LONDON:Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker is expected to be sidelined for around six weeks with a hamstring injury, which would rule him out of matches against Chelsea and Arsenal.
The 32-year-old Brazil international was hurt during last weekend’s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace and went off late in the second half.
Reports in the British press say tests have shown Alisson is not likely to be fit to play until after next month’s international break.
That would mean the first match he would potentially be available for would be the trip to Southampton on November 24.
Arne Slot’s Premier League leaders face Chelsea on October 20 and Arsenal a week later, while their next two Champions League fixtures pit them against RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen.
Caoimhin Kelleher, who missed the Palace match through illness, will be expected to deputise, as he did last season when Alisson was ruled out with another hamstring injury.
Speaking after the victory at Crystal Palace, Slot predicted a lengthy lay-off for his number one goalkeeper.
“We have to wait and see but it will be a few weeks for him to be back. I think it is, yes (his hamstring),” he said.
“He’s clearly our number one, he’s the best goalkeeper in the world. It’s always a blow when he gets injured, not only for him but us as a team.”
Liverpool have 18 points from seven Premier League matches — one more than defending champions Manchester City and Arsenal.
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson set for six weeks out
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Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson set for six weeks out
Record-breaking Joe Root hits hundred as England’s power to 351-3 against Pakistan
- All three Pakistani pacers, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Aamer Jamal, have taken one wicket each
- 33-year-old Root has become England’s highest run scorer in Tests, and the fifth highest of all time in the world
MULTAN: Joe Root hit a magnificent hundred on Wednesday to guide England to 351-3 at tea on the third day of the opening Test against Pakistan in Multan after breaking Alastair Cook’s Test runs record.
The 33-year-old became England’s highest run scorer in Tests, and the fifth highest of all time, when he drove Pakistan seamer Aamer Jamal for a straight boundary to reach 71 just before lunch.
In the second session he reverse swept spinner Abrar Ahmed for a single to reach his 35th Test hundred – the sixth most by any batsman – before going to the interval on an imperious 119 not out.
Harry Brook scored his 10th Test half century and was 64 not out, leaving England 205 behind Pakistan’s first innings total of 556. Root has so far notched eight fours to Brook’s seven.
Root and Brook’s fourth-wicket stand has so far yielded 102 runs as a flat Multan stadium pitch continued to give no assistance to the bowlers.
Root added 136 for the third wicket with Ben Duckett who made a robust 84 with 11 boundaries, showing no effect of a thumb dislocation on Tuesday that forced him to bat at number four.
Duckett was the only man dismissed in the post-lunch session, trapped leg-before by seamer Aamer Jamal after hitting 11 boundaries.
All three Pakistan fast bowlers, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Jamal have taken one wicket each.
It was a day to remember for Root, who took 268 innings and 147 Tests to go past his former captain Cook’s total of 12,472 runs from 161 Tests in a glorious career that ended in 2018.
Root also added 109 for the second wicket with Zak Crawley, who hit 13 fours in an 85-ball 78 but departed early on the third morning.
In the fourth over, Crawley failed to keep a flick down off pace bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi and was caught at the second attempt by Jamal at mid-wicket.
Duckett started with trademark aggression, taking five boundaries off spinner Abrar and completing his 10th Test half-century off just 45 balls.
It enabled Root to accumulate steadily at the other end as he brought up his 65th Test fifty off 76 balls before being applauded by a handful of England fans and teammates in the dressing room when he broke Cook’s record.
The all-time list is headed by India’s Sachin Tendulkar with 15,921 from 200 matches.
Cook tipped Root to eclipse Tendulkar’s mark.
“I can see him overhauling Sachin Tendulkar’s record,” the former England opening batsman said during commentary on BBC radio.
“You could say Sachin is still the favorite but just.
“I don’t see that happening for Root to lose that hunger and ability to keep driving himself forward for the next couple of years.”
Turki Alalshikh reveals undercard for December’s Ring of Fire Reignited
RIYADH: Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority, has confirmed the undercard for the Ring of Fire Reignited fight between heavyweights Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury at Kingdom Arena, Riyadh.
One of the showpiece events of Riyadh Season 2024, the undercard for the colossal Usyk-Fury rematch on Dec. 21 is certainly one that is fitting for a fight of this billing.
Former WBA light-middleweight champion Israil Madrimov returns to action at Riyadh Season as he looks to bounce back following his points defeat to Terence Crawford in Los Angeles against Serhii Bohachuk, who narrowly lost out to Vergil Ortiz in an epic battle by majority decision last time out.
Heavyweight Moses Itauma is also confirmed, having featured on the original Ring of Fire card back in May when he won the vacant WBO Intercontinental heavyweight title following a second-round stoppage victory against Germany’s Ilja Mezencev, retaining his title with another second-round stoppage against Mariusz Wach.
His opponent for December will be Australian fighter Demsey McKean, back in action after a 22-fight winning run was brought to an end by Filip Hrgovic last year.
In another heavyweight battle, Johnny Fisher will look to extend his explosive knockout streak against Dave Allen, coming off his second points win of the year.
Elsewhere, Dennis McCann puts his unbeaten record on the line against Peter McGrail, who recently produced arguably the best win of his professional career against Brad Foster, while Isaac Lowe is back at Kingdom Arena, where he secured a fourth straight win against Hasibullah Ahmadi on points during May’s Ring of Fire undercard.
Lowe will take on Lee McGregor, the former British and European bantamweight champion.
Aryna Sabalenka relishes ‘much-needed’ tennis rivalry with Iga Swiatek
- Top-ranked Iga Swiatek is absent from the field in Wuhan and withdrew from the China swing after splitting with her coach
- Sabalenka has a chance to close the gap on the Polish world number one with a strong run in Wuhan
WUHA, China: World number two Aryna Sabalenka said Wednesday that she believes her rivalry with top-ranked Iga Swiatek is “much-needed” in women’s tennis.
The Belarusian advanced to the Wuhan Open third round with her 50th victory of the season, 6-4, 6-4 against Katerina Siniakova.
Swiatek is absent from the field in Wuhan and withdrew from the China swing after splitting with her coach of three years Tomasz Wiktorowski.
Sabalenka has a chance to close the gap on the Polish world number one with a strong run in Wuhan, with the battle for the top spot likely to come down to the wire at the season-ending championships in Riyadh next month.
“Having this rivalry with Iga is something big for tennis and something much-needed, I would say, in women’s tennis.
“To keep this competition going would be really good for tennis,” said Sabalenka, who will next face Yulia Putintseva in the last 16.
Sabalenka, 26, spent eight weeks at the summit of the rankings last season and says reclaiming the world number one spot is one of her biggest goals.
“I hope she’ll figure out the coach situation and she’ll be back in the finals in her best shape.
“Hopefully we can play against each other there in... a fight for world number one.”
Coco Gauff followed up her China Open title in Beijing on Sunday with a smooth 6-1, 6-2 win over Viktoriya Tomova.
Gauff has a seven-match win streak and faces 13th seed Marta Kostyuk in the last 16.
Kostyuk received a walkover after her opponent Amanda Anisimova withdrew with a left hip injury.
“Both mentally and physically I’m a little tired, if I’m being honest,” said Gauff. “But when I got on the court, I felt fine.
“How I approached Beijing, I was like, I want to approach this how I would play tennis as a kid.
“Sometimes I try to go back into that mindset and realize at the end of the day this is my dream now, and it was my dream as a kid.
“If I don’t want to do it for myself now, I can definitely do it for myself then.”
Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova crashed out to American qualifier and world number 102 Hailey Baptiste 6-3, 7-5 in just 94 minutes.
Seventh seed Krejcikova let a 3-1 lead slip in the opening set, as well as a 5-3 advantage in the second.
The 22-year-old Baptiste will next take on Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova for a place in the quarter-finals.
Saudi Arabia pays for naming rights to Atletico Madrid's stadium for 9 years
MADRID: Saudi Arabia has consolidated its branding push with Atletico Madrid by paying for naming rights to the Spanish club’s stadium for the next nine years.
Atletico, which has been sponsored by Riyadh Air since last season, said Wednesday that its Metropolitano stadium will be known as the Riyadh Air Metropolitano henceforth until 2033.
Atletico did not say how much it was receiving for the new agreement “which makes the Saudi Arabian company the most important sponsor in the club’s history.”
The deal for shirt sponsorship from 2023-27 was already worth a reported 40 million euros a season to the club.
“The final installation of the new name of the stadium on the main, northeast and southeast facades will take place in the next few weeks,” Atletico said.
The establishment of Riyadh Air was announced by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in March 2023. It is yet to begin commercial operations.
Top tennis player Sinner to face Medvedev in Shanghai Masters quarter-finals
- Jannik Sinner put some old demons to rest in overcoming American Ben Shelton 6-4, 7-6 (7/1)
- Medvedev and Sinner have met four times this year already in the final stages of tournaments
SHANGHAI: World number one Jannik Sinner will face Daniil Medvedev in the Shanghai Masters quarter-finals, after both had straight sets victories on Wednesday.
Sinner put some old demons to rest in overcoming American Ben Shelton 6-4, 7-6 (7/1), while Medvedev took out Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.
Shelton, ranked 16, knocked Sinner out at the same stage last year, but on Wednesday the Italian looked confident from the start as he won in 88 minutes.
The US Open champion pulled ahead in the ninth game of the first set, breaking when Shelton hit long, then dominated the second set tiebreak.
“It was very tough, you don’t have so much control when you play against him... I just tried to stay strong mentally,” said Sinner.
World number five Medvedev and Tsitsipas were meeting for the 14th time.
Tsitsipas started the second set strongly, breaking in the first game, but Medvedev broke in the fourth and eighth to progress.
Medvedev and Sinner have met four times this year already in the final stages of tournaments.
Sinner beat Medvedev in the semifinals at Miami, the quarter-finals at the US Open and in the Australian Open final, but the Russian ended the Italian’s hopes in the last eight at Wimbledon in an epic five-set battle.
Also in action on Wednesday are world number two Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Sinner in the China Open final a week ago, four-time Shanghai champion Novak Djokovic and world number three Alexander Zverev.
