SAITAMA, Japan: Saudi Arabia failed to make any significant gains in World Cup qualifying after a tame 0-0 draw against Japan in front of 58,000 fans at Saitama Stadium on Tuesday.

Japan controlled the game from the start with patient possession football and the Saudi team struggled to create chances on a cool night in Saitama just north of Tokyo.

Saudi Arabia came under early pressure from the Japanese with left winger NAKAMURA Keita giving Saudi full back Muhannad Al Shanqiti a torrid time on Saudi Arabia’s left flank.

The Japanese team played controlled football with short passes and always had a player available. In contrast, the Saudis lacked ideas and when they did manage a break, there was little or no support, making Japan’s job of defending easy.

Japan’s best chance in the half came in the ninth minute when MAEDA Daizen latched on to a through ball and directed a shot against the right post.

Japan goalkeeper SUZUKI Zion had nothing to do except a single headed clearance outside the box.

Hassan Al Tambakti resorted to launching long balls from the back, but they made little impact on the Japanese defense.

KAMADA Daichi and Nakamura continued to cause problems down Saudi Arabia’s right side, setting up a couple of half-chances for Maeda who failed to capitalize.

Saudi Arabia’s best chance came in the 22nd minute when Nawaf Bu Washl crossed to the far post, but Al Shanqiti’s header flew over the bar.

KUBO Take fuss managed a couple of breaks down the right wing, but the final ball failed to trouble the Saudi defense.

It was no surprise when Saudi Arabia replaced Al Shanqiti with Ali Hassan Majrashi at halftime and he managed to leave his mark on Nakamura in the first minute of the half as well as making some tough tackles on the Japanese winger.

In the 56th minute, TANAKA Ao nearly caught out the Saudi defense with a ball over top, but it was just beyond the reach of Maeda, who came close again two minutes later.

Saudi manager Herve Renard brought on Ziyad Aljohani and Turki Alammar in the 60th minute while Japan replaced Kubo and SUGAWARA Yukinari with ITO Junya and DOAN Ritsu.

A great break by Salem Al Dawsari in the 66th minute came to nothing as he was crowded out and the Saudis continued to struggle to create any clearcut chances.

Kamada played in ITO the 82nd minute and Nawaf Al Aqidi did well to tip the shot over the bar. Three minutes later, substitute MINAMINO Takumi headed just wide from a HATATE Reo cross.

But there was little apparent urgency from both teams and even Japan with all their possession failed to create many clearcut chances.

DUBAI: Baseball United, the first professional baseball league focused on the Middle East and Indian subcontinent, has announced the official dates and schedule for its debut season.

The inaugural series will run from Nov. 14 to Dec. 14, with all games played at Baseball United Ballpark in Dubai. Following three signature baseball events over the last three years, Baseball United will now launch the first professional baseball season in the history of the region.

The season will feature the league’s founding four franchises — the Mumbai Cobras, Karachi Monarchs, Arabia Wolves and Mid East Falcons. The teams will each play nine regular season games, facing each other three times each, followed by a best of three United Series from Dec. 12 to determine the league champion. Overall, 21 games will be played over 30 days. 

“Our team has worked so hard, for so long, to make this news official,” said Kash Shaikh, Baseball United chairman, CEO and co-founder.

“We are so grateful for the support of our Dubai and UAE partners, our investors and all the fans around the world who’ve helped make BU the most well-known internationally based professional baseball league in the world. We’ve received all that support through several special events and big milestones since our launch in November of 2022. And now, we get to reward our fans with a full season. Everything starts small, but we believe this will be the beginning of a new chapter in baseball history.”

The season will begin with the Subcontinent Series from Nov. 14-16, with the Mumbai Cobras against the Karachi Monarchs. This will mark the first time Indian and Pakistani franchises have faced each other in baseball. The two countries — which between them have a population of some 1.8 billion — have one of the most passionate rivalries in all of sport. The highly anticipated India vs Pakistan cricket match in the ICC Champions Trophy last month garnered a record 600 million viewers — five times more than the Super Bowl.

The league will announce its official broadcast partners this summer, including television and digital streaming that will reach every country. 

Baseball United’s recent UAE Series event between the Arabia Wolves and Mid East Falcons was watched by 12 million unique viewers, including 3.3 million per game in Pakistan A Sports. The viewership numbers are more than any Major League Baseball regular season game played in the US last year.

With 2 billion people in the Middle East and South Asia — 1 billion of whom are cricket fans — Baseball United has a massive potential market.

Full rosters for the season will be announced later this spring. To date, 65 percent of Baseball United’s players were originally drafted by MLB teams, including eight-time All-Star Robinson Cano, four-time Gold Glover Andrelton Simmons and three-time World Series Champion, Pablo Sandoval.

Karan Patel — the first player of Indian descent to be drafted by an MLB team and the number one pick by the Mumbai Cobras in the league’s 2023 draft — will pitch for the Cobras, while former Atlanta Braves All-Star Jair Jurrjens will pitch for the Wolves. Each team will have 26 players.

Baseball United built its new ballpark at The Sevens sports and entertainment complex in Dubai in just 38 days last fall. Since then it has hosted the largest international amateur baseball tournament in the region’s history, the Arab Classic, along with last month’s UAE Series.