HONG KONG: Australia and Iraq were in rampant goalscoring form on Tuesday as they both cruised into the next stage of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, while Son Heung-min’s South Korea are on the brink of joining them after beating Thailand.
Australia handed out a 5-0 drubbing to Lebanon in Canberra in Group I while Iraq progressed from Group F after brushing aside the Philippines by the same score in Manila.
In Group C, Son scored as South Korea look favorites to go through after a 3-0 win against Thailand in Bangkok, while China got their qualifying hopes back on track with a 4-1 win against Singapore.
Park Jin-seob and Lee Jae-sun joined the Tottenham Hotspur star on the scoresheet and South Korea now need only a draw in Singapore in June to go through.
Australia’s Craig Goodwin led his side to a fourth straight qualifying victory with two goals in a man-of-the-match performance, together with strikes from Kusini Yengi, John Iredale and an own goal.
“When I knew Craig Goodwin younger, he didn’t believe in himself like he does these days,” Australia coach Graham Arnold said of the 32-year-old, who also created the opener for Yengi and whose free-kick led to the own goal.
“He’s a top-quality player, but he’s a fantastic person and a great leader.
“His delivery, set pieces, is fantastic and his finishing, it’s just got better and better as he gets older.”
Palestine, their supporters in Gaza reeling from the Israel-Hamas war, gave themselves a great chance of going through with Australia by beating Bangladesh 1-0 in Dhaka.
Palestine just need a draw with third-placed Lebanon in their next match in June to guarantee their progress from Group I.
Aymen Hussein’s 14th-minute penalty set Iraq on their way against the Philippines, ranked 139th in the world.
Amir Al Ammari’s goal and a second from center-forward Hussein gave the visitors a 3-0 half-time lead.
They completed the job with second-half strikes from Zidane Iqbal and Zaid Tahseen to make it four wins out of four in qualifying.
Indonesia beat Vietnam 3-0 in Hanoi in the group’s other game.
In Tianjin, China moved into second place in Group C behind South Korea after hammering Singapore 4-1 thanks to new captain Wu Lei’s double, Fei Nanduo’s second-half penalty and a late goal from Wei Shihao.
Wu took over the armband from Zhang Linpeng who was left out of the starting line-up by coach Branko Ivankovic.
Zhang had quit the national side after China threw away a two-goal lead in the 2-2 draw in Singapore last week, only to make an abrupt U-turn.
Wu put China ahead in the 21st minute, running on to Zhang Yuning’s through ball before deftly chipping the onrushing Singapore goalkeeper Hassan Sunny.
But the lead lasted only seconds as Singapore broke down the right straight from the restart with Ryhan Stewart crossing for Faris Ramli to power a header past Wang Dalei.
Fei restored the lead from the spot on 65 minutes.
China finished the match with 10 men after Li Yuanyi was given a straight red card for a foul in the 79th minute.
But Wu cut in from the left and lashed home five minutes from time before Wei scored the fourth.
The top two from each of the nine Asian groups will advance to the third round of 2026 World Cup qualifying.
Five-goal Australia, Iraq advance in Asia World Cup qualifying
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Five-goal Australia, Iraq advance in Asia World Cup qualifying
- Australia handed out a 5-0 drubbing to Lebanon in Canberra in Group I while Iraq progressed from Group F after brushing aside the Philippines by the same score in Manila
- In Group C, Son scored as South Korea look favorites to go through after a 3-0 win against Thailand in Bangkok, while China got their qualifying hopes back on track with a 4-1 win against Singapore
Egypt’s El Dafrawy riding momentum into PFL MENA
- The 29-year-old will face Kuwait’s Mohammad Alaqraa on Nov. 29 for the Welterweight title honors
RIYADH: Egyptian Welterweight standout Omar El Dafrawy is heading into the first PFL MENA Championships in Riyadh on Nov. 29 with plenty of momentum.
The 29-year old comes in off the biggest win of his career, a stunning upset victory over title favorite and Middle Eastern MMA icon Jarrah Al-Selawe at the PFL MENA Playoffs back in September.
Now he is set to meet a familiar foe in Kuwait’s Mohammad Alaqraa, this time for the inaugural PFL MENA Welterweight Championship.
Apart from a spot in the championship bout, the win over Al-Selawe has given El Dafrawy a massive confidence boost, one he will need when he steps inside the SmartCage to face the undefeated Alaqraa.
“I don’t fear any fighter, whether it’s Alaqraa or anyone else,” El Dafrawy said. “I’ve defeated the best fighter in the Middle East in just three minutes, so stepping inside the SmartCage is something I’m completely used to.”
While that may sound somewhat arrogant, El Dafrawy maintains none of that stems from his huge win over two-division champion Al-Selawe.
“There’s no arrogance after beating Jarrah, who was a top contender for the title,” he said. “I’m a fighter who strictly follows the game plan set by my coaching staff, that’s how I beat Jarrah.”
While Alaqraa was victorious in their first meeting back in 2023, El Dafrawy claims it will be a different result second time around.
“I am a completely different fighter from the one Alaqraa faced in our first bout,” he said. “Back then, I wasn’t mentally ready and was going through some difficult personal circumstances. Now, the situation is entirely different, and I’m ready to give my best in the finals. I hope Alaqraa does the same.”
With a championship on the line and a possible pathway into the PFL’s million-dollar global tournament, the stakes are definitely higher in this matchup.
“Alaqraa doesn’t know who he’ll be facing on Nov. 29. I’ve become a completely different fighter with many surprises. No matter how much he studies my previous fights, he won’t be able to predict what I’ll do,” El Dafrawy added.
“He’ll see for himself in the cage.”
The complete PFL MENA Championships fight card:
PFL MENA Featherweight Championship: Abdelrahman Alhyasat (5-0) vs. Abdullah Al-Qahtani (9-2)
PFL MENA Welterweight Championship: Mohammad Alaqraa (7-0) vs. Omar El Dafrawy (12-6)
Amateur Women’s Atomweight Bout: Hattan Alsaif vs. Lilia Osmani
PFL MENA Bantamweight Championship: Ali Taleb (11-1) vs. Rachid El Hazoume (15-3)
PFL MENA Lightweight Championship: Mohsen Mohammadseifi (6-1) vs. Georges Eid (10-4)
Showcase Fights:
Lightweight MENA Showcase: Mansour Barnaoui (21-6) vs. Alfie Davis (17-4-1)
Heavyweight MENA Showcase: Slim Trabelsi (7-0) vs. Abraham Bably (5-0)
Featherweight Global Showcase: Jesus Pinedo (23-6-1) vs. Jeremy Kennedy (19-4)
Featherweight Global Showcase: Asael Adjoudj (8-1) vs. Jose Perez (9-1)
Middleweight Global Showcase: Costello van Steenis (15-3) vs. Joao Dantas (7-1)
Michael Thorbjornsen and Maverick McNealy share lead in PGA Tour finale
- The RSM Classic is the final tournament of the year, and the focus is on the top 125 — this is the final year the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings earn card
ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Georgia: Michael Thorbjornsen is over his knee surgery and shed the brace in time to post an 8-under 64 on the Plantation course Thursday and share the lead to par with fellow Stanford alum Maverick McNealy at the season-ending RSM Classic on the PGA Tour.
McNealy had an 8-under 62 on the Seaside course at Sea Island, which was more exposed to the chilly wind that ripped through the Golden Isles.
Thorbjornsen wasn’t the most prominent player with knee issues and a brace. Ludvig Aberg, the No. 5 player in the world, had not competed since the Tour Championship, taking time off for meniscus surgery and returning to the site where he tied the PGA Tour’s 72-hole scoring record.
That record appears safe, at least from him. Aberg’s flawless swing looked strong as ever. It was the short game — chipping and putting — that held him back in his round of 73 at Seaside.
“It was hard. Obviously, it was a rough day,” Aberg said. “It was a lot of rust I felt like, but I also felt like the good was pretty good but the bad was really bad. A little bit of everything today, but all in all, pretty happy to be back playing golf again.”
Ditto for Thorbjornsen, who earned a card as the top-ranked player in PGA Tour University. He was going along well until he felt a pop in his knee while getting ready for the Black Desert Championship in Utah in early October.
He thought he could walk it off until he could hardly walk at all. It turned out to be sprained ligaments in his left knee, which required time off instead of surgery. He returned without missing a step, thankful to no longer be wearing a thick brace.
“It’s actually kind of funny, I was practicing with Ludvig a little bit back in Sawgrass and we both had like matching left knee braces,” Thorbjornsen said. “It was a little embarrassing. I think this is my third day playing without the brace on, so it feels good.”
The RSM Classic is the final tournament of the year, and the focus is on the top 125 — this is the final year the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings earn cards.
The PGA Tour put together Zac Blair (No. 123), Joel Dahmen (No. 124) and Wesley Bryan (No. 125). Bryan had a 70 on the Plantation, Dahmen damaged his hopes with a 73 and Blair came in with a 72.
The other key number is to finish between No. 51 and No. 60 in the FedEx Cup, which would earn spots in $20 million signature events at Pebble Beach and Riviera early next year.
McNealy has done enough to secure those spots. He was more interested in how swing changes are taking effect, and he had some impressive moments. McNealy chipped in from behind the 15th green for eagle. What got his attention were two shots that led to par considering the strong wind on the exposed Seaside course.
He started on No. 10, which during practice was a driver over the bunkers and a sand wedge to the green. With the wind, he couldn’t cover the bunkers and was left a 5-iron to the green.
“Just had to hit two great shots in the middle of the green,” he said.
On his closing hole, the ninth, he faced a hard wind off the right.
“I just steepened left and was able to hit the window (of his target) and spin that ball a little bit left-to-right to hold the wind, and that’s a shot I wasn’t very comfortable with six months ago,” McNealy said.
Andrew Novak, coming off a runner-up finish in Bermuda, had a 7-under 65 on Plantation. Given his location a week ago in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, where gusts came close to 50 mph, he felt Sea Island was a breeze.
“Today wasn’t as windy as Bermuda and I felt like I could get after some putts and got some to go in,” Novak said.
Arsenal, Man City and Bayern advance to Women’s Champions League quarterfinals
- Arsenal, Bayern and City join Chelsea, Lyon and Real Madrid in the quarterfinals
- Two-time defending champions Barcelona routed Austrian champion St. Polten 4-1
LONDON: Arsenal, Manchester City and Bayern Munich all advanced to the Women’s Champions League quarterfinals with with two games to spare on Thursday.
Late substitute Lina Hurtig scored the winner in Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Juventus in London.
Khadija Shaw scored twice for City in a 2-1 win at Swedish club Hammarby. City stayed perfect in Group D with four victories and reached the last eight for the first time since 2021.
Bayern Munich was held 1-1 at Vålerenga in Norway and still earned a quarterfinal berth after Juventus’ loss.
Arsenal, Bayern and City join Chelsea, Lyon and Real Madrid in the quarterfinals.
Two-time defending champions Barcelona routed Austrian champion St. Polten 4-1. The Catalan club trails City by three points in their group and is in a strong position to advance.
Bayern tops Group C with 10 points, Arsenal has nine followed by Juventus (3) and Vålerenga (1).
Back to winning
Man City responded to their first loss of the season, 2-0 at Chelsea in the Women’s Super League on Saturday.
Still without injured star Vivianne Miedema, Shaw took charge, proving her scoring instincts after half an hour.
The forward scored from inside the penalty area with a deflected shot that flew over goalkeeper Anna Tamminen to frustrate more than 20,000 noisy fans at the Stockholm Arena in the Swedish capital.
Ellen Wangerheim equalized soon after the interval from close range to rejuvenate the crowd but Shaw struck again to restore the lead just minutes later.
This time, she delivered a powerful right-footed finish from the edge of the area.
Bayern and Harder contained
Bayern dominated possession but could not translate it into goals until the 75th minute. It had to rely on substitute Jovana Damnjanovic, who gave the visitors a late lead after connecting on a pass from Giulia Gwinn.
The Norwegians, who have retained their domestic title, equalized in the 88th on Elize Thorsnes’ header following a corner.
Pernille Harder, who found the back of the net five times for Bayern in the previous three games, could not do it again on Thursday and was substituted.
Hurtig’s night
Hurtig came on with 10 minutes remaining and made her presence immediately felt with several headers.
She finally made the breakthrough with a minute remaining in regulation, tapping in from close range after Juventus’ poor clearance of a low cross by Stina Blackstenius.
Hurtig won the Italian title with Juventus in 2021 and 2022 before joining the Gunners.
Juventus seemed to learn a lesson from its 4-0 loss to Arsenal last week as its defense held firm till Hurtig’s arrival.
Putellas scores her 200th Barcelona goal
In an 11-minute span in the first half, Francisca Nazareth netted twice and 18-year-old Vicky Lopez scored once to put Barcelona in control.
Nazareth’s double was followed by Lopez hitting the third with a shot high into the net for her first Champions League goal.
Alexia Putellas made it 4-0 in the second half, finishing a fast attack that tore apart the defense in Vienna. It was her 200th goal for Barcelona and the 100th the club scored in the Champions League’s group stage.
Valentina Madl, an 18-year-old forward, netted a consolation goal for the hosts.
Barcelona have scored 20 goals in its past three games and can still become the first club to win its group in all four years since the introduction of the format.
Ohtani, Judge are unanimous choices for MLB MVP awards
- Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani captures the National League MVP award
- His second MVP award in a row and third in four years after winning the American League version in 2021 and 2023
NEW YORK: Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge were named unanimous choices for Major League Baseball’s 2024 Most Valuable Player awards on Thursday.
After a historic campaign that ended with his first World Series title, Ohtani captured the National League MVP award, his second MVP award in a row and third in four years after winning the American League version in 2021 and 2023 with the Los Angeles Angels.
“I take this MVP as I’m just representing the Dodgers,” Ohtani said through a translator. “It was a complete team effort. I wouldn’t have been able to receive this award if it weren’t for my teammates.”
Ohtani became only the second player in MLB history to have captured MVP awards in both leagues after Frank Robinson, who won the 1961 NL MVP with Cincinnati and the 1966 AL MVP with Baltimore.
Ohtani was the first player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in the same season.
The 30-year-old Japanese standout and Judge, who won the 2022 AL MVP, each received all 30 first-place votes from a media panel.
It was only the second time both MVPs were unanimous selections after last year when Ohtani won in the AL and Ronald Acuna Jr. in the NL.
Ohtani is the first designated hitter to capture an MLB MVP award. He won the past two in a dual role as a pitcher and batter but spent this season recovering from an injury that kept him off the mound.
Resuming his pitching role in 2025 is a goal, Ohtani said.
“My focus is just to get back healthy, come back stronger, get back on the mound and then show everybody what I can do,” Ohtani said.
Ohtani, who signed a record 10-year deal worth $700 million with the Dodgers last December, sparked the team’s run to the World Series crown, beating the Yankees in the best-of-seven final.
“The ultimate goal from the beginning was to win a World Series, which we were able to accomplish,” Ohtani said. “The next goal is for me to do it again.
“Right now I’m in the middle of rehab and working out and getting stronger and I’m looking forward to next season so we can run it back.”
Ohtani had a .310 batting average with an NL-best 54 home runs and batted in 130 runs while stealing 59 bases over 159 regular-season games.
“I didn’t have specific number goals, but I did want to improve my stolen base numbers,” Ohtani said.
“I don’t strive going into the season to get the MVP award. I was more focused on being one of the guys with the new team.”
Ohtani became the leadoff hitter in the batting order midway into the campaign to spark improvement for the club at the plate.
“I didn’t really change my approach,” he said. “It was more staying within my same game plan, trying to be aggressive on the bases and just do the best I could.”
Judge, a 32-year-old American slugger, batted .322 with 122 runs scored, 36 doubles, 58 homers, 144 RBIs and 133 walks in 158 games this past season – leading MLB in homers, walks and runs batted in.
“It means a lot,” Judge said of a second MVP trophy. “It’s a lot of hard work in the off-season, a lot of ups and downs during the season.
“I wouldn’t be in this position without my teammates, all the coaching we had this year – it’s such a blessing.”
The Yankees’ World Series loss to the Dodgers is already inspiring Judge’s efforts for next season.
“It makes you want more,” Judge said. “It makes you wake up early and get things going already in the off-season to put yourself back in that position and change the outcome next year.”
Team selection sparks debate in Australia’s Davis Cup quarterfinal victory over USA in Malaga
- From strategy to mind games, captains pull out all the stops in search of the perfect lineup
If there ever was a tie that perfectly depicted the complexities of team selection at the Davis Cup Final 8, Thursday’s quarterfinal between Australia and USA would be a strong candidate.
In a clash between two powerhouse nations in the history of the competition, Australia narrowly defeated USA 2-1 by clinching the deciding doubles at the Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga.
Both teams have deep benches with multiple options for singles and doubles, which sounds like a blessing for Australia captain Lleyton Hewitt and USA captain Bob Bryan. But it can also be a tricky situation that may ultimately require a little bit of luck to pan out the way you want it to be. And if it doesn’t work out, it puts the captain in the hot seat with the pressure to justify his or her selections.
In the competition’s current format, each team in Davis Cup is allowed a maximum of five players. In the knockout stage – the Final 8 – a tie consists of two singles matches and a doubles match, which is only played if the opposing teams split the two singles. Captains are required to submit their selections for the full slate of matches one hour before the start of a tie, not knowing, of course, who their opponents will be picking.
The first singles has to feature players that are ranked lower than the ones nominated for the second singles within each team.
On Thursday morning, Bob Bryan gave Ben Shelton his Davis Cup debut in the first singles, fielded his top player Taylor Fritz in the second singles, and initially selected experienced doubles pair Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek – silver medallists at the Paris 2024 Olympics – for the potential deciding doubles.
Hewitt went for Thanasi Kokkinakis in the first singles, Alex de Minaur in the second, and Matthew Ebden (Olympic doubles gold medallist) and Jordan Thompson (US Open doubles champion) for the doubles.
The first singles was an interesting choice from both captains with Shelton being the third-highest ranked singles player on his team – behind Fritz and Tommy Paul – and Kokkinakis being Australia’s fourth man behind De Minaur, Alexei Popyrin, and Thompson.
World No.77 Kokkinakis eked out a 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(16/14) victory over world No.21 Shelton to give Australia the opening point of the tie, saving four match points and needing seven of his own to close it.
Kokkinakis later said the Australians were under the assumption that Paul would have been his opponent in that match, not Shelton.
“I hadn't seen Ben the last two days. I saw Tommy earlier at breakfast, so I thought he was maybe going to play. He warmed up with Taylor earlier. It was a surprise to me,” Kokkinakis added.
Fritz, the world No. 4, levelled the tie for USA by defeating De Minaur for the second time in eight days (he also beat the Aussie at the ATP Finals last Thursday).
When Fritz spoke to reporters after the match, he was asked if there were any mind games that went into the decision to put Shelton and not Paul in the opening singles.
“I don't think we're really playing too many mind games. We thought Popyrin was going to play,” said Fritz, noting that Kokkinakis was not the obvious choice given he is ranked some 50 spots lower than Popyrin.
“But I think sometimes you can almost do the wrong thing if you get too deep into the mind games. Look, I see why they played Thanasi. He had some big wins for them in the last stage. Maybe he felt like he was playing the best in practice.
“You know, I just got here (from the ATP Finals in Turin). Everyone else was here before me. But from what I heard, everyone felt like Ben was playing really great in practice, so that's why we wanted to put Ben in.”
Fritz dismissed the idea that any mind games were involved that morning and believes it was all about match-ups. The American was one of the last to arrive to Malaga, having competed in the final in Turin on Sunday, and ideally would have been rested for Thursday’s clash against the Aussies.
“But if I don't play, then it's Tommy, and Tommy plays (in the No. 1 spot) and Ben plays second, and if Demon (De Minaur) is playing, which we found out he was, then Demon's record is very good on Tommy, so, okay, I should play this one,” he explained.
“There is more strategic stuff going on in terms of how you think you match up to who the other team is going to play.
“I think in today's situation, both teams just picked off of who they felt was playing well this week.”
Moments after Fritz finished his press conference, it was announced that USA made a last-minute change in nomination for the doubles, which is only permitted for the doubles after a tie is taken to 1-1. Instead of the obvious choice of doubles specialists Ram and Krajicek, who won silver together at the Paris Olympics, Bryan changed his lineup to pair Paul and Shelton together.
They ended up losing 6-4, 6-4 to Ebden and Thompson.
Bryan said they spent 15 minutes discussing the selection between the second singles and the doubles match before making the decision to partner Shelton with Paul.
The reason behind the last-minute switcheroo?
“Thompson, obviously US Open champion, finals of Wimbledon, a very accomplished doubles player. Matt Ebden won the Olympics. Matt Ebden has seen Rajeev and Austin play a bunch in the last couple of years, and he hasn't seen too much of Ben and Tommy,” said the USA captain.
“It was a tactical thing trying to take them by surprise. Ben was obviously on the court for three hours earlier in the day, so you find rhythm out there. Tommy, you saw what he did at the Olympics (winning bronze alongside Fritz in men’s doubles). We all respect his doubles. We took a shot at it.”
It was a particularly interesting choice given Bryan was a world No. 1 doubles specialist during his playing days and may have opted for a traditional doubles selection instead of going for two singles players.
“As a captain, you have to make tough decisions,” he said. “I had a lot of information behind the decision. We have been here for six days practicing. We know how everyone is feeling, and we know a lot about the opponents that we're playing. It's a world of analytics.
“This wasn't a black-and-white decision. It was razor-thin edge and we went with it. We knew it could have turned out like it did, because we're playing a tough team. But I don't regret anything about this.”
Bryan says he is “fortunate” to have so much talent to select from when it comes to the US Davis Cup team but “that makes my decisions a little bit tougher, because we are leaving some great guys at home. Frances Tiafoe made the semis of the Open, finals in Cincinnati. He's at home,” he stated.
“Unfortunately, there's not a lot of roster spots. There is only five. I brought the five guys that I thought would have the best chance to win this Davis Cup, and even after today's result, I wouldn't go back and change anything.”
In Hewitt’s case, his decision to pick Kokkinakis over Popyrin or Thompson in the opening singles paid off, and the Aussie captain said he had “full belief” in him going in.
Kokkinakis said he could make a case for any one of that trio to play in singles and he wouldn’t have been disheartened had he not been selected. But he also believed he could step up in this team format and deliver the victory.
“He was hitting it a treat all week leading in. He got what he deserved. He put a very tough training block in for us to get that win today, which was bloody important,” said Hewitt of Kokkinakis.
Hewitt said he was “not surprised” by USA’s change in doubles nomination and backed his own pair of Thompson and Ebden against any partnership.
Both Thompson and Ebden were competing in the ATP Finals doubles tournament last week in Turin but with different partners.
Thompson and Ebden took a few days to gel together in Malaga before delivering an important victory that has carried Australia into the Davis Cup semifinals.
Hewitt is a former world No. 1, who won the Davis Cup twice as a player, and has led Australia to the final in 2022 and 2023 as team captain.
In his playing days, the Davis Cup format was different and featured home and away ties played over three days, where teams were selected before the weekend of action began.
He openly dislikes the current format and says “it's not easy for everyone, to be honest”.
“There's a certain degree of strategy involved now, absolutely,” he added.
Spain captain David Ferrer had the daunting task earlier in the week of selecting his lineup for the hosts’ quarterfinal against the Netherlands. With Rafael Nadal announcing the Davis Cup would be the last tournament of his professional career, Ferrer selected the Spanish legend to play in the first singles over a player like Roberto Bautista Agut, who had far more match-play under his belt in comparison. Spain ended up losing 2-1 to the Dutch and were eliminated.
Ferrer stood by his decision to choose Nadal and dismissed the idea that it was a tough situation to manage.
“It wasn't difficult. In the end, I am the captain. I decide which players are going to play, and we knew that Holland, they have good players. And with this format never is easy,” said Ferrer.
There have been some bold and interesting decisions made on the Billie Jean King Cup side this fortnight in Malaga, many of which paid great dividends.
Tathiana Garbin captained her side to the title by making a key switch in singles from Elisabetta Cocciaretto, who lost her match in Italy’s quarterfinal win over Japan, to Lucia Bronzetti, who had never played a singles match in the BJK Cup before but won both her clashes, over Poland’s Magda Linette and Slovakia’s Viktoria Hruncakova, when she was called upon. Italy wouldn’t have won the Cup without her.
Japan’s Ena Shibahara, who is more experienced in doubles than singles, stepped up big time for Japan, taking the No. 1 singles spot in her side’s victory over Romania. Japan captain Ai Sugiyama had full faith in Shibahara, who went 2-0 in singles this week.
Team selection really is a delicate art and captains have to take so much into consideration before making a decision. Its highs and lows have been on full display in Malaga this week, and it will no doubt continue to spark plenty of debate moving forward.
