Saturday Sport: Kohli, Cricket, Buckeyes

Amid statements by India's Virat Kohli that his team would not put up by any shenanigans by Australia's selection, India's T20I squad began their tour of Australia, foreseen to be four matches in total.  You may recall that T20 includes a "limited overs" format, with twenty sets of six pitches being bowled by each side.  This means that a match can be played, and completed,  within a few hours.

Kohli said before the series began, that his team would not brook anything from the opposing team, that challenged the India players' self respect.  Australia took the first match last week, but have been challenged currently.  

In the second match, Australia's batsmen were humbled by a disciplined Indian display in the field before persistent rain forced the abandonment of play at a soggy Melbourne Cricket Grounds, leaving the hosts one up in the series with a final match still to play in Sydney on Sunday.

Following a day of heavy showers and high winds in Melbourne, the skies cleared enough for the match to commence on time, as Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Krunal Pandya restricted the Australians after Virat Kohli sent the home side in to bat.

Only Ben McDermott, with an intelligent, unbeaten 32, was able to make much of an impression, before the return of the rain forced an early end to Austrlaia's innings. From there, a series of showers washed over the ground, stopping often enough to have the target revised four times under DLS calculations. The match was finally called off at 9.57pm local time when a final burst of rain ruled out the latest possible restart of 10.02pm for a chase of 46 in five overs.

Meanwhile, Pakistan and New Zealand are amid a three test series being played in Dubai.  

College Football Fans may want to tune into the annual blood bath rivalry game between Michigan and Ohio State, this year played at Ohio Stadium.  Both teams have equal records at 10 and 1.  Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh looks for his first coaching victory over the Buckeyes of Ohio State, while Urban Meyer is 6-0 against the Michigan Wolverines.

Much is on the line in that game today for both Big 10 and wider championship implications.  

For the non Football addicted, Ohio State has a great marching band.  

Saturday Sport: Baseball Climax, EuroSoccer

Cricket:  Pakistan Bowls Over Australia.  

Mohammed Abbas helped himself to a 10-wicket match-haul as Pakistan completed a series-clinching win over Australia in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Pakistan currently uses the Mideastern Emirates as their "home" territory.  The seam bowler took five wickets in all on Friday, as the hosts made light work of the Australians at Zayed Cricket Stadium.  The beleaguered tourists were bowled out for 164, meaning they fell to a 373-run defeat.

To make matters worse for Australia, they have confirmed Usman Khawaja has suffered a torn meniscus, and may require surgery.  The left-handed opener has been arguably Australia’s only success story on this tour, after his heroics in saving the first Test in Dubai.  His injury means he is now a doubt for the start of their home series against India.

After Australia's scandal of a few months ago, they are struggling to rebuild, playing as they are without a few of their recent standouts.  Their losses in the UAE to a clearly superior Pakistan mean they have some distance to go before they are ready to host India's tour of Australia next month.  

In the United States the Baseball season is coming to a thrilling conclusion.  The Boston Red Sox clinched the American League Penant on Thursday night, advancing to the World Series after defeating the defending champion Houston Astros 4-1.  David Price shut out Houston on the mound, while the Boston offense delivered a pair of homers as the Red Sox locked up a berth in the World Series for the first time since 2013.  That year they bested the St. Louis Cardinals in six games, taking the World Championship. 

 

The Red Sox will face either the Los Angeles Dodgers or Milwaukee Brewers in Major League Baseball's championship showcase, which begins on Tuesday. Late Friday the Brewers tied their series 3-3 at home, leading to their sudden death, winner take all game on Saturday in Milwaukee.  The Brewers played well, and dominated, winning 7-2. 

In European Soccer, the international break is coming to an end, as players leave behind their national teams and return to their pro teams.  Two of last season’s champions are not faring well, Germany's Bayern Munich and Spain's Barcelona are not on top this year.  The Bavarians are mired in controversy as they faced sharp criticism for losing two games in a row, unheard of from these southern dominators.   In England, Manchester United, winner of a record 13 Premier League titles, is struggling simply to stay in the top half of the standings. Arsenal, on the other hand, whom have sunk to the depths in recent years, have now won nine straight games, which has their fans saying that they "have our Arsenal back."  Gunners fans everywhere rejoice. 

Oddly enough, FC Barcelona have insisted they have  no plans to re-sign Neymar from Paris St Germain, the club's vice-president Jordi Cardoner said on Friday, knocking down media reports the La Liga champions were ready to tempt the Brazilian forward back.

Neymar won two La Liga titles and the 2015 Champions League in four years with Barca and formed a lethal partnership with Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi, departing in July 2017 after the Paris giants exercised his release clause, and offered him lots of money.  "No-one on the Barca board has talked about the possibility of bringing back Neymar, right now we can't give an answer because no-one has even mentioned it," Cardoner told radio station SER Catalunya on Friday.

Bayern Munich, which has lost two in a row for the first time since May 2015, heads to Volkswagen Arena to play Wolfsburg, a team that hasn’t beaten the six-time defending champs in eight games. Bayern will start the day in fifth place, four points back of league-leading Borussia Dortmund, the league’s only unbeaten team. Dortmund will play at last-place Stuttgart. Dortmund has 23 goals in seven games, seven more than anyone else in the Bundesliga, and has the league’s top scorer in Paco Alcacer, who has six goals, and the leader in assists, Jadon Sancho, who has six.

 In the Premier League Manchester United has won just half its first eight matches this season and has a negative goal differential, a start that has put Jose Mourinho’s future as coach in danger. The Reds head to Stamford Bridge on Saturday to play unbeaten Chelsea, a team that hasn’t lost in 12 matches dating to last season. Chelsea’s Eden Hazard leads the league with seven goals.

The Spanish standings look strange with anyone other than Barcelona or either of the two Madrid teams at the top. But after two months it’s dominant Sevilla — a team that won its only league title in 1946 — leading the way. On Saturday, Sevilla travels to Camp Nou to play struggling Barcelona, which hasn’t won in more than a month. Real Madrid, which hasn’t won or scored in three games, will try to end both streaks at home against Levante. Whither CR?

Saturday Sport: Bolt into Soccer, Cricket jumps

Usian Bolt is well known to anyone who has followed the Olympics in recent years.  The Jamaican sprinter takes center stage whenever he approaches track for a race.  He is currently the world record holder in 100 meters.  

He has recently started a "second career" in Australia, playing soccer on an A league team for an indefinite trial.  The Sprinter scored his first goals in professional football Friday after starting up front in a pre-season game for Australia's Central Coast Mariners.  He suffered a kick to the groin early in the game, but within half an hour had recovered sufficiently to score two goals within 14 minutes, as his team triumphed 4-0 over Macarthur South West United in Sydney. 

International Cricket is heating up these days as it tends to do this time of year.  The West Indies is visiting India for a two Test match series.  Having dropped the first Test, they did well the first day of the second test at Hyderabad, convincing everyone before tea was taken that they  had learned their lessons and they are a different team this week. England is touring Sri Lanka, but so far have seen not much action, besides their touring truck being stuck in the mud... 

Meanwhile, Pakistan and Australia are meeting for a two Test series in the middles east, with games in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.  In the first Test, Pakistan let defeat be snatched from the jaws of victory, or rather, Australia greatly rallied to achieve a draw in the match.  Their 139.5 overs was the most an Australian side have faced in the fourth innings of a Test in 47 years.   

It was underpinned by one of the most heroic innings in Australian Test history, the 141 made by Usman Khawaja.  His eight hour, 44 minute occupation of the crease was the second longest by anyone in the fourth innings of a Test, after Michael Atherton’s marathon in Johannesburg in 1995. And he also became the first Pakistan-born player to score a Test century against Pakistan.

Sport Saturday: Updated Soccer and Cricket

The Association Football World Cup kicked off in grand style Thursday evening, and continued with some great games on Friday.  

In the premier game of the day, Portugal vs. Spain, the European champions, Portugal, could only battle to a draw against powerful but coachless Spain, all on the backs of a hat trick, three goals, scored by the top world player and Portugal standout, Cristiano Ronaldo.  The Spaniards, down two to one at the half, battled back and were ahead 3-2 as the end of regulation time approached.  Ronaldo carried out unbelievable feat as time ran out to escape with a draw.  

Saturday promises more group play.  In the first game of the day France will take on Australia, then Argentina hosts Iceland, Peru hosts Denmark, and Croatia hosts Nigeria.  

In international Cricket, Afghanistan travelled to India to take on the number one team in the world, and dropped early.  In their test match, which unbelievably lasted fewer than two days, India manhandled the competition.   

India, preparing for their tour of England which will come later in the Summer, are in top form.  The margin of victory – an innings and 262 runs - was crushing. The manner of it, even more so. All over within two days – the first time a Test in the subcontinent had ever finished before the third day. Each of Afghanistan’s two innings lasted less than a session.

Top ranked England was majorly embarrassed on Sunday, with a shock six-run defeat  in a One Day International  (ODI) Sunday at the hands of  Scotland.  They rebounded Wednesday  with a three-wicket victory over Australia in their one-day international series-opener at The Adelaide Oval. They reached their goal of 215 before finishing on 218 for seven with six overs to spare.

In other cricket news, Pakistan surged to a victory in their second Twenty20 international against Scotland in Edinburgh on Wednesday. They won with an 84 run rout.  In doing so, they won both games of their series.  Scotland, rightfully excited at the ODI win against number one England, was hoping for a T20 win over number one ranked Twenty20 champs Pakistan, but such was not to be. 

Sport Saturday: Irish Cricket and Spain, Spain, Spain

In Ireland, today the sport of Test Cricket makes its debut before the orange, white, and green.  Pakistan has come to Ireland for a one off Five Day Test Cricket Match, and Ireland will become only the 11th nation where Test Cricket is played.  The match was supposed to begin yesterday, in Dublin, but weather conditions scrubbed that inaugural bat.  So, today this match begins nine miles north of Dublin, at the Malahide ground at the Malahide Castle estate.   

It is not as if the Irish have never excelled at Cricket before. They have, in other formats, but never the supreme expression of Cricket greatness, the multiple day test match.  Once upon a time, not too many years ago, being a cricket player in Ireland could bring serious reproaches from the neighbors.  Perhaps with the spread of cricket into so many of the Asian countries, and Ireland no longer thinking just like an island, cricket has developed on these shores greatly in the last several years. 

There are records of cricket being played in the Emerald Isle as early is 1731.  It is just possible that, like soccer in both the USA and Ireland, the home country likes their own sports much better than something foreign.  Baseball and Football reign supreme in the US, Irish Football and hurling in Ireland.  This has not stopped Crickets development, though, and now this great advancement into the popular imagination of the Irish.  6.000 people reportedly braved the terrible conditions on Friday, in hopes of seeing the match, and waited until the game was called.  It is presumed they will return Saturday, perhaps with even more fans, to see the first day of a test match.  Capacity at the Malahide grounds is reportedly 11.500, let's hope they fill the grounds for an exciting test match! 

In Spain, preparations have been underway all week for the Grand Prix, to be held Saturday (to determine pole position) and the actual running on Sunday.  

A key player may be Max Verstappen, well known to readers of this space.  He won his first Formula One race in 2016 in Spain when he became, at 18 years old, the youngest driver ever to win  a Grand Prix race.  For a Hollander, this success has been great, and with the years he has become even better as a driver, and a better known quantity with the fans.  The Circuit de Catalunya was the site of his first victory, and he returns there for this Spanish Grand Prix.  It is said that Verstappen, who this season has been involved in accidents and incidents could use a quiet race, even coasting to fourth or fifth place would be good for him.   Sebastian Vettel remains a key opponent, of course.  It will be interesting, today, to see who achieves which pole positions.  

In the meantime also in Spain, Rafael Nadal has broken an old record, and been broken himself.  He broke John McEnroe's longstanding record for consecutive victories, at the Madrid open on Thursday, and Friday, on that same more or less home court, lost in the quarterfinals to nemesis Dominic Thiem.  Saturday will see some semifinal action before the finals on Sunday the 13th. 

In the meantime, also in Spain, the San Isidro Festival is ongoing at the Las Ventas Bullring in Madrid.  This is perhaps Spanish Bullfighting's most visible festival of the year.