12-3-0), who was putting his belt on the line for the fourth time. “Every fight of mine is a war.”
Pereira (12-2), who turns 38 on July 7, closed -120 at BetMGM Sportsbook.
As close as the fight was, UFC President and CEO Dana White had one word when asked about a potential rematch: “Probably.”
In the co-main event, the No. 3-ranked lightweight and fan favorite Justin Gaethje (27-5-0) earned a unanimous decision over No. 11 Rafael Fiziev (12-4-0) in what was tabbed ” Fight of the Night.” Gaethje was scheduled to fight Dan Hooker, who pulled out because of a hand injury. Gatheje dropped Fiziev with a stiff right uppercut in the second round.
Lightweight Ignacio Bahamondes (17-5-0) earned a first-round win when he made Jalin Turner (14-9-0) tap after administering a triangle choke at the 2:29 mark. Turner left the cage and waited in front of press row for Bahamondes to finish his interview, intending to return to the cage to leave his gloves and signify his retirement. Security would not let him return, however.
No. 5 strawweight contender Amanda Lemos improved to 15-4-1 with a unanimous decision over seventh-ranked Iasmin Lucindo (17-6-0).
Mauricio Ruffy (12-1-0) delivered a spinning heel kick with his right foot to the temple of King Green (32-17-1) to score a vicious knockout just 2:07 into the first round of their lightweight bout.
Just after Ruffy’s knockout kick and before the women’s bout, a tribute video for Robbie Lawler played in honor of the former welterweight champion. Watching cageside, an emotional Lawler received a standing ovation as it was announced he would be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame’s Modern Wing as a member of the Class of 2025. The ceremony will take place as part of the 13th Annual UFC International Fight Week on June 26.
“Robbie was an absolute killer, and I have a ton of respect for his toughness and his fighting style, which helped grow the sport of MMA and UFC by attracting a lot of new fans,” UFC president and CEO Dana White said in a statement.
Djokovic crashes out at Indian Wells as Alcaraz sails through
- Italian Matteo Arnaldi sprung another upset, beating seventh seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 7-5
- Women’s world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka opened her campaign with a 7-6 (7/4, 6-3 victory over rising US talent McCartney Kessler
INDIAN WELLS, California: Five-time champion Novak Djokovic tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters on Saturday, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champ Carlos Alcaraz advanced.
“No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat.
“It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he added. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.”
Djokovic is just the latest in van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims.
He stunned Alcaraz at the US Open last year before beating Rafael Nadal in Davis Cup in what proved the Spanish great’s last match.
“I think I kept my cool during the whole match,” said van de Zandschulp. “I know if I go into the match and lose my cool, especially against the big players, it’s going to be a really tough day. That’s always one thing I’m trying to do well.”
After 14 unforced errors in the first set, Djokovic cleaned things up in the second, grabbing a quick break on the way to a 3-0 lead.
Djokovic pumped his fist after belting a forehand winner to the corner for his first break chance of the match and after consolidating the break nodded his head in satisfaction.
The rallies remained tense affairs and Djokovic’s frustration was clear at times, but after he was broken when serving for the set he closed it out on his next service game.
It was only a brief respite. Van de Zandschulp kept the pressure on both from the baseline and at the net and Djokovic’s errors began to pile up again.
Van de Zandschulp took control with a break for 3-1, reeling off the last five games as Djokovic was unable to stop the bleeding.
“The first three games, four games of the third set were quite close,” Djokovic, seeded sixth, said. “Had my chances. Was just some awful mistakes.”
Italian Matteo Arnaldi sprung another upset, beating seventh seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 7-5. Djokovic and Rublev followed top seed Alexander Zverev and fourth seed Casper Ruud as second-round casualties.
With Zverev out and world No. 1Jannik Sinner serving a three-month drugs ban, world number three Alcaraz is the highest seed left in the men’s draw.
Alcaraz, trying to join Djokovic and Roger Federer as the only men to win three straight Indian Wells titles, eased into his defense with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over France’s Quentin Halys.
He admitted he was feeling some nerves to start the match, but they evaporated amid a strong all-around performance.
One early break staked Alcaraz to the first set. He roared to a 4-0 lead in the second behind a formidable service display and wrapped up the win in 67 minutes.
“I was nervous at the beginning of the match,” he told a supportive crowd. “The first match is never easy so I was trying to be focused on my game.
“I just tried to be relaxed, as relaxed as I can. Can always be better, but I’m ready for the (next) round and excited.”
Women’s world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka opened her campaign with a 7-6 (7/4, 6-3 victory over rising US talent McCartney Kessler.
Madison Keys, who denied Sabalenka a third straight Australian Open title as she claimed her long awaited first Grand Slam in Melbourne, subdued hard-hitting Russian Anastasia Potapova 6-3, 6-0 in her first match since then.
Americans Taylor Fritz and Coco Gauff — seeded third in their respective draws, both advanced.
Fritz, the 2022 men’s champion, defeated Italian qualifier Matteo Gigante 7-5, 6-3.
Gauff survived 21 double faults to claw out a 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7/4) victory over Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima.
India faces New Zealand in budding rivalry at Champions Trophy final
- New Zealand beat India 3-0 in its own backyard last year, an unprecedented feat
- Spin expected to hold key as both sides lock horns with each other in UAE’s Dubai
India faces New Zealand in the Champions Trophy final Sunday in what can be deemed a new-age rivalry.
While India’s clashes against Pakistan, Australia and England have attracted more attention, this matchup with the Black Caps has slowly been bubbling under the surface.
The 2024-25 season saw this new-age rivalry come to a proper flash point.
New Zealand beat India 3-0 in a test series in its own backyard, a feat never registered before. India went on to lose in Australia. Both series defeats cost India a spot in the World Test Championship final. It has only gained little redemption in reaching the Champions Trophy final here.
Last fall’s test series is vital on another account. Mitchell Santner led New Zealand’s bowling attack with sizzling performances in Pune and Mumbai, as India got stumped against spin at home.
Santner is now the Black Caps’ ODI skipper and has led them to the final — where spin is again expected to hold the key.
The square at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium has progressively slowed down. Australia’s 264 in the first semifinal was the highest first innings’ total here in the Champions Trophy — chased down by India with 11 balls to spare.
When India and New Zealand clashed here in their group game last Sunday, the ball hardly bounced up more than the knee in the second innings. Spin, thus, will play a key role in determining the outcome of this final.
Rohit Sharma started the tournament with three spinners and brought in Varun Chakravarthy with Mohammed Shami and all-rounder Hardik Pandya as the only pace options. It has worked well — Chakravarthy took seven wickets in two games; Indian spinners have picked 14 out of 20 wickets against New Zealand and Australia enroute to the final.
With spin taking precedence on a two-paced surface, certain batters from both sides will hold the spotlight. Virat Kohli (217 runs in four matches) and Kane Williamson (189 runs in four matches) will anchor their sides with strike rotation. Rachin Ravindra (226 runs in three matches) and Shreyas Iyer (195 runs in four matches) have higher strike rates, and their aggression will be key in setting up the innings.
“It could be a 300-run wicket or a 250-one,” Santner said on Saturday. “We have to go in with an open mind and adjust accordingly. There will be periods of sustained pressure on both sides.”
Advantage India?
India did not travel to host country Pakistan for security reasons and played all its group games, the semifinal and now the final too, in Dubai. Pakistan and the ICC didn’t think it best to split India’s games across other venues in the UAE for financial reasons.
Opinion is varied, even within India’s dressing room, if that’s given India an advantage.
“What undue advantage?” asked coach Gautam Gambhir after the semifinal victory over Australia. “We haven’t practiced here even for a day. We have practiced at the ICC Academy (in Dubai). Some people are just perpetual cribbers — they need to grow up.”
Shami, India’s lead pacer with eight wickets in four games, differed: “It definitely helped us because we know the conditions and behavior of the pitch.”
New Zealand, for its part, dominated the Pakistan leg of the Champions Trophy. It knocked out Pakistan and Bangladesh in the group games, and despite tiring journeys to-and-from Dubai, had enough gas in the tank to pummel South Africa in the Lahore semifinal.
“The weather has been a little shock — it jumped up 10 degrees in the last couple days,” Santner said. “We will get a run tonight and it will set us up for tomorrow.”
Roots of the rivalry
Nearly 25 years ago, Chris Cairns’ well-timed century in Nairobi powered New Zealand past India to win the ICC Knock Out Trophy, which later was renamed the Champions Trophy.
It remains the only limited-overs ICC trophy in New Zealand’s cabinet. The Black Caps did add another in 2021 — beating India in the World Test Championship final at Southampton. In between, the Men in Blue were stopped in their tracks at the semifinal stage of the 2019 Cricket World Cup, losing a two-day rain-affected semifinal to New Zealand at Manchester.
There have been a handful of other vital clashes between the two sides — in 2021, New Zealand knocked India out of the T20 World Cup. In 2023, India returned the favor — beating New Zealand in the semifinal at Mumbai, denying them a third straight final appearance in the Cricket World Cup.
India last won the Champions Trophy in 2013 — star players Rohit Sharma and Kohli were part of that winning group. Could it be a potential final ODI outing for the stars, if they manage to overturn the 2023 disappointment of losing to Australia in the final?
“There is no talk about retirement in the dressing room, now,” vice-captain Shubman Gill said. “Last time we could not win the 2023 World Cup. We are determined to win this time.”
Pogacar remounts after fall and charges to Strade Bianche win
- After victory in the Tuscany one-day race in 2022 and 2024, 26-year-old Pogacar now equals Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara’s record of three victories in the Strade Bianche
- Pogacar saw his rear wheel give way and ended up in a ditch after a spectacular spin
SIENA: Slovenia’s Tadej Pogacar won the Strade Bianche on Saturday for the third time in his career, after recovering from a fall 50km from the finish.
Pogacar of Team UAE topped the podium by 1min 24sec ahead of Briton Tom Pidcock, with Belgium’s Tim Wellens a further 48sec adrift.
After victory in the Tuscany one-day race in 2022 and 2024, 26-year-old Pogacar now equals Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara’s record of three victories in the Strade Bianche.
“Pretty good race today. The race was super fast. It was a really strong breakaway and our guys did super amazing work in the front,” said Pogacar who completed the 213km race in 5hr 13mins and 58secs.
“We just went fast and it was a really hard race.”
After falling off his bike at a corner on a descent, Pogacar displayed several cuts to his body with blood notably visible on his left shoulder.
“I enjoyed it until I crossed the finish line. Now I’m in adrenaline wear-off and I start to feel a lot of pain,” said the reigning world champion and Tour de France winner.
“Not the best way to win a race, but a win is a win. Let’s hope it’s nothing worse than it looks and all should be fine.
“I went too fast I guess. I know this road very well. I rode it already 20 times in my life,” added Pogacar, who had been leading at the time of his fall.
“For a moment I didn’t know if I was OK. The bike was not working so I had to change the bike.
“I was a bit worried because when you crash the body takes a lot from you. But still I had enough to finish it off.”
Pogacar saw his rear wheel give way and ended up in a ditch after a spectacular spin. But the three-time Tour de France champion quickly got up and resumed the race, with his jersey and shorts ripped.
He then found himself 32 seconds behind Team Q36.5’s Pidcock, but after a change of bike, he finally caught up with the 2023 winner 45km from the finish in Siena, after Pidcock had sportingly stopped to wait for him.
“When he crashed, of course, I carried on. I didn’t know what was happening, but then he was back on his bike, he was coming back, so of course I waited,” said Paris 2024 Olympic mountain bike gold medallist Pidcock.
“He’s a competitor, he’s a world champion, you respect that, you wait, regardless of whether he’s a world champion or not.
“You know, he made a mistake. This is not how you take advantage in a race.”
Pogacar dropped Pidcock at 18.8km thanks to a lightning-fast acceleration on one of the last difficulties, the Colle Pinzuto.
“Of course I wanted to try and win. I think I did a good performance, let’s be honest. I came pretty close,” said Pidcock.
“But he (Pogacar) was still too strong in this last attack of his. I’m happy, but at the same time, of course, disappointed.”
Pogacar will have to put any lingering pain from the fall swiftly behind him as his schedule starts to heat up, with Milan-San Remo two weeks away on March 22.
Alongside Paris-Roubaix, it is one of the two Monuments that the Slovenian has yet to win and is his main objective at the start of this 2025 season.
Dembele hits double as PSG win ahead of Liverpool return
- Bradley Barcola and Goncalo Ramos had PSG 2-0 up in Brittany before Lilian Brassier pulled one back for Rennes
- Dembele netted twice in stoppage time to seal the victory for the visitors
PARIS: Ousmane Dembele scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain warmed up for the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Liverpool by winning 4-1 away to Rennes in Ligue 1 with a much-changed team on Saturday.
Bradley Barcola and Goncalo Ramos had PSG 2-0 up in Brittany before Lilian Brassier pulled one back for Rennes, but Dembele netted twice in stoppage time to seal the victory for the visitors.
The result allowed the Ligue 1 leaders to maintain their unbeaten record in domestic competition this season.
The Parisians are now a huge 16 points clear at the top before closest challengers Marseille play at home to Lens later.
Luis Enrique’s side were ultimately comfortable winners despite the coach making eight changes to his starting line-up in between the two legs of the Liverpool tie, with the return at Anfield coming up on Tuesday.
“We are in perfect condition to go and take on Liverpool. We have nothing to lose and we will give everything to try to qualify,” for the quarter-finals, said Luis Enrique.
“It was difficult but we put in a serious performance and it gives us lots of hope before going to Liverpool,” the Spaniard added of his team’s display.
Barcola, Joao Neves and Willian Pacho were the only players to keep their places for PSG against Rennes following the 1-0 home loss to Liverpool in the first leg last Wednesday.
Dembele was among the regular starters to be rested at kick-off, but he came off the bench just after the hour mark and the France forward’s double strike moves him onto 20 league goals for the campaign.
The player who began his career at Rennes has now scored 28 times in all competitions this season, including 23 goals in 18 appearances since mid-December.
Rennes came into the game on a run of four wins in five outings to climb up into mid-table after Habib Beye replaced Jorge Sampaoli as coach at the end of January.
However, PSG went in front at Roazhon Park on 27 minutes as Desire Doue, another former Rennes player, quickly took a free-kick just inside the home half and released Barcola to run through and score his 18th goal of the season.
Teenage forward Mohamed Kader Meite almost equalized for Rennes before the break, heading off the crossbar from Adrien Truffert’s cross.
Barcola then turned provider as PSG doubled their lead five minutes after half-time, squaring for Ramos — one of those brought into the starting line-up — to net his 13th this season in all competitions.
Center-back Brassier pulled one back for Rennes shortly after, heading in from close range after a corner had been flicked on.
However, Luis Enrique then sent on the cavalry, with Dembele, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Achraf Hakimi all coming off the bench for the latter stages.
PSG made sure of the points as Hakimi ran through on goal before unselfishly squaring for Dembele to make it 3-1 in the first minute of stoppage time at the end of the game.
Dembele then fired in his second and PSG’s fourth goal from the edge of the area in the 94th minute.
Elsewhere on Saturday, Lille were 1-0 winners at home to Montpellier in a game that fell in between the two legs of their Champions League last-16 tie against Borussia Dortmund.
Jonathan David scored the only goal of the game early in the second half, the Canadian netting his 14th of the campaign in Ligue 1.
Lille are fifth in the table, behind Monaco in fourth on goal difference.
They entertain Dortmund on Wednesday after drawing 1-1 in the first leg in Germany.
